Building a Better Sauce
I have learned much about cooking in the past month. I have read more and more cookbooks that deal with how to cook not just books of recipes. One of my culinary desires was to to create my own barbecue sauce. So after doing some reading I set out to make some sauce last Saturday.
It started with getting some bottles to hold my sauce, so I went and picked up three squeeze bottles. Then I came home and started mixing. My first sauce had I was looking for a good rich flavor, not too, not too sweet. It ended with a slightly overpowering cumin flavor, and a little more spicy than I wanted but had some good flavor. I had copied down the ingredients so I can replicate the sauce but without the cumin.
Then came sauce two, this one was my sweet sauce. Sweetened with molasses, brown sugar, honey, and maple syrup. I will probably make a few tweaks on it during the next try, but it was really good.
The third and final sauce was my spicy sauce, this was a vinegar and molasses based sauce with a decent kick, I wanted it a tad spicier but I tasted it when I was reducing it a little, and the heat (temperature) made the flavor hotter (flavor) than it was after it was chilled, so again I have some tweaks to make.
Then I had two friends over to try my sauces that evening, it was a byom BBQ so we had steaks and some burgers. Both of them like the flavors of them but I'm not quite sold on them yet, so I will continue to tweak, but I'm glad they enjoyed it. Let me know if you want to try my sauces, let me know, I'll see what I can do.
A Jack of all Trades, a Master of None
There are so many things at which I have learned how to do none of which do I feel I have mastered. I've wanted to write a post similar to this for some time and call it "stuff you didn't know I could do" or "Random Facts about Me", but I'm settling with the current title.
My current "trade" is teaching to which I have two years of on the job training and no more. I really enjoy it and have been told I am a natural teacher.
Other trades that I have been involved in...
I was a car prep at Enterprise Rent-a-Car and did a whole lot more than that.
I worked the grill and fryers at McDonald's and as well as helped assemble the burgers. (Anyone who knows me well, know I hate McDonald's.
I have worked as a Janitor in high school cleaning classrooms and bathrooms.
Those are the employed things I have done in my love. The longest of those jobs that I had was Enterprise where I work for 2 and 1/2 years. The shortest was McDonald's where I was there for 3 to 4 months.
How ever this is not the end of my know-how. Lets move on to my volunteer service.
I spent 3 high school summers working at Camp Ironwood, A Christian Camp in the Mojave Desert. During which time I:
Dug many ditches
Trimmed Shrubs,
Ran a cash register
Ran errands
Learn How to Edit Videos
Learn How to drive stick
Ran Plumbing
Did Inventory
Counted to 1000
Touched an Electric Fence
Counsel as Camp Counselor
Did Dishes in the Dish Palace
Take apart a Transmission
And did anything else they asked me to do.
I also learned a lot of other things too.
Now there are even more things to which I have learned how to do, that I don't necessarily remember where I learned them they go as follows:
How to frame a wall
Run and attach Electrical wire
Laid Tile
Laid Carpet.
There are things which I have been taught at home.
How to mow a lawn
How to take an engine out of a car (it never got put back)
Rebuild a lawn mower
Cross-stitch
Bake (real baking from scratch)
Cook
Bar-B-Que
Paint
Other Completely Random Things
I can solve a Rubik cube in 2 minutes
I can make a scorpion wire sculpture
I cam make a handful of origami
I make some awesome paper airplanes
I design website
I've played baseball, soccer, and basketball.
I've played the trumpet and tuba.
I've flown a plane,
I've acted in dramatic productions
I've been a puppeteer
I've preached in church
I've won debates in competition.
I'm not even sure this list is extensive or complete.
But I Don't want to get to the end of this post and say, look at all the things that I have done in my short life, I want to look at this list and say, "Thank You, God, for giving me a healthy life, where I have been given an opportunity to have learned and have been involved in so many things. As I don't know how many more days that I may have on this earth, teach me to use these things I have learned and to use them for your honor and will. May the talents you have given to me not be buried, but let them be multiplied and used to help others."
New Post Coming Soon
I am working up a new post entitled "Why I am not a Blogger". Post release date is scheduled for early 2010. I hope you will look forward to reading it.
Summer is near its end
It has been a fast summer. I'm not sure where to begin. It's been a while since I've posted anything at all and a lot has happened I doubt I'll be able to recall everything. Nor is everything that has happened worth recalling. As you may gave noticed if you visit my sight on a regular basis that the look has had a slight makeover. I am not completely finished tweeking with it because I need to spend several hours working on that and I'm not sure when I'll have time for that. Well maybe tomorrow after all it is Labor Day and I have the day off so maybe tomorrow will be a great day to work in it but I'm not making any promises.
I apologize to anybody who takes the time daily, weekly, or even monthly to check my site to see if I have posted. Becuase I have gotten away from my own habbit of looking at all your blogs. I will generally write more often when I'm reading what other people write.
