| How to Make Sun Dried Tomatoes Posted: 26 Mar 2022 09:00 AM PDT While fresh tomatoes are plump, firm and juicy, sun dried tomatoes are shriveled, chewy, and darker than the fresh version. They also pack an incredibly intense tomato flavor that makes a wonderful addition to many dishes, whether used as is or rehydrated. Any type of tomato can be used to make (sun) dried tomatoes, but typically plum (Roma) tomatoes are used due to their high flesh-to-juice ratio.The drying process may be lengthy but you can learn how to sun dry tomatoes in your backyard or oven. It is a great way to preserve tomatoes if you have an overabundance of them. [Edit]Preparing Tomatoes for Drying - Rinse the tomatoes under cool water and dry them with a paper towel.
- Cut the tomatoes on a cutting board. If you are using cherry tomatoes, cut them in half. For other larger tomatoes, cut them into quarters.
- Remove the seeds of the larger tomatoes. This is not necessary but removing the seeds will speed up the drying process.
- Sprinkle the tomatoes with your choice of seasonings. Fresh herbs are a popular choice. Basil is often used to flavor sun dried tomatoes. Toss the tomatoes so they are well coated with the herbs.
[Edit]Drying Option 1: Sun Drying Sun drying usually takes place during the summer months when days are sunny, hot, and long. - Find an area that has full sunlight for the majority of the day. Choose a really hot day. For optimal results, the temperature should be over with humidity less than 60 percent.
- Set up a screen for laying out the tomatoes. You can use a screen made for drying purposes or an old window or door screen that has been scrubbed clean. Set the screen up on a table, and raise the screen by placing small boards or bricks at the corners. This will allow air to circulate around the drying tomatoes.
- Place the tomatoes on the screen, skin side down. Arrange them so there is space between the tomatoes; you do not want them touching. Proper drying requires adequate air flow for each individual piece of tomato.
- Cover the tomatoes with cheesecloth. Place boards or bricks around the screen, then place the cheesecloth over this. The cheesecloth should cover the tomatoes but not touch them. Hold the cheesecloth in place by placing more bricks on top of the bottom bricks.The cheesecloth will help keep bugs off and birds out, as well as falling debris from trees.
- Check on the tomatoes every so often. They can take anywhere from 1 day of full sun to 2 weeks to properly dry. Make sure to take them in at night. After the sun goes down, humidity levels tend to rise and you do not want your tomatoes to absorb any moisture (which would basically undo any drying that has already occurred).
- The tomatoes are completely sun dried when they have a leathery texture and are not sticky. They should feel dry but not cold to the touch. Do not over dry them so they become brittle. The finished product will be much darker than the original.
[Edit]Drying Option 2: Oven Drying - Preheat the oven to . Drying tomatoes in the oven requires the lowest setting on your oven. If it is above 150 degrees, leave the oven door open slightly to reduce the heat.
- Arrange the cut tomatoes on a baking sheet so they are not touching one another. They will have to be turned and tossed periodically through the drying process since there is no air circulation with a baking sheet.
- Heat the tomatoes in the oven until they have a leathery texture but are not sticky. This may take 6 to 12 hours.
[Edit]Storing Dried Tomatoes - Store the dried tomatoes in a plastic bag or glass jar. Pack them loosely and rid the container of as much air as possible. Keep the dried tomatoes in a cool, dark, dry place.
- If you have put your dried tomatoes in an air-tight container, you can also store them in the refrigerator or freezer.
- You can sun dry tomatoes in a car during a hot, sunny day since the inside reaches temperatures appropriate for drying fruit.
- If you accidentally over dry the tomatoes, they can be made into a tomato powder or tomato flakes for flavoring dishes.
- Make sun dried tomatoes using a food dehydrator.
- If you rehydrate the tomatoes in hot water, do not throw the liquid away! It can be used for making tomato soup or tomato sauce.
[Edit]Warnings - Leaving the oven door open may introduce deadly carbon monoxide (CO) gas into your home. Use proper ventilation and ensure that you have working CO detectors properly installed in your home.
- Do not remove more than just the seeds or you may lose flavor.
- Tomatoes should be dried in hot, dry weather, since humidity will prolong and even inhibit the drying process.
