The Sirius.B website has some damn fine new photos up by Mr. Evan Smith, Mr. Andrew Fedynak, and Stoner Giltz. Go check 'em out at www.siriusbmusic.com.
For some wonderful ones of New Year's Eve by the latter two of those gentlemen, as well as an assortment of photos (like the front page photo) by Mr. Smith, go to the "images" section of the website.
Hope you enjoy!
Oh, and CDS for sale, as always, on the site. Get the existing CD before we come out with a new one. You'll be happy you did.
11 January 2010
09 January 2010
08 January 2010
Our Painted Home
Here's a brief vision of our lovely and freshly painted rooms. Much better than the pure purple of before. Sorry previous tenant--I like your paintings all over town, but I disagree with your home aesthetic.
06 January 2010
05 January 2010
The Big Chill
The fountains at Haywood Community College, in Clyde, NC.
And the dead animal heads in the hallway.
And the dead animal heads in the hallway.
The GO>WICH
1. Who eats this crap?
2. Do we normally eat "stopwiches"? I hate this type of word. It's like the word "moonbow". Do we normally enjoy looking at "sunbows"?
3. Isn't a sandwich already a fairly convenient food? Who is "going" so quickly that they need a "go>Wich" to prevent the insides of our sandwiches from flying all over the car?
4. What the hell is the point of the "greater than" sign? Is it just supposed to make the word look modern and "texty"?
04 January 2010
India and the Islands
Tonight, Beth and I prepared a delicious Indian feast for dinner, thus continuing on our recent trend of making delicious, amazing, and well developed meals.
I cooked up an Indian chicken dish, sort of a by-the-seat-of-the-pants type of dish. It was nicely spiced and cooked with yogurt and tomato and topped with peanuts. It was very nice. I also made a saag (spinach) paneer with the homemade paneer (Indian cheese) we made the other day. Beth made fantastic homemade naan bread. It was delicious.
We're topping it all off with some kava kava, a traditional beverage of Hawaii, Fiji, and some other places that is meant to have a soporific effect, in addition to making one feel an extreme sense of well-being. I have had it before (you buy the powder or root at health food stores, and there are different ways to prepare it) and have found it to be something akin to a strong cup of chamomile tea, though perhaps I prepared it wrong, and was thus cheated of the full experience.
But, practice make perfect. Perhaps this new method (for me) of blending it with water and straining it through a cloth will work better, and provide me with an island sense of well-being.
I'll keep you posted.
I cooked up an Indian chicken dish, sort of a by-the-seat-of-the-pants type of dish. It was nicely spiced and cooked with yogurt and tomato and topped with peanuts. It was very nice. I also made a saag (spinach) paneer with the homemade paneer (Indian cheese) we made the other day. Beth made fantastic homemade naan bread. It was delicious.
We're topping it all off with some kava kava, a traditional beverage of Hawaii, Fiji, and some other places that is meant to have a soporific effect, in addition to making one feel an extreme sense of well-being. I have had it before (you buy the powder or root at health food stores, and there are different ways to prepare it) and have found it to be something akin to a strong cup of chamomile tea, though perhaps I prepared it wrong, and was thus cheated of the full experience.
But, practice make perfect. Perhaps this new method (for me) of blending it with water and straining it through a cloth will work better, and provide me with an island sense of well-being.
I'll keep you posted.
02 January 2010
Ravioli
Beth, making garlic-ricotta ravioli after a long day of doing stuff (which started for me with a three mile unicycle ride, by the way). Regarding the day of doing stuff, see below (last post) for an idea.
Hippie Homesteading
Beth and I recently made the decision to stay here in Asheville, instead of possibly moving to New York as we had previously considered. Since deciding to stay here, we've been more and more enthusiastic about really throwing ourselves into the life that we're trying (and succeeding) to make here. We're planning to give extra energy to our pottery and other artistic pursuits (in Beth's case, this includes sewing) as well as working on making and growing all sorts of delicious foods and beverages. Basically, we figure that we can do a better job making healthy and amazing foods than most companies can do...and we can do so more cheaply as well.
