Friday, January 29, 2010

yeah, we're the winner

 
Di Awarding nite bersama Kak Zoya dan pialaku :)
hallo my fellas, finally setelah malam panjang dan mendebarkan. Pulanglah gue dengan memborong banyak hal dari Awarding and exhibition Think-Act-Change The Body Shop Documentary Film mCompetition. Alhamdulillaaaaah banget!
Selain menyabet Best Category Violence Against Women, juga Best Sound, dan tentunya The Best Film. Total 40 juta menjadi ganjaran yang menyenangkan, bukankah begitu? hihi.
Thanks buat semua support, vote, juga promosi yang dilakukan dan diberikan teman-teman semuanya. Tanpa kalian, gue dan team enggak akan bisa meraih prestasi sejauh ini.
Terutama buat keluarga, narasumber, dan pembimbing yang dengan sabarnya menghadapi 3 bebek cantik ini.*hueeeks*

Dan film gue, "LOVE then LEAVE" akan di putar di acaranya Jurnal Perempuan, Di Exhibiton Think-Act-Change The Body Shop, IMHO. Datang dan saksikan yaaaaa.
Sekali lagi thaaaaanks a lot.
Kiss kiss kiss kiss kiss kiss kiss


Scottish King Scallops with Whisky Cream Sauce

Scottish King Scallops with Whisky Cream SauceKing scallops are a deliciously sweet type of shellfish. Soft and succulent, they almost seem to melt in the mouth - provided that they are cooked in the correct fashion. The recipe described below is for one person and includes details of the most common way in which I like to cook scallops.

Ingredients

5 or 6 Scottish King scallops
1/2lb potatoes
2 tbsp frozen peas
Circa 1 pint of milk
1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley (plus sprig for garnish)
1 clove of garlic (crushed or grated)
1 tbsp double (heavy, in USA) cream
1 tsp quality single malt Scotch whisky

Method

The first step is simply to peel and chop the potatoes and place them in to a pot of boiling, salted water. They will take around twenty-five minutes to cook.

It is important to note with scallops that the orange coral should be left intact. It is delicious! Far too many people are under the gross misapprehension that this is something to be discarded. Scottish King scallops in particular are expensive enough without discarding part of them uneaten.

After the potatoes have been on for around twenty minutes, the scallops should be added to a separate pot and enough cold milk added to completely cover them. They should not be seasoned in any way - no salt, no pepper, no herbs: nothing! It is the purely natural flavour of the Scottish King scallops that we want and not something imparted by an alien substance.

The pot containing the King scallops and milk should then be put on to a moderate heat and cooked only until the milk just begins to simmer around the edges. It must not be allowed to come to a boil. At this stage, the Scottish King scallops are cooked and should be removed from the pot with a slotted spoon to a warmed plate.

The peas will take around three minutes to cook in a separate pot in boiling water and should be put on immediately after the scallops, to be drained after this time has elapsed. The potatoes should then be drained and mashed with a little of the scallop poaching liquer, the garlic and the parsley.

The whisky cream sauce takes mere seconds. The cream and the whisky should be added to a very small saucepan and the pan heated while you stir with a wooden spoon on a very gentle heat until the sauce barely starts to simmer.

The potatoes should be added to the plate first and arranged in the form of a circular bed for the Scottish King scallops. The peas should then be placed around the edges, the scallops on top of the potatoes and the sauce drizzled very lightly over the scallops. The small sprig of parsley should be used as the final garnish.

Time Out to Consider Your Eating Habits: Food Tip of the Day - Friday, January 29th, 2010

Beef Wellington with Potato and Parsnip Tower and PeasIt is a sad but understandable fact that a great many people in modern times are under the impression that they do not have the time to cook proper food in the proper fashion. They rely on microwave ovens, deep freezers and, "Food," that has been chemically processed in order to make for less time spent in the kitchen.

While this practice does of course save a considerable amount of time in some instances, it is vital that people who live by these means do take some time out to think what they are doing to their long term health in the process. The high quantities of saturated fats, salt, sugar and calories in many of these concoctions can cause a whole series of undesirable medical conditions in the medium to long term and have a very significant impact upon our health.

Below is a link to an article affording advice on the conundrum of how to avoid eating processed food while living a busy lifestyle. I hope that you find it helpful.

How to Avoid Processed Food while Leading a Busy Lifestyle

Rojoes a Cominho (Pork with Cumin, Lemon and Cilantro)

   
   
Hearty stews are wonderful to warm the soul on a cold winter day.  But sometimes something more interesting than a stew is needed to break cabin fever.  This recipe is also from Portugal and pairs the Portugese love of pork with ingredients they no doubt brought back during their age of exploration to the Spice Islands.  Cumin is one of my favorite spices, although I take lemon in moderation.  As always, adjust the proportions to suit your pallet.  When I cooked this recipe, again from the Williams-Sonoma Savoring Spain and Portugal cookbook, I followed the recipe's suggestion for lemon juice, but did not add the recommended lemon zest or slices.  Similarly, the original recipe called for 2 tsp of pepper which overwhlemed the dish for my taste.  Here, I suggest 1/2 a tsp.  I paired this with rice, and also added a flour and butter roux to thicken the sauce.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp salt
7 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 cup dry white wine
2 lb pork sholder cut into 1 inch cubes
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups chicken stock
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour

Directions:
In a bowl, stir together the cumin, garlic, pepper, salt, 4 tbsp of the cilantro, lemon juice and the wine.  Add the pork and mix to coat.  Put the pork and marinade mixture into a ziploc bag, seal, and refrigerate overnight. 
Drain the pork, reserving the marinade, and pat the meat dry.  In a heavy sauce pan or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the pork and saute until brown all over, 8-10 minutes.  Add the reserved marinade and the stock, raising the heat if necessary, and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 45 minutes.  In a small pan, melt the butter and then stir in the flour.  Allow the roux to cook a couple of minutes and then whisk into the stew.  Ensure that the stew remains at or returns to a simmer and cook for an additional 5 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken.  Serve over cooked rice and sprinkle remaining cilantro on top of each serving.
   

