Saturday, January 22, 2005
BAM!
I must admit that I've tried to be a little more creative in the kitchen this past week. I started on Sunday with (not bad) first attempt at making chicken curry.
A couple of days later I made a lovely mushroom and black bean quesadilla with red onions and red peppers, with a side of fried plantains:
A few days after it was fresh fried tilapia topped with a garlic, mushroom (guess) red pepper medley with a side of salad spinach with pesto salad dressing and a sprinkling of parmiasan.
I then thought I could apply these wonderful skills to cake making, so I went and purchased a Boston Cream Pie cake making kit. The front cover looked quite lovely, so I obtained the necessary ingredients and went about concocting the dessert.
Seems within the realm of reason...
I seriously followed the instructions to the letter. The only exceptions were that, because we didn't have a proper mixer, I had to do the mixing and beating by hand. Unfortunately the cake failed to rise properly, so instead of having a nice tall that I could cut in half and spread filling in the middle, I was treated to an inch tall shell of a Boston Cream Pie.
I was determined to put in the cream, but the top began crumbling as I tried to cut it in half, so I ended up breaking off hunks, applying the cream, then replacing them. I then figured that the icing would cover everything, but instead of being runny enough to cover the whole cake, it only came out in squirts, which resulted in a very different image, despite my attempts to spread it over the top.
But alas! It was not to be!
Don't let me near your cake mix. No, really.
A couple of days later I made a lovely mushroom and black bean quesadilla with red onions and red peppers, with a side of fried plantains:
A few days after it was fresh fried tilapia topped with a garlic, mushroom (guess) red pepper medley with a side of salad spinach with pesto salad dressing and a sprinkling of parmiasan.
I then thought I could apply these wonderful skills to cake making, so I went and purchased a Boston Cream Pie cake making kit. The front cover looked quite lovely, so I obtained the necessary ingredients and went about concocting the dessert.
Seems within the realm of reason...
I seriously followed the instructions to the letter. The only exceptions were that, because we didn't have a proper mixer, I had to do the mixing and beating by hand. Unfortunately the cake failed to rise properly, so instead of having a nice tall that I could cut in half and spread filling in the middle, I was treated to an inch tall shell of a Boston Cream Pie.
I was determined to put in the cream, but the top began crumbling as I tried to cut it in half, so I ended up breaking off hunks, applying the cream, then replacing them. I then figured that the icing would cover everything, but instead of being runny enough to cover the whole cake, it only came out in squirts, which resulted in a very different image, despite my attempts to spread it over the top.
But alas! It was not to be!
Don't let me near your cake mix. No, really.
Friday, January 21, 2005
How things can go wrong very quickly.
The plan was perfect. I knew I was going to miss Liz's birthday yesterday, but she had agreed to drive up the following day (today) to see me.
Now any ordinary person would just be ready with birthday gifts. But the overachiever in me spoke too soon. I rented a cabin near Brevard, NC for 2 nights, and sent in the deposit for it. Last night I went grocery shopping and bought an assortment of foods so I could cook for her both nights. I even tried to bake a cake (and failed miserably, but I was going to present her with the mangled results anyway).
Alas, I received no "I'm leaving" phone call from Liz this morning. My worry grew but finally I got through to her and found out that she was pretty darn sick, the poor girl. Neither of us wanted her to drive up in that state... so the plans for this weekend are over and the surprise ruined...
Thankfully, the reservations were able to be moved to next weekend, but I'm still angry that perfection could not be obtained, and I'm left with an empty weekend while the timer that counts down to the demise of our relationship maintains its steady tic-toc.
Now any ordinary person would just be ready with birthday gifts. But the overachiever in me spoke too soon. I rented a cabin near Brevard, NC for 2 nights, and sent in the deposit for it. Last night I went grocery shopping and bought an assortment of foods so I could cook for her both nights. I even tried to bake a cake (and failed miserably, but I was going to present her with the mangled results anyway).
Alas, I received no "I'm leaving" phone call from Liz this morning. My worry grew but finally I got through to her and found out that she was pretty darn sick, the poor girl. Neither of us wanted her to drive up in that state... so the plans for this weekend are over and the surprise ruined...
Thankfully, the reservations were able to be moved to next weekend, but I'm still angry that perfection could not be obtained, and I'm left with an empty weekend while the timer that counts down to the demise of our relationship maintains its steady tic-toc.
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
The Evangelical Humanist
The Daily Show's guest tonight was an evangelical Christian. I must admit I tensed up and waiting for the impending awkwarness as he tried to talk to Jon Stewart, but it turned out to be a very interesting fellow.
His name was Jim Wallace, and he was promoting his book "God's Politics: Why the right gets it wrong and the left doesn't get it/"
Jon Stewart asked him a question about moral values, which was, if any of you remember, the number one issue for those that voted for Bush. Wallace said that if you really cared about moral values, then you'd care about moral values like:
fighting poverty
caring about God's Earth and protecting it
only going to war for the right reasons
I think he said a few more, but the audience was already cheering at this point. He also referred to a verse in Matthew in which he had made the following conclusion:
"the best way to show your love for God is by showing your love for God's children"
This is a fine example of how humanism is compatible with anyone, and how wonderful the results of it are.
Also, while attempting to look up his Matthew verse, I ran across this line by Jesus himself, and thought it was interesting enough to spur debate:
19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God
Uh oh!
His name was Jim Wallace, and he was promoting his book "God's Politics: Why the right gets it wrong and the left doesn't get it/"
Jon Stewart asked him a question about moral values, which was, if any of you remember, the number one issue for those that voted for Bush. Wallace said that if you really cared about moral values, then you'd care about moral values like:
fighting poverty
caring about God's Earth and protecting it
only going to war for the right reasons
I think he said a few more, but the audience was already cheering at this point. He also referred to a verse in Matthew in which he had made the following conclusion:
"the best way to show your love for God is by showing your love for God's children"
This is a fine example of how humanism is compatible with anyone, and how wonderful the results of it are.
Also, while attempting to look up his Matthew verse, I ran across this line by Jesus himself, and thought it was interesting enough to spur debate:
19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God
Uh oh!
