Westen Wilson turns 13
1 year ago
Monday, July 26, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Aguacate Experimentation
It's no secret that I love food. And I love science. As a professional I do experiments in the lab. For fun I do experiments in the kitchen.
I follow a few food blogs, partially for the ideas, and partially for the pretty pictures. One of my favorites is Smitten Kitchen. Deb always has great recipes, beautiful pictures of her food, and an amazingly cute baby boy.
Awhile back she made mango curd, and it looked tasty enough to give it a try myself. So I made the mango curd late one night, and when I got done, I found myself eying a couple of ripe avocados that I'd almost forgotten about. As sometimes happens after midnight, I decided to indulge my whimsy and try the recipe with avocado instead of mango.
My avocados were a bit over-ripe, so I ended up using only about two-and-a-half of the avocados after cutting out the brownish spots I found after I cut open the avocados.
The puree was a lovely 60s-era shade of green. After adding the egg yolks and whisking over a double-boiler for 10 minutes, the avocado puree darkened just a bit and ended up taking on a sheen that the mango didn't. Probably because avocados have more oil than mangoes. It didn't look oily, just different.
The avocado curd also ended up thicker than the mango curd. It didn't set up totally solid, but I'd probably add a few more tbsp. of lime juice to the avocado to loosen it up a bit.
The colors of the two actually ended up complementing each other really well.
I got to use my little tartlet shell molds to make shells to put the curd in. I have tons of random kitchen toys, but as it turns out, I don't have a pastry blender. Huh. I used a fork to cut the butter into the flour and it worked surprisingly well.
Aren't they cute! I put quite a bit of lime juice in the mix because I was a little nervous about the avocado puree browning. It ended up tasting like key lime pie. Tasty!
Here's the recipes in case you want to make your own!
Avocado Curd
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen adapted from Bon Appetit, June 1998
Makes 1 to 1.5 cups
3 Medium-sized, ripe avocados
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice (I ran out of lime juice. Next time I'll use all lime juice)
Pinch of salt
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Puree avocado, sugar, lime/lemon juice and salt in processor, scraping down sides of work bowl occasionally. Add yolks; puree 15 seconds longer. Set metal bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water); whisk puree until thickened and thermometer registers 170°F., about 10 minutes. Remove from over water. Whisk in butter 1 piece at a time. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Pie Crust for Tartlet shells
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cold shortening, lard, or butter, in 1/2 inch pieces (I used butter)
scant 1/4 cup vinegar water, ice cold
Wisk together flour and salt. Cut the butter/lard into the flour with fork or pastry blender until the fat/flour forms very small crumbs that looks like coarse corn meal.
Splash a little bit of vinegar (I used apple cider) into the bottom of a 1/4 cup measuring cup. I put just barely enough to cover the bottom of the measuring cup. I then filled the cup with ice-cold water up to just below the brim.
Sprinkle the water/vinegar over the butter/flour mixture and mix gently with your fingers until it just begins to stick together in a ball. It's OK if it seems a bit wet. You'll use flour when you roll the dough out. Flatten the dough ball into a disc shape and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
Flour counter and rolling pin, and roll out to 1/8 inch. Fill tartlet shells, and pierce bottom and sides with fork. Bake shells in preheated 400 degree oven until golden brown, 10-12 minutes. Let cool in molds before removing.
Awhile back she made mango curd, and it looked tasty enough to give it a try myself. So I made the mango curd late one night, and when I got done, I found myself eying a couple of ripe avocados that I'd almost forgotten about. As sometimes happens after midnight, I decided to indulge my whimsy and try the recipe with avocado instead of mango.
My avocados were a bit over-ripe, so I ended up using only about two-and-a-half of the avocados after cutting out the brownish spots I found after I cut open the avocados.
The puree was a lovely 60s-era shade of green. After adding the egg yolks and whisking over a double-boiler for 10 minutes, the avocado puree darkened just a bit and ended up taking on a sheen that the mango didn't. Probably because avocados have more oil than mangoes. It didn't look oily, just different.
The avocado curd also ended up thicker than the mango curd. It didn't set up totally solid, but I'd probably add a few more tbsp. of lime juice to the avocado to loosen it up a bit.
The colors of the two actually ended up complementing each other really well.
