February 4 — Hangzhou: The Finest and Most Noble City in the World According to Marco Polo

West Lake: the jewel of Hangzhou

Ten Scenic Spots in West Lake (西湖十景)
1.Dawn on the Su Causeway in Spring (苏堤春晓)
2.Curved Yard and Lotus Pool in Summer (曲苑风荷)
3.Moon over the Peaceful Lake in Autumn (平湖秋月)
4.Remnant Snow on the Bridge in Winter (断桥残雪)
5.Leifeng Pagoda in the Sunset (雷峰夕照)
6.Two Peaks Piercing the Clouds (双峰插云)
7.Orioles Singing in the Willows (柳浪闻莺)
8.Fish Viewing at the Flower Pond (花港观鱼)
9.Three Ponds Mirroring the Moon (三潭映月)
10.Evening Bell Ringing at the Nanping Hill (南屏晚钟)


Hangzhou: Lingyin Buddhist Temple (靈隱寺)

Hangzhou: Capital of Silk and Tea Trade


Recommended Books on China:
-Marco Polo From Venice to Xanadu by Laurence Bergreen
-Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250-76 by Jacques Gernet
-Inner Quarters: Marriage and the Lives of Chinese Women in the Sung Period by Patrica Ebrey
-Oracle Bones by Peter Hessler
-Nixon and Mao: The Week That Changed the World by Margaret MacMillan
-China, Inc.: How the Rise of the Next Superpower Challenges America and the World by Ted C. Fishman
-Out of Mao’s Shadow: The Struggle for the Soul of a New China by Phillip Pan

China - Study Abroad
-HIST 2321 World History + CHIN 1411 Beginning Chinese I
-On-Campus and Overseas
-International College, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China Beijing
-Week 1 – CyFair campus; classes and orientation
-Weeks 2 – 3: Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China (classes and field trips)
-Week 4: 4 days in Beijing, China; return to HoustonWeeks 5-6: CyFair campus; classes and final exams


Contact Information:
Carolyn HoProfessor of ESOL and Chinese at Lone Star College-CyFairOffice: Technology Center (TECH) 100-A. Phone: 281-290-3257 or carolyn.ho@lonestar.edu

Robert O’Brien Professor of History at Lone Star College-CyFair Office: Technology Center (TECH) 200-I. Phone: 281-290-3257 or robert.obrien@lonestar.edu

Katalin FountainCoordinator for International Education at Lone Star College-CyFairOffice: Learning Commons (LRNC) 246. Phone: 832-482-1055 or katalin.fountain@lonestar.edu

January 2009

January 7 — When Bad Things Happen to Good Food Choices - Lee Ann Harry, nurse educator from Balanced Health and Wellness, will reveal the effects of food toxicities and how to avoid them.

January 14 — Hook ‘Em or Gig ‘Em? - Explore the sometimes mystifying world of the language of sports with expert sports writer, Barb Wagner, author of Longhorn Lingo. A must for the upcoming Super Bowl.

January 21 — Yeast in the Air - Learn how to cultivate and make your own delicious sourdough bread with baker extraordinaire, Catharina Laporte. Come prepared to taste and take home some sourdough starter in HSC 105.

January 28 — Tough Times Money Wellness - Hal Lynde, Captain Cash of radio 94.5 FM, and Kurt Poe, financial planners both from Morgan Keegan, advise us during these financially trying times. Celebrate Financial Wellness Month. For more information about Mr. Lynde, go to http://hal.lynde.mkadvisor.com/.

SOURDOUGH – Yeast in the Air!

SOURDOUGH – Yeast in the Air!

To make your own sourdough starter,

You will need:
½ cup unsweetened pineapple juice
½ cup whole grain wheat flour or whole grain rye flour (use the freshest and most organic flour you can get your hands on)
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 cups water

The pineapple juice may sound like a strange ingredient, but it is what makes this recipe work so well. The juice creates an acidic environment that prevents bad bacteria from taking over and causing spoilage during the fermentation period. Many alternate recipes (and purists) use only water.

