It's funny how much you think you know about yourself, and then you realize that your mind is just this cataclysmic black hole, and your brain is just this endless, never ending supernova of thoughts that you can never predict.
I don't really know much of anything at all.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Theme Thursday: Knot
The theme for this week's 'theme thursday' is knot. If you've been keeping up with my blog you know that recently I've been trying to be healthier. I'm in those early adult years of my life where it's imperative for me to get into my peak health, and (hopefully) stay that way. However, it's not always easy when, as a college student, you're constantly faced with opportunities for cheap fast food. I've been cooking things from scratch more and more this semester, avoiding processed foods and ready-made alternatives. I'm constantly dabbling in vegetarian cooking, and I absolutely love to make vegetarian lasagna, with which I like to have a couple of Garlic Knots.
Here's a great recipe I recently came across at Petite Kitchenesse:
Ingredients:
Dough:
* 3 cups of all-purpose flour
* 1 tbsp. sugar
* 2 tsp. active dry yeast
* 1 tsp. salt
* 2 tbsp. olive oil
* 1/4 cup of milk
* 1 cup of lukewarm water (plus more as needed)
Coating:
* 3 cloves of garlic
* 2 tbsp. olive oil
* 2 tbsp. butter
* 3 tbsp. chopped parsley
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Make a well in the center, and add in olive oil, milk, and water. Using a fork, incorporate dry ingredients into liquid until a ball forms. Turn dough out on a floured surface and knead until smooth, around 8–10 minutes. Transfer to a lightly-oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Remove dough from the bowl. Divide into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a long rope. Tie in a knot and tuck ends into the center. Place the knots of dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover with a tea towel and let rise for another 45 minutes.
In the meantime, heat butter and oil in a skillet. Add garlic and cook over medium heat, until it begins to brown. Add in parsley, stir to combine, and remove from heat.
Preheat oven to 400°. Brush garlic knots with half of garlic-parsley mixture. Bake for 15–20 minutes, or until the knots begin to brown. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Toss in the remaining mixture and serve.
I made these to go with my veggie lasagna the other night and they are divine.
*Check out the blog post RIGHT BELOW THIS ONE for the link to a website that features thousands of fantastic recipes! :-)
Bon Apetite!
-A
Here's a great recipe I recently came across at Petite Kitchenesse:
Ingredients:
Dough:
* 3 cups of all-purpose flour
* 1 tbsp. sugar
* 2 tsp. active dry yeast
* 1 tsp. salt
* 2 tbsp. olive oil
* 1/4 cup of milk
* 1 cup of lukewarm water (plus more as needed)
Coating:
* 3 cloves of garlic
* 2 tbsp. olive oil
* 2 tbsp. butter
* 3 tbsp. chopped parsley
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Make a well in the center, and add in olive oil, milk, and water. Using a fork, incorporate dry ingredients into liquid until a ball forms. Turn dough out on a floured surface and knead until smooth, around 8–10 minutes. Transfer to a lightly-oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Remove dough from the bowl. Divide into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a long rope. Tie in a knot and tuck ends into the center. Place the knots of dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover with a tea towel and let rise for another 45 minutes.
In the meantime, heat butter and oil in a skillet. Add garlic and cook over medium heat, until it begins to brown. Add in parsley, stir to combine, and remove from heat.
Preheat oven to 400°. Brush garlic knots with half of garlic-parsley mixture. Bake for 15–20 minutes, or until the knots begin to brown. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Toss in the remaining mixture and serve.
I made these to go with my veggie lasagna the other night and they are divine.
*Check out the blog post RIGHT BELOW THIS ONE for the link to a website that features thousands of fantastic recipes! :-)
Bon Apetite!
-A
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Divinity
Originally posted August 6th 2010:
If there is such a thing as heaven, I hope it’s customizable. That probably sounds pretty fickle, maybe even a little morbid. I know that death isn’t like a game of The Sims, and I’d be pretty grateful to not just rot in the ground for eternity, but If there is such a thing as heaven and therefor angels, I hope they all look like Cate Blanchett, Liv Tyler, (if you're seeing the Lord of The Rings motif...shut up…) and a young Julie Andrews. And I hope they are allowed to use bad language. As much as I entertain the fact that heaven should be a place of peace and calm and perfection, I think I’d like my angels to have a little character.
