Girls Coffeeshop Talk

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Jimbits76

Cool...My bro in law and I this year are going to try to brew our own beer.

Once we've bought the kit we'll try a few kits first before we start making our own recipe!!!!

And No...that aint my secret project.

J

See?? That's one reason I want a garage. You need one to make beer!

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lion

Carol, so the mad scientist is at work brewing up her concoctions!!!
Will the yogurt be plain or flavored???

Just plain. I buy tons of frozen fruit from Trader Joe's, and we put that in the yogurt. Hubby eats about 2 quarts of fruit/yogurt a day, which is a strong cost motivating factor for me to try my own.

[Jimbits76]

We are away and brewing once Easter is done...once you've laid out the cash for the equipment...the kits are about £15. That's about 30 pence per pint...compare that to £2.90 for the same beer in a local pub...woohoo!

J

[Lion]

Jim, I have some friends who home brew their own beer and they have a lot of fun doing it. I have to laugh, my son when he was in college living in the dorms with a friend decided to make wine. When I asked him where they were storing it he said in his room. Now being under age and not allowed to have alcohol in the dorms I told him to move it to his friends room(common sense)!!!
I asked him how it tasted after it was ready and he said just so so!!!

[Jimbits76]

Originally Posted by Lion

Jim, I have some friends who home brew their own beer and they have a lot of fun doing it. I have to laugh, my son when he was in college living in the dorms with a friend decided to make wine. When I asked him where they were storing it he said in his room. Now being under age and not allowed to have alcohol in the dorms I told him to move it to his friends room(common sense)!!!
I asked him how it tasted after it was ready and he said just so so!!!

Some of the wine is bloody awful.

Home brew lager is also dire.

At our age and weight, the bro in law and I are now ready for home brew ale...it aint got to begassy and ice cold...just a sweet, warm, borderline flat pint of good english bitter!

J

[Lion]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Just plain. I buy tons of frozen fruit from Trader Joe's, and we put that in the yogurt. Hubby eats about 2 quarts of fruit/yogurt a day, which is a strong cost motivating factor for me to try my own.

Carol, wow that's a lot of yogurt in one day!!!
Here's to your home grown for flavor and taste!!!

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lion

Carol, wow that's a lot of yogurt in one day!!!
Here's to your home grown for flavor and taste!!!

Silly, not 2 quarts of yogurt a day -- 2 qu. yogurt and fruit combined. Maybe 2 - 3 cups a day.

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Lion

Lisa, what would happen(I hope it does not)if the preservation committee did find out about your renovations???

In some cases, like installing the wrong kind of windows or using vinyl siding instead of wood, the homeowner has to remove it and replace it with approved materials. But only if he gets reported, usually by another neighbor.

One guy painted his brick exterior and had to get the paint removed. How in the world do you do that? Sandblasting?

If you don't comply you get fined. It can get pretty nasty, I guess. I just hope that because our finished product isn't much different, and actually now has "approved" materials (the old metal doors wouldn't have been in compliance anyhow), that no one will report us.

That said, we have a "Mrs. Kravitz" (remember "Bewitched?") living across the street - she's the only one I'm uneasy about - the less said to her the better! She even knows we put up a wooden storage shed next to the garage - we are really living dangerously.

The irony with living in an HP area is that some people don't even bother to renovate or repair stuff because the process is too complicated and confusing. As a result, some of the streets are packed with cars parked along the curbs because the garages are unuseable. And the garages are an eyesore, too. Sometimes the neighbors wait for them to fall down on their own so they can just haul the debris away. But I also understand the purpose of HP oversight - as usual I understand the rules, but don't believe they apply to me!

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Carolina

See?? That's one reason I want a garage. You need one to make beer!

My brother was REALLY into making his own beer - it was very good, too! (But I think he did it mostly because it was in the long run cheaper than buying his own - he drank a LOT of it. )

Really, that'd be a great project, Jim.

Caroline, that yogurt making sounds like fun. Since it's made with whole milk, will it be the "cream on top" kind? How will you flavor it?

[Lion]

Lisa, I think every neighborhood has a Mrs. Kravitz to keep an eye(busy body) on what's going on. Sort of like a neighborhood watch so when we go away for a few days we let her know to keep an eye on our place!!!

