I promise, we don't eat only fried things, but once the idea of making vegetarian Scotch eggs entered my mind, I couldn't do anything but make them. 'Ere's how I did it:
1. Boil your eggs. That's 17 minutes total. After you pull them, drain the water, and shock them with ice cubes + cold water. You don't want to work with warm eggs.
2. Peel the eggs, rinse them for shell bits, and dry with a paper towel. After drying, coat the hard boiled egg with some Gimme Lean!
3. You know the drill! Coat with flour, then egg mixture (1 egg, a bit of buttermilk), and finally with panko.
4. Fry
5. Drain
6. Search and destroy
I might have to make these for the next big brunch.
3. Quitting my second job. It's the fun part of being employed. What I haven't told you is how mean the girls are at this place. They are overly faux-nice to me, like, "Oh, hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii, AiLien". Very nasal & sarcastic. One day, I got a coffee on the way to work. I put it where all employees keep drinks while we work. Anyway, I went to take a drink, but could smell that someone had rubbed onions and lemons all over my cup! I was so pissed, I chunked the bev into the trash bin really hard and shouted "WHAT THE FUCK?!!". Anyone else probably would've asked me what was wrong, but they just stood there, looking at me, trying to act casual. I can't even guess what it was that I did that offended them. Unreal. I'm so accustomed to my rad friends, that I forget how bitchy and cruel girls can be. I did feel some satisfaction, though, when I told ATM & my friends what happened that they wanted to go down there and be awful, unruly customers. Anyway, it's not THE reason why I'm quitting; it's just one of those things where you want to go do your job, go home & collect a check. It seems they don't allow that up there. So. Anyone else hiring? Preferably like-minded people, please. Also, I house-sit and have proper references!
4. I have a love/hate thing for these because they are adorable, but like I need something else to waste hard-earned cash on. Saving one of these for my trip to Memphis:
Houndstooth (and gardenia):
5. Hello again, Memphis! I can't stay away, can I?
8. Summer. It happens every year, so I can't act as if I wasn't expecting it. I'm into it this time 'round. The ultra-fiery, ultra-sunny, ultra-humid, ultra-buggy, very berry time of year. How are we going to beat the heat? Lake swimming (at least once!), sno-cones, watermelons, and laying in front of a box fan. I may be singing a different tune and begging for mercy sooner than later.
9. New Moka pot. It has completely diminished our need to get espresso coffees from a coffee shop. It is saving us tons of money. The drawback is that it doesn't make rad pastries, soups, and sandwiches OR emits free wifi, so we do still have to go to Boulevard time to time. That's ok!
10. If you still haven't ordered the LR CREAM cassette, then I might be questioning your taste-making status. Get it here. MP3s coming soon. Rumors of a show are abound!
He also writes stories & poetry. He also has a Japan Club & he's asked me to join! He will teach me how to count to 5 in Japanese and we're going to write letters of support and raise money for those affected by the big tsunami in Japan.
You'll need: A baguette (preferably from Boulevard, locals) 3 large or 4 medium green tomatoes (the best are at the produce market on McCain Blvd.) 1/2 c buttermilk 1 egg 1/2 c self-rising corn meal 1/2 c all-purpose flour (divided) 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. ground black pepper Lettuce, to dress sandwiches Avocado Frying oil
For remolaude sauce: 1/2 c mayonnaise 1 T Dijon mustard or any whole grain mustard A few dashes of Louisiana or Crystal hot sauce A few dashes of Worcestershire sauce 1/2 tsp horseradish 1/4 c sliced green onions 3 cloves of garlic, minced
Stir the above together & chill until ready to serve.
Pour oil to a depth of 1/2 inch in a large cast-iron skillet; heat to 375 degrees over medium-high heat.
Whisk together egg and buttermilk. Combine cornmeal mix, salt, pepper, and 1/4 c of the flour in a shallow dish. Dredge tomato slices in remaining 1/4 cup of flour; dip in egg/buttermilk mixture, and dredge in cornmeal mixture.
Drop tomatoes, in batches, into hot oil, and cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle hot tomatoes with salt to taste.
Might as well...
Spread remolaud on both sides of toasted baguette, lay down a bed of lettuce, three piping hot slices of fried green tomato, avocado (we accidentally left our avocado at the grocery store), a few dashes of hot sauce & then TUCK IN! Lotsa napkins...
I just finished a book about psychopaths. It was both fascinating and frightening. A drawback is that I walk around trying to figure out who in my vicinity is a complete psycho; I've only counted one thus far. You pretty much want to stay away from these people. It's a quick read and I highly recommend it.