If there is such a thing as heaven, I hope it’s customizable. That probably sounds pretty fickle, maybe even a little morbid. I know that death isn’t like a game of The Sims, and I’d be pretty grateful to not just rot in the ground for eternity, but If there is such a thing as heaven and therefor angels, I hope they all look like Cate Blanchett, Liv Tyler, (if you're seeing the Lord of The Rings motif...shut up…) and a young Julie Andrews. And I hope they are allowed to use bad language. As much as I entertain the fact that heaven should be a place of peace and calm and perfection, I think I’d like my angels to have a little character.
sadPod
Originally posted July 30th 2010:
My iPod touch that I got from my folks at the holidays is broken. After playing 1 song on any given playlist, even just under ‘Songs’, it resets to the home screen. I restored it to it’s original settings, played around with every possible setting, and read about a million Apple/Yahoo! Answers/Tech forums to no avail. This is the 3rd iPod I’ve had to replace/upgrade (aka ask for for Christmas/birthdays), and no matter how much iTunes/iPod drives me crazy sometimes, I can’t live without it. No matter how much I complain about apple, I will not give Zune the light of day…I love Microsoft (I just bought a new Dell Inspiron Laptop w/ Windows 7), but after years and years of iPod I just couldn’t ever bring myself to make the switch, call me prejudiced. Anyway, I called customer service a few minutes ago and I am (thankfully!) still under the 1 year limited warranty which means I get a free new iPod in 4-5 business days w/ free shipping both ways by UPS! I’m so relieved…I thought I was screwed since I didn’t buy the warranty. In retrospect, it seems like a good idea to get it now -________-
My iPod touch that I got from my folks at the holidays is broken. After playing 1 song on any given playlist, even just under ‘Songs’, it resets to the home screen. I restored it to it’s original settings, played around with every possible setting, and read about a million Apple/Yahoo! Answers/Tech forums to no avail. This is the 3rd iPod I’ve had to replace/upgrade (aka ask for for Christmas/birthdays), and no matter how much iTunes/iPod drives me crazy sometimes, I can’t live without it. No matter how much I complain about apple, I will not give Zune the light of day…I love Microsoft (I just bought a new Dell Inspiron Laptop w/ Windows 7), but after years and years of iPod I just couldn’t ever bring myself to make the switch, call me prejudiced. Anyway, I called customer service a few minutes ago and I am (thankfully!) still under the 1 year limited warranty which means I get a free new iPod in 4-5 business days w/ free shipping both ways by UPS! I’m so relieved…I thought I was screwed since I didn’t buy the warranty. In retrospect, it seems like a good idea to get it now -________-
Reality
Originally posted June 11th 2010:
I’ve been watching a lot of reality TV lately, primarily because it’s summer and I actually have time to sit on my ass and waste time. I’m not really sure what the appeal is, especially since reality TV is not really “reality” at all, but it’s like a train wreck–you can’t look away. There’s an unlimited supply of bimbos with boob jobs, celebrities seeking “love” and Jersey anything…a gold mine of shows that require absolutely no thinking at all to watch. My personal favorite: The Real Housewives. For one hour a week I can plug myself into the lives of these women who’s most difficult decisions are about what plastic surgeries they should get next. It’s quite an amusing escape. (Anyone been watching The Real Housewives of New Jersey? Ridiculous…..) Unfortunately, watching someone live their life is easier than actually doing it for yourself. Eventually you have to face your own challenges. For me–college and everything that is included. The reality is that right now the choices I’m making are going to be reflected on the rest of my life. It’s intimidating. I used to want a career in business but then I fell asleep watching The Apprentice. I question myself constantly–am I making the right choices? When it comes down to it you have to turn off the TV and face your own reality, you’ve got to leave some dreams behind, cut your loses and step out into that great unscripted void–and it’s nothing like you see on TV.
I’ve been watching a lot of reality TV lately, primarily because it’s summer and I actually have time to sit on my ass and waste time. I’m not really sure what the appeal is, especially since reality TV is not really “reality” at all, but it’s like a train wreck–you can’t look away. There’s an unlimited supply of bimbos with boob jobs, celebrities seeking “love” and Jersey anything…a gold mine of shows that require absolutely no thinking at all to watch. My personal favorite: The Real Housewives. For one hour a week I can plug myself into the lives of these women who’s most difficult decisions are about what plastic surgeries they should get next. It’s quite an amusing escape. (Anyone been watching The Real Housewives of New Jersey? Ridiculous…..) Unfortunately, watching someone live their life is easier than actually doing it for yourself. Eventually you have to face your own challenges. For me–college and everything that is included. The reality is that right now the choices I’m making are going to be reflected on the rest of my life. It’s intimidating. I used to want a career in business but then I fell asleep watching The Apprentice. I question myself constantly–am I making the right choices? When it comes down to it you have to turn off the TV and face your own reality, you’ve got to leave some dreams behind, cut your loses and step out into that great unscripted void–and it’s nothing like you see on TV.
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