What did you make today?

[footfootfoot]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

that's racist

and demeaning to women

[BigV]

I looked for go devil. I eventually figured out is is not a boat, and it is not a minibike. I didn't actually find one locally, but this dude uses a Fiskars tool that seems similar in construction and is apparently as sharp as the variable sword from Ringworld. Wow. Stay tuned for the later parts where he lassos the wood, including the branches and just scares them into splits. Damn.


As I was trolling through the videos, I saw this one. Wow, that is some serious machinery.


And this one is trailerable, but I can't justify $9000. Damn cool though.



Really though, this has been me, but with more cussing and complaining. Might setup the camera for a timelapse movie too, cool idea.


what I **really really** want to use is this: the most dangerous tool ever invented. Hell yeah.

[footfootfoot]

kid stuff. Check this shit out:

[wolf]

Sundae, I shall try to remember to send you my Banana Bread recipe. It is teh awesome.

[Sundae]

I'll read it carefully, Wolf.

This week I am making one for Mum, and it will have to be her traditional recipe.
She's such a curious mixture of broad-minded and small c conservative when it comes to food.
But if yours sounds good I might adopt it for the Fayre.

Obviously I won't be doing much tasting myself...

[BigV]

from practical machinst:

I have one that runs off the PTO on my 1953 Ford Jubilee. It is scary fast. This particular one was built by my father. It takes 2 people to operate: One to feed it the wood and one to be ready to push in the clutch on the tractor. Since I have both, this one and a ram type one, I can honestly say the screw type is at least 5 times faster but about 300 times more dangerous. Although it is still the one I use the most.

and...

from yesterday's tractors board:

They are an excellent companion piece to a buzz saw...if the saw doesn"t kill you, you can get screwed to death by the splitter. Both are covered under Rube Goldberg patents #1 and #2.

these are typical comments (though funnier than most) about the unicorn log splitter. I've been dreaming about how to rig one up to ... to... to a Hole Hawg, strong motor and a wide two handed grip for leverage on my part. But then I experience a brief spasm of reality and understand that I can't do this in a handheld configuration. Then I start thinking about what motors I have down in the basement, can I scavenge the bench grinder, etc etc.

Very appealing. Does this mean I have a death wish? Or merely a desire to be maimed?

[classicman]

Or merely a desire to be maimed?

You got away without harm in your chainsaw episode and now you are pushing the limits even further...

[zippyt]

V DO NOT , I REPEAT DO NOT PUT RIG one for those unicorn thingees to a Hole Hog !!!
it will twist you in ways that Yoga masters would admire and be VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY Painfull !!!

[Sundae]

Made the cake and the ganache.
I feel this might be a disappointment.
Cooled cake is in tin and ganache setting for now.

The cake was supposed to be made in a single 20cm tin, then sliced into three.
Feedback on the internet suggested that it could only reasonably be split in two, so I made it in two 20cm tins.

It didn't rise as much as I hoped, although I adhered to the recipe.
Other internet feedback suggested it would sink in the middle and be very gooey, but my two halves cooked within the expected (reduced) time and were firm. So now I worry they are overcooked.

I have yet to ice (frost) with the ganache, although that does look wonderfully glossy. It just doesn't taste all that good to my mouth. Of course I am not a huge choc fan and I don't have a sweet tooth.

The cake and ganache were easy-peasy I admit.
But not cheap.
I have a feeling this will not be a School Fayre cake after all.

I'll hold out for Wolf's 'Nana Bread.

[limey]

Originally Posted by Sundae

Made the cake and the ganache.
I feel this might be a disappointment.
Cooled cake in tine and ganache setting for now.

The cake was supposed to be made in a single 20cm tin, then sliced into three.
Feedback on the internet suggested that it could only reasonably be split in two, so I made it in two 20cm tins.

It didn't rise as much as I hoped, although I adhered to the recipe.
Other internet feedback suggested it would sink in the middle and be very gooey, but my two halves cooked within the expected (reduced) time and were firm. So now I worry they are overcooked.

