Worth It?

This past weekend, we saw Chrisopher Kimball on America's Test Kitchen extoll the virtues of prepping a steak in the oven prior to hitting the grill or pan to finish. 250 - 275 degrees for 20 minutes, seasoned with salt and pepper came the advice. After that, 2 -3 minutes per side to medium rare goodness. Kimball showed steaks that came directly from pan to plate and (the admittedly thin) layer of more cooked meat that encased the steak. The oven-prepped steak had more uniform color and texture and, frankly, looked compelling.

Since we consume only a steak per family, we didn't conduct our own side-by-side comparison but we did cook a ribeye to America's Test Kitchen specs. The result, in our humble opinion, was good but not appreciably better than our traditional method: onto the coals or into the pan, straightaway. The interior of the steak was uniformily pink and juicy. We're just not sure it delivered anything superior to the way we usually cook steak. And it took significantly longer.

It's worth disclosing that we cooked a bone-in, organic ribeye steak weighing about a pound.

Don't get me wrong, the steak was good. Very good, indeed. It just wasn't better than we've been muddling through on our own. And it took longer.

Honestly, I don't think it was us/the meat/the grill. I'm not sure this technique overdelivers a superior tasting steak for the time required. America's Test Kitchen's won't agree but that's the Delman household verdict.

At least we tried.

ITunes U: A Different Mix

ITunes has been steadily expanding iTunes U, a collection of great, substantive content (often) from the world's great universities. I noticed that Oxford is now in the mix with a series of philosophy and fine art lectures. If you haven't explored iTunes U, get thee there. History, humanities, education, science and technology, literature, mathematics, social science and more are waiting for your click.

Treat your brain as well as your ears. And please share your favorites!

Parent Teacher Conferences: Mission Accomplished and New Practices

It's that time of year. The leaves are turning, skies are cloudy and grey and parent teacher conferences ensue. With two kids in elementary school, we've now completed both sets of conferences.

I need to say how much I respect teachers. They do an amazing job of moving kids forward. My husband and I are always ready and willing to help on the journey but they drive the process and do so with great effectiveness.

We're blessed with capable students (at least at this level) but there are a few things we're going to try to move from good to great. First, we're instituting family reading time. My husband and I are avid readers. My son, who is reading well, doesn't turn to a book as his first source of entertainment. My daughter is an emerging reader who could always use the practice. Thus, family reading time is born: 15 - 20 minutes of dedicated reading time, family discussion to follow. We may not do it every night but we will do it the majority of the week. Second, we need to incorporate a greater sense of gratitude and community in our lives. Kindergartners are about themselves. Second graders have a slightly wider sphere. Our kids demonstrate the foundational elements of empathy but we're choosing to push for more. Dinner time conversation (and maybe journal time) will focus on that for which we are grateful and how we can help others. We want to push the edges of that sphere of self outward, a bit at a time.

Feedback is a wonderful thing. As much as we enjoy the praise, it's always good to ask how we can get better. Those magicians of the classroom always have ideas, the one additional thing that can make the difference. I find these conferences energizing. And I want to hug their magnificent teachers.

Lessons From My LIttle Ones

Hanging out with Graham and Lauren this weekend, I see two key behaviors that I could benefit from applying to my adult life. Following the little ones' lead could result in a pretty joyous time.

First, the kids create like crazy. They are constantly building, drawing, painting, collaging, making me bookmarks, asking to write poems and stories. Yes, they can be couch potatoes too, but their first and primary orientation is to make stuff and express themselves. They do this with whatever is on hand and are not bound by materials or any other constraint.

(The question that follows from the above activity is "what do you do with all that stuff once it's "made."" However, I won't trouble myself about that right now.)

Secondly, the kids are always learning. It's Graham practicing his lower case letters, Lauren doggedly trying to write her name, both of them seeing what new colors come from mixing paint. When we read, they're always asking "why" and "what does that word mean." The kids are continually taking it all in, processing it, and trying their best to use it. None of this is a chore but rather a simple joy. They reach for learning as easily as they reach for a pencil.

My resolutions: a) focus on creating more . . . more stuff, more freely, with a greater sense of play b) pay attention to what I can be learning at any time, embrace it, and use it!