So, I absolutely LOVE my CSA (http://www.farmfreshtoyou.com). It encourages me to eat vegetables which I would never do on my own, the produce is yummy, and I like to support local farmers.
Does anyone know if there is something similar in southern California for meat and dairy? Like a meat CSA? I’m going to google it up, of course, but if anyone knows something firsthand, do let me know!
Hey Internet. So, I’ve started taking clippings from my herb garden to dry, and I’m wondering what I can do with my lavender. It’s a young plant, so it probably won’t bloom until next year, but the leaves smell wonderful!
When I look up uses for lavender (culinary or otherwise), almost all of them involve using the buds or dried blossoms. What about uses for the leaves? Anyone know any good ones?
Today was a fantastically social day, by my standards, seeing as I normally spend my weekends napping. Rob and I and some others were commenting about how the older ETC alums know very little of the current first-years (or rising second-years at this point), so we decided to organize a brunch for the LA alums and students who were interning in the city this summer.
A healthy crowd turned up, and a fun time was had by all mingling and chatting and such. I got a really tasty drink, which was essentially water infused with lemons, oranges, and cucumbers, with a large amount of each floating about in it. It was cheap and refreshing, and I’d like to attempt making some myself at some point.
After the ETC Brunch, Ben and I headed south for the Long Beach Crawfish Festival, which is supposedly the largest festival of its kind out of New Orleans. The buzz had been spread around Insomniac about the event, and we were all for it. I’m certainly glad I went, for the crawfish were DELICIOUS. They scooped up a giant pile of steamed crawfish onto my platter, along with some red potatoes and corn, and it was all seasoned very well. I also picked up a plate of jambalaya from another booth, and it too was fantastically made.
We sat down in the shade with a multitude of other people and listened to some great live Cajun music, including one band featuring a washboard played with spoons. Fantastic! The atmosphere was great all around, as there were tons of people decked out in fancy hats, dresses, and parasols (much to my delight, as I was carrying my own). Everyone was having a great time, and I couldn’t help but snap up some photos of people dancing and enjoying themselves.
After our crawfish feast, we met up with Josue, who lives in the area, along with his wife and friend, and went to an arcade. Normally I am not one to pass up on playing arcade games, but today I was content to watch Josue and his amazing skills at the old school Star Wars game, as well as some crazy sword game on which he got the high score for the day (some other girl was doing quite well playing after us, and Josue eyed her intently, thinking he may have to defend his sword game title, but she only got 2nd place. Fortunate enough, as we may have been there all day, otherwise).
We parted ways at last and Ben and I returned to Burbank, where I was quick to catch a nap upon arriving home. Today was a delicious adventure, for sure. I think I’m going to have to make a pot of shrimp creole before too long.
Ugh, I have been sick like a dog all week with post-convention funk. I think I’m finally killing it, though.
So, GDC was fun times for sure, but several of us stayed an extra day over the weekend to hang out around San Francisco. Andy, Edmundo and I stayed with M.E. We got up the next morning and headed for Chinatown to meet Carlos, Carren, and Carren’s sister. The goal was dim sum, but no no, not just ANY dim sum.
You see, when the crew went on their ETC West Coast trip two years ago, they went to a specific dim sum place while in San Francisco. They were all determined to find the same place again, but had no idea what the name of the restaurant was, and nothing but fragmented memories about where exactly it was located.
Between looking up dim sum places and seeing if they looked familiar on Google Street View, looking at photos from their West Coast Trip to see if any pictures contained street signs in the background, and trying to combine their memories (“I remember it was at the crest of a hill!” “I think we were parallel to the Transamerica Tower!” and no less than a dozen “THIS LOOKS FAMILIAR!”), we walked up and down nearly every block in all of Chinatown and STILL didn’t find the place.
I suggested that perhaps it were a magical place, and you could only find it if you’d never been there before. All the same, I wasn’t about to go wandering around by myself to test the theory.
Nevertheless, there is no shortage of good dim sum in Chinatown in San Francisco, so we still had a DELICIOUS lunch!
The other big highlight of the day was going to see the Exploratorium. I had heard many sing the praises of this science museum, and was anxious to check it out for myself. The songs of praise are true! It is, by far, the best science museum I have ever been to. All of the exhibits are 95% interaction and only 5% text (The Louisville Science Center’s newest installations could learn from this place for sure) and the interactions were significant and engaging (not just “press this button”).
Of course we didn’t see it all, and I really wanted to check out the Touchdome, but it was sold out for the day. This is fine, for it will give me an excuse to go back to San Francisco at some point so I can finishing exploring the museum. HEY COLIN!! Can I come visit you sometime so we can go to the Exploratorium? 😀
Anyway, it was lovely time spent in San Francisco. (it was actually sunny for the whole week! Not a cloud in the sky! MADNESS!!)
