Quickie

Kids better.
I'm cheerier.
And there's a lot of snow heading our way tomorrow (Sunday) night. . . . .
when we will NOT be watching the Super Bowl because we are boycotting the NFL this year.

More

More beautiful snow.

More school delays.

More sick days home from school.

Feeling a bit blah today.

Blizzard Day

Today . . . .

• Bud had a fever and spent much of the time napping . . . 
• except when he was building a Lego (The Tower of Orthanc) from the Magic Trunk;
• Sis also had a Lego (the Corsairs' ship from LOTR);
• but she also spent a ton of time outside with the neighbor girl across the street sledding down neighbor's yard, working on yesterday's fort, building a tunnel in the snowbank, making snowballs, drinking homemade hot chocolate, playing with the other kids from the cul de sac;
• we watched Guardians of the Galaxy, again (we watched it and Maleficent the last couple of nights);
• Bud and Mama played Infinity, then Sis and Mama played Infinity;
• I crocheted using the Crazy Stitch a blanket for the downstairs cats;
• I snuggled with Patron, who slept behind my knees on the couch;
• Mama cleared the driveway and sidewalk with snowblower and cleared off our cars;
• I made chicken stock from yesterday's baked chicken and then made chicken noodle soup;
• we all nibbled on yesterday's ANZAC biscuits (which are delicious but too spread out--something went wonky with the recipe; I'll post it later);
• we talked to Gommie about her injection (for her newly-diagnosed spinal stenosis; it went very well) and then about Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit, which she is studying up on to be ready for her visit in two weeks;
• and we're slowly getting ready to resume a somewhat limited schedule tomorrow--Sis will go to school (which is delayed two hours) and Bud will be home with me trying to get better; only Mama will do her usual work thing.

So, a pretty good blizzard for us.  Besides if there had been a ton more snow, Mama would have had a lot more work and we probably would've gotten stir crazy from more days in the house.  This was just about perfect.

Blizzard Update

The blizzard arrived but not with the strength expected; the worst went further east.  So, while it was and still is windy and snowing ( I wouldn't want to drive in it. And we're glad that Mama and the kids are home) , the accumulation is definitely under a foot.  In fact, in some places, like at the fire hydrant and on the bench and on the sidewalk under the tree, there isn't even any snow. Still pretty and enough for snow ice cream but not too much work ( shoveling out a fire hydrant from two feet of snow can be a ton of work. And you can't use the snowblower.  So we got lucky.)

In the photo below, you can sort of see it coming off the roof and how it stuck to the window and the side of the house but also how there isn't too much accumulation on the deck, swing set, and ground near the little fence.

Hibernation

We're all home safe and ready for the storm.  Fully stocked and prepped, we have arts and crafts, movies, Legos, games, and such.  We're actually looking forward to all the accumulation, anywhere from one to two feet, but not to the wind which might gust above 70 mph.  School has been canceled for tomorrow and, eventually I'm guessing, for Wednesday.  I'll keep you posted, unless we lose power.

Blooming

Inspired by Heather Bruggeman

Flowers inspired by Heather Bruggeman

Most flowers inspired by Quaddles-Roost

Something Snowy This Way Comes

When I went to bed, the forecast read 6-12 inches.

When I woke up, it had doubled--one to two feet!!!!

We're having snow!   Probably a blizzard.

I've posted a lot about snow and preparations--how to get ready, what to do in it for fun (and here), and just general tips for novices--and we're checking off our list as we get things done.  Mama is out with the kids at the store; I'm home with a tight back (nothing serious) and a healthy regard for black ice.  The trickiest part for us is if we lose power.  We don't have a generator (we think about it every season and then decide we don't need it.)  But we have a propane stove to use on our easily ventilated porch, if need be.  Otherwise, we have lots of blankets.  (Our chimney is old and not up to code for using--the flue is too narrow for both a fire and the exhaust from the furnace and it would be too expensive to widen it including altering the roof; but, if there's no electricity to run the furnace, I suppose we could light a fire.  That would be last resort.  No worries, we keep the chimney clean and in working order.  And have carbon monoxide monitors on all floors.)

For now, we're just waiting and taking bets on when it comes, how much, and how it affects school. The kids are dreaming of days off and mountains of snow.  I'll be sure to post pictures.

Unless we lose power!

VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Lambeth!!!!

