I find myself once more slipping on my posts to this journal, which I've admitted I can't let go of. I really enjoy reading my neighborhood about once a week, but I'm finding that I'm crossposting between here and my REAL personal blog quite a bit, so I'm just going to bite the bullet and say, if you really want to follow me, you will have to go over there.
TTFN!!!
Just got back from Escapade Tuesday and it is amazing what four days on the beach in the sun will do for your atittude. I love my girls' weekend in Cali every year and when I missed it last year, I could really FEEL it. Nothing like talking smack about guys, computers, writing and slashy goodness. Also, got to visit my friend Dail who gave me Vala way back in 2000. She still has two harlequins and they're both so much smaller than mine. I'm wondering why the big difference. It can't simply be the food difference.
I did a bit of on-line shopping before I left and most of it was waiting for me at home when I returned. The results of my Retail Therapy (I got the jacket in shades of brown):
I also got a stone colored linen long skirt but I can't find a picture of it now to save my neck.
Anway, new clothes!! :)
A furnished rental apartment and B&B? I think that's what we have.
We're putting the finishing touches on the basement apartment, writing up the ad to post on Craigslist for a regular apartment for rent. Then we started thinking...and planning...and well, that never ends well. Because I really really really want to do this other project, that requires we have the basement space at least a few times a year, we're going to just make the apartment a temp/short-term rental. BUT, it will be fully furnished, complete with linens, kitchen accoutrements, TV, stereo...you name it.
There actually seems to be a pretty good market for such accomodations in the Denver area, so this just might work out (unlike many of our other hair-brained schemes). Traveling nurses, law students, people moving away from Denver but their homes are already sold, and so on. I'm actually in communication with a couple who work up in Antarctica and they're looking for a place to summer in Denver! How cool would that be?
So, I put that ad in Craigslist today because I know if I don't have it posted to the universe that this place will be available April 1, we'll still be needing to hang doors and lay carpet come that date. You take your motivation where you can get it, right?
My life, it is so interesting.
ANIMALS!!!
So, Denver peeps (or anyone, I guess), listen up and do something good today!!
Animal lover website zootoo.com is having a national contest to give a pet shelter a $1,000,000 makeover! (As featured on Ellen!) Denver's very own Maxfund shelter is ranked #3, but it has to become #1 in the next 34 days to win the big prize. A shelter's rating in the contest is based on how many people sign up for membership to the site, which is dedicated exclusively to animal & pet lovers. When you start your membership (link), the site will ask you for a shelter name and ZIP code. Under tab #3: Zootoo House, if you select ZIP code "80204" and then "Maxfund No-Kill Animal Adoption Center" as the shelter, then 100 points will go towards Maxfund's contest standing. You can raise more points for Maxfund by posting pictures of your pets, participating in discussions, etc. I know there are a few animal freaks reading this that would love to do that.
p.s. When you invite your friends through the zootoo.com website, every friend who signs up puts 100 pts. towards the shelter's standing, and you get a bonus 100 pts. for referring them.
This is an easy way to give Maxfund a much-needed makeover- it's free and doesn't take much time. We can do it if we can get everybody involved!
Denver Restaurant Week is a seven-day celebration of the culinary scene in Denver. For the week of Feb. 23-29, 2008, participating restaurants will offer a multi-course dinner for the fixed price of $52.80 for two, or $26.40 for one (not including tax or gratuity).
Denver Restaurant Week starts this Saturday!! I got a late start and only was able to get ONE reservation I wanted, but hey, it'll still be great.
Denver Restaurant Week is a seven-day celebration of the culinary scene in Denver. For the week of Feb. 23-29, 2008, participating restaurants will offer a multi-course dinner for the fixed price of $52.80 for two, or $26.40 for one (not including tax or gratuity).
Today has been really mellow and stay inside and cuddle the dogs day.
What do you do when the weather is inclement, not sunny (which is rare) and you don't want to deal with the outside world? Or is there a favorite coffee shop or bookstore you like to go hang in that makes you feel all warm inside?
If this looks familiar, you probably just read it on my blog. Yes, I'm that lazy.
