Happy Valentine's Day
Since Adam has class on thursday nights, we went on our fun Valentine's Day date last night, dinner at Teatro and a movie I really wanted to see, 27 dresses. We got to Teatro just in time for the prix fixe menu which is an excellent deal. Choice of Caesar salad, Tuscan soup or mushroom ravioli for appetizer, choice of steak or swordfish entree and a choice of any of their desserts. All this for $29 when the steak or swordfish would have set us back $26 alone. We shared one order of the prix fixe and a small spinach ravioli which was just enough food. The crusty bread came with a wonderful olive oil/garlic/bean spread. The food was awesome, homemade mushroom ravioli was a favorite and the steak was good too. We got the chocolate crema for dessert which was like a super nice and decadent chocolate pudding. Teatro just might be one of my favorite spots, they also have an awesome antipasto plate for two that's big enough for a light meal. Plus, it's 25 feet from the movie theater to boot. All in all, a fun night out.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Friday, February 08, 2008
Super Tuesday Joke
Adam: I tried asking my coworkers who they voted for in the primaries, but no one would tell me.
plasticann: I really don't think you should be talking politics at work...or religion for that matter.
Adam: [pause] Hah hah hah! [loud disingenuous laugh]
I retold the joke to several others who actually laughed appreciatively.
Key Fact: Adam works at a church so they kinda have to talk about religion at work.
Adam: I tried asking my coworkers who they voted for in the primaries, but no one would tell me.
plasticann: I really don't think you should be talking politics at work...or religion for that matter.
Adam: [pause] Hah hah hah! [loud disingenuous laugh]
I retold the joke to several others who actually laughed appreciatively.
Key Fact: Adam works at a church so they kinda have to talk about religion at work.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
LinkedIn
I just got an invitation from Adam to join his LinkedIn network. Hmmm, I wonder if he used the generic invitation template?
Ann,
Since you are a person I trust, I wanted to invite you to join my network on LinkedIn.
I'm using it to discover inside connections I didn't know I had. It's interesting to see the level of access you can have with only a few people in your network.
It's free to join and only takes a minute to sign up and join my network.
- Adam
Typically people will personalize the invitation with a generic, "Hope all is going well since graduation" so I started laughing when I read Adam's generic invite. I thought, hmmm, it's nice to know that I'm someone my husband trusts. I feel affirmed! Incidentally, I'm the 2nd person to join Adam's network, apparently Chi-Ray was quicker to accept than me.
I just got an invitation from Adam to join his LinkedIn network. Hmmm, I wonder if he used the generic invitation template?
Ann,
Since you are a person I trust, I wanted to invite you to join my network on LinkedIn.
I'm using it to discover inside connections I didn't know I had. It's interesting to see the level of access you can have with only a few people in your network.
It's free to join and only takes a minute to sign up and join my network.
- Adam
Typically people will personalize the invitation with a generic, "Hope all is going well since graduation" so I started laughing when I read Adam's generic invite. I thought, hmmm, it's nice to know that I'm someone my husband trusts. I feel affirmed! Incidentally, I'm the 2nd person to join Adam's network, apparently Chi-Ray was quicker to accept than me.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Heel
The following two reconstructed conversations are about bread...specifically the heel:
plasticann: [looking in the fridge] What can I take for lunch today?
Adam: There's a turkey sandwich.
plasticann: I don't want it, it has the heel.
Adam: I thought you liked the chalupka.
plasticann: The what?
Adam: Chalupka is the heel. It's Polish.
plasticann: I like the heel if it's crusty bread, but not if it's soft sandwich bread.
Later that evening?
plasticann: I'm still kinda hungry.
Adam: You could eat that sandwich.
plasticann: I don't want the sandwich, it has the...chalupa.
Adam: [long pause] ha ha ha! The Taco Bell is gone, there's no chalupa. It's chalupka!
plasticann: You knew what I mean, chalupa chalupka.
Adam: Hey, this is my [Polish] heritage you're talking about.
plasticann: Admit it, it was kinda funny...you laughed.
Adam: Yeah, it was a little bit funny.
The following two reconstructed conversations are about bread...specifically the heel:
plasticann: [looking in the fridge] What can I take for lunch today?
Adam: There's a turkey sandwich.
plasticann: I don't want it, it has the heel.
Adam: I thought you liked the chalupka.
plasticann: The what?
Adam: Chalupka is the heel. It's Polish.
plasticann: I like the heel if it's crusty bread, but not if it's soft sandwich bread.
Later that evening?
plasticann: I'm still kinda hungry.
Adam: You could eat that sandwich.
plasticann: I don't want the sandwich, it has the...chalupa.
Adam: [long pause] ha ha ha! The Taco Bell is gone, there's no chalupa. It's chalupka!
plasticann: You knew what I mean, chalupa chalupka.
Adam: Hey, this is my [Polish] heritage you're talking about.
plasticann: Admit it, it was kinda funny...you laughed.
