Note: This entry has nothing to do with food and wine and alcohol. It's about life. Although, the one roundabout allusion to cooking is well played.
My six-month subscription with eHarmony ends today. Despite the recent flood of messages from the uber-religious people with new matches (!) and offers of discount renewals (!), I'm ending my relationship with eHarmony. In fact, I'm ending my relationship with all online dating sites as of today. I took this vow when I turned 34, and stayed away for a year. Then, 35 hit me and I decided to try the online thing one last time. Obviously, six months later, it didn't work out.
Over the past ten years, I've dated many of the sites: Match, Yahoo! Personals, Nerve, Lovelab and others that I've forgotten, probably on purpose. It seems that my relationship with those sites mimics many real life relationships. A roller coaster of happy and sad, huge emotional investments that sometimes do, but often don't pay off, disappointment, rejection, broken promises. Second and third chances. Stories, mostly bad, with relatively few good ones.
Nothing would make me happier than to have a sous chef in my kitchen (food allusion!). But, the reality is, that despite my many-pronged efforts, mine is a solo life. In a twisted way, the end of online dating is a sad end; most practically, I'm cutting off an area that blatantly promises a bright and shiny future with the love of my life, only to be found on this site!
Before I become tempted once again by someone's story about meeting their significant other on an online site, I'll think about my history with the sites: a relationship of give and take, which by the end, consisted of me doing most of the giving and the dating site, most of the taking.
PS - For all of my blog readers, please no more advice. Trust me, I've taken your advice, repeatedly. If you want to help me, find me a date with someone who not only has a pulse, but can carry on a conversation, likes to drink and isn't a picky eater.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Molly Moon's!
Daily Candy sent the official notice: a new ice cream shop in Seattle! Not just any ice cream, but one sourcing local/organic ingredients, a mix of traditional and offbeat flavors and a grand opening party.
The opening day party sort of passed by, but the next day, a sunnny Sunday, I remembered the notice, when Lisa and I saw the "sorry, no more" sign at the new ice cream stand at the Broadway Farmer's Market. Have you heard of Molly Moon's, I asked, do you want ice cream?
We went, we tasted, we loved.
For me, a scoop of salted caramel and cardamom. Lisa also chose salted caramel, but with a scoop of Vivace coffee. (She also noted that my scoops were bigger than hers. Uh huh, I smiled and smacked my lips. Can I have another taste of your coffee?).
The ice cream was amazing. It tasted homemade, like what I remember eating at my Grandma's house when I was a kid. None of the cloying sweetness of [insert name of ice cream store]. Ground up Vivace coffee beans in the ice cream. Crystals of sea salt in the salted caramel. Other flavors that I didn't get to try: "scout" mint, balsamic strawberry, honey lavender, ginger, and so many others.
A few days later, I mentioned Molly Moon's to Tracy, who knows Molly and the back story. Molly has always dreamed of opening an ice cream shop, one without artificial-ness and styrofoam. The creamery has been a while in the making...and since opening has been a huge success. Molly has been working non-stop to make enough ice cream, even putting out the call for ice cream making help amongst friends.
It's finally summer in Seattle, so likely, I'll be making a special trip or two to Wallingford for Molly Moon's. Yeah to good ice cream!
The opening day party sort of passed by, but the next day, a sunnny Sunday, I remembered the notice, when Lisa and I saw the "sorry, no more" sign at the new ice cream stand at the Broadway Farmer's Market. Have you heard of Molly Moon's, I asked, do you want ice cream?
We went, we tasted, we loved.
For me, a scoop of salted caramel and cardamom. Lisa also chose salted caramel, but with a scoop of Vivace coffee. (She also noted that my scoops were bigger than hers. Uh huh, I smiled and smacked my lips. Can I have another taste of your coffee?).
