Published July 21, 2009 by

Beginning

A year and half ago I was close to convincing my little sister to sing a version of the song below We are a Beginning at our wedding – in the end we chose a My Friend the Chocolate Cake song (slightly adapted) which suited the voices/band (or something) better. I really love these words. I was listening the other day and thinking about how they are applicable to the start of each day. I love the concept of rest (Not just because I love my bed so much!), but the idea of stopping everything: thought, action etc. and in some way starting over again when you wake up. Or stopping in the middle of the day for a period long enough to find a cleaner angle, one centered properly on God who is not bound by time. We too rarely or consciously do this.

May our standing ask permission
To be a kind of benediction
To a love we know is bigger than ourselves

The spirit and your witness
Is bearing light upon our weakness
Giving weight to what we cannot see alone

We come with what we are
We come with what we’ve done
We come with what we are
We are a beginning

In faith we look to Comfort
She is laying her old hands upon our souls as we discover
We are waking more to hope

Your committed celebration
Is part of our salvation
Holding on to what we know we cannot hold alone

Because we are not that strong
Sometimes afraid of what we’ve done
We are not that strong
But we are a beginning

We are a beginning

Pray for the bravery
To act upon the kindness of forgiveness
And the mystery of clarity sometimes
Mercy is grateful to go under all our failures
Thanks be to Christ for severity
That’s kissed us on our cheeks

May our standing ask permission
To be a kind of benediction
To a love we know is bigger than ourselves

Because we are not that strong
Most times afraid of what we’ve done
Oh we are not that strong
But we are a beginning

We are a beginning
We are a beginning
We are a beginning

Christianity Life Music

Published July 20, 2009 by

Ricotta and Basil Gnocchi

gnocchi

Ricotta and Basil Gnocchi

What I changed: Spinach in the butter sauce and more fresh on top and some basil pesto in the gnocchi as I didn’t have quite enough basil. Used the freezer for 20mins or so instead of putting it in the fridge for 1.5hrs.

What I would change: No butter sauce, something tomatoey – although not so much to drown out the yum gnocchi.

Preparation Time 15 minutes

Cooking Time 15 minutes

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 300g fresh ricotta
  • 100g creamy feta, crumbled
  • 20g (1/4 cup) finely grated Parmesan
  • 1 egg, lightly whisked
  • 75g (1/2 cup) plain flour
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
  • Salt & freshly ground black pepper
  • Plain flour, extra, to dust
  • 100g unsalted butter, cubed
  • 28 basil leaves
  • Finely shredded or shaved Parmesan, to serve

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 150°C. Place ricotta, feta, parmesan and egg in bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Add flour and process until just combined. Transfer to a bowl and stir in chopped basil. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and place in the fridge for 1 1/2 hours to chill.
  2. Use a sieve to dust a baking tray with some extra plain flour. Use 2 teaspoons to scoop ricotta mixture, shape into rough balls and drop in a single layer on tray (makes about 24). Dust with flour.
  3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to boil over high heat. Carefully drop half the gnocchi, 1 at a time, into the water. Cook, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until just cooked through. Use a slotted spoon to transfer gnocchi to an ovenproof dish. Cover with foil and place in preheated oven to keep warm. Return water to the boil and repeat with the remaining gnocchi.
  4. Melt 40g of the butter in a frying pan over medium heat until it foams. Add basil leaves and cook, shaking pan often, for 1-2 minutes or until basil is crisp but not brown. Drain on paper towel. Discard butter and wipe pan clean with paper towel. Add remaining butter to pan and heat over medium heat for 2 minutes or until it turns a light brown. Remove from heat immediately.
  5. Place gnocchi on plates, spoon over brown butter, top with crisp basil and extra parmesan.

recipe from taste.com.au

Cooking

Published July 20, 2009 by

Coffee almost-art

almostcoffeeart1

Although Melbourne Coffee Review doesn’t think much of coffee art, I am still out to perfect it. There are difficulties with home machines in getting the milk right (ie. hot enough, quickly enough) but this morning I must have done something right, as the picture suggests; should my technique have been slightly better perhaps we would’ve seen the elusive free pour leaf (which is the the one and only goal – until I reach that and find something else I’d like to do).

So to clarify, I don’t work as a barista – although I recently indulged in a course that was fun and taught me a little more than I knew already. I’d rather work as a designer once I finish this last semester of uni, being a barista might possibly be the temporary fall back plan in case I wind up living out in woop-woop (That story to come when I’m allowed to share it) although I’d probably try wedge myself into some kind of photography job if that ever occurs.

