"Running pauses the world around me"

After many, many months off from running due to injury, I have finally reached the point where I can again run every other day for 45 minutes to an hour without a walking break and actually enjoy it. It couldn’t have come at a better time, as the mental health benefits from being able to do even that much running have been very useful for me.

I saw a good take on running as an exercise in mindfulness in a short essay by Holly Robinson in the April 2020 issue of Real Simple magazine. Robinson came to running late, starting a Couch to 5K program (sorta like the Women's Four Miler Training Program here in town) when she was 59. From there, she graduated to a 10K, which was an achievement but not as important as her discovery that “running pauses the world around me.” That’s in stark contrast to our usual state of being on autopilot, or “nonbeing.” But

being happens [only] during those rare times when we’re fully conscious of our surroundings and feel connected to them. We’re all guilty of too many hours of nonbeing. Various tasks fracture our time, tech fills our heads with noise, and we stop paying attention to anything beyond ourselves. When I run, I have to pay attention. Running lets me be completely in the world, noticing small details, experiencing the joy of moving through snowflakes so big, it’s like floating through lace.

All of that rings true to me, as does her additional observation that running is also the “best salve for emotional turmoil,” which I’ve experienced in spades over the past eight months. There are many other ways to take a pause—such as meditating, doing yoga, even cooking if you do it mindfully—but running is the surest way for me. Who’d have thought there could be so much wisdom in Mom’s otherwise light john reading?

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Killing time, part I

I had to bring my car in to the dealer recently to fix a recall item. The dealer was about two hours behind schedule, so Mom and I found various ways to kill the time, including having lunch at Al Carbon and visiting the Northside Library. At the library, I sat down to catch up on the latest issue of Cook's Illustrated and happily discovered that library users can use RBdigital to "check out" and read on their computers and digital devices audiobooks, ebooks, comics, and all sorts of magazines, including Cook's Country, Cook's Illustrated, and the New Yorker. All you need to do is set up an account with RBdigital using your JMRL library card number and you're good to go.

One item in the July/August 2019 issue of Cook's Illustrated that immediately caught my eye was a short article about "Substituting Spelt Flour for Whole-Wheat Flour," which is something I've been experimenting with for over two years now. The article says that you should "[f]eel free to substitute spelt flour for whole-wheat flour in recipes in which sturdy structure isn't desirable," because "spelt flour has fewer gluten-forming proteins than whole-wheat flour," which, in turn, has less gluten-forming proteins than regular white flour. That means spelt doesn't work as well in things that rely on gluten for a lofty structure, like bread loaves, but will give you more tender muffins and pancakes (and also works well with flatbreads, which are easier to stretch). I was especially intrigued by their report that "tasters actually preferred spelt's nutty, sweet flavor" when swapped into their recipe for 100 Percent Whole-Wheat Pancakes, which Brad and I had tasted before and liked, but not as much as Flax Pancakes. So we tried again, this time with all whole-grain spelt flour instead of whole-wheat flour, and everyone really liked them, including Cassie, who is not a big pancake fan. Of the too many pancakes recipes I now have, this is the one I will make most often going forward, though the Buttermilk Pancakes are still a good bet (and very similar to this recipe) if you want to use regular all-purpose flour instead of spelt flour (which I always have on hand anyway). 

100% Whole-Grain Pancakes

Adapted from Cook's Illustrated #135 (July/Aug 2015) (video)

Time from start to finish: <30 minutes

Dry ingredients
312 grams/11 ounces (~2½ cups) whole-grain spelt four or whole-wheat flour
25 grams (2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Wet ingredients
545 grams (2¼ cups) buttermilk
66 grams (5 tablespoons) neutral-flavored oil such as sunflower or vegetable, plus more for cooking
2 large eggs (~57 grams each in the shells)

    1. In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together. In a large bowl, whisk the wet ingredients together. Dump the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and whisk just until smooth. (The batter is pretty thick; don’t add more buttermilk.)
    2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil on a large electric griddle set to 350 degrees (or 1 teaspoon oil a 12-inch nonstick skillet set over medium heat) until hot. Gently wipe out the oil with a paper towel, leaving just a thin film on the bottom of the pan.
    3. Using a ¼-cup dry measuring cup, a 2-ounce ladle, or (my favorite) a #16 (¼ cup) disher, scoop the batter onto the griddle in 8 places (or into the pan in 3 places). Cook until the edges of the pancakes are set, the bottoms are golden brown, and bubbles on the top just begin to pop, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the pancakes as gently as you can, and cook until the other sides are golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining batter, oiling and wiping out the griddle (or pan) again as needed. Serve promptly with real maple syrup. Makes ~20 four-inch pancakes, serving at least 4.