The ice cream was amazing. It tasted homemade, like what I remember eating at my Grandma's house when I was a kid. None of the cloying sweetness of [insert name of ice cream store]. Ground up Vivace coffee beans in the ice cream. Crystals of sea salt in the salted caramel. Other flavors that I didn't get to try: "scout" mint, balsamic strawberry, honey lavender, ginger, and so many others.
A few days later, I mentioned Molly Moon's to Tracy, who knows Molly and the back story. Molly has always dreamed of opening an ice cream shop, one without artificial-ness and styrofoam. The creamery has been a while in the making...and since opening has been a huge success. Molly has been working non-stop to make enough ice cream, even putting out the call for ice cream making help amongst friends.
It's finally summer in Seattle, so likely, I'll be making a special trip or two to Wallingford for Molly Moon's. Yeah to good ice cream!
Friday, May 09, 2008
Radishes, Braised
See that picture? That is a picture of braised radishes.
There is a good reason why we eat radishes raw, neatly sliced up in salads, dressed with something acidic. That's because cooked radishes, in this case, braised, are just not good. Maybe it was the recipe, although it did come from Vegetarian Cooking for All, which usually produces fairly solid results (only, add more flavoring. Trust me).
In case you're curious, here's the recipe. Saute a chopped shallot and thyme in a few tablespoons of butter, add trimmed radishes, cover in water and braise 3-5 minutes. Add radish greens, braise another minute and then remove radishes from braising liquid. Let it boil down for a few minutes, add some butter "to turn it into a sauce" and sauce up the radishes. Simple, right?
In case you're curious, here's how it all went wrong. The radishes took much longer to cook until tender, approximately 15 minutes. When cooked, they sort of had that radish bite, only meek and watery. And the braising sauce...tasted just like water with butter added. The dish was thrown away.
On the positive side, the seared coho salmon (generously seasoned with salt and pepper) and sauteed spinach (with thinly sliced garlic, salt and pepper, then squeezed of excess liquid, then seasoned with a bit of balsamic) were both delicious, definitely making up for the disappointing radishes.
There is a good reason why we eat radishes raw, neatly sliced up in salads, dressed with something acidic. That's because cooked radishes, in this case, braised, are just not good. Maybe it was the recipe, although it did come from Vegetarian Cooking for All, which usually produces fairly solid results (only, add more flavoring. Trust me).
In case you're curious, here's the recipe. Saute a chopped shallot and thyme in a few tablespoons of butter, add trimmed radishes, cover in water and braise 3-5 minutes. Add radish greens, braise another minute and then remove radishes from braising liquid. Let it boil down for a few minutes, add some butter "to turn it into a sauce" and sauce up the radishes. Simple, right?
In case you're curious, here's how it all went wrong. The radishes took much longer to cook until tender, approximately 15 minutes. When cooked, they sort of had that radish bite, only meek and watery. And the braising sauce...tasted just like water with butter added. The dish was thrown away.
On the positive side, the seared coho salmon (generously seasoned with salt and pepper) and sauteed spinach (with thinly sliced garlic, salt and pepper, then squeezed of excess liquid, then seasoned with a bit of balsamic) were both delicious, definitely making up for the disappointing radishes.
Spring Vegetable Risotto
After days and days of sickness, I finally felt well enough to return to the land of the living. My criteria: venture more than one block away from home, hang out with friends and consume at least one beer and/or glass of wine, want to cook something more complex than pushing a few buttons the microwave.
All criteria checked. Friday night, Tracy drug me to Sun Liquor, where Eric made me a few non-alcoholic vitamin C laden juices, then insisted that a hot toddy would make me feel better. He was right. Saturday night with Jess and Lisa and Jeff at Quinn's, with a glass of pinot noir and glass of Monastrell (which was quite delightful), and an excellent tongue salad and chickpea soup topped with parsley oil and candied lemon peel and other goodness.
