Knot with Curls

I pulled the top half of her hair smooth and then did a knot. I curled the ends with the flat iron.

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Braids to Ponytail with a Center Part

Sometimes my kids can pull off a center part. I started this one with the intention of French Braids, but I was told that no French Braids were allowed today, so we went with two braids to a ponytail. This one is pretty self-explanitory; I did secure each braid with an elastic before I pulled them back and I ended up leaving the elastics in, the flower covered them up. Plus I was lazy.

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Side Braid to Ponytail

*Hairstyle submitted by Laurie

This is Little Londynn. Londynn is going through a braid phase right now so her mom has to come up with all sorts of variations. Here is one in particular.



Section the front part of the hair from the part to the opposite side of the part.
Braid the hair back to where your ponytail will be. Secure with an elastic.
Comb hair smooth to the ponytail and pull the braid to the ponytail.
Secure with an elastic.
Place a bow or ribbon in the hair.


Thanks for your daughters picture Laurie! We miss her!

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Improving Fuel Economy

OK, you know driving isn't good for the environment, but you're going to do it anyway. Here's how to substantially increase your fuel economy without buying a new car:

1- Drive deliberately; accelerate gradually. A car uses a lot of fuel when it's accelerating rapidly.

2- Drive 55 mph on the highway. This makes a huge difference. It maximizes fuel efficiency by reducing wind resistance, which exponentially increases with speed. This reduces gas consumption by more than 20% relative to a speed of 75 mph. 60 mph is almost as good, if 55 is to slow.

3- Draft a truck. Large trucks with flat, square backs leave a massive low-pressure zone behind them, which you can exploit to save gas. At 20 feet behind a standard 18-wheeler, you will use about 27% less fuel. If that's too close, you still save 20% at 50 feet, and 11% at 100 feet. Be careful because trucks have a blind spot behind them, and some truckers do not appreciate drafting.

4- Keep your car well-maintained. Clogged filters, faulty oxygen sensors and flat tires all hurt fuel efficiency.

5- Lose the cargo. The more weight you have in your car, the more fuel is required to get it up a hill or accelerate it.

6- Turn off accessories. AC is the biggest power drain, but the fan used to circulate air also draws power.

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Convenience Store Survival Training

I was on the road yesterday driving to a county court to defend myself (unsuccessfully) against a speeding ticket. I reluctantly stopped into a convenience store on my way back, to see if there was anything I would eat for lunch.

I actually did find two things that were palatable and not too unhealthy: canned sardines and toasted cashews. The total was $2.50, affordable even for a grad student.

The sardines were canned in "tomato sauce", which I realized later contained soybean oil. Oops. Well I suppose when you get your food at a convenience store, you have to expect such things.

The main thing that bothered me was the trash. I posted a mugshot (above) of the can, fork and plastic bag that I either trashed or recycled as a result of the meal. The total volume of trash was probably almost as much as the total volume of food.

I think if you stick to nuts, canned fish and fresh fruit, it's possible to survive a convenience store stop. And Baby Ruths. Those are healthy, right?

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Two Tons of Steel

While I was waiting for the bus one morning, I decided I'd count cars to see how many were single-occupancy vs. two or more. I came up with a ratio of roughly 20 single-occupancy vehicles for every multiple-occupancy vehicle. The multiple-occupancy vehicles were most often work trucks, containing plumbers or construction workers going to a job.

People have to get to work. Maybe they don't have public transit where they are, or maybe they just don't feel like sitting next to smelly commuters, but for whatever reason, here in the U.S. they drive their cars.

The average American weighs about 180 lbs. Due to our love affair with SUVs, the average American car weighs over 2 tons and climbing. That means every time a person drives a single-occupancy vehicle to work, they aren't just expending the energy it takes to move 180 lbs 15 miles. They're also lugging around a hulking two-ton chunk of steel and plastic. The passenger of the average single-occupancy vehicle is only about 1/24 (4%) of the mass that's being moved to and from work. That's ridiculous!

Of course, we make up for the big weight of our cars with big engines so they can go vroom. That adds up to a lot of gasoline burned, for no clear benefit. In other words, most of us could easily be driving vehicles that perform the exact same function but burn 1/3 the gasoline. I'm not talking about space-age technology here; these vehicles are already on the market.

Why do we commute so inefficiently when better options surround us? I think there are several reasons. First of all, gasoline is dirt cheap. We have no incentive to be efficient beyond our own consciences. Even with the recent price jumps, gasoline doesn't cost much more than it ever has, if you adjust for inflation. In Europe, where high taxes mean gasoline can cost four times as much as in the US, vehicles are lighter and more efficient.

Secondly, we've always been a very car-centric society. Cars appeal to our desire for independence, power and control. A large, powerful car is a status symbol in the US. We've inherited these attitudes from previous generations and we're just beginning to question them. Are there healthier and less wasteful ways of getting to work?

There are, and many of them are very simple. The first and simplest is a carpool. If we put two average Americans in our two-ton car, all of a sudden the people are 1/12 the weight of the vehicle. With four people, the number jumps to 1/6. We've just made our vehicle almost four times as fuel efficient, per passenger! 1,000 lbs per person is still a lot of weight to be lugging around though, so let's look at some other options.

