01 April 2009
Take 2: NaBloPoMo Day One
I'm doing NaBloPoMo for April... and hopefully I will continue to do this until the end of April. The theme for this month is growing up, which is something that I have contemplated heavily in the past year. Since May, I've graduated from college, moved across the country, started graduate school, and gotten married. The newness of all of these (except for the married part) has basically worn off to the point of dealing with the fact that there's really no going back and that's a scary proposition... so join me this month as I blog through the realities of being old and, of course, cooking.
05 March 2009
Salt Manifesto
I'm back... for a moment, mostly because I've been stewing about it ever since I posted this on facebook earlier today. What is *this* exactly? Some company in Tennessee is selling Christian salt as an alternative to kosher salt. I didn't mean to start a religious discussion, but I think I did and I'd like to clarify my position. I don't blame the whole of Christianity for this product, but the other sectors of my life tend to not come out with such exploitative products.
I think that this product comes from a place of ignorance. What exactly *is* kosher salt? Well, kosher salt is actually a misnomer. It should really be called "koshering salt" and, really, any salt can be used as koshering salt because it's purpose is to make meat kosher by drawing blood out from animals because blood is not to be consumed under kosher law. Koshering salt is used for this process because the grain size is bigger and irregular. Chefs use it because it's easier to pinch and it tastes better. If you don't believe me, try it for yourself. Table salt tastes metallic, unsurprisingly, because it has iodine additives. This was added because iodine deficiency can lead to goiter and, according to the World Health Organization it is the leading preventable cause of mental retardation. Nevertheless, table salt is hard to pinch and distribute equally over food and dissolves easily due to its small, uniform grain size.
So back to the story... my first problem with this product is that it's using the label of "Christianity" to sell itself and anyone who finds religion and belief in God to be the most important aspect of their life should be up in arms immediately. This is a very cheap and offensive act of commercialism. Something as sacred as one's religious identity should never be used to sell a product, especially not for any amount of profit. Weren't the Apostles the people who gave up everything they had in order to serve Jesus? I'm pretty sure that this doesn't fit the bill.
My second major problem with it is that it's totally a lack of understanding on the part of the company as to what koshering salt really is. Let's pretend that koshering salt really is an affront to all of Christianity and there needs to be a response. The big shortfall in Christian salt is that it will be a koshering salt as well. Oops!
...which brings me to my biggest problem with the whole deal. Let's un-suspend our disbelief and see this for what it really is: complete and total cultural insensitivity. It's disgusting, actually. Why is it that something not Christian must have some sort of "response" from the Christian community? Should everything that isn't specifically Christian be seen as an attack? This response seems to stem from a lack of understanding (which is easily rectified by about two minutes on google) and a greater intolerance that will most likely never go away. There is absolutely no threat from koshering salt to Christianity and to exploit the word and, really, everything that it stands for in order to combat some made up threat is offensive on so many different levels.
Okay, I'm going to crawl back into my hole now. Aside from being outraged, I've aced an exam, started my research project all over again, and have been on a diet. I'd give diet recipes, but it turns out that the food isn't that great because, well, fat and carbohydrates are tasty.
I think that this product comes from a place of ignorance. What exactly *is* kosher salt? Well, kosher salt is actually a misnomer. It should really be called "koshering salt" and, really, any salt can be used as koshering salt because it's purpose is to make meat kosher by drawing blood out from animals because blood is not to be consumed under kosher law. Koshering salt is used for this process because the grain size is bigger and irregular. Chefs use it because it's easier to pinch and it tastes better. If you don't believe me, try it for yourself. Table salt tastes metallic, unsurprisingly, because it has iodine additives. This was added because iodine deficiency can lead to goiter and, according to the World Health Organization it is the leading preventable cause of mental retardation. Nevertheless, table salt is hard to pinch and distribute equally over food and dissolves easily due to its small, uniform grain size.
So back to the story... my first problem with this product is that it's using the label of "Christianity" to sell itself and anyone who finds religion and belief in God to be the most important aspect of their life should be up in arms immediately. This is a very cheap and offensive act of commercialism. Something as sacred as one's religious identity should never be used to sell a product, especially not for any amount of profit. Weren't the Apostles the people who gave up everything they had in order to serve Jesus? I'm pretty sure that this doesn't fit the bill.