However, the real purpose this blog - to detail the deliciousness of Sunday night's dinner: the spring vegetable risotto. Published in the latest Cooks Illustrated, the recipe ventured from all other risotto recipes in a unique way. Rather than simply heating chicken stock and adding to the risotto, it called for simmering all vegetable and herb trimmings in the chicken broth for 20 minutes, straining and then cooking the risotto as normal. An added punch - a few teaspoons of lemon juice thrown in at the end, and topping each serving with gremolata (lemon zest + mint + parsley).
Delicious, I tell you, absolutely delicious.
A very interesting unoaked Chardonnay, a 2006 Crossings from New Zealand, went quite well with the risotto, which contained spring vegetables of the asparagus and peas and leeks variety. Many years ago, when I finally figured out that I really hated the oaky and buttery flavor of chardonnays, I heard of unoaked chardonnays, and found a few in the form of white bordeaux varietals. The deliberate labeling of "unoaked" was a pleasant surprise, refreshing and not at all like the California chardonnays that I just don't like.
All in all, a nice meal along the road to recovery.
All criteria checked. Friday night, Tracy drug me to Sun Liquor, where Eric made me a few non-alcoholic vitamin C laden juices, then insisted that a hot toddy would make me feel better. He was right. Saturday night with Jess and Lisa and Jeff at Quinn's, with a glass of pinot noir and glass of Monastrell (which was quite delightful), and an excellent tongue salad and chickpea soup topped with parsley oil and candied lemon peel and other goodness.
However, the real purpose this blog - to detail the deliciousness of Sunday night's dinner: the spring vegetable risotto. Published in the latest Cooks Illustrated, the recipe ventured from all other risotto recipes in a unique way. Rather than simply heating chicken stock and adding to the risotto, it called for simmering all vegetable and herb trimmings in the chicken broth for 20 minutes, straining and then cooking the risotto as normal. An added punch - a few teaspoons of lemon juice thrown in at the end, and topping each serving with gremolata (lemon zest + mint + parsley).
Delicious, I tell you, absolutely delicious.
A very interesting unoaked Chardonnay, a 2006 Crossings from New Zealand, went quite well with the risotto, which contained spring vegetables of the asparagus and peas and leeks variety. Many years ago, when I finally figured out that I really hated the oaky and buttery flavor of chardonnays, I heard of unoaked chardonnays, and found a few in the form of white bordeaux varietals. The deliberate labeling of "unoaked" was a pleasant surprise, refreshing and not at all like the California chardonnays that I just don't like.
All in all, a nice meal along the road to recovery.
A UK Trip
I,Aeove just wrapped up a business trip to the UK, where I tacked a few extra days on the front end to visit Nilay and then a weekend at the back end with Tracy, before heading off on the second part of the trip, to Sweden and Denmark. It,Aeos been a hard trip, but one also marked by some excellent meals and quality pub and bar time.
Nilay, a fellow foodie, drug me to Borough Market (located at the London Bridge tube stop) promising that it was a spectacular famer,Aeos market. Nilay was right. I loved it, and convinced Tracy to come with a week later. It is not dissimilar to the San Francisco Ferry Building Farmer,Aeos market, only bigger and more crowded.
Both times, I gazed at the vegetables and fruit and meat and fish on display, pondering cooking adventures. Ostrich steaks, with roasted new potatoes, asparagus and beets. Fish with a side of fresh rocket mixed with strawberries or apples and blue cheese and nuts. Freshly slaughtered rabbit, cooked with thyme and served with carrots and peas and buttermilk and herbed mashed potatoes, tied together with some type of red wine reduction. Or a picnic, with hand made salamis (rivaling Seattle,Aeos Salumi), any number of cheeses, walnut bread and brownie for dessert. I couldn,Aeot help but notice shopping lists in many hands.
I ate well during both visits to Borough, sampling from many stalls, bits of cheese and meats and other assorted things, and buying a few other things. Monmouth Coffee, which makes coffee a la Blue Bottle in San Francisco, hand dripped, using high quality beans. Freshly squeezed juices. Ostrich burgers. Seared scallops, nestled on a bed of ground bacon, bean sprouts and thinly sliced carrots. Wraps, with tsatziki sauce and couscous and a mound of saut/(c)ed veggies. And sausages, of every variety, all accompanied by salad and chutney and mustard and onions on freshly baked crusty bread.
