Hay cosas que pasan en nuestra mente que no podemos entender, por mucho que la ciencia estudie. El por qué una simple reacción química es capaz de trasladarnos desde la mayor euforia a la más mísera tristeza. Los rincones del placer desconocido y del dolor cotidiano. El poder de una descarga eléctrica capaz de revolucionar todas nuestras ondas cerebrales hasta hacernos vibrar.
La vida es un misterio, un misterio que considero un insulto tratar de descubrir... al fin de cuentas, siempre ha sido así y, si lo rompemos, ¿no perdería su encanto? ¿Por qué hay que buscar un "por qué" a todo? ¿Acaso no es cierto el dicho que reza "la curiosidad mató al gato"?
Todas estas divagaciones sin sentido vienen a cuento de que estuve pensando en cómo somos, tan iguales y diferentes a la vez. Con una corteza cerebral única, indiscutiblemente hecha a medida, con sus virtudes y fallos. Y debemos aceptar éste regalo divino, hecho a medida para nosotros, con todas sus consecuencias.
Tal vez éso era lo que a ellos les falló, el no saber aceptar éstas pequeñas superficialidades. Él se rindió, pero ella luchó hasta el final. Ella, como muchas otras lucharon antes y como muchas otras lo siguen haciendo después.
Hoy rindo un humilde homenaje escrito a una gran heroína del siglo XX; cayendo mis palabras en saco roto y renglones que no son leídos, pero que quedan escritos en esta vasta e infinita inmensidad que es la red de internet. Hoy brindo por aquellas que son capaces de sacar las uñas y enseñar los dientes, pase lo que pase; la decepción, el sufrimiento, el engaño, la burla... Hoy pienso en todas ellas, y en especial a la musa que me inspira estas palabras.
Hoy te escribo a ti, Deborah Curtis.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
kampung batu 30
langit x selalunya biru. kan?sy pergi clinic dulu. jmpe Dr Mariam lg yg sejuk mata memandang. dah 2 hari berturut - turut. bagi extra ubat sebagai bekalan blk kmpng. singgah Melawati, cik tertnggl barang dkt rumah Su. kul 11 lebeyh baru gerak berjalan. singgah Kuantan, hantar cik. lunch. solat. utk itu saje. x sempat ke mane - mane. jmpe dgn teh & mama ngah dlm 5 minit je. ptg, bergerak melalui terengganu, sampai di Machang tepat pukul 8 setgh malam. penat. layan karenah sepupu yg semakin meningkat remaja, tgk keliwon. penyudahnya mandi tgk kanan, kiri, atas, bawah, sbb teringat hantu penanggal~
bunga kantan yg cantik bila kembangbgn pagi, ke Pasar Tani. yer, excited. sbb taw d Kelantan pasar tani mesti bnyk mknan best2. ade org Kelantan tibe2 ckp "jom kte gewe". sy yg blur2 dgn dialek Kelantan, mengambil mase yg agak lame utk fhm sedangkan sepupu sy 2 org tuh da gelak x ingt dunia. beli makanan, balik. makan ramai2 dan ptg bergerak ke Wakaf Baru. jmpe auntie As & Uncle Afendi. seronok. ade 4 ekor kucing yg tnggl hanya di atas atap. balik malam, singgah di kawasan stadium sebab kempunan nak makan sup.
antara kuih muih breakfast dan mula berkemas - kemas. ke pasar machang memandangkan sy nak sgt beli tudung bawal sampai 7 helai dan skrng mulut melopong memikirkan duit. balik semula ke rumah tok ma, bersiap dan bergerak pulang dlm pukul 12 tgh hari. lalu jalan gua musang dan kuala lipis, sampai di KL ketika senja. terus pulang ke rumah, dinner dan bersiap utk hari esok.
