Miss Cellaneous

I just got myself into ( boring & certainly pretentious-lookin' wine talk! )

Will open the Nero d'Avola now and enjoy it with my beef steak on garlic-roasted mushrooms with some cauliflowers thrown in for good measure.

Who says reading the flist isn't educational?

- jwaneeta links to the thing we have all been waiting for: BREAD WANK.

Hilarious, isn't it? Then again, the only time I ever got close to a vocal argument with witchsis, and also the only time family members raised their voices and stormed out of the room in a huff after our teenage years was when we we were in the kitchen together, baking or cooking: Srs bznss, indeed! It's fascinating to see so many people feeling so strongly about their recipes, methods, and ingredients--sure, yes, it's food, I'm a foodie, and all of us need that more than music or shows on tv...but still. Is it in part because we've grown so used to Doing It This Way (And No Other), since childhood if our parents taught us or since the eureka! moment at the stove if we're self-taught and proud of that?


- fishsanwitt links to a few articles about John McCain. I confess I don't know half as much about him as I know about the Democratic candidates, and that isn't the most extensive knowledge ever either, but I know just enough to be vaguely confused about friends of mine who tell me they consider him a bright politician and could imagine voting for him--Germans and US-Americans alike. And no, not talking about Republican/CDU-FDP voters: I mean the usual (US-)liberal, moderate crowd.

( Exerpts & links )

After some discussions of leafy greens over on 1_eats_cheap, I bought Kai-lan in my Asian food store, checked wiki, and found out that in Cantonese cuisine, it's often stir-fried with garlic and fresh ginger. Did that and ( some more recipe thingies )

Study Day was not at all nasty, but it was certainly brutishly short: After barely four hours, Cutie & I made our way to the other end of town for some supposedly awesome!1!! commercial repetition class...but no one showed up. Stell Dir vor, es ist Gründonnerstag, und keiner geht hin. ( More about my day & conversation topics )

I'll prepare some Indian veggie stir-fry with venison over French red baby potatoes now, but if anyone by any chance is into a) Fanmixes, b) CD cover graphics, or c) America's Best Dance Crew, check out the CD covers I made for callherblondie's mix, Laconic: Tony Tran (Kaba Modern)

I got the Spätzlepresse in the mail today! (O2, my cell phone provider, sent me that 10 EUR gift coupon, which I promptly used for something that, well, cost ten euro. 0 :-)

So now, I'll have pan-roasted venison with home-made spätzle and fresh steamed veggies--I'm thinking carrots with some broccoli. Mmh, yes.

Yesterday, I did have sushi (tekka maki, tobikko, ikura, kani & suzuki nigiri), but I found out that that was roughly 160% of my weekly allotted mercury intake right there. Oops?

ETA: I HAS WANTID TAKING PIC OF FOODZ, BUT I ATED IT.

ETA 2: Oh my God, I am so making these at some point: Apfelspötzli (Yes, yes, we're using all the umlauts we can. pukajen, I confess they *are* out to get you.)

Huh, that was quick yet tasty. For sharing and future reference:

( Leek & Cheese Soup )

grundbuch: *cuts tomatoes with deft & decisive hands, and also a sharp knife*
monanotlisa: You could cut them much more effectively.
grundbuch: Oh?
monanotlisa: You're cutting them in half and then carve out the green bits twice--but see, if you leave one "half" a little larger, you only have to carve out the green bit once!
grundbuch: I know, I know--but then it's not two actual, precise halves!
monanotlisa: *mulls this over* Don't you love how both of us are OCD yet refreshingly different in our approach?

Had wine and ostrich steaks and beef with couscous (I kissed him on the cheek twice during that, but it's only funny to Germans, if that) and a sauce made from fresh tomatoes, plus wine, and a Bailey's for dessert. Time for bed, I think.

Since I've already spent some time over there to to be a smartass about food share my wealth of food and nutrition knowledge--there's this new comm on the block:

1_eats_cheap, Cooking, Shopping, Eating Hints for living on your own.