[Edit]Things You'll Need - Tomatoes
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- Screen
- Baking Sheet
- Cheesecloth
- Seasonings
- Boards or Bricks
- Paper Towel
[Edit]Related wikiHows [Edit]References
[Edit]Quick Summary |
| How to Play Blitz Chess Posted: 26 Mar 2022 01:00 AM PDT Blitz chess, also known as Speed Chess, is a single, time-controlled game of 1-10 minutes. Playing Blitz chess creates a flurry of moves, as both players hustle to complete their respective halves of a chess game, depending on which rule set they're playing under. Other than the blazing-fast speed required to complete a full chess game in such little time, the standard rules of movement, capture, and game ending apply. [Edit]Preparing to Play the Game - Obtain a chess board. You will also need to have chess pieces and a chess clock. Try going for a simple and small-sized board. A smaller board will make it easier to move the pieces across the board. Plastic or wooden boards are okay.[1]
- Playing online is also an option. For this, you will need a computer, a tablet, or a mobile phone with an internet connection.
- Clock apps can be downloaded onto your devices if you don't own a chess clock.
- Learn the basic rules. You will need to learn the rules before playing blitz chess. First, familiarize yourself with the rules of standard chess. The rules are basically the same in standard and blitz chess. The only differences are the treatment and penalties for illegal moves, and the timing formats.[2]
- The second illegal move will lose in a game of blitz chess.
- Find an opponent. Anyone that knows how to play the game will do. Consider your level of playing when choosing an opponent. Don't start off with someone that is much more advanced than you when you are a beginner.[3]
- Do finger stretches before you begin to play (optional). Players sometimes lose because of finger fatigue. Stretching your fingers will help circulation as you play.
- Make a gentle fist. Hold for thirty seconds. Then, release and spread your fingers wide. Repeat four times.[4]
- Place your palm flat on a table. Straighten your fingers as flat as you can against the surface of the table. Hold for thirty seconds. Release and repeat four times.
[Edit]Playing the Game - Face off against your opponent over the chess board. The person playing White gets the privilege of moving first, but the person playing Black chooses which side of the table to sit on.
- Inspect everything about the table. This includes how the pieces are set up, the time on the clocks and the clock's orientation. Once the game begins, none of these can be changed.
- The time on the clocks should be set to the amount of time you want to play the game. In a blitz game, you should set the clock between one to ten minutes.
- The clock should be placed on either side of the chess board. Black usually decides which side of the board to place the clock.[5]
- Move first if you're playing White. Wait for your opponent to move if you're playing Black.
- After every move, you must hit the plunger on your side of the chess clock with the same hand you used to move the chess piece. This pauses your clock and starts your opponent's.
- Remember that the point of Blitz chess is playing a fun, fast chess game. If you take too long to agonize over your moves, you'll lose. Budget your time well.
- Continue playing until the game ends.
[Edit]Improving Your Game - Play standard games of chess. A game of blitz chess is not that different from any other game of chess. Blitz chess is just played much faster. The fast-paced game of blitz chess may be too overwhelming for someone who is new to the game of chess. A good way to get better at blitz chess is to improve your game of standard chess.[6]
- Play a slightly longer game. Blitz chess can often seem harder than standard chess because the short time of the game makes the player emotional and excited. Try playing a slightly longer game. Playing a longer game will help you train to think clearly and rationally while playing.[7]
- Practice with stronger players. The best way to improve at blitz chess is to play with more advanced players that challenge you to better your game. It may get tiring to play with much more advanced players too often, so practice with other players with different levels of strength.[8]
- Try playing with a player that you beat 1 out of 4 to 1 of 8 games against.
- Occasionally play with weaker players. This will build your confidence, and help the weaker players improve their games.
- Try playing online if you can't find players near your level in-person.
- Study game tactics. Chess is thought to be 80% tactics, and it is not any different for blitz chess. Pay attention to your and your opponent's positions while playing. Spotting your opponent's tactics and tactical mistakes will give an advantage in the game.[9]
- Practice breathing exercises to avoid nervousness before a game.
- Keep your eye on the clock.
- Players that play speed chess or simultaneous chess do not calculate variations on every move but rather play most moves by positional needs. For example, they might think to themselves, "I need to control the center, I need to castle to protect my king, I need to get my pieces out, I need to attack his queen to gain time, I need to defend from my opponent forking my pieces with his knight, I should get my rooks on open files to prevent my opponent from doing so, I am ahead in space and development so I should go for a king side attack, I am ahead in material so I should exchange pieces and go for the endgame, or I am behind in material so I should avoid exchanges and play for a counter-attack.