Blueberry Pancakes
Fold 140 grams (~1 cup) fresh blueberries into the batter at the end of step 1, as soon as you are done whisking it.

A w/paffle weekend

Mom has a new favorite restaurant. I read in the C-ville Weekly about Iron Paffles & Coffee when it opened in 2017 ("Introducing Paffles to Charlottesville"), but we hadn't made it there yet. Then on Friday I read a piece in the latest issue of Edible Blue Ridge magazine picking their favorite food items from around town, which included the Grown Up PBJ (coconut whipped almond butter topped with house-made açaí chia seed jelly) from Iron. That sounded so good I dragged Mom there Saturday morning to try some. Paffles are just puff pastry baked on a waffle iron. They also have gluten-free and vegan waffles, so Mom was game. And she was glad she went! Mom had the Choriz (chorizo, sweet potato jalapeño hash, power slaw, queso fresco) and gave it her highest rating.

Choriz on a gluten-free waffle

Mom liked it so much she was about two bites in when she started going on about how she was going to Iron after hot yoga (it's right next door to her studio), even when she pukes, on her way home from the County office building, etc. Since Mom was so gung-ho, I figured I better pick out a savory paffle for her to bring me when she orders takeout (the Grown Up PBJ is a dessert paffle), so we went back on Sunday for lunch. Mom got the same thing, of course, since that's her modus operandi. I got Chicken and Paffle with local, organic fried chicken breast, mac 'n' cheese, caramelized onions, spring mix, and sriracha mayo. I know that sounds pretty gross, but it totally worked together.

Chicken and Paffle with lots of yummy stuff

Mom also got a Cannoli dessert waffle (cannoli cream with chocolate chips and caramel sauce), which she shared with me. It's better than it looks, but not as good as the Grown Up PBJ.

Cannoli gluten-free dessert waffle

They've also got hot chocolate made with real chocolate, as well as Nutella hot chocolate and many other interesting looking things.

I expect Brad and Cass will both be making trips to Iron with us during their respective spring breaks. 

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But the w/paffle fun didn't end with Iron. I was inspired to try a new recipe for whole grain waffles from Power Plates, Gena Hamshaw's 2018 vegan cookbook. I usually make a recipe as written the first time I try it, but there were some vegan necessitated things I could obviously change the first time around, including using: a real egg instead of a flax egg; buttermilk instead of nondairy milk mixed with vinegar; and butter instead of oil (for better flavor). The waffles were good but still needed a few tweaks. I did some research in the The New Best Recipe (2004),[1] which confirmed my suspicion that I should add a second egg and swap out the 2 teaspoons of baking powder in the original recipe for half a teaspoon of baking soda to react with the acidic buttermilk and improve both the rise and the texture. So I made them again tonight, along with the banana topping, and they were a big hit, our new favorite waffles.

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[1] I've recommended The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (2011) as one of the nine cookbooks in my pantheon, just because it has so many recipes compared to the earlier The Best Recipe (1999) and The New Best Recipe (2004). But they made room for more recipes in the newer book by cutting out all of the explanatory articles that preceded each recipe in the older books. Those articles are packed with useful information, so hang on to the older books even if you have the newer one. Here are some of the nuggets of wisdom from the waffle article, for example: buttermilk + baking soda creates a thicker batter and a better texture, so "buttermilk waffles will always taste better" than waffles made with sweet milk + baking powder, which does not have enough time to lift the batter in the few minutes it takes to cook a waffle; waffles prepared with buttermilk + baking powder are "inedible"; and adding just a little bit of cornmeal to the batter adds "extra crackle" and a "pleasant crunch" to the waffles.