DAY ONE: Mix 2 Tablespoons whole grain flour and 2 Tablespoons pineapple juice. The mixture should be a thick slurry. You may need to add more or less juice because different flours absorb different amounts of liquid so it is normal to have it vary. Stir well, cover. Stir vigorously at least 3 or 4 times over the next 24 hours. (stirring multiple times is very important to the process) Ideal room temperature would be between 72 and 80 degrees, but don't worry too much if it is not.

DAY TWO: Add 2 Tablespoons whole grain flour and 2 Tablespoons pineapple juice. Stir well and cover. Stir vigorously at least 3 or 4 times over another 24 hours. You may, or may not start to see small bubbles at this point.

DAY THREE: Add 2 Tablespoons whole grain flour and 2 Tablespoons pineapple juice. Stir well multiple times over the next 24 hours. DAY FOUR: Stir mixture and measure out 1/4 cup--discard the rest. To the 1/4 cup, stir in 1/4 cup unbleached AP flour and 1/4 cup water. Stir multiple times over the next 24 hours. REPEAT Day 4 until mixture expands to double its size and smells yeasty.
Store the starter in the refrigerator when you are not using it. See feeding instructions (below) to keep it alive. Feeding the Starter
Either use or discard all but about 1/2 cup of the starter ---THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT to maintain a healthy starter!

Feed the remaining ½ cup starter with 1 cup flour and ½-¾ cup of water (Hydration approx 60%). Stir vigorously. Return to the refrigerator. If you forget to feed it for a few weeks, it probably will be fine but may take several feedings to get it back up to par.

Catharina’s Basic Bread Recipe

There are plenty of recipes out there for sourdough (on the web) or you can pick something up at the library --- but I will give you my favorite and easiest instructions to get started. For this entire process temperature is relatively important --- it should be about 72 – 84F --- otherwise the sourdough beasties won’t do their thing.

Take
2 cups of flour (white bread flour to start off)
1 cup plus a couple of tbspns water
A couple of heaped tbspns of the sourdough starter
Mix this together in a large plastic or glass container with a lid. Mark the side of the container so that you know the level of the starter.
Leave the mixture out for 8 – 12 hours (overnight) --- it should double in size and be very foamy and stringy. (this process is called the first fermentation)

Take this fermented mixture (is should be approx 18oz) and mix together with
2 cups of water
5 ½ - 6 cups of flour
1 tbspn salt.

Knead by hand for 12 -17 mins or in a Kitchenaid on speed ‘3’ for approx 6 minutes. When you are done kneading the bread will be able to pass the ‘windowpane test’ --- take a small chunk of the dough and stretch it out and hold it up to the light and you should be able to see light through it – like a window pane.

When kneading is complete, place the dough in an oiled or greased bowl, cover with oiled cling film, and allow it to double. This will take about 2 ½ hours. (this is called the second fermentation)

Gently Divide the dough into two and allow it rest (covered with oiled cling film) for 30 mins.

Gently Shape the dough into a floured tin or a basket (for shaping), cover with oiled cling film and allow it to proof for another 2 hours (this is called proofing). I use three lengths of wood and a rice floured dishcloth to create little ‘cloches’ for my dough to proof in – but my dad just uses baking pans.

Heat your oven to 450F degrees (real hot) with the rack in the bottom third --- the baking technique can be quite complicated with sprintzing the oven for steam etc --- but I just place another pan in the oven and add water to it (for steam) when I place the loaf in. Slash to loaves (with a razor blade or similar) to give them room to ‘spring’ while cooking. Cook for 30 mins. Check for doneness by knocking on the bottom of the loaf for a hollow sound.

Allow to cool (this is important because the bread is really still cooking inside), then EAT!!!

