5-year-old Acer palmatum (Japanese Maple) bonsai of the "Informal Upright" style, (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The maple bonsai is one of the most spectacular styles of bonsai that can be grown. Typically grown outdoors, these trees provide a dazzling display of color in the spring and fall while providing a natural beauty in the winter months. These trees are typically considered delicate, requiring a certain style of care in order to properly endure. For example, like many other bonsai, the maple bonsai must be replanted once every year or two, dependent on the type of maple that you have.
Japanese maples tend to be used, as this species of tree is traditionally associated with bonsai growing. However, as the art of bonsai growth has evolved, other forms of maple bonsai have come to the forefront, especially in the United States and Canada.
When caring for a maple bonsai, you need to learn about maple trees in general. This will assist you in making the right decisions for caring for your bonsai. Important things that you should learn include the time of year the maple is dormant, what temperatures the maple can tolerate, and what pruning needs to be done in order to keep your tree healthy. A maple bonsai has the same core rules as a fully grown maple of the same species.
In addition to this, a maple bonsai needs additional care due to the fact that it is grown in such a small pot. Root maintenance and potting of the tree are two aspects not typically dealt with for maples, as these trees are usually grown to their full size. Root maintenance and proper trimming is a requirement in order to maintain the health of the tree. When looking for this information, you should use resources specific to the maple bonsai tree, as typical tree tending does not include this information.
Some forms of maple bonsai do not take well to extremely cold temperatures. If you live in a region where the temperature drops below zero, you will want to ensure that your maple can survive. Frost can damage the roots, branches, and leaves of the tree, effectively shortening its lifespan. A greenhouse may be required for storing your maple bonsai if you live in a colder region that goes beyond the normal habitat of these trees.
If you are interested in purchasing a maple bonsai, you can buy seeds, a seedling, or even a full grown tree through an online vendor, or you can inquire about these trees at your local garden or plant nursery.
If you can imagine beef noodle soup for breakfast, then you decidedly want to try Pho, a Vietnamese dish that has been around for nearly 100 years. I find my site is more and more leaning towards ethnic dishes that are loaded with big, bold tastes, and that makes eating what it should be - an experience!
Pho (pronounced "phir" in English) is influenced by the Chinese and French cuisines and was believed to have originally derived from a French soup, "pot au feu",(pot on fire)which Wikipedia defines as a French beef stew. This is usually a mixture of cuts of beef, vegetable, and spice.
Pho had its humble beginnings nearly 100 years ago, and at that time was basically boiled beef, broth and noodles. It has since evolved into much more than that. During the war in Viet Nam, when beef became scarce, a pork version (pho lon) evolved.
The combination of both French and Chinese occupation has led to a diverse, unique cuisine that is admired by many. When the Vietnamese fled to the US in 1975, they brought to the United States their unique cuisine and heritage. It is how Pho was introduced to us...
As a Viet Nam vet, I am probably a bit more familiar with the SE Asian cuisine than most. I also worked for many years with a large population of Vietnamese when doing vocational rehab. As a result, I enjoy the cookery of the East. It is spicy, oft-times hot, and is also very healthy.
Offered here is a basic recipe for Pho. I have spent extra time lately with my brother after Mom's passing. Howard, also a Viet Nam vet, and I talked a lot about the culture there, and the great meals to be had. He, too, loves the bold, spicy hot foods of the Orient...
We are accustomed to meals of bacon and eggs, French toast, sausages, big whacking slices of ham for breakfast. All loaded with fat grams and way too much cholesterol. Do your self a favour, and try Pho one of these mornings instead...
Enjoy!
Assemble These Ingredients:
3 medium unpeeled yellow onions (approx 1 pound)
4-inch piece unpeeled ginger (approx 4 ounces)
5 to 6 pounds beef soup bones (leg and knuckle bones - have butcher cut into 2-3 in sections)
1 lb flank steak. cut into bite-sized pieces.
