tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53707935067218244842024-03-18T20:13:44.350-07:00Don't Quote YourselfSeriously. It's in poor taste.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-48390054050970367312013-04-16T09:57:00.001-07:002013-04-16T09:59:30.589-07:00Thising and thating about<br />
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<a data-ved="0CAgQjRwwAA" href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=xx6L0dUr9SptzM&tbnid=RT7n3JzHaP5X2M:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fapexforums.freeforums.org%2Fsaab-born-from-jets-leko-born-from-t4841.html&ei=YX5tUfPaKYS10QG27IBo&psig=AFQjCNHD4SzKxy0_wJCcy6Lh228s0RfJCw&ust=1366216673739443" id="irc_mil" style="border: 0px currentColor; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img height="200" id="irc_mi" src="http://upraw.typepad.com/upraw/WindowsLiveWriter/IKEA%20tool.jpg" style="margin-top: 38px;" width="164" /></a>I've been having adventures, you guys. In the time I haven't written I did some exciting stuff. In no order in particular, I've purchased pink popsicle molds, changed domiciles, begrudgingly made myself memorize the name and function of various tiny muscles, devised many schemes to visit Ikea, watched British murder mysteries, cooked lots of new things, killed my first houseplant, and pulled up the shade of my bedroom window to look contemplatively out of it while sipping a too-thick frozen-banana smoothie. I also went to Spain, and perhaps as penance for spending the week of Passover stuffing my face with delicious cured ham and crispy bread, I've taken very enthusiastically to that other fabled Jewish tradition: freezing everything.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic2PPpyMTi02_OiT2-mZfAAQ0tv73e4nV3fOZJhAnirP08XQFblO1r36FKkzX_gyJXWqr_I0Ln0I2ote2hTE2vu-U9ybKcC1JdGDWC3-4JG299YZ8vliPFWlhlN887aK9Kcvo24SUqn6D8/s1600/IMAG1929.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic2PPpyMTi02_OiT2-mZfAAQ0tv73e4nV3fOZJhAnirP08XQFblO1r36FKkzX_gyJXWqr_I0Ln0I2ote2hTE2vu-U9ybKcC1JdGDWC3-4JG299YZ8vliPFWlhlN887aK9Kcvo24SUqn6D8/s200/IMAG1929.jpg" width="119" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Broccoli-Cheese Soup</td></tr>
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Presently residing in the ice box are myriad bags of homemade dashi (would you like a bag? I have so many!<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> help me</span>), from-scratch beans, emergency ravioli, and what I can probably best describe as mystery meats because flakes of frost and poor memory have made them indistinguishable from each other. </div>
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Also somewhere deep within are <a href="http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2012/02/hearty-black-bean-quesadillas-661.html">these</a>, <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2013/01/lentil-soup-with-sausage-chard-and-garlic/">this</a>, and <a href="http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=2209945">that</a>. All really easy, delicious, and actually healthy. </div>
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I think part of the reason I am so bad at writing regularly is because while I have a compulsion to talk about food, I rarely "invent" recipes, and when I do, they're really loose riffs on things that already exist (that broccoli-cheese soup? Dice two peeled large russet potatoes into it and double the spinach, trust me,) or they're, like, <em>smoothies</em>, which I do not deign to tell anyone how to make for themselves. I don't see the point in writing restaurant reviews because 1. I am mortified of being caught taking pictures of my food and 2. It seems like bad manners to me to boast about what I ate without sharing. The exceptions to this restaurant-review moratorium (restatorium?) is if you are writing or looking to write professionally, or if you managed to replicate a recipe and you're gonna share. If your experience at the restaurant was hilariously bad, that's fair game too. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a class="e" href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui=2&ik=271b123534&view=att&th=13e13a3b6f4ac360&attid=0.1&disp=inline&realattid=1432490108136718336-local0&safe=1&zw" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="20130331_125700.jpg" class="hv" height="320" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui=2&ik=271b123534&view=att&th=13e13a3b6f4ac360&attid=0.1&disp=thd&realattid=1432490108136718336-local0&zw" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That being said, here is a shot of some fresh, airy churros and mud-thick dipping chocolate from Chocolateria San Gines in Madrid. I cannot tell you how to replicate them because apparently no one in the world can make them as well as they do here, so just buy a plane ticket (See? That <em>is</em> kind of rude. And totally delicious)</td></tr>
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<a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41U3ZiQrUSL._SY450_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="200" id="main-image" rel="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/71hZczW4%2BjL._SL1500_.jpg" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41U3ZiQrUSL._SY450_.jpg" style="display: inline;" width="145" /></a></div>
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So basically, I need to figure out what should fill space on here. What I think I should post are <strong>things I did invent</strong> (I know I said no smoothies<em>, but have you discovered the joys of blending a frozen banana?</em> WOULD YOU LIKE SOME RELIGIOUS LITERATURE, MA'AM?), <strong>things I did not invent but I think are sort of brilliant</strong>, <strong>things I managed to sample and replicate</strong>, and most likely, due to my recent influx of star-shaped popsicle equipment, well, <strong>lots of popsicles</strong>. That are <em>reasonably</em> healthy. <br />
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<strong><u>Upcoming posts</u></strong>: Anatomical meatloaf, halal-cart style chicken over rice, and what to do with three gallons of shitake dashi stock besides obviously making it into popsicles.</div>
</span><br />soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-59402221933015525182012-12-08T22:58:00.001-08:002012-12-08T23:11:01.630-08:00Food I Made But Did Not Blog About: 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4J5aCtN-bAATS2qzVo9xlhwQl-dY1bXSWuERsK60HfBb5FM0VIrFEP74OVggljX3KTMwdOfXW2uTxOhfVx9KMYj9k3PqnYRt2TUGZMhHGVgNypnMIdOwW5RVN223pes9_YXcijZBoAaSa/s1600/024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">"You need better pictures. Or at least...you need to make things that look better when you take crappy pictures"</a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was not delicious. </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHzJHFbJ49TjO9tGghBtXYsJ9qGJxHBu_6IdWK7AhMoGgd4k06Rbbt2656M_MzSRR3KSYm69pQSzvayVJv_uR5ckbXLf067uTi2uI9gZg4R3Lt6m9NVPqu5cZuKyc9UrWl7I_IGfTOFcP/s1600/084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHzJHFbJ49TjO9tGghBtXYsJ9qGJxHBu_6IdWK7AhMoGgd4k06Rbbt2656M_MzSRR3KSYm69pQSzvayVJv_uR5ckbXLf067uTi2uI9gZg4R3Lt6m9NVPqu5cZuKyc9UrWl7I_IGfTOFcP/s320/084.jpg" width="191" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwQ35-SGr_6vma4TXjN-Lw9qcczbK5MmVNrQPEQDktZVjCKllDoKo4pXthDmmNoLRMuYgPk2s0ucoM0NDjMLp7YfpvfVD0rodLeqH4jNQR2kUbbasP36GnFUIeGWF8gkrYKtcztcil8s6p/s1600/091.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwQ35-SGr_6vma4TXjN-Lw9qcczbK5MmVNrQPEQDktZVjCKllDoKo4pXthDmmNoLRMuYgPk2s0ucoM0NDjMLp7YfpvfVD0rodLeqH4jNQR2kUbbasP36GnFUIeGWF8gkrYKtcztcil8s6p/s320/091.jpg" width="191" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQHP45yTslBWaVckfz-o5Yh26aA3ZgZnWE-wMMTYoGF94nAJiDBGUQzjOhc9Xye0xBwtdhgfeVh_FCJP33MZn1NDIVin5qqUVbqVaAaV2DiQnPHRFy6tAuJ0sPebH9l0mg-WqBspjLMqdw/s1600/099.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQHP45yTslBWaVckfz-o5Yh26aA3ZgZnWE-wMMTYoGF94nAJiDBGUQzjOhc9Xye0xBwtdhgfeVh_FCJP33MZn1NDIVin5qqUVbqVaAaV2DiQnPHRFy6tAuJ0sPebH9l0mg-WqBspjLMqdw/s400/099.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Limp Briskit?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7pYiqghxO-eXH_42Erb8eANHUI4Fn5RRfDuvYniGzUvNQtL-qQhOYX4omIOpjEWLLnx2oj-D7L_sLcxNS0iAKL7hTc1LRq6XYvlusxXGKIgQiN1s9hgck-PsggmtecQOEJ6nNN5D-mGPH/s1600/281.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7pYiqghxO-eXH_42Erb8eANHUI4Fn5RRfDuvYniGzUvNQtL-qQhOYX4omIOpjEWLLnx2oj-D7L_sLcxNS0iAKL7hTc1LRq6XYvlusxXGKIgQiN1s9hgck-PsggmtecQOEJ6nNN5D-mGPH/s640/281.jpg" width="380" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrimp in awesomesauce. I literally have the recipe for awesome sauce.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-vduGf6nmh4yv5oHZqf5RO6tS05s8phh7lVtD28ONnWleN7j8Ck13UE77dVB_qQW8klFh-CDSSsacfUiOSeHZDo8A3vPB76BZ3CPdFOgw56CV4-9YYE3GDovmkPHEcVaZNn1z9n16JOm/s1600/282.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-vduGf6nmh4yv5oHZqf5RO6tS05s8phh7lVtD28ONnWleN7j8Ck13UE77dVB_qQW8klFh-CDSSsacfUiOSeHZDo8A3vPB76BZ3CPdFOgw56CV4-9YYE3GDovmkPHEcVaZNn1z9n16JOm/s320/282.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaA9N6M9QYs2EM-diCcO7DIuZssbQE3eg3FFQ5-lSZSXN2TX-aOwybzXG4CjnC_tCFVyWk7tbzL-KQoN8OW-_mq_wKGqrnoi23XA2PLpkhBcdFzJX-GtV-LVN0v2StoFzp4aqmDZ7arcPd/s1600/649.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaA9N6M9QYs2EM-diCcO7DIuZssbQE3eg3FFQ5-lSZSXN2TX-aOwybzXG4CjnC_tCFVyWk7tbzL-KQoN8OW-_mq_wKGqrnoi23XA2PLpkhBcdFzJX-GtV-LVN0v2StoFzp4aqmDZ7arcPd/s400/649.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charming Swedish pancakes full of molten lava lemon curd. Ow :(</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RX_2AQqq3N9Qo5d2B2NijTsVkkJNvCUZ-k0wUpQagwRuUyxtHDPL62J1b69Kl3xturMDc2AqpuXKyok6MOzX-uGc20_y50OEanL1ElGBCTbYwsZVLjxtp1tEaEbaBnLK2K_NMdWFKtcr/s1600/654.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RX_2AQqq3N9Qo5d2B2NijTsVkkJNvCUZ-k0wUpQagwRuUyxtHDPL62J1b69Kl3xturMDc2AqpuXKyok6MOzX-uGc20_y50OEanL1ElGBCTbYwsZVLjxtp1tEaEbaBnLK2K_NMdWFKtcr/s640/654.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yum, though. But ow.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAboa58XiHzst98t7R20Z-0kyCyy7hFv6mdr_lJ57CYLupO__1hyPwxQNAnhHjcocX3Q9yIH9vTpSIUf0e_USLcABKtS8W1Uu_mp2iWTwgpqZs6H_Xt6IdKFEGiJavutD12e3zihD0mj08/s1600/686.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAboa58XiHzst98t7R20Z-0kyCyy7hFv6mdr_lJ57CYLupO__1hyPwxQNAnhHjcocX3Q9yIH9vTpSIUf0e_USLcABKtS8W1Uu_mp2iWTwgpqZs6H_Xt6IdKFEGiJavutD12e3zihD0mj08/s640/686.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Do this: Google "Francis Lam Ginger Scallion Sauce"</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-RX_2AQqq3N9Qo5d2B2NijTsVkkJNvCUZ-k0wUpQagwRuUyxtHDPL62J1b69Kl3xturMDc2AqpuXKyok6MOzX-uGc20_y50OEanL1ElGBCTbYwsZVLjxtp1tEaEbaBnLK2K_NMdWFKtcr/s1600/654.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swiss chard a la Rick Bayless</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First pot of black beans from scratch! Edible!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnn6R9bGX292LeksEGLSeiCSsXwT0z99zNfEKSg95VOPfh4lXD-C5_PwpRSF_xlvyDVG-q-tcjwneB4lLwoC96SMWrjVL10pzizC6uxGBv9PrUTSKCZy79GEFkx8FVOsO3zWbVJwULNut8/s1600/752.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnn6R9bGX292LeksEGLSeiCSsXwT0z99zNfEKSg95VOPfh4lXD-C5_PwpRSF_xlvyDVG-q-tcjwneB4lLwoC96SMWrjVL10pzizC6uxGBv9PrUTSKCZy79GEFkx8FVOsO3zWbVJwULNut8/s640/752.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thai-ish green eggplant-chicken curry, infinitely more delicious than it looks.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYMItQqUNRQqqTZ6Q7u4X05rgDAJfzVLDB07Ceay7K9gnhnjffBEwX7f-dA_tD4CwU3QHklpsfnlaSJ_TfFoRSEi6yO68IZUZzXMppA1BwTCXmSvT-sr8I3HSEh33T5LqZ3HXaFFgNXHCY/s1600/754.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYMItQqUNRQqqTZ6Q7u4X05rgDAJfzVLDB07Ceay7K9gnhnjffBEwX7f-dA_tD4CwU3QHklpsfnlaSJ_TfFoRSEi6yO68IZUZzXMppA1BwTCXmSvT-sr8I3HSEh33T5LqZ3HXaFFgNXHCY/s400/754.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boyfriend's birthday tart: Almond paste with apricots and cherry preserves, recipe from Bon Appetit </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje0iGY16A-s0JHW5sPKjg4oO_RHMUxTOOU4L9lxCxbhQ98-4v9ic7liKXILyWkSUr06YHjbvkmILhesy4xN3gcZmuAUuyKPxtSKonyFNQX-6ZL4OxJDjh1bbdFCwbv9lcegEG0vrmqP5t6/s1600/932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje0iGY16A-s0JHW5sPKjg4oO_RHMUxTOOU4L9lxCxbhQ98-4v9ic7liKXILyWkSUr06YHjbvkmILhesy4xN3gcZmuAUuyKPxtSKonyFNQX-6ZL4OxJDjh1bbdFCwbv9lcegEG0vrmqP5t6/s400/932.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kidney bean & ginger curry </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihlfXhxqqbhLssiCgM_xlJUTbpfFGeYFJbQbUi2lnq6xMGi-odNluy57vy8B73T9hNRze_4fMSkzl9iC8wTodaYemDJ7DJFhemksIL_DLJrBeLXVVEPM6AtlYAPVMWWeoKd66iq2Jhs5Hd/s320/951.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="190" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This experiment was not repeated.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihlfXhxqqbhLssiCgM_xlJUTbpfFGeYFJbQbUi2lnq6xMGi-odNluy57vy8B73T9hNRze_4fMSkzl9iC8wTodaYemDJ7DJFhemksIL_DLJrBeLXVVEPM6AtlYAPVMWWeoKd66iq2Jhs5Hd/s1600/951.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggzMAQXygFNSZ69-KzYs2d3uNF67XvEB3qfO3Kn5dK1qTvbjssdx3NmbsfPjD6OlgomjovrEBME5m5tUHAJJzHXglys2OfVW1k7TqR8H5JNg4qDbDKnJnVxF0OSH9z_r6gsorMtM1JOcrv/s1600/982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggzMAQXygFNSZ69-KzYs2d3uNF67XvEB3qfO3Kn5dK1qTvbjssdx3NmbsfPjD6OlgomjovrEBME5m5tUHAJJzHXglys2OfVW1k7TqR8H5JNg4qDbDKnJnVxF0OSH9z_r6gsorMtM1JOcrv/s640/982.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiB0TlhW6EsVdlpr0-tHW89Sm8IG1y_HoNjYOaN9ar0HCz1tFGwdaKo6zXirl4R9gSrsfzxLtIfaqyiitJ1Z-S2KvizPkH8nTXe254jRrUB15Or7pY_8b5kr4dsXRAy8EdMiunKI1EpV5x/s1600/993.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiB0TlhW6EsVdlpr0-tHW89Sm8IG1y_HoNjYOaN9ar0HCz1tFGwdaKo6zXirl4R9gSrsfzxLtIfaqyiitJ1Z-S2KvizPkH8nTXe254jRrUB15Or7pY_8b5kr4dsXRAy8EdMiunKI1EpV5x/s640/993.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sticky brown sugar cake, courtesy of the kitchn</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzxjaaRd4FzfJBB7Y-05OwwJttq0cbx9b0g-BodhmgqhNoBZWbfZ4zAKwtrJ-T6v7bF807q-J2Qdpc0OKpJBrF3WRLzBDW-r2IseXXtdeps3vLyPjddPxnSGXXsz7mfAhNz4z72GLNZ0Vt/s1600/984.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzxjaaRd4FzfJBB7Y-05OwwJttq0cbx9b0g-BodhmgqhNoBZWbfZ4zAKwtrJ-T6v7bF807q-J2Qdpc0OKpJBrF3WRLzBDW-r2IseXXtdeps3vLyPjddPxnSGXXsz7mfAhNz4z72GLNZ0Vt/s640/984.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peasant (eggplant) caviar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdbBv0ZdIlofgAaafTTY-yyk389SKLdjbnvs4QEvKfdiWMW-2beN7WuJQMx4g678hZJidjB8s68U9BNlWjtGXBIB-AsEljlKOvYjhlRmcQJu8NZXdXrfEjQDZZ_DPbzK_ghpQK1IRzNK6u/s1600/1067.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdbBv0ZdIlofgAaafTTY-yyk389SKLdjbnvs4QEvKfdiWMW-2beN7WuJQMx4g678hZJidjB8s68U9BNlWjtGXBIB-AsEljlKOvYjhlRmcQJu8NZXdXrfEjQDZZ_DPbzK_ghpQK1IRzNK6u/s640/1067.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Working class caviar ;)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZx5KWJf2idqIodtW-EXFikHyMAV6O5XqEB3a4P1NuRzjDzQtnEhRT2MR7kt7_8wSo4vHr1kP3EfuE-f4POfIVtYqxh9eKT6DdN2AXIMCfpPghDd60vrEUmoSQ7kwTfaYPIXwmHaJs64b/s1600/1064.