Summer was fun. I work at bethel for eight week inthe summer school program working from eight to noon. The half days were really nice. Renae did not work during the summer so our afternoons were free to hang out and enjoy each others company. Near the end of July we took a week for vacation to Deleware with Renae's parents to go visit Renae's sister Rebekah and her husband Matt. The time away was very enjoyable. We went to the Deleware State Fair and to Washington DC and to Rehoboth Beach. We spent some time relaxing at their house and just spending time with everyone. After we came back for Delewarr Renae went to Oregon to go to my cousin Leroy's wedding. She spent the week with my family andcame back to southern California with Ruth and Daniel. Daniel then spent the weekend with us, we spent that Monday down in san Diego and were able to go make it to a padre game.
Two weeks ago my truck was broken into in our parking garage at the apartment complex the passenger door lock was broken and our gps was taken. It could have been a lot worse the door lock is about fifty bucks to replace and I could switch it out myself do I dint have to pay someone else to do it; and the gps was given to us. The truck was still there and nothing else was taken so we are thankful.
Two weeks ago in-service started here at bethel and school started last Monday. I am once again teaching fifth grade and yearbook but I am now teaching an intro to computers class. The yearbook class and the intro to computer class are 0 period classes this year. That means class starts at 7:05 and goes until 7:50. That's the hour before school starts. Yearbook meets three days a week and the computer class meets twice. So Monday through Friday at bethel from 7:00 to nearly 4:00. But I do enjoy it. My fifth grade class now has sixteen students nine girls and seven boys. Judging by the first week they are hard workers and great learners. I am looking forward to a great school year with them. Yesterday Renae and I spent the afternoon with her parents they came down and visited us they also brought dinner too. We had barbequed hamburgers and baked beans and fruit salad. I had made some snickerdoodle cookies earlier in afternoon so we ate them for desserts.
Tomorrow is labor day if you have the day off, enjoy it. If you have to work, I'm sorry that you do. I hope eveyone has a great day.
*this post was typed on my iPhone so please let me know if I have any major mistakes so I can fix them.
-hold nothing back
-let God have control
Summer school
So 4 days into summer school. It's pretty fun I have 9 second and third grade students that i'm instructing in math and reading and some language as well. I only work from eight to non so it's a really quick and enjoyable day. The kids are fun and I'm learning how to balance struggling students with more brilliant ones. Especially becuase I have two classes together.
Renae And I are settling into our new place Tuesday we got our bookshelves set up and yesterday and today we are working on finishing cleaning our old place so I'm in for a busy afternoon. We I got to get back to the playground. I'm loving my iPhone.
-hold nothing back
Owner of an iPhone
So last night I was asked to go talked to pastor Matt. When I did he said he wanted to give me his first generation iPhone. I was excited and speechless. So I am now an iPhone user. In fact, I am writing this post on my iPhone since I don't currently have Internet at my new apartment.
Yes that's right we have moved to a new place, this time in costa Mesa. If you need my new address just e-mail me and I'll get it to you. We are saving a couple hundred bucks a month by getting a slightly smaller space but it's totally worth it. My Internet should be turned on later today.
Also more news, I am teaching summer school starting today. I have a class of 10 second and third graders that I am instructing in math and reading. The teaching only goes till noon so I will still have most of my summer's days to be with Renae. Well I hope this new tool may enable me to write more often but we will see.
Famous Dave’s Field Trip… and more
I know the what more important is the "and more" so I'll start there. About 8:45 this morning I was told I needed to call my father at home. In my mind I immediately knew what I was going to be told. My Grandmother was just recently diagnosed with Lung Cancer and had been under some chemo which helped. About a month ago her doctors told that there wasn't much more they could do, and gave her about a year. My parent had seen them on Saturday; they enjoyed the time. So I called my father and my dad told me that she had passed away last night in her sleep. They think the cause of death was a heart attack, however since she was a sleep the hospice nurse said she probably didn't feel a thing. I went and found Renae and relay the news, and then talked with Pastor Davidson who was very comforting.
This afternoon, I had planned to take my yearbook class to Famous Dave's in celebration of finishing the yearbook. None of my five students had ever been so we were in for a treat. The food was GREAT! the student's loved it. I had the 2 meat combo with the beef brisket and a hot sausage link, with the sides of potato wedges and mashed potatoes, along with the cornbread and corn that always come with it. Here is some pics. Not going to do a restaurant review here, sorry.
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- Famous Dave’s Long Beach
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- Menu
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- Decor
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- Renae’s Brisket Sandwich
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- My Two Meat Combo
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- Tim’s brisket
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- Bryant and Tim’s Brisket
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- David’s Devil Spit Burger
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- Thalia’s ribs and chicken combo
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- Pokey’s Hot Wings
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- Enjoying the ribs…
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- David eyeing his burger.