Adam: Yeah, it was a little bit funny.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Like Netflix, but for books and slower
One of the many fantastic benefits of being married to Adam is that he's a very active "patron" of our library system. The public library is pretty fantastic. You can put books on hold online and get them transferred from other libraries in the system. Once a week or so, Adam picks up all the books that have come in for him at the library. I described it to MGDub as, "It's like Netflix, but for books and free, but slower." What's fabulous for me is the soup to nuts service Adam provides: he picks the books, gets the books and returns the books. Recently, he got me A.J. Jacobs' "The year of living biblically," a man's quest to follow the bible very literally for an entire year. It's utterly hilarious and I highly recommend it. He grows a giant beard, wears white, tries to kindly "stone" Sabbeth breakers, etc. He approaches his project with such sincerity that while the book is slightly irreverent, he doesn't mock the Bible. I was also pleasantly surprised to discover that the author is a fellow Zrown alum. Go Zrown!
One of the many fantastic benefits of being married to Adam is that he's a very active "patron" of our library system. The public library is pretty fantastic. You can put books on hold online and get them transferred from other libraries in the system. Once a week or so, Adam picks up all the books that have come in for him at the library. I described it to MGDub as, "It's like Netflix, but for books and free, but slower." What's fabulous for me is the soup to nuts service Adam provides: he picks the books, gets the books and returns the books. Recently, he got me A.J. Jacobs' "The year of living biblically," a man's quest to follow the bible very literally for an entire year. It's utterly hilarious and I highly recommend it. He grows a giant beard, wears white, tries to kindly "stone" Sabbeth breakers, etc. He approaches his project with such sincerity that while the book is slightly irreverent, he doesn't mock the Bible. I was also pleasantly surprised to discover that the author is a fellow Zrown alum. Go Zrown!
Saturday, January 12, 2008
No Pants
It was a fairly mild and sunny day today and I was out shopping when I encountered hoards of people wearing no pants. I was riding the green line when a group of people wearing boxers got on. At first, I figured they were young kids out for a jog and exercising on a nice day since they were wearing sneakers and fleece jackets. When I got to Park Street, even more people were wearing no pants. These folks were definitely not cooling off from a jog, they were wearing blazers, button down shirts, peacoats, heels, etc, but no pants. They weren't obscene or anything, but I was too freaked out to ask one of the no pants people what was going on so I asked some other pant wearing people. Turns out it's some annual no pants day organized by some improv people in NYC. From what I can tell, there's no real social or charity purpose for wearing no pants other than some lofty goal of people not taking themselves too seriously and promoting humor. There you go, no pants day on the T today.
It was a fairly mild and sunny day today and I was out shopping when I encountered hoards of people wearing no pants. I was riding the green line when a group of people wearing boxers got on. At first, I figured they were young kids out for a jog and exercising on a nice day since they were wearing sneakers and fleece jackets. When I got to Park Street, even more people were wearing no pants. These folks were definitely not cooling off from a jog, they were wearing blazers, button down shirts, peacoats, heels, etc, but no pants. They weren't obscene or anything, but I was too freaked out to ask one of the no pants people what was going on so I asked some other pant wearing people. Turns out it's some annual no pants day organized by some improv people in NYC. From what I can tell, there's no real social or charity purpose for wearing no pants other than some lofty goal of people not taking themselves too seriously and promoting humor. There you go, no pants day on the T today.
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Convenient Oatmeal
I’ve been really into eating oatmeal for breakfast these days which surprises me since I usually get tired of eating something especially if it’s somewhat healthy. Instead of buying the flavored instant oatmeal packets, I’ve started making my own convenient single serve packets. I measure out quick oats, brown sugar, raisins and cinnamon into Ziploc sandwich bags assembly line style so I’ll make 10 at a time. On my way out in the morning, I grab a packet to take to work. Sometimes, I cut up a piece of fruit like a lovely persimmon and put it in the Ziploc. When I’m ready to eat, I add hot water to the oatmeal in a bowl and microwave for 90 seconds. It’s convenient, just the right level of sweetness and a delicious treat to boot.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup quick oats
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs raisins
Dash of cinnamon
Prepare:
Add about 1/3 cup hot water, microwave 90 seconds.
