More Technical Difficulties

It was recently brought to my attention that those of you who have signed up as Followers of my blog (bless you!) are not getting notifications about new blog posts.  Sorry about that!

For now, I will send out an email to any of you who want to receive updates when new blog entries are posted.  If you want to be included, just leave me a message in the comment section below or shoot me an email. 

Thanks and have a great weekend!  I'm already working on the next post.....

I Heart Meyer Lemons

Have you ever tasted or cooked with a Meyer lemon?  If so, then you are probably like me and snap them up whenever they're available (which isn't often enough).  If you haven't, keep an eye out for them and grab a few when you have the chance.  You won't be disappointed.

What is a Meyer lemon exactly?  Well, it looks like a regular lemon, except that it's more orange in color and has a smooth, thin skin.  It originated in China and is probably a cross between a lemon and a mandarin or orange.  You can read more about it here:
http://splendidtable.publicradio.org/souptonuts/farmstand_lemons.html

What I like about it is the taste.  It's less acidic than a regular lemon, sweeter and very aromatic.  It's wonderful to cook or bake with and it lends itself well to making incredible desserts.  No wonder why, when I stumbled across them at Whole Paycheck Foods the other day, I snatched up a bagful of them right on the spot, without any idea as to what I was going to do with them.

And then I remembered a friend's birthday was coming up.

I once made an orange semolina cake that I'd drizzled with orange syrup.  "Hmm," I thought.  "Maybe that could work with Meyer lemons."  I decided that the earthiness of the semolina might overpower the sublety of the lemons however, so maybe not.  Instead, I settled on a sour cream poundcake, figuring that the tanginess of the sour cream might compensate for the lack of acidity of the Meyer lemon.  And because you can never have too much of a good thing, I decided to infuse the cake with Meyer lemon syrup and garnish it with candied Meyer lemon peel.

Here's what I came up with:

This is what it looks like when I sit down to write a recipe.  Not pretty.

Hope I can decipher and write it out for you without mistakes!

MEYER LEMON POUND CAKE  (with Meyer Lemon Syrup and Candied Peel)

For the cake:
3 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 lb. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt (I used Kosher)
6 eggs, room temperature
4 T. Meyer lemon zest (about 4 lemons)
1/2 cup Meyer lemon juice, strained (from the 4 lemons above)
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 325-degrees.  Butter and flour a tube (angel food cake) pan.  Sift together flour and baking soda; set aside.

Cream butter, sugar and salt in electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes, scraping down bowl occasionally.  Turn mixer to low and beat in eggs, one at a time.  Scrape bowl, increase speed to medium and blend well.  Add lemon zest and lemon juice and combine well on medium-low speed.

Add vanilla extract and sour cream.  Mix on medium-low speed until combined.  Mixture will look curdled.

Add flour mixture in two batches, combining briefly on low speed until just combined.  Finish blending by hand, using a spatula or wooden spoon.

Pour batter into prepared pan.  Smooth evenly and run a knife through batter in a circle, about 1-inch from the center tube.  Rap pan sharply on countertop once, then place in preheated oven.

Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes.  If cakes tester comes out clean, cake is done.  If not, continue baking until tester comes out clean (my cake took 1 hour 45 minutes).  Remove to a rack and cool 20 minutes.  Run a spatuala around sides of pan to loosen and remove that part of the pan (not the bottom portion with the tube).  Allow cake to cool for another 45-60 minutes then remove bottom portion of pan.  Place on a cake round set over a rack with a pan underneath to catch syrup.  Use a skewer to poke holes all over top of cake.

Slowly spoon warm syrup all over cake, allowing it to be absorbed into cake.  Garnish with candied lemon peel.

For the Syrup and Candied Zest:
2 Meyer lemons
3/4 cup granulated sugar plus more for coating

Use a vegetable peeler to remove zest from lemons in long strips.  Set aside.  Juice lemons, strain and measure then add water to equal 1 cup.  Place in a saucepan and add the 3/4 cup sugar.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

When sugar is dissolved, add the reserved lemon strips and let cook for 1 minute.  Remove to a rack and let dry (they will be sticky).  Reserve the syrup for basting the cooled cake.

When strips have cooled, dredge in granulated sugar to completely coat.  Place on rack to dry again, then slice crosswise into thin slivers. Coat again in sugar and let dry.  Use to garnish cake.

Serves 12-16. 

Looks pretty good!

Too bad I gave it away and didn't get to eat any of it. 

I consumed enough of the batter and crumbs from the pan to vouch for it though!

Boiled Tongue

As far as titles go, the above is probably about as enticing as ‘How to Par-tay the Mormon Way’ but bear with me on this one. Please.

Granted, taken in turn neither of the two words is particularly exciting and together they create some sort of force field that for many will result in the gag reflex kicking in with gusto. Admittedly even I approached this one with a small amount of trepidation.

