Question of the Day

(In order to avoid undue partisanship and party-bashing, I must mention here that I object to the previous administration’s movements to create a stronger executive branch, larger military and more security oversight.)

The current White House administration has two big agendas that are in conflict with each other.  I’m looking for a little clarity:

First, they are looking to re-tool NASA, to privatize its manned space missions because the current method is both outdated and financially bloated.

Second, they are aiming to create a comprehensive health care plan which will cover all citizens (certainly a good thing) and bring down the overall cost of health care to consumers.

Whether you stand on the side of government control or the side of a free-market economy, I don’t see any way to view these policies in such a way that they are philosophically congruent.  Do you?

Plumbers, Donkeys, Elephants, iPads and Prayer, oh my!

Oh boy, what a day it was!

First, the plumbers tell me that they’re going to actually be ripping down the inside part of one of our walls tomorrow…yikes!

So our shower was suddenly backing up to near over-flow levels.  This led to a pre-liminary investigation by a plumber who, my brute force and I’m sure a minor bit of ignorance, broke something.  One broken thing led to potential leaking into the apartment below us, which now requires the gutting of a wall.  Oh the joys of living in a 90 year old building.  These events certainly put a damper on my hopes of having a highly productive week of research.

Second, the iPad was announced.

Having found myself in the poor farm lately, I see the iPad as one more useless device of Applopulence.  Perhaps after I give one a test drive, I will feel differently.  But for now, I’m giving the iPad two big thumbs down based on it’s price and limited functionality.

Third, the state of the union rocked my socks off.

I know, I know, this probably upsets a lot of you.  I was actually entertained by the state of the union. Having such a suave president makes the rhetoric more bearable, and occasionally even believable. Now we’ll see what happens when the rubber hits the road.  If you’re into grabbing coffee, wine, beer, cheese or anything deep fried and discussing politics, I’m game.

Fourth, I’m reading a book about prayer.

Entitled A Praying Life, by Paul Miller, I’ve mainly been taken in by the book’s treatment of the concept of cynicism.  That, however, is a topic which will require much more space than I desire to devote in this short post.  Thus, I’ll leave you with a definition of cynicism from the American Heritage Dictionary: An attitude of scornful or jaded negativity, especially a general distrust of the integrity or professed motives of others.

Walter Day

My wife and I had my parents over to celebrate an official family Holiday:  Walter Day!  The culinary focus?  Two types of chicken legs.

Type 1: Bacon grease coated garlic basil

Type 2: “Tandoori” Style

‘Twas a lovely day, including laughs, ice cream, homemade bread, yummy salad, and farm-opoly.

Return to Normalcy

A number of people have asked about my recent two-week hiatus from blogland.  The following is not a list of reasons why I made no posts until today:

1. My wife and I took a second honeymoon to Cambodia.
2. While in my research lab, I accidentally inhaled highly toxic chemicals.  I was then rushed to the hospital, where I spent the next week and a half being de-toxed.
3. We’re renovating our apartment.
4. The neighbor’s dog bit my leg.  We settled out of court.
5. The Eagles’ wildly successful playoff run commanded my full attention.

Actually, I was focusing all of my efforts on successfully completing step one of three towards my life-long dream of sharing the same name as one of the best basketball players in history: Dr. J.

Life has returned to some semblance of normalcy one again.

Gelatin George

After hearing of my new year’s commitment to using new ingredients, my sister suggested that I use gelatin and make my own mousse.  Once I got past the rather disgusting nature of the origin of gelatin, I thought that a mousse would provide a respectable challenge.

My wonderful wife purchased Gelatin George for me:

Michael Pollan would be proud of the ingredient list:

Now a mousse is a little more involved than my typical cooking, and much more dessert-y than my usual.  Thus, I own no double boiler.  However, I used what I officially dub to be the “poor man’s double boiler.”

I placed semi-sweet chocolate, cocoa powder, Bailey’s Irish Creme and butter into this rig, gently melted it down and then mixed it with a creme, gelatin slurry.  I then whipped heavy cream in a frozen metal bowl until it was mediumly fluffy (which I guess baking people call medium peaks).  Finally, I mixed it all together:

And after an hour of sitting in the fridge, I had a chocolate mousse:

The texture actually came out just right, although it could have used more Bailey’s flavor.  Lastly, I need lessons in dessert aesthetics, as I clearly made not attempt to make the mousse look attractive.  In the future, It’ll sport a smooth top, be in a martini glass and have a raspberry topping.  For now, chocolate goodness will have to suffice.

Charlie the Chayote

As I stated, one of my goals is to cook with new ingredients this year.  More specifically, I am attempting to cook with one new ingredient every month.

Allow me to introduce you to Charlie the Chayote:

Charlie is a native of Costa Rica.  However, he has many relatives from other tropical areas, such as southeast Asia.  My wife brought Charlie home last week, and it was now his turn to grace our table.

As you can see, from the inside Charlie looks to be something of a pear.  However, Charlie is considered a summer squash, and is often used in soups.  My goal was to use his chayote nature in a more bold manner.

