It's one of those tasks that I only remember when I can't possibly do something about it. I'll be driving, or showering, or squirting chemicals into tiny tubes and I'll think "I gotta learn how to darn." How many lovely but holey pairs of socks have I thrown away after finally acknowledging that hanging around in my sock bag was not magically mending them. Sigh.
But today, I was poking around on my favorite knitting site, www.knitty.com, and I found these very clear instructions on how to darn. Woo hoo! Of course, now I actually have to DO the darning, but it seems like something satisfying to do in front of the TV or on the bus.
Anybody else out there darn?
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Energy Talk - Let's Get Real
OK folks, I've had just about all I can take of the so-called energy debate. I understand that high gas prices are causing real hardship around the country and the poorest people, as usual, are the hardest hit. And this situation surely is not their fault. But let's get real: we have known for as long as I've been alive that the supply of fossil fuels available to us is finite, unless we somehow want to put ourselves in suspended animation for the billion or so years it would take for the earth to turn more organic matter into crude oil.
Our current problems are not really a function of increased demand from the Chinese, or liberals blocking oil drilling, or speculators in the oil market. Our current problems stem from an absolute refusal of our political leadership to form and enact any kind of real plan for shifting the nation from an infrastructure that relies on oil to one that relies on renewable energy. Jimmy Carter tried, Ronald Reagan put a stop to it and no one's had the balls to do it since. That's the reality. No amount of hand-wringing will change the fact that we now have dramatically less time in which to make this transition and that more people are suffering and more will suffer because of it.
So let's stop pretending that any of the short-term measures proposed - gas tax relief, drilling in Alaska, punishing speculators, or even corn-based ethanol (which consumes as much energy as it produces) - are going to solve this problem.
And by the way, if you own an SUV or another gas-guzzling vehicle, you are screwed. Sorry to say "I told you so" but I did (to numerous friends and family members). I advise you to graciously accept the loss you will inevitably take when you trade that sucker in for the smaller Japanese car you know you should have purchased in the first place. And no, my friends, 27 mpg is NOT fuel-efficient. It's a joke. If you are driving a car that gets less than 33 mpg on the highway, you've been had. (By the way, my 1994 - that's not a typo - Honda Accord gets 33 mpg on the highway, so no excuses).
So what do we do now? Well, first of all we realize that Exxon Mobile and the other members of the big oil cabal are not our friends. They will not tell us the truth and they do not have our best interests at heart. They are happily enjoying the biggest profits they have ever earned, alongside huge tax breaks courtesy of their friends in Washington, D.C. So when they say that the technology just does not exist to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy, you ask yourself "Well, have we really tried? And should we believe people who stand to make billions if we continue to do things their way?"
Then you take a deep breath and look around and realize that our oil-based infrastructure - interstates, country roads, etc. - was paid for by us: the taxpayer. Big oil, the trucking industry, Detroit did not pay for us to have a car and truck-based economy, we did. They just profit from it. So if we are going to switch to an energy-efficient economy and free ourselves from our "addiction to big oil" we are going to pay for it. Oh I hear all the republicans crying out! Taxes! Taxes! Well, if we spent one month's worth of Iraq spending on re-building our national energy infrastructure, we'd be well on our way and we managed to come up with that money, didn't we? And think of what we could save if we stopped subsidizing big oil.
We need a massive, WPA-style effort to build windmills, install solar panels and rapidly improve the technology for making ethanol from crops that don't require fertilizer, like grass. We need huge programs to help people make homes and businesses more fuel efficient. And guess what? These programs will put people to work, pump money into our flagging economy, address global warming, and (possibly) bring some of our precious nation back from the brink of destruction by pollution and over-development. So if they cost us in taxes and increase our already staggering debt, at least they are an investment that will pay real dividends back to us, the people (unlike the investments we've been making into Corporate America and Big Oil, which, as far as I can tell, have been returning jack).
Will it be easy? Of course not. Few things worth doing are easy. Will it be painful? Sometimes, and more for some people than others. But it will also be exciting, rewarding and fun. All of us feel the anxiety that comes from knowing we are living a lifestyle that cannot last. We get in our cars and drive to the mall, and part of us wonders "How much longer can this go on? What happens after it's all over?" Let's stop wondering and worrying. Let's stop waiting for a scientist to discover a solution. We already have the solution. Let's take the Nike pill and "Just Do It."
