Meter and Miscellany

New Post on the New Blog!

2012-07-26T17:25:00.001-04:00

Hi All!

Meter and Miscellany has gotten a facelift moved over to Wordpress! There's a few new posts you might be missing! To see the latest or resubscribe over at the new location go to:

Crafty, Crunchy, Cool

Hope to see you all at the new blog!!

New Posts and Updates!!

2012-07-12T21:57:00.004-04:00

Hi All!

Meter and Miscellany has gotten a facelift moved over to Wordpress! There's a few new posts you might be missing! To see them or resubscribe over at the new location go to:

http://metermiscellany.wordpress.com/2012/07/12/ready-or-not/

Hope to see you all at the new blog!!

I have moved!!

2012-06-08T13:48:00.002-04:00

This blog has moved!!! It's new address is now:

http://metermiscellany.wordpress.com/

If you are a follower and would like to continue following, make sure you subscribe at the new address. There is a subscribe option at the footer of the blog.

I hope to see you all in our new location!!

Jess :-)

Under Construction

2012-06-07T17:28:00.001-04:00

Hello! This blog is currently undergoing a rehaul and move to Wordpress. It will be live again soon! Stay tuned...

:-)

Curried Cream of Cauliflower Soup (w/ Pumpkin!)

2011-10-23T16:51:00.003-04:00

When I shop at the public market I usually have a system for buying veggies...browse, take mental notes and go back for what I need when I decide where it looks best. I also try really hard to leave the heavy stuff for last (after a disasterous trip last October when I decided to buy a butternut squash, acorn squash, pumpkin and a 1/2 bushel of apples and carry them home. Walking. Fail.) But there is something about autumn that gets me all twitter-painted when it comes to food. Yesterday I fell in love with this ENORMOUS and absolutely perfect head of cauliflower, which I ended up carrying around all day. And which weighed 5 pounds! (I weighed it today.) I was feeling fall-y and soupy, and in the mood for a little spice, so I decided a curried cauliflower soup was in order.

After making pumpkin waffles for breakfast this morning (still tweaking the recipe before I post, but it's close!!) I had a little left over pumpkin and had a feeling it would be the perfect addition to the soup I pictured in my head. A little bit of this and a little bit of that later and...I. Can't. Stop. Eating. It.

Today is a perfect autumn day...breezy and cool, but with the warm light of the autumn sun and the smell of the changing leaves and damp ground left by our recent weeks of rain. It is everything I love about autumn, and this soup is a perfect compliment. Dunk in some warm sourdough and...perfection! I think tomorrow I will have it for lunch with Apple Cheddar Scones.

I love October!!!!!!

Curried Cauliflower Soup w/ Pumpkin

1 onion, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3/4 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon chili flakes (I always throw in a little more for good measure)
2 lbs cauliflower, trimmed, cut into florets
5 cups chicken or veggie stock
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (or to taste)
You can garnish with creme fraiche or sour cream or greek yogurt

Saute' onions, celery and garlic in 2 tbls butter or olive oil 'til soft. Add spices and flour and cook for 2 minutes more. Add broth, pumpkin and bay leaf and simmer 'til cauliflower is soft and mashable. Let the soup cool a bit, remove the bay leaf and puree in food processor or blender. That's it!! Open your windows, take in the changing season and enjoy! :-)

One Night...One Bottle of Champagne...So many uses.

2011-01-01T02:01:00.004-05:00

Yes its New Year's Eve, and instead of being out on the town John and I are taking a cozy, lazy day at home after a horrific layover in Chicago that finally brought us home last night at 3am. (As a side note: long layovers and traveling cats are not a good combination...but Journey did great and is very grateful to be home.)

So we are exhausted, that kind of full body exhaustion that makes even holding your eyelids all the way open seem like hard work. But the day was not entirely wasted with laziness. I did manage to go grocery shopping, which was important, as the only edible thing in the house was a bag of carrots. And I showered. You're welcome.

And....I managed to orchestrate a brilliant evening of champagne-based goodness. I mean, it is New Years after all.

First off...I decided that Mireille Guiliano's Chicken Au Champagne from French Women Don't Get Fat was a great way to use up some of a large bottle of Champagne that John and I could never drink the entire thing of (without getting completely trashed, that is). And it was easy to cook. Which was a must considering the whole eyes-open = hard work thing.

Mireille suggests Veuve Clicquot, for drinking and cooking, but I didn't want to spend $50 on a bottle of Champagne for a recipe I've never tried. So I compromised with a bottle of j cuvée 20 recommended to me by Mr. Yeager himself at Yeager's Wine in Pittsford (our all time favorite wine store...absolutely unmatched knowledge and service...AND they have a student discount). The j cuvée 20 was $20 and was absolutely superb champagne (or sparkling wine technically, as it's from California). Incredible.

The chicken was PERFECTION. I'm not going to repeat her recipe here, but you can find it at Mireille's website. (If you haven't read or heard of this book....I highly recommend it and the cookbook that followed it. I got both for Christmas and have already finished them both! – reading them, that is, not cooking. She's incredible and they are SO much fun to read. And make your mouth water at the same time.)