My second major problem with it is that it's totally a lack of understanding on the part of the company as to what koshering salt really is. Let's pretend that koshering salt really is an affront to all of Christianity and there needs to be a response. The big shortfall in Christian salt is that it will be a koshering salt as well. Oops!
...which brings me to my biggest problem with the whole deal. Let's un-suspend our disbelief and see this for what it really is: complete and total cultural insensitivity. It's disgusting, actually. Why is it that something not Christian must have some sort of "response" from the Christian community? Should everything that isn't specifically Christian be seen as an attack? This response seems to stem from a lack of understanding (which is easily rectified by about two minutes on google) and a greater intolerance that will most likely never go away. There is absolutely no threat from koshering salt to Christianity and to exploit the word and, really, everything that it stands for in order to combat some made up threat is offensive on so many different levels.
Okay, I'm going to crawl back into my hole now. Aside from being outraged, I've aced an exam, started my research project all over again, and have been on a diet. I'd give diet recipes, but it turns out that the food isn't that great because, well, fat and carbohydrates are tasty.
17 February 2009
hiatus
A bunch of my favorite food blogs are posting about different weight management tactics that they're currently employing. I feel like I should do the same, though, I'm not sure that I'm actually doing anything well enough now to claim that I'm trying to be healthy, but I did join a gym. In reality, I've come to a point where the only way for me to deal with every day life is to eat... probably more than is good for reasons of emotional and physical health.
I've come to the conclusion over the past six months or so that the game is up and I'm no longer good at or willing to pretend that I'm any good at this science business. I've mostly come to the decision to try out something new after I get my masters, but it's not going to be easy getting to the point where I even get my masters. Since this isn't livejournal, I won't go into the gory details of my state of mind, but sorting out the day-to-day stuff is why I haven't been posting. I've cooked a bit and even made a bunch of desserts, but I never took any pictures.
I'll post in the future when I get my shit together, but for now, I think I'm on hiatus. :)
I've come to the conclusion over the past six months or so that the game is up and I'm no longer good at or willing to pretend that I'm any good at this science business. I've mostly come to the decision to try out something new after I get my masters, but it's not going to be easy getting to the point where I even get my masters. Since this isn't livejournal, I won't go into the gory details of my state of mind, but sorting out the day-to-day stuff is why I haven't been posting. I've cooked a bit and even made a bunch of desserts, but I never took any pictures.
I'll post in the future when I get my shit together, but for now, I think I'm on hiatus. :)
31 January 2009
Cupcake Calamities
This cupcake tastes like crap. Well, maybe that's an overstatement. This cupcake tastes like eggs. It's the same taste that I recall from my childhood when I demanded homemade cupcakes and then asked later why they tasted so much like chicken. I suppose that is one of the perils of making homemade cupcakes. Since the cupcake tasted so bad, I decided to use that entire batch to practice frosting cupcakes and it's mostly not pretty. This is why I decided to cover it in ugly pink nonpareil zits... erm, I mean sprinkles.
I took the recipe from the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook and was disappointed. The cookbook is really hit-or-miss and this time it was MISS with a capital everything. It seemed simple enough:
Yellow cupcake recipe
1.5c cake flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2/3c sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs, room temperature
6 tbs butter, melted
2/3c buttermilk
whisk together cake flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda to combine. in the bowl of your pink KitschnAid StandMixer, beat eggs and vanilla and add in melted butter and sugar. Sift in the dry ingredients in 1/3 increments. Bake for 20+/-2 minutes in a 325deg oven. Makes 12 lackluster, eggy cupcakes.