On eating contests

January 29

My old Jewish youth group chapter, Judge Saul Pinchick AZA 6, in Denver, has a Facebook fan page.

That’s not surprising.

Its profile picture is a shot of the members of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity from the movie Animal House, which either shows a certain continuity of culture from when I was in AZA 6, or simply illustrates what a seminal work (the second definition) that film was in creating the vision of a society to which so many fraternal organizations aspire.

When I was president of that chapter, we had a social event called The Food Olympics, that was a series of eating competitions. Being a Jewish youth group, we would say the Hebrew blessing appropriate for the food that we were about to try to eat more of faster than our fraternal brothers. Instead of firing a gun, or shouting "go," or counting down from 3, to signal the start of the competition we would say "amen."

The regional adviser at the time suggested that perhaps we were being sacrilegious — actually, she said it outright and wasn’t very nice about it — and in retrospect she had a point.

But it still won an award at the B'nai B'rith Youth Organization international convention as the best social function of the year.

I think it won in large part because I filled out the application using all the typographical bells and whistles that were available on my family's new MacIntosh 128k computer. It being 1983, unusual shadowed fonts were novelties that likely impressed the judges.

So I was delighted to receive the press release below a few minutes ago — so delighted that I thought I’d write a blog entry about it.

Because Jeff Ackerman was also in AZA 6 at the same time I was.

He didn’t participate in the Food Olympics as he was already Grand Aleph Mazkir (AZA language for international secretary) and didn’t fiddle much with our little chapter activities.

But still, well, I’ll let the press release speak for itself (except to point out that Chair 5 is also the name of a ski lift in Vail, and to note that Jeff graduated from Boston College in 1990):

Qdoba Mexican Grill Spices Up Hockey Beanpot

With Sixth Annual Rice & Bean Pot Burrito-Eating Contest

Local College Students Vie for Coveted Chowing Crown in Preliminary Rounds; Final Showdown Benefits Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids Foundation


BOSTON – (January 29, 2010) – Winter is heating up thanks to Qdoba Mexican Grill’s spicy sixth annual Rice & Bean Pot Burrito-Eating Contest, scheduled to sate appetites at the Paradise Rock Club on February 10.

In celebration of Boston’s real Winter Classic, the venerable Beanpot College Hockey Tournament, Qdoba Mexican Grill will give students from Boston College, Boston University, Harvard University and Northeastern University the chance to demonstrate their speed — and appetites — as they battle for the coveted Rice & Bean Pot championship title. The high-stakes competition consists of four teams of four students from the Beanpot schools facing off in a speed-eating showdown for ultimate bragging rights and a trip for four to Mexico.

“We’re thrilled to unite our loyal Qdoba customers, sports enthusiasts, local musicians, and hockey fans alike to enjoy a fun-filled night celebrating one of Boston’s most beloved traditions, the Beanpot,” said Jeff Ackerman, President and CEO of local Qdoba franchise Chair 5. “We are overjoyed this year to support our partner Kevin Youkilis and his Hits for Kids Foundation, as we strongly believe in its mission and goals for the youth of Greater Boston and beyond.”

To advance to the final round, teams must win their preliminary round, held on or near their respective campuses on the following days:

Tuesday, February 2, 7 p.m. - Boston College Preliminary Round, Conte Forum (Gate C), Boston College Campus

Wednesday, February 3, 7 p.m. - Northeastern University Preliminary Round, Qdoba Mexican Grill, 393 Huntington Avenue

Thursday, February 4, 7 p.m. - Boston University Preliminary Round, Qdoba Mexican Grill, 961 Commonwealth Avenue

Saturday, February 6, 7 p.m. - Harvard University Preliminary Round, Qdoba Mexican Grill, 1280 Massachusetts Avenue

Teams of four students may register at www.riceandbeanpot.com or by emailing matt@chair5.com with the names, phone numbers, and email addresses for all team members. The first 25 teams to register will compete in the preliminary competition round.

Tickets for the Rice & Bean Pot finals may be purchased for $10 in advance at www.riceandbeanpot.com or by calling the Paradise Rock Club box office at 617-562-8820. Tickets purchased at the door cost $12.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids Foundation, a charitable organization focused on raising support and awareness for the health, advocacy, safety and well-being of children.

The Rice & Bean Pot also features Qdoba’s Beanpot Battle of the Bands, with bands from BC, BU, Harvard, and Northeastern — all voted into the battle by their respective classmates. Local band Bad Rabbits will headline the event with their soulful dance blend, while WAAF-FM’s morning-show host Greg Hill will serve as the evening’s host.

As part of Qdoba’s support of Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids Foundation, the fast casual restaurant will offer the baseball star’s personally designed “Youk Burrito,” a chicken queso burrito with a choice of fajita or grilled vegetables, at all Qdoba locations in Massachusetts. A portion of the proceeds from every Youk Burrito will benefit Youkilis’ foundation.

“I’m honored and grateful that Hits for Kids is this year’s Rice & Bean Pot beneficiary,” said Youkilis. "I am personally a huge fan of Qdoba and am thrilled that the restaurant has chosen to support our charity, not only with the Youk Burrito but with this year’s Rice & Bean Pot.”


It goes on for a bit more, but you get the idea.