Cherry Pie, Episode 2--Oops, Awws, and Ahhs

Previously in "Cherry Pie, Episode 1--the Newish Baker Challenge", I wrote that I would put the recipe in the next article (meaning this one). Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Cherry Pie, Episode 1--the Newish Baker Challenge

This article is an assessment of a cherry pie I made last month. I'd not made a scratch pie in many years—scratch meaning pie dough from scratch ingredients and fresh filling. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Zebra Cake, Using Two Half Boxes of Mix

*** 11/19/2016
Accompanying video now available at YouTube—"Zebra Cake, Using Two Half Boxes of Mix"

Last month, I wrote up "Zebra Cake, Using Marble Cake Mix", which differs from this zebra cake only slightly. Try different varieties of chocolate (fudgy, devil's food, …) and lighter color cake (white, yellow, vanilla). Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Envying Animals, Part 2--Non-senses

My previous article "Envying Animals, Part 1--Vision, Hearing, Sense of Smell" was about envying animal characteristics pertaining to three senses. This article is about envying animal non-sense (grin) characteristics. Obvious capabilities are flight and living underwater without requiring mechanical devices. Other marvelous animal capabilities are ability to leap tall objects in a single bound, tails for tools and communication, and ability to hide in plain sight. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Envying Animals, Part 1--Vision, Hearing, Sense of Smell

Every now and then, I think about animal characteristics that I envy. Part 1 of "Envying Animals, …" focuses on three senses—vision, hearing, and sense of smell. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Zebra Cake, Using Marble Cake Mix

*** 10/21/2016
Accompanying video now available at YouTube—"Zebra Cake, Using Marble Cake Mix"

I'd been intrigued by a cute Duff zebra cake mix. (Love those stripes!) But it was so much more expensive than household names like Betty Crocker, Duncan Hines, and Pillsbury. A particularly easy, non-Duff way to make a yummy zebra cake with using only one box of mix is getting marble cake mix. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Some Clarity on Legumes, Haricots, and Nuts

I first ran across "legumes" (beans) and "haricots verts" (green beans) in my high school French class, but probably during different lessons. In the last 10 years or so, I've seen a lot of "legumes" in print. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Dozen Matter If 12 Is Significant

Why does 12 seem a significant quantity? The thought occurred to me after I counted to 12 in one of my exercise stretches that I usually count to 10. I then thought about terms and expressions that include "12" or "dozen". Read the entire article and comment there, please.

New Molted Cicada Exoskeleton with Wasps

 

Last month, I published "Closeup of Molted Cicada Exoskeleton (and More Info)". I had taken the accompanying pic of that lifeless shell on July 25. A few days ago, another cicada exuviae showed up on the same porch column—this time, about a foot higher. Oh, boy! Another opportunity for another pic or more! Spotted more subjects than I expected, and got a bit more practice with my Fuji JX665. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Duncan Hines Perfect Size Cake--Off Golden Path

*** 7/4/2016
Accompanying video now available at YouTube—"Duncan Hines Perfect Size Cake--Off Golden Path"

Duncan Hines debuted its Perfect Size cake line about a year ago. The ingredients make a smallish single-layer cake. The kit includes cake mix powder, a 6" paper pan with detachable liner, and frosting powder. Read the entire article about my deviation from the instructions and comment there, please.

Closeup of Molted Cicada Exoskeleton (and More Info)

Earlier this week, I spotted a sizable empty shell of a bug, maybe a beetle, I thought. It was about an inch tall, stuck to a corner of a porch column, seemingly hugging it, about three feet above the porch. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

EZ Mini M&M Confetti Cookies

*** 7/4/2016
Accompanying video now available at YouTube—"EZ Mini M&M Confetti Cookies"

My cake mix cooky recipe is the summer counterpart (summer-temperature tolerant) to my winter cake mix cooky recipe "Minty Choco Chip Cake Mix Cookies". I wanted to bake some cookies that have chocolate that melts in your mouth, not in your hand. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Pronunciation Musements

Pronunciations of some English words can be unobvious or inconsistent, particularly when encountering the printed form for the first time. My article is primarily about consonant combinations ("consonant blends" and "consonant digraphs"), but also includes related information farther down. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Sprinkling Caraway Seeds for Quick Rye-ish Fix

A few weeks ago, I had a yen for rye bread. Being ignorant of rye bread dough, and seeing that caraway seeds always seemed to be in rye bread, I simply thought of these seeds as the add-in that makes rye bread rye bread. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Jacks Part 2

This article is the second half about jack(s), which covers jacked food, music (beyond the previous article's mention of "From a Jack to a King"), video media, and other scattered jacks. Read the
entire article and comment there, please.

Jacks Part 1

When I heard or read “jackpot” recently, it occurred to me that it was a strange word. Almost immediately afterward, I thought about “jack” as a frequently encountered word or name, something to write about. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Taking a Gander at Geese

Geese are interesting in looks, group traveling, and involvement in language. Two common goose types I'd run across during googling have been Canada goose (multicolor) and snow goose (predominantly white). Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Pizza Boxes Part 2

Last month, Pizza Boxes Part 1 focused mostly on non-pizza box use and Bahtinov masks for astronomy. This part digs deeper into the substance of the container—
terminology, design, construction, box strengths, …. Also includes links to funner items of interest about pizza. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

EZ Colorful Cupcake Topping

*** 3/25/2016
Accompanying video now available at YouTube—"EZ Colorful Cupcake Topping"

"Gluing" colored sugars onto glaze-topped cupcakes results in festive-looking snacks that have less topping than those with swirly, buttercream mounds of frosting. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Pizza Boxes Part 1

This article describes uses for pizza boxes besides containers for pizza, Bahtinov focusing masks as a large part of the article. It also lists some products that are called pizza boxes only because of shape characteristics. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Ankle Warmers--Reclaim and Repurpose Sock Tubes

Repurpose sock tubes from worn-out socks—gathering items, cutting the tube parts, and stitching, as the pixstrip images indicate. Create ankle warmers to wear over socks when you’re in cold environments. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Those Two-Tone Confetti Cupcakes

Last month, I made Cinnamon Two-Tone Cupcakes with 1/2 box of yellow cake mix, using Wilton two-tone cake inserts. I observed that the interior columns of the cakes were blobby. This time, for the other half box, instead of a cinnamon and nutmeg mix for the interior part, I used 3 tablespoons of rainbow jimmies. Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Some Lyrical Blasts from the Past

YouTube playlist for this article,
playlist compilation article

Example songs include "Hooked on a Feeling" (Blue Swede, 1974), "Wanna Be Startin' Something" (Michael Jackson, 1982), "Witch Doctor" (Alvin and Chipmunks, 1958), and "Good Morning Starshine" (Oliver, 1969). Read the entire article and comment there, please.

Cinnamon Two-Tone Cupcakes

This recipe makes cupcakes with cinnamony center column, using Wilton cupcake inserts. I include links to a .pdf file and YouTube video. Read the entire article and comment there, please.