I served the chicken au champagne over brown rice, like Mireille recommends, with field mushrooms and sauted haricot verts on the side. Simple, clean, absolutely delicious. And the smell of the champagne and chicken cooking together was like nothing I've ever smelled!

And, of course, we drank the champagne as well! Obviously...even totally tired you can't be too tired to toast, right? :-) But too much Champagne and I would have been sure to the new year entirely...so after a couple glasses we put the rest to other uses.

First we made...

Strawberry Champagne Sorbet

1 package fresh strawberries, pureed in a food processor.
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 cup champagne
1 cup ice cold water

Mix it all in a bowl and freeze in an icecream maker. Super easy! And delicious.

But why stop with eating and drinking Champagne (which, in my opinion, is definitely the god's nectar if there ever was one)? I read somewhere – though I can't find the source now, it was probably Glamour Magazine – that champagne is good for your skin (and hair apparently too, but I ran out...all good bottles come to an end eventually) and that it can be mixed with household ingredients to make a great face/body scrub. Couldn't find the recipe, so I made up my own. And...er...I will never buy another facial peel or special exfoliant again. I just used it on my face...scrubbed with the scrub (below), rinsed and then applied a little plain champagne with a cotton pad, let it dry, rinsed again and then put on my normal moisturizer. My skin was bright, smooth, felt amazing and looked better than it has all winter! And the best part about this scrub is you get to sip champagne while you make it. :-) And it's very environmentally friendly, as it's not made from chemicals or little plastic beads...just household ingredients! And it worked great on my shoulders and arms too! Sugar does eventually dissolve, so make sure you use it the same day you make it...or keep the liquid and add sugar a little at a time as you use it. The tea/champagne mixture will keep for a few days in the fridge.

So here it is....

Jess's Champagne Sugar Scrub

1/2 cup fresh brewed green tea (brew enough leaves for 1 whole cups in 1/2 cup of hot water)
Let that sit for a while so it cools then add:
1/3-1/2 cup champagne
1/2 cup granulated sugar (the sugar exfoliates wonderfully – just make sure to rinse it all off)
1/8 tsp. lemon juice

Apply to clean (if you're wearing makeup, cleanse first) then scrub gently, and rinse. You can use a little of the liquid with cotton as well if you want, let it sit for a few seconds, then rinse again. Use your normal moisturizer and voila!

So there you have it...if you're splurging for the new year or have left overs tomorrow, all you need is one bottle of Champagne for drinking, cooking, dessert and silky smooth skin. I think that's well worth toasting to!

Happy New Year Everyone!!!!

On Magazines and E-readers and the Flux of Not-Knowing.

2010-10-30T16:44:00.001-04:00

I have been accused in the past of having elitist taste in magazines, which accusation I will neither deny nor admit. I know where the claim originates, however. There are two magazines that I have had longstanding subscriptions to, and that, in the few sporadic months I've been without them, I have sorely missed –

The Economist and Harper's Magazine.

But while these two are my constant, I also have subscriptions to Glamour, Vogue, W and Martha Stewart Living (thanks to random pockets of expiring airline miles!).

Thing is...I love magazines. I like the way you can roll them up in your hand and read as you walk around the kitchen distractedly putting dishes into the dishwasher. I like the way you know they are going to arrive soon and you are excited to see what's in this forthoming issue, because you've already digested everything in the last issue several times. Magazines are much more user friendly than newspapers, and, dare I say it, even books. They are very forgiving. You can toss them around the living room, or drop food on them while cooking or accidentally submerge them in the bath and they do not care.

But what I really love about magazines is this: I see them almost as miniature, portable museums or galleries, each curated with exacting care and strict expectations. And, like visiting an art exhibit managed by a trusted curator, when you pick up the Economist, or Harper's or Glamour or Martha Stewart, you know exactly what to expect. The work itself may be surprising, but the curator's presentation, the unique visual interpretation of information, the tone of the exhibit and the overall world view will be cohesive time and again. Magazines are a study in curation.

Going back to my elitist magazine sensibilities – In this month's issue of Harper's Lewis H. Lapham wrote a brilliant essay on...well...on the "essay," and in it he positions himself by quoting Montaigne from his essay "Of Books":

I have no doubt that I often speak of things which are better treated by the masters of the craft, and with more truth. This is simply a trial (essai) of my natural faculties, and not of my acquired ones. If one catches me in ignorance, he will score no triumph over me, since I can hardly be answerable to another for my reasonings, when I am not answerable for them to myself, and am never satisfied with them...These are my fancies, in which I make no attempt to convey information about things, only about myself. I may have some objective knowledge one day, or may perhaps have had it in the past when I happened to light on passages that explained things. But I have forgotten it all; for though I am a man of some reading, I am one who retains nothing.