These good wishes are a tad belated but no less sincere:  we all wish you a wonderful birthday and a fabulous year!  We love you!!!

The Miracle Marinara

I've heard of the miracle tomato sauce for a few years now--the one by Marcela Hazan, the one that has butter.  So today, I made a pot, with Bud's help.  Only a big can of San Marzano tomatoes, a yellow onion, and almost a full stick of butter.  Forty-five minutes later and it was dinner.  Incredible!  Didn't need garlic, or oregano, basil, or parsley.  Not peppers, mushrooms, or meat.  And we ate the whole pot!   Bud even ate the leftover stewed onion.  So, if you need a simple, bright tomato sauce to grace pasta, this is the one.

Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onions
Via Smitten Kitchen, Adapted from Marcela Hazan’s Essentials of Italian Cooking

Serves 4 as a main course; makes enough sauce to lightly coat most of a pound of spaghetti

28 ounces (800 grams) whole peeled tomatoes from a can (San Marzano, if you can find them)*
5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter
1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
Salt to taste

Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a heavy saucepan (it fit just right in a 3-quart) over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste and keep warm while you prepare your pasta.

Serve with spaghetti, with or without grated parmesan cheese to pass.

Our Magician

Bud has entered his magic phase.  Always latent, it blossomed into a full phase right before and then because of the Big Apple Circus.  It consists mainly of card tricks, though now he's also making coins move around.  He has a few books, follows some sites like ellusionist, and trades tricks with his friends at school; they do card tricks during indoor recess.  He even makes up some of his own.   And while I might be able to figure out some of his tricks either because I know them or the deception is not completely hidden, there have been a few card ones that absolutely stump me.  (We're teaching him not to show us again and again, which would give us a chance to figure it out.)  And he'll get smoother with his sleights of hand.  What he absolutely has down is the magician's showy, distracting banter.  "Pick a card, any card.  See I have nothing in my hand.  Now, I haven't touched the deck since you cut it.  I couldn't have done a thing . . . ."  And he just looks in your eye and smiles and moves his hands around.  And even if I know the trick, I fall for the show every time.

Finally!!!!

Everything's Coming Up Kumquats!

While keeping an eye on the forecast for 2-6" of snow tomorrow and prepping for said snow, I did a few fun things around the house.  Mainly, I candied a pint of kumquats I'd picked up in Flushing over the weekend.  I have a soft spot for the orange-y fruit, intrigued by the bitter pulp and sweet skin, so backwards from other citrus.  I also like the extremely sweet candied kumquats we sometimes have at Chinese New Year's, with it's shell-like coating of sugar crystals on the outside.  Today was my first attempt at candying citrus since a terrible mishap almost twenty years ago, when I burned a pot, the peel I'd labored over, and my own ego.  Ugh.  

But today it worked!  And they're so much better than the crystallized ones.  They retain some of their bitterness which provides an unexpected sophistication to them.  I have a whole jar full of them  . . . I can see them paired with vanilla ice cream, cream fraiche, or maybe even cheesecake!

And while I waited for the kumquats to boil (twice in water, twice in sugar), I doodled on my recyclable coffee cup!

Candied Kumquats

I got some kumquats in Flushing but knew I’d never finish them all, so I looked up how to candy them and found this recipe in the NYTimes.  My last experience candying citrus ended with a burned pot, burned peel, and lots of tears—almost 20 years ago.  But today’s attempt went well.  They aren’t sugary sweet like the ones you buy in Chinatown, instead keeping some of the ir bitterness for an unexpectedly sophisticated flavor.

1 pint kumquats or 4 Meyer lemons, washed and destemmed

1 ½ cups sugar

In a small saucepan, cover the fruit with cold water and bring to a boil. Drain. Cover the fruit with cold water and bring to a boil again. Drain and set aside.

In the same saucepan, combine 1 cup water and the sugar, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Pierce each piece of fruit 2 or 3 times with a paring knife. Drop the fruit into the sugar syrup and continue to simmer for 15 minutes for kumquats or 20 minutes for lemons.

Remove from heat and leave the fruit steeping in the syrup unrefrigerated for 8 hours or overnight.

Bring the syrup and fruit to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes. Cool and store in a glass jar. Fruit and syrup will keep in the refrigerator for 3 months.

NYTimes

Date Day

Mama and I had a wonderful date lunch today . . . and we deserved it.