Avocado Curd
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen adapted from Bon Appetit, June 1998
Makes 1 to 1.5 cups
3 Medium-sized, ripe avocados
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice (I ran out of lime juice. Next time I'll use all lime juice)
Pinch of salt
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Puree avocado, sugar, lime/lemon juice and salt in processor, scraping down sides of work bowl occasionally. Add yolks; puree 15 seconds longer. Set metal bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water); whisk puree until thickened and thermometer registers 170°F., about 10 minutes. Remove from over water. Whisk in butter 1 piece at a time. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Pie Crust for Tartlet shells
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cold shortening, lard, or butter, in 1/2 inch pieces (I used butter)
scant 1/4 cup vinegar water, ice cold
Wisk together flour and salt. Cut the butter/lard into the flour with fork or pastry blender until the fat/flour forms very small crumbs that looks like coarse corn meal.
Splash a little bit of vinegar (I used apple cider) into the bottom of a 1/4 cup measuring cup. I put just barely enough to cover the bottom of the measuring cup. I then filled the cup with ice-cold water up to just below the brim.
Sprinkle the water/vinegar over the butter/flour mixture and mix gently with your fingers until it just begins to stick together in a ball. It's OK if it seems a bit wet. You'll use flour when you roll the dough out. Flatten the dough ball into a disc shape and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
Flour counter and rolling pin, and roll out to 1/8 inch. Fill tartlet shells, and pierce bottom and sides with fork. Bake shells in preheated 400 degree oven until golden brown, 10-12 minutes. Let cool in molds before removing.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Party Like It's Your Birthday
I have an amazing friend who had a birthday this weekend. Lawanna is always a party, but this time she made it an organized event.
There was a big tent with tables, 3 BBQs going full throttle, a full size cotton candy machine, a slurpee machine, a 100 foot slip-n-slide down a hill in the park, and a beautiful, tasty cake made by yours truly!
It was a water-themed party. We were warned to come prepared to get wet, and it was a good thing we were warned...
A full-blown water fight broke out, and no one was safe...
Even the bishop (above in slacks and button-up shirt) got soaked! Brother Miller was like a giant 3 year old with that super soaker. He even "autographed" my back.
Robadile Dundee kept soaking people with bowls full of water.
There was a big tupperware thing full of water balloons that were originally meant for water-balloon-volleyball that all got used for "payback" instead. There was a good 20 minutes of people running around getting everybody wet. Good times.
It was a crazy-fun party that had over 100 people in attendance, and lasted 5 hours. It all made for a perfect summer evening!
Happy birthday Lawanna! I'm so glad we're friends!!
There was a big tent with tables, 3 BBQs going full throttle, a full size cotton candy machine, a slurpee machine, a 100 foot slip-n-slide down a hill in the park, and a beautiful, tasty cake made by yours truly!
It was a water-themed party. We were warned to come prepared to get wet, and it was a good thing we were warned...
A full-blown water fight broke out, and no one was safe...
Even the bishop (above in slacks and button-up shirt) got soaked! Brother Miller was like a giant 3 year old with that super soaker. He even "autographed" my back.
Robadile Dundee kept soaking people with bowls full of water.
There was a big tupperware thing full of water balloons that were originally meant for water-balloon-volleyball that all got used for "payback" instead. There was a good 20 minutes of people running around getting everybody wet. Good times.
Lawanna asked me to make her cake, but let me do whatever I wanted. I decided to use my flower-shaped pan to make a giant pink flower. Lawanna is currently fighting breast cancer, so pink is her color these days. I decided that a plain flower was boring, so I made little bugs out of color-flow icing to put all over it.
It was a crazy-fun party that had over 100 people in attendance, and lasted 5 hours. It all made for a perfect summer evening!
Happy birthday Lawanna! I'm so glad we're friends!!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Brisling
I love science, and I love food. So I really love when people combine the two. There are fun books like "How Baking Works" that I've read that explain stuff, but sometimes it's nice to have some person explain things to you. No one does this better than Alton Brown. He really knows his stuff and demonstrates it in a really fun way. Good Eats is one of my favorite cooking shows. I never fail to learn several food-related things with every episode. Seldom has his advice led me astray. The popovers were delightful, the fan-made beef jerky was tasty and intriguing, and though my English Muffins didn't look as pretty as his, they were still pretty good. He had built a relationship of trust with me. I admired him. I trusted him. I even bought the book.
But then he convinced me that eating Brislings was a good idea. I should have known better.
You see, there was this episode where he used Brisling sardines as a topping for toast, and he made it look like it was the best thing he had ever eaten. I distinctly remember him saying that he could eat this particular snack for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I was sold. I went to the store and bought me some Brislings of my very own.
I assembled the ingredients he said I'd need: Toasted sourdough, lemon zest/juice, avocado, parsley, salt, pepper, and sherry vinegar.
I combined the ingredients as directed, and smoshed the little fishes in a bowl.
Then I toasted and assembled.
