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Category: food

Palazzo di Bocce

Published December 10, 2008

Playing bocce with some coworkers. Brad is on the left and Doug just rolled a ball.

Today some coworkers of mine and I went to Palazzo di Bocce to play some bocce as a group Christmas-ish outing. It was much nicer than the last times I went with work, because we had smaller teams which allowed everyone plenty of time to play. The last time we went there was a tournament-style game, fewer points needed to win, and four players per team which meant that I was only able to bowl six or eight times the whole day.

After work I ran to Trader Joe’s, then Danielle and I met up for some nice dinner here at home of sweet potato fries, mayo and Clancy’s Fancy dip, organic chicken sausages, wheat buns, and tapioca pudding. At TJs I was able to get some of the 2008 Vintage Ale, which being brewed by Unibroue will hopefully be good. I acquired quite a bit of it last year’s 2007 vintage and if this year’s batch is just as good I’ll probably get a bunch more.

Tomorrow I’m hoping to build up the hardware portion of a replacement PC for my grandparents, a meeting about some volunteer computer-ish work, normal work, and… whatever else comes up. This is right in line with how busy my days have been lately. I guess this is a good thing… I think?

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Oil Slick and Other Images

Published December 2, 2008

I do not like seeing oil slicks like this in a parking lot. This is from the snow plow / salt spreading people.

Here, have some moblog images:

· I do not like seeing oil slicks like this in a parking lot. This is from the snow plow / salt spreading people.
· Car with YOU SUCK @ PARKING written in paint marker on the side window.
· Engrish on a model helicopter box at Microcenter. (Click to read more.)
· Deatheater standing near the console at IPM.
· It’s December 1st, time to start on the advent calendar my mom gave me.
· DBAN having just finished running on my old D610.
· Bye bye, D610. Time for me to begin using another laptop at work.
· The bathroom at work has a shiny new air freshener installed.

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King Corn

Published November 28, 2008

Last night after finding it available in the Netflix Streaming stuff, Danielle and I watched King Corn. This documentary was very similar to the first part of Michael Pollan‘s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma and even included Mr. Pollan and thanked him for the inspiration for the film.

In this film two guys decide that they want to grow an acre of corn and figure out many of the things that industrial corn is used for in the US. They spend most of their time in the farming town of Greene, IA, with side trips to NYC, feed lots in Colorado, and a few other places. For those who are already familiar with how industrial corn is used to make the vast majority of processed foods in the state it’s nothing too new, but it’s well put together and fairly entertaining.

I think the film could have spent more time going into a few areas which were hinted at, such as how the determination is made which shows that most of the carbon in most USians is originally from corn or what happens to cause a particular farmer to auction off all his belongings and move, but that might have made the film a bit drawn out. As it stands, I definitely recommend seeing this.

Here’s some more info about it:

· King Corn – Official Site
· Independent Lens: King Corn (PBS)
· King Corn at Apple Trailers

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Laphroaig Quarter Cask

Published November 25, 2008

Laphroaig Quarter Cask, 1L, purchased at the Duty Free shop in Heathrow Airport for £30.99.

Save for an awful cold, an Oyster Card, some cash, a few receipts, and two packs of candy chocolate bars, this 1L bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask purchased at a Duty Free shop at Heathrow Airport was the only real souvenir which I brought back from the UK. Cost was £30.99, and with the ~1.58:1 exchange rate we received, the state minimum price of $54.98 for a 750mL, and a 6% sales tax, presuming the same size bottle was available, this cost 63% of what it would back here in Michigan.

This is a very interesting whisky. Despite its higher alcohol content it’s not as potent of a flavor as I expected. It’s still nicely smoky, but there’s something much softer about it. I did mix it with about 40% water, and I may eventually work up to trying it neat, but that’s typically a stretch for Laphroaig. It’s almost always best with at least a small splash of water.

I guess I should go fill out the form to claim my square foot of land on Islay. Maybe one day I’ll end up there and have a chance to collect rent.

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LOL Banana

Published November 24, 2008

Today's banana came festooned with a LOL sticker. It was a very tasty, perfectly ripe banana.

The banana I ate today came with a LOL sticker on it. It was a perfectly ripe banana which made for a good noon time, starting to feel better meal-ish thing. Now to decide on the rest of the day’s food. I think a nice Thai or Indian curry will jump start my digestive system.

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Chili Sin Carne

Published November 19, 2008

Today's veggie chili.

Here’s the sample of today’s chili sin carne which I pulled for purposes of “testing” to be sure the whole pot is ready for eating. It was made as follows:

1) Sautee a chopped sweet onion and bulb of garlic in ~3 TBSP of butter with three whole Kung Pao chilis until brown.
2) Add a bottle of barely carbonated Rochefort 10 Clone and reduce.
3) Add one 28oz can of Muir Glen Fire Roasted Diced Tomatos, one container Garden Fresh Jack’s Special Medium Salsa, one 6oz small can of Meijer tomato paste, and one 7oz can of Empacadora San Marcos Chipotle Sauce.
4) Remove chilis and add rehydrated beans, one bag of Morningstar Farms® Meal Starters™ Grillers™ Recipe Crumbles™, and about half a bag of Trader Joes Fire Roasted Corn. Bring to simmer.
5) Notice that the mixture is getting dry. Add another bottle of Rochefort 10 Clone, about 3oz of chili powder, and about 1 Tsp of fresh ground black pepper.
6) Simmer for about 2.5 hours, stirring every 15 – 20 minutes.

Suddenly waking up at 6:45am made it possible to eat this for lunch. Now I have to decide if I make rice and have it that way, or with chips and cheese. Or maybe I could make up some pasta for a better-than-authentic Skyline-esque experience.

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Frijoles Negros, Rojas, y Pintos

Published November 18, 2008

Black (negros), red (rojos), and pinto beans to be used in making veggie chili (chili sin carne).

It’s cold out, I’ve got some sort of UK-ian cold / sinus infection, and I’m wanting to eat at home as much as possible while on vacation. While at Meijer and picking up milk I decided to make up a pot of chili sin carne using my standard method, except with dried beans. Normally I use canned beans, but dried are cheaper and better tasting. Hopefully I’ll be using these 1.5 pounds (dried) of beans along with a clove of garlic, large sweet onion, container of Garden Fresh Salsa, a bag of Morningstar Farms beefy TVP stuff, failed-to-carbonate home-made Rochefort 10 Clone, Trader Joe’s Fire Roasted Corn, and random other things to make something which is hopefully tasty and sustaining.

It will likely be eaten one of two ways:

· Over rice cooked in an Indian style, as demonstrated here by the wonderful Manjula on her YouTube channel.
· With Garden Fresh Tortilla Chips and smothered in sharp cheddar.

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Lemon Drop Chile Peppers

Published November 6, 2008

Lemon drop chile peppers, cut into slices, to be used in the preparation of a hot sauce.

Here’s a portion of the 2/3 cup of Lemon Drop Chile Peppers which I cut up tonight for use in my multi-year hot sauce project. These were grown on my front porch, planted along with the flowers grown here in 2008.

I’ve done a bunch of stuff since cutting them up and washed my hands a few times, but I’m still too scared to use the bathroom and touch particularly sensitive bits. These are very, very hot; just below habanero according to descriptions I’ve read online. When I tried to eat one slice this size in the past, the first initial bite sent my mouth into alternating numbness and horrible pain.

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