Like a badly executed kiss, it started with a tongue. A great big flapping, fresh, wet, grey, spikey tongue. Curled up on the chopping board it resembled some sort of Mephistophelean re-imagining of an evil pet, like a prop from an early David Cronenberg film.



Its size, its weight, its appearance, its texture – everything conspired against it becoming a foodstuff were it not for the good reports I’d had regarding its utter brilliance when cooked.

Although technically offal, there is no reason why tongue should provoke such revulsion. It is muscle in the same way topside or fillet steak is muscle. However, due to the amount of work it does – daily tearing kilos of fresh grass from the earth – it needs some serious cooking. To stop it from drying out it also needs brining. I gave it 5 days but if you’re tempted to try this at home (please do) I’d let it spend at least a week in the brine bucket, possibly even ten days.

To stop it being overly salty it went into fresh water for 24 hours before being slung into the stock pot along with the usual suspects – carrot, celery, onion, garlic, peppercorns and a couple of bay leafs.



Four hours at the merest quivering simmer was enough to cook it through. I’d been reliably informed (thank you once again Fergus Henderson) that tongue is easier to peel (!) when still warm. Even so, a sharp knife was necessary and the process was more of a paring than a peeling. Although not a pleasant process by the time the tough barbed outer skin was removed what sat in front of me was recognisably meat that looked at least as good as a slab of tasty salt beef.

Which is exactly what it was.

Assuming that it would be best fresh from the cooking pot and still warm, it was thinly sliced and crammed into a bagel along with a generous slick of mayonnaise, a handful of rocket and some sliced pickles. The whole lot was topped, inevitably, with the lurid yellow mustard so reminiscent of New York’s finest culinary offerings.



By now any feelings of trepidation had long since evaporated and the first bite was an adventurously large one. It was delicious. It’s as simple as that. Perhaps made even more so by the timidity with which it approached. ‘Under promise and over deliver’ seems to be the mantra of marketing. If so, tongue is the marketer’s dream. Don’t be surprised if it joins cheeks, shanks and trotters in the ‘forgotten cuts’ section of supermarket. Now that will set tongues wagging.

Pola Makan Sehat Seimbang

wow... artikel ini layak dan patut disebarluaskan. untuk kepentingan kita semuaa...

Manusia tidak lagi membutuhkan makanan dengan pola "4 sehat 5 sempurna" (ini udah ketinggalan 30 tahun!). sekarang yang dibutuhkan adalah pola sehat seimbang, yang terdiri dari karbohidrat-protein-lemak.

Semua bentuk gula, beras, terigu, dan tepung lainnya adalah karbohidrat buruk karena dalam waktu kurang dari 2 jam bahan makanan tersebut akan diubah menjadi gula murni tanpa sisa. ketika tingkat gula naik mendadak, insulin akan merespon dengan mengeluarkan hormon eikosanoid buruk (prostaglandin, tromboksan, leukotrien, dan sebagainya) sehingga daya tahan Anda makin rendah (mudah alergi, tulang keropos, menurunnya fokus, rasa nyeri bertambah, kekentalan darah meningkat, terjadi penyempitan pembuluh darah termasuk pembuluh darah jantung!) dan perbanyakan sel2 yang tidak normal.

KARBOHIDRAT TERBAIK adalah dari beragam sayuran yang dilalap dalam jumlah cukup banyak untuk menghasilkan energi, dan beragam buah. percuma makan sayur yang dimasak, hanya lezat sebagai lauk atau pembawa serat (agar lancar BAB) tapi tidak menghasilkan tenaga.

Padukan dengan PROTEIN atau ASAM AMINO yang bisa diperoleh dari lauk (pepes ikan, sup ayam, tim jamur, dll). Pilih juga asam lemak esensial yang tidak jenuh dari alam (alpukat, kemiri, atau minyak zaitun).

Tidak benar anggapan tanpa nasi atau roti orang akan lemas dan tidak bisa beraktivitas normal. Justru karbohidrat buruk dengan nilai indeks glikemik tinggi akan membuat Anda mengantuk 1-2 jam setelah makan disebabkan gula darah meroket yang segera ditumpas oleh insulin.

Unsur nurtrisi ketiga yaitu LEMAK, didapat dari biji2an seperti kemiri, kacang mete, pistachios, dan macadamia. Semua adalah sumber lemak yang bagus karena asam lemak esensialnya bersifat tidak jenuh.

Minyak goreng, mentega, apalagi margarin harus dijauhi karena margarin adalah minyak tumbuhan yang diproses hingga menyerupai mentega. Proses tersebut membuat minyak berubah, bahkan menjadi pemicu terbentuknya plak pada pembuluh darah sebagai penyebab penyakit jantung.

Satu2nya bentuk minyak yang bisa dipakai adalah extra virgin olive oil (minyak zaitun perasan pertama). Tapi bukan untuk menumis atau menggoreng karena suhu panas akan merusak semua minyak tumbuhan dan mencetuskan penebalan dinding pembuluh darah dan gangguan jantung. Gunakan extra virgin olive oil sebagai dressing (cocolan) salad atau sebagai sambal ikan bakar dengan tambahan bawang merah cincang, cabe rawit, dan perasan jeruk nipis.

