The Comeback Tour!

To my many readers who may have noticed, I have been gone for several weeks. My modem and my BlackBerry decided that they were going to simultaneously quit on me (I seem to recall mentioning this in an earlier post - now all the staples are gone from my staple gun. Coincidence? I think not...)

Needless to say I'm back and have some writing to make up for. I will do my best to get completely caught up and give you guys some excellent ideas for christmas!

Uh oh... Busted...

So today I was busted. I was pretty sure I was all alone in my section at work, and even though it isn't acceptable I decided that I would go ahead anyways: I broke out the Christmas music.

Now I do fully understand that it really isn't socially accepted to acknowledge Christmas before Thanksgiving has even passed. However, I'm in a blah mood and wanted to be cheered up. Much like the promise of a 12-year-old on cough syrup to R. Kelly, I can't help but get excited at the prospect of the holidays.

There are many things to be excited about, too. I am continuously chugging along with my Christmas knitting (which I may not be able to post right away, since it would ruin the surprise for Christmas!), I am eagerly anticipating the day after Thanksgiving to put up my lights and I can't wait to get a little tree to decorate! Supposedly Glee is putting out a holiday album (as long as Rachel isn't singing "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful" I will be happy... Since I like that song, but increasingly not liking her). Oh, and my Christmas bonus this year will go towards my pet deposit... Since I'm getting a puppy shortly afterward.

Now, as far as being busted: well, a coworker just really liked the sound of my music and wanted to come ask who it was (Josh Groban Christmas Album). So it wasn't even as bad as it could have been... But yes, I am so ready for Christmas-time!

In short, there are so many things about the holiday season I love that I really don't understand how anyone could be unhappy at this time of year.

The Life of a Tree

For those who are unfamiliar with his work, Tyler Perry uses the character Mabel Simmons (or "Madea" to those who know her best) to provide a bit of wisdom in terms of what to actually expect out of life. While I've read numerous reviews that chastize Perry for this portrayal since it often plays upon existing stereotypes, yet I can't help but fall in love with the wisdom of Madea. It may have a bit to do with the fact that I feel Madea typically approaches issues in the way I was raised to believe is appropriate with my family - tackle issues head-on with some genuine common sense, a blunt (almost brutal) sense of honesty and the love and support of a family that is there for you.

While reflecting on a couple things today, I remembered something that Madea once said people in your life. All people in your life can be categorized in terms of a tree. Now since I actually bear the common name of a tree from the western US and Canada, this particularly resonates with me and I wanted to share it with you.



However, I feel that this needs to be expanded upon. Madea establishes a notion that people can fall into the category of leaves, branches or roots. However, since even the leaves are able to give a bit of shade this leads to the belief that all people are beneficial to the tree. It is this notion that I strongly disagree with, and offer the following additional categories

Locusts: In your life, some people are locusts. They do nothing but sap your strength, take what they can from you and attempt to drive you insane with their incessant chirping. Locusts are bad since they are able to hone in on you when you are weakest, and they return time and time again to try and take what they can from the tree. Nothing you can do will keep them away indefinitely, and there is no way of exterminating them all. Even if a tree hardens itself to their advances, there is usually one locust that can find it's way in to attack the tree. Many of my exes are locusts.

Frost: There are people in your life that can sneak up on you and do their best to do immense damage; these people are a frost to the tree. They can creep up in the dead of night without warning and do their best to create an environment so inhospitable to the tree that it is pushed to the point of using it's energy just to survive. The good thing about a frost is that it doesn't last forever. The frost may cause scarring, but if the tree survives it will be that much more unique and appealing to someone genuinely ready to appreciate and care for the tree. My father is a frost.

Bees: Some people in your life are like bees. They flit around from tree to tree, and typically are just trying to get at your nectar. I'm happy to say that I was raised to be a tree that doesn't bloom (my name is the common name of a conifer, actually), so no matter how hard a bee may try they aren't going to get anything from me. That being said, they still try. Bees can be annoying and potentially dangerous to the well-wisher that wants to appreciate the tree. Many of the people who didn't even get a chance to be exes are bees.

There are undoubtedly a great many other categories that could be added, but those are the additions that I think need to be made. Luckily however, I am named after a very good tree - and I share similar traits. My tree is one of the first to recover after a natural disaster, and I can indeed recover from trauma very quickly. My tree is one of the first to grow, able to develop an decent root system to support itself, and I'm glad to say that I have an exceptional support system as well - people who actually earn the title of "my friend" are truthfully very good people.

Two Storage Tubs...

