Ramblin'

My birthday adventuring has now officially spanned two weeks. Starting a week prior to my actual birthday I've had more than my fair share of Michelle-centric activities. I'm ready to focus on other stuff for a while, but it was fun while it lasted! It culminated last night with a dinner with co-workers, preceded by nice long walk with Andrew. We saw dreamy buildings from another era as well as the very random sewing machine display. I guess it pays to act

like a tourist sometime and delight in things that would be annoying and confusing if passed everyday.

This past weekend included a snowy trip to the Chicago Brauhaus complete with hackepeter and creamed herring as well as the boot. Showing an amount of restrain befitting someone my age, I kept us to one boot (restraint cancelled out by multiple rounds of schnapps).

A week before we went to our very first beer dinner at Revolution Brewing in Logan Square. I've been for food and drinks before, but never to their upstairs room. It's got a vintage feel but

relaxed enough for the low country shrimp boil, which was the theme of the dinner. I was surprised (alarmed?) at the size of the beer pairings for a Monday night. Very generous. Portions for everything were bountiful.

The best pairings were lime chess pie with a hoppy beer they brew called

Anti-Hero (who knew hops and lemon meringue-type deserts go so well?), brunswick stew with Fistmas (poorly pictured to the right) and a smoked stout with cold smoked oysters. The latter was most remarkable in that the smoke taste did not overwhelm the beer and make it taste like drinkable ham, which in my opinion some of the other smoke beers do.

I'm more than happy that the revelry has ended so I can get back to normal life. Which apparently still includes beer and may also feature some archery.

It's not a bomb, it's bread!

This little package is headed for a new home owner sister-in-law I happen to have who just bought her first home in Nevada. I can only imagine the scrutiny this thing will receive as it's a. a barely wrapped beer box and b. going to freakin' Las Vegas. Despite it's sketchiness, what is inside is in fact a loaf of Oatmeal Bread courtesy of me and Kim Boyce's book Good the Grain. Despite all odds, this recipe has become a weekly staple in my household excepting one week we lived through Mark Bittman's Rich Molasses Bread (he's not kidding - this is like a swamp of molasses) from How to Cook Everything.

The number of wholesome things sent to Las Vegas in dubious packages is probably quite slim, so I'm going to count my lucky stars if this arrives intact and delicious. In fact, should I get confirmation it was not a crumbly mess I'm going to immediately buy a lottery ticket and enough books of stamps to keep our postal workers employed until their salaries and pensions are raided to pay for another tax cut or war.

Digressions aside, I've come to decide that a good gift for new home owners might be a nice home baked loaf of bread. This doesn't except you from a more permanent purchase, of course, but it is a nice way to share some coziness with someone going through the horrid experience of moving, not to mention working with mortgage brokers. Hindsight is 20/20, but I clearly was remiss in not including a bottle of whiskey as well. At least we know that you can get in Vegas.

I am THAT Christmas jerk

I put on the Christmas station the day after Thanksgiving. That's a lie. I put it on before but I hide it because my husband hates it so.

I have been thinking about my Christmas Eve menu for weeks. Also a lie. I decided in August it would be German this year. A platter of sausages, Black Forest cake, red cabbage and probably a failed attempt at spaetzle. And some vegan stuff. I've become obsessed with the idea of making vegan recipes, just because, and including them with other meaty dishes. Probably further evidence of my jerkiness as I am basically offending everyone.

The garden is not yet fully harvested (CHARD is still in the house) and Halloween parties are all this week. Despite all this I can't shake my raging desire to revel in sparkles, pine-y displays and fake angels.

So, in order to maintain harmony in my house and the appearance of sanity to the world I am going to fulfill my hearts desire to live in the Christmas spirit for, like, 1 3/4 months by calling it organization. Yessir!! I'm going to be spending my time making lists, thinking of presents, checking it twice and organizing my house so that when the festivities actually begin (November 25 with Kristkindl Market in Chi FTW!!!) I'll be locked and loaded for fun and not last minute running around.

There is of course Martha Stewart and Etsy to fulfill your decor daydreaming and money spending. I also found Organized Christmas, a site that gives you a tip each day on how to get a hold of your crazy self and prepare for what many consider an ultimately unpleasant onslaught. Yesterday's tip was to plan out your calendar now to get the lay of the land. It also urged a reminder to not overbook yourself.

You know the idea that you should "pay yourself first" (that's a Madonna quote, I am sure.)? Well, do that with time as well. Block out days with your partners or just for yourself. For example, Sundays are days I am basically busy indefinately because it is a day allocated to chillaxing with my spouse. Having had 2 such weekends consecutively I cannot advocate this idea enough. And for all his scolding on becoming "that crazy Christmas person" come holiday time I'm sure he'll appreciate my efforts.

