Easter Bread

A break in the alphabet challenge to bring you the yummy goodness that is Easter bread.  What makes Easter bread so yummy you say?  Is it the super secret family recipe handed down through the generations?  Or that special ingredient that makes it rise above the competition? (Hahaha, that's bread humor right there, "rise" above...get it?...yeah...)

 

No, what makes it so yummy is the colors!  Honestly, how could you not smile when you're eating a rainbow?  Although, when people ask how I make it, I do tell them the secret ingredient is Easter eggs.  Some people get it...quite a few don't. (Easter eggs are colored, the bread is colored...)

I have 2 variations for Easter bread, the first is a simple loaf, like above, the second is a four strand braid.  Both variations start out the same:

 

A box of food coloring and 1 box of bread mix PER color

 

I use a bread machine to do the mixing, if you don't use one that's fine.  Put the bread mix, yeast, and water (see back of box) in the machine.  Place 10-15 drops (for light colors) or 30-40 drops of food color (for more vibrant colors) where the water pooled. If you're not using a bread machine, mix the coloring into the water before you add the water to the dry ingredients.

 

 Set the machine to mix and go do something for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes place the dough in a flour dusted bowl and cover it with a towel to let it finish rising.  OR since this is a very time consuming process and like me you sometimes make the dough one day and assemble it all the next day, put a lid on the bowl and stick it in the fridge overnight.    The next day take it out and let it sit at room temperature for 45-60 minutes so it can warm up and rise a bit.

At this point all your dough has been made and given a chance to rise.  How many colors should you have?  Well this year I did 4, some years I do 5 or 6.  It depends on how insane I am at the time.

Divide your dough (I get 6 balls of each color if I'm making a loaf, 8 balls if I'm doing a braid) using a bit of flour to make the stickiness manageable.

  Take one of each color.  For the loaf version, you'll take a rolling pin and roll each ball into a rectangle shape.

   Layer the rectangles on top of each other.  

Starting at the short end, carefully roll up the layers to form the loaf.  Gently tuck the ends under and place in a lightly greased bread pan.  Cover with a towel and let raise (it will roughly double in size).  Bake at 400 F for 25 minutes (or follow the directions on the box if using a different mix)

 

For the braid version you're going to take your dough and roll them out like snakes...it reminds me of playing with play dough, only it smells yummier : )  How long do you make it?  Depends how much dough you have. Just have fun and do what feels right =P

 

 Take the ends at top and pinch them all together.  If you don't know how to do a 4 braid, here's a quick walk through.  Hopefully the pics will be enough : )  

 

 Take the blue and place it under the pink...

 

and then over the green...

 

and then under the purple.

Then we take the pink and  make it go under the green...

over the purple...

 

and under the pink. 

So the far left strand will always go under, over, under.

 

Continue braiding and then tuck the ends under.

 

Place on cookie sheet, cover with a towel and let raise, then bake the same as above.  These here are different sizes because I used different amounts of dough.

If you're like me and like to give things away during holidays, I take an extra step:

I take my braided bread, cut it in half, turn under the ends and place them in these mini bread pans.  Cover with towel, let rise, etc.

I wind up getting 16 mini loaves from 4 boxes of bread mix.  The bigger ones were given more time to rise, the smaller loaves came at the end when I just wanted to get the whole thing over with and didn't care that they hadn't fully risen before baking.  Don't be lazy like me, let your bread rise =P

So that's Easter bread.  Wow your friends and amaze your kids one of these Easters.  Have fun and make it your own!

N is for Novel

Ah...the great American novel.  It's what every writer aspires to produce...unless they're not American, then I suppose they hope to write the great "insert country here" novel.  Like many other budding writers, I spent the past November frantically writing for NaNoWriMo, with the dream of a 50k word novel that would be (quite obviously of course) the next number one best seller.

Needless to say that dream was dashed when my 50K+ word novel was accidentally lost (curse you computer virus!) and my back up misplaced (why are memory sticks so small?!?!?!)  So as I've been mourning my shot at fame, fortune, and movie deals, I've also been contemplating what exactly makes a novel.

Staring at my shelves full of books, I realized that if someone asked to borrow a novel, there are truly a select few that I would consider suggesting.  I decided perhaps my definition of a novel was skewed, until I realized that I don't really have a definition for a novel...I just kinda eyeball it.  So I went to the internet to search for the true meaning of what a novel is, because the internet never lies. Ever.

nov·el /ˈnɒvəl/ Show Spelled[nov-uhl] –noun  

1. a fictitious prose narrative of considerable length and complexity, portraying characters and usually presenting asequential organization of action and scenes. 

