It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
on that day.)

* Steamed golden beets, maroon carrots, and water chestnuts[1] with plum
sauce

* Chinese greens stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, chiles, and chives

* Steak with black-bean butter sauce

* Jasmine rice

* Chocolate-dipped candied kumquat[2]

I want to come up with some quasi-Asian cocktail using blood orange juice,
too. Maybe blood orange juice, mango nectar, and rum? I haven't decided yet.

Bob
[1] Our local Whole Foods sells fresh water chestnuts, which are a dramatic
step up from canned.
[2] This assumes that kumquats will be available in the farmers' market on
Saturday. According to the farmers, they *should* be there. If not, I'll
make something else. I want to downplay dessert in any case.

On Feb 11, 4:16*am, "Bob Terwilliger" >
wrote:
> It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> on that day.)

Naw, we don't do Hallmark holidays. No Valentine's Day, no Mother's
Day,
no Sweetest Day. Pah.

Himself is traveling on business on the 15th, so I'll probably fix
something
that is fairly bland, like roasted chicken. (Homeland Security
doesn't like
it when I feed him chili and put him on a plane. I believe the other
people
on the plane would prefer Sarin. At least it's over quickly that
way.)

We had a snow day yesterday, and I tried a new curry recipe. He liked
it very much, and said he appreciated me. We both felt special.

Cindy Hamilton

On Feb 11, 9:37*am, Cindy Hamilton >
wrote:
> On Feb 11, 4:16*am, "Bob Terwilliger" >
> wrote:
>
> > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> > on that day.)
>
> Naw, we don't do Hallmark holidays. *No Valentine's Day, no Mother's
> Day, no Sweetest Day. *Pah.
>
Valentine's Day is not a Hallmark holiday, silly. Sure, some folks
treat it that way. I find the whole kids' school valentine exchange
to be sickening. Every year I make my wife a lobster. I boil it,
then serve her the tail and large claw meat with butter-lemon. I
discard the head and liver. I remove the rest of the meat and reserve
it, then I extract the lobster flavor from the shells with successive
boilings and reductions. I season the well reduced broth with a
little garlic and/or onion, thicken with cornstarch and cream, and add
the meat, and a tiny bit of salt. A pat of butter on top of the soup
is nice. She is crazy about lobster. I'm not, but I am crazy about
her.

So she gets the lobster, then a few hours later, the soup. There are
no greeting cards involved. I haven't bought a greeting card in
decades.

>
> Cindy Hamilton

--Bryan

On Feb 12, 8:14*am, --Bryan > wrote:
> On Feb 11, 9:37*am, Cindy Hamilton >
> wrote:> On Feb 11, 4:16*am, "Bob Terwilliger" >
> > wrote:
>
> > > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> > > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> > > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> > > on that day.)
>
> > Naw, we don't do Hallmark holidays. *No Valentine's Day, no Mother's
> > Day, no Sweetest Day. *Pah.
>
> Valentine's Day is not a Hallmark holiday, silly. *

Sure, it is. I don't need anybody to tell me what day to show my
husband
I love him. Every day is Valentine's Day.

Cindy Hamilton

On Feb 12, 7:49*am, Cindy Hamilton >
wrote:
> On Feb 12, 8:14*am, --Bryan > wrote:
>
> > On Feb 11, 9:37*am, Cindy Hamilton >
> > wrote:> On Feb 11, 4:16*am, "Bob Terwilliger" >
> > > wrote:
>
> > > > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> > > > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> > > > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> > > > on that day.)
>
> > > Naw, we don't do Hallmark holidays. *No Valentine's Day, no Mother's
> > > Day, no Sweetest Day. *Pah.
>
> > Valentine's Day is not a Hallmark holiday, silly. *
>
> Sure, it is. *I don't need anybody to tell me what day to show my
> husband
> I love him.

Sure, but Valentine's Day was not invented by the greeting card
folks. It has a long history.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine's_Day

>*Every day is Valentine's Day.