Where has the summer gone and what have I been doing?

Over the long 4th of July weekend, I headed to Mount Whitney in California with John and Dave to summit the highest peak in the United State's lower 48. Located just outside of a bunch of little towns (e.g., Lone Pine, Independence, Bishop) hardly anyone's heard of but in an area I love, I could easily see the still snow-packed peaks rising above the forests and drier salt desert shrub valleys further below.

Knowing I would be arriving from Las Vegas and acclimated to elevations between 3000-4500 feet, I was kind of worried about being above 10000 feet. I've never experienced altitude sickness but have seen friends struggle and knew it was one experience I wanted to avoid. With that in mind, we decided to spend a few nights at the lower elevations (8500 feet) of the Whitney Portal area before putting our packs on and heading up. Don't you love that name, the Whitney Portal?? I've heard John talk about it since I've know him, and a sort of mystique has been built up in my brain about it, like we were going to be transported somewhere once we entered. What I imagined was pretty vague. As it turns out the Whitney Portal consists of campgrounds for car and RV campers, parking lots for folks hitting the trails, including the Whitney Peak trailhead, creeks, a pond, which was surprisingly packed with avid fisherfolk and fish (hardly seemed like fair sport for the fish: imagine a big, couple-feet deep swimming pond that the fish can't escape and that tantalizing foods keep getting tossed into; we were a little worried there was one pair that appeared to be catching enough to serve at a restaurant ruh-ruh), and a shop that contains mostly souvenir-type stuff but also a cafe, an amazing and wonderful cafe. Check out that cinnamony pancake!!That'll get you ready for a backpack trip. Although the day I consumed at least half of that monster (plus bacon and eggs), I mostly sat around camp trying to keep the mosquitoes at bay. That's tough work too.

Out of two nights camping at the Portal, we did hear neighbor campers whistling and ringing bells like there was a gypsy wedding going on or something. Turns out they were "scaring" off a bear. I think Pepper-dog had the right idea for where the safest place in camp is should a bear of come by... Hey, isn't that box supposed to be used for keeping bears from our food, Pepper-dog?!?!?Anyway, to make a long story short, the Whitney Trail is pretty and long and kicked our butts. All along the trail, we kept running into folks who said there was still a lot of snow above Trail Camp (12000 feet), the highest campground and still 5 miles from the Summit, and that crampons and ice axes would be necessary. We had been planning a pretty mellow walk up the mountain and really weren't prepared with that kind of equipment, so we quickly scrapped the idea of summiting. With that change of plans, we ended up camping at the lower camp and just day hiked up to Trail Camp. Yes indeedy, there was still a lot of snow above Trial Camp, and I'm sure even more above that. Wowza, going down is faster than going up. Check out Dave's quick downhill descent. This was much steeper and scarier looking in person than in film.

This is what we saw as we bailed off the mountain around 5 p.m. on day two. Because we were all trying to save weight in our packs, none of us brought rainflys for our tents. This was unfortunate for us as we watched thunder clouds build all afternoon before we made the decision it would be in our best interest to be in dry hotel beds instead of soggy sleeping bags that night. This is one of those 'where's Waldo' pictures. Can you find the rainbow or lamebow as John called it? It really was bright and vivid in person but uncaptureable on film. And here is the really pretty Mirror Lake, which is an easy day hike, along the Whitney Trail.

Haze and laze

By Michelle

Summer has not been a bummer. There has been swimming, grilling, chillin' in the backyard with many a good book and gardening. Oh the gardening. It's mostly hopeful until the first tomatoes, peppers and squash erupt but at least the herb garden is super productive.

In fact, the herb garden is bigger and better than ever. On the left (foreground) I have dill, which I didn't even plant (though I may have absent minded-ly scattered seeds last year), apparently perennial oregano and sage explosion and some new additions including thyme and mint.

I'm on my second planting of arugula already, but really the first batch went to seed too quick for me to get much of it. I hear that technically you can eat it, but it will be bitter. I took a pass and let the compost heap have it.

In the background are perpendicular raised beds which were once located where the garage now stands. They house tomatoes galore as well as chard, cucumber (first time!) and summer squash (another first time plant). I'm debating taking a canning class, which should be mandatory since I'll be helping to host a class on preserving the harvest (eek!). At least I know how to freeze and can impart this wonderful wisdom to others.

I'm figuring out garlic still, and it certainly looks cool, but there's more to learn. It did make its debut in pizza sauce.

