Tuesday, January 5, 2010

The songs we used to sing...

2009 was a year full of great inspiration for me. As you may know, one of my sources of inspiration is music, I think the biggest one... and since I blog, there are some lovely bloggers that I really feel like they're muses for me... Here I want to share some of the people and things which inspired me last year and would be inspiring me this year...
Folies Bergère Performers
Twiggy
The Clash and Joe Strummer
John Lydon



The past fascinates me, from the muses of the late nineteenth century to the present pin ups, but if there is something that fascinates me are the happy 20's, sixties and seventies, especially in its most punk way. I really believe in punk as a very powerful ideology that given the current political situation can be repeated as a cultural movement or counter-cultural. And every day that passes, I am clear that this revolution can begin in Berlin ... I guess it's a hunch.
I think John Lydon and Joe Strummer were the punk thinking heads, each with a different ideology but successful, and that led to each one to different extremes. Joe believed in his ideas to the end, John ... well, you just have to look at it today and see what has become something that I hated ... maybe that's why I respect him even more.
And Twiggy... she's magical. She always gives me the inspiration of freedom in her pictures!

Interpol
Foals
Mando Diao (I adore this funny pic!)
Maxïmo Park
Guys well dressed (as Joshua Third)


I cannot deny it: I am a fetishist of menswear. And when a guy is well dressed and he also tells beautiful things in songs, as a poet, like the menI mentioned in the pictures ... I fell in love. Curiously, the artists that I like (at men) tend to be always well dressed.
This doesn't mean that a smart man will be well dressed and vice versa; there is everything in the world, but curiously the boys who I always have interesting encounter a unique style ...
Of course, many other artists inspire me, but these are the most remarkable to me in 2009 ... and will be in 2010. Foals will release soon a new album, and I will vibrate with their math rock again. Interpol will also release a new work soon. And Mando Diao and Maxïmo Park... I simply love them (they are the first two in my Lastfm) and I hope to see them live this year (again!).

 
Florence + The Machine
Shirley Manson from Grabage
Little Boots
Amanda Jenssen
Miss Li
Theoretical Girl
Hannah Murray, from Skins


My musical muses, some from last year and some new.
Florence and Shirley are my favorite redhead, with opposing voices and styles contrasting, but equally inspiring. While Florence inspires you to scream and go out dancing in the rain, Shirley encourages you to snuggle in your room and whisper in the ear of someone special the lyrics of her songs. Florence sometimes wears costumes seventies, Shirley is sophisticated ... but both have an inner world that show us in their songs, and are fabulous.
Little Boots, Miss Li (whom I recently discovered), Amanda Jenssen and Theoretical Girl are my bets for 2010 women, particularly Theoretical Girl, who has an attractive voice and a fascinating minimalist ... not to mention that her style is wonderful (and already is starting to influence mine).
And at the end I mentioned Hannah Murray, Cassie from Skins' serie... I simply love both, the actress and the character. I've been all 2009 saying "wow"... and in 2010, I will doing it again, and again, and again... 


Three of my blogger muses. I adore the three of them, and I thank them for made me dream, learn and smile during the past year. Of course, I hope to continue doing the same things with them in 2010!

My friends!


I always learn from my friends, and I'm learning a lot from these three little people that inspire me every day. Thanks to my Laia, Esther & Rocio, and the way they are and be loved!

And after all this boring text, I leave you with the outfit I was wearing last sunday at the mall...

Cardigan - Bershka
Shirt - Zara customized
Skirt - Green Coast
Tights - Calzedonia
Oxfords - Wonders second hand
Beret - Primark
Bag - Blanco (old)

I made a silkscreen on the shirt, and used a white ribbon. The picture is from Jesskajuice, I adore her pictures! Actually, I've been so creative these days. I made four t-shirts, a headmand and 3 ribbons I'll show you soon!

So, thanks for reading... and as always, please... have a nice day!

Home From the Holidaze

I don't know about you, but I'm glad to be back to my normal routine.  Well, that would be if I knew what "normal" was.  We came back from a week on vacation with the "fam" (all 28 of them) to find out that burglars are running rampant in our neighborhood.  Apparently there is one particular guy who breaks into homes and besides stealing jewelry, electronics, etc. GUESS WHAT HE DOES?  He raids the fridge, makes a meal for himself, helps himself to a bottle of wine and then rips off bottles of champagne.  Are you kidding me?