I'm happy for you, but there are cultural events to commemmorate lots
of things. Thanksgiving, Independence Day, Labor Day, Memorial Day,
Veterans Day, etc all call attention to some aspect of life. There
are also the religious holidays, some of which I celebrate even though
I don't necessarily believe in the associated myths. It doesn't mean
that we should only feel the emotions associated with those days, on
those days. Today I'm giving my wife nice back/neck rubs before she
goes to work. On Sunday I'm making her lobster. She likes
traditions. It makes her happy. We do not celebrate Sweetest Day.

>
> Cindy Hamilton

--Bryan

On Feb 12, 9:03*am, --Bryan > wrote:
> On Feb 12, 7:49*am, Cindy Hamilton >
> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Feb 12, 8:14*am, --Bryan > wrote:
>
> > > On Feb 11, 9:37*am, Cindy Hamilton >
> > > wrote:> On Feb 11, 4:16*am, "Bob Terwilliger" >
> > > > wrote:
>
> > > > > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> > > > > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> > > > > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> > > > > on that day.)
>
> > > > Naw, we don't do Hallmark holidays. *No Valentine's Day, no Mother's
> > > > Day, no Sweetest Day. *Pah.
>
> > > Valentine's Day is not a Hallmark holiday, silly. *
>
> > Sure, it is. *I don't need anybody to tell me what day to show my
> > husband
> > I love him.
>
> Sure, but Valentine's Day was not invented by the greeting card
> folks. *It has a long history.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine's_Day

Valentine's Day as we know it was invented by the Victorians.

> >*Every day is Valentine's Day.
>
> I'm happy for you, but there are cultural events to commemmorate lots
> of things. *Thanksgiving, Independence Day, Labor Day, Memorial Day,
> Veterans Day, etc all call attention to some aspect of life. *

And except for Thanksgiving, we don't do anything special for those,
either.
Our employers are kind enough to give us a day off (except Veterans'
Day),
but if they didn't, we wouldn't miss it.

If we had a Hooter's here, we might consider it for Valentine's Day;
it
might not be very crowded that day. When we lived near to one, we
often went there on Mother's Day or Easter for that reason.

Cindy Hamilton

"--Bryan" > wrote in message
...
On Feb 12, 7:49 am, Cindy Hamilton >
wrote:
> On Feb 12, 8:14 am, --Bryan > wrote:
>
> > On Feb 11, 9:37 am, Cindy Hamilton >
> > wrote:> On Feb 11, 4:16 am, "Bob Terwilliger"
> > >
> > > wrote:
>
> > > > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on
> > > > Valentine's
> > > > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because
> > > > this
> > > > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play
> > > > Chinese"
> > > > on that day.)
>
> > > Naw, we don't do Hallmark holidays. No Valentine's Day, no Mother's
> > > Day, no Sweetest Day. Pah.
>
> > Valentine's Day is not a Hallmark holiday, silly.
>
> Sure, it is. I don't need anybody to tell me what day to show my
> husband
> I love him.

Sure, but Valentine's Day was not invented by the greeting card
folks. It has a long history.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine's_Day

> Every day is Valentine's Day.

I'm happy for you, but there are cultural events to commemmorate lots
of things. Thanksgiving, Independence Day, Labor Day, Memorial Day,
Veterans Day, etc all call attention to some aspect of life.
(snippage)
--Bryan


I understand Cindy's description of a "Hallmark Holiday". I sure don't send
out Thanksgiving cards, but Hallmark and other greeting card companies put
them out there! Never in my life did I send an Easter or an Independence
Day card, and it wasn't due to lack of the greeting card companies trying.
I don't send out Memorial Day or Labor Day cards, either. But yes, they're
out there. Along with Boss's Day, Assistant's Day, Secretary's Day, yada
yada yada. It's an industry. And not an industry everyone cares to spend
money on, especially not at about $3 USD per card plus postage, and they're
always oversized. No thanks!

Valentine's Day is fine if you do something nice like cook a nice meal or go
out to dinner. I think Cindy's point was it's become too commercialized.
Just like Christmas.

