Flaming Holiday Punch!

Josey Packard from Drink demonstrates how to make Flaming Holiday Punch on The Rachel Maddow Show.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

'Tis the season... almost

I know, I know... It isn't even Thanksgiving yet and I'm posting something about Christmas. I was going to wait until Black Friday, but I was afraid I'd forget to do this. So, here's "Christmas is Ruined" by Anna and the Family.  It's sure to warm your heart and bring back fond holiday memories (or not):

The video is also a finalist in the Chicago Tribune's holiday song contest.  Click here to vote for it, and to view the other finalists.

Sip & Shop @ Grand, with special guests!

Grand, LUPEC, and The Boston Shaker are having October's Sip & Shop this Saturday at Grand from 2-6. LUPEC will be serving up a spooky Halloween Punch, and Grand and The Boston Shaker will offer a 10% discount on everything.

In addition to sales and spirits, two special guests will be at the Sip & Shop from 2-4. Jill DeGoff and Dale "King Cocktail" DeGroff will be on hand to sign their books, Lush Life: Portraits from the Bar (Jill) and The Essential Cocktail and The Craft of the Cocktail (Dale).

Sounds like a fun time!

(Btw, tickets to LUPEC's Tiki Bash will be on sale as well, but excluded from the 10% sale. It is a fundraiser for On the Rise! after all.)

Mad Men cocktail guide

A few days ago I stumbled upon the Mad Men Cocktail Guide. It's a list of 1960's cocktails complete with recipes and pictures. Seeing that the martini is made by rinsing the glass with the vermouth, then pouring out the vermouth, I'd say the recipes are based on how the drinks were made during that era. Interestingly, though, the Manhattan on the page actually uses its share of vermouth, but still uses a very small proportion of vermouth if not a "whisper."

Caramel cocktail

My boyfriend wanted a caramel cocktail for an upcoming party we were throwing. As he put it, he wants a "sexy" drink to offer - something flashy in addition to the more traditional offerings. So I did some poking around and found the recipe for a Liquid Caramel. The recipe calls for Bailey's, coffee liqueur, butterscotch schnapps, and milk. Since out of those ingredients I only had Kahlua, I had to improvise.

Wary of butterscotch schnapps - it seems like something that could be great or horribly, horibly awful - I decided to try making homemade caramel.

After letting the caramel cool for a bit, I improvised my cocktail:

1 oz Kahlua

1 oz Godiva chocolate liqueur

1 oz vodka (Snow Queen, from Kazakhstan - it's organic)

1 oz light cream

1 oz caramel

It was quite tasty, but I'm not sure I could taste the caramel much. My boyfriend liked it, so that's a plus. Maybe if I made the cocktail after the caramel had spent the night in the refrigerator I'd have a stronger caramel flavor. After all, the caramel sauce was still very warm when I made the drink. Or maybe I'm just too accustomed to store bought caramel sauce that's full of corn syrup, corn starch, and sometimes butter and cream.

Update 10/18/09: My boyfriend thought the drink was too sweet, and with Kahlua, chocolate liqueur, and caramel that isn't much of a surprise. To cut down the sweetness I substituted the Kahlua with 1 ounce of coffee. That gave the drink a stronger coffee taste, and I think it played off the caramel well, too. We decided to call the cocktail the Caramel Sexy. (And the guests enjoyed the drink!)

Caramel sauce from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook

I decided to try making homemade caramel sauce using the recipe from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook. It takes a while, but is very simple. Heat one cup of white sugar over low heat in a thick bottomed pan (so you don't burn the sugar). Swirl the sugar around the pot until it melts. It takes a while before it melts, but once it starts, it can go fairly quickly. I discovered that in the begin it's best to let the pot sit for a bit with occasional shakes to move the sugar around. Once the sugar has melted, pour in one cup of boiling water. Warning: Boiling sugar is MUCH hotter than boiling water. When you pour the water in, the mixture will foam and bubble a lot. Continue to stir over low for 3-4 minutes, or until all the sugar has melted again (the water will cool the sugar and you'll have lumps for a bit).

After it had cooled down enough to taste without scorching my tongue, I tried some. It tasted more like simple syrup than the thick, heavy caramel sauce you get on ice cream or your calorie-laden Starbuck's drink. This might be because the sauce needs to cool and thicken some more, or my tastebuds have been corrupted by the commercially made caramel sauces that are full of corn syrup, cornstarch, and preservatives. It also might be because unlike other recipes, this one doesn't include cream or butter. But, without cream or butter, this sauce will last indefinitely.

A gin Alexander? Really?

Last night I went to Drink and asked for an Alexander, which is usually brandy, creme de cacao, cream, and nutmeg. The bartender suggested that instead of brandy I try it with gin. She said that you'd think gin and chocolate don't go together, but they kinda do. Being game, I said, "Sure! Make me one!"

And... She was right!! Gin and chocolate do go together! I think the bite from the gin lightens the drink. Further, if I let the drink rest on my tongue I could get a slight cherry taste with the chocolate. But, maybe that's just me.

The Boston Shaker moves to Davis!

The Boston Shaker is moving to Davis Square! They are shooting for a November opening. This is great news. For starters, the new location is very T friendly. I can easily get to its current location in Union Square by car, but if I didn't have a car it'd be a different story. Plus, more space for more product! I'm especially excited about this. While I have a good set of cocktail glasses I could definitely use more. And along with more cocktail glasses there'll be more bitters, cocktail gear, books, etc.

So I've made a mental note to check out 69 Holland St in Somerville in November. Perhaps for some Christmas shopping...

H-Mart re-cap

Last Tuesday night I went to H-Mart, the long awaited Korean supermarket in Burlington. If you took all the inventory in every single Chinatown grocery market, turned 90% of the inventory into Korean items, then filled a Super Stop & Shop with it, and had the people from Target do the merchandising you'd have H-Mart.

I got there at 8, so I only had an hour before the store closed. The food court was still busy so I skipped that. Even though there weren't lines at most places, all the seats were taken. The rest of the store was still busy, too. It wasn't packed, and I didn't have to wait long to checkout an hour later, but there was a good number of people there for that time of night. I'd say the parking was 90% full. Because this is the only H-Mart in New England it's hard to tell if it's this busy because it just opened, or if it will continue to be this busy because it's now the go-to place for Korean food, as well as East Asian food staples in general.

H-Mart has an entire kimchi section - I had no idea there was such a thing as chive kimchi. They had jars of cucumber kimchi, but the eat by date was 10/18, and I doubt I could eat that much cucumber kimchi by then, but it seems weird that kimchi would go bad... Isn't that the point of kimchi? Anyway, next to the kimchi were packages of fresh made panchan (Korean side dishes). I bought a package of tasty julienned dried squid - it doesn't look like squid so I'm be able to eat it. I think they also had sprouts and black beans and other stuff, but I didn't see the soy fish cake stuff I like a lot, or the stir fried soy beans. I'll have to ask someone what the Korean names are for those, and how to make them in case H-Mart doesn't carry them pre-made.

In the noodle section I saw bags of what seemed to be all different brands of chapchae noodles, as well as buckwheat noodles, and Vietnamese vermicelli. In a refrigerated case across from the meat area there were refrigerated noodles, fish cakes, and bean curd. I bought a bag of the noodles - it's like fresh pasta with sauce. You cook the noodles for a short time, and then mix with the sauce. I haven't tried it yet.

The produce section looked really gorgeous, but I didn't see anything exotic. I'm sure there were Asian pears around, and probably some Asian fruit, I just didn't see them, but I also didn't spend a lot of time there. They also had regular American food like apples and zucchini.

The meat and fish section was really impressive, I think mostly because I saw cuts of meat that you don't normally see in Stop & Shop. I saw tongue, but sliced up so it doesn't look like tongue - it looks like regular meat. They also had thin sliced rib eye and other types of meat for stir frying or hot pot. I was excited to see marinated chicken, pork, and rib eye for making bulgogi without making the marinade yourself. I bought nearly 2 pounds of marinated rib eye strips and tried some last night. It was good, but not all the pieces were cut into strips, so it seemed a little tough. That or I cooked it too long. If you want to save money you can just by rib eye cut into strips and make your own marinade. I don't know what the price difference is, but the marinated rib eye was around $2-3/pound. If, on the other hand, you want to be ridiculously extravagant, you can also spend $15-17/pound and buy strips of short rib meat that's been cut from the bone and rolled into neat little pinwheels... Kalbi, but without the problem of holding slippery bones with chopsticks! Although then it wouldn't be cooked on the bone, so it might not be as tasty...

And they had lots of fish. It looked beautiful. Clams, mussels, whole fish, etc. I didn't look at it, but I may have seen sushi grade tuna! Speaking of fish, I did see somewhere in the store, maybe near the kimchi, jars of cooked octopus.