I love this. And I think it speaks to how I approach not only reading and writing, but also my relationship with learning and with words. One of the things I found so stressful about graduate work in literature was the expectation I felt to sound like I knew something......but I find no passion in simply knowing things, in being a "master" of the craft, per se. My passion is in learning, discovering and participating in the dance of my own erratic and evolving fancies. Knowing gets in the way of learning. There is no knowing if the way one looks at the world is constantly changing. But learning.....learning is the here and now, learning is in the moment, even if, as Montaigne admits, I am one who retains nothing. (Which, I think is another reason I love magazines. Magazines are fluid, dynamic, temporary, always in flux.)

I think this also speaks to my fascination with technology and the ever-shifting ways in which information and language is disseminated and assimilated. For instance, I will fully admit that I not only have no problem with e-readers, but that I hope to own one shortly (the Nook gets my vote, not the new Nook color, but the proper, e-ink Nook). I'm aware that there is a certain expectation that I, especially as someone who is concerned about the profitibility of her own future novel, would shun such artificial trappings in favor of the hard, tangible, organic body of a good book. But I'm really not that worried. As Lapham said in his essay:

I listen to anguished publishers tell sad stories of the disappearance of books and the death of Western civilization, about bookstores selling cat toys and teddy bears, but I don't find myself moved to tears...The questions in hand have to do with where the profit, not the meaning, is to be found, who collects what tolls from which streams of revenue or consciousness.

Every technological innovation, from the automobile to the iPad, has caused some level of unrest and anxiety over the status of "life as we know it." But what is "life as we know it?" If we, as Montaigne did, become comfortable with the idea of "knowing" nothing, and are content to live in a constant flux of fancy and discovery, then these new vehicles for communication are nothing more than tools, perfectly positioned for new learning, new interpretations and the excitement of ever expanding boundaries. Technology is never going to destroy "meaning," or desecrate "language," it's never going to compromise human creativity or the depth and insight of art and culture. But what it can and will do is open these up to a whole new level of access.

I live in an age where I can hold my entire library in the palm of my hand. That in and of itself is a very special kind of magic.

I Am Alive!!!!!!! (Just in case you were wondering)

2010-10-19T18:19:00.002-04:00

Yes, the rumors are true. I am alive and still in possession of the capacity of writing. What has transpired lately?

My wonderful cousin was married in Austin, TX, which resulted in a fantastic weekend with other wonderful cousins!!!

I have a new pair of furry furry boots:

which I am in love with and which I will wear 'til I die.

And I am currently on my way out the door to eat Indian buffet at Mysore Woodlands. If you haven't eaten there yet, do it. And if you want to really do it right, go on a Tuesday night! You will not be disappointed. Unlimited dosas and a mouth-watering buffet.

Just wanted to say hi. And show off my boots. Obviously.

Cocoa and Spice and Everything Nice (is even nicer in cupcake form!)

2010-09-20T22:13:00.001-04:00

So my friend gave me a bottle of pure Mexican vanilla, and I've been dying to use it for something, but keep forgetting and it's been in our cupboards sadly neglected up 'til now.

Then earlier today I was suddenly struck with this dire need to make cupcakes. This is not a common occurence; I think the last time I made cupcakes was halloween when I made carrot cake cupcakes frosted to look like brains. So yeah, a while ago. But today was a perfect cupcake day.

There we were, my bottle of Mexican vanilla and I, talkin' turkey, getting aquainted, and the conversation went something like this:

Me: I'm not really sure what to do with you. You're strong. You smell different than other vanillas – deep and lingering, like a good whisky. I don't want to insult your gravity by giving you your grand entrance in something so banal, so deliciously ordinary as chocolate chip cookies. You deserve...

Vanilla: Spice.

Me: Spice? As in like....hot spice?

Vanilla: As in heat, pepper, the kind that tingles on your tongue...but not too much. Paired with something rich and sweet like chocolate that melts in your mouth and excites....

Me (interrupting): Cupcakes! Vanilla, you are a genius.

Vanilla: Yes. Yes I am.

So Vanilla and I joined forces and came up with these beauties – rich, sweet, spicy, moist, delectable:

Dark Chocolate Chili Cupcakes

2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa powder (I used Dutch process cocoa)
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 - 2 tsp. cayenne pepper (if you use a fresh, bright cayenne as I do, ere on the lower side. I put about 2 1/4 tsp. and these would have been absolute PERFECTION with just a tad less heat. If your pepper is a little older/less hot, then you can afford to use a bit more).
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (I used dried buttermilk, mixed with the dry ingredients and 1 cup hot water)
1/2 cup coconut (or other vegetable) oil (I love refined coconut oil for baking. Spectrum brand is great).
2 tsp. vanilla (or a very ponderous, melancholy Mexican vanilla)
1 cup freshly brewed coffee (darker roast the better)

Preheat your oven to 350 and line your muffin/cupcake tin.

Mix all the dry ingredients, then beat in the eggs, vanilla, oil, coffee and buttermilk (or water if using dry)on meeting speed for about 2-3 minutes until completely smooth. Pour into your cupcake papers or tin.

Depending on the size of your cupcakes cooking time will be between 12 (for mini ones) - 25 min. Keep an eye out and take out when a toothpick or butter knife comes out clean.

Then frost them!!!

