Saturday, September 22, 2007

DIY cheese rolls

We had a science experiment to do in school this morning, which was to demonstrate how yeast works. I mixed up a package of yeast with sugar and water (as per our instructional DVD and book), and left it in a clear plastic cup to do its thing, while I prepared a batch of dough for bread rolls, with the boys observing and helping. Aaron couldn’t wait to get his fingers in the flour and dough, while Caleb was happy to watch (happy that he wasn’t made to touch it). But when he saw that the dough was pretty dry and unsticky, he had a turn with kneading it too, which I was glad about. I left the dough in the oven (on low) for a while, while we went and did the geography book, then when the dough had risen we formed them into little mounds, sprinkled cheese on top, and popped them in to bake. While they were baking, we finished off school with the reading. Dorothy is now safely back in Kansas. At 12, the rolls were ready, and actually turned out very well. I let them cool down a bit while I went out quickly to Tinkers for cheese, ham and bacon (the lady who served me specially selected the best pieces of bacon for me, with the least amount of fat – this is when I really love St Helena!). Lunch, then was the fresh rolls with ham and cheese. The boys were pretty darn pleased with the results of their science experiment, and at first didn’t even realize that they were eating what they had had a hand in making!

An all-new fully-local book was on the shelves for the first time today, called “For the love of the music”, written by Emma-Jay Yon, one of Saint FM’s deejays. She’s taken a look at about 50 years of music on the island, and various influences and styles and bands, and has interviewed several people. It’s full of colour photos, and really well done. It was printed in Cape Town, but sponsored by the St Helena National Trust. Nick is featured in it (Nick Cleverly) as one of the contributors on Tammy’s album. There is a group photo of him and the others on the album, taken while they were recording. At ₤6, it’s a good buy and an excellent book to keep, if not to actually read!

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