Produce at the market:
Delicious rabbits:
Freshly squeezed juice:
Other culinary points to note about London,AePIndian food at a still being remodeled Clapham restaurant, which marked the beginning of my ,AeuI have to order saag [spinch] with every single Indian meal,Aeu trend. High-brow Indian food at Red Fort in SoHo (if you go to Red Fort, get the duck. Trust me). English roast ,Aei lamb, cheesey cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, potatoes and Yorkshire pudding united by tasty brown gravy. Mussels at Belgo Centraal. Vegetarian Indian (again with tasty saag). Giovanni,Aeos, an excellent Italian hole in the wall, with a personality filled owner and impressive food to match the owner,Aeos personality. It,Aeos important to note that while Giovanni,Aeos is in Covent Garden, it,Aeos not easy to find, tucked down an alley.
I have three things to write about my trip outside of London, to Coventry and Leamington Spa. First, if you ever find yourself in the general area of Leamington Spa, eat at Wilde,Aeos. I wanted to return a second night, only Tracy wouldn,Aeot let me. We started with squid and chorizo saut/(c)ed with shallots and scallions, then mixed with rocket, and an amazing bruschetta covered in some type of rich tomato sauce and roasted eggplant and broiled with a generous slice of goat cheese. I demolished a duck breast, perfectly rare with a crispy skin, laid atop a demi-glace. For dessert, I had Wilde,Aeos Eton Mess, a true mess of strawberries and berries and pieces of meringue, folded with whipped heavy cream.
Wilde's Duck:
Wilde's lovely Eton Mess:
Second, I visited a company that had the best quality machine coffee that I have ever tasted. I could choose from black coffee, white coffee, black tea and white tea. It absolutely made the iCup taste like swill.
And third, the London train system is a bit shaky, even when you take the privately run Virgin train. After boarding the London Euston bound train in Coventry, we were dumped off at Rugby Station a few minutes later because of a signal problem. We went back to Coventry on a standing room only train, and over the next hour, heard much conflicting information about schedules ,Aei regardless, it wouldn,Aeot be a straight shot to London. We passed on the first train ,Aei there was no room for three people, luggage and any sort of fresh oxygen. We tried to board the second train, to Leamington Spa (from where we,Aeod transfer trains to go to London) only to be unable to get on. The cars were full, except for the one we were trying to board, which was empty in the middle because a cranky old man was standing and refused to move down to allow other passengers on board. People, including myself, were shouting at him to move down. In desperation, I banged on the window, and others followed. Eventually, we started to curse the man, who refused to budge. At the end, I pulled out Shakespeare: ,AeuMay there be a curse upon your house!,Aeu
A few minutes after the banging on train windows debacle, we tried to get our money back to take a very expensive cab ride back to London, and discovered that the signal had been fixed. So after all, we did take the train back to Euston Station. We did even better when we were quietly told that one of the first class cars had been decommissioned for all passengers,AePfrom that point on, our weekend in London was absolutely lovely, with a stay at the Hotel 41 and of course, cheer and eating.
About the cheer ,Aei much to write about, for another blog entry.
And one last thing to mention,AePthanks to a generous employer, I flew SAS business class to Europe. SAS business class rules, for so many, many reasons, which range from the obvious to easily overlooked. By comparison, United business class is, well, kind of junky. Oh U.S. airlines,AePwhy must you fail so spectacularly?
Pictures to be posted later.
Correction: I received a comment that the entire British railway system is privatized, and since becoming privatized, has turned to "rot". A Maggie Thatcher legacy...and duly corrected in the entry.