I’ve been really into eating oatmeal for breakfast these days which surprises me since I usually get tired of eating something especially if it’s somewhat healthy. Instead of buying the flavored instant oatmeal packets, I’ve started making my own convenient single serve packets. I measure out quick oats, brown sugar, raisins and cinnamon into Ziploc sandwich bags assembly line style so I’ll make 10 at a time. On my way out in the morning, I grab a packet to take to work. Sometimes, I cut up a piece of fruit like a lovely persimmon and put it in the Ziploc. When I’m ready to eat, I add hot water to the oatmeal in a bowl and microwave for 90 seconds. It’s convenient, just the right level of sweetness and a delicious treat to boot.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup quick oats
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs raisins
Dash of cinnamon
Prepare:
Add about 1/3 cup hot water, microwave 90 seconds.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Home Sweet Home
We've had a busy few weeks traveling home to California for the holidays and hanging out with Adam's family. We spent Christmas in the Bay Area with Adam's parents, Zryce, Zara, Zess, Zames and Baby Zhor. Baby Zhor, who we met for the first time and will be our godson, is a pretty chill baby. Adam and I went out to dinner with Zryce and Zara one night and we brought Zhor along with us in his carrier. He slept then entire time, I almost forgot we had a baby with us. Day after Christmas, the whole family packed up and drove to Lake Tahoe for a week where Zara and Zryce had rented an awesome house.
The kids were learning how to ski and were generally fascinated about snow. Zess got pretty good at skiing, it was her second year. It was Zames' first time and he got really into going "fast." Zames is two and is really into trucks and things. He got all excited when his parents told him they were going to teach him how to "snowplow." Unfortunately his enthusiasm waned once he discovered that they weren't talking about an actual giant snowplow truck and that "snowplowing" would make him go slower which he wasn't into since he likes to go "fast" and likes to say "fast, fast fast."
We also got to watch the Patriots game that resulted in their undefeated season while we were in Lake Tahoe. Last year, Zryce had Zess calling the Patriots the "Patsies" while Adam was watching a playoff game. This year, Zess needed no such prompting to cause minor mayhem. The Patriots were wearing their white shirts so I told Zess that Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann wanted the white shirts to win. At first Zess said that she wanted the white shirts to win which pleased Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann. Then she decided that she wanted the opposing blue shirts to win. Then she asked wouldn't it be great if both the white shirts and the blue shirts won. No it would not be great, but we told her it would be very nice indeed if they both got to win. Next she asked who was winning, the blue shirts were winning unfortunately. Zess declared that she definitely thought the blue shirts were going to win in the end. Fortunately the Patriots in the white shirts prevailed in the end so I made it point to report to Zess the next morning that the white shirts won, but I think she'd forgotten all about the white and blue shirts by the next day.
I do miss hearing Zames say "Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann" to Adam and I individually. He knows which one is Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann, but he seems to enjoy saying both at the same time to what seems like only one of us. I also miss all of Zess' cheerful pink themed outfits and patterned tights, but it's nice to be home sleeping in our own bed enjoying the peace and quiet.
We've had a busy few weeks traveling home to California for the holidays and hanging out with Adam's family. We spent Christmas in the Bay Area with Adam's parents, Zryce, Zara, Zess, Zames and Baby Zhor. Baby Zhor, who we met for the first time and will be our godson, is a pretty chill baby. Adam and I went out to dinner with Zryce and Zara one night and we brought Zhor along with us in his carrier. He slept then entire time, I almost forgot we had a baby with us. Day after Christmas, the whole family packed up and drove to Lake Tahoe for a week where Zara and Zryce had rented an awesome house.
The kids were learning how to ski and were generally fascinated about snow. Zess got pretty good at skiing, it was her second year. It was Zames' first time and he got really into going "fast." Zames is two and is really into trucks and things. He got all excited when his parents told him they were going to teach him how to "snowplow." Unfortunately his enthusiasm waned once he discovered that they weren't talking about an actual giant snowplow truck and that "snowplowing" would make him go slower which he wasn't into since he likes to go "fast" and likes to say "fast, fast fast."
We also got to watch the Patriots game that resulted in their undefeated season while we were in Lake Tahoe. Last year, Zryce had Zess calling the Patriots the "Patsies" while Adam was watching a playoff game. This year, Zess needed no such prompting to cause minor mayhem. The Patriots were wearing their white shirts so I told Zess that Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann wanted the white shirts to win. At first Zess said that she wanted the white shirts to win which pleased Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann. Then she decided that she wanted the opposing blue shirts to win. Then she asked wouldn't it be great if both the white shirts and the blue shirts won. No it would not be great, but we told her it would be very nice indeed if they both got to win. Next she asked who was winning, the blue shirts were winning unfortunately. Zess declared that she definitely thought the blue shirts were going to win in the end. Fortunately the Patriots in the white shirts prevailed in the end so I made it point to report to Zess the next morning that the white shirts won, but I think she'd forgotten all about the white and blue shirts by the next day.
I do miss hearing Zames say "Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann" to Adam and I individually. He knows which one is Uncle Adam and Aunt Ann, but he seems to enjoy saying both at the same time to what seems like only one of us. I also miss all of Zess' cheerful pink themed outfits and patterned tights, but it's nice to be home sleeping in our own bed enjoying the peace and quiet.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
KO Prime: Bring your own utensils
I went to a client dinner for work last night at KO Prime which I was excited to check out. There's nothing better than an expensive meal on someone else's dime. I ordered the 14 oz 28 day aged New York Strip steak which was delicious and I enjoyed a plethora of sides: pumpkin risotto, pomme frites, creamed spinach, asparagus and a potato gratin.