As you might expect, they had tons of different soy sauces and sesame oils. I had no idea there was such a thing as dark/black sesame oil... And I think I saw rice syrup, too.

One downside, and this really isn't H-Mart's fault, is that a lot of the processed foods I looked at - ramen soup, fish cake tubes - has MSG in it.

There's also regular, American food there, too. I didn't look too closely, but I did see Welch's grape jelly, regular cereal, etc. So you can do your regular grocery shopping along with getting Asian stuff, which is a nice time and gas saver.

The store, like a Super Stop & Shop, has a house wares section. Unlike Stop & Shop, H-Mart has more rice cookers than I've ever seen before, at least in the US, as well as serving bowls and lots of other cookware.

In addition to groceries and a food court, H-Mart has smaller stores within, such as a Hello Kitty shop, a small jewelry area and a home furnishings area where you can buy Asian chests and kimchi refrigerators (in-count half fridges - like European style refrigerators; in Korea they're marketed for storing your kimchi away from your regular food) and a flat panel TV (I only saw one model).

It's on the Middlesex Turnpike near the Burlington Mall. H-Mart is in the same shopping center as Jo-Ann Fabrics and Market Basket. Fortunately, there's a traffic light so you're not stuck in the chicken lane waiting to turn left. The store itself is behind the main part of the shopping area, but they have signs pointing you to it. Be careful, though, but the mini-access roads are a little weird and people unfamiliar with the parking lot might cut you off. I nearly got sideswiped when I was leaving - I think the other driver didn't realize they were supposed to yield. The store is in an old La-Z-Boy building, and it feels really huge - bigger than a Super Stop & Shop, but I can't be certain if it really is bigger or just feels bigger.

Korean recipe blog

Plusonecook is on a mission to teach us all how to make Korean food using every day ingredients. Her blog is at http://plusonecook.wordpress.com. The recipes look very easy, and very, very tasty! And now that H-Mart is open, I should be able to make more Korean dishes.

Which reminds me, I plan on posting a review of H-Mart in the near future. I went there the other night and spent far too little time there...

H-Mart opens today!!!

H-Mart, a Korean grocery chain, is opening a store in Burlington this weekend. I plan on going sometime in the next few weeks. I am deliberately avoiding opening weekend because I expect it will be a mob scene. The Boston Globe's article notes that the store has an entire aisle dedicated to noodles. From the video that accompanies the article it also appears that H-Mart carries thinly sliced meat suitable for hot pot. I am hoping H-Mart carries cucumber kimchi, as well as the right cut of beef for bulgolgi - I always end up buying meat that's too lean and it doesn't taste right.

There also might be a food court in the store, but the Globe didn't mention it.

The Old Fashioned, as seen on Mad Men

Sunday's episode of Mad Men had a scene in which the main character, Don Draper, makes an Old Fashioned. The recipe I have to make an Old Fashioned uses water, sugar, bitters, and whiskey. You're supposed to muddle the bitters, water, and sugar in a glass until the sugar has dissolved. Then you add a large ice cube followed by whiskey. Stir and serve with a straw.

Don Draper made his Old Fashioned a little differently, but I am sure it was the way they were made in the late 50's early 60's. He tossed a sugar cube in the glass, added a dash or two (or three - the bf thought Draper added a lot of bitters). In a separate mixing glass Draper added lots of ice, followed by rye whiskey (it looked he used Old Overholt), and soda. He then did a quick muddle of the sugar and bitters in the glass. This was followed by a quick stir of the whiskey, ice, and soda* in the mixing glass. He then poured the whiskey mix into the glass.

One thing that caught my eye was the muddling. I doubt the sugar was dissolved when he finished. I'm not sure if his quick muddle followed the method use in the 60's, or if it was a case of TV expediency. It wouldn't be good TV to have him muddling for several minutes, waiting for the sugar to dissolve. Or, perhaps the sugar was dissolved because it sat in bitters while he was pouring the whiskey and soda in the mixing glass. Or maybe Draper was just impatient to get his drink... Or maybe I am just an inefficient muddler ;)

I've made Old Fashioneds at home using the first method, and they taste great. They have a nice smooth, rich taste with just enough sweetness to make me happy. I'm not a fan of soda, but now I'm tempted buy a small bottle and try an old fashioned Don Draper's way.

*I suppose it could have been tonic, but I have a feeling it's soda. I vaguely remember an Old Fashioned recipe that used soda water.

Bertolli Bags

Recently I've been introduced to Bertolli Bags. These are frozen pasta meals that come packaged in, you guessed, bags. Most of them are designed to be cooked either in a microwave or a skillet. Like Lean Cuisine frozen dinners, most of the ingredients are normal, real food. The taste is pretty good, and better than most processed foods. Also, even if you prepare them on the stovetop the cooking time is amazingly quick - around 8-15 minutes.

This week I bought a Bertolli Bag for the oven. It was stuffed shells with shrimp. I haven't tried it yet, but I am looking forward to it. As you might guess, because it's meant to be baked the cooking time is a bit longer, perhaps 20 minutes.

The meals are meant to serve two, and they work well for me and my boyfriend. However, neither of us are big eaters, and the portions are just right for us. If you like to eat a lot, you may wish to have a side dish.

Silent Order

2 oz green Chartreuse

1 oz lime juice

0.5 oz water

basil leaves

A few weeks ago a few of us tried the Silent Order, a cocktail made with green Chartreuse and basil leaves. It was an interesting departure from the usual cocktails. Instead of the standard sweet/sour balance with a spirit (lime/lemon juice + sugar/liqueur + spirit) , the Silent Order offered us a peppery, herbal flavor. I didn't notice the peppery taste until the end. Perhaps the basil oil sinks to the bottom?

I used fresh basil leaves, two per drink. Over each glass I tore one leaf, and then rubbed the rim with one of the torn pieces before dropping them into the glass. Next, I pored the cocktail into the glass, and then I tore the second leaf over the drink before adding it. Another way to use the basil leaves would be to finely chop some and shake with the drink, then garnish using whole basil leaves.

And so it begins...

The Boston Globe is going to start charging to read its content on boston.com.

I suspect this is the beginning of newspapers charging readers to web access. Otherwise, they're going to fold. It'll be interesting what the Globe charges. I'd be willing to pay a small amount.

I also read a suggestion a while back that newspapers should use an iTunes model - a small fee/article. I think that could work financially. After all, I don't read the entire boston.com site, and if I subscribed to the paper edition I certainly wouldn't be reading the entire paper - which is why I don't subscribe to the paper edition. Maybe if I was retired... But, from a public good standpoint, a fee/article model would increase the trend of printing news that people are interested in as opposed to news that's important - I could see entertainment drivel on celebrity gossip getting more emphasis than real news.

Another thought I had was a cable TV model. With Kindle becoming more popular, readers could subscribe to an internet news delivery service that might provide them with access to different papers, e.g., NY Times, WSJ, Boston Globe, etc. And, to be even more hopeful, the service could be more a la carte than the cable TV. I could get my local papers - The Globe, The Herald, The Boston Phoenix, and any other local newspaper (e.g., The Brookline Tab) as the basic service - and choose X number of extra publications.

Heroes @ TT's in August

If you haven't heard about it, Heroes is an 80's alternative music night at TT the Bear's in Central Square. I've been before and it's a fun night - laid back and great music. TT's isn't fancy by any means - it's looking a little worn in places, but in a good way. It reminds me of some of the places I went to in college, which sadly wasn't near any place as remotely cool as Central Square.

This month Heroes will be on the 8th, 15th, and 22nd.


So, if you're into 80's new wave, punk, goth, and techno, you might want to check it out!

Mad Men Yourself

Do you want to be Don Draper? Well, now you can... or at least you can look like you work with Don Draper. AMC has a web page where you can create a sleek, stylish, Mad Men version of you! When you're done, you can save your new image and use it as your Facebook profile pic. And the web page plays awesome early 60's music to boot. So, Mad Men yourself!

I want a flowchart to my heart, too!

The free dating site Ok Cupid now has a blog.

OK Cupid's matching method is purely mathematical. Instead of making you answer psychological questionaires, or squish you into some sort of profiling scheme, the site has you answer other users' questions, both how you would answer the question and how you ideal match would answer the question. Then you indicate how important that question is to them. For example:

Would you date an atheist?

- Yes

- No

Your Ideal Match:

- Yes

- No

Importance:

- Mandatory

- Very Important

- Somewhat Important

- A Little Important

- Irrelevant

Your answers, and your ideal mate's answers, then get thrown into a big mathematical formula that calculates your matchability with other OK Cupid users.

Today, on the OK Cupid blog, the creators announced they have now come up with a way to create a Flowchart to Your Heart - a graphical representation of questions and answers and how it can all result in scoring a date or getting rejected. They don't seem to have released this to masses yet. I hope they do - I really want to see the flowchart to my heart.

