the thing is

I so desperately want to make something of myself; even if I end up offing myself in the end.

The difficulty is just in figuring out what "something" is.

holiday spirit

In the spirit of the holidays--you know, isolation, desperation, abandonment all along with family, love and togetherness I'm thinking it's time to revisit Jimmy Corrigan, the smartest kid on Earth- kinda fits my mood of late perfectly.

I you haven't read this you need to; wonderful art and minimalist/ complex storytelling.

Plus some pretty neat-o craft projects I didn't make the first time around due to lack of copy-machine. This time I want little paper locusts.

more fun w/ winter greens

• bunch swiss chard, stems removed and cut into ribbons
  
• bunch dinosaur kale, stems removed and cut into ribbons
• two handfuls crimini mushrooms, sliced
  
• few cloves garlic, sliced
• oil (any kind)
• broth (any kind would be great, and will change the feel of the dish)
• fresh lemon juice
• cayenne pepper
• salt & pepper to taste

1. in a heavy bottom large pot heat oil
2. add garlic and walnuts and cook until aromatic
   
3. add mushrooms an a little salt to encourage sweating
4. saute mushrooms until they look done
5. add kale and chard, cook until wilted
6. add a tblsp or so lemon juice, broth to just cover, and cayenne pepper
7. gently simmer for 45 minutes to an hour
8. salt and pepper to taste
9. serve w/ bread or toast
   

best roasted root vegetables ever

• olive oil
• garlic powder
• kosher salt
• fresh ground pepper
• lemon pepper
• lemon zest
• fresh rosemary
• diced potato
• diced sweet potato
• diced yam

1. preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. put all veggies in a large ziploc bag or bowl
3. drizzle with olive oil
4. sprinkle with all other spices and herbs to taste
5. spread veggies on a large baking sheet
6. cook until veggies reach desired crispness, stirring every 20 minutes (for me it took about an hour)
7. enjoy the amazing deliciousness
   

after the party frittata

I have two favorite mediums for dealing w/ left overs, cous cous and frittata. I tend to use cous cous when I want something lighter. but sometimes, say the morning after a party, all I really want is something easy to make w/ eggs. That's when frittata is perfect. For this I used the leftover appitizers from the night before, it saved me having to throw away a bunch of food that didn't look so hot in its current state, and made something new and amazingly tasty!

• diced onion
• red grapes
• sliced sausage rounds of andoullie and chicken apple
• one zuccini cut ino half circles
  
• diced stale brie
• shopped up spanikopita triangles
• eggs
• olive oil

1. in large cast iron sillet sautee onion in oil
2. preheat over to 250 or 300 degrees
   
3. when it's aromatic add sausage
4. cook long enough to kill anything that may have grown over night
5. add in zuccini and sautee a minute or two
   
6. toss in spanikopita and grapes and sautee a little longer
7. meanwhile beat enough eggs to mostly cover everything in the pan w/ a little milk or water
   
8. throw pieces of brie in egg mixture
9. gently pour egg mixture into pan let it set a little
10. transfer skillet to oven and bake half and hour to hour
11. enjoy w/ a glass of champagne
    

deviled eggs 2008

• eggs
• dijon mustard
• mayonnaise
  
• chopped roasted cashews
• olive oil
• chopped gypsy or bell peppers (red and orange)
• minced shallot
• apple cider vinegar
• (next time I'm adding finely diced fuji or pink lady apple)
• paprika +/or parsley
  
• plastic bag
  

1. boil eggs, let cool
2. halve eggs length wise, rinse whites and set aside, put yolks in big bowl
3. wet yolks with mustard, mayo, oil, and vinegar to taste and mash up
4. stir in nuts, peppers, shallots and apple
5. put yolk mixture in plastic bag, cut tiny bit off one corner and pipe into egg whites (an egg platter really helps them hold still
6. sprinkle eggs w/ paprika and finely chopped parsley
   

winter hippie food

• diced onion
• sliced beets
• chopped beet greens
• chopped carrot greens
• few hand fulls lentils
• few hand fulls wheat berries
• diced sweet potato
• vegetable/chicken broth
• olive oil
• large pot w/lid
• (next time I might throw in grated carrot too)
  

1. in large pot saute onion in oil 'til aromatic
2. add beets and saute a bit
3. add in lentils and wheat berries and cook a while longer
4. toss in beet greens and cook 'til wilted
5. add sweet potato and carrot greens
6. pour in enough broth to cover and stir the mess around
   
7. cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed
8. after liquid is absorbed test the lentils, if they're still too hard add more broth, stir, and cook until they're done!

The whole process took me somewhere around one and a half hours. The finished product is beautifully colorful, delicious, healthy, and didn't even need any spices!

editor's note: unfortunately my camera has died, so no pictures until I go ahead and splurge on a new one, instead of doing things like replacing my husband's worn-out shoes.

a dream come true

You really can live in a Myst / Riven (images stolen from my dreams) world!

really?

Is this really what the world needs now?
Yet another movie based on an 80's plastic figure/ cartoon/ marketing tool?

be afraid