This summer and fall we had a huge garden, and did some very basic canning and pickling to preserve some of the overflow of vegetables. We were, however, quite limited in our canning possibilities by our lack of a pressure cooker. Luckily, Christmas-time remedied this problem, so we've now got a pressure cooker. Basically, when canning (jarring, really, but the term used in canning) foods to preserve them, one must above all be worried about botulism. This is because botulism kills you. Unfortunately, botulism is not killed at 212 degrees (the temperature at which water boils), so the most basic methods of canning (basically putting jars of food in boiling water) will only work for high acid foods (because the botulism toxin cannot live in high acid environments). So, tomatoes can be done, as can pickled foods, since they're hanging out in the high acid vingegar world that makes them so delicious. In a pressure cooker, however, one can reach much higher temperatures, making it possible to kill the botulism toxin. As such, one can can (nice) all sorts of foods, including meats, soups, etc. So, we're excited by that new addition to our kitchen repetoire.
Recently I've been working on making Kombucha, which is a drink that Wikipedia defines like this:
The tea is sort of a "love it or hate it" type of thing. Many people (my wife Beth included) hate it and it makes them gag. Other people (like me) find it absolutely delicious and wonderful to drink. There are also many people that speak to the enormous health benefits of the drink (as it says above), and though I can't really say anything about that, I do feel really great when I drink the tea...So I tend to believe that something good is going on.
Making Kombucha is a relatively easy process -- I won't go into it all here, since there's quite a bit to say and many have already said it. Basically, one procures a live culture (known as a SCOBY) from a friend or another source. This weird strand-like thing is then placed with some pre-made kombucha into a batch of room temperature sweet tea and essentially left to sit. The culture grows and becomes crazy looking (see below). The tea goes through some sort of fermenatation process and becomes delicious. The final product is lightly fermented, slightly vinegary and has a (very) low alcohol content, somewhere around 0.5% or less. Check out some photos below. The last one is of a batch that is nearly finished. Basically, when the kombucha is good, you bottle it, often with some fruit or fruit juice (I did it today with blended strawberry and peach), cap it up, and let it ferment a few days more before refrigerating it, thereby stoppiing the fermentation process.
Beth has been getting into a lot of bread baking lately, so we've had the chance to sample all sorts of delicious loaves. Most recently she's been working with a 100 year old sourdough culture to make some really nice sourdough loaves. Tonight, she's making some homemade semolina ravioli.
Tonight, we started on a new project that we've been excited to do for a while -- cheese making. We've made yogurt cheese before (very easy, very delicious) but have never ventured into the use of actual milk to make cheese. We've started with a very simple paneer cheese, which is a soft Indian cheese, often eaten with spinach (saag paneer). In the photos below, you can see us boiling the milk (lots of stirring), straining out the whey (only the curds remain...the whey is a sort of nasty liquid, so I don't know what the hell Miss Muffett was thinking), and then pressing the cheese. I'll let you know how it turns out.
>
Finally, we'll be working very soon now (any day) on our very first batch of beer, which we're very excited about. My good friend Jason Weinstein was kind enough to get us a beer brewing kit for Christmas, and we've had some brewing equipment kicking around for a while as well, so that should be very interesting. I'll keep you posted on that too.
That's all for now. More soon.
This summer and fall we had a huge garden, and did some very basic canning and pickling to preserve some of the overflow of vegetables. We were, however, quite limited in our canning possibilities by our lack of a pressure cooker. Luckily, Christmas-time remedied this problem, so we've now got a pressure cooker. Basically, when canning (jarring, really, but the term used in canning) foods to preserve them, one must above all be worried about botulism. This is because botulism kills you. Unfortunately, botulism is not killed at 212 degrees (the temperature at which water boils), so the most basic methods of canning (basically putting jars of food in boiling water) will only work for high acid foods (because the botulism toxin cannot live in high acid environments). So, tomatoes can be done, as can pickled foods, since they're hanging out in the high acid vingegar world that makes them so delicious. In a pressure cooker, however, one can reach much higher temperatures, making it possible to kill the botulism toxin. As such, one can can (nice) all sorts of foods, including meats, soups, etc. So, we're excited by that new addition to our kitchen repetoire.