My friend Leigh posed this idea to me, and it seemed like a really good notion for assessing what is actually important to me. It's actually played like something of a game, but it goes a bit like this: Say that somebody who is FABULOUSLY wealthy falls madly in love with you (and of course, you with them... otherwise the game makes no sense :p). Said person desperately wants you to come and live with them, but you can only bring 2 rubbermaid storage tubs of your stuff with you; what do you bring? Of course, anything you need can be bought when you arrive at your destination on the other side of the world, but what things are important enough that you actually need to bring them? So this is what I decided:



I'm reasonably certain if I bare-root packed all of my plants, I could get them into a single storage tub... well, most of them anyways. Now don't run away with some foolish notion that this is all of my plants... or even most of them... or even half of them. But yea, I'm pretty sure I could do it. They'd be packed into one tub so tightly they wouldn't even need any packing material. :)



This is Melville. He's a jewish moose who dreams of one day growing up to become a tiger. I got Melville at one of the hardest points in my life and he's been with me ever since. He also has a friend, Coco the Gorilla, that would have to come as well... but she's camera shy. Well, Coco likes my regular camera but didn't really show up at all with the camera on my phone (my real camera is dead... and I didn't feel like going to the store to get new batteries).



An ex-coworker of mine did this painting for me, an oil on canvas painting of a bonded pair of Great Indian Hornbills. I really like this painting, since it was made based on a pair of birds I actually work with; the painting itself seems to have a sense of life I haven't really seen in other artwork.



Now we start with a bit of Grandma's stuff. I inherited a pretty substantial elephant collection (she absolutely loved them), especially considering then mom and I got grandma elephants at every possible opportunity; these ones are special. The brass elephants are ones that my mother got my grandma long ago, and I would actually play with them as a kid; rearranging them, imaginatively coming up with stories as to where they were going. The carved soapstone elephants are actually the last ones I ever got my grandmother, got them for her birthday almost 2 years ago. I wouldn't go anywhere without these elephants.



This was Grandma's crucifix, from around the 1930's. It currently sits over my bed.



There are a couple things in this picture that would have to come with me, and again, both belonging to grandma. First, the pink vase in the background. I realize that it's not particularly hard to do and that I'm pretty good with plants, but every bit of ivy I put to root in that vase takes off and thrives. I also have Irish Crystal glasses that are very important. When I was a kid we would order chinese food, drink Sprite out of those glasses and feel fancy. It's not included in this picture or in the plant picture above, but I also still have the ivy my grandmother grew in an olive oil bottle for me... needless to say, that would come too.

So there you have it, those are the things that are important to me. Oh, it should go without saying that you get to take any pets you have with you, Leigh determined that to be part of the rules since she was not going to go anywhere without her animals and I must say I am very happy with that since Reptar (my iguana) is not particularly fond of other people. So there you have it... why not take the time to contemplate what is particularly important to you. What would you take if you only had two storage tubs?

Easy Recipes - Chocolate Mousse

Far too many people asked for this for me to ignore it, so here is a recipe I use to make a nice chocolate mousse. This recipe, like all things I make, has a bit of room for change depending on your personal taste. However, I'll explain this along the way.

First, the ingredients:
1 pt Heavy Whipping Cream
3 T Powdered Sugar
1 12oz package Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
2-3oz Alcohol (Grand Marnier, Triple Sec and Rum are options - actual amount will depend on the alcohol content of what you are using. Higher alcohol content means you will need to use slightly more)
1t Vanilla Extract

1) Put your METAL mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer. Leave them there for at least one hour, preferably overnight. Using a cold bowl and beaters will help maintain the fats in the whipping cream and keep you from making butter instead of whipped cream.

2) In a manner that works best for you, begin to melt the package of chocolate (save a few of the chips for a garnish, if you wish), Vanilla Extract and your alcohol of choice (I typically use Grand Marnier to make a nice Orange-Chocolate Mousse, but even Triple Sec will work. Use Rum for a different flavor, or try something else if you're feeling brave). I typically place all these ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 15-second increments. Always start on the light end of the spectrum with regard to the alcohol of choice (because you can always add more, but can't take it away). There is a chance that your chocolate may end up looking like this:



This melting chocolate is lumpy and dull in color because it needs more fluid

I actually took the picture specifically to show the problem  of chocolate seizing up. This will happen if there is a fluid in the mixture, but not enough to adequately saturate the chocolate solids and sugar in the chocolate. If you add a bit more liquid, you can get this:



Isn't it shiny and pretty?


You'll notice that I have a few small bits of solid chocolate still in the mixture. Instead of using a whisk for a perfectly smooth mixture, I prefer to use a fork to leave the small chocolate bits - it gives a bit of textural intrigue. If you don't like it... well, use the whisk.