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZx5KWJf2idqIodtW-EXFikHyMAV6O5XqEB3a4P1NuRzjDzQtnEhRT2MR7kt7_8wSo4vHr1kP3EfuE-f4POfIVtYqxh9eKT6DdN2AXIMCfpPghDd60vrEUmoSQ7kwTfaYPIXwmHaJs64b/s320/1064.jpg" width="191" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Butternut squash: Never Again</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvCFdYClmwqCv69CObMVJKrO2_8OvEXWP1oEB2AOFBXwAAaO35nMf8VIOKDXrujreJL5C726qadvy90IE1CXYCnMQEFgFOFqh4-fgROw86MMIjNH9E_PhTbtCCXmwzkBiZSrEP8QbXvciy/s1600/1110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvCFdYClmwqCv69CObMVJKrO2_8OvEXWP1oEB2AOFBXwAAaO35nMf8VIOKDXrujreJL5C726qadvy90IE1CXYCnMQEFgFOFqh4-fgROw86MMIjNH9E_PhTbtCCXmwzkBiZSrEP8QbXvciy/s640/1110.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you have to ask, I'd rather explain in person</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRdNrlrUVkvt0JHolfp4SGFMv3dXBIU9hMC4LZOT0sFLeHVBRLGF1i7_6wN4csyA41KDYcFL0zieNuoBqqx4_yffrjYlPIpQ_wbNR03yDVD9pkHmPpavCESPeQ-JMxPx8pPKjAE1VsnnA/s1600/1144.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRdNrlrUVkvt0JHolfp4SGFMv3dXBIU9hMC4LZOT0sFLeHVBRLGF1i7_6wN4csyA41KDYcFL0zieNuoBqqx4_yffrjYlPIpQ_wbNR03yDVD9pkHmPpavCESPeQ-JMxPx8pPKjAE1VsnnA/s640/1144.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFX_KYYbqGqLKdk7i2H14IAuQVIDHcaZ8wS6fJht7l7e8gXKu2dArsgjBH-UlerVVInvXFhg7585wDsHhvCqYlrQqB5R7nz-akNYc4iFt9CqixoD800dBFZCbd3qWFzijttHjOi4fzgeM7/s1600/1243.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFX_KYYbqGqLKdk7i2H14IAuQVIDHcaZ8wS6fJht7l7e8gXKu2dArsgjBH-UlerVVInvXFhg7585wDsHhvCqYlrQqB5R7nz-akNYc4iFt9CqixoD800dBFZCbd3qWFzijttHjOi4fzgeM7/s640/1243.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thems went in there...</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX9XJYtvfRUtLDRQsZk0RD_L_tEHXKlmJ_ALk7vXyS5khexBqfIjHsubJdWQRI-EIR3uex-gKkTK-r3JJbv_2DCm2jaQJL342c_Shckg2T87c6iAO9EyRd5MfrRWg-ZXbwxRjPk5GIT8a4/s1600/1241.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX9XJYtvfRUtLDRQsZk0RD_L_tEHXKlmJ_ALk7vXyS5khexBqfIjHsubJdWQRI-EIR3uex-gKkTK-r3JJbv_2DCm2jaQJL342c_Shckg2T87c6iAO9EyRd5MfrRWg-ZXbwxRjPk5GIT8a4/s640/1241.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4wtGfRLwVx5IcrWyEnIpyWVlsy61FCpwxZ1wESZH5tgWAq76hKys6RBAd_4cm3aK70FxfOi5jb_kPKgs5YZ0vzYscmVIU6ix8Jfqk3xWqEZYo9AGos9HW6Q9pDqnYbHjP-AFjM005sGYQ/s1600/1245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4wtGfRLwVx5IcrWyEnIpyWVlsy61FCpwxZ1wESZH5tgWAq76hKys6RBAd_4cm3aK70FxfOi5jb_kPKgs5YZ0vzYscmVIU6ix8Jfqk3xWqEZYo9AGos9HW6Q9pDqnYbHjP-AFjM005sGYQ/s640/1245.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrimp & pineapple rice and charred scallions</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWT8YKUQt0ykcYEuU_vrw0TSNfcFpgldnp4QLPQviX6LcBdMwf_aO7YOL8TI9mzevSdE0mXxhdC_tZ0N4_GqX_mLczDVtK6OYU2fMk9_EBRBcYKC5d0PPpD5KLeZDaPlTfLT8YWJzaHHJ/s1600/1284.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWT8YKUQt0ykcYEuU_vrw0TSNfcFpgldnp4QLPQviX6LcBdMwf_aO7YOL8TI9mzevSdE0mXxhdC_tZ0N4_GqX_mLczDVtK6OYU2fMk9_EBRBcYKC5d0PPpD5KLeZDaPlTfLT8YWJzaHHJ/s640/1284.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tembleque that did not set, but we will revisit this gel in espresso cups thing.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2vlgybdNAPQSm8owwVmSQC7D0U-zVa8qJxBrJTFk2kVp6aFXKpY4imfFFAwgs7mBf_pGCAOhkeVSlm4fICkpnFugLzQ2VM00eAdSpQpiySAj5a_RCkm1m6titE8Q0QbADxH5VsKUi_2vF/s1600/1346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2vlgybdNAPQSm8owwVmSQC7D0U-zVa8qJxBrJTFk2kVp6aFXKpY4imfFFAwgs7mBf_pGCAOhkeVSlm4fICkpnFugLzQ2VM00eAdSpQpiySAj5a_RCkm1m6titE8Q0QbADxH5VsKUi_2vF/s640/1346.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Matzoh pudding batter with apples, courtesy of thekitchn</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxMkz5ADKy43NBdoYK8KPfntQU0CFJbe1yBQJ_6BIskJDhotKAPb7hJrn-cBGX4m819JQ6c_Rn4IXS2N8VTq0Lno0YsS4DFBeBkIT8AhfcvcmZwIZNL0fkxazhuE22mG7RDL7mu28I2Lch/s1600/1374.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxMkz5ADKy43NBdoYK8KPfntQU0CFJbe1yBQJ_6BIskJDhotKAPb7hJrn-cBGX4m819JQ6c_Rn4IXS2N8VTq0Lno0YsS4DFBeBkIT8AhfcvcmZwIZNL0fkxazhuE22mG7RDL7mu28I2Lch/s640/1374.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Deb Perlman's raspberry macaroons are as easy as she promises </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrSA_brqg-WIrMiYcF_24PMdpzj0knpNjI535ggu39jNxulYp7H99rD8YeYRkRkCG_OcK4i-RJeZoxWPzBtphpz4LtXpG_Ahv1MXewK14LC5-NyJ8k1MDZ4-jKniXg3nV6A5RdUY2Bcf8m/s1600/1375.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrSA_brqg-WIrMiYcF_24PMdpzj0knpNjI535ggu39jNxulYp7H99rD8YeYRkRkCG_OcK4i-RJeZoxWPzBtphpz4LtXpG_Ahv1MXewK14LC5-NyJ8k1MDZ4-jKniXg3nV6A5RdUY2Bcf8m/s400/1375.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Secret family recipe chicken</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlIKHsqRt8Wy-5kV7zpEDx8ehrSzBRC4RY0LUOae14uRJjOv2FjnEo4Ew8hI68EGj26K2uhXVMGfI6yp9H66OZwL7xh5654GCHKswyTlC3YKNXGlUDWqPoa9qGUNFd4Gv65hBTWF6ljLJW/s1600/1423.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlIKHsqRt8Wy-5kV7zpEDx8ehrSzBRC4RY0LUOae14uRJjOv2FjnEo4Ew8hI68EGj26K2uhXVMGfI6yp9H66OZwL7xh5654GCHKswyTlC3YKNXGlUDWqPoa9qGUNFd4Gv65hBTWF6ljLJW/s640/1423.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First pizza ever: Deb Perlman's dough recipe, Emeril Lagasse's tomato sauce, caramelized onions and ricotta</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcIZyJNAcDGIFON1uAKmLgbFPgle9yt9HPREWspvgME7jmNtDXdX9LXMhQ6YgExWjh2mPx9ZyLody7cjxl4T-llhoYbmdvhec07Zd0dhEAgPqUwJIl6_ZWDdzB84pMGGHHLyb9iIZohoYw/s1600/1424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcIZyJNAcDGIFON1uAKmLgbFPgle9yt9HPREWspvgME7jmNtDXdX9LXMhQ6YgExWjh2mPx9ZyLody7cjxl4T-llhoYbmdvhec07Zd0dhEAgPqUwJIl6_ZWDdzB84pMGGHHLyb9iIZohoYw/s640/1424.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Second pizza ever: Potato, rosemary and caramelized onion </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYlFx5aMssAQ1TsrnmA48vFtrPs_20y0Vyo7yM8w7JNCdGUNPUzTmr6eVKk1D8Pc0Hn0z6RRKdIBCn71nb836dyjA86zqr4fSyd_4yNSVxyVt2vOWwazFRIlf-HQQwAZtItm4I16_imwz3/s1600/1426.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYlFx5aMssAQ1TsrnmA48vFtrPs_20y0Vyo7yM8w7JNCdGUNPUzTmr6eVKk1D8Pc0Hn0z6RRKdIBCn71nb836dyjA86zqr4fSyd_4yNSVxyVt2vOWwazFRIlf-HQQwAZtItm4I16_imwz3/s640/1426.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ceasar salad pizza. What?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxUwXFWpUPGlIrIg1mOenA9iO-kgUb_YKkyvKcj-vBHvcSjAEO8R7tMfFivmWYlrKQQhyphenhyphenM6r68JpR1XgSnbgfikukmnYQxOXbsCvFfrh3JnGkzUSyPt5PVsAleaLCuEDpKdd1mVlr5oGW/s1600/1438.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxUwXFWpUPGlIrIg1mOenA9iO-kgUb_YKkyvKcj-vBHvcSjAEO8R7tMfFivmWYlrKQQhyphenhyphenM6r68JpR1XgSnbgfikukmnYQxOXbsCvFfrh3JnGkzUSyPt5PVsAleaLCuEDpKdd1mVlr5oGW/s640/1438.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sassy Radish's Espresso and Chocolate cake, cream cheese frosting</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2OqC8YwRMvsYZgNweKDRng4wL5wAaaKyiX1nFTzvCBSUbC9BpvBnm3oqgyA8SYa5hG-jm9B6CdeuhXD2KI2ijsaMS6u0fxz61Z1j3W5sycdSxvvJBR1nsCc8ni374qb7m03k2I2F8ChEP/s1600/1439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2OqC8YwRMvsYZgNweKDRng4wL5wAaaKyiX1nFTzvCBSUbC9BpvBnm3oqgyA8SYa5hG-jm9B6CdeuhXD2KI2ijsaMS6u0fxz61Z1j3W5sycdSxvvJBR1nsCc8ni374qb7m03k2I2F8ChEP/s400/1439.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhypzYDRzZz_4yNj_jCDgphDQjEyZT45_IJ5vSp63USyBBh67srG5knnAmSeIjl1GkFhyWkDCEmFh2OJu9lg5Vh7aE6-WuX6_Mc6EEN8sGd84Y5TAJI68k848QDe2QiAsI5bmfcZgd8eL_M/s1600/1440.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhypzYDRzZz_4yNj_jCDgphDQjEyZT45_IJ5vSp63USyBBh67srG5knnAmSeIjl1GkFhyWkDCEmFh2OJu9lg5Vh7aE6-WuX6_Mc6EEN8sGd84Y5TAJI68k848QDe2QiAsI5bmfcZgd8eL_M/s400/1440.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnZeZwl7DJ198h9Q5i8hltWUEg0XoZgBtWd-T8p2C2R9xyu29Q7f1TKXcbH9AXT5dGy7CYAEXowfgBJCTGTxgLAF7zBJPh4cT6ui5XzNR0FkxXH3GXK0C4bbxtC7TFWQgxxfl9YdKdFVl9/s1600/1441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnZeZwl7DJ198h9Q5i8hltWUEg0XoZgBtWd-T8p2C2R9xyu29Q7f1TKXcbH9AXT5dGy7CYAEXowfgBJCTGTxgLAF7zBJPh4cT6ui5XzNR0FkxXH3GXK0C4bbxtC7TFWQgxxfl9YdKdFVl9/s640/1441.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih2u6WL6qDiqyEaQPWpZ2mpzh-kodYdS1rGjQdzObOGbEJeXPtQjSXLNEcOMGXArAlenFUVMlGDTlSrs8R2hbB1vFRKZCIu05jR08kzTL0vaVcSPFjH-nT44s0-aFk3FnXUZykBwXD8IoZ/s1600/1442.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih2u6WL6qDiqyEaQPWpZ2mpzh-kodYdS1rGjQdzObOGbEJeXPtQjSXLNEcOMGXArAlenFUVMlGDTlSrs8R2hbB1vFRKZCIu05jR08kzTL0vaVcSPFjH-nT44s0-aFk3FnXUZykBwXD8IoZ/s640/1442.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before I made those strawberries, these bowls had matching bottoms...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrDoFiLhIBAgP_wqUOY2iT4n9LP-i1Sj6-HkScWoDYwjMKgp4vopF6V9gq923Pa2wdiwnzZcdtBQXFEk551liD4FGcPwH8P-LSM3-HSH76yUkbNWZSigfTn3F3jCrQfdOHGgk9tnElQU5Y/s1600/1457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrDoFiLhIBAgP_wqUOY2iT4n9LP-i1Sj6-HkScWoDYwjMKgp4vopF6V9gq923Pa2wdiwnzZcdtBQXFEk551liD4FGcPwH8P-LSM3-HSH76yUkbNWZSigfTn3F3jCrQfdOHGgk9tnElQU5Y/s640/1457.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Iceberg lettuce and Chinese broccoli salad. It involved garlic.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQYZvi5eaZhWvT_W8yPZ0dEhzO4Hjnt3XDCup3EfxD4hhQEFjBjfGAlS8nDOYxHXdKr3h2pI0jUDPzt1PSRfD7KbWl6S96OZcKOC6eoC8y2DN-Ys0CL03MiWQNmLQHqaL3nLry_k80jCal/s1600/1488.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQYZvi5eaZhWvT_W8yPZ0dEhzO4Hjnt3XDCup3EfxD4hhQEFjBjfGAlS8nDOYxHXdKr3h2pI0jUDPzt1PSRfD7KbWl6S96OZcKOC6eoC8y2DN-Ys0CL03MiWQNmLQHqaL3nLry_k80jCal/s640/1488.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Summery orzo salad, with a thing on my hand my dermatologist explained as "maybe a caterpillar fell on you."</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgow-wUrSgy3y0_f6hsVOzRQU-hNY2H7yJnXEFxnUtbIogt6WmLXiuqjs8ZtCxfbfw_1VT4oYV2g123f3tIFkpTRHtbrWy3jvdM5W9LIM22ODK3VuKp_iZPDmEMY8g2gMVdx5OF6RIG7Kix/s1600/1618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgow-wUrSgy3y0_f6hsVOzRQU-hNY2H7yJnXEFxnUtbIogt6WmLXiuqjs8ZtCxfbfw_1VT4oYV2g123f3tIFkpTRHtbrWy3jvdM5W9LIM22ODK3VuKp_iZPDmEMY8g2gMVdx5OF6RIG7Kix/s640/1618.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I grew these!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5pu5cQ79-bH3-pH8fS8OlFCRS0cxYLBdXSLKLXYgK1i-iGx9pCKYpNyzDtPhOF12DYG9dUV3RyRbYPHzn3DOPwlFKALioIDuKy2ikBOxa7mqbrILQTnfAw_OPA2_pzVilWoDQkCLVcwEE/s1600/1837.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5pu5cQ79-bH3-pH8fS8OlFCRS0cxYLBdXSLKLXYgK1i-iGx9pCKYpNyzDtPhOF12DYG9dUV3RyRbYPHzn3DOPwlFKALioIDuKy2ikBOxa7mqbrILQTnfAw_OPA2_pzVilWoDQkCLVcwEE/s400/1837.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and I have no idea what to do with them!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirchdsqMYOrbGKU0uaMkSQ8lJNTeo2LLe4a76kO4ngKTqQOwuIpolpq5hdgBlXkw-ZS0B_MBLvryYf4NFtxn6nCVp8e8BuPMlXdX22kDf5BO7rJlZUVU_-L2PbKYZ1W_drTHVh30QFKsxU/s1600/1630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirchdsqMYOrbGKU0uaMkSQ8lJNTeo2LLe4a76kO4ngKTqQOwuIpolpq5hdgBlXkw-ZS0B_MBLvryYf4NFtxn6nCVp8e8BuPMlXdX22kDf5BO7rJlZUVU_-L2PbKYZ1W_drTHVh30QFKsxU/s640/1630.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrimp with broccoli in tomato sauce</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN0lLRXAaycRZACxjUId4pJ7Jw2qq66fMwUZ6oOk6LBs-RxMYR0LgERIvzzzGeyu-_PJTVtDFSaayRDbap2ANeAE_ufdNcQK_G-s0WZlofVeWmhJjtfHd7I4BcaTTBil-GpJJNbVqPcQ8w/s1600/1632.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN0lLRXAaycRZACxjUId4pJ7Jw2qq66fMwUZ6oOk6LBs-RxMYR0LgERIvzzzGeyu-_PJTVtDFSaayRDbap2ANeAE_ufdNcQK_G-s0WZlofVeWmhJjtfHd7I4BcaTTBil-GpJJNbVqPcQ8w/s640/1632.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I thought that was a bowl of candy" - Guy at work</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-I8Fp1n9tgU8VRlzlLD-vnkLwc0Ap52j5IjcLicnT3tHaRkHIo0yOyrMM2ByZjIuRQCUYr8Zy-BJBSTjD-Th3igi_LjufcTOrRVfDoS72WONd6TAHrRiwywnIDkvg-OTBG2ABlrDHef3/s1600/1648.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-I8Fp1n9tgU8VRlzlLD-vnkLwc0Ap52j5IjcLicnT3tHaRkHIo0yOyrMM2ByZjIuRQCUYr8Zy-BJBSTjD-Th3igi_LjufcTOrRVfDoS72WONd6TAHrRiwywnIDkvg-OTBG2ABlrDHef3/s400/1648.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Best banana bread yet, from the kitchn. The secret is old bananas. Not yellow bananas, which aren't old, I just think they are.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFL9dJyODc9LoXUZqLQmS76hWb8lv0h51bXNF2DBE1FIkQnCn-rtrtHZC_PPVuj7GG8HYfi1LGi7guThu2AO05t0ADygdnXHRyl0pBfuewVkkSrm0DBgM_ghlzTNAqKcwU2kBIQTXLSUa4/s1600/1674.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFL9dJyODc9LoXUZqLQmS76hWb8lv0h51bXNF2DBE1FIkQnCn-rtrtHZC_PPVuj7GG8HYfi1LGi7guThu2AO05t0ADygdnXHRyl0pBfuewVkkSrm0DBgM_ghlzTNAqKcwU2kBIQTXLSUa4/s640/1674.jpg" width="382" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mujadara! A big thanks to the gentleman at Khalustyan's for making me sample what I will never have to buy again.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWNvBakjswKW3DSBObLv1s-9Fe2Uy0SsjCW7dNGg4ZCYAZcSq945T7zQKFKZT2K8-O2bMXuXYAbAXdAve1mc2koNm0neofrP1YJpWgSW39YK5WMDbBr9FPH-9lQrMz8DKDeGyp_6J2n-f/s1600/1704.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWNvBakjswKW3DSBObLv1s-9Fe2Uy0SsjCW7dNGg4ZCYAZcSq945T7zQKFKZT2K8-O2bMXuXYAbAXdAve1mc2koNm0neofrP1YJpWgSW39YK5WMDbBr9FPH-9lQrMz8DKDeGyp_6J2n-f/s400/1704.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White bean ragout with whole wheat Israeli cous cous. Less delicious than you'd think</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaDxpyRj41GZMnPBdtE4BQGbpH2tfNsMa6gfjmrhZewbS0j75GivfLv6-jnaadD7Zqe6XgPzEvEri2AAxuJ3Poyk0geG5IJhfx9x9B5-gHaAESOg6v-LWqcy61q5d7ndscrgI0gJzVd7y2/s1600/1723.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaDxpyRj41GZMnPBdtE4BQGbpH2tfNsMa6gfjmrhZewbS0j75GivfLv6-jnaadD7Zqe6XgPzEvEri2AAxuJ3Poyk0geG5IJhfx9x9B5-gHaAESOg6v-LWqcy61q5d7ndscrgI0gJzVd7y2/s400/1723.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Temperamental chocolate babka broke despite ginger-careful-dont-wake-the-baby handling; S'okay, it got eaten anyway.</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
See? I make stuff all the time. Sometimes I even photograph it. And even more rarely, I blog about it.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
But if you want a recipe for any of these things, I can do that.</div>
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<br />soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-54825540194089754062012-10-08T15:30:00.001-07:002012-10-08T15:30:21.904-07:00Buckwheat Pancakes a la Hodgeson Mill<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpo9XYHisrnK0mwNYDdeCgdC63aLVfItuluQ3tskIAsW1SjvwkyBl4-LONAmzhshXvsSsXNYj4EtcHeRGgzDNH58cDX5oJsamXLqlylqiPDAjqYYXHjWaTJipiLnemAO-JUk5JFxPrFidm/s1600/1844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpo9XYHisrnK0mwNYDdeCgdC63aLVfItuluQ3tskIAsW1SjvwkyBl4-LONAmzhshXvsSsXNYj4EtcHeRGgzDNH58cDX5oJsamXLqlylqiPDAjqYYXHjWaTJipiLnemAO-JUk5JFxPrFidm/s320/1844.jpg" width="320" /></a> I'm not sure why, but everyone is afraid of wheat these days. Or, more specifically, the glutens found in it. I don't know what that's all about, but the result of it is more focus on wheat alternatives, like nut meals, quinoa, and buckwheat.<sp> I was surprised to find out that buckwheat is not a grain, even though it can be prepared in a similar fashion: boiled and served as a side dish like rice, cooked in milk and eaten with sugar and butter like oatmeal, and made into noodles, pancakes and crepes. The buckwheat bits are actually the seeds of a plant related to rhubarb. And don't quote me on this, but everything I'm reading says that unlike wheat, buckwheat does not cause a spike in blood sugar, and actually helps keep it stable (this is good for diabetics, but also good for non-diabetics who are prone to feeling that sugar crash and reacting by throwing things and/or eating any random junk within reach (I do this. It can't be helped.) It also is said to help lower cholesterol. <a href="http://www.vitacost.com/bobs-red-mill-organic-buckwheat-flour?csrc=GPF-PA-039978003027&ci_sku=039978003027&ci_gpa=pla&ci_kw={keyword}&gclid=CJ_q7_Ws8rICFQme4AodTU0AJA#nutritionFacts" target="_blank">Here's a link to some nutrition information, too</a>.</sp><br />