Recently I've been working on making Kombucha, which is a drink that Wikipedia defines like this:
Kombucha is a fermented tea that is imbibed for medicinal purposes. Although there is limited specific scientific information supporting any purported benefits due to a lack of studies being conducted, there does exist much anecdotal information purporting its historical medicinal value.[1]. Kombucha is available commercially, but can be made at home by fermenting tea using a visible solid mass of microorganisms called a kombucha culture or mushroom.
The tea is sort of a "love it or hate it" type of thing. Many people (my wife Beth included) hate it and it makes them gag. Other people (like me) find it absolutely delicious and wonderful to drink. There are also many people that speak to the enormous health benefits of the drink (as it says above), and though I can't really say anything about that, I do feel really great when I drink the tea...So I tend to believe that something good is going on.
Making Kombucha is a relatively easy process -- I won't go into it all here, since there's quite a bit to say and many have already said it. Basically, one procures a live culture (known as a SCOBY) from a friend or another source. This weird strand-like thing is then placed with some pre-made kombucha into a batch of room temperature sweet tea and essentially left to sit. The culture grows and becomes crazy looking (see below). The tea goes through some sort of fermenatation process and becomes delicious. The final product is lightly fermented, slightly vinegary and has a (very) low alcohol content, somewhere around 0.5% or less. Check out some photos below. The last one is of a batch that is nearly finished. Basically, when the kombucha is good, you bottle it, often with some fruit or fruit juice (I did it today with blended strawberry and peach), cap it up, and let it ferment a few days more before refrigerating it, thereby stoppiing the fermentation process.
Beth has been getting into a lot of bread baking lately, so we've had the chance to sample all sorts of delicious loaves. Most recently she's been working with a 100 year old sourdough culture to make some really nice sourdough loaves. Tonight, she's making some homemade semolina ravioli.
Tonight, we started on a new project that we've been excited to do for a while -- cheese making. We've made yogurt cheese before (very easy, very delicious) but have never ventured into the use of actual milk to make cheese. We've started with a very simple paneer cheese, which is a soft Indian cheese, often eaten with spinach (saag paneer). In the photos below, you can see us boiling the milk (lots of stirring), straining out the whey (only the curds remain...the whey is a sort of nasty liquid, so I don't know what the hell Miss Muffett was thinking), and then pressing the cheese. I'll let you know how it turns out.
>
Finally, we'll be working very soon now (any day) on our very first batch of beer, which we're very excited about. My good friend Jason Weinstein was kind enough to get us a beer brewing kit for Christmas, and we've had some brewing equipment kicking around for a while as well, so that should be very interesting. I'll keep you posted on that too.
That's all for now. More soon.
New year
Happy new year to all!
If you caught my show at bobo gallery on new years eve, thanks for coming out.
More soon, hopefully with some pictures of the show.
31 December 2009
India
I received an amazing package from my brother in India today. Check out the packaging. All the shirts and whatnot that he sent us were wrapped in cloth, which was then sewn and sealed with wax (presumably to prevent anyone from tampering with the package's contents, though also perhaps to strengthen the stitching).
30 December 2009
Eggs
A visual demonstration of the marked difference between truly farm fresh eggs and store bought eggs. In this case, even the store bought are cage free and organic. Note, however, the lovely, rich yellow color of the local egg as compared to the two store eggs. The taste is just as different too.
29 December 2009
Road
Nearly back in Asheville after some time away for christmas. I have a busy couple of days ahead of me preparing for Sirius.B's New Years Eve show. For more information and tickets, go to www.siriusbmusic.com.
