A Muse's GuideFood, technology, yoga and music. . . is there anything else?

Where does one start?! Why would you start?

I have always been a fan of graphic novels and comic books since I was a small child. As I got older, I began to have less and less time to read comics and began reading primarily text-only books. Something was lacking from these books! While they were highly descriptive, and I could immerse myself in my own imagination, I missed the medium of narrative artwork. That was when I discovered that my local library had a collection of graphic novels and comic books. While going to my local comic book and hobbies store is always fun, being able to purchase brand new comics, fresh out of their shipping box, it can be an expensive habit. So the library became a great way to read the fantastic plot-lines of Brian Michael Bendis and Stan Lee while musing over the amazing artwork of Jack Kirby and Mark Bagley. As you can see, I am a bit biased towards the Marvel franchise, but my love of Spider-man, Thor, and the Fantastic Four etc. has been fueled by my ability to access these comics easily and cheaply. Being able to sit down in the sunshine, open a comic book up and start reading is one of the most satisfying things to do, especially when you’ve been reading piles of academic textbooks and journals. The possibilities to immerse oneself in a comic book become endless, as there is a visual element that connects you to the storyline. I highly recommend it.

From my perusing the library stacks for new comics, I have discovered various styles of graphic novels and comics, from Japanese manga to deep and philosophical satire on the human condition. Comic books are not simply Betty and Veronica or Archie, catering only to children. I have found serious graphic novels that have made me contemplate and consider the complexities of politics and even the social systems we live in. Granted I will almost always veer straight back to the Marvel franchise of Superhero comics and the manga-influenced artwork of TOKYOPOP, but I have also found the work by Darkhorse Comics, Viz Media and Image Comics to be great reading as well.

Marvel Comics: The Cornerstone to Comic Books

Now getting started into the Marvel universe of comic books can be extremely daunting. I highly suggest finding your local comic book store, walking in and saying ‘I know nothing about comic books, help me find something!’, and I am pretty sure they will lead you in the right way! You can always go to the comic book store or library and just start with whatever pops out at you too. While many comic book purists will tell you that you have to read the past few decades worth of Spiderman to truly understand his back-story, I am from a different school of thought. With the publication of the Marvel Ultimate line of comics, it is the PERFECT place for any comic book newbie (n00b) to begin. It has a new vision for the plot lines and character stories that gives them a modern spin while not boring you with childish storylines. The Ultimate line of comics by Marvel seem to be aimed at a bit older of a crowd. For the newbie to the comic book world I suggest beginning with two lines of comics. The Ultimate Spiderman series Volume 1 through 5, for the intro to superhero comics and then Eagle: The Making Of An Asian-American President for a more realistic dramatic graphic novel.

I won’t be giving you any spoilers to the two series, but I will tell you that they are fascinating reads, and can allow your mind to imagine a lot more than what television shows spoon feed to the public on cable television. The Ultimate Spiderman series will give you a glimpse not only at the masked genetically altered spider-boy, but you will be introduced to other superheroes such as the Fantastic Four, Captain America, The Avengers etc., as well as government task force, S.H.I.E.L.D. that deals with mutants, while getting a chance to learn about villains such as Sandman, Doctor Octopus, Magneto and more! I especially enjoyed how they have cross-over characters from other Marvel series such as X-Men’s Kitty Pride that become a part of the main storyline. Though while I have never loved Kitty Pride a.k.a. Shadowcat in other series such as the The Uncanny X-Men, her appearance with Peter Parker in the Ultimate Spiderman series doesn’t leave me yelling at my books.

An Introduction to Japanese Style Comics: Manga

The graphic novel Eagle: will provide you with an introduction to a manga hybrid that won’t take you too far out of your comfort level if you normally read political drama novels. I found that within Eagle: The Making Of An Asian-American President, the plot line contains the quirks and hidden undertones of American politics while using the medium of manga-style to communicate to the reader in an adult oriented yet easy to read and titillating format. There are only 5 volumes, and I highly suggest reading them, as you will find that they have many themes that are reminiscent of politics in the 90’s, where some of the characters seem to be representations of Bill Clinton, Al Gore and other various government officials and their families. So if you want a graphic novel that has drama, romance, scandal and undertones of political humor, you will find that within this series.

My Final Words On This

All in all, reading comics and graphic novels is a fulfilling past-time for me that lets me escape from the structured and banal nature of standard print novels. I suggest trying either one of these series out, or even better finding your local comic book and hobby store that will be able to give you a much better scope of the comics/graphic novels that will accommodate your needs, interests and reading requirements.