Our current problems are not really a function of increased demand from the Chinese, or liberals blocking oil drilling, or speculators in the oil market. Our current problems stem from an absolute refusal of our political leadership to form and enact any kind of real plan for shifting the nation from an infrastructure that relies on oil to one that relies on renewable energy. Jimmy Carter tried, Ronald Reagan put a stop to it and no one's had the balls to do it since. That's the reality. No amount of hand-wringing will change the fact that we now have dramatically less time in which to make this transition and that more people are suffering and more will suffer because of it.
So let's stop pretending that any of the short-term measures proposed - gas tax relief, drilling in Alaska, punishing speculators, or even corn-based ethanol (which consumes as much energy as it produces) - are going to solve this problem.
And by the way, if you own an SUV or another gas-guzzling vehicle, you are screwed. Sorry to say "I told you so" but I did (to numerous friends and family members). I advise you to graciously accept the loss you will inevitably take when you trade that sucker in for the smaller Japanese car you know you should have purchased in the first place. And no, my friends, 27 mpg is NOT fuel-efficient. It's a joke. If you are driving a car that gets less than 33 mpg on the highway, you've been had. (By the way, my 1994 - that's not a typo - Honda Accord gets 33 mpg on the highway, so no excuses).
So what do we do now? Well, first of all we realize that Exxon Mobile and the other members of the big oil cabal are not our friends. They will not tell us the truth and they do not have our best interests at heart. They are happily enjoying the biggest profits they have ever earned, alongside huge tax breaks courtesy of their friends in Washington, D.C. So when they say that the technology just does not exist to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy, you ask yourself "Well, have we really tried? And should we believe people who stand to make billions if we continue to do things their way?"
Then you take a deep breath and look around and realize that our oil-based infrastructure - interstates, country roads, etc. - was paid for by us: the taxpayer. Big oil, the trucking industry, Detroit did not pay for us to have a car and truck-based economy, we did. They just profit from it. So if we are going to switch to an energy-efficient economy and free ourselves from our "addiction to big oil" we are going to pay for it. Oh I hear all the republicans crying out! Taxes! Taxes! Well, if we spent one month's worth of Iraq spending on re-building our national energy infrastructure, we'd be well on our way and we managed to come up with that money, didn't we? And think of what we could save if we stopped subsidizing big oil.
We need a massive, WPA-style effort to build windmills, install solar panels and rapidly improve the technology for making ethanol from crops that don't require fertilizer, like grass. We need huge programs to help people make homes and businesses more fuel efficient. And guess what? These programs will put people to work, pump money into our flagging economy, address global warming, and (possibly) bring some of our precious nation back from the brink of destruction by pollution and over-development. So if they cost us in taxes and increase our already staggering debt, at least they are an investment that will pay real dividends back to us, the people (unlike the investments we've been making into Corporate America and Big Oil, which, as far as I can tell, have been returning jack).
Will it be easy? Of course not. Few things worth doing are easy. Will it be painful? Sometimes, and more for some people than others. But it will also be exciting, rewarding and fun. All of us feel the anxiety that comes from knowing we are living a lifestyle that cannot last. We get in our cars and drive to the mall, and part of us wonders "How much longer can this go on? What happens after it's all over?" Let's stop wondering and worrying. Let's stop waiting for a scientist to discover a solution. We already have the solution. Let's take the Nike pill and "Just Do It."
Monday, August 18, 2008
Imam Bayildi and Long Beans - The Sequel
Yesterday, I blogged about my experiment with Imam Bayilidi. I decided to add a novel ingredient - asian long beans - and promised to report.
Well, it was good last night and really good today, especially when I cooked an egg in it in the microwave. The long beans are a lovely addition - they're chewy enough to hold onto their texture through the braising, taking on the flavors of the dish nicely, and develop a deep green color that really complements the eggplant and tomatoes. Couple of things I would do differently the next time:
~ use smaller eggplant, or cut a big one up into smaller pieces. The parts of the huge one I used that didn't get direct contact with the sauce were a bit bland.
