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Showing posts from November, 2008

I Don't Like Chick Flicks Either ...

In further interesting blog analysis quiz developments, Gender Analyzer is 54% positive that this blog is written by a ... Woman. Which we know is ... 100% right. However the additional comment points out that the writing is quite gender neutral, which might account for the fact that both my other blogs crossed the line strongly as being written by a ... man.

Welcome to Your ISTJ - The Duty Fulfillers Blog

I finally took that Typealyzer's test which analyzes the blog writing of this ENTJ person. ISTJ - The Duty Fulfillers The responsible and hardworking type. They are especially attuned to the details of life and are careful about getting the facts right. Conservative by nature they are often reluctant to take any risks whatsoever. The Duty Fulfillers are happy to be let alone and to be able to work in their own pace. They know what they have to do and how to do it. Interestingly, the writing at Happy Catholic is INTP - The Thinkers while Forgotten Classic's author writing shows ISTP - The Mechanics. Once again, we see that analysis can only handle so much complexity.

The "Funny Bone" in Our Thanksgiving Menu

Here's an idea I'm going to try this year, based on a recipe in (of all places) the Wall Street Journal. Bake 4 medium sweet potatoes. Whip with a can of coconut milk and 2 t. of brown sugar. I can play around with sweet potato recipes because only Rose will try them and she's not married to any particular way of fixing them since I've always goofed around with them. Ok, it's just a touch more complicated, so here's the actual recipe . I'm making a half recipe. At least I think I am. It's darned hard to tell what "medium" is in sweet potatoes. Sweet Potatoes Kittichai Serves 8 Preparation: 5 minutes Cooking: 65 to 80 minutes 8 medium sweet potatoes 2 cups coconut milk, approximately 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (optional) 1 cinnamon stick Salt and pepper Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Set the sweet potatoes in the oven and bake for 45 minutes to an hour. After 20 minutes, perforate the potatoes in several places to prevent bursting. They a

I've Grown Accustomed to Shopping for Only Two ...

Certainly that is the case when it concerns my grocery shopping. Both girls are coming home for Thanksgiving break and when I read over my list, combined with necessary Thanksgiving feast supplies, it looked to me as if I were preparing for an army to descend upon us. Not that they eat so much, after all. But it is doubling my usual shopping which I finally had gotten used to cutting down to size for two and, it must be faced, that there are some things which they consume more of than we do. For instance, my old habits of buying 2-3 gallons of milk weekly, instead of the current 1/2 gallon ... However, the extra scurrying and buying and laying in of provisions makes me feel celebratory in advance. That is a nice thing and no doubt about it. Also, I was at the store when I suddenly realized that I will have the perfect chance to try out Sara Roahen's recipe for Turkey Bone Gumbo. She very kindly sent an email and then some of her recipes after reading my review of her book . I proba

Thanksgiving Menu

This year I'm not making anything new. These, for us, represent the perfect versions of their oeuvre. It is strictly our favorites with the only variations allowed being in the cranberry relish and sweet potatoes ... and that is only because I am the only one who eats them. Our day-after-Thanksgiving meal also is mandated by tradition. Chef salad featuring turkey (of course), blue cheese dressing and crumbled bacon (the real thing please!) on top. Mmmmmm, crumbled bacon ... Here are a few links to recipes I've posted before and am reposting that we'll have at the feast. Holiday Central Ok, not my recipes but O Chef must answer just about every question you could think of there ... including any that my "short-hand" recipes may leave you with! Herbed Thanksgiving Stuffing This is the best stuffing ever and cooks in a slow cooker. I have made this five times now and never been disappointed. It really frees up the oven for other things and, if you happen to have a pr

Do these turkeys get any bigger?

Then there’s the time a lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at the grocery store, but couldn’t find one big enough for her family. She asked a stock boy, “Do these turkeys get any bigger?” The stock boy replied, “No ma’am, they’re dead.” Talking turkey with the Butterball Help Line ... Coffee Klatch has a hilarious round up of true stories from the hardworking help-line staff.

I Keep Seeing References to How To Manage a Meatless Thanksgiving

First of all, what are these people? Communists? Secondly, if a vegetarian can't find plenty of delicious vegetable dishes at a standard Thanksgiving feast then they're just not trying hard enough. Or not going to the right house. C'mon by ... we'll fix you up.

Pasta with Parmigiano-Regianno

Following up yesterday's simple pasta dish comes one that is even simpler and quite as good in its own humble way. I used to make it regularly but had forgotten it over time as happens if one cooks for a long enough time. Then I read Michael Ruhlman's article, The Fallacy of the Quick-and-Easy Cookbook . He isn't talking about what we might usually think of as quick-and-easy but excoriating those who publish cookbooks under the conceit that one might duplicate high cuisine with little effort in the home kitchen. Go read, but here's a little taste to whet your appetite ... What I’m criticizing here is the conceit of this cookbook, and all others that claim to make refined cuisine simple for the home. It makes me crazy not because it’s fundamentally a lie, though that’s never a good thing, but rather because publishers don’t seem to recognize that it’s a lie, and they want to keep on telling it to us. Can you imagine a book called The French Laundry Cookbook Made Simp

Pasta Baked with Bechamel and Parmigiano

I made this for a sick friend the other day (and kept some for us as well). It was posted in 2005 and that's too long ago, just for those who, like me, don't look through the archives often enough. So I'm reposting it below. This is simple, economical, and delicious. That's a too-rare combination. Give it a try. Late in getting this up here but better late than never. I hadn't made this for years. It is one of those things that I just "forgot" to make but I'll remember from now on because everyone loved it. We had this for Ash Wednesday and the leftovers on Friday. This regional dish is perfect for those meatless Lenten Fridays or just as comfort food. It is a universal pleaser that makes a similar but nice change from the standard Macaroni and Cheese or Tuna Casserole. This is from Trattoria Cooking by Biba Caggiano. I just love this book. Not only does Biba write in such an enthusiastic way about Italian food and trattorias, but the recipes generall

The Hamburger Dress

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Via Serious Eats . Is this great or what?

Like Fried Rice? Like Pasta?

Then you're gonna love this week's podcast episode featuring Mouth Wide Open by John Thorne at Forgotten Classics.

Email Notice

We had a huge server crash yesterday and among other major things, one thing that went down was email. If you have sent me an email in the last week or so and had been waiting for an answer or to see a notice posted, etc., please be aware that it has been lost to me for good. If I answered since yesterday afternoon then I've got your communication. Feel free to resend. I am getting emails now, but can't answer them from home for the time being. I'll probably set up another account but am waiting to see how things are going in picking through the wreckage.