The Winner AND Ginger Beer

Holy cats!  Is it the 15th already???  So I've entered some numbers into the random number generator and  the winner is......(drum-roll)...... Summerific!  Congratulations on winning the Salt Spring Strings Dying of Boredom contest!!!!! 

Summerific, I will be contacting you through Ravelry to get your address and ship out your skein of Malibrigo  Rasta and iDye.  Just head on over to the Stitches web site to choose your colour of iDye and let me know what you have chosen.

And now, as promised....GINGER BEER!

Traditionally ginger beer is a lemony, minty, fizzy drink.  But I like mine the way I like my life....SPICY!   (OK. My life isn't that spicy but I can dream can't I?) I use cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg to give this bevvy a ginger cookie taste and it's the yum!  The other up side of this recipe is that it makes a WICKED cocktail when you add ice and Gin.  Hello Gin & Ginger!

So here's what you need to make 4.5 litres:

• a large stainless steel pot
• a 5 litre mason jar
• 9 or10 16 0z mason jars
• strainers
• a food processor
• 4 litres of H2O
• 3 cups of ginger run through the food processor
• 3.25 cups of sugar
• 5 grams of wine yeast
• 1 Tbsp whole cloves
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg

• In your pot your going to put the water and heat it to a boil.

• Turn of the element and add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Congratulations!  You've just made a simple syrup.

• Add your ginger and the spices and stir.

• Now you're going to let this sit, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches body temperature.  When you poke a finger in it should not be hot.  If it's too hot it will kill the yeast.  If it's too cool it will not activate the yeast.  If you don't mind the mess, you can always pour a spoonful on your wrist.  If it's body temperature you won't really feel the liquid touching your skin.

  

• Next you're going to add the wine yeast.  Crazy Cat is displaying the wine yeast that I use.  I get it in the homemade boozy section of my grocery store.  You can add regular yeast but your finished product will have a yeastier flavour. 

• Now you're going to pour your concoction into your 5 litre jar and let it rest for  a couple of days.  This is where the yeast is going to do it's thing and belch and fart until your ginger beer gets a little fizzy.  Here Crazy Cat and Freaky Fido guard the concoction.....no peeking!

• OK!  Next you're going to strain your mixture two times!  Once through a large sieve to get rid of all of the big chunkyness and then...

• ...through cheesecloth into your smaller mason jars.  Jars that are just the right size for holding a Gin and Ginger.

And Viola!  Tower O' Ginger Beer!

At this point I put the whole batch in the fridge for a day to let it get really fizzy.  When you open a jar a pretty strong yeasty smell will come off of it but that dissipates in about 2 seconds.  This is very slightly alcoholic and will become more so the longer you let it sit.  How much more?  Your guess is as good as mine! Sounds like a good experiment to me!


Enjoy everybody and....


Peace on Your Heads!


Felix-Marie

Winners and Bombs!!!!

WOW....Is it the 15th already?  

This last month has seen me being too busy to blog as I have just moved into a beautiful new home with my crew and have been working feverishly to get it all organized.  After living in a 100 square foot house for almost a year (complete with outhouse, trailer a short walk away for cooking and shoveling snow in the winter to make coffee when my pipes froze) I am thrilled to be in a large open space where I can commit more time to the things I love...namely knitting, cooking up a storm and living sustainably within the confines of being realistic :0)

However my dear friends....You're not here for that today!  You're here to find out who the winners of the March contest are!!!!

Congratulations to Carmen who has won the beautiful book Feltique, and to Jamnut who has won the $20 gift certificate from Stitches Supplies for the Fibre Artist!  I will be in contact with both of you by the end of the day!  A BIG thank you to all of you who entered!

I would like very much to have another contest next month but, this time, I would like YOU to tell me what you would like to win!  Let me know in your comments!





Now....did I mention bombs???

Now that I have a real kitchen to work with again....and a REAL BATH TUB..."gush"....the first order of business was to have a decadent, scenty, melty, beautiful BATH!  It's bath bomb time!

My personal favorite bath bombs are chocolate chip vanilla made with real chocolate chips!

They are incredibly EASY to make!!!

