On Sunday, my husband smoked some delicious barbecue ribs marinated in seasoning and basted with honey, apple cider vinegar and crushed red chili flakes. For sides I made deviled eggs and spring potatoes in garlic butter along side some baked beans.
Deviled eggs have to be one of my favorite foods ever invented, they are as lovely as they are delicious. The deviled egg never goes out of culinary style, and can be manipulated to serve as a comfort food, or an upscale starter in high quality restaurants. I make my deviled eggs simple. First, I start off with free range organic eggs, and boil them in water for 6 min. I then cool the eggs and crack the shells off (this is so difficult, I've yet to find an easy way to peel back a boiled egg). Once the eggs are cool, I slice them directly in half, and scoop out the hard yolk and place them in a separate bowl.In the bowl I also place the following ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil based mayonnaise 2 tablespoons of hard grain mustard 1 tablespoon of pickled relish 1 tsp of paprika fresh ground black pepper and kosher salt to taste
combine all ingredients and mix until you reach a smooth consistency. Gently spoon the mixture within the pouch of the boiled egg, sprinkle with paprika and serve. Yum.
After recently watching Shutter Island, I realized that most of my favorite films have amazing dream sequences, and most of my favorite directors utilize a dream sequence to detail an integral part of a main character to tie them into the stories plot. From the top of my head, I’d like to share some of the movies that I hold dear and admire for their content and dream sequences:
Ran ~ just recently viewing this film again, the Throne of Blood scene is definitely one of the most surreal scenes in cinema
Just about every David Lynch film, particularly the dream sequences in Mulholland Drive (Winkies) where the dreams begin, Eraserhead (frightening dreams with interesting visuals), Lost Highway, and of course Twin Peaks Fire Walk with Me, particularly the scenes that take place in Laura’s bedroom that are startling and significant to the story as well as the characters.
The Wizard of Oz ~ Dorothy’s visions of the wicked witch are visually captivating
On a comical side: The Big Lebowski ~ I loved the bowling symbols in “Dudes” dreams…so funny and risqué
Punch Drunk Love ~ dream sequences in which the music provokes deep-seeded emotion. The film itself plays as an extended dream sequence, however the actual dreams begin when the harmonium is present
City of the Lost Children ~ the beginning of the film opens with a lovely underwater sequence involving santa clause(s) that foretells a child's fear
Naked Lunch, where in the novel as well the film’s dream sequences mesh with reality
Brazil ~ to experience the same dream over again, and each time with a different result is mind numbing
81/2 ~ Fellini is the creator and master of lucid dreams in film
Vertigo ~ where as the dreams of Carlotta, she is seen as a living person
The kitchen for me is a fun place to escape and leave all worries behind. I am in total control in the kitchen...my cutting board is at my mercy and my cooking ingredients are my tools to create something delicious made with a true passion and understanding of the zen of cooking. Sometimes I enjoy silence, but mostly I enjoy music in the kitchen...the music is not only a back drop of flavor, but a layer...a component of whatever it is I might be cooking. For this dish, The Ramones were my pick because of the happy musical energy they induce! This recipe is a dessert, but can also be consumed for breakfast...best of all, it has chocolate!
Semi-sweet chocolate chips have a perfect balance of sweet and bitter, they are my favorite baking chip. Originally I bought a bag of semi sweet chocolate to bake a chocolate torte from Emeril’s show, however didn’t realize that I’d be using almost an entire dozen of eggs for one (one layer) chocolate torte.
Instead of the torte, I decided to use my semi –sweet chocolate to prepare a chocolate bread pudding with some day old French bread I had sitting on the counter. After seeing chocolate bread pudding being prepared on television, I wanted to attempt the dish on my own…it looks so delicious. Instead of following a recipe I tried my own version since I am familiar with bread puddings and custards, I figured I’d just melt the chocolate down and mix or fold into the custard. Here is my recipe (not exact measurements). Let me add that while preparing the bread pudding, I had a few sips of brandy and listened to the following tracks: My Way (Frank Sinatra), So Lonely (The Police), Go with The Flow (Queens of the Stone Age) and some Ramones ~
Chocolate Brandy Bread Pudding 1 loaf of French bread (stale) and cut into cubes Butter baking dish and place cubed bread in dish Heat oven to 375
In a separate pan, pour 2 cups of milk and slowly whisk in 3 large eggs one at a time. When the eggs and milk combine add 1 cup of raw sugar mixed with 1 tspn of cinnamon and 2 tspns of fresh vanilla then whisk until dissolved. Add ¼ cup of brandy and mix until mixture comes to a near simmer, then lower heat and continue to whisk, slowly adding semi-sweet chocolate chips (about 1 cup) whisk until completely melted (add a big pinch of kosher salt to bring out the chocolate flavor), then pour custard over the bread, (custard should be a medium thickness), dot with butter and bake at 375 for 40 min.
