Happy 245th United States Marine Corps

Courage is endurance for one moment more…
- Unknown Marine Second Lieutenant in Vietnam 

Happy Birthday Devil Dogs!

 

Image source unknown but greatly appreciated. 

Pan De Muerto

PAN DE MUERTO

The best-known food associated with Day of the Dead is this slightly sweet and fragrant loaf. Typically formed into a round and decorated with additional dough rolled out to resemble bones, it is offered on altars for returning spirits as well as consumed by anyone involved in the holiday celebration. I asked a Santa Fe friend, Bill Ackerman, for his recipe because it’s the best I’ve tasted in either the United States or Mexico. Here’s his wonderful rendition, enhanced with anise oil and orange oil, which add much more flavor than the often-called-for aniseed and orange zest. All are available from online sources.

Makes 1 large round loaf, enough for 8 to 12 people

BREAD DOUGH

• 4 to 4½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon table salt
• 2 packages instant dry yeast
• ½ cup water
• 2 large eggs
• 4 large egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons orange blossom water
• 1 teaspoon orange oil
• ½ teaspoon anise oil
• 1½ sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled but still liquid Additional butter for greasing bowl

GLAZE

• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• ½ cup granulated sugar

• 
  

METHOD:

• For bread dough, first sift together 3 cups of flour with sugar and salt. In bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, combine yeast, water, eggs, egg yolks, orange oil, orange flower water and anise oil. As soon as it’s blended together, pour in melted butter and continue mixing until completely blended. With mixer running, gradually add sifted dry ingredients ¼ cup at a time. Switch to the mixer’s dough hook. Add additional flour, ¼ cup at a time, allowing each addition to be incorporated, and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add flour only until dough comes away from sides of mixer bowl and forms a ball around dough hook. Knead in mixer for 6 minutes, adjusting the speed to ensure hook is kneading dough rather than just pushing ball around bowl. Slower is usually better. The dough should become very soft, smooth, and not sticky.Place dough in large buttered bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and set aside to rise in a warm spot until doubled in size. This can take several hours. Punch down dough. Pull off ¾ cup dough to decorate top of loaf later, wrapping tightly in plastic and placing it in the refrigerator. Form remaining dough into a very tight ball. Place dough ball on parchment paper on a baking sheet, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in volume. Allow a couple of hours again. Patience here is key to a light, soft crumb.
• Place oven rack in lower third of oven. Preheat oven to 375° F.Shortly before the dough has fully risen, remove the reserved dough from the refrigerator to make the decorations. Remove a small piece and shape into a 1-inch ball. Flatten bottom and place this gently on top center of the bread. Roll out remaining reserved dough into a cylinder and cut it into 8 pieces. Form each piece into a bone shape. Carefully place bones on dough in whatever pattern strikes your fancy.
• Mix glaze, combining egg and water in small bowl. With pastry brush, apply a very light of coat of glaze over dough and decorations. Use only about half of glaze. The lighter the coat, the more delicate the crust. You will need to apply more halfway through baking. Sprinkle sugar evenly over entire surface, saving a little for the second glaze.
• Bake bread for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° F and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Briefly remove bread from oven, apply egg wash to any unglazed surfaces created by expansion of dough, apply sugar to those surfaces, and return to oven. Bake for another 20 to 25 minutes, until internal temperature of bread, measured on an instant-read thermometer, is 185° F. If browning too quickly, place a sheet of foil on top of loaf for the last few minutes of baking. Cool pan de muerto on a baking rack. Serve in wedges or simply pull loaf apart and enjoy in good company! 

 

 Happy Halloween! Happy Dia de los Muertos!

*Recipe source here

First Day of Autumn

Notice that autumn 

is more the season of the soul 

than of nature. 

- Friedrich Nietzsche

Image: Foraged Autumn Bouquet in Sepia - Dominique Allmon©2020

Happy World UFO Day

 

Buzzing Roswell Since 1947 Alien UFO Commander Science Fiction 

Classic T-Shirt by Jim Allmon

World UFO Day is an awareness day for science fiction aficionados to gather together and watch the skies for unidentified flying objects.

Some people celebrate the UFO Day on June 24, others on July 2. Why two different dates? June 24 is the date that the aviator Kenneth Arnold reported what is generally considered to be the first widely reported UFO sighting in the United States. July 2, on the other hand, commemorates the alleged UFO crash in the famous 1947 Roswell UFO Incident.