Whole Grain Waffles

Adapted from Power Plates (2018) by Gena Hamshaw

Time from start to finish: 16 minutes till the first waffle hits the plate, 28 minutes till the fifth

Dry ingredients
210 grams (1¾ cups) whole grain spelt flour, white whole wheat flour, or whole wheat pastry flour
50 grams (½ cup) oat bran
37 grams (3 tablespoons) granulated sugar
15 grams (2 tablespoons) cornmeal, optional
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda

Wet ingredients
363 grams (1½ cups) buttermilk, more if needed
2 large eggs (~57 grams each in the shell)
3 tablespoons (43 grams) unsalted butter, melted

Maple syrup and/or Banana Topping, for serving

    1. Preheat your waffle iron. 
    2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and eggs. Dump the dry ingredients into the large bowl, and stir gently with a silicone spatula until nearly combined. Add the melted butter, and gently fold everything together just until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened. The batter will be thick, not pourable.
    3. Using a measuring cup, scoop batter onto the preheated iron (you will need about ¾ cup of batter if you have a 7-inch Belgian waffle iron). Following the manufacturer’s instructions, cook until the waffle is golden brown and delicious, about 2:30 on our Cuisinart waffle iron set halfway between settings 3 and 4. Serve immediately, as each waffle comes off the iron, with maple syrup and/or Banana Topping. Makes five 7-inch Belgian waffles, serving 2.

Banana Topping for Waffles and Pancakes

Time from start to finish: 10 minutes

2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter
2 ripe but firm bananas, peeled and sliced into 1-centimeter-thick coins
40 grams (2 tablespoons) maple syrup
pinch of salt

Melt the butter in an 8- to 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Stir in the bananas, maple syrup, and salt. Cook until the bananas are softened but not mushy, and the sauce is a little thickened and syrupy, about 3 minutes.

A star is born

Dylan has been talking for weeks about playing Boggle Master with the family over the Christmas holiday, at least in part so he could have a laugh at Cassie's expense. But Cassie had the last laugh yesterday. College has apparently expanded Cassie's word power, because she not only held her own but even won two games, one of them by a wide margin. Way to go, Cassie!

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Cassie and I made these famous cookies for Christmas Eve dinner. We thought we'd have to hide them from Dylan the Cookie Monster when he got here, but he wasn't that impressed, maybe because I texted him a picture of the dough logs (see the bottom of the first photo below) before we sliced and baked the cookies. There's also the whole problem that no other cookie can compete with the holy grail. But Mom and Cassie and I love these for a change, and they're easy to make and work great with spelt flour, so here they are in honor of Cassie's Boggle mastery.

Double Chocolate Refrigerator Sablés

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan

Time from start to finish: 20 minutes to make the dough; 30 minutes to cut and bake the cookies one batch at a time

These cookies are famous across the internet as "World Peace Cookies," which is what Dorie Greenspan named them after a neighbor told her he was "convinced that if everyone in the world could have these cookies, there would be planetary peace." They're very good cookies but I can't go so far as to say they'll bring about world peace, so I've gone with a more descriptive name.

You really need to cut these with a very sharp knife to minimize crumbling of the sandy dough. I’ve had the least crumbling cutting the dough, using a gentle sawing motion, with the razor sharp Wüsthof 4128/20 cm wavy-edge bread knife that Andi and Adam gave me (see the first photo above). 

170 grams (~1¼ cups) all-purpose or whole grain spelt flour 
30 grams (⅓ cup) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
155 grams (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into chunks and softened
120 grams (~⅔ cup) light brown sugar
50 grams (¼ cup) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon fleur de sel or ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
140 grams store-bought mini chocolate chips (such as Ghirardelli) or best-quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small, irregular sized bits

    1. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, and baking soda.
    2. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed (4 on our KitchenAid) until soft and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape the bowl, then beat in the salt and vanilla.
    3. Add the flour-cocoa mixture. Mix on the lowest speed (Stir on a KitchenAid) until the ingredients are just coming together. Add the chocolate pieces and mix on the lowest speed just until they are incorporated into the dough and there are no white streaks of flour. Don’t overbeat.
    4. Dump the dough onto your kitchen counter and gather it together, kneading just a bit if necessary. Cut the dough in half with a bench scraper or the sharp knife. Using your hands, shape and roll each half into a log 1½ inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 3 days.
    5. When you’re ready to bake the cookies, place a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 325 degrees. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
    6. Working with one log at a time, use a very sharp knife (see note) to slice the logs into ½-inch thick coins. The coins may crumble some as you’re cutting them, but that’s okay. Transfer the coins to a prepared baking sheet, evenly spaced at least 1 inch apart. (You can cut the second log while the first batch is baking.)
    7. Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for 12 minutes. Don’t open the oven door to check on them; just pull them out after exactly 12 minutes; they’ll still be a little soft and look underdone, but they’ll firm up as they cool. Cool on the baking sheets on wire racks until just warm or completely cool, whatever your preference in cookies is. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Makes ~3 dozen cookies.