** kalau KL panas sehingga 34 darjah celcius, Kelantan mencapai suhu 38 darjah celcius.
** bila tgk sepupu yg semakin membesar, baru sedar sy makin tua. memandangkan sy cucu ke2 sulung, sy selalu rasa mereka semua kanak - kanak lg. terimalah hakikat Hanafi yg berumur 16 tahun tuh da lg tinggi dr sy... haih~
** kenduri - kendara sana sini. seronok. sy rasa dah lama tak tgk lembu, kambing, ayam, kerbau, itik, merata - rata di tepi jalan.
** sempat jmpa keluarga belah cina. walaupun x rapat sgt, tp... sekurang nya masih berhubung. mak cik sedara sy adalah kanak - kanak yg berumur 4-5 tahun. mereka bercakap bahasa cina dgn sy yg mmg x faham 1 perkataan pun yg keluar dr mulut mereka.
** kadang - kadang, kalau kita x ada perasaan syg dkt org pun, kita kena hormat org itu. mungkin kerana kedudukan mereka dlm sesebuah institusi kekeluargaan itu.
** sy tgh gila makan coklat m&m. mmg ini antara choc fav sy. tp... dah 4 hari berturut - turut kot sy makan setiap hari? mcm dah ketagih. entah kenapa... hari ni je pagi & petang mkn. kunyah dgn perlahan & cermat. sakit telinga yg effect ke kepala.
Dinner Parties and Elegant Home Cooking
I love having people over to dinner or lunch. I probably have little eating parties about once a week, often for my friend Sam when our spouses are out of town and regularly for four or six of us. Once the number gets bigger than six, I move into a different mind set that is more like catering than having folks over for dinner. I prefer small.
When I started out, I would spend days getting ready for a graduate student dinner party, finding just the right menu of things that we could afford on my tiny University of California at Berkeley secretary salary and my husband’s graduate student stipend. I wanted to wow and dazzle our friends. But mostly I befuddled them. Aspic, who cares about aspic, even though it took me days of preparation. I wanted effusive compliments for my efforts and invitations to come to their houses for dinner. I got neither—or at least not as many as I wanted.
I had set up a situation in which our friends were intimidated and scared to reciprocate. Who wants that? With a thunk on the side of my head, I realized that I could cook a nice borscht (Coop Low Cost Cookbook) or lentil soup (Pellaprat’s Modern French Culinary Art) with fresh bread, a crisp salad, a brownie (Better Homes and Gardens) for dessert and everyone, including me, had a better time. And so my version of elegant home cooking was born.
On Thursday, dear friends, Rivka and her daughter, Aden, drove up to Sonoma for lunch. We had mushroom pâté (see below) with slices of bread; spicy cauliflower soup (modified from The Art of Simple Food); beet, goat cheese and watercress salad; strawberries and store-bought oatmeal cookies (Whole Foods). It was really tasty and definitely not intimidating. Elegant home cooking. I made the soup and the pâté the day before and did the rest in the morning. It was fun to cook for them, to share a meal, to celebrate Aden’s graduation from Brown, to walk with Rivka to my favorite store on the plaza, Bram. Keeping it easy and enjoying myself.
When I started out, I would spend days getting ready for a graduate student dinner party, finding just the right menu of things that we could afford on my tiny University of California at Berkeley secretary salary and my husband’s graduate student stipend. I wanted to wow and dazzle our friends. But mostly I befuddled them. Aspic, who cares about aspic, even though it took me days of preparation. I wanted effusive compliments for my efforts and invitations to come to their houses for dinner. I got neither—or at least not as many as I wanted.
I had set up a situation in which our friends were intimidated and scared to reciprocate. Who wants that? With a thunk on the side of my head, I realized that I could cook a nice borscht (Coop Low Cost Cookbook) or lentil soup (Pellaprat’s Modern French Culinary Art) with fresh bread, a crisp salad, a brownie (Better Homes and Gardens) for dessert and everyone, including me, had a better time. And so my version of elegant home cooking was born.