5-star anise
6 whole cloves
3-inch cinnamon stick
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1/4 cup Hot chilli sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
Freshly ground Black pepper
1-ounce rock sugar (duong phen) or 1 tablespoon white sugar
For The Bowl Itself:
1/2 lb sirloin or round steak
1 TBS Cilantro-chopped
2 14 ounce packages of small ( 1/8-inch wide) dried or fresh banh pho noodles
2-3 scallions, with green tops sliced into small rings.
Char 2 of the onions (reserve the other onion for bowl preparation) and ginger over an open flame to release essential oils and fragrances. They do not need to be blackened - only char to soften. (This can be done under a broiler if no open flame is available). Remove skin and blackened pieces from onions and ginger, remove stem ends from onions and discard. Set aside.
In a large stockpot, place leg bones and enough cold water to cover. Bring to a rolling boil, and boil approximately 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat, and rinse under cold running water. Thoroughly clean stock pot, and return cleaned bones to pot. Add 6 quarts of water bring to a rolling boil, and reduce to a gentle simmer. Add onions, ginger, star anise, cloves, cinnamon stick, cut up flank steak, salt, fish sauce, and rock sugar. Simmer about 1 1/2 hours, and remove flank steak. (Steak should be done through but chewy) Cool steak in a bowl of cold water to keep it from drying out and turning brown. Refrigerate flank steak. Continue simmering broth for approximately 3 hours, skimming scum and fat from broth occasionally, and stirring bones from time to time.
When done, strain broth through double-folded cheesecloth in a colander to remove any impurities and pieces of tendon. Discard bones. To make the preparation of Pho much easier, refrigerate broth overnight. When cold, any excess fat can be easily removed from the cold broth. The idea here is to have a very clear, fat-free broth.
To Prepare The Bowls:
Slice the sirloin or round steak against the grain in very thin slices.
(Freezing for a half-hour makes this easier)
Thinly slice cooked flank steak
Heat broth to boiling over medium heat.
Blanch noodles in 3-4 quarts of boiling water, and use a strainer to remove each bowl portion. Blanching should only take about 10-20 seconds, until the noodles have lost their stiffness, and are easily managed.
If using fresh noodles, simply untangle and rinse in cold water.
Blanch bean sprouts in same water until wilted but crunchy.
Fill each bowl approximately 1/4 full with noodles, place cooked flank steak and slices of raw sirloin or round steak on top of noodles. Garnish this with sliced scallions, thinly sliced onions, and chopped cilantro.
Ladle seasoned broth into a bowl. The idea here is to have the boiling broth cook the thinly sliced raw steak. Season with freshly ground black pepper.
A garnish plate is served with the completed Pho. It is customary for the diner to pull the leaves from the stalk of the basil and mint to season their meal. Take thinly sliced peppers, swirl them into the soup for added flavour. Add the slice of pepper if you like it very spicy. Lime wedges are used to add a tartness to the soup. Bean sprouts are also used as a garnish.
This variation of Pho is typically served in South Viet Nam. In the North, Pho is a much simpler dish, minus a lot of the ingredients found in this recipe. In the North, Pho is served without the herbs and bean sprouts. Green chillies and lime only are used as condiments. In the South, Pho can be served with a dozen different ingredients.
Pho has become very popular in the United States. There are at last count over 500 Pho restaurants scattered across the US. Pho is often served with spring rolls and egg rolls.
Home and garden furniture is furniture that can be used inside as well as outdoors. Some people have opted to enclose a large patio in glass or screen, carpet the floor with indoor/outdoor carpeting, furnish with a fireplace, and install ceiling fans along with an air conditioner. The patio area can be adjacent to the house or separate. The plans of the room or structure can come equipped with a kitchen separate than that of the primary section of the house. This area would require home and garden furniture to furnish the surroundings. When looking for plants for this area, you would still opt for house plants but maybe that of the larger variety.