Here's what you need:

• 16 oz of baking soda 
• 8 oz of corn starch 
• 8 oz of Epson salt
• 8 oz of citric acid (I get mine from Wicks and Wax)
• 1.25 cups of dark chocolate chips, chopped
• 3 tbsp of Witch Hazel (most pharmacies)
• 3 tsp of Vanilla essential oil (or to scent preference...I used Escents Tahitian Vanilla)
• 5 tbsp of grapeseed oil
• Some sort of mold. I use plastic fillable Christmas ornaments that I got from Michael's and have been known to use silicone molds.  Ice cream scoops work really well too!

Here's what you do:

1. Mix all of the dry ingredients in a bowl using a wire whisk to make sure everything is well blended.
2. Mix all of the wet ingredients into a bottle and shake until they are emulsified.
3. SLOWLY, and I mean slowly, pour the wet ingredients into the dry continually mixing with a wooden spoon as you go. You do not have to use all of the liquid.
4. When the mixture looks like wet sand do a test mold: pack the mixture into a mold and tap it out into your hand.  If it falls apart when you place it on your surface to dry then the mixture needs more liquid.
5. Once you have the right consistency just have at 'er and set your bombs out to dry for a day.  Then put them in an airtight container.  A pretty one if you have it :0)

At first your bath bombs will feel fragile, and they are!  Give them a full day to dry and they will get nice and hard!

On your first try you may find, as your bath bombs dry, that they kind of melt into one big puddle.  That means that you added too much liquid.  Not to worry!  Let them dry completely anyway and the next day break them up into chunks and put them in a container to use later.  They will still fizz, although not as much as usual, and they will make your water soft, fragrant and lovely!

These ones may not look pretty but they still do the job!

Now it's bath time!  Or, if you want, you can just do silly things with yer bath bombs :0)

 

Peace on your heads friends and feel free to ask questions!!!

Thai Lentil Soup & Quinoabouli!

So here I am amalgamating my pages for easier navigation! Why am I doing this? Because I just learned how ;0)

One of the things I'm infamous for in my family is making yearly cookbooks for Christmas. We're all old enough now that I don't know what the Sam Hell to give everyone, and I know we've all gotta eat, so I feel it's a practical and imaginative gift. I invent most of my recipes and I gotta tell ya, THEEEEYYY'RRRRE GREEEEAAAAT!

So eat up skinny and enjoy ;0)

 Thai Lentil Soup 

 This stuff is deeeeelish!!!!!

• 7 cups water 
• 2 cups red lentils, don't use canned! 
• 1 large carrot, diced 
• 1 medium pepper, diced 
• 1/2 large onion, chopped 
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced 
• 3 medium tomatoes, peeled and squished into the pot 
• 1 small zucchini, chopped 
• 1 small head of cauliflower, broken 
• 1 bunch of spinach (fresh!!!), chopped 
• 1 bunch of cilantro, chopped 
• 1/2 of those small skinny tins of tomato paste 
•  juice of 2 limes 
• 1 or 2 tsp (or to taste) of curry paste such as Patak's 
• 1 tbsp honey 
• 1 400 ml can of coconut milk 

Methodology: 

Put everything except for the coconut milk, honey, lime juice and curry paste into the pot. Simmer until the lentils have dissolved and the veggies are very soft. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for another few minutes and serve! Enjoy this healthy meal and peace on your beautiful heads!

 Hmmmm, How about one more for the pot?

Quinoabouli!

A new twist on classic Tabbouleh.  I find this is a  nice change from Bulgar  which I find to be too heavy.  Quinoa is nice and fluffy and is packed with protein!

• 1 cup dry Quinoa
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 medium cloves garlic, crushed
• 4 green onions, minced
• 1 packed cup of fresh, minced parsley
• 15 or so fresh mint leaves, minced
• 2 medium Roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 small cucumber, diced

 Methodology: 

1. Cook Quinoa in 1 cup of water over medium heat until all the water is absorbed (aprox. 10 minutes).  You may wish to stir it a couple of times along the way. Cool this completely.
2. Combine the salt, lemon juice and garlic and set aside for about 20 minutes before adding to the Quinoa.
3. Add the green onions, parsley, mint, tomatoes, red pepper and cucumber and mix all thoroughly to coat with the dressing. 
4. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving so the flavours can meld.  Even better the next day!