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

6 tbls. Butter or Margarine (Earthbalance is a great butter alternative).
3-4 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup milk
1 tsp. regular vanilla or 3/4 tsp. Mexican vanilla (less is more with this one).

Beat butter 'til soft then add sugar and cocoa alternately with milk (you can add more milk if you need, 1/2 tsp at a time). When nearly through the sugar add vanilla. Optional: add a small – key: SMALL – dash of salt. (Baker's secret. A touch of salt brings all of the flavors together. But only a very small touch!) You could also top it off with a little shredded coconut.

Voila! Or as the vanilla would say: Si. Si, Estoy aquí.

On The Long Awaited End of August...

2010-09-14T22:40:00.006-04:00

Honestly, I don't have much to say about the end of August other than I'm glad it's over. August and I have never been the best of friends, and we grow further apart as I grow older. I'm done with the hot, the heavy, the hellish hectic-ness of summer. I used to think it was just the heat, but I've realized the reason I love September is that once it begins the world around me seems to go back to a kind of calm order. Even this year, when I am no longer in school. It's time to organize, get back to work, and take long walks in the brisk mornings. And I can get my scarves back out. I am a very happy girl right now!!!

Which brings me to the real body of this post which is...

I've been so happy and back in my element these days, I found that in my magnanimous state I have fallen in love with a great number of things and I wanted to share them with you. So here is my list of early September loves....

– "Electric Twist" by A Fine Frenzy. I've now listened to it 35 times in the last 24 hours. It is the soundtrack of my mood.

– Early mornings.

– Mysore Woodlands on Clinton Ave. Rochester has some truly great Indian restaurants, but I love Mysore Woodlands for several reasons.

1. Their very obvious and assuming sign that says, merely, "Restaurant." (If you are looking for it, it is in the Tops plaza on Clinton – where Zebbs is – in the very back corner next to Lifespan.)

2. Tuesday night buffet. 10.99 for a fantastic buffet and unlimited dosas.

3. The fair. Authentic South Indian that isn't watered down or made blander. If they say it's hot, it's hot. And fantastic. Their dahls and their chai leave something to be desired, but their gobi makhani is "one of their specialties" and the dosas are to die for.

4. The people. We have had some of the best (and most educational!) service I have ever had in the City. The staff make you feel welcome, comfortable and esteemed, as if you were a guest in their home for dinner.

– Glamor Magazine. There. I said it.

– Vintage Buttons.

– My programmable coffee maker.

– Cantelope.

– Chocolate with chili pepper in it.

– Canadians.

– Beads and Things in Pittsford.

– Knitting.

– The effulgence of monarch butterflies in migration.

– The word "effulgence."

– The woodsy scent in the air and the slight tint to the trees that says the leaves are starting to change.

– Hand bound books.

– Peacock feathers.

– And very large, very sticky, very very delicious campfire marshmallows.

And September. I love September.

Want To See My Mussels?

2010-08-15T20:31:00.001-04:00

Hello again Blog World!!! My MA is finally done. I have slept off any residual (well, most of it at least) stress and exhaustion and I read a whole book – A novel! For fun! The mind reels! – this week. And now...it's back to writing! I can't even tell you how excited I am.

So in honor of having some semblance of a life back, today I rolled up my metaphorical shirt-sleeves and decided to tackle one of my favourite dishes and one that I've always been mildly frightened of.

I decided to make Moules Mariniere. ::gasp!::

I love mussels, good ones. I love how the shells fill with juice and you can scoop them out with your teeth and get a juicy bite of buttery, wine-y, ocean-y awesomeness. But, as I'm very picky about my mussels, I've also been extremely intimidated by the thought of cooking them. I'm not sure if I could handle it if it didn't work.

Which is why when I took a bag of stinking, obviously dead and rotting mussels out of the fridge this afternoon, I almost called it quits.

Mussels Lesson Number 1: The little buggers have got to breathe.

Apparently, mussels are quite fragile and have to be allowed to "breathe" or else they will die in your fridge. Under no circumstances are they supposed to be enclosed in plastic! Who knew? Not me!

Not knowing this until it was too late, I wrapped the bag of mussels in a plastic bag and stuck them in the fridge last night. They were NOT in good shape today. You should never use cracked or already open mussels. Open equals dead. And they were ALL open. SO.....so after a mild heart attack where I considered telling John we were ordering pizza instead, I took a couple of deep breaths and went back to Wegmans and got a fresh bag.

Mussels Lesson Number 2: Beards? Seriously?!?

My recipe (Julia Child via Smitten Kitchen a la Jess) said "soaked and scrubbed" mussels. So I soaked them.

And after about 10 minutes all kinds of stringy goop was sticking out of them. NASTY stringy goop. Thanks to the internets I discovered this goop is the mussel's "beard" and you've got to pull it off. But ALWAYS pull towards the hinged edge of the mussel or else the beard will sever it from the shell, killing the mussel. Geesh, who knew they were so easy to kill!?

And then I scrubbed them, made the sauce and sliced some russet potatoes for homemade pomme frites ('cause you can't have moules mariniere without pomme frites).