This community is for trading information, strategies, hints and recipes about cooking for one. What to buy, what cookbooks and recipes you love, ways to save money and not have the fresh fruits and veggies turn to alien mush in the back of the fridge.

When we read recipes- we see: "4-6 servings?" "Meals the whole family can enjoy?" No, we're not cooking like that. How can we adapt recipes, buying strategies, to have tasty, affordable meals, and plenty of time to enjoy them, when the table's set for one?"

This being me, I of course tirelessly toot the horn of the healthy-yet-yummy options. Come contribute?

Back from a dinner with the parents and vervealemania who'd flown in for the weekend. They all picked me up and whisked me away to this li'l vegetarian restaurant not far from my house (although we totally both used and mocked sis's car GPS, the voice of which I'm sure sounded even more miffed afterwards). ( Food details, because I like to make people's mouths water from across 1 - 2 oceans )

The thing is, as nice as this evening was, it made me realise--sharp pangs: not just a cliché phrase--how much I miss my sister, who lives at the other end of the Republic (yes, that's what some Germans call their country, sometimes). I hadn't seen her for Christmas, if you recall, because she'd gone to Australia with her boyfriend-slash-future-husband, who's awesome and also a half-Aussie: 1 German father + 1 Australian mother = bilingual son with 2 passports. ( Adventures with in-laws )

Today, 14valentines features hunger, which is surely a tragic but still most remote issue, right? Body image, sexual offences, women & the economy--all of these are topics we can relate to, if not personally, then through friends or acquaintances or the community. Hunger's a problem of hot, faraway countries or a tiny subset of homeless people.

Only when it's not.

( On hunger, different kinds. )

Back after some sorely needed studying at grundbuch's uni office-slash-library and a not-quite-as-sorely-needed but very much wanted food (Argentinian beef fillet wok-roasted with five kinds of veggies and lemon grass over Basmati rice) & wine (just a Gallo 2004 Zin, but hey) night at his place.

As always, I'm incapable of holding back my culinary and oenophiliac delight, but really, I'm just posting to tell you that by God, she's done it: Auburn posted the final part of Ard! 30 chapters. 200,000+ words.

::collapses, happily::

Since it's TTOTM, I'm having this for dinner (and a salad afterwards, for some freshness & vitamins):

( Lotus Seed and Tapioca Pearl in Coconut Milk )

I blame machinistm who kept lauding her green-tea-filled-with-chocolate daifuku. mach, I got the traditional ones filled with red bean paste because that--plus peanut and sesame, not favourites of mine--was the only option.

Also,

1. ( two SGA recs )
2. and one SGA snippet of mine ( under the cut. )

Just made a cheesecake. It turned out pretty damn awesome in the realms of crust, look, and consistency but needs a bit of work in the realms of taste. ( Bake-O-Babble )

Now, I'm watching Oz & James's Big Wine Adventure, which so far is fun (and making me have that last glass of Zin after dinner).

I did mention my friend Em's older sister, right? The tiny-but-fierce one who was a drummer in her band; Em and I would go their concerts, stand in the back, and yell, DRUMMER SOLO! Anyways, she and her husband, four years her junior, went to France, visited châteaux and enjoyed a wine tasting or two.

emssister: I had no idea Châteauneuf-du-Pape was just this tiny village...with a huge rep, of course. In the wine cellars, when I idly picked up a bottle out of the wooden shelves, the clerk manifested next to me and took it out of my hands as if it were a raw egg.
monanotlisa: *g* Wine: serious business there.
emssister: No kidding. I mean, the only reason I know Châteauneuf-du-Pape was great and famous were the lyrics of Body Movin' by the Beastie Boys, you know? Like a bottle of Châteauneuf-Du-Pap' / I'm fine like wine when I start to rap.

Just after the restoration of radiator action and grocery shopping, grundbuch came, we saw that my fresh veggies & his wok/prawn/spices were a match made in culinary heaven, and we were victorious in our battle for a tasty stir-fry with red wine.