I'm not personally afraid of wheat, but when I saw buckwheat flour on sale at my supermarket, with a recipe for pancakes conveniently on the package, I thought I'd try it. <br /><b>This is what I found:</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmLb4tnG5Ht_UY-c5vt_I8L3V6WXTLN7IVyEBEvY013Hlg3Uo750WuHcYsxHAmHVBfBRcXKQl2Ov4zc8SnDRIYhoc_0Y_-xZDh7lVYKjrtG28veuzuX9Z6SPldP0_dCKhCxerJ0rKsgggO/s1600/IMAG1338.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmLb4tnG5Ht_UY-c5vt_I8L3V6WXTLN7IVyEBEvY013Hlg3Uo750WuHcYsxHAmHVBfBRcXKQl2Ov4zc8SnDRIYhoc_0Y_-xZDh7lVYKjrtG28veuzuX9Z6SPldP0_dCKhCxerJ0rKsgggO/s320/IMAG1338.jpg" width="190" /></a></div>
1. It tastes... like buckwheat. I mean, okay, not a surprise, considering I bought 100% stone ground buckwheat flour, but seriously, it is super buckwheat-y, and the best way I can describe that is to tell you to imagine slightly-burnt nuts. If you're not used to the taste (do you like soba noodles?) you might want to look into cutting it with some regular flour to get accustomed to it. The nuttiness is delightful, but more might be less if that's what you're into.<br />
2. Happily, being gluten free, it doesn't become tough from too much mixing. For regular pancakes, you're always warned to be careful not to over-mix, because too much working of the batter activates the gluten proteins and this will make your pancakes into hockey pucks, but buckwheat flour doesn't care. The buckwheat flour doesn't even produce a proper runny pancake batter... more of a sticky blob thing, like the beginnings of a pizza dough, only grey. Worry not. You're doing it right.<br />
3. The pancake texture is airy, if a little drier than you're used to with wheat-flour pancakes. My mother suggested making them without sugar and using them like biscuits or English muffins, but we drizzled them with honey (<i>buckwheat honey!</i>) and dolloped them with vanilla yogurt. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhet0HaH58wqJx8ynWKaIsB8xXyhW3a9_5WnH6rJOx3pZ_iUkQAOo-QhEns9eNHVPWw98TXcb085_LRxq9ZgvdPNVihKtlf_TXE1JkKraBlTA1ZQrT38pAbXbMQoHSRzLxQx2fP4etTgRfO/s1600/1842.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhet0HaH58wqJx8ynWKaIsB8xXyhW3a9_5WnH6rJOx3pZ_iUkQAOo-QhEns9eNHVPWw98TXcb085_LRxq9ZgvdPNVihKtlf_TXE1JkKraBlTA1ZQrT38pAbXbMQoHSRzLxQx2fP4etTgRfO/s320/1842.jpg" width="191" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ItK4TJCs-n8IiYpee4ntpVzVC5VGVkvRcRGctbXad-rX2eGoUIH4dO7sq6aVVHQd33oxb6ycmxtjG1G0DSKhzg4rJdzLqcH6KM66JNUainfALDsg1EQovTE5xnkYQRrCPgnCU3rH2XZZ/s1600/1858.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ItK4TJCs-n8IiYpee4ntpVzVC5VGVkvRcRGctbXad-rX2eGoUIH4dO7sq6aVVHQd33oxb6ycmxtjG1G0DSKhzg4rJdzLqcH6KM66JNUainfALDsg1EQovTE5xnkYQRrCPgnCU3rH2XZZ/s320/1858.jpg" width="191" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn6ACJl7DPUwijb_uNy7VdIEkM6wOm7PVPwFRect7afRa5RDyg8zGVwUeJNAElNqqVGlz2M4zcZruALOpZm6G9B3KJbBji2x_VXsqfLNMJYbUEZowqTMI1VgUicz6Cd5hGBupWRCoAXxCZ/s1600/1853.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn6ACJl7DPUwijb_uNy7VdIEkM6wOm7PVPwFRect7afRa5RDyg8zGVwUeJNAElNqqVGlz2M4zcZruALOpZm6G9B3KJbBji2x_VXsqfLNMJYbUEZowqTMI1VgUicz6Cd5hGBupWRCoAXxCZ/s320/1853.jpg" width="191" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9n5iP_M0GCIFX_96fPBnYtPaf9adqSzfFBllmKp2-LLEnNGglkP9xdltH270NmJ8pJtCXpJTgywBPNln1CTPTFCqKypdHM5hKbX8vi378_1F4rH4vzDaE7gIK-WcjnnYGDMfat50HyVmR/s1600/1861.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9n5iP_M0GCIFX_96fPBnYtPaf9adqSzfFBllmKp2-LLEnNGglkP9xdltH270NmJ8pJtCXpJTgywBPNln1CTPTFCqKypdHM5hKbX8vi378_1F4rH4vzDaE7gIK-WcjnnYGDMfat50HyVmR/s640/1861.jpg" width="640" /></a> <b>To make about 9 medium pancakes (3 servings) you will need:</b></div>
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1 cup buckwheat flour</div>
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1 tsp baking powder</div>
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2 Tbsp sugar</div>
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1/2 tsp salt</div>
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1 egg, beaten</div>
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1 cup milk (can use 1 cup <i>buttermilk</i>, with 1 tsp baking soda in place of the baking powder)</div>
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2 tbsp melted butter.</div>
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Mix the dry ingredients together, then mix in the wet ingredients. It will look pretty thick and sticky, but that's fine. Scoop out the batter (the recipe says "pour" but don't kid yourself) with a 1/4 cup scoop onto a greased pan over medium heat. The pancakes will form into their familiar pancake shape after a minute or so, and will cook up the way pancakes do. Flip them once they look right, and let them cook for another minute or two.</div>
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I like them with honey and yogurt, but these would be delicious with maple syrup or jam or whatever you like on your pancakes. Maybe peanut butter? Is that weird?</div>
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<u>Notes:</u> I used coconut oil instead of melted butter. Not the best idea, since it is solid below 76 degrees F, and on a cold morning, I got big, solid fat lumps in my batter. I'd only do this again on a warm day, when the oil is runny. Just stick with butter.</div>
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Also, I had some old yogurt to use up, so I emptied a 5oz container of strawberry yogurt into my cup-measure and topped off with milk to make a full cup. I used baking soda as a leavener, since yogurt works like buttermilk to activate it. </div>
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I do want to try my mother's idea and make them without sugar and a bit more leavener, for a biscuit-like griddle cake that can be cut in half and buttered or used to make a sandwich. I'll report back.</div>
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soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-55184597412032780642012-08-26T15:02:00.000-07:002012-08-26T15:20:03.320-07:00salmon and salmon skin chips?Two words your probably do not want to hear together are "cheap" and "sushi." Yet, one of the few bragging rights of my neighborhood is that cheap sushi is abundant. So much so that a bar on the sushi-restaurant strip has a huge white sign in the window to let obnoxious patrons know that they <i>don't</i> have any. It's so ubiquitous, I guess, that people think they can order a tuna roll with their pint of Bud. <br />
I have a couple of favorite restaurants in the area, and really, I don't want to think about the health implications of eating what is probably sub-par raw fish. The brain parasites have been blissfully dormant so far, and until they stir, I'll be ordering chirashi.<br />
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One wonders how far the south Brooklyn sushi purveyors have veered from the traditional Japanese offerings, though. In Tokyo, I'm sure they don't have Moscow, Bagel and Pink Lady rolls on the menus. Salmon skin rolls, too, might be an invention of thrift. They take what would be a waste product, make it tasty, and roll it up and charge you for it. And you're not mad, because it is delicious.<br />
And you can actually enjoy the crisp, fishy flavor at home. Until I realized that, I was just throwing it away...<br />
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<u>You start with this:</u><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVokwK_Ihh1-crdELZbyTzDKTDGcYj6wofKhG3DECFkcqXuF3WcmYKLo1y7EcNIgnZe71ut8tyW61-XDCA4vY8uOyJXbjFbT7QUzDUMw_bGnwnokNbwnJRSUhgjys7PkUZ3LDQuiTvodA/s1600/IMAG0304.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVokwK_Ihh1-crdELZbyTzDKTDGcYj6wofKhG3DECFkcqXuF3WcmYKLo1y7EcNIgnZe71ut8tyW61-XDCA4vY8uOyJXbjFbT7QUzDUMw_bGnwnokNbwnJRSUhgjys7PkUZ3LDQuiTvodA/s320/IMAG0304.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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A baked salmon filet. </div>
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(How? Heat oven to 375, smear a baking dish in a high smoke-point oil, like grapeseed, and definitely NOT olive. Lay salmon skin-side down, salt and pepper the salmon generously, squeeze out lemon juice over it, and cover the whole thing in dill fronds. This keeps it from burning as is cooks through and adds some vaguely Scandinavian flavor, maybe. Drizzle with more oil, and bake for 20-ish minutes. You want it to flake gently, so don't overcook. This skill might take a few years if you are me, but a perfectly prepared cut of salmon is<i> such a beautiful thing.</i>)</div>
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Now you have some delicious salmon. You cut into it with your spatula, and it magically separates from the squishy, slimy skin. You could eat the skin... or, you know, not, because it's kinda gross. BUT! You can make it delicious. Really, really, delicious. You can FRY it! Just like they do in those places you'd bring a date to.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvq-VgKqan4yzxqdt_Q5b565tvrzhBPSCAPkSqz5GMjMSg45z87iInY7b6B5Xs9Zi7U5zY4Ayy2rYHmioZCqrX0bwcXN7pg4XGddzj0KoMDc_Dd_QS01N6hBXgtXvOcfvG8dcOEzNC4CCB/s1600/IMAG1263.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvq-VgKqan4yzxqdt_Q5b565tvrzhBPSCAPkSqz5GMjMSg45z87iInY7b6B5Xs9Zi7U5zY4Ayy2rYHmioZCqrX0bwcXN7pg4XGddzj0KoMDc_Dd_QS01N6hBXgtXvOcfvG8dcOEzNC4CCB/s320/IMAG1263.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
What you want is a cast iron pan, some salt, and some leftover salmon skin.<br />
If your pan is seasoned, and the salmon skin has some oil from when it was baked, you're good to go. But remember, <b>not olive oil</b>. It really will make a difference. Between the fatty nature of salmon, and the fact that you oiled it already, you probably will not need additional oil. You may want some salt, though. So sprinkle the skin with salt on both sides.<br />
Step 1: heat the pan. Get it really hot.<br />
Step 2: add the salmon skin. It doesn't have to be one big piece, but not too tiny either, because it will burn.<br />
Step 3: stay clear of the splatter! There will absolutely be splatter. Maybe invest in a mesh screen to cover the pan with. They're a good investment. <br />
When the salmon skin begins to brown and crisp, it should lift easily out of the pan. Turn it over on the other side and let it get crispy, too.<br />
Step 4: remove and lay on a paper towel.<br />
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And there you have it.<br />
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Use your chips to top a salad.<br />
Or crush them and sprinkle over rice, like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furikake" target="_blank">furikake </a>(top with a fried egg. Top everything with a fried egg. I'm serious.)<br />
Maybe you want to make a <a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/salmon-skin-sushi-rolls" target="_blank">salmon skin roll</a>? That's certainly ambitious.<br />
Or just eat them like chips. <br />
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Is this healthy? I don't know. It's fried, you probably frazzled up all the omega-3's. But that salmon filet wasn't cheap, right? And now you've got a way to eat all of it. You have my permission to feel fancy.<br />
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<br />soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-67331159673074342332012-08-03T20:05:00.001-07:002012-08-03T20:05:25.219-07:00Thoughts on a Friday (maybe not *about* Friday)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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You people with the blogs-- how do you come up with the content of your entries? Do you just sort of spew a stream of consciousness out onto the page, or do you make notes during the day? Inquiring minds want to know.<br />
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Per the previous post, I've been mostly pretty good about the lunch thing. I packed lunch all five days this week, and three the week prior. Not too shabby, overall.<br />
Unfortunately, I just finished watching all the (new) Doctor Who that my boyfriend's Netflix account had to offer (do any of you or your boyfriends have a Netflix account with secret Doctor Who episodes? Just thought I'd put it out there.) So I have no idea what to do with myself. I will fill the void with sleep, since I should probably be doing that and don't get nearly enough of it.<br />
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On Friday, I get to go home early. On Friday, things are typically low key and not demanding and this time I thought I would get myself home, and, in the spirit of not buying stuff, I thought I would make a bunch of pizza dough. Out of things I already have: Flour, oil, water and yeast. Make a ton! Freeze it! Enjoy pizza night in the near future without needing 3 hours to play with the dough. I made it only once before, my first time baking with yeast, and it turned out pretty well, if a little tough. This time, I told myself, I'd just work the dough a little less. Easy peasy, and I'd throw in a load of laundry (there is a very pretty sundress with a big grease stain on it due to a soup dumpling mis-fire and it needs needs to be saved). But then. The train. I swear, no matter how energized and ready to Do The Things I'm feeling, the train just beats it out of me. Once I get out at my stop I'm all loo-dee-doo... gotta go buy olives and sit around eating all of them and then maybe brush my teeth and go to sleep. If it's 2 in the afternoon, that's irrelevant. Olives. Sleep. Maybe toothpaste.<br />
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Can I ask the internet another question?<br />
How do you stay energized?<br />
Do you exercise? (I hate you) Do you drink a quart of OJ a day? (I hate OJ so much) Do you drink a quart of the blood of virgins harvested under a full moon? (Not so into blood or virgins either, but can have a go at this, maybe). Sodas of the brown variety (Pepsi, Coke) used to be amazing at this task, even better than coffee, but those are off the table, and coffee doesn't really energize me so much as keeps the caffeine deprivation headaches at bay ("Maybe you shouldn't drink so much coffee" is NEVER what you say to someone who is wincing and turning away from the morning light. The correct approach is always "You like it with milk, right? I'll be right back.")<br />