Moules Mariniere
(From Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking – w/ my slight variations in italics)

In a large pot bring to a boil:

2 cups dry white wine
1/2 cup minced shallots (I actually used green onions because there were some gorgeous ones at the public market that I couldn't pass up)
Some fresh parsley
1/2 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp. whole brown mustard seeds
1/4 tsp. sea salt
6 tbs. unsalted butter

Once the mixture has boiled for a few minutes toss in the soaked, scrubbed and de-bearded mussels. I used a two-pound bag. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes, occasionally (and very carefully) picking up the pot by its handles and tossing the mussels around inside. After about 5 minutes they should all be gorgeously open! I reduced the rest of the sauce a bit, let it sit a few minutes so any left over sand settled to the bottom and then poured it on top of the mussels. And the final result...

was GORGEOUS!!!

And delicious, and all-around extremely exciting, and has allayed my daunting fear of mussels, and was SO worth going back to the store to try again. ::sigh::

We sopped up our buttery sauce with whole grain baguette, and washed it down with a lovely pinot grigio. Oh! And I can't forget the pomme frites!

These are so easy and really tasty. Just slice a couple of potatoes (depending on how many people will be eating) and par boil the sticks with a tablespoon of salt. When they are about 3/4 of the way cooked, drain and toss them with olive oil and arrange them on a large cookie sheet. Make sure you don't crowd them so they can properly brown. Sprinkle with a little sea salt and put under your broiler (in the center of your oven, not right under the rack) until they turn a nice golden brown. You'll have to flip them half way through. And voila! Pomme Frites! Only much much healthier and ridiculously tasty. :-)

Mussels Lesson Number 3: If you are going to convert your ottoman into a table and eat mussels and pomme frites on the living room floor because it is now 105 degrees in your kitchen, you best be prepared to share with any furry, feline friends whose heads happen to now be level with your bowl, especially if their name is Journey and they really love seafood.

All you need is...HOME!

2010-07-06T11:11:00.001-04:00

You thought I was going to say "Love" didn't you?

After a whirlwind combination of vacations all packed into a short two weeks, we are back home, cozy, organized, and sheltered from the unforgiving sun. And it is very VERY nice. John and I had an amazing time at Harry Potter World in Orlando and at Disney (I finally made it there!!!) and a great time with his parents in NYC. He is back to the seemingly unending grind of med school (I miss him already!) and I have 3 weeks to finish my thesis (Yikes!) but at the same time there is a peace that has settled over the house. That contented feeling of knowing that no matter where you go, or no matter how busy or stressful the outside world can be, home is always there waiting for you, welcoming you back.

And...NO MORE EATING OUT! I am so excited to get back in my kitchen and cooking and eating some tasty treats. Made these last night with fresh cherries that we picked ourselves.

Yeah, it's good to be home.

Correction...

2010-05-27T20:21:00.000-04:00

So it turns out John DOESN'T hate polka dots. His strong feelings were directed solely towards one offending instance. Turns out, as a general rule, he thinks they're cute. Even hot! (Although still maybe not canister material).

Anyway...this is good to know. :-)

Itsty, Bitsy, Teeny, Weeny....Quiche!

2010-05-27T09:52:00.004-04:00

You thought I was going to say "yellow polka dots", didn't you?

I've gotten quite a few requests for my mini-quiche recipe since John's and my fancy pants party. I have to admit I've procrastinated giving it to anyone or posting it because (hold your breath)...

I've never really had one.

I've been working diligently lately to really pay attention to what I do and what I put in when I cook or bake, but for many years I've cooked by site/gut/feeling/instinct, which incidentally can be developed solely by trial and error. No "this seems right" recipe has ever turned out great the first time. Some have been downright awful! But after time and experimentation, a system comes together and an amazing (if amorphous) recipe takes form. Thing is, its hard to communicate or duplicate what that recipe is, which I am now realizing is a very poor way to cook. Why make something incredible if you can't share the secret??!! So I'm attempting to change that.

Translating my quiche recipe from automatic-in-my-head to the page has been tricky, but I can give you a very clear idea of some of my tricks and tips. I would have to go on a quiche-making binge and record everything to give you accurate measurements, but I am not sure they are actually necessary in this case. So consider this more of a quiche tutorial. There will be few, if any, numbers involved, but the result will still be super tasty. To that end, my tutorial will necessarily include a sharing of some of my deepest, darkest cooking secrets.

Dark Secret #1: This.

This unassuming jar of goodness is the secret ingredient in many of my original recipes, and you will be hearing lots about it in the future. Buy a jar. It's less than $4 in Wegmans. But be aware...once you do you will be hooked. I had to bring a stash with me when I lived in the UK.

Dark Secret #2: Nutmeg.

Okay, maybe that's not so dark sounding, but I have also found that nutmeg, sorely overlooked and underestimated, lives a full, secret, passionate life of it's own and thrives best when it pokes its nose into places people think its not supposed to be. You'll be hearing more about nutmeg in the future too.

