toby young hit by a car

see?  this isn't some collective wish-fulfillment, it's actually TRUE; i feel bad for him (for once).

according to his twitter, toby was riding his bike when a car came around a corner and knocked him to the ground.  he got a pretty good gash on his head, but was not so badly hurt that he had to stay in the hospital or anything.  i am posting one pic here, but will link the others below...  be warned:  they aren't pretty ~ both are close-ups of the stitches on his head.

http://twitpic.com/49inq

http://twitpic.com/49ioe

what a way to come back to the world of blogging, right?  LOL.  ❤

chicken in a can (seriously)

[pictures from ihatemymessageboard.com]

yes, that is a REAL product...  jeez, my posts today are making me feel like it's april fool's all over again, LOL.

chicken in a can is the latest food meme* to hit the twitterverse and it is a DOOZY, no?  yech.  apparently this product is available on amazon, though why one would want to buy it, i have no idea.

the original story and pictures are on this page of ihatemymessageboard.com ... she bought the chicken in a can out of curiosity, and according to her story, it not only looks like shit, but tastes like it, too!  ^_^  not a bad deal for $40 + shipping & handling.  *[o_O]*

xoxox.

*meme:  pronounced "meem" ~ urbandictionary has a definition if you're interested.

brb

i have gotten a few comments lately asking, basically, "wtf?!?"

nothing has happened to me or anything, but i have just been feeling uber meh lately.  add to that the resources required for a food blog, and well...  i will be back soon, but i just don't know when.  i am hoping sooner rather than later.   

thanks for caring, my bloggies!  ^_^  see you all soon!

OMG TRUFFLES!

WOWZA!!!  the harry & david pick-me-up i have been waiting for just arrived, courtesy of my blog buddy, tugboat...

i briefly considered being "good" and ordering the sugar-free chocolates, but quickly nixed that plan to order the sale-priced truffles:  2 1-pound boxes of assorted truffles for about the cost of one box.  i am giving one box to B. b/c it's just too much temptation, but the other box is all mine mwah ha haha!

i especially needed this today not only b/c of bill/money worries (what's new) but also b/c i was rudely awakened by some KILLER stomach cramps at around 5.30am.  the short story:  too many radishes are a bad, bad thing.  look at them, sitting there all innocent:  pure evil in a pretty pink skin!

i am famous ~ in my own lil world, anyway ~ for my stomach-o-iron...  i can usually handle a lot of weird food and/or food bacteria w/ little-to-no problem, but these cramps were so bad that i couldn't breathe; my whole torso was stiff w/ the cramping and i seriously almost passed out.  it was bad and it lasted for about an hour.  i also got a not-so-nice irl depiction of the phrase "pale & green w/ nausea"...  definitely one of those situations where i was praying to vomit and get it over with, but my body was having none of that shit.

anywho, i was pretty tired and worn out from that ordeal, only to have money shiz come knock me in the face right after the majority of the cramping eased...  and all this before 7am!!!  needless to say, it was a hard morning, LOL.  luckily, i have AMAZING friends and the day picked up considerably, only to be topped off w/ a delivery of delish chocolate from the ups man.  and to answer the question i am sure you're all thinking:  yes, i have tried one of each flavor, but then put them away hoping the whole "out of sight, out of mind" thing will kick in.  :D

thanks again, tugboat:  you're a doll!  xoxox @ you!!!

(LOLcat courtesy icanhazcheezburger.com)

the strategic shopper, wk 2/pt 3

homemade ravioli:  what a fab way to close out the week!  :))  well, technically, i used asian ingredients and italian technique, so i don't know whether to call these "wontons" or "ravioli".  i think i'll stick w/ ravioli, LOL.

honestly, i was really surprised how well these came out...  i worked the concept out in my head, but i used a product that is new to me:  extra soft tofu.  i wasn't sure that it would mimic ricotta cheese the way i hoped.  long story short:  the extra soft tofu was a DREAM and had the exact cheese-ravioli texture i thought it would.  the most surprising factor:  these ravioli are JUST SHY of vegan!  there are some egg yolks way down on the wonton skin's ingredient list, but other than that, the entire dish had no animal products.  this was a personal first for me.  ^_^  anyway, the only new thing i purchased for these ravioli was the extra soft tofu which i found for $1.29 at the international market.

ravioli:

~  1 cup boca meatless crumbles, frozen

~  1/4 c finely minced lemon grass

~  1 extra large (4 regular) radish, finely diced

~  1 1-inch piece of ginger, finely diced

~  1/4 finely minced scallion, white part preferred

~  1 tsp fish sauce

~  1 T sriracha sauce (or to taste)

~  3 T (approx) of well-drained extra soft tofu (see today's tips)

~  kosher salt, black pepper

~  approx 20 each square wonton skins

~  water, to seal

1.  mix the first 9 ingredients together in a bowl.  set aside.  the mixture should be relatively tight and keep its shape when pressed.