Not wanting to have failed this cupcake challenge, I moved on to a different cookbook. A month or so after we moved to Austin, my great aunt mailed me her old cookbook that she used to share with her mother (my great-grandmother). I can't even tell how old it is, but it has colorful photos of crazy looking food, including pinwheel party sandwiches made from unsliced white sandwich bread and deviled ham spread. It makes my tummy hurt just thinking about it. Nevertheless, it seemed that this might hold the key to my cupcake conundrum and I found this recipe for silver white cake:
1 1/8 c cake flour
3/4 c sugar
1.75 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 c shortening
1/2 c milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 egg whites
combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, shortening, and 1/3c of the milk on low speed for 30s. scrape-y scrape-y the side of the bowl. Beat on high for 2 minutes. Add in the rest of the milk and the egg whites and beat on high for another two minutes. Bake for 20 minutes in a 350 oven. Makes another 12 cupcakes, but this time less eggy, more crazy white.
These cupcakes were *pale*. I suppose all the yellow is taken out with the lack of butter and egg yolk. Most of the egginess was taken out as well, but it had a very delicate flavor that didn't really match well with the milk chocolate frosting that I made (which would have gone perfectly with the yellow cupcakes if they hadn't, um, sucked so badly).
Milk Chocolate frosting
10 oz milk chocolate chips
1 tbs corn syrup
1 tsp salt
1/2 c heavy cream, boiling
1/2 c confectioners sugar
8 tbs butter, chilled
Boil heavy cream in a small saucepan. While it heats up, add chocolate chips, corn syrup, and salt into a food processor and process for a bit to break up the chips. Once the cream is boiling, remove from heat and pour into the food processor as it's processing. Once thoroughly combined, add in the confectioners sugar and then add in the butter in pieces. Once the mixture is thoroughly... mixed, remove from the food processor and chill for at least an hour before frosting so it can set up and cool down because you did just dump a boiling liquid into a food processor...
I think the frosting came out best of all, which is disappointing because I don't like chocolate. Although, now I at least know that I have a go-to chocolate buttercream frosting if I ever need one in a pinch.
So why all this baking? The best day of the year is coming up in exactly two weeks from today: MY BIRTHDAY!!! :) I'm having a birthday/valentine's day party on the 13th. It's one of those let's-celebrate-my-bday/vday-by-you-bringing-me-gifts-of-alcohol-which-you-will-then-consume sort of event. I want to make lots of heart shaped sweet things. Let me know if you want to come. :) Anywho.
In anticipation of all of this, I've been trying my hand at candy making in a rather unsuccessful way. It turns out that i can't actually read my candy thermometer because I'm dumb. Oops. I made fleur de sel caramel *hard* candies by accident (and I do mean hard) because one side of the candy thermometer is in increments of 10 and the other is in increments of 20 and the temperature that I want it at, of course, has no numbers but "terms". I was rather peeved, but the candy is still good (although it's filling-breakingly chewy.) However, I will give it another go and in anticipation of that highly anticipated post, I'll leave you with a picture that shows my candy making process. ;)
26 January 2009
Mornay After Sauce
I think I made Colby sick with breakfast. That was definitely not the intention. :(
A couple nights ago we went to a wine and cheese party thrown on our behalf by our good friends Chris+Elizabeth in celebration of the fact that we got married. My officemates and most of my incoming class came and it was a really good time. This morning was a little rough and I didn't get up until 1 (oops!), but I checked the interwebs (because that's what you do when you have an internet addiction) and found that The Delicious Life is sort of posting again. The current featured post was of eggs florentine and I realized that I had all the materials on hand for a surprise breakfast for Colby.
Eggs Florentine ala the delicious by way of my kitschn
extra virgin olive oil
1/2 a small onion, diced because you're not that into onions
3 cloves of garlic, minced because you're actually really into garlic
3 eggs because you've lost patience with poaching
whatever amount of fresh spinach you have on hand
Mornay sauce
same thing with whatever what cheese you have
2 tbs butter
1 tsp salt
1 c milk
Fill a shallow, but deep enough saucepan with water + 2 tbs vinegar and bring to a simmer. Poach 3 eggs (which took about 5 min each). Saute onions and garlic in olive oil with a pinch of salt until translucent. Add in fresh spinach until sufficiently wilted. In a separate saucepan make the mornay sauce: melt 2 tbs butter and then add flour, stirring well to combine along with 1 tsp salt. Add in 1 c milk and stir for awhile over medium-ish heat until thickened. Once thickened, add in some amount of white cheese (I used mozzarella and swiss). Plate with spinach+onion+garlic on bottom, with poached egg (or two) atop covered in the sauce.