Jill

In article <c225b02a-a4df-4514-abb0-f7a25470b1e4
@z19g2000yqk.googlegroups.com>, says...

> Valentine's Day is not a Hallmark holiday, silly. Sure, some folks
> treat it that way. I find the whole kids' school valentine exchange
> to be sickening. Every year I make my wife a lobster. I boil it,
> then serve her the tail and large claw meat with butter-lemon. I
> discard the head and liver. I remove the rest of the meat and reserve
> it, then I extract the lobster flavor from the shells with successive
> boilings and reductions. I season the well reduced broth with a
> little garlic and/or onion, thicken with cornstarch and cream, and add
> the meat, and a tiny bit of salt. A pat of butter on top of the soup
> is nice. She is crazy about lobster. I'm not, but I am crazy about
> her.
>
> So she gets the lobster, then a few hours later, the soup. There are
> no greeting cards involved. I haven't bought a greeting card in
> decades.
>
> >
> > Cindy Hamilton
>
> --Bryan

Sounds nice. Glad you and your girl get along like that... I do to with
mine

Scotty

I ended up making scampi for dinner yesterday.
Not his favorite, but we had the ingredients on hand.

Next weekend I'll do a turkey, which IS one of his faves.

Cindy Hamilton

On Thu, 11 Feb 2010 01:16:27 -0800, Bob Terwilliger wrote:

> It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> on that day.)
>
> * Steamed golden beets, maroon carrots, and water chestnuts[1] with plum
> sauce
>
> * Chinese greens stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, chiles, and chives
>
> * Steak with black-bean butter sauce

i'm having a little trouble visualizing this last item. could you
elaborate a little?

your pal,
blake

On Feb 11, 10:20*am, blake murphy > wrote:
> On Thu, 11 Feb 2010 01:16:27 -0800, Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
> > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
> > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
> > on that day.)
>
> > * Steamed golden beets, maroon carrots, and water chestnuts[1] with plum
> > sauce
>
> > * Chinese greens stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, chiles, and chives
>
> > * Steak with black-bean butter sauce
>
> i'm having a little trouble visualizing this last item. *could you
> elaborate a little?

He'd be more than happy to *elaborate*, since the whole thing is made
up and will exist only in his mind.

On Thu, 11 Feb 2010 12:28:13 -0800 (PST), projectile vomit chick
> wrote:

>On Feb 11, 10:20*am, blake murphy > wrote:
>> On Thu, 11 Feb 2010 01:16:27 -0800, Bob Terwilliger wrote:
>> > It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
>> > Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
>> > year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
>> > on that day.)
>>
>> > * Steamed golden beets, maroon carrots, and water chestnuts[1] with plum
>> > sauce
>>
>> > * Chinese greens stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, chiles, and chives
>>
>> > * Steak with black-bean butter sauce
>>
>> i'm having a little trouble visualizing this last item. *could you
>> elaborate a little?
>
>He'd be more than happy to *elaborate*, since the whole thing is made
>up and will exist only in his mind.

Baboon ass face has a mind... obviously relies on his shmoo... only
half a man would post his picture using his blow up shmoo as a foil.

PVC wrote:

> He'd be more than happy to *elaborate*, since the whole thing is made up
> and will exist only in his mind.

Hiya, DSL! What are *you* having for Valentine's Day? A quart of
Haagen-Dazs, a quart of rum, and a crying jag?

Bob

blake wrote:

>> * Steak with black-bean butter sauce
>
> i'm having a little trouble visualizing this last item. could you
> elaborate a little?

The sauce starts out by grinding fermented black beans with garlic and hot
chiles, then running in a food processor or blender to make a smooth paste.
That paste is heated in a skillet until fragrant, then cold butter is
whisked in to make a glossy sauce. Just before serving, chopped cilantro is
added.

The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
cut up meat at the table. If I wanted to enter fully into the spirit of the
occasion I'd cut the meat off the bone and then into cubes, but Lin and I
have no such cultural inhibitions, so the steaks will be served whole, with
a little sauce on top and the rest of the sauce on the side.