3) Pour your heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar into the chilled mixing bowl and use the chilled beaters to begin to aerate the mixture. Start on the lowest setting until you generate a fair bit of froth, then turn up the power to one of the highest settings. Since the cream is warming up the entire time it is outside the fridge, you want it to get light and fluffy as soon as possible. It should look like this:

Whipped Cream... you can just do this step if you just want fresh whipped cream, excellent on Strawberry Shortcake

4) Pour 1/3 - 1/2 of the whipped cream mixture into chocolate mixture and stir it. You want to get it fully integrated, it will help lower the temperature of the chocolate and get it to a similar consistency of the whipped cream.

5) Take the remaining whipped cream and FOLD it into the cream/chocolate mixture. You don't necessarily need to COMPLETELY mix it, but get it decently put together.

6) Place the mixture in the refrigerator and let it set for at least 4 hours. Trust me, it will get better the longer you let it set. If you don't let it set all the air will leave the mousse. It will deflate and it will be almost too rich to eat.

7) I like to serve the mousse in wine glasses (when I don't decide to sit down and inhale the bowl in one sitting). I wrap the rim of the glass with wax paper to prevent chocolate smears and lightly fill the glass. This is a VERY rich dessert and you don't need much to be satisfied. Feel free to add the chocolate chips, if you held on to them.

Isn't it pretty?

It should go without saying... Enjoy!

Things I Am Thankful For - Kitchen

The main thing associated with November here in the US is Thanksgiving - a time to recognize all the things we are thankful for in our lives (like a nice climate - take that, Canada!). Well, as I was cooking today I couldn't help but notice a few things in my kitchen that I readily take for granted. I figured I would share these with you guys because they are things that I feel everyone needs in their home.

1) Wax Paper
With so many uses and applications it's a small wonder that more people don't use wax paper. Not only is it useful to keep things from sticking while preparing them, it can be used to keep things from getting very messy indeed. Need to knead a particularly sticky bit of dough? Try wax paper. Icing cookies with a less than skilled hand? Try wax paper. With it's ability to prevent just about any mess from getting out of hand, the only sad thing is that starlets like Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears didn't discover it sooner! Y'know, because they're a mess...

2) Minced Garlic
Now I realize many garlic purists are likely wanting to nail me to the wall for saying this (and possibly literally, garlic puritans are some crazy people...), but I believe a jar of minced garlic is something that every household needs. It's amazingly simple to use, inexpensive and keeps for a very long time. Mine fits nicely in the top shelf of the door of my refrigerator and I use it for so many things. Garlic mashed potatoes are undoubtedly one of my all-time favorites since they're good by themself but usable in so many other situations.

3) Instant Rice
With the winter season upon us, my crockpot is certainly getting a fair bit of usage in making nice soups and stews... but I'm not exactly the most consistent of cooks. Most of the things I make are made with a knowledge of what goes well together and an understanding of how to fix things if they don't end up exactly the way I like. (Afterall, isn't this what Alton Brown advocates in Good Eats? Not a knowledge of recipes, but a general understanding of how food behaves?). Well, sometimes my soups/stews end up a bit more watery than I would like... and instant rice is remarkably helpful with this. Simply add a small amount to the soup until it is the consistency you like. No need to wait for flour to cook off, no need to even make a roux. With instant rice, you can have a watery soup fixed in mere minutes (okay... in the temp of a crockpot, 10-15 minutes realistically. Still, something has to be said for the benefit of throwing rice in and walking away!).

4) Instant Mashed Potatoes
Anyone who makes Instant Mashed Potatoes as Mashed Potatoes deserves to be shot. Mashed Potatoes are entirely too simple to make, so you should make them right. However, Instant Mashed Potatoes are very useful in thickening gravies, just like the rice above helps thicken broths. I particularly like to use instant mashed potatoes with homemade brown gravy and cream of mushroom soup to produce an amazingly thick and rich gravy that is PERFECT for Shepherd's Pie (not traditional, I know... but I firmly embrace my ability to take foods and make them my own). I also like to use them to make Salisbury Steak, and I've even tried them in meatloaves. :)

5) Cajun Seasoning
Not everything you cook has to be Cajun, per se. A good cajun seasoning is basically salt, peppers, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder and a few other things depending on the mix. This stuff is exceptional and can help make even the blandest of foods have a little life to them. A small sprinkling won't necessarily register as Cajun cooking, but merely create a bit of intrigue. There is next to nothing you can't use this on if the desired end-result is nice and savory.