-hold nothing back
-praise God because He's active
Entirely Way Too Long
It has been a long time since the last time I blogged, especially since I said I was going to blog the day after my previous post. I guess I should make promises I cannot keep. I will admit I have been working on redoing Bethel's website. Although the final version still maybe upwards of a month away.
Iron Chef was fun. The secret ingredient was cocoa powder. The game plan ended up to make stuff shell noodles with a spinach, cream cheese, ricotta cheese, and cocoa powder for the main dish. It turn out pretty descent. Our appetizer was cocoa biscuits, nasty things... we didn't have baking powder and the girl helping out substituted it with baking soda nasty nasty nasty. For dessert we picked a winner going with a chocolate pizza... Topped with chocolate cream cheese, and chocolate chips and peanut butter chips, drizzled with chocolate. My group got second place.... oh well. if it weren't for the nastybiscuits...
Everything else is going well. I've been able to keep up with the giants more this year than previous years, I have been listening to games on the radio which in great. they are doingok, 14-13 today. Second place in their division.... That means everyone else in the division with the exception of the blue team is doing horrible. The giants are 6.0 games back and have a 3 games series in LA this weekend... BEAT LA!!! BEAT LA!!!! Sweep the series and we'll be only 3 games back. Which brings up an interesting topic. Manny... that's rightManny Ramirez suspended for 50 games for taking a banded substance. Now is the time for any team in the NL West to capitalize on the blue team losing their star player. LET'S GO GIANTS!!!!! LET'S GO GIANTS!!!!!
To Jay, This next Tuesday afternoon I'm heading with my yearbook class to Famous Dave's Restaurant in Long Beach. Totally looking forward to it.
To Everyone: Don't forget to wish your mom a "Happy Mother's Day" this Sunday!
-hold nothing back
here are some iron chef activity pics
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- Simeon mixing the shell’s filling
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- discussing the buscuit recipe
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- some waiting time
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- stuffed shells prior to the sauce
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- with the sauce
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- anna
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- drizzling the chocolate sauce on the pizza
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- nasty nasty buscuits
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- using a double boiler method to melt our own choclate
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- baked stuffed shells
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- shells topped with cheese and basil
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- other team’s strawberries
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- other team’s pudding thingy
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- other team’s chocolate breaded chicken
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- other team’s mini croissant
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- other team’s crepes
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- matt with the other team’s pudding thingy
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- other team’s rice dusted with cocoa powder and cinnamon
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- evaluation form for the judging
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- other team’s choclate steak
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- other team’s choclate drink
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- the table with the creations
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- everyone
Spring Festival and Iron Chef
Last night was Bethel Baptist School's Spring Festival 2009. It was a blast. We had a 30 ft. inflatable slide, a jump house, a splash zone, can knock down, ping pong ball toss, dunk tank, and a ton of food. I was asked to volunteer for the dunk tank, so why not... just 15 minutes... It was pretty fun. I had told my class all week to be saving up there money to get me wet. At least 8 of my students tried to dunk my and several went 4 and 5 times if not more. I did the first 15 minutes of the festival just to get it done with; but I had a blast. Once I was out of the water I was helping supervise the dunk tank. About 2 hours later there was an empty block so I jumped in it again for another 15 minutes. My students all came running back to dunk me. This time I didn't get dunked for like the first 10 minutes. still had fun though. One seventh or eight grader who had been trying to get people dunked all day, got up to try and get me in. I told him if he missed with all his throws I would jump in... so I had to jump in. after his third miss. By the end of the day, I was tired and exhausted. We went home; I forced myself to stay awake until the Giants had finished their games, beating the D-backs 5-1. And then Sleep.
Today is an event I have been looking forward to for nearly two months. Are youth group is having a "Iron Chef" style of event. We'll meet at the church around noon. Pastor Matt will let us know the secret ingredient, and then we have about 3 hours to go shopping, go to our designated kitchen and make 4 courses which each contain the secrete ingredient. After the time is up we meet back at the church and have potluck with the prepared dishes. Each dish is judged by everyone and the group with the most points wins. I will probably write tomorrow to let you all know how it went. Complete with picture I hope.
- hold nothing back
Three 3.0+ Earthquakes
Probably my first memory as a kids was an earthquake. The Loma Prieta Earthquake 10/17/1989, I was not even 4 years old yet. My mom was cooking dinner, my Dad was doing some work in a library, and my older sister and I were probably playing. And it shook hard. Nothing broke in our house but there was a lot of damage throughout the Bay Area. Earthquake have always facinated me. I think it's quite the sensation to fell the ground quaking beneath you.
Tonight there were three earthquakes magnitude 3.0, 3.8 and 4.0 just some 20 miles from our apartment. I felt the 3.8 and the 4.0 for sure; the 3.0 followed the 4.0 by only a minute so I may have felt that one too. It got me excited and I thought I should share with all of you.