Wet effect with Waterbased Varnish

In the past, I aovided using acrylic based varnishes, becaue I hated the "plastic-like" finish, so unlike the water, or glass or polished stone effect I would always prefer.

I recently started using Liquitex High Gloss Varnish for glossing eyes and lips when toxic materials are to be avoided. It's really nice if applied as a puddle, instead of brushed on thinly. I still use a brush, the softest possible, to spread it around as precise as I can. Takes less than an hour to dry, and it doesn't seem prone to bubbles. Additional layers just make it glossier. I never tried more than three coats.

I've sped-dried it with a hairdryer and a heat gun, both work on it. Takes minutes before you can add another coat. I still recommend that you leave it be for at least 8 hours before "handling" of the prop.

http://www.liquitex.com/Products/varhighgloss.cfm


I'm really happy that I tried it in different ways until the "almost pouring-on" was shown to give a superior result. It saved me from using a toxic epoxy countertop varnish.
It's almost as glossy as acrylic nail polish, although nail polish seems to be impossible to apply flawlessly over a larger surface than a square inch. Dries too fast. Maybe a solvent?
But then again, I now avoid toxics...

Sweet Vegan BBQ Bean Chili

Another Delightful meal idea for the busy artists! Make this, eat a meal, freeze the rest for later!

Creaturiste's Sweet Vegan BBQ Bean Chili

This is Vegan, but will satisfy even the most carnivorous lumberjack.

Best to chose fresh organic ingredients, for health and taste!

This is a huge quantity for a single person, but a generous portion for an average family's meal.

Everytime I make chili, I change the recipe to discover new flavors.

I rarely fail, but I've never made a better one than this one!

It's like eating a bowl of chili that somehow, has the same appeal to me as Southern-American style BBQ pulled pork with plenty of thick, sweet BBQ sauce. So to be able to re-create this wonder, I'm writing it down, right as I'm eating my first bowl.

Ingredients

5 cans of beans ( 540 ml / 19 fl. oz. each )

•2 cans of black turtle beans

•3 cans of Red Kidney Beans

Drain but do not rinse! The small amount of juice adds body to the texture and flavor!

312ml / 11 fl. oz. of tomato paste

796 ml / 27 fl. oz. of whole tomatoes

4 Medium-sized Carrots

2 medium-sized white onions

227 grams of white mushrooms

2 cups of fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

4 cloves (or two tablespoons) of grated or pureed garlic

1 cup of black strap Molasses

Half a cup of raw unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar

2 cups of Sunflower Oil

Two tablespons of chipotle hot sauce (see recipe below)

Two tablespoons of Paprika (I use Spanish Paprika)

1 tablespoon of sea salt

1 tablespoon of raw cane sugar (or maple sugar)

Equipment

•Large pot with a thick bottom (cooks more evenly). I use my Pressure cooker, without the lid.

•cast iron skillet

•big sturdy ladle

•regular kitchen wares for cutting and holding the ingredients.

Wash carrots and Mushrooms.

Cut carrots in thick slices.

Steam carrots until no longer crunchy (still with a bite to it, we don't want mush!). This step cuts your overall cooking time by a lot, and avoids the all-too-common burnt chili at the bottom of the pot.

While Carrots are steaming, heat the oil in a cast iron skillet but not hot enough to fume, add the garlic & parsley, stirring occasionaly. Cut mushrooms in slices.When a minute or two has passed, add mushrooms to skillet and cover for about three two minutes, to force a lot of juice out of the mushrooms (they shrink, it's magic!). Cook about two minutes more. When carrots are ready, keep the water for later, put the carrots, with the skillet's content, in the large pot. Do not heat it just yet. Do not wash the skillet, you need it still, and the remaining oil should not go to waste!

Chop the onions, add them to the skillet (see?, i told you!) with a splash of oil, and a tablespoon of raw sugar (or maple syrup). Cover for a few minutes to release the juice, then remove lid, cooking some more until the onions are almost caramelized. Put in the big pot.

Open all the cans. Drain the beans but do not rinse, the lttle amount of remaining juice adds body, texture and flavor! If you insist on rinsing, at least add an extra splash of oil to the pot later.

Put beans, tomatoes & tomato paste in the pot..

Heat the pot at medium. Stir well. Add Molasses & apple cider vinegar and stir even more. If the mixture is too thick, add a touch of the carrot-steaming water (nutrients inside!) Careful, some of the juices will be released soon, and could make your chili into a soup!

Remember: it's easy to add liquid, harder to remove...

At this point I taste the result, salt to taste, add more vinegar if needed for a tangier taste, and add Paprika, sea salt & the chipotle hot sauce until I get the wonderful sweet-spicy BBQ sauce I'm after. The Chipotle sauce is the magic maker here, adding both spicyness and SMOKYNESS. You could use other pepper-based hot sauces, but it just won't be the same! Maybe adding a bit of liquid smoke could compensate?

WARNING: DO NOT OVERCOOK!