The idea of this dish didn't necessarily repulse me, but the reality kind of did. It actually looked kind of pretty. I mean, really... Anything involving fresh avocado should be delightful...
Something about chomping down on little fishy tails almost made me ralph. They weren't bony or chewy or anything, but they were still definitely little fish tails. In my mouth.
Out of sheer pig-headedness, I managed to choke it all down. I wasn't about to let a little can of fish get the best of me. I can't really say that I enjoyed it. I took all of these pictures hoping this would be another Alton-Brown-Inspired success story...
Well, now I know. I'm now going to take any future food recommendations with a grain of salt.
I can have my own opinion, and that's OK.
Fish tails. Blech.
But then he convinced me that eating Brislings was a good idea. I should have known better.
You see, there was this episode where he used Brisling sardines as a topping for toast, and he made it look like it was the best thing he had ever eaten. I distinctly remember him saying that he could eat this particular snack for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I was sold. I went to the store and bought me some Brislings of my very own.
The idea of this dish didn't necessarily repulse me, but the reality kind of did. It actually looked kind of pretty. I mean, really... Anything involving fresh avocado should be delightful...
Something about chomping down on little fishy tails almost made me ralph. They weren't bony or chewy or anything, but they were still definitely little fish tails. In my mouth.
Out of sheer pig-headedness, I managed to choke it all down. I wasn't about to let a little can of fish get the best of me. I can't really say that I enjoyed it. I took all of these pictures hoping this would be another Alton-Brown-Inspired success story...
Well, now I know. I'm now going to take any future food recommendations with a grain of salt.
I can have my own opinion, and that's OK.
Fish tails. Blech.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Does this wrist make me look old?
Remember the Christmas before last, when I was wearing a wrist brace? Yeah. That problem never went away. When my wrist first started hurting, I waited a bit to see if it would go away on its own. About six weeks later, I broke down and went to the Student Health Center. I was still a student at this point, so that was where I had to go. They gave me a brace to wear and told me to take some ibuprofen every day for awhile and wait to see if it got any better. It didn't, and I went back. They then referred me to a specialist.
The specialist had me tuck my thumb into my fist and stretch my wrist sideways toward the pinky side of my hand. This made the side of my wrist hurt, so they decided I had DeQuervain's Tenosynovitis. They gave me a shot of steroids in my tendon, and told me that if the pain came back, I might need surgery. The pain went away for a little over a month, but then came back. The pain seemed to have traveled up to closer to my wrist, but the PA seeing me dismissed this. We talked it over, and scheduled a surgery to liberate my tendon.
So there I was in my cute little backless gown, hairnet, and booties, laying in a bed with wheels and side rails, about to be IVed. Dr. Johnson came out to meet me. He introduced himself, and took my wrist to inspect it. He prodded my wrist and asked if it hurt. He did a bit of a double-take when I said no. He had me do the thumb-tucking, wrist-bending thing, and when that hurt at the base of my thumb, rather than in my wrist, he called off the surgery. He had me come in to see him the next day.
The next morning, he took an x-ray, and felt around my wrist. The x-ray didn't seem to indicate any arthritis, which could have caused the problem. He then gave me a steroid shot in the joint, with the hopes that it would fix the problem. That was last fall. The shot helped for a few months, but the pain gradually came back. Since it wasn't a constant pain, I just decided to baby my hand and see if it would get better on its own. It didn't. I noticed pain with pressure against my thumb, like when I would put on gloves at work, or when I tried to carry a full pitcher of water with my right hand. I finally decided that it wasn't just going to go away, and went back to the doctor. They didn't know what was wrong, so we decided that the best thing to do would be to do surgery and scope my wrist to see what was going wrong.
So there I was: back in the drafty gown, fantastic cap, and brilliant no-slip booties.
I got in another wheeled, railed bed, and had an iv put in my hand. That was just before 10 AM. I then waited for about two hours waiting. There were a lot of grandmas/pas getting their cataracts removed, Including a dude born in 1930 named Richard Nixon. One couple talked to their son (it was his birthday) on speakerphone. I'm glad we all got to share that conversation. Especially since their son neatly dodged questions about the wayward grandson and his court date. Fan-tastic. And now I know that people who have gotten only one eye fixed don't remember many details of the surgery, but everyone seems to remember all of the details of the second one. Two hours well spent.
So they wheeled me into the surgery room, and knocked me out. Next thing I know I wake up shivering with my wrist all bound up. Seriously. I was really, really cold. Something having to do with the way the anesthesia is metabolized by the body. Brrrrrrrr. The nice nurse brought me a heated blanket. It was awesome. Abby was there and she fed me strawberry yogurt and narcotics and drinks of ice water. Such a great friend. I don't know if you've ever been with someone as they're coming out of anesthesia, but it seems that people seems latch onto one idea and just keep repeating the same thing. With me it was something about there being a fire sale on cataract surgery. I thought the droves of old people getting their sight back was funny.