28 December 2009
Viva Mexico
We just enjoyed some Mexican food at a restaurant in West Virginia called "Casa Gonzalez 3". Surprisingly, it was quite delicious. And, we had a great time chatting and joking with the waiters there....
Ah...West Virginia...like a little
Mexican outpost just off of Route 81.
Back in Asheville tomorrow night...Our holiday trip has been wonderful, but I sure am ready to get home.
Ah...West Virginia...like a little
Mexican outpost just off of Route 81.
Back in Asheville tomorrow night...Our holiday trip has been wonderful, but I sure am ready to get home.
26 December 2009
Seltzer
My friend Joey Sheehan thinks that I am strange because I enjoy seltzer. When we go to a bar and the night has progressed and we're feeling that whiskey is the way to go, I will usually order a whiskey on the rocks with a side of soda water...I enjoy the stuff--what can I say? He always makes fun of this order.
At home, I always have plenty of Seltzer at hand...or I don't, but then I'm sad.
Today, at Beth's grandmother's house, I had some seltzer, of the venerable brand, Polar.
IT WAS AMAZING!!!
So I bought some more to bring home.
At home, I always have plenty of Seltzer at hand...or I don't, but then I'm sad.
Today, at Beth's grandmother's house, I had some seltzer, of the venerable brand, Polar.
IT WAS AMAZING!!!
So I bought some more to bring home.
JP's
Tonight we met up with Beth's grandmother and continued our culinary travels around Mass. We visited my favorite restaurant in the area, JP's, for a delicious lobster roll...
Lobster rolls, for the uninitiated, are hot dog buns filled with lobster salad. As of a year ago, I had never even heard of these delicious treats, but I have had the great luck to have been introduced to them at JP's, a place that appears to be at least regionally known for their lobster rolls.
The establishment itself is a funny place, dark and cavernous and filled with mostly old people. It stands just next door to an Indian grocery store in a strip mall in Westborough, MA. No natural light enters JP's, as instead of windows, JP's only has wood paneling.
Lack of natural light, however, does not seem to have affected negatively their cooking skills. Their lobster salad is light, simple, and delicious. They use little mayonnaise and little else in the way of flavoring, though I have been known to put quite a bit of hot sauce on mine.
It was, in short, delicious. I will be sure to visit again next visit, as always...
Lobster rolls, for the uninitiated, are hot dog buns filled with lobster salad. As of a year ago, I had never even heard of these delicious treats, but I have had the great luck to have been introduced to them at JP's, a place that appears to be at least regionally known for their lobster rolls.
The establishment itself is a funny place, dark and cavernous and filled with mostly old people. It stands just next door to an Indian grocery store in a strip mall in Westborough, MA. No natural light enters JP's, as instead of windows, JP's only has wood paneling.
Lack of natural light, however, does not seem to have affected negatively their cooking skills. Their lobster salad is light, simple, and delicious. They use little mayonnaise and little else in the way of flavoring, though I have been known to put quite a bit of hot sauce on mine.
It was, in short, delicious. I will be sure to visit again next visit, as always...
Brunch
We had some friends over for brunch today at my mother in law's house. Unfortunately, about half of the invited guests were unable to make it, due to their sick children. We did get to hang with a couple of people though, and ate some fantastic food.
The menu:
Banana bread
Spanish tortilla (potato omelette)
broccoli rabe
Mt Mansfield Havarti cheese
Canadian bacon
Fruit
Note the brand of cheese. Our friend brought it from Vermont. She got it at a farmer's market in Stowe. It was amazing. You can find them on Facebook here.
Also note the tortilla. It did not photograph well, but it was the best one I have ever made. 'TWas delicious.
The menu:
Banana bread
Spanish tortilla (potato omelette)
broccoli rabe
Mt Mansfield Havarti cheese
Canadian bacon
Fruit
Note the brand of cheese. Our friend brought it from Vermont. She got it at a farmer's market in Stowe. It was amazing. You can find them on Facebook here.
Also note the tortilla. It did not photograph well, but it was the best one I have ever made. 'TWas delicious.
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