Because it was so late, I decided to skip the bread pudding, hit the Brandy and watch David Lynch's Lost Highway
Your love is fire blazing in the forest It dawns and breaks at the sight of the moon It cracks and rattles like a broken hinge It howls a devilish moan and bleeds with desire...
Fire.
Your touch is heat on heat and cold on cold: It just burns either way... It just burns.
One night, he took her by the hand and grazed at her lawn as the earth shook in bleak atmosphere
1.2.3
And the branches sway in the most loving way, leaving her breathless,
Pictured are Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges) and Jean (Gyllenhall)who develop a romance
Crazy Heart (review) by Evana Vleck
Seen several movies already this weekend one of them being Crazy Heart, by director Scott Cooper. This wasn't the most innovative script or storyline but it definitely had some of the best quality acting by Jeff Bridges. Jeff Bridges is memorable in his role as “The Dude” in the Coen’s cult classic “The Big Lebowski”.
In “Crazy Heart”, Jeff Bridges was amazing as a legendary Country musician with a 5x failed marriages, a son he doesn't know, and an alcohol addiction. Battling his own life, struggling to write new songs and touring hole-in-the-walls including a bowling alley, Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges) meets Jean (Maggie Gyllenhall), a young reporter, divorcée with a 4 yr. old son who interviews Bad. The two lonely souls intertwine after 2 meetings and become involved through what almost seems to be a need for someone to love.
Bridge’s character is at the end of his road until an unexpected call from his agent gets him a gig from his nemesis, musical student and country music big shot Tommy Sweet (Collin Ferrel) that can change his life, but before that can happen, Bad Blake has to wake from his own slumber that has caused grief for himself and others around him.
After a terrible mishap involving Jean’s son, and a failed attempt at making amends with Jean, Bad reaches a dark place and seeks help from Wayne, his bartender and confidant played by Robert Duval who lets him know that it’s never too late.
Beautiful scenery, and of course beautiful soundtrack including “The Weary Kind”. Chorus: “This ain’t no place for the weary , this ain’t no place to lose your mind, this ain’t no place to fall behind…pick up your crazy heart and give it one more try.
Great cast…I was really thrown off when Collin Ferrel (as Tommy Sweet) entered stage left sporting a pony tail, earring and heartened musical admiration of Bad, however all managed to work somehow.
Overall, 4 stars! Check out the song performed by Ryan Bingham:
I love eggplant and enjoy cooking vegetarian dishes; one day I came up with a way to incorporate eggplant to pasta...I cut up eggplant coated it with olive oil, salt pepper then roasted it and tossed it together with simmered tomatoes, basil garlic and pasta, and it was very tasty. Because I love eggplant parmasean, the softness of the eggplant didn't satissfy the toasty crunch I was missing from a traditional eggplant parmesean dish. Eggplant is a difficult vegetable to cook with, because it can get very soggy (when frying, or even sauteeing).
On a different day, I experimented in the kitchen with eggplant, slicing it with my mandoline (creating very thin slices). I salted the eggplant then created an egg batter using 1 egg, 1/4 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of milk. I dipped the eggplant into the batter and pan fried it in olive oil until it reached a very crisp texture. Once the eggplant was finished cooking, I placed it on paper towels to cool down. I used the eggplant to top a spaghetti dish
1 lb of cooked pasta sauce: 1 large can of crushed tomatoes tablespoon of olive oil 4 cloves of garlic fresh basil salt pepper
breadcrumbs and grated parmesean cheese
sautee the garlic in olive oil until tender, add fresh cracked pepper, crushed tomatoes and kosher salt to taste. Let the sauce simmer on medium for about 20 min, then add fresh chopped (or torn) basil to the sauce. Combine the sauce with the pasta and toss in parmasean cheese. Place in a baking dish and top with eggplant, fresh (or store bought) bread crumbs and parmasean cheese then bake on 400 for about 20 min.
The results are DELICIOUS. I paired my pasta dish with a pinot and a movie for a complete date night. Hope you enjoy!
Pictured is Potage Parmentier in its raw and cooked state
Potato and Leek Soup, so delicious and sounds even more delicious when said in French: Potage Parmentier
This was one of most simple, elegant and delicious meals to ever come out of my kitchen. The recipe can be found in Julia Child's cookbook, but all the same here are the simple ingredients/recipe:
4 medium potatoes 3 lbs of leeks (scrubbed and washed carefully) water salt butter or cream salt/pepper to taste
Fill a pot with water and turn on heat (do not boil) wash leeks and slice peel potatoes, wash and thinly slice place both ingredients in pot of water and cook on stove top for 45 minutes (Salt water with kosher salt)
when potatoes and leeks are tender, drain but reserve broth with a fork smash the leeks and potatoes together...add 1/2 lb of butter and mix in with potatoes and leeks. Slowly add the reserved broth and serve with buttered, crusty French bread.
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