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Friday, January 4, 2013

7 Quick ones

Linking up again on this Friday.

- 1 -

The ninth day of Christmas was a particularly giving day. I got to my office and found a package of crack cookies (because they are so addicting they must have crack in them) that my cousin had lovingly sent to me.

Photo on 1-2-13 at 1.15 PM #2

- 2 -

And then I had an email from my landlord saying a package had arrived for me. It ended up being gifts from my dad and stepmom, a package which I was sure had gotten lost somewhere.

- 3 -

Photo shoot outtake!

DSC_5029

Because you all were begging for it (and by all I actually mean no one).

- 4 -

Don't you sometimes think that it would be so nice if certain things you read on the internet were actually true? For example, if I could leave a bowl of cut onions in my home and it would absorb bacteria and prevent sickness, wouldn't that be so spectacular? Unfortunately that seems to be entirely mythical. But the good news is that I found several articles proclaiming the great health benefits of onions (and also garlic)! So I am going to incorporate more of those where I can. Anyone care to share a recipe that calls for a lot of onion?

- 5 -

I am a big fan of the Bowerbirds. Greg and I saw them this past summer at this little place in MA, and they were just hanging out and talking with people after they finished the concert. I don't typically go to shows/concerts and if I do, it is not with groupie-intent, but man, I just like those Bowerbirds.

Here is a cool video about the things they are up to. Also, they have a cabin with an indoor swing.



- 6 -

On Wednesday I made a most delicious batch of hummus. Partly because I love my immersion blender, partly because I recently discovered that I love my homemade hummus! This is what I put in it: one can of chickpeas, a couple scoops of tahini, juice from half a lemon (I like it really lemony), a few glugs of olive oil, salt, a shake of cayenne pepper, and two cloves of garlic (as per #4). And then I ate the entire batch for dinner with some bread and carrots.

- 7 -

Last night I remembered that a friend had sent me a really good mac & cheese recipe. (I think at some point I had whined about the lack of mac & cheese in this country.) Well, I didn't feel like spending a lot of time cooking, and I wasn't really sure if I was getting the ingredients right, plus I was just eye-balling measurements because I wanted a half batch instead of a batch to feed 8-10. So I was fully expecting the end result to be completely inedible (mainly because I never know what dairy products I am buying. I needed cream, but in Sweden they sell this fil stuff which is like the consistency of cream, but it has a sour aspect to it? So I bought something that didn't say 'fil' anywhere, but said a weird word somewhere. I mainly picked it because it had a picture of cooking on the front, so I figured it was cream for cooking, aka what I needed for mac & cheese. Long story short, I was feeling completely out of it, and couldn't focus on thinking about Swedish dairy products, so I just bought one and hoped for the best.). Luckily, it was completely delicious. I think the secret is that the sauce is made with broth. It really adds a lot of flavor (salt) and keeps the richness in check.

7 comments:

  1. Wow! I put onions in almost everything, just out of habit. I can give you a recipe for dead simple pasta sauce (it can easily be jazzed up by the addition of sweetcorn/chorizo/red wine etc)

    1 onion, finely chopped
    3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
    1 tin chopped tomatoes
    Mixed herbs (about a tablespoonful)
    Olive oil
    Tomato puree (a tablespoonful)
    Garlic puree (a heaped teaspoonful)
    Stock cube (or similar)
    Worcester sauce (a good splash)

    Chop the onion and garlic and set it to fry gently in about 2 teaspoons of olive oil. When they start to brown, add a tablespoon of water and the herbs, then once translucent, add the chopped tomatoes. Once at boiling point, add the tomato puree, garlic puree, stock and worcester sauce then allow to simmer for about 8 minutes until everything's gone soft. Spoon over cooked pasta and serve with grated cheese if desired. Scrumptious.

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    1. Good call! I never would have thought to add a stock cube, but clearly I am all in favor.

      Wonder what the Swedish word is for worcester...

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  2. ummm...mac and cheese recipe! I love mac and cheese and now I want to have a cabin in the woods with a swing! I do NOT, however, understand why people like Lofthouse cookies.

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    1. This is so fascinating to me! Not only have I never met a person who did not love the Lofthouse cookies, but I also never met a person who felt so-so about them, or did not consider them to be the most addicting food in the world!

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  3. Do you have a crockpot? If so, making caramelized onions is the easiest thing in the world. Cut up 3 - 4 onions into slices, put it in the crock pot, and mix with a few glugs of olive oil until everything is slightly coated. Cook on low for 8 hours. You can also make the onions on a stove top, but you have to be much more attentive.

    We had a fantastic pizza few months ago at Flatbread Pizza where they made the sauce with blended butternut squash and on top was caramelized onions, a balsamic reduction, and fresh rosemary. And maybe argula was put on after the pizza was pulled out of the oven? I seem to remember something green on top..

    Roasted garlic is always delicious, I can eat an entire head of roasted garlic.

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    Replies
    1. Unfortunate, no crockpots here :( I think we have three back in NH, and I know that one day we will have a great reunion.

      Pizza with caramelized onion is making my mouth water. Probably going to be my dinner tonight.

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  4. I heard that about onions, too! If you leave an onion out and cut open, it will absorb some things, but not a lot of the unhealthy bacteria like people are talking about. Also, if you did that your house would smell like onions?

    I think garlic should be promoted as a super food!

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