Bob

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

> blake wrote:
>
> >> * Steak with black-bean butter sauce
> >
> > i'm having a little trouble visualizing this last item. could you
> > elaborate a little?
>
> The sauce starts out by grinding fermented black beans with garlic and hot
> chiles,

No ginger and onion?

>then running in a food processor or blender to make a smooth paste.
> That paste is heated in a skillet until fragrant, then cold butter is
> whisked in to make a glossy sauce. Just before serving, chopped cilantro is
> added.
>
Chile and cilantro? Huh. Sounds like Southwest/Chinese fusion.

Have you done this before? It seems like a black bean sauce would
overwhelm the flavor of your steaks.

> The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
> have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
> cut up meat at the table.

Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
"bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
pay better attention to serving size.

>If I wanted to enter fully into the spirit of the
> occasion I'd cut the meat off the bone and then into cubes, but Lin and I
> have no such cultural inhibitions, so the steaks will be served whole, with
> a little sauce on top and the rest of the sauce on the side.
>


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

In article >,
sf > wrote:

> On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> > wrote:

> Chile and cilantro? Huh. Sounds like Southwest/Chinese fusion.

Chilis are very common in parts of China. Cilantro is often referred to
as "Chinese parsley".

> Have you done this before? It seems like a black bean sauce would
> overwhelm the flavor of your steaks.
>
> > The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
> > have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
> > cut up meat at the table.

My brother is an amazing cook. He is married to a Chinese woman, who
appreciates his cooking. However, the other Chinese relatives sometimes
consider him a terrible cook. A few years ago, he served a whole turkey
and whole ham for Thanksgiving. That pretty much did in his reputation.

> Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
> "bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
> pay better attention to serving size.

The food served in US Chinese restaurants isn't always reflective of
what is done in China, or even in the home here in the US of the chef.
Still, I don't believe that Bob wrote "bite sized", just that it is
considered very rude to serve food that needs to be cut at the table.
It appears to me to be acceptable to serve food that takes more than one
bite. I haven't noticed if people put the food down in between bites (I
think they sometimes do), or just hold it in their chopsticks while they
eat it. The key is "chopsticks". It's OK to do anything that doesn't
require a knife at the table. Whole fish are fine. People just dig in
with their chopsticks.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 12:05:01 -0800, Dan Abel > wrote:

> In article >,
> sf > wrote:
>
> > On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> > > wrote:
>
> > Chile and cilantro? Huh. Sounds like Southwest/Chinese fusion.
>
> Chilis are very common in parts of China. Cilantro is often referred to
> as "Chinese parsley".

Do you really think I'm that ignorant? It was a joke. My point is I
haven't heard of them as ingredients in black bean sauce and he left
out crucial ingredients of onion (scallion) and ginger.
>
> > Have you done this before? It seems like a black bean sauce would
> > overwhelm the flavor of your steaks.
> >
> > > The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
> > > have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
> > > cut up meat at the table.
>
> My brother is an amazing cook. He is married to a Chinese woman, who
> appreciates his cooking. However, the other Chinese relatives sometimes
> consider him a terrible cook. A few years ago, he served a whole turkey
> and whole ham for Thanksgiving. That pretty much did in his reputation.
>
> > Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
> > "bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
> > pay better attention to serving size.
>
> The food served in US Chinese restaurants isn't always reflective of
> what is done in China, or even in the home here in the US of the chef.
> Still, I don't believe that Bob wrote "bite sized", just that it is
> considered very rude to serve food that needs to be cut at the table.

Again, I know what he said and I'm talking about American restaurants.
Why cloud the issue? He also mentioned cutting/butchery at the table
which is what *I* feel like I need to do with the so called "bite
sized" pieces of meat that I'm served in restaurants.

> It appears to me to be acceptable to serve food that takes more than one
> bite.

It's not acceptable to me.

>I haven't noticed if people put the food down in between bites (I
> think they sometimes do), or just hold it in their chopsticks while they
> eat it. The key is "chopsticks".

