November 24, 2009 by vmacandcheese
October 17, 2009. Late afternoon.
November 21, 2009. Morning.
These were both taken at Sequoia Grove, in the exact same vine row. We were up there this last Saturday, picking up some Rebellious Red in preparation for Thanksgiving (yes, it really was that good). I love the contrast between the two photos, both in the color of the light, as well as the obvious changes in foliage. What a difference a month can make.
We also did a bit of hiking in Robert Louis Stevenson Park, our first visit there. It was a such a beautiful, crisp fall day. My point-and-shoot camera is quite old, with a battery that always dies after about half an hour, but here are some other shots of our hike to Table Rock. Continue Reading »
Posted in Beautiful Things, Why yes I AM a local!, Wine | 1 Comment »
November 24, 2009 by vmacandcheese
Tonight, as we finalized plans for Thanksgiving, our way:
Me: Okay, so we’ll go to the store tomorrow night to pick up the stuff for Thursday, right?
Joe: Right.
Me: I was thinking, did you want any oatmeal chocolate chip cookies for dessert? I know they’re your favorite. Or maybe we should have ice cream instead?
Joe: Um, I think we should have oatmeal chocolate chip cookies WITH ice cream.
Me: Ooooh!
Joe: OR! Even better, why don’t we have oatmeal chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwiches?
Me: [nearly jumping up and down] Yes! With vanilla bean ice cream!
Joe: [obviously enthused] That sounds good.
Me: And maybe, I can even shave some dark chocolate, ooh!, maybe even that Scharffen Berger chocolate with caramel pieces in it, and then roll the outer edges of the ice cream in the chocolate!
Joe: [face going back to neutral]. That sounds complicated. That’s too over the top.
Me: Yes, we’re having hot spinach and artichoke dip for breakfast, a big dish of baked mac and cheese, homemade gyros, dolmas, and three bottles of red wine ready to drink, but by God, the chocolate shavings on our ice cream sandwiches will send this Thanksgiving into overdrive.
Joe: Exactly.
Posted in Conversation, Joe | Leave a Comment »
November 18, 2009 by vmacandcheese
Dicing an onion is literally THE first knife skill we covered in culinary school, probably because you end up chopping a lot of onions during your time as a student, and also because the technique is applicable to lots of other items — think potatoes, carrots (with a few extra steps), and more.
But, one small confession: I actually learned how to chop an onion by watching Everyday Italian with Giada de Laurentiis when I was still an undergrad student. A little experimenting in the kitchen, a few cut thumbs, and before you knew it, I was an onion chopping fool. Though I love chopping onions (there’s something so zen about it), when you’re first learning, it can seem time consuming as your muscles get the movements down. But I promise you (PROMISE YOU) that the more you do it, the faster you’ll be. Same with anything, right? Practice makes perfect.
This tutorial covers how to medium dice an onion. If you need a larger or smaller dice, just make each of the cuts tighter. Hopefully you’ll see what I mean.
Let’s get started.
First things first. Lay the onion on its side (on its equator), and slice off the stem end. This isn’t the end with all the furry little things sprouting out of it — that’s the root. The stem end is the other end, and might have a dried, papery nub on it.
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Posted in Kitchen Basics | 2 Comments »
November 15, 2009 by vmacandcheese
Along with all the other essential kitchen items from the last post, I also devote one of my produce drawers to the use of onions. You might’ve noticed that many — in fact, most — of my recipes include onions. Joe likes to use red onions in his weeknight salads, so at any given moment, you could come over to my house and find a drawer full of those papery alliums in the refrigerator.
(*Tip*: I’ve found that refrigerating onions also mitigates the sulfury havoc they can wreak on your eyes during chopping.
Having onions on hand made it easy to pull together a simple onion marmalade yesterday, of which I made plenty to use as both a garnish for Sunday night pork chops, as well as an accompaniment to appetizers I might snack on this week. It was very simple to put together — all you need is a bit of time. This would make a great buffet item for holiday parties, or is good just to snack on at home with some crackers and cheese. To be honest, I can hardly wait to get home from work tomorrow. Some crostini with bleu cheese and onion marmalade is already calling my name.
To start, gather one medium red onion and a medium yellow onion. I also had half of a large yellow onion sitting in my fridge (wrapped in plastic wrap to keep it moist), so I used that too.
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Posted in Appetizers, Food, Little bites, Recipes, The pig | Leave a Comment »