Upon  reading this I became aware of two things. 

1. Thanks to all those years of schooling, I was correct; novel is indeed a noun. 
2. I must have skipped that day in class when they discussed "prose".  The word conjured up images of Edgar Allen Poe, and I'm fairly certain he did not write a novel...unless he did indeed write a novel, in which case I am totally awesome for remembering that. 

prose /proʊz/ Show Spelled [prohz]  –noun 

1. the ordinary form of spoken or written language, without metrical structure, as distinguished from poetry or verse.

 Uh-huh...so...I suppose anything is a novel then.  But I know this can't be true, so I dig around some more and discover that I am not the only one that does not know what a novel is.  A lot of people online seem to think a novel is any book that is over 200 pages and is fun to read.  Wow... if that's all it takes to make a novel, I have a few history books that fit the bill.  So I kept wading through opinions on what makes a novel until I found one that kinda made sense:

"All novels are books, but not all books are novels. Equally, all novels are fiction, but not all fiction is novels. Novels are the longest of the classes of fiction. The other two are 'short story' and novella. A short story is what is says - a short story. Usually published in a magazine, but may be part of a collection of short stories. A novella is harder to define. It's longer than a short story, but shorter than a novel. A long novella may be published as a slim book on its own, or it may get padded with one or more short stories."

Ah.  I think I'm beginning to understand it now.  Then I stumbled upon a nifty little piece that broke up books by word count.

So now that I have all this knowledge, the number of "novels" on my shelves should have increased in my mind...right?  And yet, there are some books that I just can't give that title to.  Look at romance novels. Sure, I own more of those than any other type of book, I even call them novels, but in my head they aren't.  In my head they're labeled as "trashy guilty pleasure books".  If I asked you for a novel and you handed me one of those I'd think you didn't quite understand my request.

So I've decided on my definition of a novel.  In my mind, most novels are hardback (they seem classier that way lol), they're long, have an elegant writing style, and have such a great plot that even the clues dropped that you think you would pick up on, you don't. Not until the authors big reveal.  A novel is fresh and intriguing and keeps you guessing until the final page.  That, to me, is what makes a novel a novel. 

So here's my favorite novel so far.  The Thirteenth Tale.  It's the one I would suggest if asked.  It meets all my criteria and fits all the other definitions too.  If that's not enough to tempt you, the cover art is pretty freakin awesome...and come on.  Who doesn't judge a book by its cover?  Even a novel?

 

M is for Mercedes Lackey

Mercedes Lackey is a fantasy writer that I just adore.  I was introduced to her quite randomly one
day when I received The Serpent's Shadow in a box of free books.  At the time, fantasy was not really my thing.  I had read so many through middle and high school that I had begun to think myself a little too old to be caught up in such books.

It was the cover that drew me in.  It was so unlike any other book I had seen at the time.  I read it and fell in love.  This was one of the best fantasy books I had ever read, I was sure of it.  Not only was it a tale of magic and wizards fighting in Edwardian London, but it was a very cleverly disguised retelling of Snow White.

A new take on an old fairy tale brought me back to the world of fantasy, or to be more precise, the world of Mercedes Lackey.

I began to search for more of her books, hoping to find more fairy tale wonders to read.  I would not be disappointed.  I found The Gates of Sleep, a Sleeping Beauty retelling set in Victorian England. Then The Fire Rose, Beauty and the Beast set in 1905 San Fransisco. Phoenix and Ashes, Cinderella set during World War I in England.  The Wizard of London, The Snow Queen, again in Victorian London.  Reserved for the Cat, Puss in Boots, set in England.  And lastly The Black Swan, Swan Lake, Medieval period.

Now none of these books are exact retellings...if you know the fairytale you'll have no problem picking out their elements in her story.  They're kind of like re-imagined tales for grown ups.  At the moment I believe these are all of her fairy tale based books, although she has a whole slew of other fantasy books to read if you find you like her style.  There is a new one, Unnatural Issue, based on the fairy tale The King Who Wished to Marry His Daughter that comes out in June that I can't wait to get a hold of.

                                                    

L is for Labyrinth

...and for being late. I had finally caught up and thought I was doing well!