Sip & Shop @ Grand, Saturday, June 27th

It's time for another Sip & Shop at Grand this Saturday, June 27th! This time they are featuring Plymouth gin, my favorite gin, which was NOT at Kappy's tonight. Hrmph. But, I digress...

In addition to trying out a cocktail made with an excellent gin, you can buy cocktail gear, cool clothes, and hip furnishings for 10% off.

And, no, I am not employed by Grand... or The Boston Shaker, the cool cocktail store within a store. I just shop there.

No need for an extension cord here

Apartment Therapy had a post showing a rather interesting design idea: a wall full of electrical outlets. I think it looks fab, but it would be a child-proofing nightmare. Plus, that would be some interesting wiring behind the drywall...

The world needs more punk ice cream shops

Herrell's in Allston as about to go independent and break away from the Man, or The Woman in this case. You can read about it here. All I know is that the few times I've been there I got some damn tasty ice cream. Mmmmm... ice cream... *drool*

A few good reads

In summers past I had fantasies of relaxing and reading outside. Sadly, this never really happens. For whatever reason I get caught up puttering around my place, or outside it's too hot, too humid, or too many mosquitoes for me to venture out to my deck. Even sadder is that I'll get sucked into watching some TV show or websurfing. However, I have managed to read a few good books in the past few years, mostly because I belong to a book group.

So, for those of you who are much, much better and finding time to read, here's a small list of books I liked. None of these are beach books. In fact, you would probably find them to be varying degrees of depressing, but that's because they're not fluffy chick lit, which is probably why they had enough of an impact on me that I remember them years after reading them.

Anyway, in no particular order:

The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamant
Set in the early 1800's the novel follows the lives of an informal community of castoffs - almost all women - who live in a part of Cape Ann, MA known as Dogtown.

Breaking the Tongue by Vyvyane Loh
Loh depicts Singapore during World War II and its fall to the Japanese. The hero of the story, Claude Lim, is a schoolboy of Chinese descent who was raised to be British by his Anglophilic father. As Claude is brutally interrogated by the Japanese, he recalls his life and we see his struggle to determine whether he is British or Chinese, and the effects of colonialism on him and those around him.

Leaving Tabasco by Carmen Boullosa
Using magic realism, Boullosa spins a tale of Ulloa's life in a small Mexican village during the 1960's. As Ulloa grows older, the magic begins to disappear and the reader witnesses the events that lead to Ulloa's permanent departure from her birthplace.

Waylaid by Ed Lin
Countering the image of Asian Americans as the Model Minority, Lin tells the story of a 12 year-old boy who's family runs a seedy hotel on the Jersey shore. It's bleak, but I liked it.

Yellow: Stories by Don Lee
A collection of short stories about Asian Americans living on the coast near San Francisco. For some reason, I think the town in the book is based on Half Moon Bay, but I could be wrong.

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
A novel about fate, religion, and relationships set in small town New England. It is also one of the few books that made me laugh out loud while reading it - there's a scene involving a headmaster that had me in tears I was laughing so hard.

The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies
Like Breaking the Tongue, The Welsh Girl examines colonialism and identity against the backdrop of World Ward II, but without brutal torture. Set in Wales, Davies tells the stories of a German POW and the daughter of a Welsh farmer.

Mmmm... pudding... *drool*

I tried Kozy Shack tapioca pudding a few weeks ago when I had a wisdom tooth taken out. I was skeptical since I had been raised to believe that store bought pudding is utterly wretched when compared to homemade pudding (made from scratch!). The only times I eat pudding that isn't made from scratch is when I have nostalgia for the blandly sweet school cafeteria pudding with fake whip cream I remember from my otherwise well-spent youth. It's rare, but it happens, and when it does, I usually buy the fake pudding from the cafeteria at work. Maybe someday I'll had nostalgia for the blandly sweet office cafeteria pudding with fake whip cream of my well-spent adulthood.

However, I digress slightly.

So, I bought some Kozy Shack tapioca pudding since I had been advised to eat cold, soft foods after my wisdom tooth extraction. When I tasted he pudding I was VERY pleasantly surprised! It tasted like homemade! Or at least damn close to homemade! When I checked the ingredients I saw why - all natural. No artficial flavors, no fructose/maltose/unpronounceable chemicals. Just straight up milk, eggs, starch, and tapioca, and whatever else goes into homemade pudding.

Today I tried theKozy Shack chocolate pudding, and like the tapioca, it tasted homemade, or at least damn close to homemade. I am now a definite fan of Kozy Shack pudding. This is a very bad thing for my waistline and arteries... But at least now I can have the pleasure of pudding without having to make it myself (which I've never done).

And, looking at the website I see they have banana pudding! I'll have to hunt some of that down.

Mmmm... pudding...

Drinkboston.com interview w/ Josey Packard of Drink

The first few times I went to Drink Josey Packard was the bartender who served us. The first time I went she made me a Vesper, and another time she made me a damn fine Manhattan. So today I was pleasantly surprised to come across this interview with her on Drinkboston.com.

In addition to bartending, she's also a musician and used to be the lead singer of Chelsea on Fire. Who knew?

Oh, and btw, if you haven't been to Drink you should go!! I like to go when it isn't crowded, because a big part of the fun is sitting at the bar and watching the bartenders do their stuff. It's like watching artists or craftsmen. There's no drink list. You either tell them the name of the drink you want, or you tell them what you're in the mood for and they'll serve up a cocktail that fits the bill. One bartender even made up a cocktail on the fly, and it was killer! And if you don't believe me, then you can trust the Boston Phoenix, which declared Drink home of the Best Artisan Cocktail.

The Globe interviews Adam from The Boston Shaker!

Through Facebook magic I found this Boston Globe article about The Boston Shaker:

When Adam Lantheaume began following cocktail culture in earnest a few years back, he'd go around to his favorite bartenders and ask them how he could replicate their recipes. The only problem was a lot of the specialty ingredients and mixing implements they were using weren't readily available for home use. "Whether it was a Boston shaker or a mint julep cup I'd say, where can I get that? No one consistently stocked them," he said. "Or I'd find things that looked good but weren't functional."

It's very cool to see The Boston Shaker (and Grand) get some publicity!

Sip & Shop @ Grand - St. Germain!

This Saturday, May 30th, is Sip & Shop day at Grand! This week the liqueur of choice is St. Germain! Mmmm... St. Germain...

Oh, and everything in the store is 10% off!

So stop by Grand between 2 and 6 PM to get yourself a tasty treat.

(For directions, click on Grand's link in the Links section...)

Fun at parties

I heard about two party ideas today that I thought were pretty cool.

The first idea is an Iron Alcohol party. Each guest brings the spirit of his or her choice and makes a cocktail. I suppose you could call it an Iron Cocktail party, but Iron Alcohol sounds more hardcore.

The second idea Power Point Karaoke. Each guest must take a random power point presentation downloaded from the web and present it. The more vague the power point presentation, the better, especially if it is on a topic the presenter knows next to nothing about. Or maybe the more vague and technical the better... After all, BS definitions of highly technical terms could add to the entertainment.

Or, maybe if you want a really great party you could combine these two ideas. Round 1 is Iron Alcohol, followed by Power Point Karaoke. Let everyone get sloshed*, then have them bullshit presentations!

*Disclaimer: All participants of an Iron Alcohol party should be of legal drinking age and drink responsibly.

Terminator Salvation - Better than expected

I saw Terminator Salvation last night, and it was better than I expected it to be. I think this was mostly due to the action sequences, which were more interesting and at times more suspenseful than in the 2nd and 3rd Terminator movies. It was also refreshing to have the movie set in the hellhole future than in present day Earth. I think that helped them break out of the formula.

As far as the plotting goes, the movie wasn't the best, but somehow was able to hide the plot holes better than other films. One plot point that maybe was originally supposed to be a surprise wasn't, since it was revealed in the trailer. But, even if it hadn't been in the trailer, it would have been preedictable. And, while there wasn't any time travel involved in this film, because it's part of a series that have had time travel, it still had some of those annoying time travel plotting issues.

But, overall, I enjoyed the movie and was glad I saw it. Unlike Star Trek, however, I won't be offering to see it again with any friends who haven't seen it yet.

Google Doodle!

Google is taking votes on the best doodle for its website. Doodle for Google 4 is a competition for K-12 students to create a redesigned Google logo for the homepage, and you can vote on the best design in each age group! To learn more and vote, go here: www.google.com/doodle4google/index.html

Wolverine: Saved by Hugh Jackman

I cannot say as many good things about Wolverine as I can about Star Trek. The plot was so-so, with an annoying pointless action by a supporting character that I'm sure was put in just so we could see the supporting character strut his stuff. Lame, lame, lame.