If you are on the market for a new car, fuel-efficient models abound. The new hybrid cars by Toyota and Honda are twice as efficient as their non-hybrid brethren, and not much more expensive. Some people truly need SUVs for their business, but I have good news for them too: there are now hybrid SUVs as well. That's right ladies and gentlemen, they're the most efficient gas guzzlers on the market.

Public transportation is another great option where it's available. Buses are big and heavy but they can accommodate many people.

Now let's get into the really efficient vehicles. Motorcycles and scooters weigh from 250-500 pounds, meaning that a passenger would be from 1/2 to 1/4 the total weight of the vehicle. Now we're beginning to make some sense. Certain scooters can go over 100 miles per gallon of gasoline.

An even better option is to use vehicles that don't burn gasoline at all. A bicycle weighs about 20-30 pounds, making the passenger about 9/10 of the total vehicle weight. That weight ratio might change as the average American loses some weight however. Even if you factor in the extra food you eat when you cycle regularly, it's still terribly efficient. Best of all, bikes allow us to get exercise and feel the sun for a while.

The title for the most fuel-efficient and low-tech vehicle around goes to feet. When using a pair of these, the passenger is 100% of the weight of the vehicle. You can walk until you wear them out and you still won't have burned a single molecule of gasoline. Now that's efficient.

Thanks to lairdscott for the CC photo.

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MARSHMALLOW FLUFF-FILLED BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE GANACHE-DIPPED CHOCOLATE MADELEINES

marshmallow fluff-filled bittersweet ganache-dipped chocolate madeleines

What a mouth-full! Will these madeleines trigger an involuntary memory in Proustian fashion?

These chocolate madeleines from Dorie Greenspan's cookbook Baking: From My Home to Yours, were quite easy to make. The hardest part was waiting for the batter to rest in the refrigerator for a minimum of 3 hours. After the requisite 3 hours, I took it out and proceeded to scoop it into the prepared madeleine pan.

Geez it was a stiff batter! It was the consistency of a cookie dough. I thought it was supposed to be more like a cake. My previous madeleine attempts with other recipes did not yield such a thick dough. I should have formed the batter into little oblong balls. I just plopped them raggedly from the spoon, thinking that the batter would just melt into the grooves of the pan.

No way. The batter didn't melt. Some of the baked madeleines were kind of lumpy and ragged-looking at the edges. These were the ones that I had not as neatly formed with a spoon. That being said, I guess it doesn't really matter in this case because I was going to stuff and dip them anyway.

It's always nice to have pretty-looking naked chocolate madeleines too though.

Bebe scarfed down her freshly-made madeleine. The marshmallow fluff was miniscule... I would have liked more filling in there. I was hoping for a ding-dong-sized portion of filling. Oh well. Next time I'll try to ram more filling in. The baked madeleines are pretty dense though and were not easy to fill so I suppose I'd have to dig out some of the interior to get more space for filling!

individually nestled in cupcake liners & ready to go to work tomorrow for sharing with staff!

Sorry for the overexposed pictures. It was late at night and I was too tired to take my madeleines down to my cardboard box food-porn "studio" for proper lighting! neah.

Here's the recipe if you're so inclined.

Fluff-filled Chocolate Madeleines

from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours

For the Madeleines
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 t baking powder
pinch of salt
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 t pure vanilla
3/4 stick (6 T) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Marshmallow fluff, for filling and frosting

For the Dip
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 T unsalted butter, at room temperature

To Make the Madeleines:

• Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt together
• Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until pale and slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.
• Beat in the vanilla extract, then switch to a rubber spatula and gently fold in the sifted dry ingredients, followed by the melted butter.
• Put a piece of plastic wrap directly against the surface of the batter and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or for up to 2 days. Chilling the batter gives you a better chance of getting the characteristic hump on the back of the cookies.
• Centre a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Generously butter 12 full-size madeleine molds, dust the insides wiht flour and tap out the excess. Butter and flour or spray the pan even if it is nonstick; skip this step if you are using a silicone pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet.
• Spoon the batter into the molds.
• Place the pan in the oven and immediately lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Bake the cookies for 13 to 15 minutes, or until they feel springy to the touch. Remove the pan from the oven and rap one side of the madeleine pan against the counter--the plump little cakes should come tumbling out. Gently pry any reluctant cookies out with your fingers or a butter knife. Cool to room temperature on a rack.

To Fill the Madeleines:

• Fit a small pastry bag with a small plain tip and spoon the fluff into the bag. Use the point of the tip to poke a hole in the rounded (plain) side of each madeleine, and pipe enough fluff into each cookie to fill it--stop when the fluff reaches the top of the cake. (You'll use only a bit of fluff).

To make the Dip:

• Put the chocolate in a small deep heatproof bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a full boil, then pour it over the chocolate. Wait for 1 minute, then gently whisk the cream into the chocolate: start at the centre and slowly work your way out in concentric circles until you have a smooth, shiny mixture. Gently whisk in the butter.
• Line a small baking sheet with wax paper. One by one, hold a madeleine at its narrow end and dip it into the chocolate, then lift it up, let the excess chocolate drip back into the bowl and place smooth side down on the wax paper. Slide the baking sheet into the refrigerator to set the glaze, about 15 minutes (You'll have more ganache than you need, but making a larger quantity produces a better ganache. The leftover dip can be covered and refrigerated for 1 week or frozen for up to 1 month.)
• If you'd like, pipe a little squiggle of fluff on the top of each madeleine once the chocolate is set.

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