Sebenarnya kebanyakan manusia sudah tahu tapi tidak peduli, dan lebih parahnya merasa berbeda (itu kan kata orang, saya tidak begitu). Jangan menunggu sampai tanda gangguan kesehatan muncul, karena berarti sudah terlambat. Anda sudah melakukan salah satu aspek pencegahan jika Anda menjalankan pola hidup sehat mulai dari sekarang!

(Dr Tan Shot Yen)

Interview: Emma Åvall (Requiem pour un con), a modern mod between us.

Due to my classes, I must do some interviews to people who I admire or think that are interesting; so after doing them, I asked the interviewee if I can publish here my work... so, if everything goes allright, you'll see some nice interviews around here! For some people I would follow like some questionnaire I made...

And today, I want to start with the gorgeous Emma Åvall, one of my muses!

The great Serge Gainsbourg wrote songs that inspired many people. One of these songs, in particular, inspired just someone who, perhaps unwittingly, turn inspires hundreds of people daily.

The person I'm talking about is called Emma, and is a lovely Swedish girl who lives in Göteborgt. I discovered almost by chance, leaping through the network, and fell in love with her wonderful style and simplicity with which he recounts her life, concerns and passions. I love that she shared her inspiration with us, which we feel inspired too, and show us the world through her big blue eyes with the pictures she takes.

As you open her blog you realize that Emma loves everything about the sixties, and looking at a picture of her, that impression becomes a reality ... but ... Who is Emma Åvall? 

(read more)

Q: So, first of all, could you please tell us who you are and a brief description of you?

A: My name is Emma Åvall. I'm just a nineteen year old dreamer from Sweden.

Q: What do you do? What do you like to dedicate?

A: When I'm not working myself to sleep at the factory I go to vintage shops, have picniks with friends in a park (when the weather allows it), dance at nightclubs or kiss my boyfriends spine.

Q: Can you talk a little about your interests?

A: Art is what moves me. Photography, painting, movies. It's what's always in my thoughts. I look for beautifulness everywhere.

Q: Tell us a book, an album or a movie without which you could not live.
A: I'd have to say the short film "Le Ballon Rouge" from 1956. When I saw it I immediately new it was the most beautiful thing I'd ever was going to lay my eyes on.

Q: Would you share with us a memory that makes you smile?
A: Oh it's to hard to choose just one. But I have many memories of my boyfriend that makes me smile like an idiot.

Q: Any favorite quote?
A: "Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination." - Oscar Wilde.

Q: At what age did your get interested in the fashion world?
A: I guess I've been interested in fashion since I was around eleven/twelve, but I've never really chosen to dress according to todays fashion even though I find all kinds of fashion interesting.

Q: Could you explain us a bit what has been the evolution of your image?
A: Up to seventh grade I looked kind of like most other people at my school. Then I went through a quite extreme transformation. I went from being that blonde haired girl with tight blue jeans and a tank top to wearing a leather jacket filled with studs and pins and all different colors in my hair every other month. I discovered punk music and that made me change my style in clothing. After about three years as a punk girl I started to get tired of it. I had changed a bit as a person and so the style needed a change to. Without really looking for change I found the mod-movement and the sixties. I cut my hair in a bob and bough colorful minidresses. I came natural to me but I guess it may have been a bit wierd transformation to some people. 

 
Q:  How would you describe your actual style?
A: 60's mod. colorful and magical.

 

Q: What inspire you in choosing your clothes? Do you follow a pattern to match your clothes or just choose randomly?
A: I choose according to mood.

Q: Where do you usually get your clothes? Do you customize or sew any garment to you?
A: I buy practically all of my clothes in vintage stores and on Ebay.

Q: Have you got any special obsession (like shoes, bows, skirts...)?
A: Minidresses are like my signature clothing.
 

Q: When and why did you decide to start writing a blog?
A: The blog I have now I started little over a year ago but I had one before that in about six months. I started it to have a place to run to. A place that was all mine. I wanted to have a blog that I wanted to read myself.

Q: What do you want to express with your blog? Do you think it adds anything to the people who read it?
A: I want to express creativity. I think people may feel inspired by my blog. I try to keep it as positive as I can and leave out most of the bad parts of everyday life.

Q: What do you feel when someone says you are his/her inspiration? What would you say to those people?
A: It makes me happy when someone says something like that. But I don't think I quite understand that they acctually mean it.

Q: And finally, please, tell us a tip for your readers (a tip for their lifes, for the fashion bloggers' world or whatever you want to say to them).  

A: Might sound like a cliché but; be yourself. Everything else is just plain stupid.

Thank you so much, Emma!

If you want to know more about Emma, please, visit her blog or her flickr!

I hope you all enjoyed it and learned so much about Emma as I did!

All pictures by Emma Åvall