Wilson Bentley photographed his first snowflake using a camera and microscope on January 15th, 1885; possibly one of the first snowflake photographed at that level of detail. He went on to photograph over 5,000 snowflakes in detail, and eventually published a book of his 2,500 best specimens in 1931. He also coined the famous adage that no two snowflakes were alike.
However, in 1988 Nancy Knight “produced two snowflakes that had fallen during the same Wisconsin snowstorm. Their shapes—simple hexagonal prisms—were identical, no matter how closely she looked.”
I’ve had numerous starts, and the accompanying stop with blogs over the past few years. I can never seem to keep it going for long. Looking back, I think the main reason I stopped was that I tried to create a blog focused on a single topic (even if it was a fairly broad topic). Apparently focusing on a single topic is the best formula for creating a blog that pays you; but I’m not really in this for the money, I’m more interested in the enjoyment of writing and expressing my thoughts on a number of topics. So I’ve decided I’m more interested in writing about some main topics that interest me, and if people enjoy reading it enough for me to gain a small following, that’s just a bonus.
I’m re-posting a number of successful or popular blogs and articles I’ve written in the past. I’m posting them under the original post date, and linking to the location of the original. This not only provides me with some quick stand-up content for this new start, but also provides any reader with some of my better work (as I see it at least).
So my new year’s resolution: post at least one article (of new content) each week.
Light and fluffy, nice eggy flavor with an incredible lemony nip.
Active Prep Time:
15-20 Minutes
Cook Time:
Varies
Yield:
Twenty 4″ Pancakes
Ingredients
3 large eggs, separated
2 cups lowfat buttermilk
1 cup ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon zest (the grated rind of 1 large lemon)
Directions
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the egg yolks, buttermilk, sugar, and ricotta cheese.
Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, lemon zest, nutmeg and salt, stirring to thoroughly combine.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry, and gently fold them into the batter, stirring till no streaks of white remain.
Heat a lightly greased griddle or skillet over medium heat until hot enough to immediately evaporate a drop of water; about 350°F if you have an electric griddle with a thermostat. Drop the batter, by quarter-cupfuls, onto the heated griddle; use the back of the scoop (or a spoon) to gently spread the cakes into circles; the batter is a bit stiff, and might need some coaxing.
Cook for about 2 minutes on the first side; bubbles should rise and burst on the first side before you flip the pancakes over. Cook for about 1 1/2 minutes on the second side. They should be a very light golden brown when finished.
Actually time your cooking and you’ll be amazed how consistent nice the pancakes turn out.
Today I stumbled upon a transcript on the National Public Radio site. It was a speech made by John F. Kennedy, given to a group of Protestant ministers a few months before the election. JFK was a devout Catholic, but he was also a big proponent of the separation of church and state; this speech has some excellent excerpts that exemplify this. JFK was the first Catholic elected president, and during the elections other religious groups (primarily the Protestant group) were concerned about rumors that he would send an ambassador to the Vatican and be taking direction from the Pope.
So it is apparently necessary for me to state once again not what kind of church I believe in — for that should be important only to me — but what kind of America I believe in.
I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute, where no Catholic prelate would tell the president (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote; where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference; and where no man is denied public office merely because his religion differs from the president who might appoint him or the people who might elect him.
I believe in an America that is officially neither Catholic, Protestant nor Jewish; where no public official either requests or accepts instructions on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches or any other ecclesiastical source; where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials; and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as an act against all.
If only politicians today would take this view, instead of pushing the melding of church and state.
That is the kind of America in which I believe. And it represents the kind of presidency in which I believe — a great office that must neither be humbled by making it the instrument of any one religious group, nor tarnished by arbitrarily withholding its occupancy from the members of any one religious group. I believe in a president whose religious views are his own private affair, neither imposed by him upon the nation, or imposed by the nation upon him as a condition to holding that office.
Truly he was a politician who understood the founding of our county; for although beliefs of our founding fathers may have varied, they knew that the success of the nation depended upon religious freedom, and to have religious freedom you must have separation of church and state.
Wilson Bentley photographed his first snowflake using a camera and microscope on January 15th, 1885; possibly one of the first snowflake photographed at that level of detail. He went on to photograph over 5,000 snowflakes in detail, and eventually published a book of his 2,500 best specimens in 1931. He also coined the famous adage that no two snowflakes were alike.
However, in 1988 Nancy Knight “produced two snowflakes that had fallen during the same Wisconsin snowstorm. Their shapes—simple hexagonal prisms—were identical, no matter how closely she looked.”
Today I stumbled upon a transcript on the National Public Radio site. It was a speech made by John F. Kennedy, given to a group of Protestant ministers a few months before the election. JFK was a devout Catholic, but he was also a big proponent of the separation of church and state; this speech has some excellent excerpts that exemplify this. JFK was the first Catholic elected president, and during the elections other religious groups (primarily the Protestant group) were concerned about rumors that he would send an ambassador to the Vatican and be taking direction from the Pope.