2.  working w/ one wonton skin, place 1 tsp of filling on the pasta.  to make triangular wontons, place wonton on the work surface so that one corner is pointing towards you.  put the filling just above horizontal center, wet the edges of the pasta w/ water, and match the corners up, pressing to seal.  to make half-moons, a flat side of the wonton skin should be facing you, but do everything else the same.  once the pasta is sealed, use a cutter to remove excess wonton.

3.  place in a single layer on a sheet pan and freeze.  (see today's tips.)

i served my ravioli steamed and hot w/ a quick cucumber salad and a vinaigrette made from the salad liquid.  these could also be served fried, cold, in a soup, or w/ a heavier sauce.  they would also be good as a garnish in a vietnamese cold noodle bowl (i always get the one w/ egg roll pieces anyway).

super basic cucumber salad:

~  english cucumbers, seeded and thinly sliced (if you prefer, you can skin them, but i don't.)

~  enough seasoned rice wine vinegar to cover

1.  put both ingredients in a tupperware container and let sit for at least 24 hrs before using.  (see today's tips.)

2.  to make the vinaigrette, i just whisked some of the cuc vinegar into some oil w/ a little salt and pepper then tossed the hot ravioli in it.

TODAY'S TIPS:

1.  when i opened the pouch of extra-soft tofu, the first thing i wanted to do was try it, so i squirted a tablespoon or so into a small bowl.  it's a good thing i sampled it b/c i immediately noticed how watery the product is, despite its great, mayonnaise-y texture.  i decided right then and there to strain it before i used it, the same way i would yogurt.  i just squirted the entire tube into a fine mesh strainer set over a large bowl, covered the tofu w/ plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming, and stored it in my fridge.  i have kept mine stored just like that since then, but i would recommend leaving it like that for at least a day or so.

2.  these ravioli need to be frozen solid before cooking b/c the wonton skin is more delicate that semolina pasta.  also, once they are frozen on the sheet tray, they can easily be stored in a ziploc bag and cooked as needed.  below is a slide show of my ravioli production.

3.  another, quicker way to do a cucumber salad is to bring the two ingredients to a boil over a medium-high flame.  once a boil is reached, transfer the contents to a bowl to cool and store in the fridge.  the only reason i don't do my cucumber salad this way most of the time is b/c it changes the texture; i like my cucumber salad a little on the crisp side.  also, i leave the cucumber skins on is b/c it imparts a nice "green" flavor to the salad liquor, which i love.

this post is a great segue into next weeks TSS item...  but i'm not telling!  :D

thanks for reading, bbs!  xoxox.

padma lakshmi's (newest) pr0n

yet another reason to hate padma...

i especially love the "i've probably tasted EVERY flavor..." line and the "culinary expert" tag.  you're not convincing, pad.

anywhore, i guess dating a billionaire doesn't pay as well as one would think, LOL.

(video via ToureX via ADFREAK)

the strategic shopper, wk 2/pt 2

spaghetti sauce FTW ~ not photogenic in any sense of the word, but soooo NOM!

i *LOVE* pasta and red sauce...  i never get tired of it AND it stretches like crazy; however, the stuff in jars is just too damned expensive (and heavy ~ i walk to and from the grocery store), even when it IS on sale.  i especially like to make my sauce w/ the meatless crumbles because it makes the whole process quicker, healthier, and leaves my apartment smoke-less.

i used a lot of ingredients that i had leftover from last week's shopping, as well as an item or two picked up when i bought the boca meatless crumbles.  here's the recipe:

~  1 whole white onion, chopped

~  4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

~  2 T olive oil

~  1 bag (8 oz) frozen mushrooms

~  1/2 bag (4 oz) frozen green peppers

~  1 12-oz can tomato paste + 2 cans hot water

~  2 T oregano

~  2 bay leaves

~  1 T porcini flour

~  mrs. dash, kosher salt, black pepper

~  1/2 bag (6 oz) boca meatless crumbles

1.  heat the oil on medium high and saute the onion and garlic until browned.

2.  add the frozen veggies and cook until all the water is evaporated ~ 7-10 minutes.

3.  while the veggies are cooking, mix the water into the tomato paste whisking out any lumps.  will be the approximate consistency of tomato sauce.

4.  when the water is completely evaporated from the frozen veggies, add the tomato sauce and all the spices.  turn heat to low and cook, covered, for 20-30 min.

5.  add the meatless crumbles and cook for a further 10 min or until the crumbles are heated throughly.

look, i'll level w/ you...  i know i am supposed to be all cheffy and say that "only the freshest tomatoes" or "high-quality canned, whole tomatoes" are the only proper base for red sauce, but let me tell you:  they don't work.  i have tried many, endless variations in the quest for the perfect marinara; tomato sauce gives me the best texture as well as proper sauce-to-pasta adherence.  i use diluted tomato paste instead of canned tomato sauce only b/c one can of tomato paste is a lighter load on my mile-long trek than 3-4 cans of tomato sauce.  also, tomato paste is more of a kitchen multi-tasker than tomato sauce, imho.

i didn't post this yesterday b/c of blogger's date blunder on the outage announcement, so i apologize.  i will be back tomorrow w/ the last ~ and less phoned-in ~ boca meatless crumbles entry.

thanks for reading, bbs!  ^_^