Once upon a time, there were three little pigs.  They lived with their mother, and they were all so very happy.  One day, their mother announced, “This house is getting too crowded for all of us.  The three little pigs simply must move out.  They need to go off and build their own little houses.”

So that’s just what the three little pigs did.  They kissed their mother goodbye and went out to find a place of their own.  The first little pig said, “I will make my house out of straw.”

The other pigs laughed and laughed.  ”Who’s ever heard of a house built out of straw?” the squealed.  Apparently those other pigs did not know what they were talking about because many of us might gladly live in this straw house that’s under construction:

Modern straw houses have become a hit across the United States.

Using straw in construction is nothing new.  It’s been around since pre-history around the world.  But the unique approach of construction like with this house, built by Andrew Morrison, dates back to the early 20th century in the midwestern United States where straw abounds.

When farmers harvest their grain for consumption, they’re left with the stock – the straw.  It’s the waste product essentially.  Except thankfully, we’ve been finding gobs of uses for it for years and years.  Straw is bundled and used for a multitude of uses like animal bedding and cover for gardens and now – more and more houses.

Straw bales are at least 18 inches thick, making a pretty hefty wall.  Hefty and warm!  The insulation values are R-30 to R-35, so you can be sure your heating bill won’t be through the roof each winter.  Some people might argue, “Well yeah!  Of course it has a high R-value.  It’s 18 inches thick.  Give me 18 inches of insulation, and I’ll have a tight house.”  They’d be completely right.  But the thing is… The Straw Is Already Here.

One thing I especially love would be all the built-in shelves or seats in front of windows.  The curves toward the doorways are beautiful, too, aren’t they?

So maybe the first of the infamous Three Little Pigs wasn’t as foolish as we all always thought.

* * * * * * * * *

Have a suggestion for a unique home you’d like to visit for our weekly series?  We’ve visited so many interesting places from a Modern Tipi House to a House in a Cave.  Now won’t you share where you’d like to go next?  Or would you be content staying in a Straw Bale House of your own one day?

(Happily shared with Hooked on Houses.  Images from Flickr)

One of my favorite things to do at the organic grocery stores is pick up out something new from the shelves and bring it home.  My second favorite is making everyone at dinner try it with me.

My experimentation doesn’t take place in regular grocery stores.  I think it’s the idea of exotic foods being gourmet if they come from organic grocery stores.  If I were to get experimental in a regular grocery store, I’m almost afraid of what I might grab.  Pickled pigs feet?  Veggie spread cheese slices that aren’t real cheese… or real food?

I’m a firm believer of trying new things at mealtime.  It’s how we’ve become lovers of kale in our soup, countless German products, and most recently – mascarpone cheese.  Have you ever tried this stuff?  Oh my.  We’re eating it by the tub.  Books call marscapone an Italian cream cheese, and I like the sound of that.  I could raise my arm at the table and shout in a booming, cheerful voice, “Martinia!  (You know – ‘Martin’ gone Italian.)  Martinia!  Fetcha me-a the marscapone!”

He’d probably respond in a dry voice, “It’s already next to you, Katie.”

And he’d be right.  Chances are we would already have a bit of mascarpone on the table.

To me, mascarpone tastes like a tangier cream cheese.  It’s really smooth and not too sweet.  You won’t mind getting a little on your fingers now and then.  In fact, you might even try to get some on your fingers.

What about finding it outside of the US?  Or Italy for that matter?  Well I know mascarpone is sold in German grocery stores.  We were looking for it in 2007… in the produce isle.  Clearly we had no idea what we were looking for when we left Martin’s grandmother’s house to get the groceries.  If only we could have known that sweet piece of heaven could be useful for so many wonderful foods.

…wonderful foods like these breadsticks.  Adapted from the book, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, these breadsticks are delicious dipped in mascarpone cheese.  They’re also good by themselves, dunked in marinara sauce, or baked with a little seasoning.  We’ve swapped for different types of flour like rye, wheat flour, and chickpea, making the dough half all-purpose.  They aren’t quite as fluffy and flavorful, so consider sticking to all-purpose white flour your first time around.

