Sometimes I am a kite.
After the self-shaming exercise that was the WIP meme, I signed up for The Finishathon. And you should too, if you're drowning in unfinished fic or unstarted bunnies. There's a deadline and voting! It's almost like grad school, only with more porn and less getting really excited because John Ford wrote a play set in Sparta.
In skating news, apparently everyone in this sport thinks it is okay to drive drunk. Maxim Staviski, of Kickass Bulgarian Ice Dancers fame, killed one person and put three people in the hospital on Sunday, making him the second elite figure skater this summer to prove that alcohol and motor vehicles don't mix and probably ending his athletic career in the process. I'm being flip, but this is serious and this is sad -- because it is a tragic death, and because every time a figure skater is dickheaded like this, the ISU/USFSA/etc. morality police clamp down harder on the remaining law-abiding citizens in the sport. Gah, this keeps sounding like irony. I'm sorry. That's what I default to when I'm upset.
I have this whole long Blog Against Racism thing, but it's taking forever and I'm way too tired. Tomorrow? Tomorrow.
Instead, I give you a recipe for amazing chicken. Or, really, amazing sauce that can be used on a variety of protein items. It's adapted from a pork recipe, actually, and I imagine it would play well with tempeh.
1. Whisk together 1/2 cup of vegetable oil, 1/4 cup of light brown sugar, 1/4 cup of soy sauce, 2 cloves of diced garlic, half a diced shallot, about a tablespoon of spicy mustard, and 1/4 cup of Jack Daniels. Or, really, anything in the bourbon family. Possibly the greater whiskey family.
2. Pour sauce into a gallon-size self-sealing plastic bag (You know what's fun? The hot pink sliders at the top of Hefty-brand ones). Add 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs (or some pork chops or tenderloins, or a couple bricks of tempeh, or possibly even a nice salmon filet) to the bag. SEAL THE BAG. Shake the bag. Do a little dance. Shake it like nobody's watching.
3. Place the bag of sauce and chicken (or substitute chicken) in the refrigerator for at least four hours. Munch on hors d'oeuvres. Sip some Jack Daniels on the rocks. Watch Big Brother. Sulk because you are bad at waiting.
3.5. The other thing you can do while you wait is prep some side dishes. Roast some potatoes in olive oil with lots of sea salt. Trim something green that you can steam at the last minute. Keep your prep simple: these are pretty much things to dip in sauce. You will want to have things to dip in the sauce. You will want to have the sauce's children.
4a. At this point, you have two options. One of them is to have a grill. If you do this, remove the chicken (or chicken substitute) from the bag with tongs. Grill the chicken until done. Meanwhile, heat the sauce in a pan on the stove until it's hot and the garlic and shallots are soft.
4b. If, like me, you live in a fourth-floor apartment with no outdoor area, you're going to do this Japanese style. Get yourself a deep frying pan with a lid. Warm it over medium heat, then reduce to low heat. Add the entire contents of the bag: chicken (or substitute), sauce, love, etc. Simmer over low heat for about 8-10 minutes, turn the chicken (o.s.) over, simmer until it's cooked through. The chicken will be tender and permeated with saucy goodness.
5. Eat. Watch more Big Brother. Cry a little.
In skating news, apparently everyone in this sport thinks it is okay to drive drunk. Maxim Staviski, of Kickass Bulgarian Ice Dancers fame, killed one person and put three people in the hospital on Sunday, making him the second elite figure skater this summer to prove that alcohol and motor vehicles don't mix and probably ending his athletic career in the process. I'm being flip, but this is serious and this is sad -- because it is a tragic death, and because every time a figure skater is dickheaded like this, the ISU/USFSA/etc. morality police clamp down harder on the remaining law-abiding citizens in the sport. Gah, this keeps sounding like irony. I'm sorry. That's what I default to when I'm upset.
I have this whole long Blog Against Racism thing, but it's taking forever and I'm way too tired. Tomorrow? Tomorrow.
Instead, I give you a recipe for amazing chicken. Or, really, amazing sauce that can be used on a variety of protein items. It's adapted from a pork recipe, actually, and I imagine it would play well with tempeh.
1. Whisk together 1/2 cup of vegetable oil, 1/4 cup of light brown sugar, 1/4 cup of soy sauce, 2 cloves of diced garlic, half a diced shallot, about a tablespoon of spicy mustard, and 1/4 cup of Jack Daniels. Or, really, anything in the bourbon family. Possibly the greater whiskey family.
2. Pour sauce into a gallon-size self-sealing plastic bag (You know what's fun? The hot pink sliders at the top of Hefty-brand ones). Add 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs (or some pork chops or tenderloins, or a couple bricks of tempeh, or possibly even a nice salmon filet) to the bag. SEAL THE BAG. Shake the bag. Do a little dance. Shake it like nobody's watching.
3. Place the bag of sauce and chicken (or substitute chicken) in the refrigerator for at least four hours. Munch on hors d'oeuvres. Sip some Jack Daniels on the rocks. Watch Big Brother. Sulk because you are bad at waiting.
3.5. The other thing you can do while you wait is prep some side dishes. Roast some potatoes in olive oil with lots of sea salt. Trim something green that you can steam at the last minute. Keep your prep simple: these are pretty much things to dip in sauce. You will want to have things to dip in the sauce. You will want to have the sauce's children.
4a. At this point, you have two options. One of them is to have a grill. If you do this, remove the chicken (or chicken substitute) from the bag with tongs. Grill the chicken until done. Meanwhile, heat the sauce in a pan on the stove until it's hot and the garlic and shallots are soft.
4b. If, like me, you live in a fourth-floor apartment with no outdoor area, you're going to do this Japanese style. Get yourself a deep frying pan with a lid. Warm it over medium heat, then reduce to low heat. Add the entire contents of the bag: chicken (or substitute), sauce, love, etc. Simmer over low heat for about 8-10 minutes, turn the chicken (o.s.) over, simmer until it's cooked through. The chicken will be tender and permeated with saucy goodness.
5. Eat. Watch more Big Brother. Cry a little.