Afterwards, we decided to hit the movies. Ever since I dragged him into Stardust, he's notably less reticent when it comes to fantasy. So, ( The Golden Compass it was. )

1. Doing exercises to a cooking show on tv -- like having sex with an Abstinence Only! convention broadcast on, y/n?*

2. I smell like seared swordfish with sun-dried tomatoes. That is not a good thing eight hours after the lunch I forced my father into preparing with me.

3. Jenn linked to MightyGodKing answering yet another "Nice Guy" Rant, and oh, veni, legi, vicit!

ETA: Somewhat serendipitous if containing some BDSM content, viciouswishes gives advice that's not limited to guys in certain venues.

* I know, I know, I was going for a cheap joke here. Of course I enjoying both cooking and exercises...well, fine, the results of gymnastic exercises.

( Food. Woes & wishes. )

About 20 minutes left till I leave for that Christmas Market stroll. I'll bring my muffins; let's hope the girls and Cutie, in his weight-conscious swimmer ways, won't refuse 'em. Another instance of wishing for beamers (the transporter kind, not the German car from Bavaria one); I'm pretty sure I could find enough folks on my friendslist who wouldn't say no, however politely.

On my way back home today, I couldn't bypass that small wine store run by that elderly couple. ( Wine, and also some cheese; I mean, this is me. )

Several of my friends have been wondering about food, exercise & weight loss in their journals, and two explicitly wanted me to share my thoughts and experiences. As there's nothing more annoying than being told what to do and how to eat by oh-so-well-meaning people, I'll just talk about myself for a while, okay? (Hardly a revolution, that.)

Food & exercise -- Part One, Intro & Exercise Musings

( 'A man's health can be judged by which he takes two at a time - pills or stairs.' )

mcalex22 and thebratqueen, your Christmas/Holiday cards arrived! Thank you so much. ♥

Are dentists in your country the best salespeople ever, too? I don't think I've ever been in the office of a dentist who wasn't tall and impeccably groomed, who didn't first tell me all about his sincere dedication to great craftsmanship and then try to sell me all sorts of extra services and materials for my teeth? Also, all mercury-free (and thus not, you know, free) fillings cost way more money than I can spare at the moment. Is there a way to swap Santa Claus for the Tooth Fairy?

That said, I came home from this annual check-up with the gifts of a new Swiss state-of-the-art toothbrush (I KNOW. Or rather, I don't), a bottle of Listerine Orange, and a felt-tipped toothpick to use in lieu of my (fluffy!) floss...as well as the latest brushing techniques. Because, well, ( you know what this dentist would tell you? )

Sorry 'bout that.

Otherwise, I made a new John/Rodney icon for yours truly and Key Lime Apple Almond muffins for my OSG friends tomorrow. It's just, uh, entirely possible that I forgot one of the two apples. *facepalm* They came out fine; it's just that I like my cakes very fruity, you know?

...don't say it.

Is it too ambitious even for me to search for a dessert dish combining almonds, saffron, limes, and possibly apples or figs? (My father was given three boxes of Persian saffron as another good-bye gift from colleagues in Iran, and I immediately snagged one of tiny wooden inlay boxes.)

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If there is a less kind term for "spam robot test challenged," I don't want to know. Sure, my vision isn't perfect, but I wish LJ would at least make a half-hearted attempt at legibility: Having to go three rounds with each spam robot test is a bit exhausting.

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W(i)tF(i)?

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Y'all should comment with things that you think people reading this LJ ought to know about me. If you were describing my LJ to someone who was trying to decide whether to read it, what would you say?

What I like best about this meme is its use of the address "y'all."

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ETA: vylit says what I think about some fanfic writers..

Didn't really get anything done save sifting through my accumulated mail, writing an email to the landlady, and going grocery-shopping, but I am still quite content: plans for a meeting with Cutie, for a Christmas Market stroll with the OSG friends, and for a little trip to my uni city where an old friend of mine is celebrating his 30th birthday.

Think I'll make key lime pots de crème and watch Dexter now. It's a Florida-themed night, you see?