It turned out really well and I was tickled pink that I could make this a) as a "pantry" dish and b) as something to clean out my fridge. I was less tickled when Colby ran off to the bathroom in pain. I think that this might have stemmed from the continued use of the raw milk. I figured that since I was cooking the milk, that the bacteria would be less... invasive, but I guess I was wrong. I've learned my raw milk lesson and never again will I buy it.
A couple nights ago we went to a wine and cheese party thrown on our behalf by our good friends Chris+Elizabeth in celebration of the fact that we got married. My officemates and most of my incoming class came and it was a really good time. This morning was a little rough and I didn't get up until 1 (oops!), but I checked the interwebs (because that's what you do when you have an internet addiction) and found that The Delicious Life is sort of posting again. The current featured post was of eggs florentine and I realized that I had all the materials on hand for a surprise breakfast for Colby.
Eggs Florentine ala the delicious by way of my kitschn
extra virgin olive oil
1/2 a small onion, diced because you're not that into onions
3 cloves of garlic, minced because you're actually really into garlic
3 eggs because you've lost patience with poaching
whatever amount of fresh spinach you have on hand
Mornay sauce
same thing with whatever what cheese you have
2 tbs butter
1 tsp salt
1 c milk
Fill a shallow, but deep enough saucepan with water + 2 tbs vinegar and bring to a simmer. Poach 3 eggs (which took about 5 min each). Saute onions and garlic in olive oil with a pinch of salt until translucent. Add in fresh spinach until sufficiently wilted. In a separate saucepan make the mornay sauce: melt 2 tbs butter and then add flour, stirring well to combine along with 1 tsp salt. Add in 1 c milk and stir for awhile over medium-ish heat until thickened. Once thickened, add in some amount of white cheese (I used mozzarella and swiss). Plate with spinach+onion+garlic on bottom, with poached egg (or two) atop covered in the sauce.
It turned out really well and I was tickled pink that I could make this a) as a "pantry" dish and b) as something to clean out my fridge. I was less tickled when Colby ran off to the bathroom in pain. I think that this might have stemmed from the continued use of the raw milk. I figured that since I was cooking the milk, that the bacteria would be less... invasive, but I guess I was wrong. I've learned my raw milk lesson and never again will I buy it.
20 January 2009
Three things
Three things about me that are a little bit, not at all, and possibly obvious:
1. I am an emotional eater.
For instance, I just downed a clementine, several crackers, and some goat cheese because the thought of staying in grad school for the next five years is, quite frankly, horrible. I feel like I've painted myself into a corner because yes, I'm better than the general populace at what I do, but I'm not terribly good at it either because it's really hard... but I suppose that's a different story for another post.
I've found that when I'm super upset about things, usually boy related, I tend to not eat. This explains why I weighed the same in high school as I did in 6th grade; This is also why I'm getting rather fat. You see, I'm terribly happy with my personal life because I've married someone who will love me no matter what, so the inclination to starve myself out of spite, sadness, or even self-preservation has basically left me. You could call that a "good" thing, and I suppose that it's actually good, and not just "good", but grad school leaves me almost no time or motivation to exercise. This is why I made a call to Curves the other day and scheduled an appointment for Thursday.
Yes, I will be joining legions of middle-aged women of north Austin on a quest to regain our figures... or something. Wish me luck so that I leave not smelling of old people perfume.
2. I was recently hit by a car. As in me, the person.
It happened at the intersection of Jollyville and Balcones Woods. There was a red light at Balcones Woods and I was about to cross the street. The "walk" sign came on and so I began walking. After walking nearly 1/3 of the way across, I see this white Altima start to move. If you've never seen an Altima, this is sort of what it looked like
Given that I was nearly in the middle of the road, running back to the curb wasn't really an option, so I stared right at the driver, who then looked in my direction and KEPT GOING. I fell over, as Julie vs. Car means that Julie loses every time and then got up. The guy rolled down his window, asked if I was okay and then sped off as quickly as he could. I was flabbergasted and then upon talking to the police department discovered that the only thing I could do was to file a complete police report, but a) I didn't really want to waste the city's time and money and b) was mostly fine except for a bruise on my elbow that you could barely see. I guess this is why some places ban "right turn on red" when it is sometimes translated into "kill pedestrians to beat the light."