The beginning of July normally is a time when people of Roswell, NM, are preparing to celebrate the annual UFO Festival. Visitors from all over the world descend on this quiet desert town. Not this year, though.

The 2020 Roswell UFO Festival has been cancelled due to COVID-19. Nobody is happy about this.  Local artists are desperate to keep their business alive. Everybody is struggling.

In times like these, one has to be inventive and so, the festival organizers resorted to online venues that include virtual costume contest. Popular gifts from Roswell can be bought online. 

For more information visit Roswell UFO Festival website

Endeavour - From the American Soil Back to Space!

History was made on May 30, 2020, when NASA and SpaceX successfully launched two American astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, to Space in a Dragon capsule named Endeavour.

This first manned mission from the American soil in almost forty years ends NASA's dependence on foreign launch providers to send their astronauts to the International Space Station.

On May 31, the Endeavour successfully docked on to the ISS. The two astronauts were cordially welcomed by the ISS crew. They will remain in the Space for 110 days before returning back to Earth.

The launch and the docking maneuver were transmitted live on social media and broadcast on television networks all over the world. At least ten million people watched this historical event.

For more information and mission update visit the websites of NASA, SpaceX, or Space.

Image source: world wide web.

Chili Sin Carne - Delicious Vegan Pantry Recipe

Cooking chili!

Comfort Food In Times of Social Distancing

I am testing a pantry recipe from Two Spoons today. The dish is incredibly easy to make and rather inexpensive. 

I made a few changes:

• I used purple onion instead of the suggested yellow one; 
• I used lime juice instead of lemon; 
• I used avocado oil instead of suggested coconut oil; 
• I added raw cocoa, ground cloves and cinnamon - all three ingredients are used in Mexican cuisine. 
• I added dried Mexican oregano
  

Ingredients:

• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can white beans
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 large purple onion, diced
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 large carrots, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup avocado oil
• 1 cup water
  
• 1 cup of dry red wine
• 1 tsp Celtic sea salt
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp Mexican oregano
  
• 1 tsp smoked paprika powder
• 1 Tbsp raw cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  
• 1/2 tsp crushed chili pepper
• freshly pressed juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro for garnish
• 1 avocado cut into wedges, for garnish
  

Method:

• Warm up avocado oil in a large pot. Add onions and cook until onions turn translucent. 
• Add chopped carrots and cook them for about 5 minutes. Add chopped bell peppers and cook the mixture for another 5 minutes.
• Open canned beans. Strain and rinse them thoroughly. Add beans, diced tomatoes, water, wine, salt, cocoa, oregano and spices. Stir well and cook until carrots are soft. Add chopped garlic and stir well. Remove from stove, add lime juice and stir again.
  
• Serve in large bowls with freshly baked bread, tortilla chips, or with steamed rice. Garnish with chopped cilantro and avocado wedges, and enjoy in good company!

Tips:

• If you are using a slow cooker, cook onions in the suggested way and add all the other ingredients to slow cooker. Cover the pot and allow the chili to simmer for a few hours. The longer it cooks, the better it tastes. I love to add a little dry red wine.
  
• If you have a Chili Mix, add one packet of it to this recipe and skip the suggested spices. Don't forget cacao powder. 
  
• Those of you who prefer chili con carne can use this recipe as a starting point to a more elaborate dish containing beef or chicken. 

This chili turned out wonderfully. It is delicious. Give it a try. You can cook a bit more and freeze it for a later use.

If you've been to any grocery store lately, you might have noticed that food is quickly disappearing from shelves. In times like these, people tend to buy a bit more than they really need. On the other hand, understandably, people need to store some food since they might not only be forced to distance themselves socially from others, they might have to self-quarantine as well.

Those of you who are still looking for some storable food, get some beans - canned or dried. Beans are fantastic. They are good source of protein and are quite versatile, and most importantly, they are easy to store.

Dear readers,

I hope you are well. Stay informed and protect yourself from the coronavirus. Take the suggestions of health authorities seriously, but don't panic. Stress and fear can negatively affect your immune system!

Dominique Allmon

 
For more information about the virus visit the websites of the Center For Disease Control or the World Health Organisation

Happy New Year 2020

"I hope you live a life you're proud of." - F. Scott Fitzgerald 

Wishing everyone a great start into the New Year and the new decade! - Dominique Teng

Image source: Creative Commons