I sure hope he doesn't find out about me and the goodies in my freezer.  Or the wine cellar in the basement.  Let's just pray the incessant barking of my dogs (which used to make me crazy, but not so much now) will lead him to believe that my house is SO not worth breaking into.

But on to better subjects.  Years ago I took my kids to New York City and we lived there (courtesy of my sister Barbara and her amazing brownstone in the West Village) for two straight summers.  We loved Bleecker Street and became regulars at most of the restaurants and shops there.  Ah, Murray's Cheese, Zito's (tragically gone now) and Rocco's. 

Which brings me to the point (sort of) here.  That would be Rocco's and their amazing panettone.  If you've never had it, it's a cylindrical Italian sweet bread that is studded with candied orange, citron, lemon zest and raisins.  It's to die for.  It has nothing to do with a Claxton fruitcake.  It's delicious.  I may be Jewish, but I want it on the table for my Christmas breakfast!  It's that good. 

But, wait ... THEY DON'T SHIP!

Enter my sister Barbara.  Rocco's might not ship, but she does.  So we came home from the dysfunctional family trip to find it waiting on our doorstep.  So happy the burglar didn't find it first!

What to do?  I'm the food police right now, so leaving it around for Henry or me to take a slice for breakfast isn't an option.  The only reasonable solution is to just blow it out and send it into caloric overload.  Are you with me here?  I'm talking panettone bread pudding.

We had friends for dinner over here last night, so I knew I could experiment.  I got lucky.  It was really, really good.  Oh screw that.  It was fabulous, even if I do say so myself.  And, it was enhanced by the blood orange caramel sauce that I made on the fly.  I'd order this again!



PANETTONE BREAD PUDDING

2 loaves (cylinders) store-bought Panettone (from Rocco's if you are lucky)
8 extra-large eggs
4 cups half-and-half
4 cups whole milk
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla paste (or vanilla extract)
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup Mandarin Napolean brandy, or any other brandy or alcohol of choice (optional)
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup turbinado (raw) sugar


Preheat oven to 350-degrees.  Cut panettone into 1 1/2-inch cubes.  Spread out on two half sheet pans and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven, turn cubes with a large spatula and return to oven for another 10 minutes or until golden and crispy.  Remove from oven and let cool completely.

In a very large bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half and milk.  Add sugar and whisk to blend, then whisk in vanilla, nutmeg, salt and brandy (if using).  Add cooled bread cubes and soak for 30 minutes, turning occasionally so that bread soaks up as much of the mixture as possible.

Butter a large baking dish (15 x 11 x 3.5).  Pour bread mixture in then drizzle the heavy cream over the top.  Sprinkle with the turbinado sugar.  Place the baking dish into a larger pan filled with hot water (bain-marie) and place in the preheated oven on the middle rack.

Bake for 1 hour at 350-degrees until edges are firm but middle is still very wobbly.  Cover loosely with foil to prevent over-browning and bake for another 20 minutes or until middle is just set.  It should still shake ever-so-slightly.

Let cool for at least 30 minutes then spoon into serving dishes.  Top liberally with Blood Orange Caramel Sauce (recipe follows) and softly whipped unsweetened cream.

Serves 12-15


BLOOD ORANGE CARAMEL SAUCE

6 blood oranges
1 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
Pinch of salt

Zest oranges, then juice them (you should end up with approximately 1 1/2 cups juice).  Place zest and juice in a shallow saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Cook for about 10 minutes until mixture reduces to 3/4 cup.  Remove from heat, let cool then strain.  Stir in heavy cream and set aside. 
Melt butter and sugar in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until sugar caramelizes and mixture is smooth.  This should take about 10 minutes.  Turn off heat and slowly pour in the orange/cream mixture.  Pour slowly and stand back as it will boil and spatter.  When it calms down, turn heat up to medium-high and cook and stir until mixture smooths out.  Add a pinch of salt.

Yield:  approximately 1 1/2 cups

Of course you can make this with regular oranges, but I love the intensity and the drama of blood oranges!  It's a caramel sauce indeed worthy of adorning Rocco's panettone.  Thanks, Sis!






Food Tip of the Day - Tuesday, January 5th, 2010: Biryani Recipes

Biryani is almost always thought of as being an Indian dish but the reality is that it knows its origins in Persia (now Iran) and that it was introduced to India at some unknown time. The word is derived from a word meaning, "Roasted," or, "Fried," and relates to dishes composed of rice, spices and/or meat and vegetables.