Dark Secret #3: I can take ZERO credit for my pie/quiche crust. Up until about 6 months ago I was in the running for the world's worst pie crust baker. Which, as you can imagine, was extremely distressing since, as a baker, it's kind of ESSENTIAL. Just a little. But then...then Deb from Smitten Kitchen came to the rescue, and I'm telling you, this crust comes out perfectly every time. So for your quiche crust I refer you to Deb's life-saving pie crust tips.

Now that we've gotten the confessionals out of the way, let's get down to business. Big quiche and baby quiche are essentially made the same way, but for baby quiche you're going to have to cut the ingredients exponentially smaller. Teeny even. I mean, they are teeny quiche after all.

I used a non-stick mini muffin pan. The butter in the crust will ensure that the quiches don't stick to the pan.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Use a glass, measuring cup or biscuit cutter sprayed with cooking oil to cut circles in the crust, and give each little guy a once over with the rolling pin. Make sure to make your circles so that there is a generous edge of dough sticking out of the cup. This is important! The butter in your pie crust causes the dough to shrink as soon as it gets hot and without that extra edge you will find yourself with a crusty bottom and eggy top.

Once you get all your cups lined with dough, add the veggies, meats and cheese. There are three types of quiche that vie for first place in my book.

Spinach, Portabello, Feta (Equal parts pre-sauteed spinach and mushroom, feta on top. No extra cheddar cheese);
Bacon, Basil, Tomato (Crispy cooked bacon, flaked, diced fresh tomatoes and diced fresh basil. Top with a light sprinkle of cheddar or shredded Parmesan); and
Broccoli and Cheddar (2 parts pre-steamed (but not soggy!) broccoli and 1 part sharp cheddar)

Then you pour in the filling! Here's where we can get a little more technical.

3-4 eggs.
Milk and/or cream
Dash ground black pepper
Dash nutmeg
About a 1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon of the Konriko Creole Seasoning

In a large bowl (with a spout would be amazing!) whisk the eggs until fully blended. The number of eggs depends on how big, or how many quiche you are making. For a normal pie pan quiche I generally use 3 large eggs and an extra white. For a pan of 24 mini quiche, I'd start with 4. You might have some egg stuff left over, but that's better than not having enough.

Whisk in a little bit of milk or cream until you have a (mostly) free-flowing liquid. You should be able to pour the mixture, but you should also still see and feel the viscous-ness of the eggs. Then whisk in the spices and you are ready to go!

Pour or ladel the mixture over the top of the veggie and cheese-filled cups until the ingredients are just covered. Some cheese will stick out the top still. This is totally fine!

Then whack the pan in the preheated oven (375 degrees) and bake until done! Regular quiche generally takes about 30-40 minutes. The mini quiche took less than that, but I didn't time them. Check them after 15-20 and then keep an eye on them until they are stiff, slightly puffy and golden brown.

Set them on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes and you're done! They will pop right out of the pan (and into your tummy!)

You can customize this in any number of different ways. I made a couple in a normal-sized muffin pan, which gives you a perfect portion, adorable quiche that you can plate with a salad and serve for a luncheon or brunch. And you can experiment with ingredients. Ham, Swiss cheese, leeks, artichoke hearts, cauliflower...the opportunities are endless.

And, like anything you make, they will always come out better if you sing while you cook. Itsy bitsy teeny weeny yummy cheesy veggie...quiche!

"Yellow Makes Me Very Happy!" Or..."You Might Be Seeing Spots."

2010-05-26T07:21:00.004-04:00

I've got a crush on yellow. Not that nuclear, traffic stopping yellow (you know the color I mean). That still makes me cringe every time. I love a warm sophisticated mustard, but that is more like an old friend, wonderful to have a drink and a chat with, but your heart doesn't got pitter-patter when you see it. No, a simple, sunny, sunflower-y yellow, the kind that lights up a room, the kind that drives gray days and blue moods away – that is what I love. Oooo it makes me giddy just thinking about it!

This is a relatively new development. Or maybe its been a long time coming, but I am just now comfortable enough with myself to finally admit it. Perhaps it is the spring, the flowers, the effluence of sun and heat we've been blessed with lately, or maybe it's just that sunny-side-up disposition I've slowly felt creeping back through my veins since the semester ended. Whatever the reason, the jury is out. I've got a crush on yellow.

There is only one thing that can possibly be better than sunny summer yellow...

Yellow and polka dots. Mmmm.....

I found these while randomly perusing Ebay and immediately fell in love: Cutest Canisters Ever

But ::sigh:: Alas ::sigh::. Myself and these canisters were never meant to be together. ::sigh again:: Turns out John doesn't believe in polka-dots. As a matter of fact, he hates them! This amuses me as much as it confuses me, which brings me to the real impetus behind this post –

WHO DOESN'T LIKE POLKA DOTS??!! Seriously. I mean, look at them! They are so...dotty. They pop and dance and make you want to laugh out loud and fill them with peppermint sticks and rock candy and jelly beans, and dance about in the kitchen with your morning coffee and sing peppy songs. Polka dots are smiley. They have a sense of humor. They are not like dull, linear, rigid stripes that slice across your view with unyielding stripe-y-ness. Polka dots are impish splashes of color that scamper and frolic just daring you to tie them down. I'm pretty sure they giggle to themselves.