That said, I would recommend that you bring your own set of utensils if you dine at KO Prime. The utensils there are beautiful to look at and lovely, but utterly useless. I've never seen so much food dropped on the floor and so many utensils flip over and fall to the ground. The problem? All the silverware was very bottom heavy. My neighbor dropped her fork twice. I dropped some steak on my seat and a spear of asparagus. The guy across from me dropped a big hunk of steak on the floor which he took home to his dog.
I doubt we were all super klutzy so I blame it on the silverware and the dinnerware. I had to wince and hold my napkin in front of my eyes because I couldn't watch our waiter clear our table. He kept trying to pick up the imbalanced stack of stuff about three times and I swear it looked like he was going to drop it each time. I'm sure my vivid facial expressions didn't boost his confidence. All in all, a tasty meal, but I do prefer Ruth's Chris. Their sides are bigger, the steaks are bathed in butter and the utensils are wonderfully unmemorable.
I went to a client dinner for work last night at KO Prime which I was excited to check out. There's nothing better than an expensive meal on someone else's dime. I ordered the 14 oz 28 day aged New York Strip steak which was delicious and I enjoyed a plethora of sides: pumpkin risotto, pomme frites, creamed spinach, asparagus and a potato gratin.
That said, I would recommend that you bring your own set of utensils if you dine at KO Prime. The utensils there are beautiful to look at and lovely, but utterly useless. I've never seen so much food dropped on the floor and so many utensils flip over and fall to the ground. The problem? All the silverware was very bottom heavy. My neighbor dropped her fork twice. I dropped some steak on my seat and a spear of asparagus. The guy across from me dropped a big hunk of steak on the floor which he took home to his dog.
I doubt we were all super klutzy so I blame it on the silverware and the dinnerware. I had to wince and hold my napkin in front of my eyes because I couldn't watch our waiter clear our table. He kept trying to pick up the imbalanced stack of stuff about three times and I swear it looked like he was going to drop it each time. I'm sure my vivid facial expressions didn't boost his confidence. All in all, a tasty meal, but I do prefer Ruth's Chris. Their sides are bigger, the steaks are bathed in butter and the utensils are wonderfully unmemorable.
Friday, December 14, 2007
MGDub is Coming To Town
MGDub is visiting for a few days just in time for the snow. We're going out on Saturday with Wheezy and the Zoritys for a holiday dinner at Maggiano's which I'm totally looking forward to. There might be snow on Saturday, but as long as the T is running, we should be able to trek down to Maggiano's Little Italy for something delicious.
MGDub is visiting for a few days just in time for the snow. We're going out on Saturday with Wheezy and the Zoritys for a holiday dinner at Maggiano's which I'm totally looking forward to. There might be snow on Saturday, but as long as the T is running, we should be able to trek down to Maggiano's Little Italy for something delicious.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Giant Snowstorm
Tons of snow today, they closed down the office this afternoon and I came home early and worked at home. I was so glad I can take the red line home. The snow storm barely affected my commute at 3pm, some of my coworkers drove for three hours to get home. Adam drove a friend's car to park in our driveway since they needed somewhere to park their car during the snow emergancy and it took him 20 minutes to drive back to our place when it normally takes him only 10 minutes to walk the same distance. Adam's been very nice about shoveling.
Tons of snow today, they closed down the office this afternoon and I came home early and worked at home. I was so glad I can take the red line home. The snow storm barely affected my commute at 3pm, some of my coworkers drove for three hours to get home. Adam drove a friend's car to park in our driveway since they needed somewhere to park their car during the snow emergancy and it took him 20 minutes to drive back to our place when it normally takes him only 10 minutes to walk the same distance. Adam's been very nice about shoveling.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Salty Snacks
I came downstairs yesterday to find Adam watching football and munching on a bag of Pepperidge farm dried stuffing mix. He claimed that it was tasty and low fat. I pointed out that it was probably high in sodium and that he shouldn't drink too many liquids in case the stuffing expanded in his stomach. I did promptly go out and buy five different kinds of crackers at the store: water crackers, sesame water crackers, low fat triscuits, stoned wheat crackers and some low sodium goldfish.
I came downstairs yesterday to find Adam watching football and munching on a bag of Pepperidge farm dried stuffing mix. He claimed that it was tasty and low fat. I pointed out that it was probably high in sodium and that he shouldn't drink too many liquids in case the stuffing expanded in his stomach. I did promptly go out and buy five different kinds of crackers at the store: water crackers, sesame water crackers, low fat triscuits, stoned wheat crackers and some low sodium goldfish.
Monday, December 03, 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Twitter
I now have a twitter update section on the upper right section of my blog which I use to write updates of mundane and random things I'm doing. I've only been using it for a week and I've decided that my life is pretty mundane and many of my twitter updates are about what I ate, what I'm eating, what I'm about to eat with a few weather updates thrown in there. Nonetheless, I'll be twittering away here and there about things that do not warrent an actual blog post.