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Silly, not 2 quarts of yogurt a day -- 2 qu. yogurt and fruit combined. Maybe 2 - 3 cups a day.

That's still a lotta yoge, girl! I bet he has happy intestines!

[Carolina]

I don't think there will be cream on top, as I'm using homogeonized milk. I guess Stonyfield must use non-h milk (with the cream on top, which is hard to find). We use it plain, and mix in different frozen fruit -- usually blueberries. blackberries, mango, or pineapple.

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Lion

Lisa, I think every neighborhood has a Mrs. Kravitz to keep an eye(busy body) on what's going on. Sort of like a neighborhood watch so when we go away for a few days we let her know to keep an eye on our place!!!

They're good types to have around - as long as they like you!

[jdc]

Originally Posted by Lisa

In some cases, like installing the wrong kind of windows or using vinyl siding instead of wood, the homeowner has to remove it and replace it with approved materials. But only if he gets reported, usually by another neighbor.

One guy painted his brick exterior and had to get the paint removed. How in the world do you do that? Sandblasting?

If you don't comply you get fined. It can get pretty nasty, I guess. I just hope that because our finished product isn't much different, and actually now has "approved" materials (the old metal doors wouldn't have been in compliance anyhow), that no one will report us.

That said, we have a "Mrs. Kravitz" (remember "Bewitched?") living across the street - she's the only one I'm uneasy about - the less said to her the better! She even knows we put up a wooden storage shed next to the garage - we are really living dangerously.

The irony with living in an HP area is that some people don't even bother to renovate or repair stuff because the process is too complicated and confusing. As a result, some of the streets are packed with cars parked along the curbs because the garages are unuseable. And the garages are an eyesore, too. Sometimes the neighbors wait for them to fall down on their own so they can just haul the debris away. But I also understand the purpose of HP oversight - as usual I understand the rules, but don't believe they apply to me!

we live in a conservation area and they are very strict. The windows in our building are victorian sash and you have to replace with like. One of our neighbours decided to ignore this, and was made to replace them. Must have cost £10,000 plus for trying to ignore the regulations.

[Lion]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Silly, not 2 quarts of yogurt a day -- 2 qu. yogurt and fruit combined. Maybe 2 - 3 cups a day.

Oh, that's definitely more like it. I do enjoy plain yogurt by itself or mixed with fresh fruit as well!!! Tastes really good in the summer when there is all kinds of fresh fruit to pick from and use. Also love fresh fruit salad in the summer as well( blueberries, cantaloupe and kiwis).

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Carolina

I don't think there will be cream on top, as I'm using homogeonized milk. I guess Stonyfield must use non-h milk (with the cream on top, which is hard to find). We use it plain, and mix in different frozen fruit -- usually blueberries. blackberries, mango, or pineapple.

Yep - I like to buy the Horizon organic - it does have cream on top, but does that mean it's not homogenized? Yet it's still safe? How does they does that?

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by jdc

we live in a conservation area and they are very strict. The windows in our building are victorian sash and you have to replace with like. One of our neighbours decided to ignore this, and was made to replace them. Must have cost £10,000 plus for trying to ignore the regulations.

Same here, Martin. You can see we need to re-build the garage window, and our best bet is to find a craftsman who can make one by hand. On the house, we have the original steel casement windows, and they are cold, drafty, leaky and most definitely NOT energy effecient. I want to keep them, of course - and they look very nice - but wish I knew how to keep them from leaking and sweating - the condensation alone is really hard on the wooden sills inside. I've considered inside-mounted storm windows that could be easily removed during warm weather, but just haven't sucked up the guts for the cash outlay yet....

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lisa

Yep - I like to buy the Horizon organic - it does have cream on top, but does that mean it's not homogenized? Yet it's still safe? How does they does that?

You're thinking of pasteurization, which is heating the milk to a certain temperature to kill all unwanted organisms. Homogenation (think homogeneous) is a process in which the milk and cream are combined (they probably use a big centrifuge or something) such that the milk and cream do not separate.

I've read that non-h milk is healthier, because the fat is not broken down into tiny particles and either damaged, or more easily assimilated into the body. Something like that, anyway.

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Carolina

You're thinking of pasteurization, which is heating the milk to a certain temperature to kill all unwanted organisms. Homogenation (think homogeneous) is a process in which the milk and cream are combined (they probably use a big centrifuge or something) such that the milk and cream do not separate.