Putting our empty nest time to good use

You all think we sit around doing nothing other than watching Madam Secretary since our house emptied out. Well, we do do plenty of that, but we do lots of other stuff too. Last Saturday morning I finally got Mom to go to the City Market with me, and we loaded up on good veggies (more on that soon) and eggs and sausage from Free Union Grass Farm, among other things. On the way home, we stopped at Krispy Kreme to watch the doughnut machine like the old days. On Sunday night, we capped off a great weekend by going to the Downtown Mall for some gelato before seeing Mary Chapin Carpenter at the Paramount. Her concert was so good even Mom is a fan of MCC now! And next weekend, we have the book sale starting on Friday night, then on Saturday afternoon we're seeing "Free Solo" as part of the Virginia Film Festival, and who knows what else?

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54 and still beautiful

Last week, Mom had to test a kid at Burley, where her friend Leigh Ann works. Mom needed to tell Leigh Ann something, but she wasn't in her room when Mom looked for her. So Mom told another teacher in the room—a striking young blond woman—to tell Leigh Ann that Karen had been by to see her. When Leigh Ann got back, the young teacher told her that someone she had never seen before was looking for Leigh Ann. She couldn't remember Mom's name, so she described her as tall, with thick hair, and "beautiful." Which made Mom's whole day, as you can imagine. Another 2½ years gone by, but you've still got it baby!

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This was the best meal I've made in a while, a restaurant-quality dish that cost less than $15 to make and serves 4 people easily. Mom skipped right past her usual "heavenly" descriptor for my really good meals and instead pronounced it "infuckingcredible." The homemade pappardelle definitely contributed to the quality of the dish, but I'm sure it would still be very good with store-bought pasta.

Homemade Spelt Pappardelle with Quick Sausage Ragù 

Quick Sausage Ragù with Pasta

Adapted from The Best Simple Recipes (2013) by America’s Test Kitchen

Time: 35 minutes

I used mild Italian sausage links from Free Union Grass Farm, which I think was key here. The heritage breed pigs run around free in the woods at the farm, so the sausage is not particularly fatty. If you use a very fatty sausage, the fat will not cook off and the ragù will probably be too greasy. 

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium (4–6 ounces) onion, diced
2 plump garlic cloves, minced
1 pound mild Italian sausage, casings removed (see note)
½ cup dry white wine, preferably Sauvignon Blanc
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon fine sea salt
1 pound gemelli, ziti, penne, or fusilli, or Homemade Spelt Pappardelle
½ cup (1 ounce) freshly grated Parmesan or Grano Padano cheese, more for serving
¼ cup chiffonade of fresh basil, if it's available in your garden
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

    1. Bring 4 quarts of water to a roiling boil in a large stockpot.
    2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucier or sauté pan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
    3. Add the sausage to the pan and cook until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. While the sausage cooks, break it into small pieces using a wooden spoon (a wooden scraping spoon with a flat edge at the top works especially well if you have one).
    4. Add the wine and cook until it is mostly evaporated, about 2–3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and their juice and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened some, about 8–10 minutes.
    5. Around when you add the tomatoes to the sauce, add the salt to the boiling water and stir until dissolved. Add the pasta and stir well for about 30 seconds. Cook until al dente, stirring occasionally. Drain the pasta, reserving a mugful of the cooking water.
    6. Transfer the drained pasta to a large serving bowl or back into the stockpot you cooked the pasta in. Add the sauce and toss to combine. Add the Parmesan and basil, if using, and toss again. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Adjust the consistency as needed with some of the pasta cooking water. Serve promptly, passing additional Parmesan at the table. Serves 4.

Kudos to Uncle Bob!