They don't put it down. They chew off a hunk, eat it and either chew
on it again if it's still too big or put the rest of it in their
mouth. Ugh. I hate that. I don't mind the rice bowl scooping thing,
it's biting chunks off hunks of meat that I don't like to do.

> It's OK to do anything that doesn't require a knife at the table.

I don't care what's ok for others, I'm talking about what's ok for me.
Chewing on a hunk of meat held by chopsticks has all the appeal of
forking a t-bone lollipop style and chewing on it that way.

> Whole fish are fine. People just dig in with their chopsticks.

Neither of us were talking about fish and they use chopsticks and a
spoon with whole fish.


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

sf wrote:
> On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> > wrote:

>> The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
>> have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
>> cut up meat at the table.
>
> Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
> "bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
> pay better attention to serving size.


That is one of the problems I have with Sushi. Some of those pieces are
huge and the common wisdom is to eat the whole thing at once... and
sheesh, that just isn't possible. But take a bite and the darn thing
starts to fall apart and there you sit with your chopsticks flailing in
the air while part of your meal drops down the front of your shirt.

George L

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:17:17 -0600, George Leppla
> wrote:

> sf wrote:
> > On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> > > wrote:
>
> >> The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
> >> have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
> >> cut up meat at the table.
> >
> > Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
> > "bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
> > pay better attention to serving size.
>
>
> That is one of the problems I have with Sushi. Some of those pieces are
> huge and the common wisdom is to eat the whole thing at once... and
> sheesh, that just isn't possible. But take a bite and the darn thing
> starts to fall apart and there you sit with your chopsticks flailing in
> the air while part of your meal drops down the front of your shirt.
>
I couldn't agree more. I order sashimi (tuna) which is two bites but
at least I don't have to gnaw and it's not messy to eat.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:17:17 -0600, George Leppla wrote:

> sf wrote:
>> On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
>> > wrote:
>
>>> The steaks are bone-in ribeyes which will be grilled over charcoal. Chinese
>>> have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it butchery to
>>> cut up meat at the table.
>>
>> Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
>> "bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
>> pay better attention to serving size.
>
> That is one of the problems I have with Sushi. Some of those pieces are
> huge and the common wisdom is to eat the whole thing at once... and
> sheesh, that just isn't possible. But take a bite and the darn thing
> starts to fall apart and there you sit with your chopsticks flailing in
> the air while part of your meal drops down the front of your shirt.
>
> George L

i just pick up sushi pieces with my fingers and (carefully) bite them in
half. i read somewhere this was acceptable, even in japan, and if that
information is incorrect i don't want to know about it.

your pal,
blake

sf wrote:

>> The sauce starts out by grinding fermented black beans with garlic and
>> hot chiles,
>
> No ginger and onion?

Sorry, I left some stuff out: Yes, the sauce will also contain ginger,
scallions, and sherry.


> Chile and cilantro? Huh. Sounds like Southwest/Chinese fusion.

The butter is what really makes this a fusion dish. Chiles and cilantro are
fairly common in Chinese cooking.


> Have you done this before? It seems like a black bean sauce would
> overwhelm the flavor of your steaks.

The steaks aren't going to be drenched in the sauce; they'll just have a
tablespoon of sauce on top, and more sauce served separately.


>> Chinese have a distaste for whole steaks on a plate; they consider it
>> butchery to cut up meat at the table.
>
> Which I find very odd, considering how large the individual pieces of
> "bite sized" meat are... at least in restaurants, where they should
> pay better attention to serving size.

Send the dish back and tell them to cut it up more finely!

Bob

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 19:45:14 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

> Send the dish back and tell them to cut it up more finely!

