Mission: Accomplished successfully!

J and I spent half of 12/23 just food shopping.

Then we spent part of X-mas day and all of the 26th cooking. The results from the judges about this meal are in:

Star of the meal: The bouillabaisse
Most intriguing (in a good way): prosciutto stuffed dates
The saddest part of the meal: Garlic Chicken made in the slow cooker-- it was overcooked by about four hours and was a very soft flavorless mess.

The brisket also didn't quite turn out as nicely as it had in the past. It was decent but not spectacular. Being unfamiliar with the quantities made it difficult for me to gauge whether or not I have over-, or in this case, under-seasoned. The ratatouille turned out great but I think folks with a Cantonese pallet are not used to slightly sour and mushy veggies (even though they were super flavorful!).

Everyone kept going back to the bouillabaisse for seconds and thirds and so on...

No one noticed the drink pairings.

I have to admit, I was quite blown away by the bouillabaisse. I really didn't know what to expect. But I guess with a dish like that, you just simply can't go wrong. Basically, you boil the crap out of aromatic veggies, fresh seafood, and some wine, then strain out the broth only to cook more fresh seafood in that yummy seafoody broth. You'd have to have dead taste buds to NOT appreciate that dish.

Cooking was a lot easier this time. We were armed with recipes that seemed reasonable way ahead of time. We had a time line of what needed to be done when so that when one of us was exhausted, the other knew how to take over. We also had help from my mom and dad's maid. She helped us do a lot of the prep work so that J and I could just focus on the cooking and seasoning. I can see the allure of being a chef in a big kitchen with sous chefs and cleaning staff at your beck and call. I think it was also kind of fun for her because I tried to explain what we were doing (she only knows how to do southern Chinese cooking).

So, lessons I have learned: If you have one super fabulous fantatic dish that just simply blows everyone away, you really don't need three more dishes to follow. No one cared that the chicken or the brisket wasn't up to snuff. Also, for complicated recipes, especially ones that you have not attempted before, one must really follow the recipes. Expert time and knowledge was put into crafting them, one must respect that expertise (and thank you Julia Childs for a wonderful bouillabaisse). Don't try too many dishes that are very "new" for the guests. It is good to stretch them but, like Vygotsky says, stay within their zone of proximal distance (new things that will stretch them with a little bit of help). It really pays to have someone help you with the prep work. And, in response to my friend Renee Michelle's earlier comment, we did end up buying our dessert-- a chocolate ganache cake that seemed like it was soaked in Grand Marnier. So the last lesson is, know your limits.

Bacon sprinkles- reprised

I had one of the bacon sprinkled cupcakes this weekend and need to report on the experience.
Well, the banana-bread cupcake was a delicious and moist. The peanut-butter butter cream frosting was pretty good, not too sweet and not too heavy. And the bacon sprinkles...

...well...

well, they are just like bacon, and cold bacon at that. I had hopes that it would prove me wrong. Well, I wasn't offended by it but I wasn't wowed either. Cold greasy bacon isn't as fun as hot crispy bacon. Also, smoked meats doesn't go so well with banana bread and butter creamed frosting.

But, I do have to admit, salty does go well with sweet. I think if I were to bake my own cupcakes (as well as make my own butter cream frosting) I'd put some crushed salted pretzels on top. That would satisfy the crunchy salty goodness that would bring out the peanutty, banana-y yummiess of the cupcake. And this is speaking strictly as a back-seat baker who has more suggestions about how to improve than ability to actually carry out the suggestions.

Get the butter*...

There is a very frequent pattern in which my brain engages. I see/read/hear how beneficial/wonderousness/beautiful/(fill in some very positive life improving/changing aspect) of something is and I am hooked. I just read an article in the NYTimes about butter and baking. It gave very specific instructions on how to cream butter so that you are guaranteed to have perfectly shaped and fabulously rich cookies. I have now fixiated such cookies. Keep reading and you will see why my brain is just being silly!

For Christmas this year, my spouse and I decided to forgo "real" presents and make everyone in my family (extended as well) a really fancy dinner as a gift instead. We like to cook and I like giving gifts that are personally made.

We have been planning this dinner since the beginning of December. With each passing week, the menu gets more and more elaborate. It is now a four course meal for 11 adults (with multiple dietary restrictions) and 2 young children.

We have more or less settled the menu of three of the courses
First course: nutmeg + ginger carrots, a white bean dip + bagel rounds and proscuitto wrapped dates,
Second course: Bouillabaise
Third course: Chinese style beef brisket, lightly sauteed Chinese green vegetable, white rice, mashed potatoes seasoned with smoked paprika, garlic roasted chicken (will actually be done in the crockpot, so technically not a roast), and ratatouille,

So dessert has not been wholly settled and this is where the butter comes into play. I read the article and now think, "Mmm, yummy buttery cookies and pasteries!" Neither J nor I are very good with desserts. We can certainly whip up something yummy in a pinch but it is not just what we gravitate towards and always looks...homely. We had floated the idea of just buying some cheesecakes and fresh fruit. But, as with anything that I do, if I have enough time with it, my imagination runs wild.

I have never, ever, ever in my life made cookies and pastries from scratch. Somehow in my silly brain, I see myself whipping up beautifully elaborate and sublimely scrumptious baked goodies to end the fabulous four course meal. It's like my brain saw a demo video on biking up and down hills and has decided, "Yes, I can race in the Tour de France!"

I need to learn to keep my imagination in check.