Home and garden furniture can be made from wicker and wood. Metal and plastic garden furniture can be used, but would probably be considered inappropriate to adorn this region of your home. You would want furniture that is not too elaborate, but on the other hand, you don't want the furniture ill-suited for the region either. You will want it to blend with the surroundings you have created. The enclosing of the back patio area convinces visitors that this is just an extra room in the house. You will want the room to give off the look of casual comfort. A room in which to relax and have fun. Home and garden furniture fabricated from wicker has a classic appearance. The simplicity of the designs leans to the casual look of romantic, comfort. Since the home and garden furniture constructed of wicker is made for the outdoors, care and maintenance should be a much easier, simpler task. Consult your retailer for those requirements.
Wicker is also constructed to be durable. It is a good investment in the future of your home. The wicker constructed home and garden furniture comes in a wide range of style, designs and colours. Along with the variety of colours, you will have the option to choose one of the dining sets, or from a cluster of sofa, loveseats and chairs. Wicker tables will complete the look of your conversation area of the room. You also have the option of a porch swing a cosy, intimate seating for lovers and friends young or old.
Home and garden furniture is also available an array of wooden pieces or sets. If you want to be able to move home and garden furniture, you may want to browse the teak wooden furniture lines. Teakwood is well known for its lightweight and strength. Its natural finish is a golden colour. Wooden home and garden furnitures like the wicker home and garden furniture are also built to be sturdy and durable. Wooden home and garden furniture are also available in the same furniture pieces as the wicker furniture from the dining sets to the conversation sets included with loveseat or sofas. The porch swing is also one of the options available in the wooden home and garden furniture line. The maintenance and care for the wooden furniture as with the wicker should be a much simpler and easy task. For requirements for that care, check with the retailer. As with the wicker home and garden furniture, wooden home and garden furniture is a great investment in the future for you and your home.
Cantonese cuisine little bowl rice (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Easily the most well-known of the Chinese regional cuisines, Cantonese cuisine comes from the region around Canton in Southern China. Simple spices and a wide variety of foods used in cooking characterize Cantonese cuisine. Of all the Chinese regions, Canton (Guangdong province) has the most available food resources. Its proximity to the sea offers a veritable marine cornucopia to be added to its dishes, making possible such delicate matings as Seven Happiness, a dish that includes shrimp, scallops, fish and lobster along with chicken, beef and pork. The light, delicate sauce, quick cooking and subtle spicing allows the natural flavours to shine through rather than being overwhelmed and blending together.
The spices used in Cantonese cooking tend to be light and simple: ginger, salt, soy sauce, white pepper, spring onion and rice wine. For many who are used to the more rich, spicy and complex flavours of Hunan and Szechwan cooking, Cantonese cooking may seem bland – but the subtle blends of flavour and aroma are created by the hand of a master chef.
All Chinese cuisine takes far more into account than the flavour of a dish. Chinese cooking is a presentation of texture, colour, shape and aroma with even the name of the dish contributing to its overall presentation. In true Oriental fashion, a meal is a poetry, with every part of it contributing to the overall effect. Chinese courtesy demands that a guest is treated with honour, and to present a guest with anything less than perfection is the height of rudeness.
As an honour to guests, freshness is one of the ultimate ‘ingredients’ in Cantonese regional cooking. In many restaurants, guests can choose their meal from a seafood tank in the dining room. It’s not unusual for a patron to be brought a live fish or crab at the table as proof of the freshness of the meal about to be prepared. Vegetables are likewise fresh, crisp and sweet, and the quick cooking methods preserve each flavour separately to play against the others.
Light sauces with subtle seasonings bring out the natural sweetness of seafood – but the Cantonese chef will only use the very freshest seafood in those dishes. For ‘stale’ seafood, Cantonese cuisine offers thick, spicy sauces meant to mask the characteristic odour of fish. Pungent/sweet dishes like sweet and sour butterfly shrimp might be served this way.