It lacked the paper skins outside the cloves and the bulb itself. I think there's some next step I should be taking that I'll probably figure out very soon, hopefully before the garlic rots in the ground.

The hops are doing well despite my neglect. We are compensating by building them their own custom trellis (because it's dead simple and much cheaper than purchasing a ready made one). Still, they are not going to be brew-ready this year so my plan is to get a kit for the first batch. And since my office has switched to "summer hours" for Friday I'll have a little extra time to - finally - stop talking about it and actually brew some beer.

Mummy Spring

I had a bunch of reasons for getting out of Las Vegas to hike today... 1) the 98 degree high I saw forecasted for today, 2) endless hiking opportunities near the city - Spring Mountains, Sheep Mountains, Red Rock Canyon, Valley of Fire, Lake Mead - just to name a few, 3) new shoes (Montrail Masochist) arrived on Friday (love them), and 4) getting used to hiking at altitude for the upcoming Mount Whitney summit over the 4th of July.

Only a 30 minute drive into the Spring Mountains, and I was at the trailhead for the North Loop, with my destination of Mummy Spring along the trail. The thermometer on my car said 60 degrees, and it felt like it - chilly and refreshing. I was really glad to have packed a long-sleeved shirt. Quite a few vehicles parked at the trailhead, but my hike up was fairly quiet besides the birds and the wind. The trail switchbacks through forest of ponderosa pine, white fir, mountain mahogany, and the oldest living thing on earth, bristlecone pine, but there are plenty of openings with great views of the valleys below, including North Las Vegas. I really liked being able to see the change landscape and habitat types.Bristlecone pines may be my new favorite tree. They're stout and sturdy looking and really gnarly, with twisty branches. There's a really neat section of the hike where the trail crests a pass, and the hiker gets her first glimpse of Mummy Peak, very impressive, but even better, the trail drops a little bit and runs right through this "gate" of bristlecone pines. I loved it.Doing some reading, the trail continues to Kyle Canyon and access to summit Mount Charleston. Figure I'll save that 20-mile roundtrip hike for a weekend backpack trip. So here was my final destination, which I'm guessing was running better than normal because of the extra snow during late winter storms.Hike summary... Round trip = ~6 miles Elevation range = 8401-9983 feet

I'm back, and it's time to make pizza.

I've been absent. No excuses, no good reasons, just been a little bit busy with work, travel, and life. I need to get back to the blogging habit, especially since this may be my last entry from the Country of northern Nevada. This upcoming weekend, I'm moving to the big city, Las Vegas. Yikes! One of the last places I ever thought I'd live, but I'm excited that I'll be in an area with more people that like to the same things in the outdoors that I do... hiking, running, climbing... Can't wait. But in the meantime, here's a little recipe that I make OFTEN, and I like that it is versatile and delicious. Today I added 2 T ground flax seeds, 1/2 tsp whole flax seeds, 1/2 tsp sesame seeds, and 2 T spelt flour and omitted all spices, just because I wanted to, but below is the basic recipe.

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Crust

• 1 (1/4 oz) package yeast


• 1 cup warm water (110-120 degrees F)


• 1 tsp sugar


• 1 cup whole wheat flour


• 1 1/2 cup all-purposed flour


• 2 tsp olive oil


• 1 tsp salt


• 1 tsp honey (optional)


• 1/2 tsp garlic powder (optional)


• 1/2 tsp oregano (optional)


• 1/2 tsp thyme (optional)

1. Combine yeast, water and sugar, stir until dissolved. Let proof, ~10 minutes.


2. Combine the remaining ingredients in another bowl.


3. Once yeast mixture is proofed, add to dry ingredients


4. Mix using dough hook or knead, ~10 minutes, adding more flour as necessary.


5. Let rest until doubled in size, ~1 hour.


6. Preheat baking stone in oven at 425 degrees F.


7. Roll out dough to desired thickness/size/shape. Lightly dust baking stone with cornmeal.


8. Partially bake crust ~2 minutes, then add sauce (see below), cheese, and toppings.

My Favorite Pizza Sauce

• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes


• 1 tsp sugar


• 1 tsp olive oil


• 1/4 tsp lemon juice


• 1/4 tsp salt


• 1/4 tsp oregano


• 1/8 tsp basil


• 1/8 tsp thyme


• 1/8 tsp garlic powder or 1-2 cloves minced/smashed garlic

1. Add tomatoes, including juice, to a medium saucepan. Use immersion blender to blend diced tomatoes.


2. Stir in the rest of the ingredients.


3. Bring to a boil.


4. Reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes.


5. Let cool before topping your pizza crust.