How to Fold a Booklet

Two years ago at the Wild Goose Creative New Years celebration, Allison from Igloo Letterpress taught me an imminently useful skill: how to fold a four page booklet from a single piece of paper. Since then, I have transformed paper into books for Lil to make into dinner menus, sticker stories, and hand drawn comics. At one point she even labeled the bindings with letters like at the library to organize her homemade books.

Now I pass on the method to you. Create books for your kids to decorate, for a clever multi-page valentine card, or to display your next dinner party menu.

How to Fold a Book from Paper

First, make a hill fold in the center of the longest side of the paper. Fold the two short edges to meet the top of the hill, making two valley folds.

Unfold and bisect the short side with a fold. Now your paper should have eight even sections.

Re-fold the initial hill fold and cut the bisecting fold from the center through to the next valley fold.

Stand the paper up with the cut on top. Pinch together the ends to form three of the 'pages'.

Wrap the last page around the others and crease the binding well. Now you have four pages.

Decorate your book as you wish!

Pro Tips:

• At age five, Lil can fold a book like this if I help her but her edges and folds are not even enough to make a perfect book. Your child may be more adept and/or less of a perfectionist than mine.
• Lil figured out pretty quickly that if you make two books and glue the back of one to the front of the other, you have a bigger book.
• An 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper makes a 2 3/4" x 4 1/4" inch book.
• Paper thicker than card stock gets difficult to fold and manage. Plain copy paper works very well.
• When you are sufficiently addicted to book making, head over to Igloo Letterpress in Worthington Ohio to learn how to make different kinds of books. Or maybe you'll want one to purchase one of their BIY (bind it yourself) or no sew refillable books from the Etsy store?

Added to Simple Lives Thursday.

Solstice Sun Bread

This fall, Lillian happened upon the book Sun Bread by Elisa Kleven at one of our wonderful library branches.  The story tells of a town of animals depressed by the winter cold.  The baker, a long eared dog, creates a loaf of bright yellow rich and warm sun bread. The animals eat it to brighten their days and invite the Sun to share some too. With no direct mention of Winter Solstice, clearly this story celebrates what our family considers central to the holiday: the return of life-giving sunshine.

On the back of the book is a recipe for sun bread. Lil wanted to make it immediately and so we did. The bread is as luscious and sustaining as the story promised.

click for larger pictures

Lil had the idea to shape sun bread dough in the shape of a turkey for Thanksgiving. We added some lemon rind and made some other slight adjustments for better function and flavor.

This coming Tuesday, the shortest day of the year, we will mix flour, eggs, butter, and more to share sun bread with some of our friends.  It just may become an annual tradition.

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Sun Bread adapted from Sun Bread by Elisa Kleven

2 tablespoons active dry yeast 3 tablespoons lukewarm milk 3 eggs, beaten 3 tablespoons sugar 2 - 2 1/2 cups bread flour 1 stick butter, melted 1/2 teaspoon salt zest of one lemon (optional)

1. Mix yeast and milk. Let stand until foamy. 2. Stir in eggs, sugar, 2 cups flour, butter, salt and lemon. Mix well, adding flour as necessary to form a dough. 3. Knead on a floured surface for 8 - 10 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. 4. Place dough in greased bowl, cover with a cloth, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1-2 hours. 5. Punch down dough, knead gently, and divide into two portions. 6. With one portion, form a round flat ball to make the sun's face. Use a knife to carve eyes and a mouth. 7. Use a bit of dough from the second half to form a nose. 8. Divide the rest of the second half into six portions. 7. Shape three pieces into puffy triangles. 8. Roll the other three pieces into foot long lengths. Roll them to form snail shapes. 9. Alternate the puffy triangles and snails around the outside of the sun's face. Attach firmly with a bit of water or gently pressing. 10. Cover the sun and allow to rise again in a warm place for about an hour. 11. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake the sun bread for about twenty minutes or until lightly brown. 12. Cool slightly before slicing. Enjoy with honey or jam on Solstice!

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Added to Simple Lives Thursday, 22nd edition.

Meeting Chef David Tanis

When I started this blog, other local food bloggers welcomed me into their fold like pioneers seeking friendly companions on the new frontier.  We read and comment on each others' work and pass around opportunities and news.  We give each other link love and retweets, assets barely defined a mere two years ago. So it was that when a publicist for David Tanis, co-chef of Chez Panisse, inquired whether some bloggers would like to meet him, a few of us passed the buck until Andy and Bethia of Columbus Food Adventures, Taco Trucks Columbus, Street Eats Columbus, and Alt Eats Columbus organized a lunch date.  Thanks guys!

