25 April 2011

Svetlana!

"Iris Bahr is 'Svetlana,' a sharp, acerbic, no-nonsense woman of indeterminate age (between 30 and 50, she'll never tell) who landed in Minnesota from the USSR years ago as a mail-order bride. She quickly left her humdrum life and milquetoast husband, Steve, for a life of edge and passion on the streets of Los Angeles — pursuing her version of the American dream — opening a brothel that caters to high end clients. And with that was born "St. Petersburg House of Discreet Pleasure."

I promise I didn't know the Minnesota part of the main character's back story before I fell in laughter with this show. Mohomies out there will love, I'm sure!

Happy Easter and One Day


I think I maybe get why broken, stereotypical housewives made funny cocktail foods and drank martinis and did Valium back in the 50s. You'd probably see Jesus in the yolks or something. These were hilarious and finicky and time-consuming little things to make but I'd definitely do it again. They were quite delicious with a beer (kind of salty, would cut down next time) and I was rewarded by seeing some guy at this party eat one and mumble to himself about forgetting how much he loved deviled eggs. I guess I'm holding true happily to what the checkout guy at the co-op said to me yesterday: "Every holiday's a food holiday now, ya know?"

***
"Deviled Eggs Also Known As Oblong Heaven" (taken from Epicurious, taken from Brini Maxwell's Guide to Gracious Living.

Note: Points ON for the title of course, points off for amount of salt - only do 1/4 tsp, if at all. Also, I think it would be nice if the filling ended up a little more creamy (it was kind of like clay that you had to smoosh smooth) but hey, nothing a tablespoon or so of cream or water couldn't accomplish next time, or just boiling the eggs themselves a little less.
  • 12 hard-boiled eggs, cooled completely
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
  • Chopped fresh chives, for garnish
Preparation:

"Shell the eggs, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the yolks carefully. (We don't want messy broken whites, do we?) Put the yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork. Add all the remaining ingredients (except the chives) to the yolks and mix well. Place a dollop of the yolk mixture in the indentation in each of the egg white halves and garnish with chopped chives.

Here's a hint: Cut your chives up with scissors instead of a knife. The process will go much more quickly.

Shelling eggs
Getting those hard-boiled eggs out of the shell can be quite a chore. I've found that the best way begins with the cooking. Boil your eggs for exactly ten minutes, then transfer them to a bowl of cold water immediately and leave them there for at least another ten minutes. This will stop the cooking of the eggs and ensure the easy removal of the shells. Once your eggs have cooled, take one and crack the shell, starting at the large end, where the little pocket of air usually is, and continue all the way around. Then, under running water, find or make a small tear in the membrane beneath the shell and let the water run between the membrane and the egg. The water will do most of the work for you and the egg will practically peel itself"

21 April 2011

20 April 2011

"Savage Love"

I don't read the column "Savage Love" often but when I do, I always laugh and am thankful for it (and for the recommendation from Hal-Bal way back when.)

"MTV, a cable television channel that has been broadcasting music videos in a continuous loop since the summer of 1981, has elected to speed the moral collapse of the United States by putting me [Dan Savage] on television. My upcoming sex-advice program is tentatively titled Savage U, and it represents MTV's first foray into non-music-video programming. (My preferred title for the show—Dan Savage's Alaska—was rejected by the program's co–executive producer, Piper Palin.) This news has upset not only my son, who has been in the MTV stage of his development for roughly three years, but also Maggie Gallagher, the head of the National Organization for Marriage, who has been stuck in the raving-bigot stage of her development for nearly three decades."

Now I'm sure that whatever goes onto MTV will be a little...eh, but God does the guy know how to write sensibly and simply about relationships and the sexins.

PS, if you really want your blood to boil (I'm being sort of serious - it's kind of upsetting,) check out the National Organization for Marriage's website as it's ridiculous, embarrassing, and puritanical - all at once!

Snow?!

Weather, yeah, I know, but still.