I'm always charmed by the uneveness of my CSA produce from Angelic Organics. They pull all the carrots and we get all the carrots, lumps and bumps and warts included. A few years ago, I got an eggplant with a long tubular growth, right in the center of its "face"; I put a pair of Eamonn's sunglasses on it and enjoyed at least 10 min.s of hilarity until Eamonn, disgusted, grabbed his specs off the fruit. Sadly, I couldn't find that picture of the shaded aubergine, so you'll have to enjoy this zucchini duck I found on Google images...
Our friends in Europe don't feel the same way. Get a load of this...apparently, the European Union has something against eggplant noses (and braided carrots and twisted squash). There has been a rule on the books banning misshapen fruits and vegetables, although this is going to be repealed at the beginning of July. However, they are keeping the standards for apples, citrus, pears, tomatoes and strawberries. These have to be marked as substandard or intended for cooking, only.
What?!?!? I thought Europe was supposed to be so Green and Less Wasteful than Americans. Heaven forbid a parsnip should have an extra leg. What do they do to keep themselves amused after naptime, before fixing dinner?
For three November weekends in a row Bushel and Peck's is sponsoring Terri and Dan Dodge's soap making classes. They are the brains behind Double D's B's, and have already graced us with their bees and honey. Now it's soap-expertise.
Our first class was last Saturday; students decided what "flavor" soap they wanted to make--rosemary/calendula, lemongrass/poppyseed, honey-oatmeal, or peppermint--and organized ingredients (lye, oils, scents). We learned proportions, how to measure and mix, secrets to choosing smells and herbs. I was sitting next to the rosemary-calendula group and, man, that cleared my sinuses.
The ingredients are all vegetarian (although, old-schoolers can try a recipe with lard at home). The lye provides the cleansing action, the oils the moisturizing and the scents, well, provide the scents. Everything is mixed and the chemical reaction of the lye, water and oils creates a solution that cooks itself (the water and lye heat up to almost boiling, oil cools it back down). The mixture is poured into a mold, where it hardens for a day and then is removed to continue curing for another month. The lye combines with the oils during this 4-week long chemical reaction, after which is it officially soap. The recipe uses 5% more oil than will react with the lye; the final result--a beautiful, delicious smelling, moisturing (because of the extra oil) bar!
If you find yourself yearning to mix, there's still space on Nov. 15.
I'm always charmed by the uneveness of my CSA produce from Angelic Organics. They pull all the carrots and we get all the carrots, lumps and bumps and warts included. A few years ago, I got an eggplant with a long tubular growth, right in the center of its "face"; I put a pair of Eamonn's sunglasses on it and enjoyed at least 10 min.s of hilarity until Eamonn, disgusted, grabbed his specs off the fruit. Sadly, I couldn't find that picture of the shaded aubergine, so you'll have to enjoy this zucchini duck I found on Google images...