3. I am moderately lactose intolerant.
One of the most comforting, happy-childhood invoking tastes is American cheese with pita. This is due, in part, to the fact that I grew up in a middle class white suburban family that was um... a little trashy. I have no idea why the pita fits in, but it does. My enjoyment of dairy extends far beyond simply liking American cheese (and actually, I'm not quite sure that I even *like* American cheese, or if it just tastes like home); I'm absolutely in love with things made of cow milk including... cow milk. The other day we went to Central Market because we were bored and got a bunch of random groceries, including raw whole milk.
I had tried this milk (from Remember When Dairy) before in a sample offering several months ago and it was absolutely delicious. Reading up on raw milk led me to believe that it was possible that raw milk is better for those who are lactose intolerant because, given the lack of pasteurization, the healthy bacteria that are found in yogurt remained and feasted on some of the lactose, doing exactly that of which I am incapable. When I finally got the milk, I brought it home and poured it out. It was absolutely disgusting. The cream had solidified and would not go back to solid. Yes, I could have heated it, but that would have basically defeated the purpose of raw milk and also its deliciousness. After pouring some out to shake it better, the cream basically stayed solid, but at least this time the chunks were littler. I tried some, but it was just too hard to drink because, seriously, who wants to drink milk with chunks of cream bobbing up and down? I went to the website and emailed them and got this response:
It was, perhaps, not the most grammatically appealing email I had ever received, but it seemed like a good step in the right direction. I called Mark the following day and asked him about the safety and status of my milk and he explained that it was perfectly safe to drink, but that cows sometimes have different cream content in their milk based on the season and what they've been eating recently. Apparently there's so much cream in the milk that it basically solidifies... so it works like carbon-enhanced stars, come to think of it. :) I took this advice from farmer Mark and tried drinking a glass earlier tonight and am now currently paying for it in spades. It turns out that the metabolic pathway of lactose digestion in the body is extraordinarily complicated and even if I shut my eyes and pretend I have the genetic mutation that allows me to drink the nourishment that would ordinarily go to baby animals from their lactating mothers beyond infancy, I still can't drink milk. :(
My lactose intolerance is extraordinarily unfortunate, especially in light of the fact that our friend Chris and Elizabeth (one of our two sets of married couple friends that we hang out with) are throwing us a wine and cheese party on Friday in our behalf celebrating our marriage. So to end this rather rambling post, I present you with a picture from dinner in Long Beach. That was the best cioppino I have ever had in my life. This statement means little since I've only had it like... twice, but it was still a really amazing dish.
See? I'm posting pictures. :) It just takes me a little longer...
1. I am an emotional eater.
For instance, I just downed a clementine, several crackers, and some goat cheese because the thought of staying in grad school for the next five years is, quite frankly, horrible. I feel like I've painted myself into a corner because yes, I'm better than the general populace at what I do, but I'm not terribly good at it either because it's really hard... but I suppose that's a different story for another post.
I've found that when I'm super upset about things, usually boy related, I tend to not eat. This explains why I weighed the same in high school as I did in 6th grade; This is also why I'm getting rather fat. You see, I'm terribly happy with my personal life because I've married someone who will love me no matter what, so the inclination to starve myself out of spite, sadness, or even self-preservation has basically left me. You could call that a "good" thing, and I suppose that it's actually good, and not just "good", but grad school leaves me almost no time or motivation to exercise. This is why I made a call to Curves the other day and scheduled an appointment for Thursday.
Yes, I will be joining legions of middle-aged women of north Austin on a quest to regain our figures... or something. Wish me luck so that I leave not smelling of old people perfume.