- It's easier to attack than to defend. Sacrificing a pawn to get an advantage in the attack works better in speed chess than in regular chess because your opponent does not have the time to figure out a complicated position and is more prone to make a mistake. You can think on his moves and really keep an advantage on the clock.
- During blitz chess, players are not expected to notate their moves.
- Under the World Chess Federation Rules, a blitz chess game may offer up to 15 minutes of game time to each player, or an incremental time such that the base allotted time, plus 60 times the increment equals 15 minutes or less.[10]
- According to the United States Chess Federation Rules, blitz chess is usually played with a total of 5 minutes playing time per player, per game. However, USCF rules allow the game organizer to introduce the use of delay or increment time. When increment time is employed, once the base time expires you have a set increment of time to complete each successive move. If time expires before you play and you have enough resources on the board to checkmate your opponent, you lose.[11]
[Edit]Warnings - Watch for the time you have left after two moves.
- Do not make any illegal moves. Doing so may forfeit your game.
[Edit]Things You'll Need - A chess set.
- Chess clock
- A computer with internet connection for a virtual game.
- A mobile phone or tablet with internet connection for a virtual game.
[Edit]Related wikiHows [Edit]References [Edit]Quick Summary |
| How to Make Origami Fireworks Posted: 25 Mar 2022 05:00 PM PDT Origami fireworks, with multidimensional peaks and varying colors, are reminiscent of fireworks exploding in the sky. You can use any type of square shaped paper to create your origami fireworks, though special origami paper might better hold the creases of your folds. But no matter the paper you use, with clean, crisp folds and attention to detail, you'll soon have origami fireworks made by your own hand! [Edit]Making the Initial Folds for Your Origami Firework - Gather, or make, your materials. You can purchase specialty origami paper from most craft stores, or you might consider making your own origami paper. So that your fireworks look bright and festive, and to get this effect you'll want your origami paper to be brightly colored on one side and white on the other. You'll need 12 square sheets of paper. For the best arrangement of colors, you might use two sheets each of the following:
- Red paper
- Orange paper
- Yellow paper
- Green paper
- Blue paper
- Purple paper
- Folding bone (for sharp creases; optional)
- Use a folding bone, if you desire. A folding bone is a tool that is used in paper crafts to help make sharp, crisp creases while preventing strain to your fingers.[1] To use a folding bone, press it firmly along the lines of your folds. Some homemade folding bones can be fashioned from:
- A metal spoon
- An old credit card
- A flat paperweight
- Fold six sheets, creased from corner to corner. Arrange six of your sheets into a stack, taking care to line the papers up evenly. Lay the papers so that the white sides are face up, and then turn the stack so that the squares of paper form a diamond shape in front of you.[2] Then:
- Fold your papers vertically so that a crease runs from the top to the bottom corner, then unfold and smooth.
- Fold your papers horizontally so that a crease runs from the left to the right corner, then unfold and smooth.[3]
- Perform a blintz fold your stack of six sheets. A blintz fold draws the four corners of your paper to its center, folding the outer edges to create a smaller square.[4] To form your blintz fold:
- Take a corner and fold its tip to the center of your paper where your first two creases cross.
- Repeat this until all four corners of your paper have been folded so the corners meet in the center.
- Unfold your blintz fold and smooth your papers.
- Fold you paper horizontally in half. First, reorient your paper so that it lies before you on the table as a square and not a diamond. Then, take the top of your paper and fold it even with the bottom of your paper and crease the fold, then unfold.[5]
- Fold the top and bottom to meet at the middle. The top and bottom edges of your paper should be in line with your previous, horizontal fold that halved your square paper. The top and bottom edges of your paper should meet along the middle.[6] Crease your folds, then unfold the paper.
- Rotate your paper so that the horizontal folds you just made are vertical.
- Fold to the first diagonal intersection on your paper. Take the top of your paper and fold it a small distance until the top edge is even with the first diagonal intersection where your X crease crosses the outside of your diamond shaped crease.[7]
- Fold the bottom of your paper similarly, until its edge is also even with the first diagonal intersection where the X crease crosses the diamond shaped crease.
- Turn over your paper so the colored side is face up.
- Strengthen your diagonal creases. The creases running from corner to corner and forming an X shape on your paper should be folded once again so that these are crisp, strong folds. Then turn your paper over.[8]
- At this point, you should rotate your paper to return it to the orientation where three horizontal folds run between the left and right sides of your paper.