First of all, I apologize to Cynthia and the LA ETCers whom I did not get to visit with on my trip to Burbank this weekend. As always, I figured I had more time than I actually did, and my stay was packed pretty full!
Explain to me.
Why on earth do people buy disgusting flour tortillas at the grocery store when they can so easily make DELICIOUS homemade corn tortillas that are an order of BIZTRILLIONS times better and tastier and more wonderful?
Why?!?
You need corn flour and a cast iron skillet. You could not possibly ask for a more simple recipe. Ah, well, it is the loss of the world! *devours*.
EDIT: I guess I could actually, you know, give the recipe.
First, get ye self to the grocery store and the ethnic food section and buy some corn flour (Masa Harina).
At home, start heating a cast iron skillet, dry, on medium high heat.
Mix 2 cups of corn flour with 1 1/4 cup of water (you may need a little more water, but only add it a tablespoon at a time as you knead). Knead that sucker for several minutes until it is deliciously elastic.
Break off a ball and roll it flat between two pieces of wax paper, using a rolling pin or whatever else you have to get the job done. (To avoid breaking your tortilla, peel the wax paper off the tortilla vs. peeling the tortilla off the wax paper).
Throw the tortilla on the hot skillet for 30 seconds each side.
Done. The end. That’s it. SEE?!?!
You can cut them up into wedges and fry them in vegetable oil to make tortilla chips, but they are just as delicious plain and soft and dipped in salsa.
….ah, salsa….Homemade salsa! My next project!
So, as a follow-up to my WoW respec worry post, I am feeling much better about being a prot warrior. Will, Scott and I have run Botanica and Arcatraz with some pick-ups, and both went REALLY well.
I also took charge of the marking, and felt I did a rather good job of that. The trick to all this, I think, is for me to research ahead of time, and then give the group as much of a feeling that I know what I’m doing as possible. Though Scott will tell you that I was double-checking everything with him almost constantly 🙂
Either way, I feel much less stressed about holding aggro. According to Will, we were in Botanica with two top-tier DPSers and I held aggro just fine. Hooray!
Of course, it also helps to have very clever groupmates. We’ve been lucky that our pick-ups have been really on top of things. Perhaps Heroics are not so far out of sight afterall!
In other news: Pink Door, Jersey Mike’s, and Gumbo-a-go-go have been checked off the Food Tour list.
On a less dorky and less melancholy note, I’ve knocked two more places of my Food Tour list. Today I am enjoying a delicious sandwich from the liquor store deli, and on Friday night we ate at Lynn’s. Granted, all I had there was a huge plate of sweet potato fries, but that’s all I really wanted anyway.
I also got to see Strother. Hooray!! Strother is one of my all time favorite people, and I am thrilled that we got to hang out!
As for the rest of the Food Tour, I’m scheduled to eat at Vietnam Kitchen on Saturday with Ken (anyone else is invited). Pink Door and Gumbo-a-Go-Go still need to be worked in, Jersey Mike’s I can grab for myself for lunch some day, and the bakery will surely sneak up on me one of these mornings.
Hooray for fooooood!
Mayan Cafe and Maido can be checked off my food tour list. Hooray!
And, in a shocking display of daring, at both places I tried something I DON’T NORMALLY GET!! (gasp!) At Maido I tried their udon soup, which was quite tasty, but the helping was huuuuuge. Granted, everything else I got was normal (miso soup, shrimp tempura, and one of about 4 sushi rolls that I repeatedly get), but the udon was different.
At the Mayan Cafe I got the Shrimp Invasion, which was deliciously tasty, and fried plantains of course. Though it was tasty, I will probably revert to my always getting the Uxmal Salmon, because it remains my favorite.
Now to approach the rest of the list…I would almost certainly have liquor store deli for lunch today, but I am carless, and thus stranded. I shall have to arrange otherwise.
In other news, the ballers played Apples to Apples last night, and it was predictably enjoyable. I’ve been sleeping and reading for leisure on my break days, and have begun poking at Actionscript 3 to prepare myself for the spring semester.
I’m trying not to work too hard, though.
I often praise Louisville for its delicious food opportunities, and since I’m in town for a bit, I intend to do a food tour. It’s a trick to be on vacation, actually, because I’m still making a list and accomplishing tasks. Let’s see what’s on the agenda..
1) Penn Station — CHECK! Scott and I went for lunch today
2) Maido
3) Mayan Gypsy
4) Pink Door
5) Gumbo-a-go-go
6) Lynn’s Paradise Cafe
7) Nord’s Bakery
8) Jersey Mike’s
9) Vietnam Kitchen
10) Liquor Store Deli
Am I forgetting anything?