When we met, we didn't get into stories about how I send things back.
The classic story is how I embarrass my family by the way I send Eggs
Benedict back - because it didn't meet my standards, How hard is it
to make poached egg with a firm white and a runny yoke? When they see
Eggs Benedict on the menu they chorus "don't order it" to me. Thank
goodness we don't go out to breakfast/brunch as a group very often.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:22:28 -0800, Bob Terwilliger wrote:

> blake wrote:
>
>>> * Steak with black-bean butter sauce
>>
>> i'm having a little trouble visualizing this last item. could you
>> elaborate a little?
>
> The sauce starts out by grinding fermented black beans with garlic and hot
> chiles, then running in a food processor or blender to make a smooth paste.
> That paste is heated in a skillet until fragrant, then cold butter is
> whisked in to make a glossy sauce. Just before serving, chopped cilantro is
> added.

o.k., thanks. i don't think i've heard of fermented black beans and butter
together before.

your pal,
blake

blake wrote:

> i don't think i've heard of fermented black beans and butter together
> before.

I can't take any credit for it; I got the idea from Ming Tsai.

Bob

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 19:50:55 -0800, Bob Terwilliger wrote:

> blake wrote:
>
>> i don't think i've heard of fermented black beans and butter together
>> before.
>
> I can't take any credit for it; I got the idea from Ming Tsai.
>
> Bob

i just wanted to make sure you weren't talking about something like a nut
'butter' using the back beans.

your pal,
blake

Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on
> Valentine's Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent
> because this year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like
> to "play Chinese" on that day.)
>
> * Steamed golden beets, maroon carrots, and water chestnuts[1] with plum
> sauce
>
> * Chinese greens stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, chiles, and chives
>
> * Steak with black-bean butter sauce
>
> * Jasmine rice
>
> * Chocolate-dipped candied kumquat[2]
>
> I want to come up with some quasi-Asian cocktail using blood orange
> juice, too. Maybe blood orange juice, mango nectar, and rum? I haven't
> decided yet.
>
> Bob
> [1] Our local Whole Foods sells fresh water chestnuts, which are a
> dramatic step up from canned.
> [2] This assumes that kumquats will be available in the farmers' market
> on Saturday. According to the farmers, they *should* be there. If not,
> I'll make something else. I want to downplay dessert in any case.

That veggie combo sounds beautiful!

--
Jean B.

In article >,
Bob Terwilliger > wrote:
>It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
>Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
>year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
>on that day.)

*menu snipped*

Sounds great, Bob!

I am in the middle of Dessertapalooza. So far I have made lemon-lime
curd, which will go in sugar-cookie-crust mini-tarts (mini-muffin pan
hooray). (Mom made them for Christmas, with premade sugar cookie dough,
and they were awesome.) I also made some grand marnier ganache for
truffle filling.

Today I have so far made a lot of browned butter for a browned butter jam
bar recipe I found on Livejournal. After I change my shirt here, I'm
going to try pastry cream, the better to make cream puffs (I have done
gougeres before but not creampuffs).

I think all I might be up for after that is a round of Barb's Brownies,
which I can almost make in my sleep now. (Although the bar of chocolate i
started melting and thought better of can keep.)

I'm going to a potluck dinner party at my BFF's on Sunday night after
helping with the church's monthly Second Sunday wingding. Since it is
both V-day (special decoration possibilities) and the LAST Sunday before
Lent, we will probably be blowing it out. I also learned that my teacher
is in the hospital again, so after pastry cream I will probably be off to
pick up an organic roasted chicken from a place she loves and deliver it
with some veggies, and maybe take some of the sweets in for the staff
later.

Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")

Charlotte
--

Charlotte L. Blackmer wrote:
> In article >,
> Bob Terwilliger > wrote:
>> It's only three days away! Is anybody else planning to cook on Valentine's
>> Day? Here's the menu I'm planning. (It's got a Chinese bent because this
>> year that day is also Chinese New Year, and Lin and I like to "play Chinese"
>> on that day.)
>
> *menu snipped*
>
> Sounds great, Bob!

Seconded!

>
> I am in the middle of Dessertapalooza. So far I have made lemon-lime
> curd, which will go in sugar-cookie-crust mini-tarts (mini-muffin pan
> hooray).

Oh, yummy!

> (Mom made them for Christmas, with premade sugar cookie dough,
> and they were awesome.) I also made some grand marnier ganache for
> truffle filling.
>
> Today I have so far made a lot of browned butter for a browned butter jam
> bar recipe I found on Livejournal.