So Dr. Johnson came out and talked with us. From what I can remember, they went in with their little 1.5 millimeter scope and cleaned out the junk that was floating around in my joint, and then they saw this:
The white part in the middle is cartilage, and the darker parts are exposed bone. That means arthritis. Yeesh. I seem to remember something about him saying that it seems to be the result of trauma rather than something genetic. But I can't be sure. The whole coming out of anesthesia thing. I'll learn more next Friday when I go back to have my dressing removed.
This is the end of my first day without one of my thumbs. Bathing was easier than expected. As was typing. Writing by hand is really hard. Peeling a banana is nigh unto impossible. Turning the keys in the ignition was a bit of a challenge.
**sigh** Arthritis at 30. Who'da thought.
The specialist had me tuck my thumb into my fist and stretch my wrist sideways toward the pinky side of my hand. This made the side of my wrist hurt, so they decided I had DeQuervain's Tenosynovitis. They gave me a shot of steroids in my tendon, and told me that if the pain came back, I might need surgery. The pain went away for a little over a month, but then came back. The pain seemed to have traveled up to closer to my wrist, but the PA seeing me dismissed this. We talked it over, and scheduled a surgery to liberate my tendon.
So there I was in my cute little backless gown, hairnet, and booties, laying in a bed with wheels and side rails, about to be IVed. Dr. Johnson came out to meet me. He introduced himself, and took my wrist to inspect it. He prodded my wrist and asked if it hurt. He did a bit of a double-take when I said no. He had me do the thumb-tucking, wrist-bending thing, and when that hurt at the base of my thumb, rather than in my wrist, he called off the surgery. He had me come in to see him the next day.
The next morning, he took an x-ray, and felt around my wrist. The x-ray didn't seem to indicate any arthritis, which could have caused the problem. He then gave me a steroid shot in the joint, with the hopes that it would fix the problem. That was last fall. The shot helped for a few months, but the pain gradually came back. Since it wasn't a constant pain, I just decided to baby my hand and see if it would get better on its own. It didn't. I noticed pain with pressure against my thumb, like when I would put on gloves at work, or when I tried to carry a full pitcher of water with my right hand. I finally decided that it wasn't just going to go away, and went back to the doctor. They didn't know what was wrong, so we decided that the best thing to do would be to do surgery and scope my wrist to see what was going wrong.
So there I was: back in the drafty gown, fantastic cap, and brilliant no-slip booties.
So they wheeled me into the surgery room, and knocked me out. Next thing I know I wake up shivering with my wrist all bound up. Seriously. I was really, really cold. Something having to do with the way the anesthesia is metabolized by the body. Brrrrrrrr. The nice nurse brought me a heated blanket. It was awesome. Abby was there and she fed me strawberry yogurt and narcotics and drinks of ice water. Such a great friend. I don't know if you've ever been with someone as they're coming out of anesthesia, but it seems that people seems latch onto one idea and just keep repeating the same thing. With me it was something about there being a fire sale on cataract surgery. I thought the droves of old people getting their sight back was funny.
So Dr. Johnson came out and talked with us. From what I can remember, they went in with their little 1.5 millimeter scope and cleaned out the junk that was floating around in my joint, and then they saw this:
This is the end of my first day without one of my thumbs. Bathing was easier than expected. As was typing. Writing by hand is really hard. Peeling a banana is nigh unto impossible. Turning the keys in the ignition was a bit of a challenge.
**sigh** Arthritis at 30. Who'da thought.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
May the 4th Be With You
I am a long-time fan of Star Wars. I remember watching those old VHS tapes over and over. I remember skipping drumline a few times in high school to go wait in line for the new Star Wars movies. So I was very excited to be able to have a party to celebrate international Star Wars Day!
We had pizza, Darth Vader cupcakes, Star Wars fruit snacks, and even Bantha Milk! We watched the one that started it all: Episode IV A New Hope. It was fun, and for once I was somewhere where there were three guys for every girl. I've got to have more nerd parties!
I know some of you are wondering how I made those cute little chocolate Vaders, so I'll show you!
First, melt some white and dark chocolate chips in the microwave, stirring after every 30 seconds, and stopping as soon as the chocolate is melted. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, foil, or waxed paper.
Spoon the chocolate into piping bags and cut off the very tip so you have a small hole to squeeze the chocolate out. Make little bell (helmet) shapes with the dark chocolate on the parchment with the melted chocolate.