Good things I could say about the movie are these:

1. It's better than the third X-Men movie.
2. Getting Wolverine's back story was interesting, but lately I've found than the "origin" movies of a series such as Batman seems to be more interesting than what follows.
3. It was fun. (But just "fun," not "FUN!")

And, finally, the main reason to see Wolverine was Hugh Jackman, who sadly didn't have much to do in the film acting wise, but still has enough charisma to carry the film. So, go see the film if you're a Wolverine/X-Men fan, and/or you like Hugh Jackman. But I would suggest you try for the matinee showing.

Not my step-father's Star Trek

Friday night I saw Star Trek and was quite happy with it. I am, not however, a Trekkie, or even much of a Star Trek fan, so my enjoyment of the film might be quite different from that of a true fan. In fact, growing up I wasn't all that thrilled with the original series, which my step-father watched almost every Sunday or Saturday afternoon. Maybe I was too young to follow the plots, or maybe it was a case of familiarity breeds contempt. So the latest movie reboot felt like a breath of fresh air.

For starters, it took me a while to get used to seeing actors younger than me playing some of the leads. However, there was a certain charm is seeing the characters start out at the beginning of their careers, most of them fresh out of Starfleet Academy. And, it was great fun to see Kirk as bright ne'er do well skirt chasing bar brawler from Iowa. More sobering, and perhaps this helped anchor the movie, was the depiction of Spock not as someone who's purely logical, but as someone who is struggling to find his way as a half-Vulcan/half-human. To me that seemed more realistic than than the original series's portayal of him. But maybe I wasn't paying enough attention to the original.

I would say Star Trek is worth seeing in the theater, at full price. I would even go so far as to say it is sitter worthy for those of you with children.

Mint Juleps at Grand!

This Saturday, April 25th, from 2-6, LUPEC will be making mint juleps in honor of the Kentucky Derby! And, everything at Grand will be 10% off. Sounds like tons of fun! But, alas, I won't be able to go. I'll be out of town. *sigh*

Songs for the Jet Set

I just received Songs for the Jet Set from eBay. If you are looking for authentic 60's/70's jet set music this might not be for you. Instead, this is a compilation of quirky, kitschy music that evokes that 60's/70's era when people still dressed up to go flying. Most of the songs have a happy, carefree feel to them. The standouts are "Leslie Phillips in Santiago" and "Kites Are Fun" by Tomorrow's World, "Barbarella" and "We Can Fly" by Loveletter, and the fun, sexy "I Am a Kitten" by the Fantastic Everlasting Gobstoppers.

The only song that doesn't seem to fit is "Schoolgirl Psychedelia" by the Fantastic Everlasting Gobstoppers. It has an edgy electronic sound to it that reminds me more of the 80's. I like it, but it just doesn't seem to fit with this collection.

If I have a cocktail party I'm playing this CD in the background. But, since it's only 30-40 minutes long, I may have to buy the other CDs in the collection - there are two more volumes of Songs for the Jet Set.

Scoville Sour

2.5 oz Hendrick's gin
1 oz lemon juice
1/2 oz honey simple syrup
1/2 oz maple syrup
1/4 tsp cayenne and espelette pepper mix

Now that I have a bottle of Hendrick's I've been making myself Scoville Sours.

I don't have any espelette pepper, so I used white pepper instead. I was told with white pepper the mix should be mostly cayenne, but that was too hot for me. I make my Sours with a half cayenne/half white pepper mix. If I get some espelette I imagine I'll have to readjust the cayenne amount.

The cayenne pepper goes well with the sweet and sour taste of the lemon, honey syrup, and maple syrup. I think the honey and maple give the drink's sweetness more depth than you'd get just using a simple syrup.

A note about the drink - it yields more than a four ounces. When making it, I either have to use a larger glass, or I end up sipping the cocktail from the glass before pouring out the last bit. Since it has cayenne pepper, hurriedly sipping the drink to make more room can be a little uncomfortable.

The cocktail used to be served at No. 9 Park, but when I was there for Restaurant Week I was told they no longer make them. What a pity!

(For those wondering, the honey syrup is one part honey, one part water, stirred over heat until the honey has completely mixed in.)

Fake subway maps

A few weeks ago I read about Transit Authority Figures' fake subway maps on Apartment Therapy. One of the maps is of Cape Cod, so I just had to order it! I received a nice note from the owners telling me the map should be shipping later this week. I'm debating whether to order the maps for Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. It'd be nice to have a complete set, but my spending was a little out of control in March, so I want to rein things in for a bit.

Google Sync for Blackberries

I downloaded Google Sync for my Blackberry a few weeks ago. It's a handy app that synchronizes your calendar and address book with GMail and Google Calendar. For the most part, I like it. Since I do not use MS Outlook on my home PC, I didn't have a way to enter addresses and appointments on my desktop. Everything had to be entered on the Blackberry, which can get tedious if you want to edit multiple addresses, etc. Plus, since it's Google, I can update my calendar and contact list from any computer as long as I have access to the web.

You can have Google Sync run in the background on your Blackberry to regularly update Google every two hours or so. Or, you can choose to manually synchronize. I chose the automatic option since I am prone to forget to regularly update things.

You can also choose how far in advance you want the appointments to be synchronized. I chose to have it update appointments scheduled for the next 24 weeks, the maximum period. The minimum period is four weeks.

There are a few downsides, however. For starters, any dates you already have scheduled on your Blackberry will not be uploaded to your Google calendar. Only appointments you enter after installing Google Sync will be added to Google calendar. I find this slightly annoying because I have doctor's appointments for next year that I've entered in my Blackberry already.

Another drawback is that you cannot choose the automatic update interval. I would rather have it update every 3-4 hours instead of two. The reason for this is the third drawback: the automatic updates require a data transfer each time between your Google account and the Blackberry. This tends to drain the battery. Since using the app, I've noticed that I have to recharge my battery more often. It isn't a major problem, but it is a nuisance.

Easter Dinner 2009

For Easter I treated myself to a rack of lamb with spicy plum chutney (made by the Virginia Chutney Company). Because I really shouldn't eat an entire meal of meat I had sauteed cauliflower as a side.

To cook the lamb, I first scored the fat so the chutney could work its way into it while cooking. I then mixed some of the chutney with salt and garlic powder. My reasoning was that normally you'd rub salt onto the lamb, and since I didn't think the chutney didn't have any salt in it, I thought I had to add some. (It turns out it does have salt in it. Oops.) I was worried that if I added salt directly to the meat it would rub off when I spread the chutney on. I could be wrong in this. Anyway, after mixing the salt, garlic powder, and chutney, I spread it on the rack, covering the top part where the fat was, the sides, and the front (non-Frenched side). I cooked the lamb in the oven at 325 F for approximately 45 minutes.

For the cauliflower, I sliced two shallots and crushed a clove of garlic. I sauteed these on med-low with one tablespoon of butter and one tablespoon of canola oil (those not as health conscious could use two tablespoons of butter). Once the shallots were soft and on the verge of carmelizing, I added the chopped cauliflower florettes, pepper, salt, and red pepper flakes. I can't remember if I added garlic powder, however. I suppose it wouldn't have hurt ;) I sauteed the cauliflower for 20-30 minutes.

Overall, it was satisfying meal. I was worried that it would be too hot, since both the chutney and the cauliflower have red pepper flakes. But, this wasn't the case, and both provided enough sweetness to make me happy (I have a sweet tooth). However, I think others might have found adding red pepper flakes, onions, and garlic to the cauliflower may have been unnecessary. I had thought about just sauteeing the cauliflower with nothing but butter, canola oil, and salt and pepper to let the natural flavor come through more. Then again, cauliflower has a subtle flavor, so maybe not. I think next time I make a rack of lamb I'll pull it out a little sooner. As it was, it was a nice pink, but I prefer my lamb to be closer to red - I like my meat as close to rare as possible while still being cooked. This is easy to do with a single chop, but with an entire rack it's harder to pull off since you need to keep in long enough for the center to cook.

(If you don't want to go to the Virginia Chutney Company's website, the spicy plum chutney has plums [duh], white sugar, brown sugar, apples, vinegar, raisins, carmelized onions and ginger, mustard seed, salt, and red pepper.)

Whole Foods Market: A Fine Purveyor of Food Crack

Food crack: noun. Exceptionally high quality and good tasting food that elicits an "I must have this food NOW" reaction in humans that can be called addictive. Regular consumption of food crack is likely to deplete one's cash reserves.

I went to Whole Foods today to buy some lamb for tomorrow's dinner. My sole purpose was to buy lamb. However, because it was Whole Foods, and they had samples, I ended up buying more.