Oh, interesting. Link?

> After I change my shirt here, I'm
> going to try pastry cream, the better to make cream puffs (I have done
> gougeres before but not creampuffs).

How did they turn out?

>
> I think all I might be up for after that is a round of Barb's Brownies,
> which I can almost make in my sleep now. (Although the bar of chocolate i
> started melting and thought better of can keep.)
>
> I'm going to a potluck dinner party at my BFF's on Sunday night after
> helping with the church's monthly Second Sunday wingding. Since it is
> both V-day (special decoration possibilities) and the LAST Sunday before
> Lent, we will probably be blowing it out. I also learned that my teacher
> is in the hospital again, so after pastry cream I will probably be off to
> pick up an organic roasted chicken from a place she loves and deliver it
> with some veggies, and maybe take some of the sweets in for the staff
> later.

You're a good girl.

>
> Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
> Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")

:-)

ObDinner: Tacos (foofy corn tortillas -- green chili and chipotle
flavors; taco-seasoned TVP; spicy refried beans; salsa; lettuce;
shredded cheddar; chopped onions); David Lebovitz's vanilla ice cream.

Serene
--
"I tend to come down on the side of autonomy. Once people are grown up,
I believe they have the right to go to hell in the handbasket of their
choosing." -- Pat Kight, on alt.polyamory

Charlotte wrote:

> I am in the middle of Dessertapalooza. So far I have made lemon-lime
> curd, which will go in sugar-cookie-crust mini-tarts (mini-muffin pan
> hooray). (Mom made them for Christmas, with premade sugar cookie dough,
> and they were awesome.) I also made some grand marnier ganache for
> truffle filling.
>
> Today I have so far made a lot of browned butter for a browned butter jam
> bar recipe I found on Livejournal. After I change my shirt here, I'm
> going to try pastry cream, the better to make cream puffs (I have done
> gougeres before but not creampuffs).
>
> I think all I might be up for after that is a round of Barb's Brownies,
> which I can almost make in my sleep now. (Although the bar of chocolate i
> started melting and thought better of can keep.)
>
> I'm going to a potluck dinner party at my BFF's on Sunday night after
> helping with the church's monthly Second Sunday wingding. Since it is
> both V-day (special decoration possibilities) and the LAST Sunday before
> Lent, we will probably be blowing it out. I also learned that my teacher
> is in the hospital again, so after pastry cream I will probably be off to
> pick up an organic roasted chicken from a place she loves and deliver it
> with some veggies, and maybe take some of the sweets in for the staff
> later.
>
> Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
> Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")

How on earth did I miss Serene's writing that? I agree with it completely.

Boy, that's quite a Dessertapalooza, too! I hope all were appropriately
impressed.

Bob

In article >,
"Bob Terwilliger" > wrote:

> > Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
> > Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")
>
> How on earth did I miss Serene's writing that? I agree with it completely.
>
> Boy, that's quite a Dessertapalooza, too! I hope all were appropriately
> impressed.
>
> Bob

I missed that too. :-) Serene is living up to her name. Well done!
--
Peace! Om

"Human nature seems to be to control other people until they put their foot down."
--Steve Rothstein

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>

Subscribe:

In article >,
"Bob Terwilliger" > wrote:

> Charlotte wrote:

> > Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
> > Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")
>
> How on earth did I miss Serene's writing that? I agree with it completely.
>
> Boy, that's quite a Dessertapalooza, too! I hope all were appropriately
> impressed.

Serene says and writes some pretty impressive things. But just to tweak
you a little bit, Charlotte didn't claim that Serene wrote and posted
it, but only that she "says" it.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

Dan Abel wrote:
> In article >,
> "Bob Terwilliger" > wrote:
>
>> Charlotte wrote:
>
>>> Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
>>> Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")
>> How on earth did I miss Serene's writing that? I agree with it completely.
>>
>> Boy, that's quite a Dessertapalooza, too! I hope all were appropriately
>> impressed.
>
> Serene says and writes some pretty impressive things.