We've made some progress around the house. Put new summer plants into the bed & pots: sweet potato vine, geraniums, petunias (which is a very odd choice for me as they aren't my type at all), and lavender. We moved the sage out of the rosemary's way; need to wait a little bit longer for the basil seedlings to mature before we put them into the ground.
ATM installed shades in the utility room, which is lovely because before the shades, anyone could see clearly into our home at night. Frankly, it didn't stop me from being inappropriate at times -- you know, no pants wearing.
Having two jobs is pretty awful and there was one recent shift in particular where I seriously considered quitting, but finding another job would be more work. I'm just going to stick it out until I've met my goal. Or, most of it. It's working with younger people where I struggle. They are spastics & some are mean. Also, they listen to terrible music and wear ugly shoes. And managers. What is their deal? Don't ever become a manager, there's nothing noble about it. I get along with them fine, but they don't really contribute anything. They just boss people around and aren't helpful, which drives me nuts. A common thing we all do is make rude gestures at them after they turn their backs to us or walk away. You'd think that you could just report to work, do what you have to do and leave. Alas, no. Some people will front and you have to deal with it. It's not all bad. I love working the Tuesday night shift because I have cultivated friendships with that crew, but I NEVER get to work that shift. I usually have to work with the assholes. I think I'll just give myself a deadline. Yeah, some time in September. I miss my free time.
A planned trip to Memphis with my friends didn't work out, BUT IT DID! I'll be going with KMHD & Brittany -- can't wait! It's a dead weekend in Memphis, meaning that there aren't any shows, but I don't think we'll have a shortage of things to eat do.
Am considering becoming a mentor. My cousin in Seattle mentors TWENTY kids and she loves it. She was bragging on one that very recently graduated high school. She was beside herself when I told her I was merely thinking about doing it. I'll definitely do some research on it.
I have new kitchen know-how to share. Coming soonish!
I love camping, it's one of my things. But, for whatever reason, I just wasn't into it when we went this past Thursday. I went through the motions of setting up the tent, etc., but remained in a foul mood. It took a long tent nap, some driving around the countryside, and dusk to fall for me to start enjoying myself. It's so off-putting to not have fun at something that I love to do. It worries me and makes me wonder things like, "Are you sad about something?" I don't want to find myself in such a way again. NO
Collins + Lauren got hitched! They had a seriously bangin' reception @ the Little Rock Country Club -- I got to see a lot of people I haven't seen in a good while, expats and otherwise. Lots of free-flowing champagne and dancing, so you know I had the best time. Too much fun, one might argue. (Me, actually. The next day.)
1. Coming out on the sunny side of a weeks-long gloomy weather fest. I had to keep reminding myself that you cannot have good weather without the bad, but, honestly, towards the end there. Dreadful.
2. Boulevard Bake House & Market on Main St. I am officially a regular and Pearl takes extra good care of me. So, delicious/quality food/drink and a nice friend. And free wifi. Little things.
4. ATM. Again, little things, but they add up! Changing bed sheets for when I get off work from job #2, DJing while I cook, taking me out to eat when I obvs feel blue, and just general "getting" me.
5. Future May events include attending a lecture by HH Dalai Lama, CKIII's wedding, and Leigh's birthday!
6. Tonight, I started a long cooking project, way too late on a Sunday evening. It'll be 9:00 p.m. before we have our supper. App: salt & malt vinegar kale chips, Entree/side: korroke drizzled with vegetable/fruit tonkatsu sauce & steamed broccoli with ginger-chili dipping sauce. Yesss!
7. Camping soon. I desperately need this. This world is crazy. I need to spend time in the woods, inhale exorbitant amounts of campfire smoke, and sleep in a tent. Possibly swing by my favorite green thumb and Hot Springs.
***I got interrupted by Pres. Obama's late-night address right about here. All I gotta say about it is this: People, don't be so disgusting. No one won anything. This world is crazy.***
8. Izzy's vegetarian tamales. Those tamales are so good that we had to keep checking to make sure they were meat-free:
9. Staying home to work on and putter around the house.
10. First paycheck from second job. Straight to the GOOD TIMES savings account. Cheers.
I've been avoiding FEAR ANTS largely because I'm going through another bout of "Do I actually write about anything?" and "This is boring" and "I haven't been up to much anyway". I can be pretty harsh on myself, even if this is just a retrospective blog that I share with family/friends. I think it's this paid writing I've been doing. That stuff is awful!
It's been so grey, it's green.
The haps:
1. I am just so sick of storms. Sleepless nights of terror. And the distant sounds of a thrashing wind chime or siren is horrifying.