~ more salt (though salting the finished product also works well)
Many more variations are possible (some herbs, some pepper), but here's a basic recipe based on what I did:
1 - 2 lbs of eggplant
4 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 - 2 yellow onions, chopped
bunch of olive oil (just have the bottle handy)
4-5 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped.
kosher or coarse sea salt
1 bunch of long beans (regular green beans would probably work, too), tipped, tailed and cut into 2-3 inch lengths
black pepper
1. peel strips longways off the eggplant to create a nice striped pattern.
2. If you're working with medium or small eggplants, cut them in half, lengthwise and then cut a slit down the middle to make a pocket. Sprinkle the whole thing, including the pocket, with salt and set on a paper towel for 30 mins. If you have one big eggplant, you could either cut it in quarters, or slice it. Either way, sprinkle with salt and let rest, as above.
3. While the eggplant are exuding bitterness and water, make the sauce. Start by sautéing the onions in some olive oil. When they have softened just a bit, add the garlic and then the tomatoes. Salt and pepper this to taste and let it cook for about 10 mins or so, just to get the whole thing blended. Set aside.
4. When yer eggplants are done, rinse them well to get rid of the extra salt. Dry them off and then brown them cut side down in olive oil, in a big, deep sauté pan. When they're nice and brown, flip them over.
5. Now, tuck the beans around the eggplant, and add the sauce. If you have pockets in the eggplant, stuff some sauce in there, and pour what's left over the whole shebang. Add about a quarter cup of water.
6. Cover the pan, and let the stuff cook over medium heat for 30-50 minutes, until the eggplant are very soft. Check occasionally to make sure there's enough liquid in the pan.
7. You can serve this right away (code for "you can eat this right out of the pot with a spoon"), but it's yummier if you let it cool and eat the next day - it's good room temp or heated up.
One note - don't be stingy with the olive oil. If you're worried about too much fat, make a different dish. Part of Imam Bayildi's unique deliciousness comes from luxurious amounts of olive oil, and it just won't taste really good without it.
Well, it was good last night and really good today, especially when I cooked an egg in it in the microwave. The long beans are a lovely addition - they're chewy enough to hold onto their texture through the braising, taking on the flavors of the dish nicely, and develop a deep green color that really complements the eggplant and tomatoes. Couple of things I would do differently the next time:
~ use smaller eggplant, or cut a big one up into smaller pieces. The parts of the huge one I used that didn't get direct contact with the sauce were a bit bland.
~ more salt (though salting the finished product also works well)
Many more variations are possible (some herbs, some pepper), but here's a basic recipe based on what I did:
1 - 2 lbs of eggplant
4 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 - 2 yellow onions, chopped
bunch of olive oil (just have the bottle handy)
4-5 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped.
kosher or coarse sea salt
1 bunch of long beans (regular green beans would probably work, too), tipped, tailed and cut into 2-3 inch lengths
black pepper
1. peel strips longways off the eggplant to create a nice striped pattern.
2. If you're working with medium or small eggplants, cut them in half, lengthwise and then cut a slit down the middle to make a pocket. Sprinkle the whole thing, including the pocket, with salt and set on a paper towel for 30 mins. If you have one big eggplant, you could either cut it in quarters, or slice it. Either way, sprinkle with salt and let rest, as above.
3. While the eggplant are exuding bitterness and water, make the sauce. Start by sautéing the onions in some olive oil. When they have softened just a bit, add the garlic and then the tomatoes. Salt and pepper this to taste and let it cook for about 10 mins or so, just to get the whole thing blended. Set aside.
4. When yer eggplants are done, rinse them well to get rid of the extra salt. Dry them off and then brown them cut side down in olive oil, in a big, deep sauté pan. When they're nice and brown, flip them over.
5. Now, tuck the beans around the eggplant, and add the sauce. If you have pockets in the eggplant, stuff some sauce in there, and pour what's left over the whole shebang. Add about a quarter cup of water.
6. Cover the pan, and let the stuff cook over medium heat for 30-50 minutes, until the eggplant are very soft. Check occasionally to make sure there's enough liquid in the pan.