We met at Knead where the conversation immediately turned to the foodie secret: Ohio is a rather grand place to eat.  Tanis seemed to agree, having supped at DeepWood and Jeni's the night before.

Talk wound its way through many food topics while the brave Knead chef Rick Lopez created our meals.  Wendy of Midlife Celiac shared her expertise with gluten-free dining.  Tanis did his best to convince Lisa the Waitress that artichokes could be a delicious meal.  I talked about backyard chickens; Tanis suggested goats might be a good next step.  Ha!

I was delighted to be presented with a gratis copy of Tanis new cookbook (catch that, FCC, I received a cookbook for free) Heart of the Artichoke and Other Kitchen Journeys, and more so when Debra of Persephone's Kitchen broke the ice to ask for an inscription.  Once home, Alex, who reads very little printed on paper these days, paged through the whole thing.  The photos and layout are simple, beautiful and inspiring.  I especially loved the 14 rituals Tanis detailed before serving up a single recipe.  Knowing a person's particular rituals is an insight into his cooking and eating style.

There are precious few perks to my part-time un-paid job writing this blog.  But the ones that do come along, like last week's visit with a treasure of an American chef surrounded by colleagues, are often rather spectacular.

Vonnegut on Veterans

"I will come to a time in my backwards trip when November eleventh, accidentally my birthday, was a sacred day called Armistice Day. When I was a boy, and when Dwayne Hoover was a boy, all the people of all the nations which had fought in the First World War were silent during the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of Armistice Day, which was the eleventh day of the eleventh month. It was during that minute in nineteen hundred and eighteen, that millions upon millions of human beings stopped butchering one another. I have talked to old men who were on battlefields during that minute. They have told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the Voice of God. So we still have among us some men who can remember when God spoke clearly to mankind.

Armistice Day has become Veterans' Day. Armistice Day was sacred. Veterans' Day is not.

So I will throw Veterans' Day over my shoulder. Armistice Day I will keep. I don't want to throw away any sacred things.

What else is sacred? Oh, Romeo and Juliet, for instance.

And all music is." - Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions

Happy posthumous Birthday, Mr. Vonnegut.  Thank you for writing a most enlightening book about the Second World War, Slaughterhouse-Five.

May all who served and are serving in the military hear sacred music today.

So It Goes

It's been a wacky week here and I want to update you about lots of things: First, Devie the hound in trouble is doing very well after surgery yesterday to remove her left eye.  We are keeping her heavily dosed with pain medicine to let the eye heal and will taper that off in the next few days.  Stitches will be removed in about a week and then we'll have a counter-surfing, baying pirate dog!

We are still planning on having a Cider Pressing Party tomorrow from 2 - 4 pm.  It will be COLD and the press will be outside, so please dress warmly if you are stopping by.  We'll also have some apple bread and apple slices to enjoy around the woodstove to warm up.

Cathy Krist from Carousel Watergardens Farm let me know that they are offering a Thanksgiving Dinner CSA with six free range antibiotic free turkeys left.  Visit their site for more details on the Thanksgiving CSA or their winter vegetable, egg, and meat CSAs.

In bloggy news, I am thrilled that the CEO of the Columbus Metro Library, Pat Losinsky, mentioned my 'vote for CML' post in his last newsletter to supporters.  If you are here because of his link, welcome!

I think I'm participating in NaBloPoMo, the challenge to write a post each day in the month of November.  So far, I've written every day and I have lots of topics in the queue, so expect a little more frequency here for awhile.

I am not participating in NaNoWriMo, the national novel writing month, but I am hard at work on an manuscript about eating and cooking with children.  I have some anecdotes from participants in my classes but I want a more scientific understanding of children's eating habits.  I am working up a survey that I hope those of you with children will complete when the time comes.

Next week is Dine Originals Restaurant week.  Participating restaurants include most of the best independent restaurants in the city.  Each offers at least one menu that costs $10, $20, or $30, viewable online through the above link.  There are some fantastic deals among the offerings.  Unlike some restaurant weeks where the chef is just looking to get guests in the door, my impression is that the Dine Originals chefs are truly showing off their very best.  Take advantage!

Just before picking Dev up from the vet yesterday, Lil and I said goodbye to my college cat Kilgore.  I found him abandoned in front of the Ohio State University football stadium and took care of him during his first six months.  My parents adopted him ten years ago when I married cat-allergic Alex.  Kilgore was a feisty tom cat, frequently roaming the neighborhood and returning with wounds.  He purred loudly, showed displeasure with his claws, and whined to be let out as if a dog.  His behavior became more mild in the last few months as cancer took hold.  Rest in Peace, my furry friend.