2. I was recently hit by a car. As in me, the person.
It happened at the intersection of Jollyville and Balcones Woods. There was a red light at Balcones Woods and I was about to cross the street. The "walk" sign came on and so I began walking. After walking nearly 1/3 of the way across, I see this white Altima start to move. If you've never seen an Altima, this is sort of what it looked like
Given that I was nearly in the middle of the road, running back to the curb wasn't really an option, so I stared right at the driver, who then looked in my direction and KEPT GOING. I fell over, as Julie vs. Car means that Julie loses every time and then got up. The guy rolled down his window, asked if I was okay and then sped off as quickly as he could. I was flabbergasted and then upon talking to the police department discovered that the only thing I could do was to file a complete police report, but a) I didn't really want to waste the city's time and money and b) was mostly fine except for a bruise on my elbow that you could barely see. I guess this is why some places ban "right turn on red" when it is sometimes translated into "kill pedestrians to beat the light."
3. I am moderately lactose intolerant.
One of the most comforting, happy-childhood invoking tastes is American cheese with pita. This is due, in part, to the fact that I grew up in a middle class white suburban family that was um... a little trashy. I have no idea why the pita fits in, but it does. My enjoyment of dairy extends far beyond simply liking American cheese (and actually, I'm not quite sure that I even *like* American cheese, or if it just tastes like home); I'm absolutely in love with things made of cow milk including... cow milk. The other day we went to Central Market because we were bored and got a bunch of random groceries, including raw whole milk.
I had tried this milk (from Remember When Dairy) before in a sample offering several months ago and it was absolutely delicious. Reading up on raw milk led me to believe that it was possible that raw milk is better for those who are lactose intolerant because, given the lack of pasteurization, the healthy bacteria that are found in yogurt remained and feasted on some of the lactose, doing exactly that of which I am incapable. When I finally got the milk, I brought it home and poured it out. It was absolutely disgusting. The cream had solidified and would not go back to solid. Yes, I could have heated it, but that would have basically defeated the purpose of raw milk and also its deliciousness. After pouring some out to shake it better, the cream basically stayed solid, but at least this time the chunks were littler. I tried some, but it was just too hard to drink because, seriously, who wants to drink milk with chunks of cream bobbing up and down? I went to the website and emailed them and got this response:
The perocn to answer that is my husband, Mark. His number is xxx-xxx-xxxx
Ometimes the milk gets puched back in the cooler and may get frozen..if thats the case.The milk is fine..but please call Mark and ask him..if it turns out that the milk was a bad batch for some reason...we will definatle make it right
please call Mark and let know about the problem
Thanks DeOnna
It was, perhaps, not the most grammatically appealing email I had ever received, but it seemed like a good step in the right direction. I called Mark the following day and asked him about the safety and status of my milk and he explained that it was perfectly safe to drink, but that cows sometimes have different cream content in their milk based on the season and what they've been eating recently. Apparently there's so much cream in the milk that it basically solidifies... so it works like carbon-enhanced stars, come to think of it. :) I took this advice from farmer Mark and tried drinking a glass earlier tonight and am now currently paying for it in spades. It turns out that the metabolic pathway of lactose digestion in the body is extraordinarily complicated and even if I shut my eyes and pretend I have the genetic mutation that allows me to drink the nourishment that would ordinarily go to baby animals from their lactating mothers beyond infancy, I still can't drink milk. :(
My lactose intolerance is extraordinarily unfortunate, especially in light of the fact that our friend Chris and Elizabeth (one of our two sets of married couple friends that we hang out with) are throwing us a wine and cheese party on Friday in our behalf celebrating our marriage. So to end this rather rambling post, I present you with a picture from dinner in Long Beach. That was the best cioppino I have ever had in my life. This statement means little since I've only had it like... twice, but it was still a really amazing dish.
See? I'm posting pictures. :) It just takes me a little longer...
15 January 2009
Obligatory
Because I haven't actually blogged about the wedding... it was a very traditional wedding, which is probably surprising to most of my friends, but that meant that it was pretty.
The kiss!
I was wearing 4.75 in heels (apparently. this is according to David's Bridal, but the box said 4.5in)... so I decided to take a seat during pictures or I was going to stop smiling.
The kiss!
I was wearing 4.75 in heels (apparently. this is according to David's Bridal, but the box said 4.5in)... so I decided to take a seat during pictures or I was going to stop smiling.
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