Cheers

~Deanna

Round 2: Wheat-free Muffins

The next project in the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook that I thought I would attempt would be muffins.  The pictures in the book and the recipe seemed fairly straight forward, and I figured it would be a good recipe to try to adapt to a wheat-free recipe.  The recipe is Blueberry Muffins (click here to get the recipe), though I revised the recipe to be blueberry-less as there were no good local blueberries at the market in the middle of winter-time (I try to limit the distance my groceries travel from to a 250km/155 mile radius when I have the chance).  I revised the recipe to be pumpkin oatmeal muffins instead, using pumpkin puree, oatmeal, molasses and cinnamon in place of blueberries.

Here is what I substituted:

- Instead of regular flour: 1 cup white rice flour and 1 cup corn flour

- Gluten-free Baking Powder (instead of regular baking powder)

- Instead of blueberries: 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree, 1 tsp of cinnamon, 1 cup of oatmeal, 1/4 cup of molasses

As noted in my previous posts, instead of butter to grease my muffin tins, I use extra virgin olive oil and then dust my tins with white rice flour.  Of course you can use butter if you choose, but it is just my personal preference to use olive oil (less cholesterol and seems to work better with gluten-free flours).

When mixing the ingredients in the electric mixer, you may find that mixing for an extra 10 minutes or so will help blend the chunks of oatmeal and accommodate the thickness of the molasses.

Batter and my awesome electric mixing paddle

I found that when cooking the muffins, I needed to cook them for an extra 5-7 minutes to accommodate the extra ingredients. Of course, as with any wheat-free cooking, you will want to keep an eye on your baking in the oven, as dependent on your oven you may need less cooking time.

Upon trying the cooked version of the muffins, they were fluffy and moist, and due to the oatmeal, corn flour and molasses, they had a unique texture.  Keep in mind that these muffins will be a slightly browner color than in the cookbook, as the corn flour and molasses will brown the batter and make it a bit denser.

Muffins Baking in the Oven

All in all, this was a successful baking adventure.  If you decide to make a wheat-free version of these muffins with the blueberries included, I would love to hear about how it went. Hopefully my substitutions and wheat-free trials have been helpful.  See the picture below for my final muffin batch:

Yummy Finished Pumpkin Muffins

Next on Wheat-free baking with the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook… Gingerbread Cookies!

Ciao!

Deanna

Round 1: Wheat-free, Chocolate-free, & Healthier Version of Martha Stewart Baking

The first recipe I tested out in the Martha Stewart  was the Chocolate-Glazed Gingerbread Cakes (found on page 191).  While the recipe seems straight forward I had to reassess how I would tackle it in a wheat-free and chocolate-free way.  As noted in my previous post, I not only have to make food that is wheat-free but also chocolate-free and MSG-free (Don’t want to cause anaphylactic allergies for any loved-ones).  Since I was already adjusting flour and chocolate within this recipe, I didn’t dare attempt to make it vegan too, though I plan in the future to try it out with vegan butter and eggs.

These little fluffy cakes looked absolutely delicious in the cookbook, covered in a chocolate ganache. I assessed the needed ingredients, placed them all out on the counter, and began substituting.  Here are my three substitutions (not bad really):

- gluten-free baking powder (replacing regular baking powder)

- white rice flour (replacing the regular flour)

- carob flour (replacing the chocolate/cocoa in the ganache – p. 387)

Pouring the batter into the tins

In mixing and preparing this recipe, I found that the rice flour needed a bit more mixing than regular flour, which when using an electric mixing bowl is really a piece of cake (mind the pun!). For the sake of using the least amount of dairy as possible in this recipe (as it uses butter), I greased each of the muffin tins using extra virgin olive oil.  This has proved to be a successful form of greasing pans when using rice flour, as butter or non-stick spray seem to be useless on gluten-free products.

Baking time: add 3-5 extra minutes to your baking time, as it will help cook the cakes more thoroughly.

Upon pulling out the muffin tins with the gingerbread cakes fully cooked inside, they smelled amazing.  The only visual difference from the “Martha” cakes was that these little cakes have an indentation in their centres, which once they are flipped over is not noticeable in the least.  Since I planned on putting a warm ganache over these cakes, I figure having a well to hold the yummy sauce could be advantageous.

Fresh Out of the Oven - Had to eat one (oops!)

When making the ganache, I found it useful to heat my carob flour and heavy cream in the microwave beforehand, since organic carob flour doesn’t easily mix with the milk. I found that microwaving for 15 second intervals and then stirring until it was bubbling made it thick and gooey.  (The standard heating it over a stovetop would work just fine too, but will take a little longer.  I tried both ways). I made two batches of ganache: one with the ingredients from the book, and the other one I added a cup of Sweetened Condensed Milk to help thicken and sweeten up the sauce.  Both versions were delicious, but I found the one with condensed milk to be tastier.

Gingerbread Mini-Cake Awaiting Ganache

So all-in-all, the “de-wheatifying” of these gingerbread cakes worked out fantastically.  As for substituting the chocolate for carob – When @nachoman (the guy that is allergic to chocolate) tried out these little morsels fresh out of the oven, he stated “how dare you feed me something so delicious! now I know what I have been missing”.  When a chocolate loving friend ate one, she noted that it was extremely tasty and moist.  So I have to conclude that Round 1 of baking without wheat or chocolate was an absolute success.