I now have a twitter update section on the upper right section of my blog which I use to write updates of mundane and random things I'm doing. I've only been using it for a week and I've decided that my life is pretty mundane and many of my twitter updates are about what I ate, what I'm eating, what I'm about to eat with a few weather updates thrown in there. Nonetheless, I'll be twittering away here and there about things that do not warrent an actual blog post.
Brownie Baking Contest
Last week, we had a brownie baking contest at work. I was originally going to bake some box brownies and enter them, but having won the chocolate chip cookie contest, I thought I should put some more effort into it and bake a batch from scratch. I consulted my friend Laurel, who's a master baker, for a good brownie recipe. She too finds scratch brownies too much of a bother and usually uses a mix, but she recommended the Alton Brown recipe if I was going to the trouble. I came home from bowling Monday night pretty tired and the kitchen was messy, but I decided to use the one square foot of counter space available and bake these brownies. Unfortunately, it wasn't until after I'd mixed in all the ingredients that I realized that I'd used a 1/3 measure thinking it was 1/4 and had also used a 1/2 measure mistakenly as well. I felt pretty darned frustrated at this point since all the cocoa powder sifting had left my kitchen even more messy, but I stuck them in the oven and baked them anyways. They turned out pretty good, I added a dash of mint to the recipe and entered them at work. I didn't win, but I came in 2nd which is good because I was dreading having to confess to my inability to measure dry ingredients. As you faithful blog readers may remember, this is a problem I've encountered before when I've used inaccurate amounts of butter in my baking. That said, brownies are very forgiving and taste good even when you aren't quite so accurate.
Last week, we had a brownie baking contest at work. I was originally going to bake some box brownies and enter them, but having won the chocolate chip cookie contest, I thought I should put some more effort into it and bake a batch from scratch. I consulted my friend Laurel, who's a master baker, for a good brownie recipe. She too finds scratch brownies too much of a bother and usually uses a mix, but she recommended the Alton Brown recipe if I was going to the trouble. I came home from bowling Monday night pretty tired and the kitchen was messy, but I decided to use the one square foot of counter space available and bake these brownies. Unfortunately, it wasn't until after I'd mixed in all the ingredients that I realized that I'd used a 1/3 measure thinking it was 1/4 and had also used a 1/2 measure mistakenly as well. I felt pretty darned frustrated at this point since all the cocoa powder sifting had left my kitchen even more messy, but I stuck them in the oven and baked them anyways. They turned out pretty good, I added a dash of mint to the recipe and entered them at work. I didn't win, but I came in 2nd which is good because I was dreading having to confess to my inability to measure dry ingredients. As you faithful blog readers may remember, this is a problem I've encountered before when I've used inaccurate amounts of butter in my baking. That said, brownies are very forgiving and taste good even when you aren't quite so accurate.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Chocolate Chip Cookie Contest
We had a chocolate chip cookie contest complete with a blind tasting at work on Tuesday and I WON with the aforementioned chocolate chip cookie recipe from a few weeks back. They were even baked the night before and no longer ooey and gooey so just imagine how good they are fresh out of the oven. I'm hungry just thinking about it. Next week is the brownie contest for which I don't have a good recipe so I have to do some research.
We had a chocolate chip cookie contest complete with a blind tasting at work on Tuesday and I WON with the aforementioned chocolate chip cookie recipe from a few weeks back. They were even baked the night before and no longer ooey and gooey so just imagine how good they are fresh out of the oven. I'm hungry just thinking about it. Next week is the brownie contest for which I don't have a good recipe so I have to do some research.
Monday, November 05, 2007
Magical Convection Oven
Adam roasted a whole chicken for dinner using the convection roast function on our new oven. expecting it to cook in 30 minutes according to the oven manual. Unfortunately, he didn't read the manual carefully enough to see that the timing was 30 minutes per pound. Apparently, convection doesn't cook at warped speeds, but it does promote nice airflow to aid even browning. I was very hungry. That's all I have to say about that.
Adam roasted a whole chicken for dinner using the convection roast function on our new oven. expecting it to cook in 30 minutes according to the oven manual. Unfortunately, he didn't read the manual carefully enough to see that the timing was 30 minutes per pound. Apparently, convection doesn't cook at warped speeds, but it does promote nice airflow to aid even browning. I was very hungry. That's all I have to say about that.
Saturday, November 03, 2007
Homecoming
Today, we rented a zipcar to drive out to CT for homecoming at Adam's alma mater. The weather was crappy out and we debated whether or not to make the 2 hour drive. We already had the zipcar reserved so we had to pay for it so I voted to check out the Nordstroms at the new Natick Collections if we weren't going to homecoming. We decided to make the drive after all and I'm glad we skipped the mall. It was cold, rainy and windy for most of the day, but we did get to wander around campus for a little bit before we headed over to a reception for the IVCF chapter there. We tried going to the local Polish place for dinner, but we couldn't find it. The following is a reconstructed conversation at a convenience store where I asked about the Polish place:
plasticann: Hi, I'm looking for a Polish restaurant called blah blah blah.