7. You can serve this right away (code for "you can eat this right out of the pot with a spoon"), but it's yummier if you let it cool and eat the next day - it's good room temp or heated up.
One note - don't be stingy with the olive oil. If you're worried about too much fat, make a different dish. Part of Imam Bayildi's unique deliciousness comes from luxurious amounts of olive oil, and it just won't taste really good without it.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Blueberry muffins?
I love blueberries, and the precious few weeks they're in season are some of the happiest of my year. But you won't find any recipes for blueberry muffins, pancakes, waffle or pie on my blog. For me, heat only hurts a blueberry. Once you cook them, blueberries lose the tart freshness that distinguishes them, taking on a kind of sickly sweetness. So once the season is over, I bid farewell to my fine, blue friends and turn to other fruits.
But before that happens, I'm going to delight in as many blueberries as I can, with a few raspberries on the side. My favorite way to eat berries this summer has been mixed with strained yogurt, walnuts and honey. Mmmm....
But before that happens, I'm going to delight in as many blueberries as I can, with a few raspberries on the side. My favorite way to eat berries this summer has been mixed with strained yogurt, walnuts and honey. Mmmm....
Imam Bayildi and Long Beans
Literally translated as "the Imam faints," this dish features eggplant (a huge favorite vegetable of mine) braised in a fresh tomato sauce. I heard about for the first time the other day, when I was listening to Ivan Watson interview an author on Morning Edition. This guy had written a mystery about Istanbul, in which a eunuch solves crimes and cooks delicious food. The author then makes this dish, Imam Bayildi, for Watson who declared it delicious.
So at the Farmer's Market yesterday, I hunted down a big, sexy eggplant and some heirloom roma tomatoes with this dish in mind. I also couldn't resist a bunch of long beans. I braised some green beans the other night, and wanted to try it again.
As I worked through the Imam Bayildi recipe, I started thinking - since I'm basically braising the eggplant, why not cook the long beans right in the same pan? So after I browned the eggplant and stuffed it with the tomato sauce, I sprinkled the trimmed beans into the pan around the eggplant, and poured the rest of the sauce on top. The jury is still out, since the dish is braising as I write, but it's looking good. If I like the results, I'll post a recipe.
So at the Farmer's Market yesterday, I hunted down a big, sexy eggplant and some heirloom roma tomatoes with this dish in mind. I also couldn't resist a bunch of long beans. I braised some green beans the other night, and wanted to try it again.
As I worked through the Imam Bayildi recipe, I started thinking - since I'm basically braising the eggplant, why not cook the long beans right in the same pan? So after I browned the eggplant and stuffed it with the tomato sauce, I sprinkled the trimmed beans into the pan around the eggplant, and poured the rest of the sauce on top. The jury is still out, since the dish is braising as I write, but it's looking good. If I like the results, I'll post a recipe.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
But since you want to know...
Legend is doing much better. Since all his tests were negative, I decided to test the hypothesis that the peeing is a symptom of pain (dogs drink a lot when they're hurting and even the best-disciplined guy can't hold it forever after 6 cups of water). Legend has old racing injuries and once I started paying attention, I noticed he was moving more slowly and awkwardly.
I put him back on glucosamine and added some fish oil. Plus I'm giving him anti-inflammatory pain killers twice a day (this dog's food dish is a smörgåsbord). He definitely seems more comfortable and no peeing accidents of late (but I hate to even write that). The real test will be when I wean him off the pain killers in mid-September (it takes about 6 weeks for glucosamine to have an effect).
I put him back on glucosamine and added some fish oil. Plus I'm giving him anti-inflammatory pain killers twice a day (this dog's food dish is a smörgåsbord). He definitely seems more comfortable and no peeing accidents of late (but I hate to even write that). The real test will be when I wean him off the pain killers in mid-September (it takes about 6 weeks for glucosamine to have an effect).
Sweet Corn Salad
OK, so it's been a while. And I suspect my little cadre of readers would like to know about the fate of my paper, the health of my dog, my thoughts on the election. However, this blog is about me getting to enjoy writing, and what I really want to write about is food. Let's all say it together: "mmmm...food."