Next time on Wheat-free baking from the Martha Stewart Handbook is . . . Muffins!

Ciao!

Deanna

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was going to be trying out different recipes from Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook.  Well, after substituting wheat flour for rice flour in a few recipes, I realized that a majority of the recipes in the cookbook are able to be wheat-free and yummy at the same time!

Now keep in mind, that with cooking in general, my kitchen is completely chocolate-free due to deadly allergies to cocoa in our household.  Not only did I substitute all wheat products with rice flour or corn flour, but I also substituted all chocolate ingredients in the recipes with carob flour and carob chips.  Trust me, it is not an easy task when used to making delicious desserts with chocolate.  All in all it worked out.

Sometime in the next couple days, between reading papers, students and life in general, I will be posting a couple of my favorite recipes and how I made them.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Ciao!

Deanna

I was sitting with my mother today, reading through children’s books (for early learning of the alphabet). As we flipped through the pages of The Walt Disney book “Learning the Alphabet A through Z – Learn to Read” we came across many great Disney characters.

We got through letters, A, B, C, and D, on the first 2 pages, and thought the book was quite quaint and innocent. Until we got to the Letter F.

Just thought it was necessary to post this amusing children’s book. Though I wonder what a elementary classroom these days would do if they got their hands on this book. . . Free reign to say “F” words?

Cheers,
Deanna

A continuation of my reading on Plato’s Republic (a few more thoughts):

Within Plato’s “just” city, he is set in believing this utopia can be achieved through specific educational curriculum and societal laws.  I am skeptical this could be accomplished, yet when considering many research studies within modern psychology, I feel that his belief of an ideal city could potentially be warranted.

Plato’s ideal city will have educated its’ citizens from childhood, to conform and believe in their harmonious society.  A majority of the citizens will be kept in the dark about the actual truth of the world (the allegory of the cave), as according to Plato’s educational regimen, only the best of the best will be able to go forward into learning the truth.    At times, it seems reminiscent of many isolationist cults or even the systematic censorship within the former USSR.  One of the issues the Soviet Union suffered from was not taking into account the concept of self-serving human nature and the abuse of power.  The guardians may be taught and bred to believe that dying for the greater good would be noble, yet human psychology dictates that self-preservation is an innate factor.

I propose an interesting question: if Plato designed this complex and almost life long educational curriculum, to shape and mold the guardians of this ideal society, how can Plato consider himself competent enough to develop this curriculum and how would he deal with the unpredictability of the human condition?

Cheers,

Deanna

I have been reading Plato’s The Republic, and have had a few different thoughts bouncing around in my head.  In the world of education, Platonic thinking seems to arise when you least expect it, and the more I read, the more I feel like I do not know enough.  Five million questions came to mind when reading Plato, like whether or not he truly believed a perfect City could be achieved, or whether it was simply an idealistic fantasy. Either way, I know I have only started to brush off the surface of understanding what Plato was trying to say.

Nonetheless, here are the three main thoughts that arose from my reading Plato’s The Republic – Books 1 – 4:

Learning:

Persuasion is only possible when the other person is listening, as noted in the statement “But can you persuade, if we refuse to listen?” in book One.  In the context of education and the shaping of impressionable minds, I find this statement to be noteworthy.  If a student is not open to the concept of listening, and the possibility of growing their knowledge base, their opposition hinders the learning process.

The Ideal City and Music:

The education of the members of the ideal city focuses on following the rules, and a strictly censored learning and content.  I found Plato’s stance on music education to be fascinating, as his belief that certain harmonies evoke certain emotions, virtue and a “good” soul, while “bad” harmonies or music can corrupt and “latch onto” the soul.  Now in today’s society, and as a musician/composer myself, I find it difficult to wrap my mind around having my Art censored.  Upon consideration within the “Ideal Just City”, I can completely understand why there would be specific restrictions on the types of music that will be a part of education, as creativity and thinking “outside-the-box” could be catastrophic to the organized structure of the just society.

An Interesting Side Note on “Bad Music”:

Throughout history, certain types of music have been banned for their potential to evoke emotions that were incongruent with the ideals of that time.  The augmented fourth interval, also known as a tritone, has been used consistently as an example of a “bad” interval, with a historical connotation of being dissonant and “evil” (even used today in horror films to evoke “evil”).

As there are different overtones that occur from different intervals, it could be quite possible that certain harmonic scales could be particularly disturbing to someone who associates the tritone with “evil”, due to their societal music education.  Overtones are the natural resonance of an instrument, as instruments emit harmonic frequencies in addition to their fundamental pitch.

There were so many themes and ideas that came out of my readings, yet I felt that these three topics were my favourites. Any thoughts?

Ciao

Deanna