Use the melted white chocolate to draw the face details on the little helmets.
You can make storm troopers by making white helmets and doing the details in dark chocolate. Make little lightsabers by cutting some twizzlers pull-aparts and dipping the ends in the melted chocolate.
You can pop the finished decorations into the freezer for a few minutes so they set up quick. Or you can let them set up at room temperature overnight.
Pop your little decorations on some chocolate frosted chocolate cupcakes (come to the dark side). Give the Vader cupcakes little lightsabers (Storm troopers don't get lightsabers)
See how cute they are!? Now you can impress all of your nerd friends! I know I impressed all of mine!
Here's a bonus shot of me in my Princess Leia buns! (And my arm in my post-surgery sling)
May the 4th be with you always!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Free Bird
I love food. I really, really do. I love making it, I love eating it, I love feeding it to other people, I love talking about it, I love reading about it, and I love hanging out with people that love food. Working at Viking has turned me into a bit more of a food snob than I used to be.
Well, snob may be a bit of a strong word. Maybe I'm not a snob, but I am a bit more food-aware. Not as much as some. I mean, I'm not totally sold on the whole organic movement, especially since reading about some of the politics involved in food. I do appreciate the intention. You know, using less pesticides, and treating animals humanely and such. I'm not sure I trust the labels at the store to pay twice as much, but it has made me think a bit more where my food comes from. It has made me want to eat more food that was produced in the same state that I live. Here in Utah, I have found some great opportunities to eat local. Not always, but at least once a month I try to buy Winder Dairy Milk (it really does taste good enough to pay $4/gallon). I used my tax return money to buy a share from Jacob's Cove, a community supported agriculture venture (CSA) that a cute little family has started in Orem. Those veggies are currently growing, and I won't get to eat them for a bit yet.
While surfing Craigslist today...er...yesterday, I saw an ad for fresh eggs. I have been interested in getting local eggs for a while now, but haven't known where to get them from. There is a guy that sells them at the farmer's market in the summer, but the farmer's market hasn't started yet... So I was doubly excited to see some other outlet to get local eggs. I texted the lady, and she got right back to me! I decided to head out there to check it out!
Well, snob may be a bit of a strong word. Maybe I'm not a snob, but I am a bit more food-aware. Not as much as some. I mean, I'm not totally sold on the whole organic movement, especially since reading about some of the politics involved in food. I do appreciate the intention. You know, using less pesticides, and treating animals humanely and such. I'm not sure I trust the labels at the store to pay twice as much, but it has made me think a bit more where my food comes from. It has made me want to eat more food that was produced in the same state that I live. Here in Utah, I have found some great opportunities to eat local. Not always, but at least once a month I try to buy Winder Dairy Milk (it really does taste good enough to pay $4/gallon). I used my tax return money to buy a share from Jacob's Cove, a community supported agriculture venture (CSA) that a cute little family has started in Orem. Those veggies are currently growing, and I won't get to eat them for a bit yet.
While surfing Craigslist today...er...yesterday, I saw an ad for fresh eggs. I have been interested in getting local eggs for a while now, but haven't known where to get them from. There is a guy that sells them at the farmer's market in the summer, but the farmer's market hasn't started yet... So I was doubly excited to see some other outlet to get local eggs. I texted the lady, and she got right back to me! I decided to head out there to check it out!
So after work, Allen and I went on a little adventure. We drove out to Benjamin to check out where these eggs came from. We pull up to this little place way up next to the the west mountains, and chickens come running at the car. Sometimes birds are afraid of people. Not these chickens! Seems like they know that humans are their meal ticket. I actually had to have Allen get out of the car to shoo the chickens out of the way so I could pull into the driveway. It was pretty funny. Talk about free-range chicken... these chickens were all over the place!
There was even a rooster running around, so the eggs are fertilized. This is not really all that important to me, but I'm sure its a selling point to some...
I got me a couple dozen eggs ($2/doz if you plan on being a regular and bringing back the cartons $3/doz otherwise), and headed home. I'm so excited about my cute little brown eggs! I'm sure they'll taste a little bit better, even if it's just because I know they come from happy chickens. I'm pretty psyched to be able to eat them for breakfast tomorrow!
Coming home, Allen spotted a little handmade sign advertising honey for sale. We pulled in to this cute house with a big pen of show sheep out back. Ahhhh... memories....
Anyways, this cute country couple have bees and are so excited to tell us about them. The new honey will be ready around Labor Day, but they still have a bit from the last batch... Something about honey in the pyramids...
So that's my local food attempt for this week. Milk, eggs, honey.
Yay food!
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