I Never Promised You an Organic Garden

I tried my hand at baking brownies from scratch this evening  unsupervised, and It definitely felt like my first baking fail. I was attempting to make Cooks Illustrated’s Chewy Brownies.  I have had problems with making box brownies in the past, and it seems my bad luck has followed me into the world of from-scratch baking.  From the beginning things went wrong:

• I used the wrong measuring cup and added a 1/4 cup of cocoa powder instead of the 1/3 cup the recipe called for and didn’t notice until it was too late to add more.  I tried to add some anyway.
• Once I was well past the point of no return, I realized that I was about 3/4 of a cup short on sugar.  After an “emergency” phone call to Matt at his meeting, I substituted powdered sugar for the missing granulated sugar. Who knows what that has done to the texture of the brownies
• The bowl I selected was not quite big enough for all my ingredients so by the end I was spilling quite a bit of flour over the edges as I mixed.  My shirt is now a lighter shade of blue.
• I nearly put  in two time more salt than the recipe called for. Just before I dumped it in, I realized I was supposed to add 3/4 of a TEASPOON and not a 3/4 of a tablespoon.
• The batter itself tasted pretty bitter before I poured it in the pan. I don’t know if that is because of the espresso the recipe called for, or because I didn’t use the right sugar, or because I added more cocoa at the last minute.  But I do know it didn’t taste anything like the box brownie mix I am used to.
• When I removed the brownies from the pan using the aluminum foil sling, the whole thing buckled and created a large crack down the middle of the brownies. (more…)

I got a new pannier for my bike, and I am really impressed!  It is a gorgeous purple bag made by Basil that hooks right on my rack.  Basil is a great company from Nederland that sells trendy bike accessories that make biking so much more fun.

My bag is the Jada-Shopper XL.  It is adorable and water resistant and has bottle-bands, adjustable carrying straps, a large front zipper-pocket, side pockets, inner pockets, and side hooks that hide away in a zipper pouch when not on the bike. It is perfect for commuting to work or running to the market to pick up a few things.  Matt and I took it to the farmers market, and I was able to get a load of veggies and a box of donuts inside. The inner pockets are also quite nice and allow for slipping in my wallet and phone if I don’t need my whole purse.

I have another Basil bag in the same pattern, but it is not quite as spacious.  I struggled to fit my purse and lunch bag in it when I biked to work.  With the new bag, that won’t be a problem at all.  The adjustable cloth straps on the new bag also make it much more usable.  The old bag has stiff, narrow handles that are just barely long enough to fit over my shoulder and cut in if any significant weight was in the bag.

Another plus to my new bag is the look.  It looks nothing like a pannier.  Instead it looks like a stylish tote bag that I am not embarrassed to carry anywhere.  The purple pattern is subtle but attractive, and the material is flexible so it is easy to carry.  There are also subtle reflective strips on either side of the bag that provide visibility in low light, while not getting in the way of the design.  The zipper pouch also hides the rack hooks nicely, so I have no problem with the hooks digging into my side even with a heavy load. I can see myself using this bag both on and off the bike for a number of different activities, including trips to the gym, farmers market, grocery store, work, and my knitting group.

I would recommend this bag to any female bike commuter looking for a versatile and attractive pannier.

I have been trying some new things on my bike commute to work the past week, and it is working out pretty well so far.  I have started biking down US40, which is a four-lane main road, instead of taking Main Street.  While US40 has a lot more traffic, the hills are less steep, the extra lanes give cars space to safely pass me, and there aren’t parked cars lining the street blocking my view and boxing me in.  I have been afraid of riding on US40 in the past because of the heavier, faster moving traffic, but after riding it on the tandem a number of times, I realized its benefits outweigh the challenges.  It has gotten to the point where I dreaded my ride down Main Street knowing I would be climbing steep hills squeezed between a parked car and a car passing me with oncoming traffic.  I have also enjoyed the change of scenery.  The new route still has that spark of  novelty that makes it more interesting. (more…)

For this week’s baking adventure, I made chocolate chip cookies.  Now before everyone starts protesting that anyone can make chocolate chip cookies and surely I have made them before,  these were not just any chocolate chip cookies.  These were Cooks Illustrated’s Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies, which roughly translates to amazingly tasty chocolate chip cookies with a lot of complicated steps added in. Not only that, but I had the added complication of trying to bake while Matt simultaneously made salsa. This means I had a lot less space than normal, and Matt wasn’t as readily available to grab things for me or check my progress.  Both of us trying to use the kitchen at the same time is not something I would enjoy repeating.

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My baking this week was directed much more by ingredients on hand (or not on hand) than a desire to make any particular dish. We were very low on flour and a few other key ingredients.  It also just so happened that I wanted to share my cookies with a group of friends, one of which is gluten intolerant.  So meringue cookies were the perfect solution.

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Group before the ride

We Did It! Matt and I biked to Oxford, Ohio and back this weekend, and we reached the metric century mark on the way.  For those you who don’t know, and I didn’t until Matt told me, a metric century is 62 miles.  We actually did 67 miles total, and it was quite an experience.  Five of us set off from Mark’s house at 7:30 Saturday morning, and we reached the Oxford Farmer’s Market at 10:30am.  After a tour of the farmer’s market, a nice lunch, and a visit to the Oxford bike shop, we got back on the bikes around 12:30pm and rode back to Richmond.  Matt and I got home around 4:00pm. (more…)

It is only the second week of my baking challenge, and I am already breaking the rules I created.  I had a really strong craving for chocolate-chocolate chip muffins this week, but alas Cooks Illustrated doesn’t have a recipe for them.  So, instead of making one of the Cooks Illustrated recipes like I was supposed to, I pull out another favorite in our house:  ”I’m Just Here For More Food” by Alton Brown.  To make up for my transgression, I did bake a batch of granola bars too, though. (more…)

Photo from Reid Ride 2010

I am quite excited about this coming Saturday!

Matt and I are biking to Oxford, Ohio, with a group of friends, on our borrowed tandem.  It is approximately 60 miles round trip, and we will be visiting the Oxford Farmer’s Market and having a yummy lunch at one of the Indian restaurants.  We have been planning for this trip since the beginning of the summer, and we have been going out on long rides to get ourselves ready.  So far our longest ride is just over 30 miles, but I am told by local cyclist that if I can go 30, I can go 60.  Let’s hope they are right! (more…)

I decided to start my baking adventure with a peach cake from the July/August 2011 Cooks Illustrated.  Peaches are in season right now, and we have a couple local sources so it seemed like a good place to start.  For a first dish this turned out to be a little bit more complicated and time consuming than I had hoped, but I have to say I am pleased with how the cake turned out.
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If you happen to be reading this while standing, let me advise you that now is a good time to sit down.  I have an announcement to make that many of you may find hard to believe …  I am baking.  In fact, it has become my newest project. (more…)