Gosh, thanks.

> But just to tweak
> you a little bit, Charlotte didn't claim that Serene wrote and posted
> it, but only that she "says" it.
>

I write it a lot elsewhere. I even made a usericon out of it:

http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/53127024/295464

My mother is of the Food Is Love school, and gets offended if you don't
like what she's serving, etc. She does love her family, but hooking
food to affection the way she always has can cause some... issues. I
successfully fought an eating disorder in my early 20s, and part of that
fight was learning to separate the affectionate act from the food itself.

I love it that my family knows that if they don't like something I've
served them, they aren't going to be treated as though they've rejected
me, and I love that they appreciate the effort I go through to feed
them, even if they don't like/eat some small percentage of the things I
make. It's a healthier path for us, emotionally, than the one my mom
started me on all those years ago.

Serene

--
"I tend to come down on the side of autonomy. Once people are grown up,
I believe they have the right to go to hell in the handbasket of their
choosing." -- Pat Kight, on alt.polyamory

In article >,
Dan Abel > wrote:
>In article >,
> "Bob Terwilliger" > wrote:
>
>> Charlotte wrote:
>
>> > Doing stuff like this is my anti-angst and anti-Hallmark strategy. (As
>> > Serene says, "Food isn't love. Feeding people is love.")
>>
>> How on earth did I miss Serene's writing that? I agree with it completely.
>>
>> Boy, that's quite a Dessertapalooza, too! I hope all were appropriately
>> impressed.
>
>Serene says and writes some pretty impressive things. But just to tweak
>you a little bit, Charlotte didn't claim that Serene wrote and posted
>it, but only that she "says" it.

Well, I will say that Serene has posted that repeatedly, enough to
register even in my tiny, distracted mind. It may not have
been on Usenet, though .

I have Dessertapalooza leftovers. It's gonna be a Fat Monday and Fat
Tuesday for me!

(Not giving up added-sugar this Lent, but remainders might go in the
freezer.)

Charlotte
--

I wrote:

> * Steamed golden beets, maroon carrots, and water chestnuts with plum
> sauce

This was amazing. Definitely worth doing again and again.



> * Chinese greens stir-fried with mushrooms, garlic, chiles, and chives

I followed a Barbara Tropp recipe for this one, using rainbow chard and a
medium-sized bok choy. The Tropp recipe called for chanterelles, which made
it pretty special. (Greens and mushrooms are a natural match, of course.
Assertions to the contrary are only made by newbie simpletons.)



> * Steak with black-bean butter sauce

Lin picked out a Zinfandel to accompany our meal. The combination of the
steak with the sauce and the wine was so good it was hard to think of
anything else while eating it.



> * Chocolate-dipped candied kumquat

I candied six kumquats and dipped them in the chocolate. When I was done, I
still had a lot of melted chocolate left over, so I also dipped another nine
or ten raw kumquats. At dessert we had some of each. Both were good, but in
different ways. The raw kumquats had a slight crunch to them, and were less
sweet (of course). We've still got about eight of the raw ones left.



> I want to come up with some quasi-Asian cocktail using blood orange juice,
> too. Maybe blood orange juice, mango nectar, and rum? I haven't decided
> yet.

The only rum we had in the house was Sailor Jerry's rum, which is spiced
with vanilla (among other things), so the cocktail turned out quite sweet. I
used a pureed fresh mango rather than mango nectar, so I blended the drink
mixture with crushed ice in an effort to dilute it (and thin it as the ice
melted). Not earth-shaking, but okay.

Bob

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 03:38:51 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

> I candied six kumquats and dipped them in the chocolate. When I was done, I
> still had a lot of melted chocolate left over, so I also dipped another nine
> or ten raw kumquats. At dessert we had some of each. Both were good, but in
> different ways. The raw kumquats had a slight crunch to them, and were less
> sweet (of course). We've still got about eight of the raw ones left.
>
I absolutely *love* kumquats! You just reminded me that I need to
visit the local nursery to see how they will do where I live. I'd
like a tree.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.