I am happy and proud to pass along that Uncle Bob was recently elected to the National Academy of Medicine as part of the class of 2018. The announcement by the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, where Uncle Bob is the Dr. John M. Smith Jr. Professor and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, has a great picture of Uncle Bob in his white lab coat and a few comments about his community-health research that was recognized by the NAM. In particular, Uncle Bob was cited by the NAM for his "innovative application of a groundbreaking capability framework that provides a practical and positive method for addressing the social and environmental determinants of health in participatory interventions that integrate primary care and community health." Here are links to some of Uncle Bob's studies using the capability framework if you want to read more:

• Practical Opportunities for Healthy Diet and Physical Activity: Relationship to Intentions, Behaviors, and Body Mass Index (Annals of Family Medicine [Mar. 2016])
• Measuring Capability for Healthy Diet and Physical Activity (Annals of Family Medicine [Jan. 2014])
• Capability and Clinical Success (Annals of Family Medicine [Sept. 2010])

But that's just the tip of the iceberg, as PubMed currently lists nearly 60 articles on which Uncle Bob has been a lead or contributing author.

I am, however, more than a little concerned that Mom is going to find out about one of those studies concerning "The Effects of Yoga on Physical Functioning and Health Related Quality of Life in Older Adults" (Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine [Oct. 2012]), which concluded that "yoga may be superior to conventional physical-activity interventions in elderly people." Thanks, Uncle Bob. That's just what I needed—more encouragement for Mom to push yoga on me. I mean, community health is great and all, but what about little brother's needs? Seriously though, this is awesome news and well deserved!

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"The life cycle of doughnuts"

There is a scene in Truth & Beauty (2004), Ann Patchett's memoir of her friendship with the writer Lucy Grealy, where Patchett describes half an hour they spent together just watching doughnuts being made at Krispy Kreme:

We went to the Krispy Kreme doughnut factory where the Hot Doughnuts Now sign was burning its pink neon light. From the other side of a glass window we watched the doughnuts roll down the conveyor belt and then drop into the boiling channel of oil where they bobbed, little doughy life preservers, and then were scooped up and rolled through the wall of liquid sugar. They came steadily, in a slow and orderly fashion, sailing off on a higher belt, rounding the corner out of sight. The life cycle of doughnuts was enormously comforting.

Reading that reminded me of bringing Dylan to the old Krispy Kreme store on Route 29 when he was just a tot and how much he enjoyed watching as the doughnuts made their journey. Dylan would stand on a chair with his nose right up against the glass and watch the doughnuts go round and round. It's not the same as being there with an awestruck little kid, but it is still nice to have the new Krispy Kreme close by in 5th Street Station to enjoy an occasional Original Glazed® Doughnut hot off the conveyor belt.

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We had a surprise visit from Cassie this week when classes were canceled at FSU before Hurricane Michael tore through Tallahassee. Mom and I had already planned to have a meal with Brad in Harrisonburg before going to the Waynesboro Symphony Orchestra concert in Staunton Saturday evening, so Cassie got to come along and spare Brad from being the sole focus of our attention again. Unfortunately, the meal was only marginally better than the hideous movie (49% on Rotten Tomatoes is seriously generous) Cassie suggested we watch on Netflix the preceding evening. Scratch one off my list of restaurants to try in Harrisonburg over the next 3½ years.

Luckily, the concert was much better. The highlight was Rex Richardson's performance of the world premiere of the full orchestral version of Allen Vizzutti's Three World Winds for Trumpet and Orchestra, which calls for the soloist to play three separate trumpets: piccolo, B-flat, and flugelhorn. When Peter Wilson, the WSO's conductor, spoke after Richardson's encore, he said the orchestra might not be able to play the final piece in the concert because there were no notes left after Richardson had "played them all" during the third "Cyclone" movement of the concerto. (You can hear the third movement here on Spotify.) Dylan would have been seriously impressed.

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I had already planned to make these oatmeal-raisin cookies for Brad the next time we saw him, but with Cassie here, they turned into oatmeal-cherry cookies (with chocolate chips and nuts, too). Either way, they're really good cookies.

Oatmeal-raisin cookies with cherries to appease Cassie

Chewy Chocolate Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies

Adapted from Ben & Birdy and Smitten Kitchen

Time: 36 minutes to when the cookies are removed from the baking sheets (plus any resting time in the fridge)

95 grams (~¾ cup) all-purpose or white spelt flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt or ½ teaspoon kosher salt
113 grams (½ cup/1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces and softened
125 grams (~⅔ cup) light brown sugar
1 large egg (50 grams out of the shell)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
120 grams (~1¼ cups) rolled oats
80 grams (~⅔ cup) raisins
130 grams (~¾ cup) chocolate chips
65 grams (~¾ cup) toasted walnut or pecan pieces, optional