I have yet to ice (frost) with the ganache, although that does look wonderfully glossy. It just doesn't taste all that good to my mouth. Of course I am not a huge choc fan and I don't have a sweet tooth.

The cake and ganache were easy-peasy I admit.
But not cheap.
I have a feeling this will not be a School Fayre cake after all.

I'll hold out for Wolf's 'Nana Bread.

Just send it over here!

[Sundae]

I'll send photos at least.

This was supposed to serve 14.
Given the poor rise, it's really just an average sized cake.
Eight tops.

I think I will still make for the staffroom.
As above, Mum rarely compliments anything new I've made.
She has her own special chocolate cake recipe, which everyone goes wild for but to me it's just a brown Victoria sponge.

I'll learn from this and hopefully make something the staffroom will adore.

Pics will follow when I ice it.
As will reviews.

[BigV]

Originally Posted by zippyt

V DO NOT , I REPEAT DO NOT PUT RIG one for those unicorn thingees to a Hole Hog !!!
it will twist you in ways that Yoga masters would admire and be VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY Painfull !!!

Holyshit. Ok ok


Ok. Got it.

Thanks man.

[footfootfoot]

Originally Posted by zippyt

V DO NOT , I REPEAT DO NOT PUT RIG one for those unicorn thingees to a Hole Hog !!!
it will twist you in ways that Yoga masters would admire and be VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY Painfull !!!

Nice, Zippy. Thanks. You've deprived us of a Darwin Award Winning Video on yutube.

[wolf]

3 overripe bananas (they should be just ahead of science project stage. Well, at least ripe. If the skins are totally black, toss them. But if there's yellow on them, you're good. I've done this with everything from nicely ripe to a day before it's time for the bin. According to the original recipe, you can freeze and partially thaw newer bananas. I've never tried that. Banana bread is not something you make in an emergency.)
1/2 cup milk
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves.

If you like nuts in your bread, you can throw in 1 cup of walnuts. I do not like nuts in my bread. However, I do often like chocolate in my bread and put in a 12 ounce bag of chocolate chunks or morsels. Elvis fans may use the peanut butter flavored chips. I don't.

The original recipe (from Anne McCaffrey's Serve it Forth cookbook) has all kinds of complex instructions involving more bowls than I think are necessary. I am providing my assembly instructions.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

butter and flour a loaf pan. I have also done this in a regular cake pan, muffin tins, and a tube pan. It's pretty forgiving, that way. The recipe recommends lining the inside of a loaf pan with foil and spraying it with non-stick cooking spray to make clean up easier. it works, but the outer surface of the bread looks all wrinkly. I like a smooth outer surface, so no foil.

So, now you're ready for the actual mixing.

Pour the milk into a mixing bowl. Add chunks of banana. With a mixer, whip it up seriously until you have something that looks like a banana milkshake.

That was the hard part. Really.

Now add the rest of the ingredients in the order listed, mixing well after each.

Pour it into the baking pan. I usually remember to throw a little raw sugar onto the top of the batter before I put it in the oven, for a bit of extra crisp, but it's not necessary.

Bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

If you use chocolate or peanut butter chips, it's harder to judge doneness, because they will show on the toothpick and you might have trouble deciding if there's any banana bread goo. You might want to use the spring-back method of doneness testing for those varieties.

Cool for about 15 minutes in the pan on top of a cooling rack. It will shrink away a bit from the sides, but run a sharp knife around before you invert the pan to take it out. I have only had a (minor) issue with releasing once. Butter and flour the heck out of that pan! Cool completely (upright, you don't want marks on the top!)

[Sundae]

Cheers, chick.
That seems basic enough for Mum to swallow without protest.
Looks good to me too - excepting the 'nanas.

Oh and you know I am coming to you when the zombie apocalypse cpmes.
So I am pleased to know that Banana Bread is not something you whip up in an emergency.