Biryanis can therefore be made in a great many forms and the site linked to below is a fairly new one which is going to examine some of these recipe ideas and cooking techniques on a fairly regular, ongoing basis.

Biryani Recipes

Enggak usah tanya dia lagi

Soal Barbarian girl itu, enggak usah tanya lagi lah, enggak perlu. Gue enggak peduli sama dia. Siapapun dia yang enggak gentle nyari ribut sama gue, enggak perlu gue hiraukan. Gue enggak merasa punya masalah. So, kalo pada mau nanya, tanyalah yang berguna, misal : gue mau masuk jurusan apa di kuliah? Lagi sibuk apa? Menulis untuk majalah apa aja? Nah, kan lebih berguna dan bermanfaat. Asli gue enggak mau buang waktu karena gadis malang itu.

Oh ya gals, gue dan Ditha ngisi buat student editionnya provoke loooh. So wish me luck ya. I'm the writer. :) Dan lagi sibuk ngurusin kejar edisi 2-4 Ben 10 dan Powerpuff girls magazine. hmm.

Masih deg-degan nunggu awarding nite Think-Act-Change The Body Shop Documentary Film.

Besok gue mesti menjumpai Pak Pohan dan Bu Tati. Off ya.
Bye fellas. GBU

Honey Madeleines



Once again, Bourdain takes the blame.

‘England’s best hope for salvation...a warrior, pioneer, philosopher and fearless proponent for what’s good, and what’s always been good, about English cooking.’

High praise indeed.

This is his summation of Fergus Henderson as it appears in the ultimate food lover’s bible, A Cook’s Tour – the one book I wish I could have written. Forget Dostoyevsky. Move along Melville. Step aside Shakespeare. Let me travel, eat then write it up in shotgun gonzo style. Yes please.

Understandably, the monochrome delight that is Nose to Tail Eating, Henderson’s manifesto/cookbook, soon found its way into my collection swiftly followed by its successor, Beyond Nose to Tail – a similar affair but with an extended section on baking.

Those books were read and re-read. Not just the recipes but the snippets of gastro-philosophy that pepper them. The words and oddly exotic lists of ingredients pored over, mused upon and eventually cooked and eaten. The exotic ceased to be so and all that remained was The Tasty.

Bourdain’s gushing made sense.

Considering my affinity for his work, it took a surprisingly long time to actually eat at Henderson’s London restaurant, St. John. A last minute reservation meant we would eat late but we would eat and I would sample those dishes whose names were familiar but flavours alien.

Cue roasted bone marrow with parsley and caper salad. Langoustines with rich mayonnaise. Smoked eel and bacon. And thick slices of beef topside with boiled carrots.

I felt like an art lover finally laying eyes on a favourite painting previously seen only in reproduction.

The desire for something sweet was tempered by achingly full bellies. There was no room for Eccles cakes or doughnuts. There was barely room for a digestif. But a request to take away some sweet treats was met with a smile. Five minutes later we left, clutching a still warm paper bag, emblazoned with the outline of a pig, containing the famed Eccles cakes as well as half a dozen Madeleines.

They were eaten for breakfast.

St. John Madeleines

The Madeleine tray I bought the GF for Christmas (‘a bowling ball for Homer’, I think she referred to it as) is the most specific item of kitchen kit we own. It has a single, solitary use. But, oh, what a use.

There may be countless Madeleine recipes out there but for a first attempt there was only one to go for. It was deliriously easy and came together with such pleasure that I doubt we will turn elsewhere. Watching the small blobs of mixture spread, rise then bulge up into such a recognisable shapes was most satisfying.



They are also near ethereally light with a slightly malted flavour that comes from the caramelised honey, almost reminiscent of Horlicks.

Makes 12

Melt 70g of unsalted butter with a generous tablespoon of runny honey then simmer until the sugars caramelise (it didn’t seem to matter that it split).

Whisk together a large egg with 55g of caster sugar and a tablespoon of soft brown sugar until a trail can be left on the surface of the mixture. Sift in 70g of self raising flour then fold in along with the butter/honey mixture. Leave in the fridge for a couple of hours.

Grease the Madeleine moulds with butter and flour, tip out any excess then pop a spoonful of the mixture into each one. It won’t look like enough. It is. Honest.

Bake at 200 degrees C for about 10 minutes, marvel at how big they’ve got, delight at the fact they look just like Madeleines then enjoy with cups of tea. If you have any left, they still taste great the following day.





*Would you look at that – a whole piece about Madeleines and not a single mention of Proust. Oh, bollocks.