On Thursday, dear friends, Rivka and her daughter, Aden, drove up to Sonoma for lunch. We had mushroom pâté (see below) with slices of bread; spicy cauliflower soup (modified from The Art of Simple Food); beet, goat cheese and watercress salad; strawberries and store-bought oatmeal cookies (Whole Foods). It was really tasty and definitely not intimidating. Elegant home cooking. I made the soup and the pâté the day before and did the rest in the morning. It was fun to cook for them, to share a meal, to celebrate Aden’s graduation from Brown, to walk with Rivka to my favorite store on the plaza, Bram. Keeping it easy and enjoying myself.
Appetizers
So far I’ve given you three menus consisting of a main dish, a starch, and vegetable side dishes. If you were cooking one of the menus for a dinner party, you might want to add an appetizer and a dessert which you can purchase or make yourself. If you decide that you are up to making an appetizer, I’m going to give you three: two are truly easy and one is a little more complicated—maybe more the sort you would take to someone’s house if you were assigned the “pre-eating” course with drinks. Except that it is so good that you might want to eat it for dinner.
Apricot Thrones
25 pecan halves
2 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
2 ounces blue cheese
25 dried apricots
1. Preheat the oven or toaster oven to 325ºF. Place the pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden brown. Watch carefully. Let them cool.
2. Combine the cheeses and stir until evenly mixed. If the mixture doesn’t get smooth, microwave for 10 seconds to soften slightly and stir again.
3. Scoop up small amount of the cheese mixture and place on top of each apricot. Start with a small amount. You can always add more later. Note: You can use a pastry bag if you are doing a large number of these.
4. Top with a toasted pecan, rounded side up, if you are fussy about it. Transfer the apricots to a serving plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate.
Note: The recipe can be completed to this point up to 8 hours before serving.
5. Serve at room temperature.
6-10 servings
Adapted from Hugh Carpenter and Teri Sandison’s Fast Appetizers
Dates Stuffed with Almonds
24 blanched whole almonds, toasted or untoasted
24 medium dates, pitted
12 thin slices bacon, cut in halves
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Stuff an almond inside each date. Wrap each date with bacon and secure with a toothpick crosswise.
3. Bake in the 350ºF oven on a baking sheet for 20-30 minutes or until the bacon is crisp.
If the bacon isn’t browned enough for you, place the dates under a hot broiler for a minute or two, watching them closely.
Note: Can make the day ahead and bake for 20 minutes. Reheat at 350ºF before serving.
8 servings (about 3 per person)
Adapted from Marimar Torres’ The Catalan Country Kitchen
Mushroom Pâté
½ ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup boiling water
¼ cup butter (½ stick)
1 pound fresh cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced, tough stems discarded
1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
½ teaspoon hot sauce
½ teaspoon sugar
6 ounces cream cheese
Salt and pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh chives, parsley or cilantro or a mixture
Edible flowers, like society garlic flowers, optional
Crackers, thinly sliced French bread, or crostini
1. Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with 1 cup boiling water. Let sit for 30 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the soaking liquid. Pour the liquid through a coffee filter or a double layer of paper towels in a sieve (to catch the dirt from the dried mushrooms). Reserve both the mushrooms and the water.
2. Heat a 12-inch sauté pan over high heat. Add the butter and when it begins to brown, add the softened dried mushrooms, the fresh mushrooms, and garlic. Sauté until the mushrooms begin to wilt and squeak, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the reserved mushroom water, oyster sauce, hot sauce, and sugar. Cook over high heat until all the moisture disappears. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
4. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and process until smooth. Cut the cream cheese into bits and add it to the mushroom mixture along with 2-3 tablespoons of the herbs. Process until very smooth, adding salt and pepper to taste.
5. Line the bottom of a 6½ or 7-inch springform pan with parchment paper and butter the sides.
6. Transfer the pâté to the prepared pan, and press a layer of plastic wrap over the surface. Refrigerate.
Note: You can also put the pâté in a pretty bowl.