Young Convenience Store Guy: What? J and M?
plasticann: It's a Polish restaurant, the pierogi place?
YCSG: [pointing at an older woman behind the deli counter] Maybe you should ask my aunt.
plasticann: I'm looking for a Polish restaurant that is on this street?
Older Woman: Oh, that place has been gone for years. The building it was in no longer exists. They're building condos there now.
plasticann: Oh, I guess it has been eight years. I'm getting old.
We're guessing the driving range that was next to the Polish place is also now condos which would explain why we "missed" the place. The young guy probably never knew about the Polish place.
Today, we rented a zipcar to drive out to CT for homecoming at Adam's alma mater. The weather was crappy out and we debated whether or not to make the 2 hour drive. We already had the zipcar reserved so we had to pay for it so I voted to check out the Nordstroms at the new Natick Collections if we weren't going to homecoming. We decided to make the drive after all and I'm glad we skipped the mall. It was cold, rainy and windy for most of the day, but we did get to wander around campus for a little bit before we headed over to a reception for the IVCF chapter there. We tried going to the local Polish place for dinner, but we couldn't find it. The following is a reconstructed conversation at a convenience store where I asked about the Polish place:
plasticann: Hi, I'm looking for a Polish restaurant called blah blah blah.
Young Convenience Store Guy: What? J and M?
plasticann: It's a Polish restaurant, the pierogi place?
YCSG: [pointing at an older woman behind the deli counter] Maybe you should ask my aunt.
plasticann: I'm looking for a Polish restaurant that is on this street?
Older Woman: Oh, that place has been gone for years. The building it was in no longer exists. They're building condos there now.
plasticann: Oh, I guess it has been eight years. I'm getting old.
We're guessing the driving range that was next to the Polish place is also now condos which would explain why we "missed" the place. The young guy probably never knew about the Polish place.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Chocolate Chip Cookies...the ultimate
As you might know, I really enjoy baking, but the ultimate chocolate chip cookie has always alluded me. The gold standard to which I compare all other chocolate chip cookies is the Meeting Street Chocolate Chunk cookie in Providence. It's a huge cookie larger than my head filled with giant chunks of chocolate and the dough is just divine. I had a major breakthrough this past Tuesday when I baked up a recipe from Williams Sonoma. I'm pretty sure I've tried this recipe in the past, but I don't remember the results being remarkable because I probably made them small like the recipe suggested. This time, I decided to bake essentially one giant cookie on a rimmed baking sheet rather than separated small cookies because I didn't have the time to deal with baking individual round cookies. The results were delicious and as close to a Meeting Street cookie as I've ever come. I'm not sure if it was the superb heating powers of my new oven, but I even daydreamed about the cookies while at work the next day. Yesterday, our friends were over watching game 6 of the ACLS (go Sox) and requested the cookies so I baked a second batch. This time, I added a dash a cinnamon and I think it was even better so today I baked a third batch to bring to a church potluck and I must say, there were no leftover cookies. Here's the recipe:
plasticann's Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Note: yields 20 delicious giant cookies or 96 unremarkable small cookies
1 delicious giant cookie=4.8 unremarkable small cookies
2 sticks butter (1 cup) softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 and 2/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2-3 shakes of cinnamon
2 cups chocolate chips (one 12 oz bag)
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. line half sheet baking pan with parchment paper
3. cream butter until fluffy
4. add sugar and brown sugar, cream until time fluffy and the sugar is no longer gritty
5. add eggs and vanilla, mix well
6. add dry ingredients, mix until combined
7. add chocolate chips, mix
8. Spread entire batch of cookie dough onto rimmed sheet or use large cookie scoop to scoop cookies and place them on the sheet just an inch or so apart. The cookies will bake into each other in the oven.