Labyrinth is a Jim Henson movie starring David Bowie and some random girl that every fan girl wishes she could be. Why? David Bowie, for one.  The first time I watched this movie I had a serious WTH? moment...it pretty much lasted throughout the whole movie.  I put it away near the back of my movie collection and forgot about it.

Fast forward a few years and I come across this book at the bookstore, The Goblins of Labyrinth, by Brian Froud.  It looked eerily familiar.  Browsing though the book I fell in love with the Labyrinth for the first time.

When I got home that night I googled the Labyrinth and spent the next few hours reading reviews, browsing fan art, and discovering the joy of fan fiction.

Fan fiction is amazing.  It's like finding that perfect story and after lamenting the fact that it's over you discover that it was only book one in a series of thousands.  It's a story lover's dream come true.

Now not all fan fiction is awesome.  Some of it will make you cringe and wonder how much the monkey with the typewriter got paid to pound this particular story out. But sometimes...sometimes you get a real gem.

If you're not already familiar with the Labyrinth, I would suggest you watch the movie first, or head on over here to read the novelization.  The book is long out of print, and what few copies do come available are quickly snatched (I saw one bidded up to nearly $300) so don't feel too bad reading this free copy.

Then head on over to fanfiction.net (movies > Labyrinth) to see the wonderful continuing stories of the Labyrinth.

Some fan fics that I love:   

My Fine Feathered Friend

(also known as the best fan fic ever!!!!)

Candies and Pumpkins

Within You

The Tshirt Incident

The Tshirt incident: Retaliation & Escalation 

Of Pineapples and Kings 

 And the beginnings of my own late to be updated Labyrinth fanfics:

http://www.fanfiction.net/~simply01

        

K is for KickStarter

I spent the day wracking my brain in vain, trying to think up a "k" word to write about.  As I sat in despair, staring at my Krystals and deciding that writing about fast food would be a last resort,  I received a weekly email update from a site I visit.  Looking though the links, I found something great. It was awesome.  It was so great it was beyond awesome.  I wanted to write about it.  I had to write about it. But alas...it did not start with a "k".  So as I was bookmarking it to save for another letter further in the month, and feeling rather sad, I came to realization that while it might not start with a "k", the website sure did!  Suddenly there was joy, my blogging mind was at peace, and all was right with the world once again.

I present to you the awesome website kickstarter.com .  KickStarter  is basically a funding website.  You come up with an awesome idea, an idea so great that it will radically change the world as we know it.  Okay, so maybe the idea's not quite at that level, but it's rather awesome none the less.  However, you find yourself lacking funds to pull off said idea.  This is where KickStarter comes into play.  Submit your idea for funding, set a goal of how much and when, and if enough people support you, your dream just became a reality.

So I can already hear you say, "well gee, that's neat and all, but what do I get out of it?"  This is the fun part.  when you donate money, you become a "backer".  Backer's usually recieve some form of compensation depending upon the level of their donation.  What the compensation is varies for each project.

"But wait!" you say, "what's all this about setting a goal of how much and when?"    A monetary goal is set in the vary beginning.  If this project can raise X amount of money within this allotted time frame, it's a go.  If the project fails to raise X amount of money within the allotted time frame, the project's dead.

"So what happened to the money I donated?" This is the genius of it all.  When you become a backer the money you give is put on hold. It works in the same way a hotel reservation does; you give them your credit card number (or paypal in this case) in order to reserve your room (funding level) however they don't process the payment until you get there (the project is a go).  So if the project receives enough money from backers, you pay, and if the project fails to get enough backers, it drops your hold and no money changes hands.

Since this site is open to anyone, you should really research the various projects to find the ones that are right for you.  Below you'll find some projects that I find rather interesting, even if I'm not backing them. 

SketchChair: Furniture Designed by You

Urbio Vertical Garden

Once Upon a Time

 Portable Fortitude: 54 Talismans; Reprint of unique deck

 June 4, 2011: Drawing Day (1 million drawings in 1 day)

 

J is for Japan

Japan's been in the news quite a bit lately.  It seems as if the earthquakes will never end and the damages just keep increasing.    I was amazed at the amount of art that has poured out in support of Japan since the first quake.  Here's a small sampling:

9.0

Redraw Japan

And then there are the artists that urge you to put your money where your mouth is...