I know that "everyone" is "always" "tired" - but is there a way around that? Or am I supposed to wear that nasty red clump of capillaries in my right eye like a badge of honor? Does it say to the world, "I'm doing so much! I can't be bothered to rest or even to purchase Visine." or "Probably, I am hung over" (I'm not, but it's hard to look bloodshot and highbrow. You try it.)<br />
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There are things I can do. For example, I can take up jogging in the evenings (Or not, because even the idea of getting up and lacing my shoes is sooo exhausting). I could try to go to sleep at a reasonable hour <i>every </i>night. I could drink a freaky green morning smoothie that's so potent that I'll have the energy to come home and wash the blender! Oh, one can dream. Once can imagine rinsing off kale at 5:30 in the morning. One simply prefers to hit snooze, think "Oh, shit!" and run to the train with one's sandals still undone. One does this often.<br />
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My present project is to sound like an articulate human being by <a href="http://www.wikihow.com/Stop-Saying-the-Word-%22Like%22" target="_blank">not saying the word "like" so much</a>. It's gonna be, such as, challenging.<br />
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A good weekend to you lovely lurkey people.<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">The picture at the top is of the only thing I accomplished today: re-heating Chinese take-out vegetable mei fun noodles, with kim chi and a fried egg on top. Top something with a fried egg in your own life some time soon. Maybe a cat. Delicious.</span><br />
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<br />soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-55872203020859311482012-07-24T13:23:00.001-07:002012-07-25T08:14:32.540-07:00Due to recent budget constraints, I can't afford to be nice anymore.I just watched a hefty chunk of the money I have been half-assedly saving all year go down the rabbit hole in the name of bettering my life through education. Before that, I took a 3 day trip to Montreal (yes, thank you, it was lovely. Yes I did see the church where Celine Dion got married. It had linoleum floors.)<br />
Then this weekend I finally got a much needed haircut and a bunch of cute tops (OMG OMG TOPS!)<span style="font-size: x-small;">*</span><br />
So this week, and, actually, all the weeks that come after it, unless there is a very, very good reason, I will be bringing my lunch to work.<br />
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Monday's lunch was pierogies with potatoes and cheddar, courtesy of my freezer. You can boil them (fill a pot with water, wait for the water to boil, but them in, wait for it to boil again, uuuggghhhh) OR! You can fry them. Sweet! Just drop the frozen suckers into a hot pan with some oil and then put them in your lunch container. Then ask you mom what she's chewing on and hear her say, "I ate one, and then I realized that they are probably not leftovers. Sorry."<br />
<br />
I have some chana masala over rice with steamed broccoli earmarked for Tuesday. Wednesday is white beans in tomato sauce over rice, also with broccol. I cooked a fuck-ton of broccoli. <br />
I am going to win at not spending money on lunch.<br />
<br />
<br />
Incidentally, can we just talk about how bad I've gotten at being poor? When I was, like, 10 it was super easy. Just wear what your mom tells you, eat what's put in front of you, and watch your Aladdin video again if you're bored. When I was ten I think I'd had a total of two haircuts my entire life (this doesn't seem like it can possibly be right, but I only got a little boy haircut at age 1, and then didn't touch it again except once when my aunt trimmed the ends. You'd think hair that long is all raggedy and damaged on the bottom. Not so. It was luxurious as fuck. I still have it in a box somewhere.) <br />
Now I average a haircut every two months. It costs about $50, which is either cheap or expensive, depending on where you live and how seriously you take that stuff coming out of your head. I love my stylist, I think she does a great job. This winter, just for contrast, I got my hair cut at a random salon in my neighborhood and learned to appreciate her even more. Because she would never make me look like a 12 year old boy with split ends. Plus this Saturday we bonded over our mutual dislike of Rhianna.<br />
So the hair, the hair will have to remain an expenditure. If only to distract people from my tendency to wear clothes from the Old Navy clearance section.<br />
Not that I will buy any more clothes! Even if that dress goes on sale. Even if that dress is so soft and comfy but no I don't need it.<br />
<br />
The second hand book habit, also, will be curbed. Because textbooks are expensive and because between my work and my bedroom, I have stacks of unread things that deserve my attention. Among them are myriad cookbooks, and inside those, presumably, are recipes that are delicious, healthy, and don't call for truffles and lobster. Or at least suggest adequate substitutes, like tofu or wood shavings. <br />
<br />
Entertainment is super easy when you have no time for it, too. Not counting the odd weeknight episode of Doctor Who, I don't do anything for fun. Except read<span style="font-size: x-small;">***</span>, and then forget what I read. (Another fun activity: Trying to Remember WTF You Just Read, and the bonus round- Since You Read So Much, Why Aren't You Smart? Warning: Not actually fun.) Sometimes I scroll through Imgur on my phone and text people cute pictures of kittens and stuff. Then I regret ever spending money on a smartphone. More cute kittens. Repeat. Zzzzz...<br />
<br />
As for the beauty regimen (everyone with ovaries and a blog is supposed to talk about theirs, right?): I don't think I have one. My boyfriend ordered some cologne and was mysteriously also sent a tube of <a href="http://www.stilacosmetics.com/product_detail.asp?PMID=1129" target="_blank">Stila HD beauty balm</a> and a green soccer ball (You're so silly, Macy's!). He gave me the balm, and I am in love with it. It's make up for lazy people. Pale, lazy people who can't be bothered to do their makeup, ever, or even remember their face sunscreen most days. Make up for <em>me</em>! I love it. It makes me look 50% less splotchy, and feels like there's nothing on my face. I love it so much that I kept trying to get my friend to wear it in Montreal. "Hey, do you want the balm?... Hey, do you want the balm? Hey, do you want the balm?" Sorry about that.<br />
Eventually that sample will run out, and as will its placebo effect. Then I'll be sad for two days and forget it ever happened. There! I saved $38. So smart.<br />
<br />
Actually, since I just plugged the beauty balm, can I tell you about a less sexy, but also really great product? Last Monday I had a tiny cut/tear in the corner of my mouth. This is a bad place for a cut. You'd be surprised how small your big mouth is when you're trying to keep a tear from re-opening. I spent the week rinsing aggressively with salt, but the tear got worse and worse, and it started to hurt, and it looked kinda gross. Possibly this was not a cut? Maybe it was a canker sore. I don't know. I kept ripping it open by accident, like with the jagged edge of a plastic spoon, and it got very angry at me, and got worse. Nothing makes you feel more like a rock star than an open sore in your mouth. On Saturday I had to run an errand at the pharmacy and thought, why not ask the pharmacist? I explained that I wanted something to cover it and keep it from re-opening every time I eat or yawn. She pointed me to the toothache relief section and said she had no idea what to do. But then I found<a href="http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/gum-canker-x-maximum-strength-canker-%26-mouth-sore-pain-relief-gel/ID=prod2921765-product" target="_blank"> this stuff</a>, and by the next day, it hurt less, and today there's almost no trace of a cut/tear/sore that had been aggitated all week by poorly made disposable cutlery. Seriously, plastic spoon people. That wasn't nice.<br />
<br />
So, where was I? Ah yes. I don't remember. Perfect. <br />
But look, if I don't hit "Publish" I will never get around to it again. Do you know how many unfinished drafts I had saved for this blog? Like, several. Maybe four. I need to stop that. <br />
I'll be like that kooky therapist<span style="font-size: x-small;">****</span> who thought that abruptly ending the session was crucial to the patient's therapeutic process, so he would, like, sit them down, and be all, "Hm... so tell me about your childhood" and the patient would be like, "My childhood? Okay. Well, I'm the youngest of three children, and I---"<br />
"STOP! Enough! I will stop you right here. You need to think about this. It's very important you spend some time with this thought you were developing."<br />
"What? But I just--"<br />
"Yes, very important. We were nearing a real, err, introspective moment."<br />
"But doctor I only started tell-"<br />
"Bup Bup! Let that stay with you until our next session. No time to explain now, go see Ms. Tiddlewonker to settle your balance. Thank you!"<br />
<br />
I think some people just thougth that guy was an asshole. Ms. Tiddlewonker certainly did. She can also tell you that he was a leg man, and pretended to drop his glasses a lot to take a gander at her gams like ALL THE TIME.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Also a ravioli press. I have gotten to that point in my life where I buy kitchen gadgets and hide them. Next to the ravioli press, in my closet, is a nonstick cookie sheet. In the basement, there's a food mill. I have Israeli za'atar** in my nightstand and a can of pickled japalenos as a bookend. Problem?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">**Did you know that za'atar comes in a bunch of varieties named for different middle eastern regions? I wasn't trying to be political, it just happens that I tried za'atar in Israel and figured it was a safe bet. Turkey, Syria and Iran probably make delicious green-topped flatbread too.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">***Presently reading: <em>Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void</em> by Mary Roach. Also by her, and recommended, is <em>Stiff</em>, a book about what happens to bodies donated to science, and <em>Bonk</em>, a book in which Mary and her husband agree to have very slow sex in an MRI machine</span>.<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">****He's an actual real person. I forget his name, though.</span>soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-83278319399621181462012-06-07T08:24:00.002-07:002012-06-07T08:24:52.379-07:00You can seriously make a pasta dish out of anythingThis is a reassuring though that should follow you home after work and smack you in the face before you decide to melt into your couch and eat a sleeve of crackers for dinner.<br />
I mean, with all seriousness, that you can probably put the crackers into a pasta dish and that will be just dandy.<br />
What I am trying to say is, if you have a box of spaghetti or penne or whatever, and a thing or two in your fridge or pantry (or couch cushions, who am I to assume you follow stereotypical food storage guidelines? They are just guidelines, after all, and you're a creative spirit.)-- then you can have a proper, self-respecting dinner.<br />
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Please see Figure A:<br />
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Fig. A</div>
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The scene was as such: I was tired, I was hungry, the fridge looked sparse. But I did have a stalk of young garlic and penne from the day before. And lo:</div>
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The "recipe" is as follows:<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
1 young garlic shoot </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
1 serving of penne (or whatever other dry, starchy thing you can boil to doneness)</div>
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olive oil</div>
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salt</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
pinch of red pepper flakes</div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Trim the garlic shoot of tough leaves, then slice into thin rounds (the stalk and the bulb). Heat the olive oil in a pan that will be large enough to accomodate the penne, then throw in the garlic and let sizzle until fragrant. I let mine crisp a little. Add the red pepper flakes, cooked penne and salt to taste. Stir until penne is heated through. Put it in a bowl and dribble some additional olive oil over it. <br />
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<u>Optional:</u> Snap a picture and send it to your best friend because sometimes the only way you two communicate is food-related picture messages. She will reply with a shot of garlic stalks just picked from her garden, they will be green and a little bit purple, and they will be beautiful.</div>
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<br /></div>soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-39185131121503406242011-12-29T11:09:00.000-08:002011-12-29T11:11:18.575-08:00resolveEveryone is getting together some New Year resolutions right about now, and that's fine and well, except it means the gym is going to be crowded because of it.<br />
My resolution has never been to go to the gym more often, specifically because in January, when everyone is delightfully germy, I do not want to touch the treadmills. Actually, I think one of my resolutions this year is to quit the gym. I never go. If I want to be rid of $35 so badly each month, I'm sure I can find a better way. In the meantime I will follow my regular fitness routine of sometimes stretching in the bathroom at work. You laugh, but I can touch my toes. Almost.<br />
<br />
So my resolutions for 2012 are as follows:<br />
1. Quit the gym<br />
2. Get more exercise (ha, see what I did there?) Maybe from a yoga DVD I got at the library. I don't care.<br />
3. Drink more water - I hate intaking liquids, I don't know why, but I can probably go a whole day and not notice that I'm thristy and not realize why I don't feel so great. That's a rare occurence, but it needs to never happen.<br />
4. Drink more alcohol - One thing that happens after leaving college is you leave behind your drinking buddies. This isn't a bad thing, because sometimes they were your too-much-drinking buddies, but lately I drink so rarely that my head swims after two glasses of white wine. No more!<br />
5. Use lotion often. Lotion is like lip balm, but for your whole body: it keeps you soft and kissable. Or, more realistically, it keeps you from having annoying itching fits because the weather is drying out your skin. Tediousness is no excuse. Full-body lubings commence!<br />
6. Wear more makeup. I have a ton of it. Let's smear that shit on.<br />
7. Understand technology. As a kid, I was a wiz at fixing the VCR with a fork. I never really progressed beyond this, and I should.<br />