9. Bake 15-20 minutes, check to see they're nice is delicious looking and brown
As you might know, I really enjoy baking, but the ultimate chocolate chip cookie has always alluded me. The gold standard to which I compare all other chocolate chip cookies is the Meeting Street Chocolate Chunk cookie in Providence. It's a huge cookie larger than my head filled with giant chunks of chocolate and the dough is just divine. I had a major breakthrough this past Tuesday when I baked up a recipe from Williams Sonoma. I'm pretty sure I've tried this recipe in the past, but I don't remember the results being remarkable because I probably made them small like the recipe suggested. This time, I decided to bake essentially one giant cookie on a rimmed baking sheet rather than separated small cookies because I didn't have the time to deal with baking individual round cookies. The results were delicious and as close to a Meeting Street cookie as I've ever come. I'm not sure if it was the superb heating powers of my new oven, but I even daydreamed about the cookies while at work the next day. Yesterday, our friends were over watching game 6 of the ACLS (go Sox) and requested the cookies so I baked a second batch. This time, I added a dash a cinnamon and I think it was even better so today I baked a third batch to bring to a church potluck and I must say, there were no leftover cookies. Here's the recipe:
plasticann's Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Note: yields 20 delicious giant cookies or 96 unremarkable small cookies
1 delicious giant cookie=4.8 unremarkable small cookies
2 sticks butter (1 cup) softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 and 2/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2-3 shakes of cinnamon
2 cups chocolate chips (one 12 oz bag)
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. line half sheet baking pan with parchment paper
3. cream butter until fluffy
4. add sugar and brown sugar, cream until time fluffy and the sugar is no longer gritty
5. add eggs and vanilla, mix well
6. add dry ingredients, mix until combined
7. add chocolate chips, mix
8. Spread entire batch of cookie dough onto rimmed sheet or use large cookie scoop to scoop cookies and place them on the sheet just an inch or so apart. The cookies will bake into each other in the oven.
9. Bake 15-20 minutes, check to see they're nice is delicious looking and brown
Thursday, October 18, 2007
More on Cupcakes
Zames and Zess recently had their birthdays and their mommy Zara is probably giving birth to #3 as we speak. Earlier this week, Zara sent some very cute photos from Zess' 4th b-day party...a Tinkerbell themed fairy dress up party. I scrolled through cute photo after cute photo on Shutterfly until I came upon the one with the cupcakes. Being the engaged and attentive aunt that I am, I became utterly fixated on these cupcakes because they were HUGE. Sure Zess looked cute as usual in the foreground, but the cupcakes looked like they were half the size of a Zess' head. They were frosted luxuriously with copious amounts of pretty frosting topped with little Tinkerbell figurines. I zoomed into the photo trying to size up the cupcakes. At first I thought maybe the kids were just super tiny and normal cupcakes looked big relative to the tiny kids, but then I noticed that Zara's cake plates could only hold at most five of these outsized creations. Finally, I broke down and e-mailed Zara just days before she was about to give birth my very important question. Fortunately Zara graciously confirmed that in fact the cupcakes were GINORMOUS as was her belly. Now that I've seen these cupcakes, I'm slightly obsessed with the idea of eating giant cupcakes myself. I wonder if I can convince Zess to order them for Christmas when we're visiting so I can experience it for myself, they looked like they might be deliciously moist and full of potential.
Zames and Zess recently had their birthdays and their mommy Zara is probably giving birth to #3 as we speak. Earlier this week, Zara sent some very cute photos from Zess' 4th b-day party...a Tinkerbell themed fairy dress up party. I scrolled through cute photo after cute photo on Shutterfly until I came upon the one with the cupcakes. Being the engaged and attentive aunt that I am, I became utterly fixated on these cupcakes because they were HUGE. Sure Zess looked cute as usual in the foreground, but the cupcakes looked like they were half the size of a Zess' head. They were frosted luxuriously with copious amounts of pretty frosting topped with little Tinkerbell figurines. I zoomed into the photo trying to size up the cupcakes. At first I thought maybe the kids were just super tiny and normal cupcakes looked big relative to the tiny kids, but then I noticed that Zara's cake plates could only hold at most five of these outsized creations. Finally, I broke down and e-mailed Zara just days before she was about to give birth my very important question. Fortunately Zara graciously confirmed that in fact the cupcakes were GINORMOUS as was her belly. Now that I've seen these cupcakes, I'm slightly obsessed with the idea of eating giant cupcakes myself. I wonder if I can convince Zess to order them for Christmas when we're visiting so I can experience it for myself, they looked like they might be deliciously moist and full of potential.
GJDubya & plasticann Business Consulting
GJDubya recently made the excellent point that Kickass Cupcakes would probably do better with a less objectionable name. Afterall, kids love cupcakes and Kickass is hardly appropriate for the little ones. I think GJDubya's rebranding suggestion along with my suggestion of lowering the price point from $2.75 to $1.75 could be a potent pair of recommendations. We might even be able to charge real money for this advice if we were to start a consulting practice that simultaneously the addressed issues of branding and price elasticity. Hmmmm.