[Edit]Folding the Waterbomb Base and Locks - Collapse the left and right quadrants to forma triangle. This shape is known among paper crafters as a waterbomb base.[9] The current orientation of your paper should be so that your X crease divides your paper into four quadrants, you have three horizontal folds from running from left to right sides, a diamond shaped crease, and two outside vertical creases from top to bottom.[10] Take your left and right quadrants and:
- Tuck the paper inward, toward the center. The folds that you have previously made should allow the paper to collapse into the shape of a triangle.
- Crease your waterbomb base sharply.[11][12]
- Squash fold your waterbomb base. A squash fold is where you fold your paper up into the air and then smush it down to form a crease that often reveals some of the opposite side of the paper's color (in this case, white).[13] Along the inside of your triangular waterbomb base, there should be creases in the shape of an upside down triangle. From the downward facing point of that inner triangle:
- Pull the bottom edge of your waterbomb base up so that the downward facing point of your inner triangle is touching the upward point of your waterbomb base.
- As you pull the bottom of your paper toward the top, you may need to pull the corners of your triangle inward.[14][15]
- Turn over your paper and repeat the process.
- At this stage, your paper should be a solid triangle shape on top, with two "legs" at the bottom of the triangle that are unconnected.
- Crease your locks. The creases you form here will turn into locks that hold your papers together into a single design. Use a squash fold by lifting the bottom of one leg of your paper so that it's bottom folds in line with the bottom edge of the base of the triangle at the top of your paper. [16][17]
- Repeat this process with the other leg of the same side of your paper, then turn your paper over and then perform this fold again.
- The squash fold you use to crease your locks will create small triangles that have points facing out to the left and right.
- Return your locks to the starting position. After you have creased the folds of your locks, you'll need to unfold these so that your paper returns to its previous shape: two rectangular legs and a triangular top. Repeat the unfolding process on both sides.[18]
- Repeat this process with your remaining six sheets. When you fold your second set of six sheets, be sure you start with the color side up instead of the white side up. When you complete this phase of your origami firework, you should have six folded papers with color facing outward and six with the white side facing outward.
[Edit]Assembling Your Origami Firework - Separate your papers, if necessary. If you have been folding your sheets individually, you won't need to separate your papers, but if you have been folding six at a time, you'll need to separate these to move forward. Stack your finished, folded papers into like piles, one with the colored side out and the other with the white side out.[19]
- Be sure your colors correspond between piles. If the first color of your colored pile is red, the first color of your white pile should also be red (on the inside).[20]
- Fold out the flaps of your white papers. You should fold the top triangular part of your paper along its base so that the triangles face outward to form wings. These will be inserted into your colored papers.[21][22]
- Insert the flap into the pocket. To find the pocket on your colored paper, slightly open the outer flaps of paper on the "legs." This is the pocket into which you will insert the white flap of your other paper.[23] You will also need to:
- Using your right hand, hold together the outer flaps on the legs of one side of your white paper.
- Then fold down the top triangle part so that it forms a flap that you can insert into the pocket of the colored paper.[24][25]
- Free the other white flap. Once you have successfully inserted your white flap into the colored pocket, open the "legs" that you've been holding together with your right hand on the other side to expose the other flap. Now you can fit the second flap into your next piece of colored paper.[26][27]
- Lock your white and colored papers together until all 12 pieces are connected.
- The bottoms of your linked pieces of paper should be even.
- Invert the paper so the top triangle faces downward. Now you can fold the right two flaps of your outermost white paper to reveal the next paper in the series, which should be colored. Then fold the top of your paper down so that the flat top edge is even with the base of the now inverted triangular shape.[28]
- This should form the same left and right outward pointing triangles that you folded when you creased your lock folds.
- Fold all of your lock creases for each paper, starting from one end and skipping the end white paper.[29]
- Connect your ends together. You should spread out your now connected and locked together papers to make connecting the ends easier. Put the end white papers final flap into the pocket of the colored paper at the other end of your paper chain.[30]
- Close the two outer locks by rotating the paper so that the inside is facing outward.
- Once you have locked all the individual parts of your firework together and have rotated the inside out, your firework should be complete.
[Edit]Things You'll Need - Standard origami paper (12 square sheets)
- Folding bone (to make sharp creases; optional)
[Edit]Related wikiHows [Edit]References |
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