In which I talk about food again: more Brownies of Win and a cucumber-avocado cold soup
I've been experimenting a bit in the kitchen again. The results have been delicious.
1. Earlier this week, I wanted brownies again. My Brownies of Win, to be precise, which are the Moosewood Fudge Brownies (recipe here) with the addition of cinnamon and dried cherries. I was out of dried cherries, though, so I decided to substitute orange zest because orange and chocolate is delicious, as is orange and cinnamon, and we have an orange tree out back. Very, very good idea. For the interested, take the brownie recipe I linked to above and add 1 Tbsp of cinnamon and the grated zest of a medium-to-large orange with the sugar and vanilla.
2. Dinner tonight was Delicious Experiment #2: Cold Cucumber-Avocado Soup. I think I will play with this more, as I like it and I'm sure variations would be lots of fun. It came out a smooth and creamy pale avocado green (big surprise ^___^) with the rich avocado flavor contrasting nicely with the cucumber's light-and-cool and the slight bite of raw garlic. The blender is my friend.
1 ripe medium-sized avocado
1 large cucumber, peeled and cut into chunks
1 medium clove garlic, chopped
juice of 1 lemon, strained
~1/2 - 3/4 C milk
~1 - 1 1/2 Tbsp sour cream
drizzle olive oil (extra virgin)
salt to taste
Halve the avocado, remove the seed and scoop the flesh into a blender with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until smooth. Serve immediately or chill. Makes about 2 cups.
This would probably work just as well with buttermilk rather than milk and sour cream. I decided to garnish mine with cucumber slices and make a pretty plate. And then I took (crappy cell phone) pictures. Because I could.
I was a little grumpy, though, as the cheese I was going to arrange with the Ak-Mak crackers was moldy and I just bought it today. Teach me to check more carefully before buying it, huh? Because really, I may have never had Petit Basque before, but I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to have white streaks on the cut surface of the cheese, especially when a couple of those streaks are going blue in the middle.
Also, I'm applying for jobs again, as I'm not getting any hours on my contract job right now and it'll be up in a month anyways. As I'd really like something with a set schedule, I'm looking at office jobs. Whee. And I'm contemplating getting a car, so if anyone has advice on shopping for a used car, I'd appreciate it.
1. Earlier this week, I wanted brownies again. My Brownies of Win, to be precise, which are the Moosewood Fudge Brownies (recipe here) with the addition of cinnamon and dried cherries. I was out of dried cherries, though, so I decided to substitute orange zest because orange and chocolate is delicious, as is orange and cinnamon, and we have an orange tree out back. Very, very good idea. For the interested, take the brownie recipe I linked to above and add 1 Tbsp of cinnamon and the grated zest of a medium-to-large orange with the sugar and vanilla.
2. Dinner tonight was Delicious Experiment #2: Cold Cucumber-Avocado Soup. I think I will play with this more, as I like it and I'm sure variations would be lots of fun. It came out a smooth and creamy pale avocado green (big surprise ^___^) with the rich avocado flavor contrasting nicely with the cucumber's light-and-cool and the slight bite of raw garlic. The blender is my friend.
1 ripe medium-sized avocado
1 large cucumber, peeled and cut into chunks
1 medium clove garlic, chopped
juice of 1 lemon, strained
~1/2 - 3/4 C milk
~1 - 1 1/2 Tbsp sour cream
drizzle olive oil (extra virgin)
salt to taste
Halve the avocado, remove the seed and scoop the flesh into a blender with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until smooth. Serve immediately or chill. Makes about 2 cups.
This would probably work just as well with buttermilk rather than milk and sour cream. I decided to garnish mine with cucumber slices and make a pretty plate. And then I took (crappy cell phone) pictures. Because I could.
I was a little grumpy, though, as the cheese I was going to arrange with the Ak-Mak crackers was moldy and I just bought it today. Teach me to check more carefully before buying it, huh? Because really, I may have never had Petit Basque before, but I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to have white streaks on the cut surface of the cheese, especially when a couple of those streaks are going blue in the middle.
Also, I'm applying for jobs again, as I'm not getting any hours on my contract job right now and it'll be up in a month anyways. As I'd really like something with a set schedule, I'm looking at office jobs. Whee. And I'm contemplating getting a car, so if anyone has advice on shopping for a used car, I'd appreciate it.