    1. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
    2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
    3. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and brown sugar on medium speed (4 on a KitchenAid) until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl down. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth. Stir in the dry ingredients, then the oats, raisins, chocolate chips, and nuts until just combined. Do not overmix.
    4. Using a #40 scoop (1½ tablespoons), scoop the cookies onto one of the baking sheets, if chilling the dough, or both sheets, if baking right away. If you have the time and the patience, you get a superior cookie if you’re willing to park the dough in the fridge for at least an hour at this point. Either way, when you’re almost ready to bake the cookies, place the racks in the center of the oven, and heat to 350 degrees.
    5. Divide the dough balls evenly between the two baking sheets (about a dozen per sheet). Bake for 6 minutes, then rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back. Continue baking until the cookies are golden brown at the edges but still a little undercooked-looking on the top, about 6 minutes more. Cool on the baking sheets for at least 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

The weekend baking, episode II: the empty nest

This past weekend we moved Brad into Shenandoah, the honors dorm at JMU. Once again, I proved my mettle as the go-to parent for college-related things, at least as far as Brad is concerned. Mom engaged in various 5-year-old-like behaviors, such as getting her panties in a bunch when the ice cream social did not include make-your-own sundaes (as Cassie suggested they would), but only ice cream sandwiches, fudge bars, and creamsicles. (How can you turn your nose up at an orange Creamsicle® Bar?) Meanwhile, Cassie got insulted when someone commented that she looked like a 16-year-old, despite her being an entire year ahead of the lowly freshmen moving into JMU this weekend. Cassie decided that she would exact her revenge by pretending to be Lisa House, and quizzing all of the other freshmen on the book about James Madison they were supposed to have read for their honors orientation, but, like Brad, almost certainly did not.

Brad's dorm is way up on a hill on the east campus, looking down at the main west campus and the football stadium, and farther west to a gorgeous view of the mountains:

And here is Brad all moved into his room. It was a much quicker process for Brad, whose decorating taste was much simpler than Cassie's; a few soccer scarves and he was good to go.

After saying goodbye to her baby, Mom barely made it out of JMU in one piece. 😢 I thought having Cassie along would lighten the mood, but then Mom got Cassie started, too. 😭😭 You'd think we'd have this down by now, but it never gets any easier to leave one of you behind somewhere that's not under our roof.

Brad with our shortest president at Montpelier during orientation

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Kaizen

I was reading an article not long ago about improving your running through "optimistic incrementalism." That turns out to be a fancy term for the Japanese philosophy of kaizen, or constant or continuous improvement in small increments. The idea is to work at getting just a little bit better at something everyday, which will pay big dividends in the long run as the improvements add up.

For example, Dave Brailsford, a British cycling coach, decided to implement a strategy he called the "aggregation of marginal gains," which he explained as "the 1 percent margin for improvement in everything you do." He applied it to every aspect of his team's training down to the smallest detail, such as finding each cyclist's optimal pillow to ensure the best night's sleep possible. Brailsford ended up coaching two Tour de France champions, when no British cyclist had ever won the Tour before. Another example is Mike Trout, the world's best baseball player, who works to improve his play in every aspect of the game, including baserunning and positional play, not just hitting. But the kicker for me was when I found out that kaizen is one of Trader Joe's seven core values. I mean, if it works for Trader Joe's, it has to be true, right?

A 1 percent improvement might not sound like much. But let's say you can run a 5K in 30:00. If you run just 1 percent faster, that will get you a PR by 18 seconds (29:42), which is a lot to shave off your best time in one race. And the time savings will obviously be twice that for a 10K and more for even longer races. So 1 percent is a good goal that can be achieved by training just a little bit faster once a week. (You only have to drop your race pace by about 5 seconds per mile, from 9:39 to a little under 9:34, to gain that 1 percent.) And eating 1 percent better, sleeping a few extra minutes, drinking a few more sips of water everyday, etc. You get the idea.

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Cassie and I were talking about our five favorite foods the other day. I listed mushrooms, figs, and lentils right away, but caramelized onions and dates are in the mix, too. Angelo serves a great Sticky Toffee Pudding at the Ivy Inn, like everything else he makes. (Hear an entertaining interview with Angelo at Edacious.) This one is not up to that level, but everyone liked it enough to have seconds (and thirds for some), and Mom even said this might have to be her birthday dessert, which is a mouthful given that it doesn't have funfetti sprinkles in it. 