Catharina’s Favorite Sourdough Books

The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread (Hardcover)
by Peter Reinhart (Author), Ron Manville (Photographer). Publisher: Ten Speed Press (December 2001)

Crust & Crumb: Master Formulas for Serious Bread Bakers (Paperback) by Peter Reinhart (Author). Publisher: Ten Speed Press (August 2006)

The Bread Bible (Hardcover) by Rose Levy Beranbaum (Author). Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1 edition (October 2003)

Bread Alone: Bold Fresh Loaves from Your Own Hands (Hardcover) by Daniel Leader (Author), Judith Blahnik (Author). Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks; 1 edition (November 19, 1993)

Artisan Baking (Paperback) by Maggie Glezer (Author). Publisher: Artisan (October 1, 2005)

World Sourdoughs from Antiquity: Authentic recipes for modern bakers (Paperback)
by Ed Wood (Author). Publisher: Ten Speed Press; Revised edition (October 1996).

When Bad Things Happen to Good Food Choices

8 foods that account for 90% of all allergic or sensitivities reactions:

Milk
Eggs
Soy
Wheat (glutten - has a correlation )
Peanuts
Tree nuts
Fish
Shellfish

Suggestions to help with sensitivities:
Rotate food you eat. Try to wait 4 days before eating the same food again.
Eat only foods to which you are not sensitive.
Eat whole uncomplicated foods.
Diversify your diet; think rainbow; do not eat the same meal every day
Keep a food diary, include symptoms.
Design a plan that works for you.

Allergy vs. Sensitivity or Intolerance
-these are abnormal responses to a food that is triggered by your immune system.

Sensitivity
-Reaction can take place several hours or even days later
-Symptoms are more of a chronic nature

Allergy
-Immediate reaction
-Can be life threatening

For more information visit Balanced Health and Wellness
www.balancedhealthandwellness.com

December

December 3, 2008 Color Me Beautiful - Get ready for the holiday season with a color makeover from hair to skin tone analysis with expert beauty consultant, Lisa Allison.

December 10, 2008 Wrap a Gift/Save the World - Tracy Williams and Rose Botkin reveal how to make beautifully wrapped gifts in an environmentally friendly way.

December 17, 2008 A Ukrainian Holiday Celebration - How do Ukrainians celebrate the season? Learn how to make Russian/Ukrainian tea cookies and pierogues with Melanie Metzger. Find out about the traditional Sviata Vechera or Holy Evening dinner. HSC 105

A special performance Thursday Dec. 18 at 3:30!
Here We Go a Wassailing and a Madrigal Feast with
The I Cantori Singers from Langham Creek High School.
Join us for some Renaissance vocal music, history, wassail and hearty fare.
First floor of the library near the Technology Entrance.
No class Dec. 24 or Dec. 31. LIFE resumes on January

November

November 5, 2008 Medicine of the Future Baylor College of Medicine’s Tony Elam, Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives, reveals amazing medical breakthroughs from imaging to enomic
research. Celebrate National Radiologic Technology week Nov. 2 – 8.

November 12, 2008 The White Man’s Indian: Native Americans in Film Professor Matthew Turner takes us on a tour of how Native American culture has been portrayed in the movies.

November 19, 2008 Explore Your World: When Photography and Maps Merge Geotagging is he
process of merging digital photography and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) to create maps of photographs. Buck Buchanan gives hands-on demonstrations of new technologies breaking boundaries. GIS Lab TECH 114

No class Nov. 26

October

October 1, 2008 Collecting Antiques - Vanessa Gerondale of "Chippendale Eastlake" in the Heights gives us a primer on how to choose antiques and find hidden treasures.

October 8, 2008 Hot Tamale! - Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month and discover the culinary art of making tamales with Paula Gonzales. HSC 105

October 15, 2008 Taking Sides - What are the issues facing the nation this November? Professor Jim Brown presents some of the vital issues and you can vote using amazing new technology – clickers! And let’s talk about election war stories. Just what is an hanging chad?

October 22, 2008 Art of Montage - Artist Tony Kram demonstrates how the artist composes an artwork using existing artifacts and objects in a collage. Win an original work of art!

October 29, 2008 Skull Beads and other Adornments - Create skull beads and learn about the Day of the Dead with the mistress of the bead, Melissa Savage.