There are few Cantonese desserts that are indigenous to the region, though many restaurants serve a mango based pudding or tapioca. Most meals are served with plain boiled rice and accompanied by either tea or rice wine.
Wherever in the world you are, you’re likely to find restaurants that serve Cantonese cuisine. It has been carried across the world by emigrants from the Guangdong province, and its light, delicate flavours are easy on the Western palate. To truly appreciate it though, takes more than the taste buds. Cantonese cuisine is a treat for the eyes and the nose as much as for the mouth. Appreciate it.
Mustard is a highly versatile plant, which lends its fiery flavor to many dishes and condiments through the use of it as both a herb and a spice. Botanically speaking, mustard is a member of the brassica family along with vegetables such as cabbage and broccoli, and as such, it contains a high level of sulfur which is responsible for the heat we taste in it, especially in the seeds.
Mustard can be grown either for salad use or for its seeds, which are the main ingredient of the table condiment which most people think of when they hear the word 'mustard'. The greens of the young plant can be eaten in a salad, and have a similar taste to cress, which it is closely related to. The leaves may be a little strong for use on their own, but make a great combination with other salads of character such as rocket, baby spinach or watercress.
Most of us, however, are more familiar with mustard in the guise of a potently hot yellow paste which we use either in cooking or as a condiment - most famously of course on such everyday foods as hot dogs and burgers. Many kinds of table mustard are available, ranging in intensity from the relatively mild American mustard to the sinus-clearing English variety. German and French mustards also have their own distinctive characters, and even within France there are several types available - contrast the standard, brown-colored French Mustard with the milder, creamier, paler Dijon variety.
Table mustards are made by grinding down the seeds of the mature mustard plant and mixing the results with a little liquid, usually vinegar, along with a seasoning of salt and pepper, and maybe a little sugar to take the edge off the heat. The strength of the finished mustard depends in part on what kind of seeds are used. Black, yellow and white varieties are available, each with different strengths and characteristics, and of course, there are many different breeds of a mustard plant grown, and each one will have a slightly different flavor.
Many people think that they don't enjoy the taste of mustard, and it's true that it can be something of an acquired taste. If you tried it as a child and were put off for life, why not give it another go now that you have a more mature and developed sense of taste?
Mustard also has medicinal uses, and has traditionally been made into a poultice and applied to the skin to relieve inflammation, and also in the treatment of bronchial problems such as chest colds. If you're tempted to use it in this way, then use a mixture of 10% mustard to 90% flour, and mixed to a paste with water. Be sure though to avoid applying it to sensitive areas, and take great care to avoid the eyes!
Finally, mustard is widely used agriculturally, both as fodder for livestock and as a 'green manure' which can be grown quickly and then plowed back into the soil to enrich and fertilize it in preparation for growing the main crop the following spring.
Spring is the time when gardening becomes once more of interest to everyone who has any interest in gardening and any size of the plot, from a window box to stately acres. In most gardens structure is formed using hard landscaping, trees, and shrubs, but they are much more than just shapes. Trees make a functional and beautiful contribution to many gardens. It is vital to take time in selecting the right size and shape of spring tree and to think through what exactly you want from it. Not easily moved once established, never has the consideration of “right plant, right place” been more important in gardening than with trees! Many trees in spring, most famously fruit trees, cheer our hearts with their pink or white abundance of blossom. In fact, the vast majority of flowering and fruiting trees bear their flowers in the spring season.
Magnolias are spectacular trees and shrubs which look absolutely stunning when in full bloom. Gardening is so rewarding when you can see such a wonderful sight and know that you planted that beautiful thing, that you are responsible for its site and the marvelous contribution it makes to your spring display. Even in the smaller garden, Magnolias can be grown, notably Magnolia Stellata. Most Magnolias are happy in most soils, with the proviso that they are rich in humus, although some cultivars prefer lime-free conditions. Generally, in gardening terms, they are slow growing but very beautiful when fully mature.