Now, if I could ask something of you: Next weekend, my parents and Alex's parents are giving us a weekend away at a bed and breakfast in Versailles Kentucky near bourbon distilleries.  My parents are watching Lil for the weekend and I am so very eager for some relaxation.  I have two bourbon tours on the itinerary but am struggling a little bit deciding which restaurants to enjoy.  If you have any suggestions in the Versailles/Lawrenceburg/Frankfort/Lexington area, comment please.

Be well,

Rachel

P.S. Kurt Vonnegut is one of my favorite authors, hence the title and Kilgore's name.  I recommend you start with Breakfast of Champions if you have never read a Vonnegut story.  Your library undoubtedly has a copy.

Vote For Issue 4 to Keep CML Strong

Voting is as critical as planning the garden to us at Hounds Central - both activities set the stage for life in the coming years.  On Tuesday, we want you to vote, to express your voice in America's democracy, no matter your political leanings. If you are in Columbus like us, your ballot is lengthy with candidates and we would not dare use this platform to advocate for electing any one particular person.

But we will use it to advise you on an issue near to our hearts and our homestead: Issue 4, the renewal levy to Keep Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML) Strong.

We could share the facts about Issue 4, including the growing demand of the library's resources without a funding update since the 1980s.  We could spout statistics of increasing visitors, circulation, and number 1s.

When it comes down to it, Hounds in the Kitchen supports Issue 4 for simpler reasons.  We voted (early yay!) for Issue 4 because:

The library is an educational resource.  When we impulsively decided to buy chickens, the library provided a wealth of co-op building and chicken books.  When we impulsively bought a cider press, we reserved a book on making cider and picked it up two days later.  The library supports our diverse crazy pursuits.

The library is an arts and culture venue.  Lil and Rachel attended a performance of Lil's favorite band, the Shazzbots, at a CML branch in the summer.  Alex's mother and father have participated in art shows at CML branches.  The very buildings that house many branches are beautiful works of architecture.

The library is a point of pride for Columbus.  Rachel shared on Travels with Pirates that it wasn't until moving away from Columbus that we realized the true value of the libraries here.  For businesses and relocating citizens, the outstanding Columbus library system draws them in.  We're not just a city with a great college football team.

The library builds community.  By being free and accessible to all, the library is a place we always meet neighbors and friends from all walks of life.  Indeed, baby storytimes at the library were some of Lillian's very first meetings of her peer group.  Friendships, alliances and businesses are built at the library.

The library is as necessary to a community as soil to the garden.  It is the foundation that nurtures the ideas that build our city.  Keep CML Strong - Vote for Issue Four

Book Hounds: Keep CML Strong for Chicken Books

Today's edition of Book Hounds is a political-video-chicken one.

Why political?  Well, I would have precious few books to read or recommend if not for the Columbus Metro Library.  Starting today, Columbus area voters can go to the polls and cast a ballot for Issue 4, the levy to Keep Columbus Metro Library Strong. This levy, the first levy brought to the public in ten years and first increase in twenty four years, will restore recently cut branch hours, reinstate the frozen materials budget, and allow the library to maintain aging buildings.  I will vote FOR Issue 4 because the library is a foundation of our learned community, a resource for families like mine, and an asset to the economy of our fair city.

In addition to borrowing books and movies for pleasure, we use the library to educate ourselves about new plans for the homestead, most recently being backyard chicken rearing.  Our hens are thriving in no small part due to inspiration and advice gleaned from books such as Extraordinary Chickens, Chicken Coops, and How To Raise Chickens.

Lillian is enthralled with all things chicken recently, which brings me to the video portion of this post:

If you couldn't see or hear the titles, the four chicken books Lil recommends borrowing from the library are Tillie Lays An Egg by Hen Cam blogger Terry Golson, Cheep! Cheep! by Julie Stiegemeyer and Carol Baicker-McKee, The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County by Janice N. Harrington and Shelley Jackson, and Chickens to the Rescue by John Himmelman.

These books are not available in local bookstores, so far as I could find from recent store browsing.  What delight and education we would have missed without access to the vast catalog of the Columbus Metro Library?  If not for the library, how else would I cater to my child's ever changing interests and unflagging consumption of books?

In the coming weeks, I will share a few more reasons why I pledge to Keep CML Strong by voting yes on issue 4. In the meantime, I would love to know:  What you are reading?  What library do you frequent?