A Homebrewer Is Born

Lauren gave me a Mr Beer Homebrewing Kit for Christmas, and let's just say that I was quite excite to receive said gift...maybe too excited, but who are you to judge. The kit came with a 2 gallon fermenter, 8 Plastic 1-Liter bottles and caps, and the ingredients for a West Coast Pale Ale Style beer. Thus, for my inaugural brew I decided to go with the West Coast Pale Ale.

WCPA Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 Can of West Coast Pale Ale Hopped Malt Extract
1 Package of Booster (a brewing adjunct made from corn syrup solids that adds body and fermentable sugars)
1 Package of Standard Mr Beer Dry Brewing Yeast

Process:
Step 1- Sanitized all equipment using One-Step No Rinse Sanitizer
Step 2- Brought 4 cups of water to a boil and slowly whisked in 1 package of Booster
Step 3- Removed the pot from the heat and slowly whisked in the West Coast Pale Ale Hopped Malt Extract (this mixture is the wort)
Step 4- Filled the fermenter with 4 quarts of cold water
Step 5- Poured the wort into the fermenter
Step 6- Added more cool water to the fermenter until it reached 8.5 quarts and mixed very well
Step 7- Pitched the yeast and allowed it to rehydrate in the wort for 10 minutes
Step 8- Mixed the yeast into the wort and sealed the fermenter
Step 9- Moved fermenter into laundry room and let the yeast do their thing
Step 10- Filled 8 1-Liter bottles with 2 1/4 tsp. of granulated sugar each (this is how the beer becomes carbonated)
Step 11- Filled bottles with the beer from the fermenter and put the bottles in the laundry to condition at room temperature for 1 week
Step 12- Moved bottles to the refrigerator to cold condition for about 3 days

Results: Tasted a little sweet and flat without much body...but was drinkable and did not make anyone ill, so I consider it a successful first attempt.

Here's a pic

Mussels

We started our homemade Valentine's Day weekend tonight with mussels. The past few years we've opted to stay in for Valentine's Day instead of going out into crowded and over priced restaurants.

Suprisingly, the HEB in Waco does sell mussels - and the seafood guy even picked out the already dead ones. We only had to throw away 4 of them before they were steamed - and all of the ones we steamed opened.

Another bonus - mussels are pretty cheap, only around $4 a pound. I got 1.5 pounds and it was plenty for us!

This time I did a very simple version, only butter, white wine, shallots and garlic. It was very good - especially when the broth was soaked up with toasted bread. Next time I am thinking about a spicy thai version. You can bet there will be a next time!

ps - Mark LOVED this dinner. I'm guessing it will be a recurring dinner in our house!



Stay tuned for tomorrow's Valentine's Day dinner - cheese and chocolate fondue. A tradition!

Swoon...

As soon as I have a permanent address (who am I kidding...my own address), I really want one of these stamps!



LOOOVE it!

Go here to see more styles.

Praise You in this Storm

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You
and raised me up again
my strength is almost gone how can I carry on
if I can't find You
and as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

Ben and Katie in Haiti

My friend and fellow Pi Phi, Katie Kilpatrick, is in Haiti with her husband. The moved just a few weeks before the earthquake to teach at a school there. She has been updating her blog frequently (www.benandkatieinhaiti.com) and really presents a different perspective to everything that is happening in Haiti.

She posted the following lyrics from a Shane and Shane song today:

Come let us return He has torn us into pieces He has injured us come let us return to the Lord He will heal us He will bandage our wounds in just a short time He'll restore us in just a short time He'll restore His church so we might live we might live in His presence in His presence oh that we might know the Lord oh that we might know the Lord oh that we might know the Lord let us press on to know Him
let us press hard into Him
then as surely as the coming of the dawn
He will respond

Please go to her blog - www.benandkatieinhaiti.com - to read more and to donate if you wish.

Will it Waffle?

My brother got a waffle iron for Christmas this year - after he asked if he could use his panini maker to make waffles.

Looks like he should have started out with the waffle maker in the first place.

http://www.waffleizer.com/



The S'moreffles look particularly intriguing.

Mighty Life List

I saw this today - nothing too extreme - just small things. It's a good reminder that the small things sometimes mean the most.

http://mightygirl.com/2009/12/30/100-skills-everyone-should-master/