What I like about Muncie – so far

1. Living with Jane! God was looking out for us. I do not think things would have worked out this well if her internship had been  anywhere else.
2. Our house. Lots of room and an abundance of character.
3. The White River Greenway and the Cardinal Greenway.
   

Jane and I have been riding our bikes a good bit. We are even thinking about selling one of our cars.

4. Meijer Grocery. Muncie is a Marsh town. Their headquarters are in nearby Yorktown, so Kroger is not an option. I was expecting a ‘Super Wal-Mart’ experience — (yuck!), but I was impressed by the selection and quality of Meijer brand organic products. The meat counter was good– they have butchers on site and the packaged meat is not pumped full of “solution” and pressure packed in carbon monoxide. Produce is nice with a good selection of organic products.

No Knead bread

Water, Yeast, Flour, Salt, heat, & TimeMy first attempts at making yeast breads years ago were disappointing. The loaves would not rise properly and were leaden and doughy. I developed interests in other culinary pursuits and relied on local bakers to provide me with good loaves. (Bloomington is fortunate to have The Bake House as a terrific source of very good quality goodies.)

A recent article in Mother Earth News about a no knead bread recipe that appeared in the New York Times caught my attention and I decided to try it. I was awed by the ease of preparation and the good crust and taste. I have made 3 loaves already and have another two rising as I type this.

My research says that Cooks Illustrated tweaked the New York Times recipe. (See I Dine Around for an informative comparison.) I will experiment with theses recipe and post my results.

3/29 update- The picture shows two loaves I baked today. The one on the left is a whole wheat and flax seed version. The loaf on the right is white bread.

Deer Hunting (not just napping in the woods)

Yesterday was the opening day of deer hunting for those of us Hoosiers who do not know how to use a bow and arrow. My friends Phil and Ron were in our spots well before sunrise on what turned out to be beautiful fall day in Southern Indiana. None of us were successful in terms of venison on the table, but it felt great to be outdoors. I usually do not get more than one or two opportunities to hunt each year, but I want to change that in 2007.

Yes, Jane, I did get a brief nap in my blind, but I was so well camouflaged, I doubt any one saw me…

Chairman’s nephew!?! and other ICA comments

Sunday’s TheNext Iron Chef  finale prompted me to do a little research on the Iron Chef family of programs. Per Wikipedia, the “Chairman” is not related to Chairman Kaga from Iron Chef. In fact, both are actors. At least Chairman Kaga had style–or at least the key to Liberace’s closet.

My wife and I were surprised and pleased that Michael Symon won the competition to be the next Iron Chef. I think he has the right personality for the job.

Who Dey says your gonna get a good draft choice!

Well, at least my Bengals won Sunday. 7 field goals? Who kicks 7 field goals? Shayne Graham, thank God! I have never jumped off the Orange and Black bandwagon, but it’s moving slow and the ground looks soft. It’s probably good that I didn’t see the game, and I’m glad I didn’t pony up for Sunday Ticket on DirecTV. At this rate, it will be like the bad ol’ days and there will be very few national TV appearances.

Bad Coffee

My friend Phil and I agreed to meet yesterday so that we could get our shotguns sighted in for preparation for deer hunting. I was up early (for a Saturday) and it was cool outside, so I decided to make a pot of coffee, using fresh beans from a nice local store, Sahara Mart. I filled up my travel mug. I didn’t fill my big thermos, deciding to leave some for my wife Jane. It was so tasty that I drank it all before we got to the woods.

We stopped at a little grocery for a sandwiches and I thought “I would really like to have some more coffee”. I should have thought twice. Weak and bitter. Tepid. No half and half– only hydrogenated whitener. I didn’t finish it.

I woke up this morning and realized that there is nothing like a bad cup of coffee to highlight the lovely, rich goodness of fresh hot coffee with a nice dose of half and half. Next time I am taking the thermos.