Homebrew Floats

A last weekend, I had my Housewarming and Beer Reveal Party where I released my first batch of homebrew ever! I got interested in brewing beer in DC when I helped a friend of mine, brew and bottle his beer. My beer turned out great! It was really rich with hints of chocolate and coffee, my two favorite things. The taste of my two favorite things in my favorite kind of beer, how could it get any better? But wait, then we made homemade ice cream and made homebrew floats! They were pretty fantastic.

Homebrew Stout Float Cheers!

I blogged about making ice cream last year (memorable day, there was an earthquake in DC). In that blog, I recommended my ice cream maker, the Mega Ice Cream Ball. But now I'm taking that back. We used the Mega Ball to make this ice cream and it is fun thing to do in a group cause everyone takes a turn and shaking the ball the make it. But this time, I couldn't get the top off to empty the ice. I used the tool to open it and by accident screwed it on instead of off and now there's no way to open it. I just had to throw it in the trash :( Now I'm in the market to buy an old fashioned crank ice cream maker. Keep your eyes peeled at garage sales for me!

The Sweater Challenge - The Countdown Continues

Well, I have 5 days left and I it's looking like I could make it. However, the next two days are going to be a wash because it's St. Patrick's Day weekend. Tomorrow the fun begins at 10am! So that really leaves 3 weeknights. Yikes!

I'm almost done with the left arm. I need to cast on the collar and figure out how to do the i-cord trim and button holes. Wish me luck!

almost done with the left sleeve

The Sweater Challenge!

Holy crap, I've had this blog for over a year now and I haven't yet blogged about sweaters. It's half the blog's namesake! You can tell how big my sweet tooth is :) Well now I've issued myself a 10-day sweater challenge. I started knitting this sweater the day after I moved into my new place in Chicago (Thanksgiving day weekend). I need to finish it by March 21st, cause it's for my dad. It was supposed to be a Christmas present. I wrapped it up for Christmas, when he opened it up the torso was finished up to the armpits. But since then, I haven't been as diligent as I should have been to finish it. Next week my Dad is coming down to Chicago for his birthday.

This is the final countdown. Can I do it? Ok enough blogging, back to knitting!

right arm almost finished, left arm not even started....

So many desserts, so little time - Ginger Pear Cake

I just spent a few days cooking on one of our ships. It was intense, lots of planning, several different dietary needs, along with a strict ship schedule to adhere to. Not to mention, 40 mouths to feed. Phew! :) I wanted to make desserts but just didn't have the time. So when I came back to land, I just wanted to bake and bake and bake! This is a recipe, I had planned on trying on the ship.

Ginger Pear Cake
4 cups peeled, cored and chopped pears - I used 4 Bosc Pears
1 cups white sugar - I used  scant cup
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour, you will need a bit more if you let the mixture sit overnight -  I didn't need more but it's a good reminder
1-2 inch knob of ginger peeled and grated on a micro plane grater about 1 tablespoon - I used 1 inch next time I will use more
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice - I didn't have pumpkin pie spice so I used another teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of allspice and 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
3 whole eggs
2/3 cup canola oil - I also didn't have canola oil so I used a bit less of olive oil
1 cup chopped pecans - pecans are expensive, I used walnuts

Directions

1. Combine the pears, sugar and fresh ginger and let stand for one hour or overnight

2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spray a 10 inch bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray.

3. Slightly beat the eggs and combine them with the oil, chopped pecans and pear mixture.

4. Stir the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and Pumpkin Pie Spice. Stir in the pear mixture. Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan. - I didn't have a bundt pan so I used a bread loaf pan and a regular cake pan. (Note from the original cook, I let my pear mixture macerate overnight and had to add about an extra 1/2 cup of flour to the mix or it would have been very runny)

5 .Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

 

It turned out very moist, a bit like banana bread. In the future, I may want to smash the pears or cut them a bit smaller. I may also make a ginger glace or serve it with whipped cream to make it more like a traditional cake. But will be perfect to bring into the office tomorrow for some sweets to go with their morning coffee :)