7. To serve, run a knife around the edge of the pan, remove the sides and bottom of the springform pan. Peel off the parchment paper by flipping the pâté on to your hand, paper side up. Then flip the pâté right side up onto a flat serving plate. Decorate with the reserved herbs and the flowers. Serve chilled or at room temperature with crackers, baguette slices, or crostini.
Serves 6-12
Adapted from Hugh Carpenter and Teri Sandison’s Fast Appetizers
Apricot Thrones
25 pecan halves
2 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
2 ounces blue cheese
25 dried apricots
1. Preheat the oven or toaster oven to 325ºF. Place the pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden brown. Watch carefully. Let them cool.
2. Combine the cheeses and stir until evenly mixed. If the mixture doesn’t get smooth, microwave for 10 seconds to soften slightly and stir again.
3. Scoop up small amount of the cheese mixture and place on top of each apricot. Start with a small amount. You can always add more later. Note: You can use a pastry bag if you are doing a large number of these.
4. Top with a toasted pecan, rounded side up, if you are fussy about it. Transfer the apricots to a serving plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate.
Note: The recipe can be completed to this point up to 8 hours before serving.
5. Serve at room temperature.
6-10 servings
Adapted from Hugh Carpenter and Teri Sandison’s Fast Appetizers
Dates Stuffed with Almonds
24 blanched whole almonds, toasted or untoasted
24 medium dates, pitted
12 thin slices bacon, cut in halves
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Stuff an almond inside each date. Wrap each date with bacon and secure with a toothpick crosswise.
3. Bake in the 350ºF oven on a baking sheet for 20-30 minutes or until the bacon is crisp.
If the bacon isn’t browned enough for you, place the dates under a hot broiler for a minute or two, watching them closely.
Note: Can make the day ahead and bake for 20 minutes. Reheat at 350ºF before serving.
8 servings (about 3 per person)
Adapted from Marimar Torres’ The Catalan Country Kitchen
Mushroom Pâté
½ ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup boiling water
¼ cup butter (½ stick)
1 pound fresh cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced, tough stems discarded
1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
½ teaspoon hot sauce
½ teaspoon sugar
6 ounces cream cheese
Salt and pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh chives, parsley or cilantro or a mixture
Edible flowers, like society garlic flowers, optional
Crackers, thinly sliced French bread, or crostini
1. Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with 1 cup boiling water. Let sit for 30 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the soaking liquid. Pour the liquid through a coffee filter or a double layer of paper towels in a sieve (to catch the dirt from the dried mushrooms). Reserve both the mushrooms and the water.
2. Heat a 12-inch sauté pan over high heat. Add the butter and when it begins to brown, add the softened dried mushrooms, the fresh mushrooms, and garlic. Sauté until the mushrooms begin to wilt and squeak, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the reserved mushroom water, oyster sauce, hot sauce, and sugar. Cook over high heat until all the moisture disappears. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
4. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and process until smooth. Cut the cream cheese into bits and add it to the mushroom mixture along with 2-3 tablespoons of the herbs. Process until very smooth, adding salt and pepper to taste.
5. Line the bottom of a 6½ or 7-inch springform pan with parchment paper and butter the sides.
6. Transfer the pâté to the prepared pan, and press a layer of plastic wrap over the surface. Refrigerate.
Note: You can also put the pâté in a pretty bowl.
7. To serve, run a knife around the edge of the pan, remove the sides and bottom of the springform pan. Peel off the parchment paper by flipping the pâté on to your hand, paper side up. Then flip the pâté right side up onto a flat serving plate. Decorate with the reserved herbs and the flowers. Serve chilled or at room temperature with crackers, baguette slices, or crostini.
Serves 6-12
Adapted from Hugh Carpenter and Teri Sandison’s Fast Appetizers
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