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Showing posts from April, 2008

Living, Loving, Losing ... and Cooking

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Comfort Food: a novel by Kate Jacobs "I am actually a very nice person when someone takes the time to get to know me," huffed Aimee. "I just have a lot of responsibilities." "The UN stuff," said Carmen. "Among other things," said Aimee. "But that's how I know Spain produces 36 percent of the world's olive oil. I work in trade and development," she explained. "Very good," said Carmen. "You may just be the smart one out of this bunch of idiotas. " "I speak Spanish too." "¿Ahora si entiendas lo que digo?" "Yeah, I hear what you mutter in the kitchen," said Aimee. "Like when you called my mother a--" Carmen held up her hand to stop her from speaking. "It's unexpected," admitted Aimee. "You swear like a sailor." "Well, what do you expect," said Carmen. "I spent years in beauty pageant dressing rooms." Aimee's mother is Gus [Au

Fine Art: A Glass of Rioja

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A Glass of Rioja by Edward B. Gordon Click through on the title to see more of his work.

Now Serving Hot LInks ...

The Lost Ravioli of Hoboken Tea and Cookies gives a great review. This already was on my reading list after hearing an interview with the author but reading Tea's subsequent venture into ravioli making is the icing on the cake ... now I must get that book! It's Too Darned Hot Barbara at Tigers & Strawberries has some very good observations on the recent trend to broadcast celebrity chefs swearing like sailors. Be sure to click through to the NY Times story that prompted her thoughts on the subject. Cooking for Pope Benedict I have a school friend in Italy who designs ceramic tiles and plates. I called and asked if he could do this in time. He said he could, so I flew to Minori, Italy, my birthplace. I told him I needed a 12-inch plate with the Vatican logo in the center. At the same time I wanted to create something that showed my dedication to my Catholic upbringing and my cultural background. So I decided each plate would be hand-painted with the logo in the center sur

Mouth Wide Open by John Thorne ...

... begun over at Forgotten Classics where you'll also find loads of cooking links and a podcast highlight for Baba the Storyteller. Enjoy!

Cooking the Books

You know this is not an everyday book club when the moderator announces ground rules for the gathering: 1.Wash your hands. 2.Don't throw knives. Dallas Morning News Clearly it's a trend ... book clubs where you read and then get together to cook the recipes. There is the story linked to above from our newspaper and now I see this story about a similar thing from the blog at Parties That Cook . I never really stopped to think about how many sorts of books feature food and sometimes recipes until reading these articles. Also, it cracked me up thinking of how many errors the book club cooks have found ...

Sorry I Missed You; Back Soon!

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On the road to visit my parents ... with limited internet access. Emails and comments will be answered, just not very quickly.

"On Food and Cooking" - Is the Updated Version Better?

I am reposting this review and comparison from early 2005 because many of the people dropping by now weren't coming by then. Recently I pulled out both books for a similar comparison to that below and again was struck by their complementary nature. On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee Anyone who is really serious about cooking already knows all about On Food and Cooking. This classic work was the first to look at how real science relates to cooking. It has influenced major chefs, the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), and plain old regular cooks like me. I remember how amazed I was when reading about food properties and realizing how I could use some of the principles when I cooked. When I heard about the new 25th anniversary edition coming out I could not wait to get my hands on it. Of course, I haven't read the entire book yet but I must say that this is much more approachable and spends more time relating the science directly to the cooking. There is quite a bit more infor

Some Fine Art to Get the Week Started

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Watercolor: Lemons and Pears by Belinda Del Pesco. Click through the link to see more of her beautiful work.

Product Review: Snapple Anti-Oxidant Water

Me, I'm old-school. If I want vitamins, I take a tablet (if not actually upping the quantity of fruits and vegetables in my diet, which is my really preferred old-school way). If I want water, I turn on the faucet. So I'm not really Snapple's market. Although I do laugh every time I see it drunk on 30 Rock, especially after the episode about gratuitous marketing plugs on television (Snapple is a very good sport, I must say). I also like their ad ... check it out above. When Snapple sent me a sampler of their variously flavored anti-oxidant water, I thought it only fair to test with my contacts in their true market ... high school and college age kids. Before the college kids got out of the house with their samples, we discovered a crucial factor ... these bottles don't bounce when dropped ... they shatter. So I can tell you that our boxer liked one flavor (can't remember which it was) very well as we enlisted her aid in cleaning the floor. The high schoolers' r

Gone Til Tuesday ...

I am going out of town and will have spotty computer access at best. I will return emails and check comments occasionally as I am able.

Baked Penne alla Carbonara

A quick recipe to peruse or try out ... I made this for a group of Rose's friends when she had about 10 of them over before a scavenger hunt. It was a big hit and I still get comments occasionally from the kids when they drop by. Anyone who knows teenagers knows how rare that is! My only comment is that something separated or rendered a lot of oil in the bottom of the casserole after baking. Perhaps making the sauce with milk instead of cream (which seemed overdoing it at the time but I followed the recipe. That is the only troubleshooting though ... From Perfect Party Food by Diane Phillips. Serves 10 as a side dish 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter 1/2 cup chopped shallots 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 1/4 cup flour 1-1/2 cups heavy cream (I will use whole milk in the future) 1/2 cup chicken broth 1-1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan 1/2 to 1-1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, to taste Salt (optional) to taste 1 pound penne pasta, cooked according to package directions u

Well Said!

When did it become sinful to fulfill a natural biological necessity for one’s survival? A person should not feel guilty about eating food -- unless they eat too much of it and be guilty of gluttony. People should feel guilty about sin. It is as if the bar that was set to judge one’s degree of guilt in the heart is no longer determined by the amount, nature, or degree of sin or sins one commits, but instead, by today’s standards, a guilty heart is the result of a high calorie diet. Since when did it become the case that the lower one’s caloric intake means the less guilty and sinful one is, while the higher one’s caloric intake means the contrary? With this line of reasoning one would assume that the starving in Africa are the pure and righteous of the world, while every person who dines on a Thickburger from Hardee’s is surely one bite from eternal damnation. Paul at Alive and Young puts his finger on a lot of the problem in making food a social topic the way that some do. Don't g

Catalan Traditions: Calçotada.

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Just when I thought that I knew soooooo much about cooking and ingredients from everywhere ... calçotada pops up. Learn all about it at Barcelona Photoblog including the details about traditions in eating it. Mmmmm, now that sounds good!