8. Do zany things. Maybe zany isn't the right word, but I mean do stuff like stick Valentines in strangers' mailboxes. Or at least swipe strangers into the transit system with my card. It makes me happy, it saves people $2.25. It can be redeemed for a prize at the Karma Points Counter. Like being a koala in my next life. I would really like that.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
There are probably more things, but since resolutions are meant to be kept the whole year, I wanted to keep it small and simple. But maybe just two more things, which I started doing pretty recently, and am resolving to continue doing for at least 12 more months:<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
8. focus on the positive - I'm amazingly amazing at going down black holes of Everything Is Wrong Oh My God I Hate You/Me/Society/Rocks/Sea Urchins So Much. And when the walls start to Star Wars garbage-compactor on me, I think of the things that I'm grateful for and refuse to trick myself into forgetting them. Because that's what a crap spiral is: temporary selective amnesia. And,<br />
9. Be kind. I haven't shoved past anyone on the train station escalator in months EVEN WHEN THEY STAND RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE. You're welcome, New York City.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-38116555843797938642011-12-08T08:45:00.000-08:002011-12-08T08:45:35.511-08:00Secret SantaSo it looks like the sometimes on, sometimes off block on "blogs and personal sites" at work is off today. So hi :)<br />
<br />
<br />
This is probably the first year since grade school that I'm involved in a Secret Santa thing. It's at work, the amount is $10, and the person I'm supposed to get a gift for is a complete stranger to me. We say hi to each other in the morning, we talked about what her little boy wore for Halloween, and we wish each other a good night at the end of the day. I think I once told her that the cinnamon bagel she was toasting smelled nice. That's more or less it.<br />
When I was brainstorming gift ideas with another coworker, who grew up in another country (and didn't have Secret Santa gift exchanges, I guess) she said she thought the whole idea was stupid. Her thought is that everyone buys a present, any present, for $10, and wraps it. The presents are then numbered, and everyone picks corresponding numbers out of a hat, and whatever present is labeled with that number, they get that gift. The end.<br />
This idea never occured to me before, but as I shopped around for something reasonably nice for around $10, I realized a few things: (1) There is pretty much NOTHING worthwhile for that price. I'm a little bit obsessive about finding presents, especially for people I am not close to. If it looks cheap, I will not buy it, and unfortunately, $10 items tend to often look like $5 items. And WTF is she going to do with a smallish bag of cashews tied with a plaid ribbon? Or a ceramic ladybug-shaped kitchen jar? One sad tube of lotion from Bath & Body works costs more than $10, and isn't much of a present either, especially if you don't know what scent to choose.<br />
I have a certain scorn for people who smilingly present me with useless doodads (giant yellow rhinestone brooch giver, I'm lookin' at you), and I don't want to be on the receiving end of those feelings. This thing is not supposed to embarrass me. Which brings me to<br />
(2) Knowing which stranger to blame for your shitty present is evil. She's going to open my gift in front of everyone and have to act like it's "nice." In 6th grade we had a Secret Santa thing, and a boy we will call Joey unwrapped a gift from his secret santa, who he discovered to be a girl we will call Erin. The present was terrible. Actually, it was an adjustable plastic crown that blinked and played a dying-battery kind of jingle. It looked like something pre-owned by a toddler. Within a few minutes, Joey and his friends quickly proceeded to press all the buttons, wear it like a wrestling belt, and bash it against things until it broke. Joey was actually a pretty nice kid, but he was visibly disappointed to be stuck with the worst present in the class, and had not yet learned to handle disappointment gracefully. The whole class put down their new fluffy pens and action figures to make "what the fuck?" faces at Erin, and Erin probably never forgave her mom for regifting ostensibly weird shit to the worst possible demographic. Look, if there is a lesson to be learned from all this, it's don't be that mom. And lastly <br />
(3) Someone, right now, is wondering what the shit to buy me. This person does not know me. I can say this because I don't really know anyone here. I'm notoriously bad at telling people what I want for a gift, but I like most things. Unless they're exceptionally stupid. But this person does not know that, so they're probably racking their brains for what not-embarrassing item to get the secretary. Or they're looking around their house for some crap to get rid of.<br />
So the more I think about it, the more I agree with my coworker: buy an item, wrap and number it, no questions asked. That way, when you're standing around the company tree with eveyone and holding up your new chipped Reindeer coffee cup filled with peppermints, you can spare the object of your rage from catching some major bitchface.<br />
<br />
Long story short, I bought some preserves. They cost $13, are boxed with a ribbon, and they come sealed in little glasses, so when you are done with the jam you can drink out of them (there are two). I bought preserves because I like preserves, and even if she doesn't, she can regift them (to up to two people!) or dump out the contents and keep the glassware. So what I guess I'm saying is, whoever got my name will be the recipient of more than one dirty look if it is in fact a reindeer mug I end up getting.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-70649671248447013232011-09-02T19:26:00.000-07:002011-09-02T19:26:43.279-07:00ginger tea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYDJgEePsS2m3xNdZYhMHl2TWb5m3M2r3k5T3u7TXZpQUj03fLKCuNNYbU4nvkoORPRIOnfBZCbhCaMK2JLhCe9ltzkthiTxMZJjnrJbC6JuGcpC5TzgeZXv7SaCOWDl-17WsX25vqQ837/s1600/ginger+teathings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYDJgEePsS2m3xNdZYhMHl2TWb5m3M2r3k5T3u7TXZpQUj03fLKCuNNYbU4nvkoORPRIOnfBZCbhCaMK2JLhCe9ltzkthiTxMZJjnrJbC6JuGcpC5TzgeZXv7SaCOWDl-17WsX25vqQ837/s320/ginger+teathings.jpg" width="191" /></a></div><br />
<br />
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It does lovely things. Like aide digestion, cure nausea, help fight colds, and taste yummy if you like that sort of thing. (It actually took me 2 years of drinking Stash brand ginger and lemon tea "medicinally" before I developed a taste for it. And fresh-made tastes decidedly more ginger-y and spicier than the kind in teabags. I mean the tea is actually spicy and tongue-burny, just so you aren't surprised. But if that doesn't scare you, I suggest you give this tea a try. I drink it when I feel a cold coming on, when I ate something that doesn't 100% agree with me, or when it's rainy and gross out, which is going to be often since Fall is pretty much here).<br />
<br />
It's easy to throw this together: you need a nub of ginger sliced very thin (a little less than a tablespoon's worth), lemon or lime, honey and water (measure using the cup you'll drink it from).<br />
Bring the water to a boil, then throw in the ginger slices and let simmer for 10-15 minutes. Strain into a cup and add lemon/lime juce and sweeten with honey to taste.<br />
I may have also added a shot of brandy to this now and then, which adds tremendously to the warming sensation.<br />
Actually, I've been trying for a while now to re-create a drink I had at an African-inspired cafe a couple of years ago. The principal flavors were ginger and lemon, generously sweet with a generous addition of brandy. The glass it came in was sticky (from lemon preserves?) and it tasted like drinking a warm bath. If I ever figure out exactly what and how much of what was in it, you'll be the first to know. Until then, I'll be spiking my regular old ginger tea and finding that sufficient. Because, actually, it's not bad.<br />
~~~~~~<br />
<br />
My camera is out of commission, but while I had been neglecting this blog (and everything else), I did get a shmancy phone with a camera I sometimes use. So that's where my pictures will be coming from. And on that subject, look at this adorable cat napping with its face smooshed into a shop window:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpn96OR74CIYrfSdLcUUKSo0QzueG31aQWAbThAeUqTIIxKWTAd2WNnqDjdcWE3bpAdLGOCme693dhIN-PhdsrRg_sugGdRSKUitPlTsl62ZQ3wu6yGupH8rbQ59VnDICPP7h8odoqh5md/s1600/kitteh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpn96OR74CIYrfSdLcUUKSo0QzueG31aQWAbThAeUqTIIxKWTAd2WNnqDjdcWE3bpAdLGOCme693dhIN-PhdsrRg_sugGdRSKUitPlTsl62ZQ3wu6yGupH8rbQ59VnDICPP7h8odoqh5md/s320/kitteh.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Awwwwwwwww.<br />
soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-68193673753019856632011-08-29T17:48:00.000-07:002012-12-08T21:51:31.255-08:00and, and.So this is what I did: I was making breaded pork cutlets when I was interrupted by my father. He disagreed, it seems, with my method of pounding the porkchops into thin cutlets. I was thwacking them mercilessly with the heavy bottom of a saucepan, which was both highly effective and therapeutic, whilst my father seemed to think it caused raw meat bits to spray on the clean utensils drying on the counter. I articulated my argument vis-a-vis effectiveness, and he pressed his point as well.<br />
I called bullshit, threw the saucepan into the sink and told him to do it himself if he thinks he's such an expert.<br />
Cut to now. The house is filling up with the smell of frying meat, which means he's actually picked up where I left off, and I want to go make myself a cup of tea but I can't because then I'll inevitably encounter him and feel the need to apologize. And then I'll be mad at myself for apologizing because I don't have anything to be sorry about. What may seem like an ovvereaction on my part is actually due to the fact that my father has had a habit of having <i>something</i> to say about the way I cook more or less since I picked up my first spatula. Despite the fact that he eats everything I make. And likes it. But also, just maybe, I'm a bit frazzled at the nerves right now.<br />
<br />
I quit my job on Friday.<br />
I quit it because it was becoming intolerable and because I wanted to go back to school. But was only able to schedule one class and then I had to drop it because the cost ended up being much higher than I counted on. I have an interview for another full time position tomorrow morning and I am freaking out about it.<br />
I expect to be on edge for more or less forever. I expect to throw many things into the kitchen sink as I spend some of my new-found free time preparing meals and freaking out.<br />
<br />
The job I had was completely uninteresting and totally unrelated to anything I wanted to do with my future, but it taught me a lot. What it taught me, though, is the extent to which discomfort is a way of life. The extent to which drifting and indecision contribute to backing oneself into a corner and trying to piece things together better from there. It taught me that I am a harder worker than I thought, but that hard work is always taxing but not always rewarded. Maybe I am a better person for knowing this, but a more nervous, more dissatisfied person.<br />
If there is something I want to do, I should be doing it.<br />
If there is something I need to do to do what I want to do, I should be doing it.<br />
<br />
And if there is an Entenmann's cake somewhere in this house, I would really, really like to eat it.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-66782342117895980462010-12-18T22:19:00.000-08:002010-12-18T22:19:06.477-08:00I made you some shrimp scampi.Dear readers and all those crickets who make noise when I try to address you,<br />
<br />
We have entered into that magical time, that scary spiral of abyss when Christmas shopping can still be postponed but you know that if you put it off you will hate yourself when you finally do go. Fortunately, when we get over this hump, it'll be smooth sailing to all those post-Christmas-oh-shit-look-at-all-this-inventory-we-need-to-sell sales at your favorite stores. $3 lotion from Victoria's Secret, anyone? I would like ten, please. They tend to mask the odor of despair and let people around you know that you find personal hygiene important. Plus some of them are glittery, and glitter aids in the blinding of those you find distasteful.<br />
<br />
I think I had more to say, but let's get right into the food, here. Because I forgot the other stuff and it probably wasn't going anywhere I can be proud of.<br />
<br />
So... what's great about shrimp is that they cook really fast. What's less great is that they're kind of pricey. At fish counters, the unpeeled ones tend to be a few dollars cheaper, but you have to decide if that's worth the labor on your end. The great thing about this recipe is that<b> it takes 15 minutes to make</b>, start to finish, if you have peeled shrimp. Also, since you broke the bank on the shrimp, it helps that the other ingredients are inexpensive. Shrimp scampi is basically shrimp + garlic + butter. Really effortless, and kind of impressive. Looky:<br />
<br />
<b>Shrimp Scampi with Green Onions and Orzo</b><br />
Adapted from June 2009's <i>Bon Appetit</i><br />
4 servings my ass. It serves 2 generously.<br />
<br />
1 cup orzo (rice-shaped pasta. Faster than rice. Or make rice. Or any pasta you have in your pantry)<br />
4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter, divided<br />
2 (no, 3 or 4) garlic cloves, peeled<br />
1 pound uncooked large shrimp, peeled and deveined (tail on is okay)<br />
4 green onions, thinly sliced<br />
2 tbsp cut parsley (optional)<br />
1/3 cup white wine (do not use, cheaper and actually tastier without it- I used 1/3 cup chicken stock, or you can skip this altogether)<br />
<br />
Cook orzo (or rice, or other pasta) according to package directions<br />
Melt 2 tbs butter in a skillet over medium heat, using a garlic press, squeeze garlic into the skillet, stir 10 seconds.<br />
Add shrimp and saute 2 minutes. Add green onions and stir 1-2 minutes (until shrimp are just opaque). Add wine or stock, if using, and toss until wine boils, about 1 minute. Mix in remaining butter, add parsley if using, season to taste with salt and pepper.<br />
Serve mixed with pasta or orzo, or on top of rice. Resist the urge to lick the pan.<br />
<br />
<br />
Now, the fact that I may have eaten two tablespoons of butter does make me uneasy, so I guess you can always replace some of the butter with olive oil, or eat a smaller serving and have a salad on the side. If you're sad about leaving out the white wine, you can have that on the side, too. Preferably in a glass, since otherwise it tends to run all over the table.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-82163167279580073562010-11-20T21:24:00.000-08:002010-11-20T21:24:03.339-08:00Aaaand, re-vamp.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMNURR7yA0pfmR3rGByYRBsw1lu1klu6rz-XXdV2k9nF4761wdJfYED1Z7I0CRoxfuNt4hks35E6wmuQGtLXz1ih5poA79eN60MXeIwPuiDzJYoOQv0UA5Tb5FXcWAzGmscLj4-6RngleZ/s1600/funny-pictures-bored-cat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMNURR7yA0pfmR3rGByYRBsw1lu1klu6rz-XXdV2k9nF4761wdJfYED1Z7I0CRoxfuNt4hks35E6wmuQGtLXz1ih5poA79eN60MXeIwPuiDzJYoOQv0UA5Tb5FXcWAzGmscLj4-6RngleZ/s320/funny-pictures-bored-cat.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Originally, this was supposed to be an actual blog. That didn't work and it sat around collecting internet dust for a year.<br />