Nilay, a fellow foodie, drug me to Borough Market (located at the London Bridge tube stop) promising that it was a spectacular famer,Aeos market. Nilay was right. I loved it, and convinced Tracy to come with a week later. It is not dissimilar to the San Francisco Ferry Building Farmer,Aeos market, only bigger and more crowded.
Both times, I gazed at the vegetables and fruit and meat and fish on display, pondering cooking adventures. Ostrich steaks, with roasted new potatoes, asparagus and beets. Fish with a side of fresh rocket mixed with strawberries or apples and blue cheese and nuts. Freshly slaughtered rabbit, cooked with thyme and served with carrots and peas and buttermilk and herbed mashed potatoes, tied together with some type of red wine reduction. Or a picnic, with hand made salamis (rivaling Seattle,Aeos Salumi), any number of cheeses, walnut bread and brownie for dessert. I couldn,Aeot help but notice shopping lists in many hands.
I ate well during both visits to Borough, sampling from many stalls, bits of cheese and meats and other assorted things, and buying a few other things. Monmouth Coffee, which makes coffee a la Blue Bottle in San Francisco, hand dripped, using high quality beans. Freshly squeezed juices. Ostrich burgers. Seared scallops, nestled on a bed of ground bacon, bean sprouts and thinly sliced carrots. Wraps, with tsatziki sauce and couscous and a mound of saut/(c)ed veggies. And sausages, of every variety, all accompanied by salad and chutney and mustard and onions on freshly baked crusty bread.
Produce at the market:
Delicious rabbits:
Freshly squeezed juice:
Other culinary points to note about London,AePIndian food at a still being remodeled Clapham restaurant, which marked the beginning of my ,AeuI have to order saag [spinch] with every single Indian meal,Aeu trend. High-brow Indian food at Red Fort in SoHo (if you go to Red Fort, get the duck. Trust me). English roast ,Aei lamb, cheesey cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, potatoes and Yorkshire pudding united by tasty brown gravy. Mussels at Belgo Centraal. Vegetarian Indian (again with tasty saag). Giovanni,Aeos, an excellent Italian hole in the wall, with a personality filled owner and impressive food to match the owner,Aeos personality. It,Aeos important to note that while Giovanni,Aeos is in Covent Garden, it,Aeos not easy to find, tucked down an alley.
I have three things to write about my trip outside of London, to Coventry and Leamington Spa. First, if you ever find yourself in the general area of Leamington Spa, eat at Wilde,Aeos. I wanted to return a second night, only Tracy wouldn,Aeot let me. We started with squid and chorizo saut/(c)ed with shallots and scallions, then mixed with rocket, and an amazing bruschetta covered in some type of rich tomato sauce and roasted eggplant and broiled with a generous slice of goat cheese. I demolished a duck breast, perfectly rare with a crispy skin, laid atop a demi-glace. For dessert, I had Wilde,Aeos Eton Mess, a true mess of strawberries and berries and pieces of meringue, folded with whipped heavy cream.
Wilde's Duck:
Wilde's lovely Eton Mess:
Second, I visited a company that had the best quality machine coffee that I have ever tasted. I could choose from black coffee, white coffee, black tea and white tea. It absolutely made the iCup taste like swill.
And third, the London train system is a bit shaky, even when you take the privately run Virgin train. After boarding the London Euston bound train in Coventry, we were dumped off at Rugby Station a few minutes later because of a signal problem. We went back to Coventry on a standing room only train, and over the next hour, heard much conflicting information about schedules ,Aei regardless, it wouldn,Aeot be a straight shot to London. We passed on the first train ,Aei there was no room for three people, luggage and any sort of fresh oxygen. We tried to board the second train, to Leamington Spa (from where we,Aeod transfer trains to go to London) only to be unable to get on. The cars were full, except for the one we were trying to board, which was empty in the middle because a cranky old man was standing and refused to move down to allow other passengers on board. People, including myself, were shouting at him to move down. In desperation, I banged on the window, and others followed. Eventually, we started to curse the man, who refused to budge. At the end, I pulled out Shakespeare: ,AeuMay there be a curse upon your house!,Aeu
A few minutes after the banging on train windows debacle, we tried to get our money back to take a very expensive cab ride back to London, and discovered that the signal had been fixed. So after all, we did take the train back to Euston Station. We did even better when we were quietly told that one of the first class cars had been decommissioned for all passengers,AePfrom that point on, our weekend in London was absolutely lovely, with a stay at the Hotel 41 and of course, cheer and eating.