The first hit was in the produce section where, as usual, free samples of cheese and jam spreads to go with the cheese were available. Today the culinary money trap was robusto cheese with spice plum chutney. It was GOOD. Initially I resisted the temptation to buy some, but the longer I spent in the store the more I thought about it. I ended up circling back to the produce section to grab some of the cheese and a jar of the chutney. My rationalization was that I would use to the chutney with the lamb. My plan is to spread the chutney on the lamb and roast it. I have no plan for the cheese other than to eat it with the chutney in the next few weeks. Bad for my heart, but good for my bones.

The second hit was the Tonnino tuna in garlic and olive oil. When I was in Whole Foods a month or so ago a woman was giving free samples and explaining the product. She said it's high quality tuna, and very flavorful, and goes well with pasta (or "pah-ster;" she was British) and doesn't need mayonaisse. I was tempted then to buy a jar, but I had already had a bunch of items in my basket so I didn't get any. Today, I remembered the tuna and told myself it'd make a tasty lunch to take to work. So I bought a jar. Which was around $8. And very small.

I did resist other goodies there - the beautiful looking cooked shrimp, the intriguing shrimp salad, and the fresh looking tuna sushi rolls. Oddly, I'm never tempted by the chocolates at Whole Foods. That is probably a good thing.

I used to envy a friend who lived within walking distance of a Whole Foods. And, to some extent, I still do. However, the fact that any Whole Foods is at least a 20 minute drive from me is probably a good thing for my financial well-being.

Ladytron @ House of Blues, 4/8/09

Wednesday night I went to the Ladytron concert at the House of Blues. They were double-billed with The Faint.

The show was great! Ladytron opened with "Black Cat," which was a strong choice. On some songs, such as "High Rise," the vocals were overpowered by the instruments. Other than that, the band sounded great. The light show was fabulous, although an epileptic's nightmare (lots of flashing and strobe). I ended up liking "Soft Power" and "Seventeen" better live than recorded.

The last song, of course, was "Destroy Everything You Touch." Once again, the vocals were too low, but unlike "High Rise," they weren't completely drowned out and seemed to get stronger. Maybe one of the sound crew adjusted the volume. Also, at the end, a bubble machine in the ceiling turned on! It was a little strange, but when the strobe lights kicked in it was a cool effect.

Speaking of odd touches, right before Ladytron came on ELO's "Livin Thing" was playing over the sound system. I don't know if the band picked what songs to play during the set up or if House of Blues picked songs, but it seemed a little weird....

Happy "I'm Still Employed Day"

To celebrate surviving the first quarter without being laid off I went out and made a few purchase I've been putting off. I trekked to Marty's Liquors in Newton and bought some Hendrick's gin, Vya extra dry vermouth, and a bottle of Ararat Akhtamar 10 year brandy.

Now I can have fun playing around with the Hendrick's and seeing how it differs from the Plymouth in cocktails. I'm also going to look into cucumber cocktails, just in time for the spring and summer :)

Eating healthy, eating less?

After spending too much money on Restaurant Week, and eating foie gras two nights in a row last week, I decided this week I should brown bag my lunch, as well as eat healthier food. Since work is still keeping me busy, I knew I'd be more likely to succeed if I made putting together lunch easy. So I went to Sevan Bakery in Watertown and bought some sauteed chickpeas and Armenian potato salad. I also stopped by Arax Market, also in Watertown, and bought some nivik*, made with chickpeas and swiss chard (a quick search on the internet suggests nivik is usually made with spinach). I then picked up a head of Boston lettuce at Stop & Shop for sandwiches.

I was planning on some really nutritious, high fiber lunches.

Yesterday for lunch I had a peanut butter sandwich made with wheat bread, Welch's grape jelly, and organic peanut butter. In addition, I had a cup each of the nivik and Armenian potato salad. Today I went with a cheese sandwich (provolone, Boston lettuce, and mayo), one cup of the nivik, and some dates for dessert.

What I've noticed both days is that I am NOT feeling hungry by 3 or 4 in the afternoon like I usually do. Thus, I didn't go to the vending machine or the little convenience store in our building to buy a bag of chips. Today, I did start to feel hungry around 5, so I gave in and got some chips. However, my point is that by eating these healthier foods I may be feeling full longer, which is a good thing. In fact, tonight when I got home around 7 I didn't feel the urge to immediately eat something. In fact, I just had a small bowl of the sauteed chickpeas, and that's all I needed, at least for now.

So I guess those nutrition experts who say that eating healthier will make you feel fuller and help eliminate those late afternoon food cravings are right...

*I normally avoid cooked spinach, kale, swiss chard, or any cooked leafy greens like the plague. I hate the bitter taste and the wilty, slimy texture. However, I'd had nivik a few months ago at a friend's place and noticed that because of the other ingredients in the appetizer I didn't taste the spinach. So I looked specifically for this knowing it was a good way to get myself to eat one of those ever healthy cooked leafy greens.

Good-bye, Lorne.

Andy Hallett, the actor who played Lorne on Angel has died:

http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/watch_with_kristin/b106789_angel_star_andy_hallett_dies_of_heart.html

Stop & Shop's salmon pinwheels

Stop & Shop sells salmon pinwheels - salmon fillets rolled up with a bread and (fake) crabmeat stuffing. They come packaged in pairs. I've been buying them every other week or so. To prepare, I just sprinkle some garlic powder and pepper, place a pat of butter on top, then bake in the toaster oven according to the instructions (I think it's 16-18 minutes at 375 degrees). The butter melts and makes the bottom nice and crispy. And the fact that it's salmon means the meal is mostly healthy. I'm sure there there are perservatives and whatnot in the stuffing.

Orzo and Armenian sauteed chickpeas

I've been busier than usual at work, and I haven't been able to get home at a normal hour. The result is that I'm hungry and want something quick. Fortunately, I've been doing some of my food shopping at Sevan Bakery in Watertown. In addition to lahmajoun, Sevan has sauteed chickpeas that are totally KILLER! It's (obviously) chickpeas with tomatoes, onions, garlic, sesame seeds, and either olives of very strongly flavored olive oil, and a heavenly blend of spices. I could eat it all day. To stretch out my weekly supply of this scrumptious dish, I hit upon the idea of mixing the chickpeas with orzo. I cook a half cup of orzo (I use Barilla) and mix it with a helping of the chickpeas. I think half and half works - erring on the side of more chickpeas is a good thing, especially since that is the only item flavoring the dish. It makes a quick, healthy, and tasty dinner.

Now if I could only figure out how they make those chickpeas... They soooooo freaking good!!!!!!

Metal ice cube trays

I have three metal ice cube trays from my grandparents. Because they're retro I thought they were cool and wanted to keep them. I've been using the trays even though I have an ice maker in my freezer. It can take a while for the ice maker to fill the bin since it makes 6 cubes at a time, so I just use the trays to fill the bin faster.

One thing I noticed is you don't want to fill the trays all the way up. The ice will freeze over the dividers making it harder to release the cubes. And you'll want to use a towel or pot holder when handling the tray - the metal gets COLD! (This also means that metal trays make cubes faster because the metal transfer the heat from the water more quickly than plastic or silicone.)

I've never seen metal ice cube trays in stores, but since you can find just about everything and anything on the internet I did a Google search and found these sites where you can buy them:

http://berktree.com/aluminumicecubetray.aspx
http://www.thekitchenstore.com/alicecutr.html
http://www.homebrands.com/079-040054.html
http://www.ikitchen.com/079-409163.html?CS_003=740477&CS_010=079-409163
http://www.shop.com/Aluminum_Ice_Cube_Tray-8908519-p!.shtml
http://www.thetickletrunk.com/products.php?id=204&name=Ice_cube_trays [Coming Soon]

The prices vary from around $7 to $16.

Yankee Bibimbap

For lack of a better name, I call this dish Yankee Bibimbap. I figure I'm the American who created it, the food is based on a Korean recipe, and it's a rice dish in a bowl, so that's the best name I came up with. I'm sure Korean food purists would quibble, especially since the egg is optional. In fact, I've made this only once with the egg. I'm not sure why I don't put the egg in. Maybe it's because I didn't notice enough of a flavor change, or maybe it's because there's already a lot of food in the pot that I don't see the need to add more.

The Korean recipe that inspired this dish is Hobakseon, or Stuffed Zucchini, from Korean Home Cooking by Soon Young Chung. The first and last time I made hobakseon I learned that it's very difficult to stuff hot zucchinis. But I liked the way the beef tasted, so I took that part and combined it with an older dish I made up years earlier - beef sauteed with onions, garlic, kidney beans, corn, rice, and jerk sauce. Only I left out the jerk sauce, replaced the kidney beans with black beans, and added yangnyum gochujang - seasoned chili paste.

Aside from the high sodium, this dish is pretty healthy, especially if you use lean ground beef.

