Mark
Campus: Orland ParkProgram: Hospitality Management
From: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
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It all began two years ago when I was driving myself to my mundane banking job. Now don’t get me wrong the job was okay, it just wasn’t for me. That day, traffic was terrible, I was miserable, and I thought there has to be more to life than this. I decided it was time for a change. So I left the banking industry (after working in it for eight years) and started my new adventure into the world of food. That’s how I got to the Bobby Mo.
Previously on Real Life...
Want to see some crazy, mean chicks on skates hurting each other and have a great time in the process?
Then you've got to check out the Windy City Rollers. They are an all-girl roller derby league that kicks arse. I went to their season opener on April 23rd and I am addicted.
You're probably saying to yourself, "This has nothing to do with food"! But there is a connection here. The pastry chef that I work for is a Windy City Roller. She's Carnage Wilson and she plays for The Fury. I also had the opportunity to work in the kitchen with T-Bone StakeYa who plays for Hell's Belles. They're both very talented in the kitchen and in the derby ring.
Roller derby really isn't that hard to understand. However, I'm not going to try to explain it here. If you go to a match (or go to the Windy City Rollers link above) you can pick it up really quickly. Now if you are old enough (like myself) to remember it on T.V., I have to tell you that it isn't like that at all. This is a real sport with bruises, broken arms, and all.
I promise you after ten minutes (once you learn what's going on) you will get into it. At first, you could tell that the girls were all taking it easy on eachother, but by the end they were being knocked into walls and flying into chairs. It was crazy fun.
The best part is that tickets are pretty inexpensive. If you buy in advance you can get them for $15. The matches (they are usually double headers for inter league play) combined last a little over two hours. They do sell food and beer (have your ID ready), so you can get your fill of nachos and lite beer.
The next inter league match is Saturday May 19th. Highly Recommended!
To get tickets or learn more check out their website:
http://www.windycityrollers.com/
Kick some arse Carnage and T-Bone!
Next on Real Life...
Don’t you love flying? I certainly don’t. I’ve flown five times in my whole life. All in all they were positive experiences. (Nerve wracking, but positive.) Cut to me being trapped in a small airplane with every type of passenger from hell on board; meanwhile, the plane is jerking so much that I’m really thinking of grabbing that air sickness bag in front of me and giving it a good fill.
Since I’ve got nothing but time and no scenery to describe to you, I’m going to give you the low down on the passengers on my Jet Blue flight from Chicago to JFK.
1. Shirley Temper Tantrum (seat 21A)
Apparently mom decided to take away a toy of Shirley’s because she was being naughty. Big mistake Mommy! Now Shirley has decided she is really unhappy and telling the rest of us on the plane about it. Thank god for Ipods! Unfortunately, my volume only goes up so high. I hope Mommy is embarrassed. Daddy doesn’t seem to care as he keeps checking out the flight attendant passing out snacks. (The flight attendant is a man).
2. Claus Von TooClose (Seat 14C, next to me)
This guy is practically sitting in my lap. First off, his crap was strewn all over my seat when I went to it and now he’s trying to play touchy feely with me. As if the seats weren’t cramped enough on this little jet liner. He’s decided to doze now and it looks like he’s about to come crashing into my shoulder. Sorry buddy, but this sexy chef is taken. Yeah that’s right, I’m writing about you. Move the hell over.
3. Mr. and Mrs. Hoy D. Toydy (Seats 12 A and 12B)
She has stacks of Vogue Magazines on her lap; he has his laptop out typing like hell (he’s a loud typer). Mr. Toydy has decided to give Mrs. Toydy a play by play about their investments. Why would you discuss how much money you have in your Money Market Account on a plane? Let alone loud enough for me to hear. They must be on their honeymoon as their public displays of affection sicken me. Oh look the picture album of the dog is out. How cute. No, Mrs. Toydy, your gum snapping isn’t at all loud. By all means, snap it louder.
Review of Jet Blue:
The good: The TV’s in the headrest are awesome. I get 36 channels and XM radio. And it’s free. Thank god I brought my own headphones because the ones they hand out look a little gross.
The bad: Watching food network while the plane is bouncing around. Where’s that bag?
ROUND 2: THE FLIGHT FROM JFK TO LONDON
So, I’ve arrived safely at JFK. Decided to stop at Mc Donald’s for a bite to eat. Big mistake. Thank god the Pepto-Bismol was packed. JFK airport has to be one of the most confusing airports ever. From the airtran system (a big monorail that goes in a loop) to the tons of people that take up every seat available. It was not a fun stop. British Airways on the other hand was pretty cool. Free wine with dinner! You’ve got to love those Brits. After downing two glasses with a handful of sleeping pills, I was out like a light.
It is now 7:00 a.m. on Sunday, so I guess that ends day one. Sorry no pictures!
NO KNEAD BREAD
This is one of my favorite recipes. It's super easy and the results are fantastic.
A member of the club I work at told me about this bread a couple of months ago. She gave me the New York Times article it was mentioned in and told me I had to make it. (If you can find the article on the internet, I recommend reading it.) She was super excited about it. At the time I couldn't understand why. It seemed like your normal bread recipe. However, after making it, I realized it's not. I caught the fever and started telling everyone I knew about this bread. (If you google "no knead bread" there are tons of blogs on this recipe alone.)
So What's the Big Deal?
So what? Bread recipes have been around forever. This recipe, however, is being touted as a "revolutionary" recipe. It is a recipe in which the processes of kneading the dough has been replaced by time. That's not the revolutionary part. The author of this recipe (Jim Lahey) has basically made this bread full-proof. You really can't mess it up!
Here's how it works. When you knead dough you are developing gluten strands within the dough. Gluten toughens a bread and forms the nice little holes inside the loaf (something you want in a nice crusty loaf). Mr. Lahey instead allows the yeast to develop the gluten overnight. So, it's like having a million microscopic bakers working on your dough while you sleep. Then, in the morning, you just let the dough sit a little bit, pop it into the oven, and in about 45 minutes you have an awesome crusty loaf perfect for panini sandwiches or for dipping with oil.
The best part of this recipe is that it allows for variation. I have added fresh herbs (Rosemary is great) to the bread. Just make sure you add it to the flour before adding the water. You can also make a great beer bread. I've substituted Guinness Beer for the water and used the bread for Reuben sandwiches.
I highly recommend trying this recipe. After I made this bread for my chef at work, he had me start using this recipe for a number of different events. (If you can mold the dough into a baguette shape, it works perfectly for cheese.) Once you've made it and tasted it, you'll be hooked. After you've mastered the recipe, I suggest experimenting with different variations. Its cheap, easy, and fun. (Sounds like someone I know).
Enjoy!
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The Minimalist: The Secret of Great Bread: Let Time Do the Work
Published: November 8, 2006
Adapted from Jim Lahey,
Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for
dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups water
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed (for dusting)
1. In a large bowl combine flour and salt. Mix. Add yeast. Add water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.
3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes (you'll probably only need another 10-15 minutes...keep an eye on it), until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.
Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.
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(May 23rd) SIDENOTE:
My trip is coming up this Saturday! Thank god! I leave for my week long Italian Get-away. As instructed, I will post daily blog updates as to what I've learned, how much wine I've drunk, and what kind of trouble I got myself into. Feel free to check back daily between Saturday May 26th to Monday June 3rd. Ciao!