Then, it became a food blog, and that didn't work even worse because I was putting a modicum of effort into it with paltry results and even more paltry readership. Not that I blame anyone for that.<br />
So now... it's a blog again. The title, which finally matches the URL, is taken from a gut reaction I once had to a guy I was talking to about quotations. I told him that I keep a notebook where I sometimes write down notable things people say, and he said that if he kept such a notebook himself, he would only write down the things he said in it. I wanted to stab him in the eye just then, but alas, its been years and last I heard he's still bi-ocular. But now I've got this nifty blog title! So yay?<br />
The point to all of that is... that you shouldn't ever get that full of yourself. Except, of course, you should. Why the hell else would I be blogging this, if not for a desire of self-gratification that doesn't involve the massage setting on my showerhead? <br />
So between looking for a job, learning how to cook better, and trying hard not to take baths with my toaster, I'll be writing stuff and things on here. What stuff and things? Oh, I don't know. Probably about what I cooked, or random dorkery that captures my interest, or how tempting bathtub toast was on a given day (either because the job front looks bleak, or because the plot of Bones is becoming intolerably contrived, who knows anymore?) But mostly, I want to write just to write, to flex my underdeveloped creative muscles, to be able to slip clever dirty jokes in under the radar, or to gripe about things that seem tedious to gripe about until you challenge yourself to do it amusingly. I don't know. I hope it's readable. Also, my camera is up and working, so expect food-related entries with sexy, glossy pictures. <br />
<br />
I'm Soop. I enjoy long walks not on the beach (ew, sandy socks), anything having to do with food, and everything worth laughing about. If any of that is vague, that's sort of the point. xxxoosoophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-23202489387431185402010-10-10T23:08:00.000-07:002010-10-10T23:08:06.375-07:00When not eating, reading.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://eatfamilystyles.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/julia-child-my-life-in-france1.jpg?w=233" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://eatfamilystyles.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/julia-child-my-life-in-france1.jpg?w=233" width="248" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I had an English professor once who had a way of punishing students who did not do the assigned readings in time. She didn't do it with a nasty surprise quiz or anything. She was more creative than that: she gave away the ending. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">"What?" she would say, in her New Zealand accent, "you didn't finish <i>Twelfth Night</i>? Well. I will tell you right now: everybody dies."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Of course, if you've read Shakespeare's <i>Twelfth Night</i>, you know that nobody dies, but this was her standard spoiler for everything we read. That semester, it only turned out to be true for our last book, <i>Frankenstein</i>, and everyone thought it was pretty funny that it was finally true. So, for a few years now, her "everybody dies" mantra stuck with me, and whenever I read a book where this does happen, I remember it, and can't help but laugh, thus brightening a sad ending, if only a little.*</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The problem, though, is when you get into nonfiction. Have you read Julia Child's <i>My Life in France</i>? No? Well, spoiler alert, everybody dies. Even Julia. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Yes, I said even Julia. She died<i> as the book was being written</i>. Okay, at the age of 94. And, fine, most of the other deaths are mentioned in the epilogue as closing thoughts on her life and experiences in France. All told, I really enjoyed the book. But leave it to me to complain about a book that details the Childs' life in Europe, their marriage, the friendships they cultivate, and Julia's painstaking efforts with Mastering the Art of French Cooking and her television show, The French Chef. It was a wonderful journey to take, reading about her adventures. I couldn't put it down until it was done. And that, unfortunately, was 3am. Which for me is the magical hour during which, if I find myself awake, I ponder the unfairness of human mortality? I think? Anyway, for a book about food, I guess I was hoping for a dessert-like ending. "Everybody dies" does not pair well with an after-dinner cappuccino. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Now, I know I am complaining, but that doesn't mean I think it would be better without those details. To read <i>My Life in France</i> is to look over Julia's shoulder as she goes from a diplomat's unskilled housewife to a badass gumption-powered food expert and enthusiast who dedicated her life from age 36-on to learning all there is about the art of French cooking and teaching it to anyone who would listen. You see her beginning, her struggle, her development, as well as the importance of her support system, consisting mainly of her wonderful, tireless husband and friends. To know that all of these great, energetic people had come to an end was truly, deeply sad. And so, if by accident, this book is part autobiography and part a commentary on the human condition. So there.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Is there a lesson to be learned from all of this? Probably. Can I list the possibilities? Yes, but why should I? I'll just stick to the one lesson that can't possibly be a downer: Learn how to do something really well, and show somebody else.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Also, butterfat is delicious. Though we already knew that one, didn't we?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">See you soon, hopefully with an actual recipe!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sincerely,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Soop</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Disclaimer: the most depressing book I read where everybody dies is <i>Angela's Ashes</i>, and I read it in high school, before I had a chance to find this trope funny. Plus, it's nonfiction. Plus, everyone dies in the middle, not at the end. I still hate whoever made that book mandatory summer reading for freshmen.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div>soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-15847259871081044972010-09-14T22:04:00.000-07:002010-09-14T22:04:17.302-07:00Strawberry cake!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6RsAZtoQDlcgJjybpDjTEAR81ZjpHbj2JAyYQwRtgSHENFXCZsijHVA8DNvnPuCeV1uYXH-EnC9sJo5csie1JzQormNxlO6sxkjTIz27opcRrjTfytLFoiWdfM5hUIxz-zLmx-TmA7M7/s1600/strbry+cake2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6RsAZtoQDlcgJjybpDjTEAR81ZjpHbj2JAyYQwRtgSHENFXCZsijHVA8DNvnPuCeV1uYXH-EnC9sJo5csie1JzQormNxlO6sxkjTIz27opcRrjTfytLFoiWdfM5hUIxz-zLmx-TmA7M7/s400/strbry+cake2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>This may or may not have been an accidental meal replacement for my boyfriend, probably a few times? It comes from <a href="http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2008/06/southern-style-strawberry-cake/">Joy the Baker</a>, and is so easy, and so strawberry flavored, and so pink, that I have filed the recipe away as something I will definitely make again and again. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih8YnEvw8-xOjRIJpnz96EM28QLiUOfPxkQiVysUY1eRqxVX0e4EwUY7_32WXFpv-AsL7l9nMEUgEIW1ultHenB2jHCTCEBBmG0bnpNcItGu1tQdDBhTLMFJObiT0fnhYRYfTk10xqW1Lf/s1600/strbry+cake.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih8YnEvw8-xOjRIJpnz96EM28QLiUOfPxkQiVysUY1eRqxVX0e4EwUY7_32WXFpv-AsL7l9nMEUgEIW1ultHenB2jHCTCEBBmG0bnpNcItGu1tQdDBhTLMFJObiT0fnhYRYfTk10xqW1Lf/s400/strbry+cake.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br />
The original recipe calls for three cake pans, but since I didn't have them, I found two heart shaped tins left behind by my boyfriend's mother (or possibly the secret cake baking fairy) and it worked out wonderfully. Joy also includes a great-looking frosting recipe, but I have a strange moral aversion to making frosting (but no aversion whatsoever of eating a store-bought can of it with a spoon) so I got a tub of Pillsbury cream cheese frosting, and just slathered it on top and between the layers, although I think camouflaging the cake in white only to find its pretty pink center is part of what makes it special. Not eating the leftover frosting took all of my willpower. It rests in my boyfriend's fridge until the next time. But not the cake.<br />
<br />
The cake is gone.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-48579251829914890292010-09-09T23:36:00.000-07:002010-09-09T23:36:05.577-07:00Cooking for the Jewish New Year (Brisket, Eggplant Caviar & Honey Cake)Except for having no money and squirming uncomfortably when people ask me "what do you do?" being unemployed is actually not so bad. For one thing, I have a lot of time to feed my recipe-search obsession, and for another, it comes in handy on days like this Wednesday, which marked the beginning of the Jewish New Year at sundown. Everyone was at work... and I was left all alone to toy with cake batter and an almost-Flintstones sized cut of beef, among other things. I was asked to do this, implored, even, by the same people who eye me uncomfortably when I ask if its okay to make this or that 75% of the time). I got my lovely kitchen all to myself -one of my favorite things in the world- and my family got a holiday dinner without breaking a sweat. I have few opportunities like this, and if I had to trade this for a paycheck...I'd go for the paycheck, but I'd get a little sad about it. Just a little.<br />
So this is the breakdown of the three actually homemade things on our table this Jewish new year. Of course, my camera charger is still missing, so there are no pictures, but the food was good. If I took pictures the next day, I'd only have scraps to photograph.<br />
<br />
<b>Brisket with Potatoes: </b>Yields many servings. Count on 2+ days of leftovers for a family of 4<b><br />
</b><br />
<i>(This recipe comes from a combination of my mother's internet research and improvisation, and my playing it by ear when left alone to make it with only last year's memory as a guide) </i><b><br />
</b><br />
one 5lb brisket<br />
6 medium peeled russet potatoes (or however many more will fit in your roasting pan) quartered<br />
3 celery stalks, cut into chunks<br />
3 carrots, cut into chunks<br />
1 medium onion, quartered<br />
5 cloves of garlic, crushed (or use more, why not)<br />
one 28oz can crushed tomatoes (choose a quality brand, since sour/salty tomatoes will affect the whole dish)<br />
2-4 bay leaves (depending on your taste, and how old and flavorless your bay leaves may have become)<br />
1/2 can of beer (feed other half to your brother so as not to waste beer, even if it is Budweiser)<br />
salt&pepper<br />
1 tbsp sugar<br />
olive oil <br />
<br />
Trim most of the fat off the meat, rub with salt and pepper, and sear it in a pan on all sides. Spread some olive oil on the bottom of a roasting pan and place meat in the middle. Rub some crushed garlic cloves into the meat, leaving it covered in bits. Tuck a bay leaf under the meat, then spread vegetables around the meat, tucking bay leaves and remaining garlic among them. Salt & pepper the vegetables. Pour beer over the meat, then pour on the can of tomatoes. Add sugar (if the tomatoes seem to need it). Shake the pan to distribute the juices. Mmm juices. Cover with foil.<br />
Bake at 375 for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. I uncovered it with 45 minutes remaining to let some of the liquid cook down. <br />
<br />
<b>Eggplant Caviar (Peasant Caviar):</b> Yields about 2 1/2cups<br />
<i>This is a family recipe; eggplant caviar is practically a Russian staple. It is called "caviar" because the eggplant and tomato seeds sort of resemble fish eggs) It tastes great as a spread on bread, latkes (no recipe for those here, I made mine from a box this year), the brisket, or more or less anything that's for dinner. I like it with a spoon, but that's just me. I think it tastes best when everything is minced by hand, but a food processor makes it so much easier.</i><br />
1 large eggplant (2/3rds the size of a newborn child is ideal)<br />
2 medium tomatoes, cored, cut into chunks<br />
1/2 orange or yellow bell pepper<br />
1 small onion, cut into chunks <br />
1 tbsp white vinegar<br />
2 tbsp vegetable oil<br />
salt & pepper<br />
<br />
Roast eggplant until it looks defeated by life (about 40 minutes at 350 degrees, or microwave it at 2 minute intervals until it is soft and sags slightly), allow to cool<br />
Place bell pepper in a skillet on med-high heat and leave until skin chars, about 7 minutes; let cool and remove skin<br />
Pulse tomatoes and bell pepper in food processor until slightly chunky, pour into nonreactive dish<br />
Pulse onion until slightly chunky, add to tomatoes<br />
Separate and discard eggplant skin, pulse eggplant until slightly chunky, add to tomatoes and onion<br />
Add oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to the vegetables, stir, and adjust seasoning to taste. Should be mildly vinegary, a little bit sweet and not too salty. Cover bowl and refrigerate until time to serve. The flavors will develop a little bit more.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Honey-Orange Cake:</b> Yields one 9x13" pan, or 24 medium cupcakes <br />
<i>Our honey cake used to come from my great-aunt, who made batches of traditional foods for the family, but she has toned down her cooking in recent years; I was afraid that anything I made to replace her cake would be off the mark. This comes from<a href="http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Honey-Cake-III/Detail.aspx"> Allrecipes.com</a> and the end result is lighter than my great aunt's, has very little of the bitter honey flavor, and smells like flowers. I would make it all the time. Maybe in cupcake form, with cream cheese frosting. Success :) </i><br />
1 cup white sugar<br />
1 cup honey (a dark, strong-flavored honey is great. I used Buckwheat and liked it a lot)<br />
1/2 cup vegetable oil<br />
4 eggs<br />
2 teaspoons grated orange zest<br />
1 cup orange juice<br />
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour<br />
3 teaspoons baking powder<br />
1/2 teaspoon baking soda<br />
1/2 teaspoon salt<br />
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (had to leave this out since some people around here don't like cinnamon)<br />