2. I have a second job now. I start Tuesday eve. Pizza slingin'. It's what you do when you want to travel to New Zealand. New Windows. New Kitchen. New Bathroom. New Records. New Camera. etc. Inflation. I don't know if I've ever lived my employed/tax-paying life without it. "It" "isn't" "supposed" "to" "be" "this" "way". Thankfully, Job #1 pays the bills/mortgage and most else, but we are only treading water and not saving as much as I'd like. Job #2 is supposed to help us enjoy life a little more.
3. New Memphis restaurant crush: RP Tracks! We tried the legendary BBQ tofu nachos and BBQ tofu sandwich. ATM & I, with gratitude, noted how much easier it is to be vegetarian these days. RP boasts about their "world famous BBQ tofu" above all else on the menu and it isn't even an exclusively meatless restaurant. Brilliant.
2. I figured out how to make the perfect omelette. It's easier than I imagined. Omelettes are currently my favorite food, so I eat them too much. My ideal kind is topped with pesto, spinach & ripe Arkansas tomatoes. Heavenly!
3. I got my Memphis back! BWAAaaeeeuuuh!
4. Dreaming of Glasgow New Zealand! We've been on a steady diet of Surf City, The Clean, Tall Dwarves, et al. I'm throwing as much money as I can at our savings which essentially means I don't know when we are going, but we are.
5. Surf City!
6. Tofu Happening! A vegetarian dish & a vinyl record gains you entry. Probably a good idea to bring your own cold drink & chair, too.
7. Full-time tea drinking. My being sick makes ingesting coffee complicated. Or ingesting coffee make my being sick complicated. Either way, coffee is just way too heavy right now. Tea Party. I've turned it into a leisurely pastime at my job. All work ceases. I inhale the steam & aromas. I check out for minutes. I'm a goner. Celestial.
8. HAPPY BIRTHDAY @KMHD. DIRTY THIRTY! XXX (But, you are still 10 in my mind.)
9. Camping!
10. Dragging out the VCR player and watching 120 Minutes and Cure videos.
----- I am actively avoiding writing the vegetarian guide. Writing for $$$ is horribly boring. But, I need the money. I actually applied for more work on Thursday. A couple nights a week at a restaurant will, perhaps, get us where we need to be to as far as saving funds for traveling goes. This is my main focus right now.
The homemade ginger ale is not really ginger ale, but a fizzy ginger drink. It's good, not great. Next time I make it, I will juice the ginger instead of grating it. I only like my orange juice pulpy. It's totally refreshing and not too sweet, although I'd probably make it with scant less sugar next time.
After reading about it on one of my favorite undisclosed websites, I decided to try my hand at making my own ginger ale. The directions are straightforward and simple.
You will need a 2-liter bottle. (Buy 2-liters of anything and either drink it or dump it.) Rinse well. Take 1/2 tsp of yeast (Fleishmann's, et al.) and 3/4 c sugar -- funnel it into the bottle. Grate 2 T of fresh ginger root; add to bottle. Add the juice of one lemon. I added a pinch of cayenne pepper for thrills. Add (not tap) water to 1-2" from the top of bottle. Cap. Shake bottle well to mix sugars and yeast. Let the bottle hang out for a day or so. Ours is chilling in the living room, underneath the side table, so I can keep an eye on it.
Later this evening, I'll check the sides of the bottle for tautness. If it's ready, I'll stick it in the fridge to slow the metabolic action of the yeast. And then I'm gonna crack it!
The push to make my own ginger ale came when I realized that most commercial ginger ales are made with high fructose corn syrup. They put that rubbish in EVERYTHING. Of course, there are exceptions, like the natural, hand-brewed ones. They're brilliant! I just wanted to try my hand at homemade.
I'll probably start making my own BBQ sauce, too. In a pinch, I'll buy sauce from Whole Hog Cafe, but I had to make a run to the grocery store this weekend. Every single bottle from the store contains HFCS, which is prompting me to go homemade in this arena, too. I'm feeling inspired and it's another teeny step in the direction of eating better. I'm hoping after some experimentation, I will make my ideal sauce: smoky, sweet & spicy. And then I'll make the best BBQ tofu you've ever had.
In other inane news, I'm trying this new thing where I don't wash my hair on a daily basis. At most, I can go four days before I start feeling disgusting. It all started when my hairdresser told me to be bold and wash it once or twice a week at most. It takes some getting used to, but it does improve hair quality. You have to 'train' it to get accustomed to not being washed daily or even every other day. Being a longhair can be tiresome. I'm hoping to save gallons of water and time from even dealing with it as additional benefits.