(The idea came to me because a creative date time was a topic of Hibernate recently; it'd been a long time since we'd met for lunch.)

See, we'd spent the morning worrying about one of our NYCats, Patron, who has had some intermittent stomach issues this week, culminating in a trip to the emergency vet this morning for fluids and antibiotics.  It was only the ER vet because our regular vet is closed on Thursdays and we didn't want to wait a day for fluids.  We also had him ultrasounded to follow up on our vet's concern about an abdominal mass.  Turns out there is some intestinal thickening, either from something straightforward as inflammatory bowel disease or cancer.  Let's hope a change in diet and rest will reveal the former.  Either way, we're planning on going the slow medicine/palliative route; no one wants invasive or extensive treatments on an almost 15-year-old cat.  And if we can keep his symptoms under control, he's been pretty happy.  We knew this might be coming and we are better equipped to handle it, both from increased wisdom and experience, than we were with our cat Morgan, but it was still a pretty quick onset and a little disheartening.  He's home now and eating and purring and pretty happy; we've closed him and his brother Mojito in the basement alone to keep the Connecticats from harassing him.

All of which is to say, we were glad to have a midday respite at our favorite restaurant, Bloodroot. We had a peanut stew, a big marinated cabbage and tofu salad, special grilled cheese sandwiches on that incredible oatmeal bread, an incredible vegan chocolate mousse and our favorite butterscotch pudding!   Mmmmmm!   And a great chat with Selma and Noelle, the owners, about their upcoming trip to Italy, a new knitting project, and the secret ingredient in the mousse.   Restorative. And we brought some pudding home for Sis, who loves it, too.

If and when it snows this Saturday (or Monday or Wednesday . . . ), maybe we'll make some more.


Butterscotch Pudding
In a medium-sized pot, warm 1 cup milk and 2 cups heavy cream together with 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar.  In a larger pot, combine 3/4 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup water.  Bring to a boil and cook to form a caramel.  When sugar is golden brown, remove from heat and add milk mixture gradually.  It will boil up suddenly and violently, which is why the caramel must be started in the larger pot.  Be sure heat is off and all is combined.  Set aside.

Separate eggs; you will need 6 yolks.  Reserve whites for other purposes.  Slowly whisk hot milk into yolks, being careful not to curdle them.  Add 1 teaspoon Kosher salt and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.  Stir well.  

Ladle into 6 ovenproof custard cups set in a pan.  Fill the pan halfway with water, being careful not to get any into the pudding dishes.  Bake at 325F for about 30 minutes or until no longer wobbly.  Let cool; chill.

Serve with creme fraiche or whipped cream.

Best of Bloodroot, Vol. 1 Vegetarian

Twinkie Reader

Gommie and I were discussing books this morning and her recent book group.  I had just confessed something I'd realized recently when yet another person expressed surprise that i hadn't read some book or another:  I read for plot, narrative, historical detail, entertainment.  I don't like emotional, psychological character-driven books (or movies/tv.  Or art.  Or drama, which is probably why I like musicals more than plays.)  Yep, I'll take Harry Potter over Room, mysteries over award-winning books in trade paperbacks. So Gommie read me a quote that someone had read at the book group, about people who read for plot being those who suck the cream out of the Oreo, instead of being those whole-Oreo eaters who read for character and emotions (not that she agreed with the quote, but she does like the whole Oreo, can't even imagine reading a mystery or fantasy novel.  Which I guess means she just eats the cookie, not the whole Oreo??  It's an odd metaphor.)  

In life, I like the chocolate cookie; but, yes, in this metaphor, I'd eat the cream.   (I miss the Twinkie analogy; eating a whole Oreo just doesn't sound that much more wholesome.)

Truthfully, I don't mind being an indulgent reader. I like a good story.  I'm just not that interested in made-up emotional human drama (I read enough real tragedy and drama in the paper and talk about the difficulties and issues in my friends' lives.)  It certainly isn't relaxing or entertaining, which is what I'm looking for in my fiction books (as opposed to non-fiction, when I read about hospice or history.)  I read poetry when I'm looking for emotional insight.  But it puts me well outside the circle of well-read people following the Man Booker, National Book Award, Pulitzer, Nobel, and various Reviews of Books.  I guess with my Ph.D., it surprises people that I'm not a great reader (nor do I listen to NPR; I read it.)