About the cheer ,Aei much to write about, for another blog entry.
And one last thing to mention,AePthanks to a generous employer, I flew SAS business class to Europe. SAS business class rules, for so many, many reasons, which range from the obvious to easily overlooked. By comparison, United business class is, well, kind of junky. Oh U.S. airlines,AePwhy must you fail so spectacularly?
Pictures to be posted later.
Correction: I received a comment that the entire British railway system is privatized, and since becoming privatized, has turned to "rot". A Maggie Thatcher legacy...and duly corrected in the entry.
Friday, May 02, 2008
Sick Again
I just wrote about being hit by the flu while traveling for business. It happened again, this time in Sweden (on the second half of the Europe trip).
Although, I didn't as much get hit by the flu as pummeled, flattened, destroyed.
A sore throat on Tuesday morning, which by mid-afternoon, had transformed into a near death state. I think my co-workers were a bit alarmed when I said, "I feel funny" while waiting for the train, and later, when Tracy asked me if a beer would make me feel better, simply said, "no". All know that if I'm not drinking, something is wrong.
After what seemed like a 3 mile trek to the hotel in the lovely city of Helsingborg, (which later, I discovered was about 3 blocks away), I collapsed in my room, only emerging Friday, 2 1/2 days later. And that was because I was determined to visit H&M (really, seriously, how could I not go to the store in the country from which fabulous clothes come) and buy chocolate. A more minor, albeit important, reason: I had to check out of my hotel and move to our prepaid hotel in Copenhagen. I got it together - sort of - for a weekend in Copenhagen before flying home on Sunday.
It's now the following Friday, and I've only left my house for food, the library (overdue books and it is next door) and yesterday, the doctor's office. I thought that I would make it to the office today, because I actually felt a lot better yesterday afternoon...and then I woke up this morning and realized that I wouldn't be going anywhere.
I think my out of office message sums it up nicely:
Although, I didn't as much get hit by the flu as pummeled, flattened, destroyed.
A sore throat on Tuesday morning, which by mid-afternoon, had transformed into a near death state. I think my co-workers were a bit alarmed when I said, "I feel funny" while waiting for the train, and later, when Tracy asked me if a beer would make me feel better, simply said, "no". All know that if I'm not drinking, something is wrong.
After what seemed like a 3 mile trek to the hotel in the lovely city of Helsingborg, (which later, I discovered was about 3 blocks away), I collapsed in my room, only emerging Friday, 2 1/2 days later. And that was because I was determined to visit H&M (really, seriously, how could I not go to the store in the country from which fabulous clothes come) and buy chocolate. A more minor, albeit important, reason: I had to check out of my hotel and move to our prepaid hotel in Copenhagen. I got it together - sort of - for a weekend in Copenhagen before flying home on Sunday.
It's now the following Friday, and I've only left my house for food, the library (overdue books and it is next door) and yesterday, the doctor's office. I thought that I would make it to the office today, because I actually felt a lot better yesterday afternoon...and then I woke up this morning and realized that I wouldn't be going anywhere.
I think my out of office message sums it up nicely:
I am still sick.
Never fear, I am alive and not being held hostage in my house against my will. After visiting the doctor yesterday, I now have some antibiotics and should be back in the office Monday.
I'll spare you the gory details, but thought I should point out that I'm on my third box of Kleenex, I have new cough muscles and my kitchen counter is beginning to look like an apothecary (my new favorite fever induced word).
If this is urgent, please try...
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