After olive oil, salt, sugar, crushed red pepper, red wine vinegar and about 10 minutes of medium heat, we were left with the following side dish:

Charlie’s distinguishing feature is his texture.  Cross a pear and a cucumber and you have something of the texture.  Charlie does not have much flavor, however.  This necessitated the rather bold combination of flavors I used to make this side.

…today’s white elephant is often tomorrow’s beloved landmark.

— Blair Kamin, Chicago Tribune

New Year's Revolutions - Status and Update

It is that time of year again - a time for my new year’s revolutions.  For me, they are essentially new year’s resolutions, but the word revolution carries more weight in my mind.

In 2009

I made only one new year’s resolution in 2009: to read 52 non-work related books last year.  Sadly, I only made it halfway.  In retrospect, this goal was a bit ambitious considering my status as a Ph.D student.

For 2010

1. I’ll be reading the Bible in a year.  I’ve done this twice before since entering college in 2004, and I want to do it again.  This time I’m reading it in the New Living Translation for a different, more story-telling feel (previously I read the NIV and ESV).  However, I’m reading it in a book which contains 4 parallel versions of the Bible, so I can easily jump translations.
2. I intend to read 18 books for fun.
3. Every month I will cook with one type of produce (fresh plant, meat or cheese) that I have never used previously in my own cooking.
4. I intend to do one photo shoot for fun per month.

These goals will keep me from becoming becoming a dull boy via the “all work no play” principle.  And I love to have goals.

2009 - A Year in Review - The Jarbees

If my life were to be reduced to the basics of an athletic franchise (a sports team), then what would be in my end-of-year report?

Team Record:

Wins: Getting Married, Honeymooning in Southern California, Visiting my Uncle’s Cabin…

…visiting my sister and brother in law, Getting lots of opportunities to cook!

Losses: Less travel than in previous years. Being a poor graduate student…

Considering the fact that life cannot be perfect, the win-loss record demonstrates a championship caliber team.  I cannot help but be incredibly thankful for everything I have!

Acquisitions and Trades:

Gained:

A Wonderful Wife

A New Church

Traded Away: Two Quality Roommates

An old church

Overall, management is extremely happy with this year’s roster moves.  Churches were a geographic necessity.  And while it was tough to let go of the two elite up-and-coming players, the move to a proven MVP like a wife was in the best interest of the team.

Stadium Update:

The team started the year playing ball downtown in Stadium 217.

While spacious and conveniently located above a Trader Joe’s, bedbugs, lack of charm and a change of roommates necessitated the move to the new Stadium, known simply as “The Jenk.”

Fans of all ages and walks of life have delighted in the charm, size and character of The Jenk.  It also is on a residential street (as opposed to across the street from a strip club).  As a result, we may charge higher ticket prices.

2009 Executive Summary:

2009 was an excellent year for the Jarbees. While there were drastic changes to the team roster, the return on investment of a young, growing marriage creates an environment conducive to success in both immediate and long-term qualities of life.

2010 Roster Scouting Report:

There are many reasons to anticipate the coming year! Plans are forming for an inexpensive yet traveliscious vacation for the wife and myself.  For certain there will be a camping road trip out to a summertime wedding in western Wisconsin.  By the end of next year I hope to have more than 2/3 of all the components of my Ph.D completed.

The Christmas Spirit

A teenage homemaker and older priest inspired the following block of words:

My deepest thoughts uplift Your name

My inner heart breathes the life of my Savior

For You remembered me!

You thought to rectify my pitiful state.

And now I am called a part of Your Kingdom

now I am a part of the nations under Abraham.

By a power only held by the Sovereign

By a perfection only known by the Lord of All.

And here Your kingdom remains a terrestrial mystery

This kingdom raises the loser

This kingdom honors the failures

This kingdom empowers the weakened

The power to the slave, the mercy to the unlovely,

The wisdom to the feebleminded, the glory to the lowly.

Praise be to God, for His kingdom, His righteous One, is upon us.

Culinary Experimentations with JC - Jerk Sausage Supreme Linguine

Tonight creation was one of the more strange, unique creations to come across my table.  Without my wife around, I took experimentation to another level.  I’d call it caribbean fusion, but fission is probably a more accurate descriptor.

My intent was to use some recently acquired allspice to create a Jamaican inspired jerk.  It turned into something very different, however.  First, I placed olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, allspice, dried minced onion, a jalapeño pepper, ceyenne pepper, thyme and brown sugar into a bowl and heated it up.

I then took some sausage which had been sliced into little slices…

…and threw it into the mix!  Then I added a lime and let the sausage cook in the simmering liquids.

Then I added in corn, and let it simmer until it thickened.  I served it over linguine with some good stinky cheese and more thyme.

The end result was a pleasant surprise, despite the general lack of color.  The sausage carried a lighter flavor, while the sauce packs a moderate punch of jerky-ness on the back end, which is offset by the cheese and pasta.  So, despite the utterly odd amalgam of flavor, I fell upon a moderately successful dish.

My personal tip: don’t try this at home, or when people are visiting.  While the dish works, it is not a normal combination of flavors.  It combines two dishes into one.