* * * * * * * * *

Breadsticks

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp instant yeast
sprinkle of sugar
1 tsp salt
2/3 c warm water
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
cornmeal for rolling (optional)
kosher salt for sprinkling (optional)
sesame seeds for sprinkling (optional)

1. Combine dry ingredients in a food processor and pulse briefly.  If you don’t have a food processor, you can easily make this dough in a bowl.  It just takes a bit more work.

2. Once dry ingredients are combined, add half of the water while machine is running.  Continue to add water a bit at a time until the flour mixture becomes damp and slowly rolls itself into a ball.

3. Pour olive oil in a bowl, spread it around, and place the ball of dough in the center.  Cover bowl with plastic and let sit for an hour in a warm place.  Then put in the fridge over night.

4. The next day, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C).  Split the dough into two pieces.  Roll one out to 1/4″ thick, and cut breadsticks.  (A pizza cutter works especially well)  You’ll want to make your cuts 1/4″ to 1/2″ thick.  The thinner they are, the more fun they are to eat because they’ll have a nice little crunch.

5.  Grease a baking sheet with olive oil, sprinkle on cornmeal, and add breadsticks about 1/4″ apart.  They won’t rise any measurable amount, so yo don’t have to worry about them sticking together.

6.  Brush breadsticks with olive oil and sprinkle on kosher salt and sesame seeds as desired.  Bake until crisp, about 12 to 18 minutes.  Cool and serve with mascarpone.  Breadsticks last five days when stores in an airtight container.

Optional: Add herbs to the flour mixture in Step 1 such as rosemary or thyme or grated Parmesan cheese.

* * * * * * * * *

“Martinia, the breadsticks!  Pass ‘em a to me!”  And when he does:  ”Danke.”  I love these things.

(Oh – and here’s a basic recipe for a mascarpone substitute if you can’t find it.)

Happy baking.  And a happy weekend, everybody!

Oh the joy of being able to cook and bake again!  I think I cannot resist tying on the apron strings any longer.  I think it’s something about the approach of fall.  The crisp air, the taste of apples, farmers markets pulling out sliced pumpkin… it’s true love at our house.  Does autumn do this to you?  Do you get this overwhelming sense to nest?

You and I had so much fun crashing weddings from around the world that I started thinking, “What comes next?”  For my family, every day ends in a meal together.  Eating with family and friends becomes this incredible experience where we get to share our lives and grow together.

We get to know one another over food.  Sometimes it’s for a meal.  Other times, it’s homemade cakes when friends come over or late night snacks with visiting relatives.

So many of you have requested more recipes on Making This Home.  That’s why tomorrow I’m so happy to begin our newest series of yummy treats.  Of course, every one of these recipes will be vegetarian.  They’ll also be compatible with ingredients I can find in both Germany and the United States, so hopefully you can all work with them and adapt to what you have available.

But what’s a recipe without a piece of history?  I don’t mean history like the story of German Chocolate Cake necessarily (even though you might love to know that German Chocolate Cake has nothing at all to do with Germany).  I mean stories from the table – stories that have changed my perspective on food and might change yours, too.  They’re stories about passion for food – like the day I was so sure Martin would be the most popular guy at work here in Germany last year when he brought chocolate chip cookies, only to find that nobody would eat them because someone purchased traditional German pastries.  So I ended up eating way too many cookies.  That’s the kind of story I’m talking about.  That’s the kind of writing I most love because I like thinking about people and our senses and the way we speak and respond to life.

I’m most excited about this project because it’s completely seasonal.  The grocery store where we shop works directly with farmers to provide our produce.  So if things aren’t in season, I probably won’t be able to readily find them.  So no strawberry pie around here for a while.  (drats)

So what do you think?  If you’re thinking, “Katie, you should be sharing a recipe Right Now,” perhaps I can tie you over.  Here is the list of recipes on Making This Home thus far:

Homemade Graham Crackers

Homemade Marshmallows

Refrigerator Iced Tea

Outdoor Ice Cream

Roasted Applesauce

German Christmas Cookies

American Chocolate Chip Cookies

To kick things off, won’t you take a moment to share a food story with all of us?  With the school season starting off all over the world, let’s start with the basics.  What’s your favorite sack lunch sandwich?  Are you still a pb&j kinda gal?  Or maybe you’re all about the baked tofu (maybe that’s just me?) or turkey or salami.  Whatever it is, please spill.  Lunch time comes a little faster around here than we’re used to from a summer in the US, you know.