Hello! I know it’s been a while – life often finds ways to lead the best intentions astray. I’ve been cooking, but can attest to the hard truth that eating one’s food is much easier than writing about it after the fact. I will have […]
sometime towards the end of last week, i got an email titled “corn is 4 for a dollar.” and right away i knew that this was an email i would like, because who doesn’t like emails about food? true, i was a little curious because […]
do you ever find that when you’re having a dinner party, and you’re finally sitting down to eat, you…don’t actually feel like eating? it’s one part adrenaline from getting everything done, and one part nervousness about people liking what you’ve made – especially when you’re cooking for people you haven’t ever cooked for. it’s not like cooking for friends back home, where you’ve already been tried and vetted. granted, i don’t think anyone’s going to be judgmental about just a dinner party, but when i do give one, there is always that competitive spirit that aims to impress, vying with the more social desire to feed people.
i think i’ve mentioned this before, but really, the best part of the dinner party for me is the cooking part; of course, when you cook something, somebody needs to eat it, so naturally it makes sense to invite some people over. and the social phenomenon of a dinner party really appeals to me: a group of people gathered around a table, talking and idling the evening away. take note of the table: it actually makes a huge difference, having now entertained for four years without one. it really surprises me just how much having the table matters – just having this physical thing that everybody is sitting around, and that you can rest your elbows on. (more…)
as my funds run out (i just parted with my tuition money – my first semester paid with money i earned all on my own!), i am still managing to fritter away money on my baking experiments. i guess i’ll just have to work more […]
i’ve been kind of grumpy lately, because i’ve been trying to figure out whether or not to take a semester off, but more, i suspect, because i’m starting to get homesick. don’t get me wrong, new york: i like you fine. even more than fine, […]
do you ever think about food as a puzzle? because sometimes i do. i don’t know if it’s because it’s some subconscious need to elevate cooking to some other level as a justification for doing it so frequently, or if it’s just because that’s the way my mind works; probably some combination. i mean, let’s face it: normal people don’t plan things out as thoroughly as i often do. i’m not a total nutcase, but i definitely have above average oc disorder.
problematizing (to use a fake archispeak word, sorry) food and cooking is basically the selfish part of why i like having dinner parties: getting to set a menu. i like this part of planning a dinner party so much that i probably derive a little too much pleasure from it. first you think about when you will be eating: is it going to be nice weather? what would you want to eat in that weather? how will people be eating, at a table or standing around, or just sitting on couches? because certainly you wouldn’t want your guests to have to cut anything while standing up unless they were all four-handed people, right? i’ve definitely never made that mistake before…er, moving on. (more…)
ever since the new york times posted its definitive recipe for chocolate chip cookies, i’ve been meaning to do a taste test between those and our trusty standby, toll house. we all know i’m a sucker for taste tests; the best ones that come to […]
i can feel it – the allergic reaction i have to most raw fruit – starting to tickle the back of my throat. serves me right, but this summer it’s been so humid occasionally that i refuse to cook, and eat fruit instead. ok, i […]
n is coming over for an early brunch tomorrow, and as i’ve forgotten the files i keep on promising her, it is going to have to be good. here’s what i’m thinking:
* note: this platter is ~20″ wide, and the big slices of beef are ~8″ in diameter in the long dimension ok, here’s the lesson first, to be followed by the story: let meat be all that it can be, and it will reward you. […]