<div style="border-top: 1px dotted rgb(204, 204, 204); margin-top: 20px; width: 300px;"> </div><div style="margin-top: 10px;"><ol><li><span> Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside. </span></li>
<li><span> In a large bowl, combine sugar, oil, honey, eggs and orange zest. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the orange juice, mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter into prepared pan. </span></li>
<li><span> Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool. <br />
</span>(Note: I made 12 cupcakes and one cake pan from the above batter recipe. The cupcakes took about 25 minutes.)</li>
</ol> So there you have it. Just add latkes, gefilte fish and the moonshine white-wine stuff my mother made (which, appropriately, tastes like Maneschewitz, and is an entirely different story altogether), and you've got Rosh Hashannah dinner at my house. Hooray.<br />
</div>soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-41096699033796288372010-09-06T22:32:00.000-07:002010-09-06T22:32:02.002-07:00Happy Almost Autumn!Temperatures are dropping a little, and not a moment too soon, since my air conditioner suddenly stopped working a couple of weeks ago. I missed it, terribly, for two very uncomfortable days, but now with the windows open, it's actually <i>chilly</i>- and I am excited. I am not somebody who mourns putting away her flip-flops. I don't get sad when someone comes to the realization that "summer's almost over". I love fall. It's got all the best stuff packed into it: crunchy leaves, crisp apples, leather boots, <b>my birthday</b>, and being able to turn on the oven and make delicious things in it. Like for the upcoming Jewish holidays, or Thanksgiving, or just because it's windy outside and you felt like roasting something. Or making pie. <br />
<br />
Autumn is pie season :) <br />
September also marks the end of a month-long root canal procedure, and I will be thrilled to put my repaired teeth to good use. So I hope to be posting warm, cozy recipes very soon. And while I'm at it, I have some neon-green soup to show you a picture of... as soon as I get hold of a camera.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-56480304785035519752010-07-18T20:04:00.000-07:002010-07-18T20:04:15.968-07:00no-ice-cream-maker raspberry sorbet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UTgH_wIBupbMN_SBKTr4oxMBjL31HuK_ljHHptXzYzD6dJR0QQVyL6oiDSy7-XAG0QP9WWYLC6dlJ3T6kSmjU-r_p3rWbwA1QLEnTjAkNbnWo6no25keOEL9qj6ilr73Re_teGV3Aqsx/s1600/100_4642.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzHBVNVPhXFvEwr-cOWHAfWV39RGTCx4B0115VgScg1grDZ1XFmWuCow4YTsxW69GqV_ttCoWErF00HR77H1Mdu-MxUSbgGGmSYAndDLeARIWZHt5LaCl7YPRGxSjKmBN0G-uM6J2NJqWl/s1600/100_4675.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzHBVNVPhXFvEwr-cOWHAfWV39RGTCx4B0115VgScg1grDZ1XFmWuCow4YTsxW69GqV_ttCoWErF00HR77H1Mdu-MxUSbgGGmSYAndDLeARIWZHt5LaCl7YPRGxSjKmBN0G-uM6J2NJqWl/s320/100_4675.JPG" /></a></div><br />
I like to find ways of jimmy-rigging my way around expertly specified instructions. Why use a hammer and nails when there's duct tape aplenty? Oh. Well. Now that I think about it, I may have gotten this attitude from my father. He's a man who never takes a direct route- because that's what builds character. Living in constant frustration, I mean, builds character. Personally, though, I'd like to think that my "alternative" solutions are ingenious, and save either time or money. I imagine my father also thinks the same thing... but I'm trying to avoid this vortex of introspection I'm starting to open up over here. Anyway! This recipe costs me very little to make, in terms of money, because I do it with inexpensive ingredients and no fancy ice-cream maker. The lack of an ice cream maker, however, makes it somewhat time-intensive, so I recommend making it if you'll be home for most of the day. You know, hiding from that big yellow thing in the sky, wishing you had something cold and delicious in the freezer...<br />
<br />
I get my raspberries for free because they grow in my backyard. This is the only reason I can allow myself to take such a huge quantity of them and not shove them directly into my mouth. Not that you should be jealous, since I'm the one who picks them (I'm less delicious to mosquitoes than my mother, so I get the brave the wild), raspberry bushes have many tiny thorns all over them, and while I am not too attractive to insects, I'm not entirely unattractive either. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UTgH_wIBupbMN_SBKTr4oxMBjL31HuK_ljHHptXzYzD6dJR0QQVyL6oiDSy7-XAG0QP9WWYLC6dlJ3T6kSmjU-r_p3rWbwA1QLEnTjAkNbnWo6no25keOEL9qj6ilr73Re_teGV3Aqsx/s1600/100_4642.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UTgH_wIBupbMN_SBKTr4oxMBjL31HuK_ljHHptXzYzD6dJR0QQVyL6oiDSy7-XAG0QP9WWYLC6dlJ3T6kSmjU-r_p3rWbwA1QLEnTjAkNbnWo6no25keOEL9qj6ilr73Re_teGV3Aqsx/s200/100_4642.JPG" width="133" /></a>The raspberries are ripening quickly, and we've got so many that I'm sure there'll be more than one blog entry about raspberry-themed dishes. This one in particular came from the fact that we still have frozen raspberries from last year to deal with, and I figured the best thing to do with frozen berries is keep them frozen in a sorbet. This is one of the earliest recipes I've ever made and it is easy, tasty as all hell, and probably <a href="http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/2053/2">somewhat nutritious</a>. I think. I've been using this recipe for years, and originally got it from an old Cosmo Girl at the library, they credit the recipe to the <i>Ciao Bella Gelato Company</i>. You'll need simple syrup. To make it, combine 2 cups water with 2 cups sugar, bring to a boil, turn down the heat and stir frequently for about 5 minutes before taking it off the heat. Yields 3 cups, and now you, too, will get annoyed when you see pretty glass bottles of it in Trader Joe's. It's a ripoff, people, since it's cheap-as-free in your own home.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Raspberry Sorbet</b>, makes 6 servings:</div><div class="im">3 cups simple syrup<br />
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice<br />
5 cups fresh or frozen raspberries<br />
1 cup water</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF3bXzM8MYyILKiz4YTGSlmqmly2Qh-QF1W_vTz-i-_I0JXtV2rps_y95f32piKxRKXT4T-WrPUCNCZZx1Xdsi1KQZY6Ygpt4YFnNpxrb5zJb-4exMI1dxpr51JNqbqpkSawzCmfFVh4wK/s1600/100_4656.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF3bXzM8MYyILKiz4YTGSlmqmly2Qh-QF1W_vTz-i-_I0JXtV2rps_y95f32piKxRKXT4T-WrPUCNCZZx1Xdsi1KQZY6Ygpt4YFnNpxrb5zJb-4exMI1dxpr51JNqbqpkSawzCmfFVh4wK/s320/100_4656.JPG" /></a></div><div class="im"> Directions:<br />
1. Combine all of the ingredients and blend until smooth (might need to do this in two batches)<br />
2. Remove seeds by pouring through a strainer or fine mesh sieve. I mix it in the sieve with a wooden spoon so it strains faster<br />
3. Chill in refrigerator for 2 hours, pour into ice cream maker and follow machine directions*<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX4ZZfwbgXtz0rxyR23Ci3B3UlMScZ8Ft1ABIia1SRGANfIXGy5gMmNsESl-jDupocASYSUn3ojOqEpfcw3ybgoWbnxOr_qizTsheQXpiYmJt1EaLiz7Y5_Iwc4NfLZH1pciie7F6YMKPK/s1600/100_4668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX4ZZfwbgXtz0rxyR23Ci3B3UlMScZ8Ft1ABIia1SRGANfIXGy5gMmNsESl-jDupocASYSUn3ojOqEpfcw3ybgoWbnxOr_qizTsheQXpiYmJt1EaLiz7Y5_Iwc4NfLZH1pciie7F6YMKPK/s320/100_4668.JPG" /></a></div><div class="im"><br />
*If you don't have an ice cream maker, which I don't, pour the mixture into a wide, flat container. Freeze until slushy, stirring it up every 15-30 minutes with a fork so you don't get a 12x12 ice cube (happened once; risking frostbite on your fingers isn't worth it, even for tasty sorbet). When slushy throughout, transfer to a plastic container and allow it to freeze. Enjoy!<br />
(** I wonder whether you can just freeze the mixture in ice cube trays, turn it into slush with your blender, and then freeze it in a container. Try it and tell me. I don't have ice cube trays! Alternatively, freeze it in large freezer bags, laying flat, so its easy to crack into pieces. After cracking, blend in a blender or food processor, and spoon it into a container to allow it to freeze. Jimmy-rigging really works! And you don't have to babysit this one all day.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="im"><br />
</div>Mango Sorbet, makes 6 servings: (This is on the same page as the raspberry sorbet recipe. I've never made this because mangoes go very quickly around here, but I want to)<br />
4 medium-sized mangoes, washed<br />
2 cups simple syrup<br />
3 tbsp lime juice<br />
1 cup water<br />
<br />
Directions: peel mangoes, scoop and cut out the flesh, combine all ingredients and puree in a blender, follow directions as above.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZHFj_6vB5Lagp5EtMcs4oPK_i5-clxuoGy-5VQnZu3A_30sy1PWasgNCpkN0A8HAdEQ8kTaK6GGnAeRAhkk3wt3Xyc7N617quzUk67PNrJfuvb4kV9AmnCHHWxN17SSGV8MRXbumwrzmu/s1600/100_4682.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZHFj_6vB5Lagp5EtMcs4oPK_i5-clxuoGy-5VQnZu3A_30sy1PWasgNCpkN0A8HAdEQ8kTaK6GGnAeRAhkk3wt3Xyc7N617quzUk67PNrJfuvb4kV9AmnCHHWxN17SSGV8MRXbumwrzmu/s320/100_4682.JPG" /></a></div>soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-68370369924243635482010-07-08T22:04:00.000-07:002010-07-08T22:04:05.560-07:00Cold soup for hot days<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3ukSGDpNRVF2TlKprUSkhUWLmcQW5WnXXUv-6u-fjKFuUAnHHDplvP6LwAQs3AxTpQhbKrBryChkA4mT6Op0X-aRgoDEjcNd8hUchz-85286r9Tp2JVfl2ulFPwom9vQZ7hW5TKOEcqu/s1600/100_4674.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3ukSGDpNRVF2TlKprUSkhUWLmcQW5WnXXUv-6u-fjKFuUAnHHDplvP6LwAQs3AxTpQhbKrBryChkA4mT6Op0X-aRgoDEjcNd8hUchz-85286r9Tp2JVfl2ulFPwom9vQZ7hW5TKOEcqu/s400/100_4674.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> (Ta-dah!)</span></div>I like cold soups in the summer because they combine the complete-mealness of a hot soup, with the don't-use-the-stoveness you desire on these 95-degrees-in-the-shade days. This particular soup is a semi-original invention that was spawned when I saw recipes for yogurt-based soups and tried to find a way to make them without actually using yogurt. I'm not a yogurt eater, with the exception of the frozen, Pinkberry variety. I know, yogurt is great; it's full of healthy bacteria and bone-building calcium, and I'm even told it tastes good, though that last part is highly dubious. But you know what else has all those health benefits without the yogurt taste? Buttermilk. Okay, I know, when you think of buttermilk, what comes to mind is that thing you add to pancake and cake batters, and not a soup base. But try it. This soup will taste suspiciously like tzatziki sauce, and I have been reading up on Wikipedia, and apparently, some cultures do make a chilled soup with similar ingredients, including buttermilk. (Of course, those cultures also have a history of <a href="http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/files/www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/nodes/1707/soviet_propaganda.jpg">this</a> and <a href="http://www.charlotteneumann.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/circus-bear-f.jpg">this</a>, but that's not to discount their soup expertise)<br />
Friends, I assure you, on balls-hot days, it is air conditioning in a bowl.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJLMPBIiI-2QgA9eGC0Zy9Gb6Phg0P0bnasc2M3f1dU5IqWqjyW6Megzt6t4ZXVlkTNv3rr_gSmZa07vJm_AD7ld9I1FPR0iFCIojbBFvq01XhDX5il0ggbRg5dIm-ei2t6Gm1havAd_8S/s1600/100_4662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJLMPBIiI-2QgA9eGC0Zy9Gb6Phg0P0bnasc2M3f1dU5IqWqjyW6Megzt6t4ZXVlkTNv3rr_gSmZa07vJm_AD7ld9I1FPR0iFCIojbBFvq01XhDX5il0ggbRg5dIm-ei2t6Gm1havAd_8S/s320/100_4662.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi2UxSYyeionftarg0HVKZCNVLBG03ewjOvyWwYt3L2LxvW3L_P-7bqG6sNLyXDSKZaTAzOvv1kIbUCsALol1FOHIFexuq8NNHEeQL_-q5_BrvOdS_oWJnpURnyG3YGxU9FB7GM3jxxpGS/s1600/100_4666.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi2UxSYyeionftarg0HVKZCNVLBG03ewjOvyWwYt3L2LxvW3L_P-7bqG6sNLyXDSKZaTAzOvv1kIbUCsALol1FOHIFexuq8NNHEeQL_-q5_BrvOdS_oWJnpURnyG3YGxU9FB7GM3jxxpGS/s320/100_4666.JPG" /></a></div><br />
I included dill and parsley as the herbs, but I'm sure it would taste great with cilantro, mint, or even arugula leaves sliced into thin ribbons. I did not add lemon juice, since the buttermilk is already tart, but that's another option.<br />
<br />
Need:<br />
1 quart buttermilk<br />
5 cucumbers (give or take) cut into small cubes, seeded if desired<br />
2-3 scallions, green and white parts, thinly sliced<br />
2 tbsps sour cream<br />
1 tbsp mayonnaise <br />
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced<br />
1 tbsp fresh parsley <br />
1 tbsp fresh dill<br />
cayenne pepper to taste<br />
salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste<br />
<br />
For Garnish (optional)<br />
sliced or crumbled hard boiled eggs<br />
thinly sliced or cubed radish<br />
scallion slices<br />
<br />
Directions:<br />
Combine all ingredients in a non-reactive container, cover and chill for several hours to let the flavor develop. Taste just before serving, and adjust seasoning as needed. Top with garnish of choice. Serves... lets say 6-8? Depending on bowl size? Okay. 6-8.<br />
Note: if when you first combine the ingredients, they seem a little thick, dilute with a little water at a time until it's at the desired consistency.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK1GCKwmCssAqyG0oGvZKrj10dgkwJGrC3t4PCb48BFp1itCsYEFMAOaRL74ihoLRwasG0dUu4xcrLjLFN5vtPo52ZXO9qq60oeHR2RlRk8garfWfGWXXu5hVrvK7JtU4h5rZCoUvYG4HM/s1600/100_4673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK1GCKwmCssAqyG0oGvZKrj10dgkwJGrC3t4PCb48BFp1itCsYEFMAOaRL74ihoLRwasG0dUu4xcrLjLFN5vtPo52ZXO9qq60oeHR2RlRk8garfWfGWXXu5hVrvK7JtU4h5rZCoUvYG4HM/s400/100_4673.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></div><span style="font-size: x-small;"> (I'm not a good photographer, but you can tell by the jaunty placement of that napkin that I'm trying my darnedest) </span><br />
<br />
Enjoy! Next time I'll have a dessert.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-18016105254893587082010-07-07T20:01:00.000-07:002010-07-07T20:01:09.792-07:00In which mysterious dental woes may affect diet! (Also, a leftover-chicken-meat idea.) (Also, this isn't a food-only blog! Books, baby!)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="157" src="http://www.thefoodguys.com/images/mashed_potatoes.jpg" width="320" /> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was trying to find the least appetizing picture of mashed potatoes on the internet, so as to better communicate the possibility of my need to eat them, and only them, in the near future. Turns out, the worst you can find is a slightly awkward picture of mashed potatoes (see above) because they look and taste good almost no matter what. But the reason I wanted this photographic representation of squishy, unappetizing foods is that I went to the dentist complaining about a shooting pain in one tooth when I chew; the doctor drilled and filled and said that if that doesn't make it better, he'll have to try something else. Well, long story short, it still hurts, which means I may be due for some exotic dental work in the near future.<br />
<br />