GJDubya recently made the excellent point that Kickass Cupcakes would probably do better with a less objectionable name. Afterall, kids love cupcakes and Kickass is hardly appropriate for the little ones. I think GJDubya's rebranding suggestion along with my suggestion of lowering the price point from $2.75 to $1.75 could be a potent pair of recommendations. We might even be able to charge real money for this advice if we were to start a consulting practice that simultaneously the addressed issues of branding and price elasticity. Hmmmm.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
"Kiwis cause milk to curdle..."
was the title of an e-mail Adam sent me last week. He went on to say, "Unfortunately found this out with my breakfast cereal. :( " and referenced this "Note: Raw kiwi contains an enzyme that prevents gelatin from setting and causes milk to curdle." from this website. Curdled cereal milk sounds pretty nasty and I can also attest to the little fact about gelatin, I remember my fruit terrine failing to set years back because I'd added kiwi to the mix.
was the title of an e-mail Adam sent me last week. He went on to say, "Unfortunately found this out with my breakfast cereal. :( " and referenced this "Note: Raw kiwi contains an enzyme that prevents gelatin from setting and causes milk to curdle." from this website. Curdled cereal milk sounds pretty nasty and I can also attest to the little fact about gelatin, I remember my fruit terrine failing to set years back because I'd added kiwi to the mix.
Monday, October 08, 2007
Kickass Cupcakes
I was really excited to check out Kickass Cupcakes in Davis Square a few weekends ago. I even tried to convince Adam to bail during a church meeting to go get cupcakes. Alas, we didn't bail, but we did go after dinner later that night. We tried the Lucky Cupcake and the Strawberry Shortcake the first night and Adam went back and bought a Mojito Cupcake and a Cinnamon Chai Pecan Sticky the next day. My favorite was the Mojito. However, at $2.75 a pop for a rather normal sized cupcake, the price is too high for Kickass cupcakes to be a regular treat. I honestly think that if they lowered their priced south of $2, they'd get a lot more people stopping in for cupcakes on a regular basis. That said, I do feel hipper and cooler living in a square that boasts a cupcake bakery. Soon, we'll be getting a Shino Express Sushi restaurant so there's more good stuff coming.
I was really excited to check out Kickass Cupcakes in Davis Square a few weekends ago. I even tried to convince Adam to bail during a church meeting to go get cupcakes. Alas, we didn't bail, but we did go after dinner later that night. We tried the Lucky Cupcake and the Strawberry Shortcake the first night and Adam went back and bought a Mojito Cupcake and a Cinnamon Chai Pecan Sticky the next day. My favorite was the Mojito. However, at $2.75 a pop for a rather normal sized cupcake, the price is too high for Kickass cupcakes to be a regular treat. I honestly think that if they lowered their priced south of $2, they'd get a lot more people stopping in for cupcakes on a regular basis. That said, I do feel hipper and cooler living in a square that boasts a cupcake bakery. Soon, we'll be getting a Shino Express Sushi restaurant so there's more good stuff coming.
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Classic Steve
Last Friday was my 29th birthday and I had a really fun time celebrating with dinner at the Rialto with Adam. Getting to the Rialto was quite the challenge. Park street station has a fire so the train was shut down so I had to walk from Downtown Crossing over to Kendall/MIT to catch the train to Harvard Square. Adam was coming from Davis and he got stuck in the train for 40 minutes just outside of Harvard Square. Fortunately, the folks at Rialto were extremely gracious and they held our table for over an hour and offered us complimentary glasses of prosecco because we looked so stressed out and harried when we finally arrived. That said, my friend Steve called and left me a message Friday and the following is a reconstructed conversation:
plasticann: Hey Steve.
Steve: Did you get my message?
plasticann: Yeah, I heard your bit of juicy gossip.
Steve: [elaborating on juicy gossip]
plasticann: Steve, did you know it's my birthday today?
Steve: Did you think I left you a message for your birthday?
plasticann: It crossed my mind.
Steve: Uhh...Happy Birthday!
plasticann: Thanks, but that's not particularly convincing. However, you can write yourself a note for the future.
Basically, it's classic Steve to call me on my birthday to tell me a bit of juicy gossip and not realize it's my birthday. It's pretty hilarious. Thanks for the birthday chuckle Steve.
Last Friday was my 29th birthday and I had a really fun time celebrating with dinner at the Rialto with Adam. Getting to the Rialto was quite the challenge. Park street station has a fire so the train was shut down so I had to walk from Downtown Crossing over to Kendall/MIT to catch the train to Harvard Square. Adam was coming from Davis and he got stuck in the train for 40 minutes just outside of Harvard Square. Fortunately, the folks at Rialto were extremely gracious and they held our table for over an hour and offered us complimentary glasses of prosecco because we looked so stressed out and harried when we finally arrived. That said, my friend Steve called and left me a message Friday and the following is a reconstructed conversation:
plasticann: Hey Steve.
Steve: Did you get my message?
plasticann: Yeah, I heard your bit of juicy gossip.
Steve: [elaborating on juicy gossip]
plasticann: Steve, did you know it's my birthday today?
Steve: Did you think I left you a message for your birthday?
plasticann: It crossed my mind.
Steve: Uhh...Happy Birthday!
plasticann: Thanks, but that's not particularly convincing. However, you can write yourself a note for the future.
Basically, it's classic Steve to call me on my birthday to tell me a bit of juicy gossip and not realize it's my birthday. It's pretty hilarious. Thanks for the birthday chuckle Steve.
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