I've read that non-h milk is healthier, because the fat is not broken down into tiny particles and either damaged, or more easily assimilated into the body. Something like that, anyway.

You're right - I was thinking of pasteurization.

You're so smart! You must be a chemist or something!

[Lion]

Well, making your own yogurt has to be better than some of the flavors/crap they now sell in the stores!!!

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lisa

You're right - I was thinking of pasteurization.

You're so smart! You must be a chemist or something!

No, I'm a geek who reads a lot!

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lion

Well, making your own yogurt has to be better than some of the flavors/crap they now sell in the stores!!!

Seriously. Mmmmmm -- nonfat yogurt, thickened with "stuff", and sweetened with Nutrasweet. Key lime and caramel (artificial, of course)!

[Lion]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Seriously. Mmmmmm -- nonfat yogurt, thickened with "stuff", and sweetened with Nutrasweet. Key lime and caramel (artificial, of course)!

I like my yogurt non-sweetened and with fresh fruit. Okay, now I'm getting hungry!!!

[Carolina]

As a kid, we got National Geographic at home. I remember reading a fascinating article on a certain institute (I think it's in Ohio?) that researches and synthesizes artificial flavors. It was so interesting, and I knew that I wanted to be a chemist and work there.

I never did get into research, and thankfully did not go to work there, as I would have a serious personal dichotomy on my hands! I still think it's very cool, though. I would love to go into food or nutritional chemistry.

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Seriously. Mmmmmm -- nonfat yogurt, thickened with "stuff", and sweetened with Nutrasweet. Key lime and caramel (artificial, of course)!

Yes, but what about that stuff they market for kids - Trix yogurt and the like/ You sprinkle in enough artificial colored sugar and junk to make it about as nutritionally sound as a handfull of gummi bears!

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lion

I like my yogurt non-sweetened and with fresh fruit. Okay, now I'm getting hungry!!!

My kinda guy!! I wish you lived closer - I would give you a sample. Assuming it's edible of course. I did not major in microbiology!

[Lisa]

Originally Posted by Carolina

As a kid, we got National Geographic at home. I remember reading a fascinating article on a certain institute (I think it's in Ohio?) that researches and synthesizes artificial flavors. It was so interesting, and I knew that I wanted to be a chemist and work there.

I never did get into research, and thankfully did not go to work there, as I would have a serious personal dichotomy on my hands! I still think it's very cool, though. I would love to go into food or nutritional chemistry.

Would you like to work as a food chemist for the FDA?

When I was working at the tourism department, I got to write a story about our local Shawnee Mills company. They sell flour, cornmeal and baking mixes. I toured the test kitchen and thought what fun it would be to work there.

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lisa

Yes, but what about that stuff they market for kids - Trix yogurt and the like/ You sprinkle in enough artificial colored sugar and junk to make it about as nutritionally sound as a handfull of gummi bears!

Grrr - like that junk in the tubes? My kiddos stayed with my in-laws while Chris was in surgery, and they know how I am about food/kids. But I just smiled and said, "oh - whatever is easiest!" (life is too short, y'know?) I make sure they eat healthy 80% of the time.

MIL got the kids some of that Trix stuff with sprinkles and M&Ms. They were so excited! Then they tasted it, and couldn't eat it. They told me it tasted funny!

Ha - my work is done!!

[Lion]

How about all the breakfast cereals they have now for kids, like Reeses Peanut Butter!!!
Gag me with a spoon!!!

[Carolina]

Originally Posted by Lisa

Would you like to work as a food chemist for the FDA?

When I was working at the tourism department, I got to write a story about our local Shawnee Mills company. They sell flour, cornmeal and baking mixes. I toured the test kitchen and thought what fun it would be to work there.

Yeah, that would be cool. But the closest school with the appropriate coursework is about 3 hours away.

I'm seriously considering getting trained as a Med tech, to work in hospital labs. I can get the training as an associates degree at the local community college, which means it's affordable and convenient. The job outlook is supososed to be excellent, with decent job security - like anything in the medical field.

It could be a decent segue from my old career, and it's somewhat intriguing. I was planning to talk to the coordinator of the program after the kids go back to school after break.