Espresso tips:

  • Own a grinder with grind settings… (one day, one day). However the coffee you can make with pre-ground, if you’re careful can be okay, so do proceed.
  • Buy Fairtrade
  • Grind the beans yourself (see the first and last point – I don’t do this and it makes me sad)
  • White dots in the lovely brown crema shouldn’t be there! (see point 1)
  • 30 second extraction for 30mls of espresso (see point 1 – not usually or always possible with pre-ground)

Milk frothing tips:

  • Hot, fast steam wand
  • No noise after the initial, ‘put the wand in the milk’
  • Use a milk thermometer if you have no idea, or your heat tolerance in your hands clearly isn’t high enough (like mine)
  • If you don’t use a thermometer, heat your milk until you can’t touch the jug and maybe give it a tiny bit extra
  • If you can smell your milk you’ve burnt it
  • Sit the wand just under the surface at the top of the milk and NOT so it bubbles
  • Do not freaking wave the jug up and down, it should just sit there.
  • Milk should be smooth and silky and not have air bubbles

Coffee Uni Work

Published July 17, 2009 by

Earl Grey Cupcakes

earlgrey

This is quite a spectacularly different recipe. They taste quite like earl grey so if you don’t like it, don’t make them. They do taste SO good.

Preparation Time 20 – 40 minutes

Cooking Time 20 minutes

Makes 12

Ingredients

  • Melted butter, for greasing
  • 2 Earl Grey tea bags
  • 60ml (1/4 cup) boiling water
  • 80ml (1/3 cup) milk
  • 100g butter, at room temperature
  • 2 eggs
  • 160g (2/3 cup) caster sugar
  • 190g (1 1/4 cups) self-raising flour

Marmalade icing

  • 230g (1 1/2 cups) pure icing sugar
  • 1 1/2 tbs breakfast marmalade
  • 1 1/2 tbs fresh orange juice, approximately

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush 12 medium (80ml/1/3 cup) muffin pans with the melted butter to lightly grease.
  2. Empty the tea leaves from the tea bags into a cup and add the boiling water. Set aside for 3 minutes. Stir in the milk and then transfer to a large bowl.
  3. Add the butter, eggs, sugar and flour to the tea mixture. Use electric beaters on low speed to beat until just combined. Increase speed to medium and beat until the mixture is pale and creamy (the mixture may look slightly curdled).
  4. Spoon the mixture evenly into the greased pans. Bake in preheated oven for 20-22 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted in the cakes comes out clean. Remove from the oven and set aside for 2-3 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool.
  5. Meanwhile, to make the marmalade icing, combine the icing sugar and marmalade in a small bowl. Add enough juice to make a very thick paste.
  6. Use a teaspoon dipped in hot water to spread the icing over the tops of the cooled cakes. Set aside for 15-20 minutes to allow the icing to set.

Recipe here for my record, incase it gets taken down or something crazy like that before I can write it out. From the brilliant taste.com.au

(and the charming photo taken under fluro lights… whoop whoop)

Cooking

Published July 16, 2009 by

Wii Fit Routines

wii-fit

We own a wii fit and we have for quite a while. I used it a lot when we first got it and then as the story typically goes, got too busy and started to ignore it.  Now as I’m waiting on some ‘next year information’ any joining of a gym has not happened – which one day we might at least try especially if we can do it with friends (Beth and Bri). I don’t play sport. I sit at the computer for a good portion of every day for both work and play. During uni, I walk to the station multiple times at both ends – low level stuff, but it is at least exercise.

Naturally, lying dormant and waiting in my lounge-room is an answer:

I just discovered (on my computer travels) this rather handly little website: Wii Fit Routine. Basically you can select a time/difficulty/area of desired affect and it’ll spit out a routine – or you can view the list for several alternate options. This is one of the primary weaknesses of the wii fit: no built in routines. I would love to just hit a: ‘hard/30minute’ button and have the wii fit take me through all that I have to do so I don’t shirk the difficult stuff or only do the stuff I enjoy. So this morning I kicked it off. And wow. I actually felt like I did some work. How terribly sad.

I am not overweight, but I am quite unfit and wouldn’t mind getting more fit and losing a few kilos wouldn’t hurt. So lets see how this goes then.

(And really if you own one you should try the Boxing, it’s really rather good!)

Life Technology