Since this is made from canned beans, all the beans are already cooked, so PLEASE, avoid overcooking the chili. You'd lose flavor and lots of nutrients! We cook it mostly to finish cooking the mushrooms, and blend all the flavors together. Like a lot of chili recipes, this will likely taste even better the second time you serve it, after it has been in the fridge. One of the mysteries of the universe! On an unusually busy week where shopping & cooking are out of the question, I can eat this every day, without getting tired of it. Freeze some portions of it to make the joy last!

Better yet, spread the LOVE and offer it to friends and family!

Chipotle Hot Sauce Recipe

I'm a very busy guy, so I don't take the time to cook everything from scratch. I do take the time, occasionaly, to figure out shortcuts though, and here's one of my varorites: I buy chipotle peppers in adobo sauce(brand: La Costena, from Texas), dilute with lime juice, liquify in a blender, add more lime juice if not liquid enough. I funnel it into a glass bottle (I like the Frank's Red Hot bottles). It keeps a long time in the fridge, but it tastes so good for the spice lovers that one bottle shouldn't last them very long...

I use it in a lot of dishes, including rice, pasta, eggs, and it adds LIFE to an otherwise OK homemade pizza. Just add a few drops evenly over the cheese before baking.

Careful, this is sweet and doesn't seem to be as spicy as it actually is. You can overdose on it and cause discomfort to your innards. I sure have!

Now if you'll excuse me, I WANT a second bowl of that dangerously good dish.

Happy New Year, Strangelings!!!

Click to Enlarge!

To all Strangelings, Misfits and Weirdos Out There, Happy New Year of 2011!

Wishes of Abundance and New Friendships to You and Yours, from Creaturiste, Poëk, Mr. Armadillo, and the rest of the ever-growing creature family!

.

Tahini Dip / Veggie Paté

Wow. I have been snobbing tahini as a condiment for years. I was missing out!

I didn't mind it if it was part of something else, but as a main flavor, forget it, it was too bitter for me.

Until now!

I was looking for a recipe for a vegan substitute to sour cream, and found this recipe, which calls for tahini (roasted sesame seeds, ground until smooth cream) as a main ingredient. I simplified the recipe by buying pre-made tahini, and added my own proportions. Here's the result:

Tahini Dip / Veggie Paté

It's easy, healthy, almost raw, super refreshing, and super fast to make!

•1 cup of tahini

•juice of two lemons (freshly squeezed)

•one tablespoon of onion powder

•one teaspoon of minced garlic

•pinch of sea salt

•water, if necessary to dilute (though I now prefer to dilute with more lemon juice).

Mix it all together until smooth and to the consistency you need.

No need for a blender, I hand mixed it all.

It does not imitate sour cream, but the taste seems to work where sour cream would.

I already tried it in burritos, and as a veggie dip. Amazing!

I am going to mix it thicker next time, add some ground peppercorns and herbs, and use it as veggie pate, for toasts, sandwiches and crackers.

You won't believe it until you try it!

And please let me know if it already exists as a tradition under another name, so I can research it and add the info here.

Green Iced Tea

One more recipe for the busy artists who appreciate good food, but don't have much time to prepare them.


My Iced Tea (sweet tea) is very appreciated by my guests.
It's an easy 10 minutes to make, takes about two hours of freezing to be ready, so I make it in advance, when I know someone is coming.


Ever since I succeeded making it to my taste, I can no longer appreciate the overly sweet chemical "drink" that is called Nestea. Real Iced Tea should be fresh made, therefore fresh-tasting, and not too sweet!




Ingredients:
•2 big heaping tablespoons of Green Tea
Needs to be loose leaf & organic. I personally prefer Sencha, a Japanese green Tea.
Variation: for the hottest heats of summer, a blend of half green tea and half dried mint leaves is a really good combo.

•4 cups of near-boiling water.
•sugar or honey, to taste (I add about half a cup of raw organic sugar, or raw honey).
•fresh cold water to fill the rest of your pitcher
•glass or ceramic teapot that can hold 4 cups.
•fine mesh strainer, to filter the tea leaves.
•Pitcher, needs to be freezer-safe (I use a plastic pitcher for this).


Steps:

1. measure 2 heaping tablespoons of green tea leaves, and put in the teapot or glass jar.

2. Bring 4 cups of cold water to an almost boiling point, using a kettle.
Using cold water to start with helps in keeping your drink unflat.

3. Pour the hot water onto the tea leave, and lest rest for 8 to ten minutes. Waiting longer will make a much more bitter tea. Some people step it for less than 8 minutes, but for me, it feels like a waste. You'll see what appears to be flakes or powder, turn into actual leaves, or big fragments.

4. pour the tea into the pitcher, using the strainer to catch the leaves.

5. Add the sweetener and blend while it's hot.
A variation: sometimes I add the juice and a bit of inner pulp of two or three lemons at this point.