And I'm rather tickled by all the moralizing that ranks which books are better than others.   Especially since two hundred years ago, the moralistic readers eschewed all fiction, focusing on poetry; only silly low-class girls read novels (unless the novels were high-minded satire, like Fielding's, but then low-class girls didn't read those!!)

The best books for me are the books I like.  The best books for you are the want you like to read.  Period.  Anyone who says otherwise, just has issues about their own bookshelves (or education)--guilt, regret, insecurity, even envy.  I spent the first three decades of my life reading what I had to for class.  Now I get to choose . . . .and right now, it's the medieval English history Hild and the 1920s Australian mysteries featuring Phryne Fisher.

Happy reading!!!

Practice, Practice, Practice

The strains of "Finlandia" are now a constant in the house.  Because I'm going to be in a piano recital!  On Tuesday, we started the song (one of my favorites), the next one in my book, and my teacher said, "This would be a perfect piece for the recital in April."

I've never played in a recital, a childhood rite-of-passage for so many.  Mine will be in my fifth decade!  The kids are very supportive and excited for me.  When I said I was thinking about it, they chorused, "You have to!  Play, Mom, play!"

Who can say no to that audience?

One-Pot Wonder

As part of the wonderful Hibernate workshop I'm taking, we're discussing one-pot meals today.  I've been reflecting on our favorites--cowboy supper, gumbo, broccoli noodle soup, and various other soups--but my favorite is one that is mainly just for me and Mama, since the kids won't eat lentils:  Pasta e Lenticchie.  Half pasta, half soup, it's a recipe I got from "Molto Mario" years ago.  I don't quite make it his way anymore, with the hot oil sizzle and all the parsley (see here for the original recipe.)  I've played with adding various greens, different seasonings, different kinds of tomatoes (from sauce to diced), even different kinds of pasta, even adding a rind or grating of Parmesan cheese.  All good.  In fact, it's quite versatile.

Pasta e Lenticchie

5 cups water
3/4 cups lentils
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped canned plum tomatoes, with some juice
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 pound pasta--pretty much any shape works, though the smaller is better (even broken spaghetti)

1 teaspoon or more Italian seasoning (also, for non-Italian taste, I've used Sweet Curry Powder and Garam Masala, too.)

optional:  I often add greens, either frozen or fresh (kale is a favorite), to equal approximately 1 1/2 cups when cooked (best if it bite-size pieces.)

optional:  Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top after (or cooked with part of the rind)

In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a rolling boil, add the lentils, and cook, covered over medium-high heat, until nearly but not entirely tender, about 20 minutes. Add the garlic, the olive oil, the tomatoes, the salt and the pepper. Reduce the heat, cover and continue to simmer briskly for another 10 minutes, stirring a few times, or until the lentils are fully tender.

Add greens, either frozen or fresh.

Add pasta. Cook, covered, at a steady simmer, stirring several times and scraping the bottom of the pot when you do. Cook until the pasta is just done, stirring more frequently as it gets closer to the point of being cooked.

When pasta is cooked to taste, add seasonings of choice and serve, perhaps with a garnish of Parmesan cheese.

Mommy Hungry via "Molto Mario" Batali

Family in Flushing

We went to Flushing today, where there is a large Chinese community, to spend time with Ma and Gong before they head to Bangkok for two months to visit ailing Lao Gong ("great-grandfather.")

In one little block on Kissena Boulevard, we did some grocery shopping for our own New Year's celebration, looked at the Chen Family shrine (actually Gong's family name), ate dim sum, and went to a traditional Chinese bakery.  Whew.  Plus got leftovers for dinner tonight and snacks for several days to come.


As always, the grocery store was packed.  Stores in Flushing, in my experience, are always packed.  And I'm always the tallest, whitest person there.  It's not a shock like it used to be--if you're Caucasian, how often are you the only one?  Sure, it happens to Mama everyday in Connecticut but never to me.  Years and years ago, I used to feel very out of place, very unwanted, very in the way, and very sure that whatever I was doing was a complete social offense.  Now, not so much.  I realize I'm just not that important.  And I'm good at staying out of the way.  Other things about Chinese groceries I've been to:  there are always very strong scents, usually from the open-air fish market, but also from the row after row of mounds of vegetables.  We bemoan American love of processed food, but the Chinese have packaged crap in spades.  Also, today, I noticed three different packages with the same cathedral on the front . . . . cathedral??  I think it was to denote that the snacks inside were European in some way (they were all cookies, though a couple were traditional Chinese cookies.)  Interesting.  The kids picked up lots of foods they like--dried seaweed, udon and soba noodles, lychee gummies, Pocky, lychee drink, coconut gels, Asian pears, dried squid, prawn chips.  Mama also restocked our pantry with soy sauce, noodles, and other things for new year's.  I picked up some snacks--dried persimmons and those Chinese "cathedral" cookies--for a New Year's party I've been invited to in a few weeks.  It's the Year of the Ram, so Ma bought us Ram decorations for the house.