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Adapted from Sharpham Park

For the pudding
175 grams (scant 1¼ cups; ~10) chopped pitted dates
1½ teaspoons (10 grams) molasses
1½ teaspoons baking soda
250 grams/mls (~1 cup) water
175 grams (1⅓ cups) white spelt flour (all-purpose flour should work fine)
1 teaspoon baking powder
50 grams (3½ tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
185 grams (scant 1 cup) dark brown sugar
2 large eggs

For the toffee sauce
75 grams (⅓ cup) unsalted butter
75 grams (scant ¼ cup) light corn syrup
75 grams (heaped ⅓ cup) dark brown sugar
75 grams (⅓ cup) heavy cream

    1. For the puddings: Place a rack in the center of the oven, and heat to 350 degrees. For individual puddings, thoroughly grease eight 1-cup molds or ramekins, or you can use a standard muffin tin to make 12 smaller puddings. For one large pudding, grease a round 2-quart baking dish.
    2. Place the dates, molasses, baking soda, and water in a 1-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat. Transfer to a regular or personal blender; purée until completely smooth.
    3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder.
    4. In a large bowl or the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed (4 on a KitchenAid) until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, together with a spoonful of flour, beating well on medium speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl between additions. Gently stir in the puréed date mixture.
    5. Pour the mixture into the prepared molds, filling each about two-thirds full. Place the molds on a baking sheet. Bake until the puddings are springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20–25 minutes for individual puddings or 40–50 minutes for one large pudding.
    6. Let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Run a sharp paring knife around the edges of each pudding. They don’t call them sticky toffee puddings for nothing, so it can take some coaxing to get them out of the molds; be patient and gentle. You can serve them warm or cooled completely.
    7. For the toffee sauce and to serve: Place the butter, corn syrup, and sugar in a 1-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat, and whisk everything together. Whisk in the cream. Spoon over the puddings, and serve.

My fig crop: spelt testing, episode II

I had a record "crop" of figs off one of my trees this year, but it was less than 20 figs in total, and the other tree still hasn't produced anything. The good news is that the figs, though small, are really tasty, much sweeter and more flavorful than the fresh California figs I bought at Trader Joe's this morning. I'm hoping some timely, strategic pruning will up my haul significantly next year. I got some advice Uncle Bob passed along from his arborist, and Mom and I both listened carefully to what Daniel had to say yesterday at the City Market (he said he's been pulling them by the quart off his trees for weeks; I'm so jealous).

A big chunk of my fig "crop"

 

Before we went to the City Market, Mom met me on the Downtown Mall, where I was having breakfast with quite a few of my running buddies (many of whom had two-syllable names: Rol●lin, Bri●an, Ker●ry, Char●lie; so there). I knew we were in trouble when I saw Mom strolling down the Mall in her "FSU Mom" t-shirt. We hadn't coordinated, but I was wearing my "FSU Dad" t-shirt and had already taken a raft of shit from Tom S. about it. Sure enough, when he saw both of us sitting together in our matching t-shirts, he couldn't help but treat us through the remainder of breakfast to his rendition of the FSU tomahawk chop and war chant. Tom had the war chant completely wrong, which takes some doing, but of course he didn't let that stop him.

My meager fig crop obviously wasn't enough to make the fig bars below, but they did give me the idea. As it turns out, I think the bars will be better with a stronger-flavored, and more vividly-colored, type of fruit preserves, like cherry or apricot, which I've noted in the recipe below. Despite the subtitle of this episode, you can make both recipes with regular flour and they'll come out fine, so don't pass just because of that. And yes, I know this is already banana bread #4, but this is the last one, I swear. I wouldn't have written it up, but I like how simple it is. No spices, just lots of banana flavor and a good texture. I'm probably going with this one more often than not from now on.

The Last Banana Bread

Adapted from Angela Hartnett via The Daily Mail

Time: 1:05 to when the bread is removed from the pan

You can grind the nuts coarsely in a food processor (a few pulses), or with a mortar and pestle, or you can put them in a plastic bag and whack them a bit with the bottom of a heavy skillet or a meat pounder. You can use all-purpose flour or a combination of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour instead of spelt flour.

