Sour Dough French Bread

I made some French bread today, but instead of just using the active sour dough starter, I added yeast as well.  It came out pretty good, with the added bonus of a much shorter rise time of 2 hours instead of 6.

What you need:

• 1 cup of active sour dough starter
• 2 1/2 tsp yeast
• 1/2 cup of warm water
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 egg
• 2-3 cups of flour (you may need more or less depending on humidity)

Putting it together:

• In a bowl, add the sour dough starter
• Add 1/2 cup of flour and mix until combined
• Allow to sit for about 30 minutes
• Put yeast and sugar in small bowl and add water
• Once yeast has bloomed, add to sour dough starter
• Mix to combine
• Add salt and egg, mixing to combine
• Begin adding flour 1/2 cup at a time
• Continue adding until well mixed. Dough should be somewhat sticky, but not TOO sticky.
• Once kneading is complete, cover and let rise until doubled in size: 60-90 minutes.
• After first rise, take out, punch down gently, and shape into loaf(s)
• Cover and let rise an additional 30 minutes
• Preheat oven to 425
• Bake for 18 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 200 degrees
• Remove and let cool at least 30 minutes before slicing
• Enjoy!!

Charting my Heart Rate

photo courtesy of...http://media.askideas.com/06/Exercise-Some-Motivation-Required-Funny-Picture.png
This is my first week back exercising after a week off and for the next 6-8 weeks, I have decided to switch from strength training to straight cardio. Because of this switch and to have a good way of judging my progress, I am starting to keep track of my heart rate (beats per minute-bpm's). I am going for a goal of reducing my immediate post exercise bpm's by 50+ within 1 minute. This is a very lofty goal, but something that I can strive for. This 50+ rate is what athletes are expected to achieve, not just regular folks like me. However, it is a goal and while I may not be able to attain it within the next several weeks, it will be interesting to see how close I can get.

This week, my immediate post exercise bpm was 149bpm's, after 1 minute, the average was 124bpm's...difference of 25. This falls into the normal catagory, but now I have a goal and, since I was stupid enough to post this, I also have motivation to continue :) Oh, I do not have a fitbit, so I'm doing it the old fashioned way...OH NO, MATH!!! :0

Zucchini Casserole

I made a zucchini casserole last night. It was fairly easy to do, I basically just chucked whatever veggies I could find and added them to the zucchini. I then added some feta, Parmesan, and some panko breadcrumbs. This is a good recipe to use if you want to empty out some veggies that you might not know what to do with.

What you Need:

• Zucchini, large
• Veggies (you can use frozen or fresh)
• Feta cheese
• Parmesan cheese
• Breadcrumbs

Putting it together: 

• Take your zucchini and remove the skin
• Remove the seeds. The easiest way to do this is to slice the zucchini lengthwise and use a large spoon to scarp out the seeds.
• Cut the zucchini into bite-sized cubes
• Steam the zucchini until tender (takes about 10-15 minutes)
• Once cooled, in a large bowl add the zucchini and all the other ingredients, except the breadcrumbs
• Add some salt, pepper, and any other herbs and spices you like
• Mix together
• Put everything into a 9 x 13 baking dish
• Sprinkle top with breadcrumbs and extra cheese
• Set oven to 350 and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes
• Enjoy!

My First Slideshare Presentation

This is my first Slideshare presentation. I wanted to make a trailer for my retaining wall book.

The Zombies are Coming

My daughter just recently got back from vacation and one of the things she brought back with her, is a fun whirligig. Of course, the next day, I put it up out back and have been enjoying it ever since.