6. fill the rest of the pitcher with cold water, and blend well. Tasting it now should tell you how sweet it is. If it feels a bit weak now, you should add a bit more sweetener, as a cold tea seems to taste a bit less sweet. Observe the marvelous color! It may be called green tea, but often it looks more golden, with a green tint.

7. Put in the freezer, without a lid, for about two hours, or until chilled.


8. Dispose of your surprisingly big heap of tea leaves in the outdoor compost right away. They attract insects. Who knew fruit flies were THAT fancy? If it's winter time and you don't want to dig out the compost pile, you can leave it in the freezer or in a bucket outside until you have time to do so.


9. Issue a warning to your guests: this iced tea is known as a diuretic. It affects some people more than others. If you have a very small or very nervous bladder, start with one single cup, to see how it affects you. Hey, such a natural diuretic is a good thing, it cleanses you!


10. Enjoy!


11. repeat the warning if you see that your guests are emptying the pitcher...


NOTES:
Why not use Tea Bags?
Why loose leaf and not tea bags? Commercial tea bags are low quality at best, and have barely any taste, in general. So "do yourselves a flaVor", and get loose leaf tea. Don't be fooled by the label at the store if it's sold by weight. Even at $10.00 a kilo, it's a bargain, since tea leaves are very lightweight. Different brands and types of green tea will taste different, because of how they are grown and processed. My most recent purchase of Sencha tastes more grassy than my usual supply, and that was a great surprise. If you like the convenience of tea bags, you can purchase empty bags and prepare your own. If I were to start using them, I would prefer the over sized tea bags, allowing me to prepare bigger batches, such as what is called for in this recipe.

Wheat Paste is solved!

I have just found out, by a sudden moment of strange inspiration, how to prevent delamination of the first few surface layers of paper mache strips.

The problem:

When using boiled wheat paste as a glue for paper mache strips within a negative mold, the release layer of paper towels or toilet paper and water, were always diffcult to really paste down and merge with the rest, once pulled out of the mold. Even worse, most times, some areas of the glued paper lift when applying the sealer.

I never had those problems with PVA glues.

The solution:

I now use a paper pulp (with wheat paste as a bonding agent) to make the detail coat into the molds. It takes twice as long to dry, but that time is not wasted, as I get a better definition, and a bonus texture that I love. I then add 3 or 4 layers of thick Kraft paper inside, for the strength and stiffness I need.

See the method here:

Making-paper-pulp.html

Casting with Paper Pulp

I'll repeat it here, to be clear: Wheat paste paper mache is far more stable in temperature changes than any PVA I've ever tried.

PVA-glue paper mache strips: get it cold, it becomes brittle and can break into pieces if dropped or hit; get it hot, it becomes soft and can be warped or squished out of shape.

Boiled wheat paste paper mache strips: no apparent change! I even froze a puppet head for a few hours, and then hit it violently, there was no change in strength!

Add to this that wheat paste paper mache is by far stronger than PVA-based same, and you got the best choice: stronger, non toxic, smoother results, non-lumpy, very economical, available worldwide!

This is where I got the info that made me want to try wheat paste again, at last!

Thank you Jose Chavez!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjMjm7p25zM

And here is the previous article I wrote about Wheat paste and my newfound love for it:

http://creaturistelab.blogspot.com/2010/08/loving-wheat-paste.html

Home-made Blender Slurpie

Hi all,

Whenever I need healthy refreshements, which is everyday,
I make something along these lines...
It's fast, it's amazing.


Fill half a blender pitcher with frozen fruits of your choice.
I reccomend these different variations, because they are my favorites so far...
•Berries (blackberry, Blueberry, Raspberry, Strawberry)
•Fruit blend (watermelon, strawberries, honeydew, peaches, grapes)
•Berries+Maple Syrup

•Pickled ginger+juice of 2 lemons+sugar (this tastes like a spicy lemon pie!)

Add a little amount of sweetener (organic sugar, honey, or maple syrup are my usual)
Add a liquid of your choice (water, fruit juice, sweet tea, or even a milk or a milk replacement) to cover the fruit content completely, and add a little bit.
A pinch of salt completes it.
Some people may like, depending on the fruit choices, a tiny bit of spice, such as black pepper, which works really well with strawberries.
However, you do not want it to be overpworing, it's just there as a bonus dimension in taste.

Blend until smooth. If it doesn't move enough for your blender strength, use more liquid, stir by hand, and re-blend..

This mixture can be drunk with a big straw (like for Bubble Tea), or eaten with a spoon.

Also, it's amazing as a sherbet, but in this case I sometimes like to add a thickener, such as a raw egg, or a banana, but it is not really necessary. Use it in an ice-cream maker, or try this fantastically easy and economical method:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Home-Made-Ice-Cream...-without-a-refrigerator!/

I modified that method a bit, I now use a larger plastic bucket to contain the ice & salt. Until I can find a proper flexible and durable container, I still use the plastic zip bag to hold my ingredients. However, a leak usually appears after one use. The slightly damaged bags can be washed and reused to store dry things that are larger than particules, such as craft supplies!

Enjoy!