I'm heading to a potluck tonight, and after considering many possibilities (mostly concerning a pair of beets that are getting no younger in my crisper bin), I decided on a sweet corn salad. Have you encountered this entity? It's sometimes also served as a relish, but I think it's so delicious that I eat it by the spoonful, so I figured I might as well serve it as a salad.
Here's my version:
6 ears of squeakin' fresh sweet corn (Farmer's Market)
2 tomatoes (1 orange from the garden and 1 red heirloom from the market), chopped
1/2 a red onion, diced pretty fine (no one likes a big hunk of onion in their salad)
3 stalks of celery, diced
6-8 basil leaves, julienned (cilantro would also be delicious here)
1/4 cup of olive oil (but good corn oil would be good, too)
3 or so T rice vinegar (cuz that's what I had that wasn't balsamic, but you could use any other light vinegar or lime juice)
S&P
Shuck each ear of corn and then cut the kernels off into a deep bowl with a sharp knife. Add the onion, celery, tomatoes, and basil and mix. Mix up a dressing with the olive oil, vinegar, S&P. My measurements are VERY approximate, since I do this by eye. Just mix and taste and add, until it tastes right. The corn is quite sweet, so it's OK to have the dressing on the tart side. Add the dressing to the salad, mix it all up, and taste some more. Adjust your dressing til the whole thing tastes so good you want to pull up a chair and spoon and finish the bowl.
Now you may be wondering, can I really serve corn that hasn't been cooked? My answer, dear reader, is a resounding YES!! When sweet corn is really fresh and delicious (like it is right now), it needs no cooking. If you doubt me, be brave and eat a bite right off an ear before you cook it. You'll ask yourself, why have I been wasting time boiling water all these years? Mostly to get the darned thing hot enough so the butter melts on it. Now, there's nothing wrong with cooking your corn (who doesn't like melted butter??!!!). All I'm saying is that you don't HAVE to.
So give this salad a try. This recipe makes a lot, because if you're going to the trouble of slicing and dicing, you might as well enjoy the fruits of your labor for a few days - it's probably about 8 generous portions.
Give it a try and let me know what you think.
I'm heading to a potluck tonight, and after considering many possibilities (mostly concerning a pair of beets that are getting no younger in my crisper bin), I decided on a sweet corn salad. Have you encountered this entity? It's sometimes also served as a relish, but I think it's so delicious that I eat it by the spoonful, so I figured I might as well serve it as a salad.
Here's my version:
6 ears of squeakin' fresh sweet corn (Farmer's Market)
2 tomatoes (1 orange from the garden and 1 red heirloom from the market), chopped
1/2 a red onion, diced pretty fine (no one likes a big hunk of onion in their salad)
3 stalks of celery, diced
6-8 basil leaves, julienned (cilantro would also be delicious here)
1/4 cup of olive oil (but good corn oil would be good, too)
3 or so T rice vinegar (cuz that's what I had that wasn't balsamic, but you could use any other light vinegar or lime juice)
S&P
Shuck each ear of corn and then cut the kernels off into a deep bowl with a sharp knife. Add the onion, celery, tomatoes, and basil and mix. Mix up a dressing with the olive oil, vinegar, S&P. My measurements are VERY approximate, since I do this by eye. Just mix and taste and add, until it tastes right. The corn is quite sweet, so it's OK to have the dressing on the tart side. Add the dressing to the salad, mix it all up, and taste some more. Adjust your dressing til the whole thing tastes so good you want to pull up a chair and spoon and finish the bowl.
Now you may be wondering, can I really serve corn that hasn't been cooked? My answer, dear reader, is a resounding YES!! When sweet corn is really fresh and delicious (like it is right now), it needs no cooking. If you doubt me, be brave and eat a bite right off an ear before you cook it. You'll ask yourself, why have I been wasting time boiling water all these years? Mostly to get the darned thing hot enough so the butter melts on it. Now, there's nothing wrong with cooking your corn (who doesn't like melted butter??!!!). All I'm saying is that you don't HAVE to.
So give this salad a try. This recipe makes a lot, because if you're going to the trouble of slicing and dicing, you might as well enjoy the fruits of your labor for a few days - it's probably about 8 generous portions.
Give it a try and let me know what you think.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