I've had this tab open in my browser for three days. Sorry, I've been in a food coma. But I've read the Sunday paper and had my coffee and there is no foreseeable food orgy in my future, so I feel it safe to post now.
It all started when we were on our way home from work Wednesday night and I decided I wanted to eat out (it's been a couple weeks). We sort of aimlessly drove around the one-way streets of downtown will we saw a place that appealed. That place was The Oceanaire Seafood Room. This won't be a full fledged review, but I can say that once I found out from my foodie boss that it is part of a chain, it explained alot. The smoked trout for appetizer was really good (and they put pickled herring on your table with the bread), but the main entrees of grilled monkfish and seared sesame black-eye tuna were just eh. They were good (mind you, we say good when it is really adaquate), but not outstanding. Joel was going to order the Cioppino, but wanted to see what the chef did with his own recipes. Turns out it was nothing outstanding. Of course, as with all places that serve creme brulee, he had to try it to compare to his. We were both excited to see actual vanilla bean seeds in the custard, but the first bite from the edge proved disappointing with a curdled texture. Turns out, the closer we got to the center of the dish, however, it go more perfect until the last bite was just like his. I think the dish was too large and to get the center to set perfectly, the outside got overcooked. They were using a clever, shell-shaped shallow dish rather than a true custard cup.
Rereading the above paragraph, we sound incredibly pretentious. Um, sorry? We just know what we like and eating out is probably the one place neither one of us is willing to cut any slack.
Now, we move on to Valentine's day. Yes, I got chocolates (Bailey's truffles, even!), but that's not really the good part. While walking around Writer's Square at lunch, I found this awesome little cheese shop/gourmet shop and thought a "picnic" in the dining room would be a really cool VDay dinner since we weren't going out.
I came away with this triple cream brie, a two-year old Gouda, some really creamy Stilton which is the best Joel says he's ever had (I'll take his word since bleu cheese makes me ill), and a very very creamy goat cheese that I THINK was Blue Moon. I suck because I forgot to save the labels so I could point you guys in the right direction, but I have a feeling I'll be going back there soon and I'll be sure to get the names.
So, those, a couple of boxes of wheat ground crackers and some olive tapanade and we were set. Oh, and on the way out, I had to grab some 75% chocolate!! We opened a bottle of Martin Codax Albarino ($13) that stood up just fine to all the various tastes.
Friday, which is Joel's birthday, we stayed in and had whatever was in the refrigerator. Last night was his birthday dinner at The Brown Palace. I was a bit leery and thought about canceling our reservation when a review came out in Wednesday's food section that was less than complimentary of the service and some of the dishes at The Palace Arms. We'd gone there last year for his birthday and were awed and I really didn't want them to disappoint me this year. Joel, however, logically said that they probably got their collective asses chewed and the service/food should be impeccable, at least for a few weeks. So, we kept our res and showed up a bit early, and were taken straight to our table.
I'll hit the highlights, but the gist of it was, the servers made several mistakes during the course of the evening (including bringing us a half bottle of wine rather than the whole one we'd ordered, and they would have prepared tableside Casear Salads if we hadn't stopped them, since we hadn't ordered any). The appetizer of veal short ribs was the best part of the dinner. I asked if they had the same chef they'd had last year and was told that yes, he's been there a couple of years. I mentioned that I asked because the food seemed quite different and was proudly told that yes, he is very progressive and likes to change things up. Okay, fine. *shrug*
There's way too many restaurants in Denver to try to keep going back for second-rate service (please note that the service, by MOST standards was still excellent, but for a $300 dinner, we expect better than normal with friendly staff, ya know?) and unimaginative food.
Frankly, I can't wait till some friends come to visit in March and we go to Potager again, where I went for my birthday last year. I'm excited to see what the late winter menu looks like.
And yes, it's back to Jenny Craig for me this week. *le sigh*
You ask them how they make Jambalaya and you'll get ten recipes. This is just one, i.e., mine. Warning, I make mine a bit spicier than normal, with lots of garlic. It's adapted from a recipe by Brooke Dojny.
Andouille, Shrimp and Duck Jambalaya
Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a large heavy skillet set over medium heat.