(*That is a famous line from a very sordid movie called Last Tango in Paris)

Bacon is the new chocolate

Every Thursday at my spouse's workplace there are cupcakes. Someone there is very obsessed with baking interesting cupcakes from scratch. This week, they had banana bread cupcakes with a peanut-butter butter cream frosting topped with bacon sprinkles. Yes, bacon sprinkles.

Eww.

I had always thought of myself as being fairly open-minded about food. I have eaten congealed duck blood, chicken feet, and cicadas on purpose. Don't get me wrong, I like bacon. When I was vegetarian for five years, I deeply regretted having to give up pepperoni and bacon. But bacon and peanut butter? That just seems so wrong. I am also of the mindset that bacon and sweet milk chocolate should not go together.

I have to admit, my spouse raved about those cupcakes. I generally respect his tastes but he is also the kind of person who will eat almost anything that is put in front of him.
Caveat: He is not totally indiscriminate. There is one line he will never cross again. We tried the Taiwanese delicacy called smell tofu and never again. They really do taste and smell like old rank gym socks.

Supper

For my birthday this year, my spouse agreed to take me out to "a fancy restaurant with really good food". It was important that the atmosphere was nice. I knew I was taking a risk here because I have been to many fancy restaurants that charged a lot of money and was disappointed with the food. I don't deny that the food was probably better than average but I have very high standards when it comes to good food. So, my darling dear, set out to find me an appropriate restaurant. After many many hours of searching and calling for reservations, we ended up at a place called Supper. It was a bit pricier than we would normally do but it had great reviews, was close to home, and looked like it had the kind of ambiance I wanted.

Well, I was not disappointed last night. Here is their description:

"Chef Mitch Prensky presents a menu of New American cuisine tempered by French and Italian techniques and global influences, with a variety of ways to enjoy your dining experience: Hors D'oeuvres; Plates, slightly larger than an appetizer but smaller than a main course; The Large Plate, for the heartier appetite; and Desserts."

We ordered two hors d'oeuvres, two plates, a full cheese platter and a dessert. The waiter (Alex) did a marvelous job of helping us select just the right wine and figure out how to pair the dishes so that they arrived in just the right flavor combinations as well as provide us the right amount of time to linger over their flavors. J and I ran out of words to describe our experience and the food. It was decadent but not overwhelming. It was such a superb experience that when I think of it, I still smile.

That is what a lovely restaurant experience should be!

Remains of Apartheid

We drove by some of the neighborhoods that had been demolished during apartheid. We drove through and stopped at some of the townships which were where a lot of the informal housing (South African for Shanty Towns) was.

I took a photo of a plaque in front of a museum that memorialized this part of South Africa's history. I have video too but haven't had a chance to edit the videos yet.

It was a bit odd to be a tourist of poverty and legalized oppression. I took lots of videos of just miles of these informal housing-- shacks made with corrugated metal for walls and rooftops.

The South African government is working to turn the informal housing in those townships into more formal ones. The trouble is that it is quite difficult. Not only were there a lot of folks in these townships originally (meaning when apartheid existed), there are a lot of immigrants now who end up settling in to the informal housing "system" of these townships (from within the country, its neighbors like Zimbabwe, and other countries within Africa like Burundi) because so many are poor.

Unemployment is at about 24%. Schooling is also a major problem in South Africa (according to a major international study, the TIMMS, in 1999, they were ranked dead last in both math and science as compared to 38 other countries; they did not participate in subsequent studies). As a result, many folks do not have the skills their industries need. There is a lot for me to process (am still processing it) but my entire trip was all heavy. In fact, it was one of the most touristy (and least "heavy") trips I have taken in a long while. I lived mostly in the rich tourist bubble and had a chill fun time. It is just that I started to reflect on this aspect of the trip now and so a lot of the heaviness is coming to me post-trip.

It seems I can only figure out how to upload one photo to one post at a time. When I try to upload a second photo, blogger seems to freeze up on me. Any one have any suggestions on what to do?

For now I will only post this. So more posts in later days.

Back from South Africa

I'm back in the States and dealing with some crazy crazy jet/time/season change lags. I am utterly exhausted by 8 or so and wake up at 3ish in the morning. I also recently went from getting a sunburn sitting out in my tank top to getting frostbite on my toes.

The trip to South Africa was a bit of mind bender to me. I flew straight to Jo-burg (as South Africans lovingly call Johannesburg) and then another 2 to Cape Town. On the flight to Cape Town, a really really drunk French man sat in front of me. For two hours, he attempted to hit on every female within arms distance. The poor woman who sat in his row was cornered into the window seat by this man. Being French didn't really matter except that he seemed even more lecherous with a drunken French accent. He was really giving French men a really bad name.

When I arrive, it was evening but warm and lovely. To top it off, my friend (the groom) who was getting married happened to meet me at the airport. Whoo hoo! That made up for the crazy drunken French man.

Since the wedding was about seven days away and I had no wedding responsibilities other than the honor of making the toast to the groom's parents (I succeeded in my goal of keeping it short and sweet), I got to play the tourist for the next 7 days. This was by far the most stereotypical touristy trip I have done in a very long time. Each day was fairly packed with sightseeing and doing of fairly touristy stuff. All in all did not much interact with the locals and wondered every so often as to whether or not I am really in a different continent. We had been warned time and again that South Africa was very dangerous and I should avoid all contact with locals that either hadn't been vouched for or I didn't know. I am not used to NOT interacting with people I don't know. When at home, I am quite happy to talk to strangers at bus stops.

I had tried to upload some photos and descriptions but was having trouble with blogger. So I will post more in the upcoming days.