Beef/Veggie/Rice mix:

0.25 lb ground beef
some chopped mushrooms, approx. 4-7
1 can black beans
1 can corn (I like to use shoepeg or white corn as it's sweeter)
1 chopped green pepper (or red or yellow)
1 slice zucchini (optional)
1 egg (optional)
4 tsp finely chopped onions (I use shallots)
2 tsp crushed garlic (approximately 4-6 cloves)
2 tsp toasted ground sesame seeds
2 Tbl light soy sauce
1 Tbl sugar
2 tsp sesame oil
ground black pepper to taste
1-2 Tbl cooking oil (canola, olive, sunflower, whatever you use to saute)
2-3 C cooked rice (approximate - I just cook the smallest set of rice according to the package)

Combine beef, mushrooms, onions, garlic, sesame seeds, sugar, soy sauce, and sesame oil in a bowl. Mix well, cover and let marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Heat cooking oil in a deep frying pan. Add chopped pepper and zucchinis. Saute until lightly cooked. Add beef mixture. Cook until beef is just done. Add black beans and corn. Stir until beans and corn are cooked. Add rice and mix together. If you want, add egg and stir it in so it scrambles and cooks in the mix.

Serve in a bowl with chili paste on the side.

***
Yangnyum Gochujang - Seasoned Chili Paste:

This recipe is from Eating Korean by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee and makes 1/2 cup, although I always seem to end up with a whole cup.

4 Tbl Korean chili paste (gochujang, or gojujang)
2 minced garlic cloves
2 Tbl sesame oil
1 Tbl soy sauce (I like to use Tamari soy sauce - it's saltier but has more depth than regular soy sauce)
2 tsp sugar or Korean malt syrup (mool yut)
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds (optional)
1 chopped green onion (optional - I use a shallot instead)

Combine all ingredients until they are well mixed. Stored in a covered container in the refrigerator. It will last for over a week.

***
To eat the Yankee Bibimbap, mix in the chili paste to taste. If you are unaccustomed to Korean food, or spicy food in general, you should go light and add more as you wish. A friend of mine who had eaten Korean food before added too much chili paste the first time she ate this. She "misjudged the heat."

The dish has a salty-sweet taste because of the soy sauce and sugar, which sets off the sweetness in the corn. The chili paste gives it a smoky heat that I think goes well with the beans. As you might guess, you can substitute any of the ingredients for something else. Don't like black beans? Try kidney beans. Don't like green peppers? Use something else. The last time I made this I went vegetarian. Instead of beef I just used a whole package of mushrooms.

The recipe makes a good bit of food. I haven't figured out how many servings come out of it, but it will usually give me half week of lunches and dinners. And this is one of those dishes that tastes better the next day.

My new favorite kick ass song

I thought my new favorite kick ass song was Franz Ferdinand's cover of Blondie's "Call Me" on the War Child compilation CD. It has been displaced by "Cherry Lips" by the Archie Bronson Outfit. Seriously, this song just burns it up.

(I got "Cherry Lips" off iTunes, which had playlists from Battlestar Galactica stars. The song was on Jamie Bamber's playlist.)

Tour Filter - A tool for the clueless music lover

I love music, and I like going to concerts, but I am cursed with a seeming inability to know who's giving a concert. Thus, I have missed out shows by Morrissey, Peter Gabriel, Pet Shop Boys, etc. I am reliant on others to clue me in. The last concert I went to was Feist, and only because a friend asked if I wanted to go. Otherwise, I would have been utterly clueless she was playing at the Bank of America Pavillion, never mind that she was even on tour.

Luckily, a friend told me about Tour Filter, which lets you know when your favorite artists are playing in your town. I just set up my account, and already I see that Morrissey is playing in Boston on the 29th. I was unaware of that. So maybe now I'll actually catch some shows instead of hearing about them lat minute when it's too late to get tickets or make plans to go.

The Class

Last night I saw The Class at Coolidge Corner. The film follows a year in the life of a Paris high school French class. The students are a mix of native Parisiens and immigrants, some of whom are bright while others struggle. It becomes clear early on that the students in this school are not from the privileged part of Paris.

Watching the film was exhausting, but in a good way. I felt immersed in the class's daily lessons during which the students bombarded their teacher, Mr. Marin, with questions, wisecracks, and the usual adolescent insolence, apathy, and high spirits. The challenges were non-stop. The students were at times moody, angry, and generous. While most of the film was focused on the students in the classroom, there were scenes depicting the teachers discussing each student's progress or lack of and how much or how little discipline to impose.

Overall, it was a very good film, and showed the challenges an urban high school faces educating students who are not from wealthy or comfortably middle class families, and who may be immigrants struggling to fit in a country whose culture doesn't reflect their lives.

Sweet vermouth

For the past month or so I've been trying to make myself the perfect Manhattan. This means that I've been working with sweet vermouth. The first one I bought, Noilly Prat, was far to heavy for me, and had a strange taste to it. Plus, the smell reminds me of a mushroom sauce. I like mushrooms, but I don't want to drink them.

The second is the old standby, Martini & Rossi. It's lighter than the Noilly, and I like it better, but it still had a slightly overpowering taste that I didn't like. But I would definitely use it over the Noilly Prat.

Today I treated myself and bought a bottle of Vya sweet vermouth from Brix. I'd heard it was very good, if expensive. I bought a 750 ml bottle for $25. When I got home I sampled it. Oh. My. Goodness. It is heavenly. It's light, but flavorful, and not too sweet. I tried it in a Manhattan, and it turned out well. Unlike the Manhattans with the othe two vermouths, I thought this one had a touch too much rye. Because the Vya is so good, you can use more of it in a Manhattan than the others.

I think the Noilly Prat will be relegated to a cooking vermouth, the Martini & Rossi to an every day vermouth, and the Vya will be the sweet vermouth of choice.

If I start experimenting with dry martnis I will just go straight for the Vya dry vermouth. I doubt I'll even bother with Noilly Prat or Martini & Rossi.

Crackberry withdrawal - day 7

My replacement battery arrived today. Excited, I opened the package and placed the battery in my phone, hoping some magic would occur and the Pearl would spring to life. It did not. I plugged the phone in to the charger and.... nothing.

My Blackberry Pearl is dead Dead DEAD!

I find this extremely annoying. The phone is less than one year old! And now it is a paper weight. I know the warranty will cover it, but I am annoyed that it should have died this quickly. I'm also annoyed at the fact I will probably have to wait for a replacement phone. I'm assuming the warranty will require my servicer to ship the phone off for repair. Ideally it'd be nice if I could walk in tomorrow, give them the dead phone, and they just hand me a new one as a replacement. But, somehow I doubt that will happen. Instead, I will probably spend another week living life as I did before I had a smartphone, which means no one's e-mail or snail mail addresses at my finger tips, no ability to look things up on the web when I'm out, and no ability to snap a quick picture of something. At least I have my sim card, so I can still call people on their cell phones. Still, not quite the same. Oh, and not only does the loaner phone lack a calendar function, there's no calculator. So I'm back to figuring out tax and tip in my head, which means I am likely to over tip since I'm not good at math in my head.

*sigh*

I hate to admit it, but maybe I should have gotten an iPhone and eaten the more expensive AT&T plan, as well as put up with a larger, heavier phone.

A French 28 Derivation

Last night I made a new cocktail derived from the French 28, a champagne cocktail from the restaurant 28 Degrees. Lacking champagne, I cut that out of the mix. I also wasn't in the mood for Chambord, so I used grenadine instead. And, since I didn't have any lemons I used lime juice.

2 oz Bombay Sapphire gin
1 oz Cointreau
0.5 oz grenadine
0.5 oz lime juice

The cocktail had a mellow flavor, maybe because I used Bombay Sapphire instead of Plymouth. Using the grenadine instead of the Chambord cuts down the alcohol content but maintains the sweetness. While the cocktail had a sweet and sour tartness, it was slightly more sweet, but that might be because I used a touch more grenadine than 0.5 oz.

I did a quick search for cocktails made with these ingredients and I didn't find any, so maybe I have another cocktail to name. How about a Pink Sapphire? (But I guess that only works if it's always made with Bombay Sapphire.)

Brandy Plum Pie

A few months ago, when you could still find plums, I made a brandy plum pie using the recipe from Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book (11th edition). It turned out very well, and you could taste the brandy, but it didn't overpower the pie.

Ingredients:

Crumb topping:
1/2 Cup flour
1/2 Cup packed brown sugar
3 Tbl butter

Using a fork or knife mix the ingredients by cutting the butter into the flour and sugar. Mix until the butter is blended and the the texture is, well, crumbly.

Filling:
3/4 Cup packed brown sugar
1/4 Cup flour
1/4 Cup brandy
1/8 tsp nutmeg
4 Cups sliced and pitted plums (1.75 pounds)

Extra topping:
1/3 Cup chopped almonds or pecans

Mix the filling ingredients together in a bowl, cover, and let sit while you make the pie dough. This will give the ingredients time to blend together, especially the brandy!

