Jason & Erin

Tag: video

  • Say “Cheese!”

    Say “Cheese!”

    Say Cheese!

    Jason’s favorite cheese has always been mozzarella, so for Christmas this past year I got him a cheesemaking kit through Zingerman’s! It has the rennet and citric acid you need to add to whole milk in order to make many batches of mozzarella and ricotta cheese.

    The directions are very clear, and the process is actually quite simple, but it involves large pots, a thermometer, and some careful timing. After the milk, citric acid, and rennet sit together for five minutes they magically transform into a custard-like curd; a few minutes later and that curd is elastic and shiny and actual cheese! The box says salt is optional but it is flavorless without it, and the directions also stress the importance of a stepped-down cold-water bath that we skipped but will be sure to do next time.

    Cheese Kit

    Before / After the Milk

    We have Curds!

    Stretch it!

    (Jason pulling fresh mozzarella)

    We made use of the cheese in homemade pizza tonight: a mushroom, pepper, and onion as well as a taco pizza. Creamy, soft, and delicious! We’ll make a post about our homemade pizzas another time.

    Homemade Cheese on Homemade Pizza

  • It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

    It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

    Erin's Wonderful Tree Skirt Creation

    Jason would start decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving if it were socially acceptable, but this year we got our first real tree, which meant we waited a full week after Thanksgiving to start decking the halls Chez Kriegaker. But oh, it was worth the wait!

    We live just two blocks from a nursery, so we headed over there to pick out our tree (Jason’s first real one ever!). The owner showed us two trees and I narrowed them down based on scent (and price): a balsam fir (less expensive, it turns out, than a Fraser fir). Strongman Jason carried it home for us on his shoulder while I breathed in the wake. We set it up in the corner, gave it a lot of warm water, and left it for the day to settle into place. On Sunday we started up White Christmas on Netflix and set to stringing on the lights and hanging the ornaments! This year Tania gave Erin a little Brooklyn ornament, which got a place of honor, and Erin made a cute tree skirt. We had some fun taking photos of the process to make a little video in homage to the one that our friends Caro and Boon made.

    It’s so festive in here now!

    Picking Out The Best Tree

    Erin Making Her Final Decision

    Jason's Got This!

    Thankfully We Live A Few Blocks Away

    It's A Brooklyn Christmas

    The Finishing Touches

    Merry Christmas!

    Oh, and we made you this . . .

    (Merry Christmas!)

  • Free Concert: New York Philharmonic

    Free Concert: New York Philharmonic

    Enjoying the Show

    One of the greatest things about New York City in the summer is the sheer number of free events you can attend. There’s Shakespeare in the Park, movie showings, and more. Every year, the New York Philharmonic has free performances in city parks, notably Central Park. That show is always packed blanket to blanket, so we went to the one in Prospect Park in Brooklyn along with our friend Holly—we hoped to have a smaller experience closer to home. We arrived early enough to be on the main lawn but thought the more sparsely populated edge would be a nicer location. (This was our first time listening at Prospect Park, and it turns out we were wrong: though you can hear the music pretty well, the speakers are not aimed at you, which meant many quiet parts of the pieces were completely lost on our area. This also means people in attendance chatter incessantly and don’t sit quietly. Next time, we’ll go farther in!)

    The Growing Crowd

    Dinner in the Park

    Yummy Sandwich

    Our View of the Concert

    Getting Some Knitting Done

    Glowing

    We went the easy route and ordered food to go from Dizzy’s right near the entrance to the park. We spread it all out, ate, and then Holly and I both knit as the sun set. The show began at 8pm, when the fireflies were starting to come out and the sunset was casting a glow over the park. The performance included Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 and two pieces by Respighi: Fountains of Rome and Pines of Rome. None of us was familiar with the pieces, but they were beautiful. Erin’s always loved going to the orchestra but prefers being able to see the musicians playing, and Jason is eager to go to one where he can actually hear it; we’re looking into the schedule at Lincoln Center for the future.

    After the concert ended, there were fireworks to celebrate! Though there was a tree in the way, we had great seats; this sure made up for the lack of explosions in the sky on Independence Day!

    Fireworks

    Fireworks

    Fireworks

    Fireworks

    Take a listen to the concert yourself in the video Erin took.

    (shot with the 7D)