Worry not- in anticipation of this, I did two very responsible things. 1. Located the oxycodone-based painkillers in the medicine cabinet (so much cheaper than filling a prescription, and more effective than wuss-strength Rite-Aid brand acetaminophen! Plus, if I don't develop an addiction, I get to rub it in Rush Limbaugh's face) aaaand 2. I bought a cheap ice pop mold! Yay! So stay tuned for some potentially colorful stay-cool summer recipes that call for 2 cups yogurt, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 cup diced strawberries and 800mg Percocet.*<br />
Hopefully, the dental thing will work out quickly, though. I'd really love to be able to chew on both sides of my mouth again soon. Until then, there are lots of delicious, tooth-friendly things I can make (and blog about). Gee, I hope you like eggplant. In every form imaginable. <br />
<br />
Enough griping, though. I promised a leftover-chicken-meat idea, and here it is. Bear with the shaky sales pitch, please. I was channeling my inner Sham-Wow Guy... <br />
<br />
<b>CHIKIN:</b> You know when you make too much chicken, and you thought leftovers were a good idea, but by the third day you'd rather chew drywall? Or when you buy a rotisserie chicken from the supermarket, compliment yourself on your savvy dinner solution, and then end up confronted by the half-eaten carcass every time you open the fridge? Here's what we do, and it's not bad at all: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCh0jMBXFoHPZiYsKoq38mTt_CTeaQ7JjHIxD0JqBiwtweeDvXJCMQVSDYZlBl1Glmvpr2EoBANJcNU8gFcVY2e-JotCZuSYKoo4thO3NhsEEDcwUnAblX-hbr-ApWPpdfvx1BVtXw-M_/s1600/DSCF0454.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCh0jMBXFoHPZiYsKoq38mTt_CTeaQ7JjHIxD0JqBiwtweeDvXJCMQVSDYZlBl1Glmvpr2EoBANJcNU8gFcVY2e-JotCZuSYKoo4thO3NhsEEDcwUnAblX-hbr-ApWPpdfvx1BVtXw-M_/s320/DSCF0454.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <br />
1. Pull chicken off the bones, if there are any, and mince it with a knife, or pulse it in a food processor<br />
2. Dice up an onion (depending on how much chicken there is, you want about 1/4 amount of onion per amount of chicken, depending on how much you like onion) and saute in a frying pan in a generous amount of oil until golden brown.<br />
3. Throw in the minced chicken and give it a good stir, to mix the onions and let it absorb all the tasty onion-y oil. Taste, and adjust seasonings as you see fit <br />
4. Toss with some kind of short pasta. I like <a href="http://extraordinarymomsnetwork.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/tricolor-rotini.jpg">tri-color rotini</a> because it traps the meat in its folds and looks pretty. <br />
Behold! Cheap, easy and very delicious comfort food. I made some today and threw a little shredded cheddar into it. I suppose I could have put the meat into puff pastry, or fried it in wonton wrappers and made something a little more impressive, but there'll <i>always</i> be leftover chicken to experiment with, so what's the hurry?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-YLDhzjI4aNyHyJWwKFYp3Iq1ekAV_ZJWM7Y7HtdMplpFFCqZf7ZhX4OED20lIq_8TKqA60nW3GlMzR03v99Wtxl8-NwIMvJzayHBxtEX_iQZR0GNk-UfjuRY1yzqjw5WH5fsMOGkWf-g/s1600/DSCF0459.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-YLDhzjI4aNyHyJWwKFYp3Iq1ekAV_ZJWM7Y7HtdMplpFFCqZf7ZhX4OED20lIq_8TKqA60nW3GlMzR03v99Wtxl8-NwIMvJzayHBxtEX_iQZR0GNk-UfjuRY1yzqjw5WH5fsMOGkWf-g/s320/DSCF0459.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
<br />
The nice thing about visiting the dentist, though, is the rummaging I got to do at the Salvation Army store not far from his office. I've recently taken a liking to <a href="http://www.housingworks.org/events/">Housing Works</a> thrift stores, but this SA location is the only thrift store near me. ANYWAY- the thing about Housing Works is that, probably because of its locations in Manhattan, it gets raided by the hip, and all the good stuff goes fast. This Salvation Army store is in a working-class/immigrant neighborhood, and is inconveniently open during normal working hours, so most people go for the clothing and housewares, and a lot of the books and CD's probably sit on the shelves for a long time before anyone who would be interested spots them.*** Anyone with a face full of Novacaine and a sense of adventure, that is. AND- it was "family day" so most items were half off. Hurray! <br />
So here's what I bought, and will review:<br />
<br />
books:<br />
<i>The Time Traveler's Wife</i> by Audrey Nifffenegger (although it never bodes well when fairly recent books end up in a thrift store... which makes me wonder why the shelves weren't filled with more copies of <i>Twilight</i>), <i>Fiction Writer's Handbook</i> (preface by Norman Mailer, Epilogue by J.D. Salinger, and I may even read the stuff in the middle), <i>Q's Legacy</i> by Helene Hanff (because the cover looked appealing, although this book-choosing strategy has lead to <a href="http://laist.com/attachments/la_callie/allweeverwanted.jpg">a fair amount of disappointment</a>), Cervantes' <i>Don Quixote</i>, <i>Created in Darkness by Troubled Americans: The Best of McSweeny's Humor Category</i> (intro by Dave Eggers), <i>Like Water for Chocolate</i> by Laura Esquirel, <i>The God of Small Things </i>by Arundathi Roy, <i>I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti </i>by Giulia Melucci, and, finally, a copy of Ernest Hemingway's <i>The Sun Also Rises</i>, which, as it turns out, will be a duplicate at my house, because my brother already owns a copy. oops. At least it only cost me 49 cents. OMG, I know!<br />
<br />
"See Deez"- The Rentals, two CDs- "Seven More Minutes" and "Return of The Rentals" (I listened to the latter and remembered that, actually, I don't like The Rentals that much. I think I grabbed the CDs out of sheer surprise of seeing them) Reel Big Fish's "Keep your reciept"(- just listened to that, too. I liked it, and was sad to see that it's only a 5-track sampler.) Gin Blossom's "New misterable experience" (yes, it's the one with "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ah5gAkna3jI">hey jealousy</a>" on it. I like that kind of thing, okay?), and finally, my coup de grace, Stroke 9's "Nasty Little Thoughts" which I had uploaded on my old computer, before it died, and I'm very happy to have replaced it. So maybe my taste in music is sometimes questionable. At least I didn't buy the Smashmouth CD out of a misplaced sense of nostalgia, right?<br />
</div>Anyway, that's my to-do list for the summer. Read all of those books. Write a little about it. Find gainful employment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFYqQaU7lsFrVnM2L1ezFM3ljmzffltYfBLCmqwxD1mkk73WaiucAt2WmZpf9Y76EwK4uA1Vb1PlsS2xpcT9rQ0ya0mCKqHpeB5ZEIKCFMsrV8ShwXvQkWrhSRJNI1tESUEOoO39Wp_2C6/s1600/DSCF0450.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFYqQaU7lsFrVnM2L1ezFM3ljmzffltYfBLCmqwxD1mkk73WaiucAt2WmZpf9Y76EwK4uA1Vb1PlsS2xpcT9rQ0ya0mCKqHpeB5ZEIKCFMsrV8ShwXvQkWrhSRJNI1tESUEOoO39Wp_2C6/s320/DSCF0450.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(My camera battery died and I asked my brother to take some "food porn pictures" for my blog. He did, though not in the way I had in mind. He says we have different definitions of "food porn".)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">* directions: combine all ingredients in blender, add more sugar if desired, pour into ice pop molds, freeze & enjoy.**</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">**Don't really do this. I didn't try this recipe out, and I suspect in needs lemon juice.</span> </div><span style="font-size: x-small;">***That's not to say that the working class and immigrants don't read, it's just that here, you're not cheek and jowl with 60 year old men in tweed jackets with liberal arts degrees in obscure fields of historical and literary study, who have time to read and money to buy full-price books, let alone the discounted ones. See: Upper West Side used bookstores. But if I've offended not one but two social strata, whoopty-doo to me.</span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
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</div>soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-45047731824964900332010-07-03T21:33:00.000-07:002010-07-03T21:33:11.445-07:00Your-Best-Friend-Is-Leaving Seafood Paella<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikhpGsRaZBBnaX43UlZBMaZFFXsHwCAhT25mljSGD-bsWrB6GJCHd5dll8Wg1q7esOERhbNUIvegKImSPsyUNoPrBySdj2HtQUzM0qdY5_MF92PGDVw-e71E4idDPLfgfgDPDnGMbEr4Dt/s1600/IMG_3005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikhpGsRaZBBnaX43UlZBMaZFFXsHwCAhT25mljSGD-bsWrB6GJCHd5dll8Wg1q7esOERhbNUIvegKImSPsyUNoPrBySdj2HtQUzM0qdY5_MF92PGDVw-e71E4idDPLfgfgDPDnGMbEr4Dt/s400/IMG_3005.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>I'm not too sure how it happened, but my best friend, who is driving to Kansas in a van filled with two cats and other, less furry belongings as I write this, bribed me into posting this as my first recipe. I think the way she did it was she said she'd help me make it, take pictures, and eat it. A clever ruse.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6xMIdbjyAVhfQZS_v4brmBix852i0fxF21bGM1DTJwBnuHtl1xSPlWhIRKDNp9veYuyfODZnovZPSkYcl983DJ7OZSIj9RZDLbQ-OrQKNr7ZrVGEW1o6TV8YQ9YlUkSyEW6Z2xbRFftvD/s1600/IMG_2978.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6xMIdbjyAVhfQZS_v4brmBix852i0fxF21bGM1DTJwBnuHtl1xSPlWhIRKDNp9veYuyfODZnovZPSkYcl983DJ7OZSIj9RZDLbQ-OrQKNr7ZrVGEW1o6TV8YQ9YlUkSyEW6Z2xbRFftvD/s200/IMG_2978.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt1tEqjtWs8q36Rmwu1O7ldFw-UZiE2k7VQh8b2kVi8oZN-nIE_ubr7Kcu5rIc0tupAyx-XR7YC6J39TQOQWmcT8UoOgqHd6BXyNlfzW1q-jAhcNfs7k7dgSV9KUtYUjTaL7UQF7FHoHdr/s1600/IMG_2968.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt1tEqjtWs8q36Rmwu1O7ldFw-UZiE2k7VQh8b2kVi8oZN-nIE_ubr7Kcu5rIc0tupAyx-XR7YC6J39TQOQWmcT8UoOgqHd6BXyNlfzW1q-jAhcNfs7k7dgSV9KUtYUjTaL7UQF7FHoHdr/s200/IMG_2968.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
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So, because she's on the road to new and exciting things right this minute, I thought it would be appropriate to post the recipe. Originally, I found it <a href="http://www.spain-recipes.com/red-paella.html">on the internet</a>, but I made enough adjustments (9 1/2 cups of liquid for 3 cups of rice??) to not feel like taking credit for it would be copyright infringement. I added peas, increased the paprika,and added scallops and found out that you can make "fish stock" by combining one quantity of clam juice with one quantity of vegetable stock. This is great to know, because while I felt brave a few weeks ago and froze some fish heads for stock making, the idea of boiling fish remnants is soooo unappealing to me. This clam juice and veggie broth solution greatly reduces the ick factor. And so-- here you are, surprisingly easy, pescatarian friendly, and all-around tasty Seafood Paella:<br />
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Ingredients:<br />
1 large pan<br />
1/4 cup olive oil<br />
1/2 lb uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (or not peeled because there is flavor in the shells)<br />
1/2 lb clams, well scrubbed<br />
1/2 lb baby scallops<br />
1 medium onion, chopped<br />
3 cloves garlic, minced<br />
3 cups rice<br />
8 oz bottle of clam juice<br />
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock<br />
1/4 tsp saffron<br />
2 tsp Spanish paprika<br />
1 cups red bell pepper, in smallish dice<br />
3/4 cup frozen peas, frozen<br />
salt & pepper, to taste<br />
lemon wedges, for serving<br />
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Directions:<br />
1. Heat olive oil in pan over medium heat. Add onion and red pepper, cook until onion begins to soften. Add garlic, cook 5 more minutes.<br />
2. Add rice to the pan, cook stirring constantly, until rice is translucent, about 5 minutes.<br />
3. Mix in the seafood, peas, seasonings and clam juice and broth. Cover and cook for 25 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed.<br />
4. Taste, adjust seasonings as necessary, and let stand, covered, for about 5 minutes before serving. Serve with lemon wedges.<br />
Makes 6 servings. They will go quickly. <br />
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Note: If you see that some of your clams have not opened, throw those out.<br />
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And good news! I just took my "after" pictures of a thing I made, so I'm good for at least one more entry!soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5370793506721824484.post-66503351997101821672010-06-28T18:47:00.000-07:002010-06-28T18:56:45.388-07:00What (little) I know about cookingI've had this blog for a year now, and its high time I wrote an entry already.<br />
I should probably start off by admitting that I am mostly a crotchety misanthrope. Seriously, I look forward to being old because then I will get to shake my cane at yung'uns and it will be socially acceptable behavior. There's little I find exciting, pop culture is alienating, and beer pong makes me positively murderous. The few exceptions to this general streak, though, are food, books,and sometimes mind-numbingly stupid television shows. (Also, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEorZqv7eZw">baby ocelots</a> yeeee look at their little faces! Oh my god how is it legal for them to look like that? I want one so much!)<br />
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Anyway, in keeping with the title of the entry, and tying that to the stuff I just wrote, I will say that somehow, at some point, I realized that I <s>really enjoy</s> <b>am probably obsessed with</b> all things food related. I love reading recipes; I have a pile of cookbooks under my bed, a subscription to <i>Bon Appetit</i> and envelopes full of clipped recipes from food packaging. Strange? What? Well, who asked you? <br />
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So now I have a blog.<br />
It'll be a decent one, I think. On it, I'll post stuff I've made successfully, which will mostly be inexpensive and family-friendly, (because, let's face it, I'm presently inches from broke and live at home,) stuff I've screwed up (The Culinary Cautionary Tale ftw), and food related webthings that I love.<br />
... And on that topic, check out <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/">Deb, the kitchen goddess </a>, <a href="http://tocookamockingbird.blogspot.com/">Megan, burgeoning kitchen goddess</a>, and <a href="http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/">Manjula, my new Indian food guru grandma</a>. All very delightful for their own reasons :)<br />
What you will not find in this blog: Things that are super challenging, elaborate baked goods, breads, things with expensive ingredients, things that require that I make mashed potatoes and turn them into something else (why do that? They're mashed. Let's eat.) and men who look like <a href="http://www.dolbster.com/main/images/metaldude.jpg">heavy metal gnomes,</a> because that freaks me out.<br />
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My skills of a chef are pretty basic, and I want to improve that. Watch me try and do it. That's what the <i>Nom</i>con is for.soophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14002366780837631705noreply@blogger.com0