Title: Andouille, Crawfish, and Duck Jambalaya
12-15 servings (yeah, we cook large at my house.)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup Vegetable oil
1 1/2 lb Andouille or other spicy smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices
3 Boned and skinned duck breasts, (about 10 ounce each),
or 2 pounds boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
3 tsp Blackening Spice (I used our custom blended spice mix)**
3 lrg Celery stalks, thinly sliced
2 lrg Onions, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 lrg Green peppers, cored, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch dice
1 lrg Red or orange bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch dice 10 x Cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 x Fresh thyme branches
3 cup Long-grain rice
1/2 cup Wild rice 3 cup Chicken broth
1 cup Bottled clam juice
1 lb Shelled medium shrimp
3 cup Seeded, drained, and chopped canned plum tomatoes (from 2 28-ounce cans)
1 bn Scallions, including green tops, thinly sliced
2 tsp Filet Gumbo (optional)
Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce to taste
Add sausage and saute' until nicely browned, about 8 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer meat to a bowl, leaving drippings in the pan.
Sprinkle duck and/or chicken with seasoning mix (or straight cayenne). Saute' in sausage drippings over medium-high heat until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl with the sausage. Add remaining 2 tablespoon oil to drippings in the skillet and saute' the celery, onion, and peppers over medium heat until vegetables are somewhat softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add rice and stir until coated with oil.
Pour rice mixture in a large roasting pan or baking dish. I use one like this. Nonstick is a wonderful thing at cleanup. It doesn't hurt to spray with Pam first if not using nonstick. Cover with foil. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Refrigerate rice and meats separately. Remove from refrigerator about 1 hour before continuing.) Preheat oven to 350degrees. In a large saucepan, bring the chicken broth, clam juice, and 2 cups of water to a simmer.
Pour liquid in with rice, stirring gently. Cover with foil. Bake 35 minutes. Remove from oven and stir rice. If you are going to use filet, add it in now and stir in. The trick is, you don't want it to boil (and all the boiling is over by this point) or will turn bitter.
Add shrimp, pushing it into the rice slightly. Arrange sausage, duck, and chicken over rice and scatter chopped tomatoes over top. (If rice has absorbed most of liquid, add up to 1/2 cup broth or water.) Cover and continue to bake until rice is tender and meats and fish are cooked, about 15 minutes. Stir to distribute ingredients.
Serve jambalaya directly from baking dish or transfer to a deep platter. Sprinkle with scallions before serving. Season with Tabasco.
Notes: If you can't find boned duck breasts, ask your butcher to bone out a breast from a whole duck. The price will be about the same.
** If you don't use a good pre-mixed creole seasoning, you'll need to season with salt, black and white pepper, cayenne, dried thyme, paprika and oregano.
A cool event hosted by Mele Cotte.
As February quickly draws near, so does Valentine’s Day. While commercialism causes the adverse effect for many, Valentine’s Day remains a day for love, etching a small moment for adornment and thoughtfulness into our busy lives. And so, I have decided to host an event that celebrates Valentine’s Day and the many food aphrodisiacs that offer endless possibilities to this affectionate day.
How to participate:
Make an appetizer, dinner dish, or side item that includes at least
one food considered an aphrodisiac. An abbreviated list can be found on
this post. You can also fine tons of links by completing a Google
search.
(No desserts please. If you have a dessert, consider making into a
heart and participate in Zorra’s wonderful event, A Heart for your
Valentine.)
Post about your creation between now and Sunday, February 10, 2008. If
possible, include pictures with your post. The round up will be
completed by February 12, 2008.
No blog? No prob! Just email me your name, recipe name (with the
recipe, if you want), hometown/region and country, along with any other
info you want to tell me.
Add the event logo and link back to this announcement in your post.
- an email to KitchenOfLove2008(at)gmail.com including
- your name
- your blog’s name and your blog’s URL
- the recipe name and the post’s URL
- your hometown/region and country
If you have one, attach a picture that is 200 x 200 pixels
Last day of submission is Sunday, February 10, 2008 at Midnight, Atlanta time
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