Make enough pie dough for a single crust pie. (I used the recipe from the Fanny Farmer Cook Book.) Line the pie pan with the rolled out dough.

Pour the filling into the pie shell. Sprinkle the crumb topping on top. Sprinkle the chopped nuts on the pie.

Cover the edge of the crust with aluminum foil to prevent the crust from burning. Do NOT cover the entire pie - just the edge. Place the pie in an oven pre-heated to 375 and bake for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, remove the foil and bake the pie for another 20-25 minutes until the top is golden.


My guess is the extra baking time to is to allow the alcohol to cook out. When I made the pie I did two things differently than in the recipe. I mixed the filling first (as indicated here) to allow the brandy to soak in, and I made an error and use 1/3 cup of brandy instead of 1/4 cup. I don't think it caused any harm.

Crackberry withdrawal - day 4

On Tuesday my Blackberry died. It was on with a fully charge battery was fully when the device shut off and refused to turn back on. I'm currently waiting for a new battery from RIM, and hoping that a new battery is all I will need. In the meantime I have a loaner phone from my carrier.

I would have thought that lack of e-mail would be the biggest issue. For the first day or two, it was odd not to be able to check e-mail throughout the day. However, the biggest inconvenience so far has been the lack of a calendar. I would make plans to do something and think, "Oh, I'll put that in my calendar," before realizing that I couldn't. The loaner phone has no calendar.

I didn't realize just how dependent I'd become on having a smartphone until the Blackberry died. Now that I've become more forgetful, having a PDA that reminds when to do stuff and where to go has been extremely helpful. And now that I don't have one I feel a little lost. Sad, but true.

Drinks at the Ritz-Carlton, Boston Common

Twice in two weeks I've stopped in at the Ritz-Carlton on the Boston Common for drinks. As you might expect at a posh hotel, everyone was extremely nice, and the atmosphere was upscale but laid back.

On the first visit, which was last week, my friend and I went into the restaurant, JER-NE. We started with dessert wines. Sadly, I don't remember the names of them, but his was the better of the two and was from South Africa. I think it was second or third on the list. It was sweet, and had a nice body to it, but wasn't overpowering. For our second drink we each tried a port. Mine was the Dow 5 Year Reserve*. He had the Sandeman. We agreed that mine was better. Once again, it was sweeter, and fuller tasting than the Sandeman.

The second visit was tonight, with a different friend. We sat in the lobby where it was quieter. She got the blackberry mojito, which was sweet with a hint of the rum. I ordered the Rockwell Classic, made with Hendrick's gin, simple syrup, and lime (possibly lemon if my memory is faulty), and served in a salt rimmed glass. I liked the drink, but others may find it too sweet and lacking enough gin taste. The salt helped counteract the sweetness. The drink also had a light touch. The only problem I found with it is that some salt had sunk to the bottom of the glass, making the last sip salty. I liked the saltiness, but I'm not sure I wanted to finish the drink that way.

*I'm fairly certain it was a 5 year reserve, but it was a week ago so my memory might be off. There were two Dows, and I got the younger of them.

I guess it's better than raising the postage rate, maybe

Not only is print media getting hit by the rise of the internet, but so is the US Mail:

"WASHINGTON - Worsening economic conditions and the changing habits of Americans are threatening to do to the US Postal Service what neither snow, nor rain, nor gloom of night could: stop delivery of the mail, at least by one day each week."  (Full article here)

Personally, I hate "no mail" days. I like checking the mail box M-Sat, but with e-mail, online magazines, and online bill pay, I have decreased the amount of mail I send, so it seems reasonable to consider cutting back on delivery. It just seems a little sad that 6 day mail delivery might go away.

Out of Town News to stay... for now

The Boston Globe reported that Out of Town News in Harvard Square will NOT be going out of business. Some good news for those of us who wanted the landmark to stay. But, the bigger question is, for how long will Out of Town News remain in business given the declining sales in newspapers, etc.? Will this reprieve last? As much as I would like Out of Town to remain, I know they have an uphill battle. With the internet providing instant news from wherever how much demand is there for buying magazines and newspapers both local and from around the world?

Cambridge 1

I had dinner at Cambridge 1 on Church St in Harvard Square, a short walk from First Parish UU and the Church St exit of the T. It's one of my favorite places to get pizza. They serve flat bread pizza with toppings that range from regular (tomatoes, basil, cheese) to more interesting (lobster, corn, scallions). They also have microbrews if you want beer with your pizza.

Feeling budget conscious, I skipped the lobster pizza, a very delicious treat, and got the potato pizza - potatoes, fontina, parmesan, romano, rosemary, and garlic. No tomatoes or tomato sauce. A half pizza should feed one person, and the half portion of the potato pizza costs $8. The potatoes on the pizza are both thinly sliced and mashed. The cheese give it a nice salty taste, and there's a touch of butter in the pizza's flavor. I don't know if they actually use butter or another oil that mixes with everything else to give a buttery taste.

With my food I had a Bellini - Prosecco with peach puree. It was dry with a hint of peaches. Overall, it was pleasant, but I think I would have liked it a little sweeter and with a stronger peach taste.

Grenadine

Candy
Is dandy
But liquor
Is quicker

- Ogden Nash

With grenadine, you can have BOTH your candy and your liquor. Last night I made grenadine using 2 cups of pomegranate juice and 2 cups sugar. I mixed them over high heat until the sugar was completely dissolved. I then let it cool before putting in the refrigerator.

Homemade grenadine makes a really nice, light syrup. I imagine it would go well on ice cream and waffles. I already know it goes well on French toast since I tried that at friend's a few months ago.

Keeping lettuce fresh

A few posts ago I wrote about Boston lettuce being packaged with its roots as a way to keep it fresh longer. It's working. But, you can't always get a head of lettuce attached to its roots. And Boston lettuce can be pricey. What if I just want some romaine or red leaf? Luckily, Jeremy at Generation X Finance posted his method for keeping lettuce fresh for a week. I was very excited to see this since I don't eat salad precisely because the lettuce usually goes bad before I've finished it. The secret is keeping moisture away from the leaves.

Working storage outside COBOL

As I was reviewing a Unix Korn shell script I wrote a few years ago I noticed I'd commented the variable declarations as "Working Storage." This is what that section would be called in COBOL, a language I suspect fewer and fewer people use nowadays. Odds are a younger programmer who's never worked on a mainframe would see that comment and think, "Huh?"

In the future I should probably use a more universal term, like "Variables," otherwise I'm just making myself look old and uncool. Then again, maybe not. There might be some cool points to be gained in knowing a legacy technology. After all, it's still impressive and increasingly rare to come across someone who can read a hex dump with his or her own eyes.

Free soup at Falafel King

Falafel King now gives free soup with meals. I ordered a hummus sandwich and was initially miffed I didn't get my free falafel. But, my displeasure at missing out on a tasty falafel disappeared when I was asked which soup I wanted. Not only was I getting free soup, but I had a choice of four kinds! I went with the lentil soup, which has some spiciness to it.

Not bad for $5.

Grape Nehi

1 part gin (original calls for vodka, but I used gin instead)
1 part Chambord
1 part lemon juice

Shake with crushed ice. Strain into glass.

This is not Radar O'Reilly's Grape Nehi. This is more like Hawkeye Pierce's Nehi. Although Hawkeye would have used more gin, or vodka, or whatever lighter fluid they distilled in The Swamp.

Overall, it's a pleasant drink, but a touch too sweet. And it felt like it was missing something, maybe some fizz. Or maybe it would be better if I swapped out the Chambord for real grape juice.

As an aside, I have had Grape Nehi soda. When I was a young teen one summer I worked at a place that solde grape nehi in the vending machine, alongside Coca Cola in the old style bottles. I really enjoyed it. That summer was the only time I ever saw Grape Nehi.

Swing-A-Way Ice Crusher

This past weekend I ventured once again to Grand to purchase items from The Boston Shaker. This will be the last time I buy items from there for a bit. I need to cut back, but they have such cool stuff I couldn't resist!

One of my purchases was the Swing-A-Way Ice Crusher. It has a crank on the bottom that vacuum seals the crusher to the counter, making it easier to grind away at the ice. I've used it twice and it works well. The only improvement I'd suggest is adding a way to fasten down the top part, where the blades are, or at least make the lid harder to pop open. The top compartment has a tendency to open, so you have to hold it down tight with your hand while you crank. I'd expect to hold down the top, but it seems to want to open too easily.

French Gimlet revisited

This evening a friend and I taste tested French Gimlets made with three different bases: soju, Plymouth gin, and Bombay Sapphire. She agreed with me that the soju version was definitely sweeter than the Plymouth version. We also noticed that the Bombay Sapphire had less of a gin taste, making it sweeter by letting the St. Germain show through more.

