The Science Experiment

It was last weekend that I took the plunge and baked my first sourdough bread.  Not only did it look good - it tasted good too.  It makes terrific toast for breakfast.

My culture now lives in the fridge so I only have to feed and care for it once a week.  If I'm going to perform a bake I bring it out, feed it and allow it to set on the counter to come-up to room temperature and begin percolating.  That takes only a couple or three hours - enough time to go out and weed the garden.

On Saturday I mixed a batch of dough and let it proof 24 hours at room temperature.  By Sunday morning it looked like this...

And I baked a half-dozen sourdough rolls.

This was done indoors in the kitchen range so as to reduce unknown variables that may impact the bake.  With enough practice I'll eventually move this out to the brick oven to up the ante.

These were quite yummy.  A big batch would be terrific for deer camp.

Raising a toast to Lactobacillus fermentation.

Word of the Day

Today is Independence Day.  It is also the day that planet earth is furthest from the sun.

The elliptical orbit of the earth will reach its furthest point from Old Sol precisely when this blog post is published - at 2:00 PM CST.

This also brings us to another Word of the Day.  Astronomers call this phenomenon aphelion.  

image Credit - Starry Night

At aphelion our home planet will be 94.51 million miles away from the sun.  That is more than 3 million miles further away than when earth is closest - known as perihelion.  The actual distance varies a bit year-over-year.

If you're feeling a bit cooler this afternoon now you know why.

Independence Day

Today is Independence Day - a day to celebrate the birth of this great nation of ours.  Casting-aside the yoke of British oppression it is on this day that we recognize and celebrate the Declaration of Independence of the United States on July 4, 1776.

The Congress had voted to declare independence two days earlier - on July 2 - but it was not formally declared until July 4.    

Take a few moments from your celebration today to go to this link and take a handful of short quizzes.  Test your knowledge of the Constitution by measuring your Constitution I.Q.  You can also find out which of the Founding Fathers you are most like and which one you would likely vote for. 

In case you are wondering I not only aced the ten question Constitution Quiz - I am also most like James Madison and would likely vote for Benjamin Franklin.  

I'm positively tickled we don't have a king or queen running the show.

Happy Birthday America!
     

Peonies

And in a week and a half the peonies alongside the kitchen garden fence rose and fell...

 

Before and After

As the days have grown longer the hormonal levels of whitetail deer began to change.   

Fawns are born, antler growth commences for the boy deer and for all of the whitetails the gray winter coat with its thick guard hairs is shed and the ruddy red heat-reflecting summer coat is revealed.   

The process is complete and you cannot miss the deer highlighted in the lush greenery of the local farm fields.   

       
These daylight-influenced hormone levels occur twice a year to trigger the spring molt and after only three months, is supplemented by the regrowth of the extra layer of longer, stiffer, hollow hair over the softer hair closer to the skin.         

One month between these before and after images. 

Cuteness Of The Day

Who doesn't like to see does and their fawns?  All of that cuteness is just too much to stand.  That is - of course - until you realize that this is tomorrow's dinner on the hoof.  But I digress.  

Just in case your reservoir of baby whitetail cuteness is running low, here's a fix..... 

Friday Music

This British heavy metal band hailed from Birmingham in 1969.  

This group has influenced metal music since the 1970s.  Nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018 they were passed-over despite placing among the top five fan-supported nominees.  They've sold more than 50 million copies of their discography and have been hailed as one of the greatest metal bands of all time.

Director Rob Reiner attended a concert performance as part of his work in producing and directing the film This Is Spinal Tap (1984) a spoof on British heavy metal bands.

Yup, this group continues the live concert tour.  Give it up for Judas Priest performing their cover of Joan Baez's Diamonds and Rust....