However, I cannot seem to make the otherwise very astute, impeccably styled and fun-loving Love of my life see reason on this one. Since this is perhaps his one and only lapse in judgment, I guess I can overlook it. Perhaps one day I will find a way to convert him, but in the meantime I am perfectly happy to respectfully (and a bit bemusedly) keep our kitchen spot free. But they were too cute not to share.

And while I'm at it, I figured why not combine my now-public crush on yellow with a celebration of sunny spots (got to get it out of my system some way) and share a couple of other things I found this week that made me smile.

This aprong actually might be the perfect way to slowly bring John over to the dot side. I'll have to keep that in mind. SO cute! Apron in the Sun.

As is this: Polka Dot Party

And you can't forget the accessories: I've got spots on my wrist

Sunny summery spots aside, isn't Yellow wonderful? So nice, so fun, so mischievous. I'm sorry Red. Don't despair! You are still my favorite color. But it's May, and I've got a crush on Yellow.

Lovely, Luscious Lentil Soup

2010-05-26T06:03:00.001-04:00

I have no idea what to call this. After poring over dozens of cookbooks and foodie sites it appears that despite the myriad ways one can prepare these lively little beans, lentil soups are always given the very creative name of "Lentil Soup." I mean, I guess there's nothing really wrong with this – you always know what to expect...or do you? All of these "lentil soups" were so dramatically different, I couldn't decide which recipe to use! So I improvised. And it was fantastic! So fantastic that I thought I'd post my first proper food post by sharing my lovely new lentil soup recipe with you. I like to experiment with spice and heat, so this soup does have a slight kick to it, but it is not "spicy."

Appalled by the unimaginative monikers generally given such pursuits, I've been throwing around a number of possible names. Things like "Lentalicious Soupy-dishes" and "Yentl's Lentils" and "Lentastic is not Bombastic" and "Kick-n-beans." But it turns out the reason all lentil soups are called "Lentil Soup" is 'cause there is really nothing else that properly suites them. So this is mine.

Jess's Lentil Soup

1 Bag Brown Lentils (dry)
2 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Medium-large Onion
2 Stalks Celery
2 Carrots
3 Cloves Garlic
8 Cups Beef Broth (I used Better than Bouillon. This is my first time using it, and I loved it. After I try it more I will let you know what I think. For now...it's totally all natural, no preservatives or MSG, and at $3.99 a jar it's much cheaper and easier than lugging cartons full of natural broth home from Wegmans every week, which is fabulous. I bought the Chicken one as well but have not tried it yet.)
1 Bay Leaf
2 Somewhat-rounded Tsp. Ground Cumin
1 Can Diced Tomatoes w/ Green Chili (If you didn't want the kick, you could use regular diced tomatoes)
Fresh Spinach! I have no idea how much I put in here, it was about 2/3 of a bag I found in the fridge.

Rinse and drain the lentils first and set them aside. Dice the onion, celery, carrots and garlic. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat and add the diced veggies, stirring until soft, or until the onions are translucent (the carrots will not be soft at all). Add the drained beans and stir for 5 min. or so. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Add the cumin and the bay leaf. Cover and reduce the heat to medium-low or low, depending on your range. (You want to keep it at a nice simmer. I set it at medium-low.) That's it. You're practically done. Go about your business and let the soup simmer until the lentils have completely softened and the soup has thickened to your liking, stirring every once and a while. I like thick lentil soup, and let mine simmer for just about an hour, which turned out perfect. Add the tomatoes and the spinach and stir until the spinach is wilted. And you're done! This was perfect with a nice, crusty no-knead bread and a lite sprinkle of grated Parmesan.

Disclaimer: This soup is actually wonderfully suited for summer even though it is thick and heart-warming. If you're like me then it's always nice to have some one-pot meal ideas on hand that you don't require you to stand over the hot range or oven. It takes about 10 min to get everything into the pot and then you can go get cool! And let's face it, there are always stormy evenings and soft summer breezes that warrant a luscious, cozy, invigorating soup. This weekend it's supposed to be stormy in Rochester...it might just be the perfect occasion for a Lentastic weekend!

Second Disclaimer: You will end up with A LOT of soup. But it freezes well. :-)

And It Begins....

2010-05-19T08:26:00.007-04:00

It has certainly been a hell-of-a year. With final papers finally done and graded, I feel this amazing sense of relief and lightness, like I've suddenly reclaimed my life and my energy and my passion for things I love to do. I had begun this post originally by contemplating the last few months of my life. Then I decided..."Nawwww" I don't want to contemplate it! I don't have time to contemplate it! I've got places to go, people to see, creations to create, a day to embrace!

Now that I don't have mounds and mounds of articles-I-honestly-don't-care-to-read to wade through, or classes to prepare for, or unnameable stress to be stressed by, now that I am working and have regained some sense of a normal schedule of life...oh the possibilities! There are SO many exciting things I want to do! Such as

– Write: I am getting back to my book! And will be incorporating a series of 7 short stories into my thesis this summer. I can't even tell you how excited I am to be getting back to fiction. Research is all well and good...but the story? The story is what I live for.