I prefer the French Gimlet made with the Plymouth. I think the stronger gin taste in the Plymouth gave the drink an extra zing. The other versions were fine, but a little bland compared to the Plymouth version.

I think the milder taste of the Bombay may work in a martini or similar cocktail where it's gin with little else. A softer touch would make it easier to drink nearly straight gin.

One peeve: I did not like the bottle for the Bombay Sapphire. The blue color is very pretty, but it was a sloppy pour. In order to pour the Bombay into the shot glass without the gin running down the side of the bottle or the glass I had to pour quickly, which means I'm more likely to pour too much. I think the mouth of the bottle is too wide. I found it irritating.

The White Lady

2 oz Gin
1 oz Cointreau
0.5 oz lemon juice

I actually used closer to 0.75 lemon juice, and a smidge more gin. Overall, not bad, but I think I prefer the French Gimlet. Probably because I have a sweet tooth.

Oxo Cocktail Shaker

Today I received my Oxo cocktail shaker that I had ordered from Amazon. It holds 16 ounces and has double-walled construction, so it's insulated from the ice. The top serves as a jigger, and has marked measurements.

I used the shaker to make two cocktails. I was very pleased that it doesn't leak while shaking, but the top can pop off. I was rather dismayed at the last bit - a few ounces of whiskey and Cointreau down the drain! However, I was able to use it without freezing my hands thanks to the double wall, and that's a very good thing.

Next up on my list of things to get: The Oxo Steel 7-Piece Barware Set.

Mystery whiskey cocktail #1

2 oz whiskey (Jameson)
0.5 Cointreau
a few dashes of orange bitters (Regan's)

Stir with ice, serve on the rocks.

This is a variation on a whiskey bitter, which is 2 jiggers whiskey and two dashes orange bitters (The Joy of Cooking - so maybe I need more cocktail books).

It has a pleasant taste. I think the ice and the Cointreau help mellow the whiskey. I haven't tried this without the bitters, but I'm guessing the bitters gives the drink depth. At least that's what bitters is supposed to do from what I've read.

While I can be creative and innovative, I doubt very much I have created a brand new cocktail. I did a quick Google search and found a recipe for the Bairn, which uses Scotch instead of any old whiskey. So perhaps this is an Irish Bairn? Honestly, though, I haven't found a cocktail recipe with these exact ingredients - using whiskey as opposed to the more specific Scotch. So, who knows? Maybe I have created something new.

Chosun French Gimlet

2 oz soju
1.5 oz St. Germain
0.75 oz lime juice

Basically, this is a French Gimlet using soju instead of gin or vodka. I gave this a try tonight before dinner. Overall, it was good, and a little sweeter than the French Gimlet. Since I actually used 0.75 ounces of lime juice, and the drink was still sweeter than the gin version, I think I can conclude the soju really is on the sweet side.

Also, because soju is only 40 proof versus the gin which is 80 proof, the soju version doesn't pack as much of a punch. So, if you want a slightly sweeter taste and a lighter drink, substitute soju for the gin.

A quick note on adding wine to a cream sauce

A few years ago I learned the hard way that you should add wine to a cream sauce at the end, not the beginning.

I was making macaroni and cheese. For extra flavoring I like to add a splash of white wine to the cheese sauce. Normally I did this at the end. However, this particular time I decided to add the wine at the beginning instead. I don't remember why. I had made the roux, and before it thickened I added the wine. Well, the sauce never thickened. I kept stirring and stirring and stirring and the flour never did its magic and thickened the sauce. I couldn't figure out what was going on.

Finally, I decided to throw in the cheese, thinking maybe that would thicken the sauce. Well, the cheese melted, but it stuck together like a gloppy clump in the sauce. It never blended with the rest of the sauce.

It turns out that wine is an anti-thickening agent. And, in a cream sauce, it can actually cause the cream/milk to curdle, keeping the constituent parts of the sauce separate. This is why the sauce never thickened, and why the cheese never blended in to the sauce.

The way to add wine to a cream sauce is to make the sauce as usual, but cook it to a point where it is a little too thick. Then, add the wine. The wine will thin the sauce back to the thickness it should be at, and then you're done.

French Gimlet

2 oz gin (Plymouth)
1.5 oz St. Germain
0.5 oz lime juice

Not wishing to improvise another soju cocktail, I went with the French Gimlet as it was suggested in the little pamphlet that came with the St. Germain. I was very pleased with it. It had a very pleasant tart but sweet taste, and unlike the soju cocktail, it never seemed artificial or too sweet. I attribute that to the wonderful qualities of St. Germain and Plymouth gin.

The New Doctor

After David Tennant exits, Matt Smith will take the lead role in "Doctor Who."

I've never heard of him, either.

You can read more about it here.

Soju cocktail #1

Tonight I improvised a cocktail using soju, a Korean liquor made mainly from rice. It's similar to vodka, but has a slightly sweet taste, or so the internet says. It's been a while since I've tasted straight vodka. I did think the soju had a nice, light taste, but I keep it in the refrigerator. In the past I've noticed that warm soju isn't very pleasant. It tastes much better cold. Also, I find that soju is similar to tequila in its effect -- it sneaks up on you and then BAM. I have not, however, had enough soju to know which brand is better.

0.67 - 0.75 oz lime juice
0.5 oz Cointreau
1.5 oz soju (Jinro Chamisul)
a few dashes Regan's orange bitters

At first, the cocktail tasted fine - like an alcoholic lemonade, but a little on the sweet side. However, as I kept drinking it, the sweetness became slightly sickening, and seemed a little artificial even thought I didn't use any sweetener, artifical or natural. I wonder if omitting the Cointreau, or reducing it to 0.25 oz would help. I also wonder if replacing the Cointreau with orange juice would improve the drink.

Falafel King hummus sandwich

For lunch I had the hummus sandwich from Falafel King. Normally I get the falafel sandwich but I find it too filling.

The hummus sandwich was lighter, but was still filling. It took me a while to eat it, although that was due in part to working while eating.

As a note, I also learned that a wintergreen Breathsaver does not taste good after a hummus sandwich. Just so you know.

Boston Lettuce - new packaging

Actually, maybe this is an old way of packaging and I just haven't noticed it before since it's rare I buy lettuce.

I decided to start making sandwiches for lunch again. And I decided I need to eat healthier, so slapping ham and mayonnaise on two slices of bread wasn't going to be enough. So I bought a head of Boston lettuce.

My grandmother was a big fan of Boston lettuce - she would rave about how it was nice and tender. A few years ago I bought some and it was bitter, so I didn't buy it again. However, I decided to give it another try. This was in part due to the packaging.

Stop & Shop had some Boston lettuce that was packaged in round plastic containers. Not a big deal, but the difference is these heads of lettuce still had their roots. That caught my attention. I reasoned if the head still had its roots, then it might stay fresh longer. That is my big problem with buying the enormous heads of romaine lettuce - I simply don't eat it soon enough and it spoils. I hate throwing out spoiled food. Thus, while the Boston lettuce was more expensive, I might get more out of it.

Last night I made myself a sandwich for today. Naturally, since the roots were still attached to the lettuce, there was quite a bit of dirt on the outer leaves. I just took extra care in washing. Another bonus to using Boston lettuce was that the leaves were just the right size for the bread. I did not need to break the leaves apart.

And, the lettuce wasn't bitter. It had a delicate taste. Weirdly, at least for me, it was reminiscent of raw pie dough. I like raw pie dough, so it didn't bother me, but it is a little odd. But maybe it tasted that way as part of some sort of flavor interaction with the bread (I didn't taste the lettuce by itself - just in the sandwich).

BoA's new ATM desposit process

Bank of America has done away with deposit envelopes for its ATMs. Instead, you just feed your bills and checks into a feeder. It will read in the bills and tally up the cash. As for checks, the ATM attempts to read the amount the check is for, and if it cannot read it, the ATM will prompt you for the check amount.

I discovered this when I went to deposit a check. I think the innovation will save time and money for Bank of America, but not necessarily its customers. I waited longer than usual for two people to make deposits. Some of this may have been due to their unfamiliarity with the process, or it may have been due to them feeding in more than one check as opposed to a single envelope.

Fortunately, BoA limits the number of dollar bills you can deposit to 40. Still, I wouldn't want to be stuck behind the guy depositing 40 bills.... or checks. Or worse, both!

There is one customer benefit to all this. The transaction receipt for a check deposit will have an image of the check on it. I find that to be helpful as sometimes I will deposit a check but forget who it was from. This way I can look at the receipt at home and immediately know who wrote the check and why. Additionally, I wonder if now you will see an image of the deposited check when you view the transaction online or your monthly statement.

Update: You now see the check image when you view your transaction online! Very useful when updating and balancing your check book at home.