#26, Milk a cow

The Iowa State Fair is an event of epic proportions that contains many varied opportunities for learning and exploration. And beer. And some of the least healthy food you'll ever eat.

While the Fair is not my favorite annual event, I wanted to go this year because of the opportunity to milk a cow! The Iowa State University Dairy Science Club was sponsoring an exhibit where you could pay $2.00 and try your hand at milking.

While this exhibit was clearly aimed at children, I wasn't embarrassed. Much. Until the milking guy laughed at me.

Actually, he was very nice and helpful. And the cow was lovely and soft and didn't seem to mind at all that about a jillion kids were lined up to pull on her.

Afterwards, I rewarded myself with Fair food on a stick, dipped in chocolate.

So, number 26 was completed today, August 22nd. And I've completed 8.5 out of 30 goals. We are definitely going to Dragon*Con in less than 2 weeks, and I can't wait! The only problem will be picking the best pictures to post when I get back. We will possibly be driving down to Worlds of Fun in September or October, where I could do chess coaster.

I don't know if I will get 15 of my 30 goals completed by my birthday this year, but I think I'm doing okay. I have about 15 months to go and 21.5 goals to complete. Getting there!

#6, Cook 10 things from Mastering the Art of French Cooking (1/10)

Ever since I read Julie & Julia (soon to be released as a major motion picture!), I've thought about the idea of cooking my way through Mastering the Art of French cooking. Ultimately, I decided that doing all of it would be too much, and as a vegetarian, I can't eat most of it anyway. But I did want to try my hand at a few things, so I thought cooking 10 recipes would be a good addition to this project.

First up is Potage Parmentier (Potato and Leek soup). This is the first recipe in the soup section of volume 1.

Here's the recipe (we halved it since there were only 2 of us):

Ingredients

1 lb potato, peeled and diced
3 cups leeks, thinly sliced (white and tender green parts only)
2 quarts water
1 tablespoon salt
4-6 tablespoons whipping cream or 2-3 tablespoons softened butter
2-3 tablespoons minced parsley or chives

Directions

Simmer vegetables, water and salt together, partially covered, 40-50 minutes until vegetables are tender. Mash the vegetables in the soup with a fork, or puree in blender. Correct seasoning. Off heat and just before serving, stir in cream or butter by spoonfuls. Pour into a tureen or soup cups and decorate with the herbs.

Pretty simple, right? But I thought starting simple was a good idea. We started with fresh ingredients from the local farmer's market.

My friend Libby was on hand again to help out.

The lovely finished product:

This was probably the tastiest recipe I've made for this project. I think the next one I might tackle is the mayonnaise recipe. 9 more to go!