Japan

Don't worry, they're not telling you to stop praying, just that prayers alone won't get them far.  Donate to the Red Cross if you can : )

And while so many are focused on Japan, we forget that other places, like New Zealand, were also hit pretty bad...

Quake

Why did we forget about those other places? Maybe because....

Don't Panic

Good luck Japan, I hope you recover quickly.  Good luck to you to, those other countries affected.

To see the original art works click the links.  

All art copyright their creators over at DeviantArt.

I is for Illusion

Illusions...mere tricks played on our senses to distort reality.  It's like that old quote "What the eyes see and the ears hear, the mind perceives to be true."  Illusions are why we've spent centuries enthralled by magicians, why kids love those magic box sets that never seem to work, and why we're always a bit disappointed when someone explains the mystery of a certain trick.

So for your viewing pleasure today, I present you with some illusions.  To learn how they work click their links, to preserve the magic of it all, pass it by.

Stare at the center for 30 seconds   Learn More

Are those horizontal lines parallel or slanted?  Learn More

Is she spinning to the left...or to the right?  Learn More

Are squares A and B the same color?  Learn More

Ever wonder what this would like in real life?  Mystery Solved

Well wasn't that fun?  If you ever have time to waste, go check out www.moillusions.com they have some pretty neat illusions too.

H is for Haiku

It took for eeeever to think up an H word, and I'm still a day behind.

So a haiku is a type of Japanese poetry that when translated over into English results in a 3 line poem of 5/7/5 syllables.  Sounds pretty easy right?  And it is...most of the time.  I've written several over the years, every time poetry was covered in school it seemed writing one was a requirement.  Which is why I was a bit perplexed when after half a day I still had nothing.  Was I worried? No! After all, I have the internet and am well versed in the ways of google.

So I present to you a haiku generator! Tada!  It randomly puts together lines of 5/7/5 so some...okay most...of the hiaku's generated will leave you a tad confused.  At least I was.  So I took the 5/7/5's that I liked (some are just too weird lol) and mashed them together to make my own haiku's

lucid dreams calling

lost in silence in her eyes

a blown kiss wanders

robins call softer

the river sleeps lost, broken

haunted dreams struck down

So go give that generator a whirl and see what crazy haiku you can come up with : )

G is for Golf

Or mini golf in this case : )  I went to Congo River Golf on Friday and had an awesome time. It's a winding 18 hole course that takes you through the adventures of the famous African Congo explorers Henry Stanley and Dr. David Livingstone.  We went to the one on International Drive and found ourselves, of course, surrounded by tourists.  Apparently there is no such thing as mini gold in England if I were to guess by the huge number of British families we encountered. It was an interesting course in that it seems to consist of 3 or 4 levels...all I know is there were quite a few stairs and I stared in awe and baited breath as I watched one family maneuver a baby stroller through the levels.

After our riveting 18 holes, of which I did a laughable job of 19 over par, we went to visit the turtles.  Yep, turtles.  They have a rather large pond filled with about 15 turtles that swim around and eat the 25cent turtle food that you can throw at them.  Most of them were sleeping when we saw them, then again we were there at like 10pm and I don't think too many turtles are night owls.

So with a good-bye to the sleeping  turtles we moved on to the gators. Yep, they have gators too.  For a small price you can take a photo of yourself holding one (bring your own camera) or feed them bits of hot dog from a special sort of fishing rod.  It was kind of exciting to watch them feed.  They're rather small, the biggest was no more than my arms length snout to tail, but still pretty strong.  Some would clamp down on that special hook they use to hold the hot dog and refuse to let go.  The people would tug on the poles trying to free the hook, and the gator would go into a death roll  to try and make it stop.  They would eventually let go to the delight of the person holding the pole.

Being a Floridian and being around gators enough to know that even at that size they're not something I'd want to go up against, it was rather funny to hear how these tourist talked about them.  Mostly they called them dumb little animals too stupid to let go of a hook, and why would anyone in their right minds be afraid of these things? I mean really, they don't even have teeth!   Really...No teeth?  I would love to hear you say that when one of them is clamping down on you.  Just because you didn't see 4 inch teeth doesn't mean they're toothless.  And that whole death roll thing?  Yeah, kinda an instinct thing to kill the prey, which in this case was the pole you kept jerking around.

 So, mini golf...  It was really fun and if you've never been, or haven't been in a while, I really suggest you go.  Since this place was open rather late, go make a night of it, it's a lot more fun to play when you don't have the Florida sun beating down on you.