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what a headline!
Note usage of the word “gently” as in, gently restrained.
welcome to the 21st century
28 Wednesday May 2008
Posted in trends
Monthly Archives: May 2008
Dude Fude–Mashed Potatoes
24 Saturday May 2008
Posted in food, Uncategorized
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People love to talk about how difficult it is to make mashed potatoes. How hard it is to get them smooth, and creamy. The techniques. The equipment. The agony.
And to those “people” I pose this question. Why not make mashed potatoes that don’t have the consistency of baby food, but are recognizable to sight and taste as actual potatoes?
So I offer up this simple and wonderful versions of mashed Ps.
Wash as many potatoes as you have lying around.
Slice about 1/4 of an inch thick.
Put into sauce pan.
Pour in about 1/2 cup of cream or milk.
Throw a pat of butter in.
Turn on heat, bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and put lid on for appox. 30 minutes.
At some point, check to make sure there is still liquid in there and give the Ps a little stir. Add liquid as needed (they have to cook in something).
After about 30 minutes, they will be soft enough to mush up a bit. Mush/stir to desired texture. Add more butter and salt and pepper if desired and voila!
Notes:
Yes, I leave the skins on, because I like even more texture but you could peel the potatoes if you enjoy doing extranious tedious work. You can also easily pick the skins out as you eat.
You should cut the eyes out of the Ps if you have them. Eyes are what they call the little sprouts that grow out of old Ps. And wash them well.
I know I don’t need to tell you to buy organic, as Ps, grown directly in the soil, retain a lot of pesticides.
Why don’t I have a picture of these deliciousiosities? Good idea–next time.
These reheat beautifully. Put a little butter in a pan and fry em up.
Kids like them. M eats them directly with her hands.
Small is the new Big
22 Thursday May 2008
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Wouldn’t you rather go to some sweet little store that has already sifted through all the junk that’s out there and only stocks one or two of the best honeys, nailpolishes, flours, milks, jeans, computers, sneakers, and so on?
I sure would. Prediction: Massive consumption is out. (Even with a rise in prices). Small is in. Neat is in. Saving is in. Good quality is in. Who wants to store some massive box of crackers that you bought at Costco. By the time you’re into your third sub box you’re sick of them anyway and then you’ve just got all that extra cardboard to recycle.
I’d rather buy one really good sweater (preferably not made in China) that is more expensive and wear it everyday and enjoy it, than owning several cheap, poorly made sweaters that can’t make it through the season (re: Barney’s Organic line, circa, last winter).
Which, in a roundabout way, brings me to Bitten, Sarah Jessica Parker’s new clothing line. I haven’t actually held that stuff in my hands, but it’s hard to imagine an 8 dollar dress really being that nice, well made, high quality. But hey, I’ll have to check it out, and I hold judgement until then. And who knows, maybe she’ll start a couture line at 30 bucks a pop. Might I suggest: bittAn…
It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine…
Roast Chicken and Other Stories
07 Wednesday May 2008
Posted in food
So, I was going to post my second Dude Fude, but I just checked out a book at the library (more on that later) called, brilliantly, Roast Chicken and Other Stories. Blurbed as, “The Most Useful Cookbook Of All Time,” it’s written by Simon Hopkinson, and I had read about it, then forgotten it and just happened upon it today. Yea! I love it when that happens.
I just wanted you to know how he does his Roast Chicken and what he says about the importance of a good bird.
There is chicken, and there is chicken. The French chicken, from Bresse, is the finest in the world. It is nurtured and cosseted like no other living creature (save, perhaps, the Japanese Kobe cattle, which are bred better and given a daily massage). The poulet de Bresse is a “controlled” breed in France and carries its own special criteria…as wine does…It has a superb flavor, due to its diet and upbringing…”
You can start to understand why French food is so damn good. So Simon puts a little more effort into his RC than you might have, but if you’re going to try something a little bit, this is the one to make.
1/2 cup butter, room temp.
4 lb. chicken
salt and pepper
1 lemon
thyme or tarragon, or a mixture
1 garlic clove, peeler and crushed.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees
Smear butter with your hands all over the bird.
Put the chicken in a roasting pan that will accommodate it with room to spare.
Season liberally, with the herbs and garlic inside the cavity, together with the squeezed-out lemon halves.
Roast the chicken in the oven for 10-15 minutes.
Baste (scoop up juices and pour over the chicken), then turn the oven down to 375 degrees and roast a further 30-45 minutes with occasional basting.
Turn off oven, leaving door ajar, and leave the chicken to rest for at least 15 minutes before carving.
You can use the juice in the pan as “gravy.” If you want to add extra flavor, you can scoop the garlic and herbs out of the chicken cavity, stir them into the gravy, and heat through, then strain before serving.
This is a fabulous cookbook, even though I don’t plan to cook from the Brains chapter, I can’t wait to get to Custard.
Next up: Mashed potatoes (and why I love and revere libraries).
a master at work
03 Saturday May 2008
Posted in stories worth repeating
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This is a such a deeply beautiful song –I can’t stop listening to it, although I’m mostly listening to Dylan’s version. He, of course, wrote it.
