Alex’s brother Ben married Kim this weekend. It was a happy handmade affair featuring: home-brewed beer by Alex, a home-sewn flower girl dress for Lil by Grandma Cindy (Thanks Mom!!), home-cooked food by Kim’s brother-in-law and a Taysetee cake by my sister Heather, origami flowers folded by the bride and groom for centerpieces and bouquets, and, the piece de resistance, one thousand gently folded paper cranes arranged as a background for the ceremony. Ben and [...]

I’m not back quite yet. April Fools! I convinced one more person to write for me this week, my husband Alex. Here’s a little bit from him about beer brewing. If you want more details or a tutorial, let me know in the comments. I’ve been brewing beer for over a decade now.  The justification at first was that I could save money by brewing my own tipple.  However, between the cost of the equipment [...]

I mentioned making beer cheese dip for a Superbowl party a few weeks ago and Kellie asked for the recipe. Ask and ye shall receive, readers! albeit on a delayed schedule… Alex made this dip from scratch. It follows the typical fondue method: dust grated cheese with flour and mustard, warm a liquid with spices, and gently stir the cheese into the liquid. Pour into a fondue pot or very warm dish. We served the [...]

Tonight we are comparing three stout beers: Rogue Chocolate Stout (Oregon), Bell’s Special Double Cream Stout (Michigan), and Goose Island Oatmeal Stout (Illinois). Why these three? They were the only stouts available tonight at the unusually understocked Pace Hi, our nearest fine beer carryout. First Impressions (head, aroma, and color) Rogue: Clean chocolate smell. Not much hop on the nose. Dark, near black color. Foamiest head. Bell’s: Slightly chocolate, dark malt nose. Dark brown, cloudy [...]

One of our rules is that what is in our liquor cabinet at the beginning of the year is fair game for drinking, even if it is foreign. Here is everything we start with, with links provided for the unusual or highly recommended: Tools:The Little Black Book of Cocktails by Virginia ReynoldsCocktail shakerSelection of shot glassesPlastic flaskSmall pocket flaskSIGG stainless steel flask/bottleWooden muddlerWooden reamerBeer bottle opener (wall mount, hand held, and Homer Simpson voiced)Wine bottle [...]

We are having some of our last foreign drinks until 2009. Last night we had friends visit from Cincinnati, so we went for something special. First was a very nice Brut Champagne from France followed by an Italian Prosecco (sparkling wine) and finished by Lindeman’s Cassis Lambic from Belgium. I also picked up a 4-pack of La Fin Du Monde by Unibroue of Quebec, Canada. I’ll miss all these drinks in the coming year, but [...]

On our way home from a Xmas lunch today, Alex and I were discussing the globalization of trade, especially food trade. We already make efforts to eat locally by participating in a Columbus area Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and shopping our local co-op grocery store. We buy durable goods from ethical businesses and limit our purchases to things we ‘need’ as much as we can. What’s left to do to limit our resource footprint? I [...]