Happy Halloween – Now GO VOTE!
Now I’m not going to get all political on my blog, because it is a food blog. I won’t even tell you who I’ve voted for.
But… I found this site, Yes We Carve, and knew I had to join in the festivities. I’m not usually one to carve a pumpkin because, honestly, I’m not that creative. In the past, when I did carve one, it was just a sad slash mouth with two teeth and triangle eyes/nose. Not pretty. But now that I’ve discovered Jack O’Lantern templates, I plan to do more carving in the future. It was actually lots of fun.
Now for the moral of the post. If you’re an American, it is your duty to vote. Of course… I’d like everyone to vote for the candidate I support. Again, since I’m not going to get political, I won’t say who Stephan and I voted for a few days ago during early voting. :)
Have a safe and fun Halloween and weekend! Please vote on Tuesday, November 4th!
When the Moon Hits Your Eye
Like a Big Pizza Pie…. That’s Amore!
Today you will be seeing homemade Pizza popping up around the blogosphere, as it is the Daring Baker challenge this month. The recipe came from Rosa’s Yummy yums, one of my favorite blogs that I check regularly. She chose this Pizza Napoletana from Peter Reinhart’s “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” which is a book I’ve been considering buying, and now really want. You can find the recipe on Rosa’s Blog. The big challenge wasn’t to make the dough, but to learn how to toss the dough, and try to get a photo of yourself doing so. Check out the other Daring Baker’s pizzas here, and my past Daring Baker Posts here.
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Pumpkin Bread Pudding
When I came across this ridiculously cute little baking dish, I knew I had to make pumpkin bread pudding. It’s been years since I made bread pudding and I forgot how good (and painfully easy) it is. The recipe came from an old Gourmet Magazine, October 2007. I made some adjustments to the recipe to lower the fat, but this is still nowhere near “lowfat.” I also baked it in a water bath at a lower temperature so the custard would stay creamy.
We’re leaving town again this coming up weekend, to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for a destination wedding. It’s a tough job we have… we’re forced to stay in a beautiful beachfront villa… hanging out with a lovely couple and their families. Oh yeah, we do have to photograph it too. :P Have a safe and happy weekend!
American As Apple Pie
Many of my regular readers know my husband, Stephan, grew up in Europe, and is a Ferrrner (aka foreigner.) Well… not any more. This Saturday, at the ungodly hour of 7 am, my husband became an American Citizen. The swearing in ceremony was a bit like a bad televangelist sermon. I got a very good chuckle when they started the program with Hero by Mariah Carey and ended with Proud To Be An American whilst waving American flags. I could just imagine my husband rolling his eyes… :P Poignant moment, but loaded with cheese.
When Stephan came here, he was a young 20 year old with a few thousand dollars in his pocket and a drive to succeed. Now he’s the Principal of his own company, Maloman Photographers. I’m so proud of him and dedicate this post to him. I know he will never be as American as Apple Pie because he takes immense pride in his European heritage, but now he’s officially home. Of course, if the upcoming election doesn’t turn out like he hopes, we may move to Canada… just kidding, well, maybe not.
This apple pie is very easy and pretty foolproof. I like to saute the apples just a little before baking because it helps to avoid crunchy apples and soggy bottom. Goodness gracious, no one likes a soggy bottom. :P If you use a more mealy apple, you should definitely skip this step. Also, I prefer to use a Pate Brisee, which is made like regular pie dough, but uses butter instead of shortening… you just can’t beat the flavor of butter.
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I Got Beeten
Ever since I can remember, I’ve had a severe aversion to beets. This aversion started at a salad bar when I was a kid. I thought this pretty red food was something sweet and when I bit into it, I was very very shocked to taste that strange vinegary earthy flavor. That was my first and last time eating beets for many many years. In culinary school, we cooked a ton of recipes containing beets. I found out those dastardly things were considered “delicacies” and could be found in most fine dining establishments. So I would cook them, but I refused to eat them. Now, I’m not a namby pamby when it comes to trying food. I’ve eaten almost anything you can think of, from frog legs to alligator to most (edible) internal organs found in a cow.
Last month when we had lunch at Novecento, I really wanted the salad that had some of my favorite things… arugula, blue cheese, tomatoes… and beets. I hate to be “that person” in a restaurant that gets food special ordered, especially in fine dining. So I ordered it… with the beets. I started eating the arugula and other goodies, and then ate one brunoise sized cube of beet. It wasn’t bad. Actually, it was quite good. Just like that… my relationship with beets has changed. I’ve made them at home several times now, and I’m glad its opened up a whole new color for me! Clearly I eat with my eyes first, so color is important to me! This salad is a bouquet of color with amazing organic veggies from Josh’s Organic Market on Hollywood Beach.
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Breakfast at Home
Nice… I come home from vacation to absolute mahem in the financial world. OK… I knew it was happening, as it was all over the news in Germany. The SEVENTY BILLION DOLLAR “BAILOUT” that was approved has me a bit concerned about the future and our country’s financial stability. What a mess… I’m not going to get all political on my blog, but I just don’t understand why our government decided to offer the billionaires on Wall Street a so-called welfare plan.
This one particular story bothers me immensely… The new CEO of WAMU, Alan Fishman, who was just hired on 9/7/08 might be getting around $18 MILLION dollars for 18 days of work. Do you think they are still hiring? I’d like to find a job with a company that would pay me a $7 million signing bonus and then 18 days later pay me a $11 Million severance due to… bankruptcy. It’s a big fat crap-sandwich, if you ask me.
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