Then we went to lunch.  I've posted about dim sum before and the foods were much the same, though now the kids know what they like.  Sis loves shumai and fried dumplings, lotus buns and custard buns, mango dofu, and don tot (custard tarts.)  Bud likes shumai and chicken feet and various rice noodle and tofu skin wraps with various fillings.  Mama eats all that, plus tripe soup!  I had boiled greens, steamed chive dumplings, steamed vanilla cake, almond dofu, and coconut dofu.  And we took home a little of all of it.


For any of you who might be going to China, some dim sum tips:

• First, I don't know if mainland dim sum is anything like American dim sum, so watch others and follow along;
• tables are big and round and unless your group is big, if the restaurant is crowded, you'll be seated with others;
• hold on to that little "scorecard."  The staff will stamp it with a different stamp for each basket you buy.  If you wander the restaurant to look at items on the sidelines, like stews, take the card with you;
• feel free to point and stare and sniff and then refuse the item, or take it, as you desire;
• things aren't always what they seem--there's always an almond-coated ball that looks like a sweet to me, but contains fish.  There's lots of fish and even more shrimp, in everything;
• sweets and savories all come around at the same time, so if you want it, TAKE IT WHEN YOU SEE IT, because lots of times, you might not see a dish again;
• if you run out of tea in your pot, turn the lid upside down on the top and put the pot near the edge of the table; 
• tapping on the table with two fingers (index and middle) is the sign for thank you (for example, if someone pours you tea--the youngest pours--you tap your fingers next to your cup);
• usually, they'll give you to-go boxes--if the food is on your table, it's yours.

You'd think that was enough food, but after lunch, we went to the bakery.  It's self-serve, with a paper-covered tray and tongs for you to select coconut cream buns and poundcakes, lotus buns and "pineapple" buns (called that for the scoring on the outside.)

Pretty soon afterwards, we headed back to Ma and Gong's house  . . . to digest all of that food!  Which the kids did by learning some of Ma and Gong's Tai Chi Fan forms!

To-Do Doodles

With rain pouring outside and with a break from crochet, I played with my "to-do list" from the Hibernate workshop AND the art supplies I got for Christmas, doodlling two more versions, using just the main verbs:

Patron Don Gato

We had a wonderful evening.  Bud practiced magic card tricks.  Sis read.  I crocheted.  And Mama played games.

All while Patron "Don Gato" (from the song) wandered around on the first floor with us.  (We're trying out nicknames, such as Mr. P, Mr. T, Big Tabby, Senor Don Gato, etc.)

For three hours!

He chased mice toys and the red light.  He licked his banana.  He walked around the backs of couches.  And then he got cozy on the couch, first time he's really sat down to relax upstairs from the basement.  So, of course, we had to take lots of pictures--of him chilling, getting chin scratches, sitting on my lap (with my crochet--he was testing out the blanket), sitting between Bud and me.

All the while, the Connecticats slept on the second floor, while his brother Mojo (also Mojito, pronouncing the "j") stayed downstairs.

It was a wonderful three hours.  He's so big and so soft which such big cat features.  And this great rumbling purr and a hoarse meow.   He's just a marvelous cat.

Black Ice

We were supposed to go to the city today, to join family for a big meal in honor of Chinese New Year.  It's an early celebration, because Ma and Gong will be in Thailand for the real deal.

But the weather intervened.  Even with the temperature above freezing, there is black ice everywhere.  It took us an hour to go barely a town over . . .and then the highway closed.  So we stopped, ate a big pancake breakfast, and headed home.

It's foggy and rainy and slushy, perfect day for staying in.

We'll try to get together another time.

In related news:  ice is great when it's hockey, which we saw last night in a terrible blow-out game; we had fun anyway.