Various Prunus varieties are wonderful trees for the spring garden. To mention but one, Prunius Avium ‘Plena’ reaches an eventual height of 50ft, it is hardy, prefers full sun and is a deciduous spreading tree. Its bark has a reddish tinge and it produces masses and masses of purest white flowers in spring. Its leaves are dark green but turn red in the fall before they, well…fall. A smaller Prunus is Prunus ‘Shogetsu’ with pink buds opening in late spring to form big double white flowers hanging in clusters. The green leaves turn orange and red in the fall. Gardening with spring trees and shrubs tends to bring interest in seasons other than spring, as spring flowers herald fruits and deciduous plants tend to have pretty autumnal shades.
Viburnum Plicatum ‘Pink Beauty’ is a lovely shrub for its spring flowers. Its blooms are white turning later to pink, then red (turning to black) fruits appear. Its eventual height is about five feet, and it is fully hardy. Gardening enthusiasts will be familiar with Ribes Sanguineum with its bright green aromatic leaves and deep pinky red flowers are borne in spring. Some people don’t like the scent too much. Acer Palmatum ‘Corallinum’ is a deciduous shrub which is very slow growing to an eventual height of five feet. Its young spring leaves are lobed and bright reddish-pink, turning green for summer and bright red, orange or yellow in autumn. Truly a shrub for all seasons (well, except winter I suppose, being deciduous). Amelanchier Laevis is a famous tree suitable for small gardens and with virtually all-around gardening interest. I include it here because of its gorgeous sprays of white flowers in spring. It has bronze spring leaves which turn dark green in summer followed by round, lush red fruits, and lovely autumnal foliage. Great in spring, but truly a tree for gardening through the seasons.
Spring is a wonderful time of year for gardening and while you are out there planting your bedding, do look around you and use your nose to smell the scent of the apple blossom and the gorgeous cherry blossoms. They are not around for very long so while you are doing the gardening, just take at least a few moments to contemplate the beauty of your spring trees and shrubs.
This chili recipe is, indeed, a real nightmare! Taste it only when curiosity becomes unbearable and courage is strong! :o)
Ingredients:
1 cup Pinto beans, dried
1 tsp Paprika
5 cups Water
1 Nutmeg, ground, whole
2 tbsp Lard
1 tsp Cumin
1 tbsp Bacon drippings
2 tsp Oregano, dried, pref. Mexican
1 Onion
4 tbsp Sesame seeds
12 oz Pork sausage, country-style
1 cup Almonds, blanched, skins removed
1 lb Beef, coarse grind
12 Red chiles, whole dried
4 Garlic Cloves
1 tsp Anise
1 1/2 oz Milk chocolate, small pieces
1/2 tsp Coriander seeds
1 can Tomato paste (6oz ea)
1/2 tsp Fennel seeds
2 tbsp Vinegar
1/2 tsp Cloves, ground
3 tsp Lemon juice
1 Cinnamon stick, ground
1 Soft tortilla, chopped
1 tsp Black pepper, freshly ground
Salt
Instructions for this special chili recipe:
Place the rinsed beans in a bowl, add 2 to 3 cups of water and soak overnight. Check the beans occasionally and add water as necessary to keep them moist. Pour the beans and the water in which they were soaked into a heavy saucepan and add 2 to 3 more cups of water.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower heat and simmer, partially covered, for about 45 minutes, until the beans are cooked but still firm. Check occasionally and add water if necessary. Drain the beans, reserving the cooking liquid.
Melt the lard in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the beans and lightly fry them in the lard. Set aside. Melt the drippings in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until it is translucent.
Combine the sausage and the beef with all the spices up through the oregano. Add this meat-and-spice mixture to the pot with the onion. Break up any lumps with a fork and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is very well browned.
Add the reserved bean-cooking liquid to the pot. Stir in all the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and cook, uncovered, for 1/2 hour longer. Stir occasionally. Add water only if necessary to maintain the consistency of a chunky soup. Serve.