Dry ingredients
130 grams whole grain spelt flour; or 75 whole grain spelt flour + 55 grams white spelt flour (see note)
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
70 grams ground pecans or walnuts (see note)

Wet ingredients
227 grams peeled banana, from 2 medium, ripe bananas
130 grams (⅔ cup) light brown sugar
2 eggs
25 grams (~2 tablespoons) butter, melted

    1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a one-pound (8½-by-4½-inch) loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
    2. In a small bowl, whisk together the spelt flours, salt, baking soda, and ground walnuts.
    3. In a large bowl, mash the bananas well. You should have 1 cup mashed banana. Whisk in the sugar and eggs until well blended. Dump in the dry ingredients and stir just until nearly blended. Stir in the melted butter, then scrape the wet batter into the prepared loaf pan.
    4. Bake until the bread is golden brown and firm to the touch, about 40 minutes. An instant-read thermometer should  register around 190°F when the bread is baked through. The bread will not rise much because there is so little leavening.
    5. Let the bread cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Store at room temperature, wrapped in plastic, for several days.

Spelt and Oat Jam Bars

Adapted from Sprouted Kitchen

You can also make this with all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, or a mix of all-purpose and whole-wheat flour. The original recipe calls for 1 tablespoon cinnamon, which would be overpowering. I cut that in half and used 1½ teaspoons, and you still get a strong cinnamon flavor. If you’re not a big fan of cinnamon, I’d take it down to 1 teaspoon. I love figs, but the fig preserves were underwhelming. I think something with a stronger visual and flavor profile, like apricot or cherry preserves, would be better here.

Dry ingredients
155 grams (1¼ cups) whole grain spelt flour (see note)
175 grams (1¾ cups) rolled oats, divided
1 to 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon (see note)
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Wet ingredients
150 grams (¾ cup) brown sugar
113 grams (½ cup) applesauce
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract, optional

25 grams (2 tablespoons) butter, cut into ¼-inch cubes
225 grams (~⅔ cup) fig or other fruit preserves (see note)

    1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
    2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
    3. In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, applesauce, egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract, if using.
    4. Dump the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and stir to combine. Press two-thirds of the mixture into the pan. Spread the preserves evenly over the bottom layer.
    5. Stir the remaining 25 grams (¼ cup) of the oats into the remaining one-third of the batter. Add the butter pieces, and cut in with a fork or a pastry blender. Scatter pieces of the batter by the tablespoonful over the preserve layer.
    6. Bake until risen some and the top feels firm and maybe a bit crispy, about 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Makes 12 bars. 

Mystic pulls a fast one

The last few days, I've given Mom a break from walking Mystic in the morning, or at least I thought I did. Thursday morning, I left a note on the fridge whiteboard saying that I'd walked and fed Mystic. Yesterday, I thought Mom heard us moving around, so I didn't bother. Then I went out for a hike in Biscuit Run. Half an hour later, Mystic was in by Mom's bed, whining and scratching at the side of the bed like she was desperate to go. Mom had slept through the racket when I walked and fed Mystic earlier, and was sure she hadn't been out yet. So Mom walked her, too, though it was soon apparent, when Mystic didn't have to pee or poop in the middle of the road, as is her wont lately, that she'd already been out. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Tricksy dog!

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The index card of fatherly wisdom, episode II

Don't worry. My font of fatherly wisdom still spans only two principles and four words (not counting the corollary), which are easily memorized to guide you through life's great adventure. But I do have some wisdom to pass along from another father I know slightly, James Ryan, another soccer dad whose son played with Brad for a year. Jim is also an alumnus of the UVA Law School, where he was a professor before being appointed as the Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Jim gave a speech on "good questions" at the 2016 commencement in which he posited that

there are five truly essential questions that you should regularly ask yourself and others. My claim is that, if you get in the habit of asking these questions, you have a very good chance of being both successful and happy, and you will be in a good position to answer “I did” to the bonus question at the end.

After Jim's speech went viral, he expanded on the ideas in his 2017 book Wait, What?: And Life's Other Essential Questions. It's a quick, entertaining read filled with funny, interesting stories demonstrating how the five essential questions work in practice. I highly recommend the book, though you can get away with just watching the speech if you're interested. Which you should be, because I think the questions make a lot of sense, and you can't go wrong with fatherly wisdom that fits onto a 3x5-inch index card. Anyway, here are the five essential questions, with the bonus question, which is taken from "Late Fragment," a poem by Raymond Carver:

[9/15/17 UPDATE: Jim Ryan has been elected as the ninth president of the University of Virginia! This is an Aaron Judge sized home run for UVA.]