– Make random crafts: I had been saving wine corks for about 4 years now and have amassed an impressive collection. My friend Laura and I found this rustic vintage frame at a Goodwill, complete with a faded but highly emotive photo of Van Halen, which, consequently served as a brilliant glue-spreader.

– Hone my pizza making skills: John and I put this little beauty together, with some tips for fantastic crust from Deb at Smitten Kitchen. And then ate the whole thing. And then did it again two nights later. BEST pizza ever. Little tip: Instead of laying the dough on cornmeal, sprinkle a light layer of panko bread crumbs on the stone. They have a light, subtle flavor and resist browning much more than the cornmeal does. Fabulous! (P.S. I am going to start posting a lot more food related posts. SO many things I want to share!)

– Get back to blogging: Case in point.

– Spend some quality time admiring spring in Rochester: What's not to admire?!

— Go back to work: Money FTW!

– Take up Hoop Dancing: I pick up my own custom-made hoop from Roc City Hoopdance tomorrow! I will post pictures. If you are like me and want to excersize but can think of nothing more boring than trudging away on a treadmill, hoola-hooping is fabulous. Just don't start off doing it inside, or you could hit the same lamp three times causing the shade to fall off and the bulb to fall out. Not an ideal scenario. Take my word for it. Go outside. It's nice out anyway. ;)

See...there are so many things to do!!! Summer, here I come!

It Can Be Spring Any Time...

2010-03-01T10:17:00.001-05:00

My winter is now complete.

P.S. A fun fact for you...Did you know that building a snowman burns about 250 calories an hour? Way more fun than the gym.

The Miscellany Part

2010-03-01T10:13:00.001-05:00

So I think I've been going about this all the wrong way. It's almost impossible to keep something up when you are shooting for daily profundity. But, on further consideration, what I really want to do is create a blog that I will want to write in regularly, and that people will enjoy reading. And in my attempt to make something "super cool" and "profound" and, I don't know, awe inspiring? (Yeah, my goals are not always realistic) I forgot about what I had originally set out to do. Which was to share. Everything.

I am resurrecting the Miscellany part of "Meter and Miscellany." In addition to those occasional moments of profundity, there will be rantings and ramblings, recipes, more photos, crafty projects, tips for keeping a cozy home with a crazy life, poems, stories....delightful randomness.

This life is endlessly fascinating, and endlessly exciting. It is fun and wondrous and I hope I can share a little bit of that with you. :)

Nth Position

2010-01-03T09:47:00.004-05:00

While in a brilliant fit of procrastination, I realized that I have never shared the exciting news about or posted the texts of any of my publications. It's too late to do a comprehensive, retroactive run-down of all of them, but I'm particularly happy about these two.

Last year, these two poems were accepted for publication on Nth Position, an absolutely fantastic London-based e-zine.

Jess's poems on Nth Position: "Last Words 1666" and "Talking to Tourists"

Check them out! Later this week I'll post the most recent, which was picked up by a Rochester literary mag earlier this year (or last year, rather!).

Poem for the morning...

2009-11-18T11:30:00.001-05:00

Wow. Two posts in one day. Miracles never cease.

They really don't.

Before the Bus Comes

He knows that as he turns back from his window
he'll return to muted shades of dust and rubble,
rusty dials half falling off the trailer hob
and missing step he never quite remembers.

Another sunrise enters from the direction
of the bathroom, shoes untied but perfectly combed hair
held back with her favorite birthday present.
She climbs up to join him gazing out the window,

Daddy, where do stars go in the morning?

All the chaos of the cosmos is still there,
and the light just serves to make the shadows stronger.

Coyote takes them all back in the morning,
And he wraps them in his blanket nice and warm,
And as the night announces that its coming,
He sends them up again until the dawn.

So, Remember That Book I was Writing?

2009-11-18T08:33:00.001-05:00

I'm still writing it.

I have learned a crucial lesson over the past few months, or, perhaps more accurately, over these last 28 years. Despite my concerted efforts – ranging from jumping off the backs of couches convinced I can fly to confidently touting to myself that, yes, of course I can write a book in less than a year while going to grad school and working – I have finally conceded that I am not Superwoman. But as I get older I realize that what I do, when I'm doing it, I do well. This well-ness begins to disintegrate, however, as soon as I over-promise myself achievements I cannot possibly reach.

This does not mean I shouldn't reach. Someone once told me, upon my highschool graduation, "Reach for the Moon and you will be sure to clear the fence. Reach for the fence, and you'll never get off the ground." That's what I am. A Moon-Reacher by nature. The problem for me has been extreme disappointment in myself if I get anything less than a close-up view of lunar dust. A good bit of my procrastinations or goals-not-attempted are a direct result of being discouraged about impossible goals and not appreciating what I have accomplished. This is more debilitating than any writer's block could ever be.

They say one is one's own worse enemy. This is true in so many ways. We hurt ourselves by never trying. We hurt ourselves by trying too hard. We are afraid of risk. Afraid of failure. Afraid of other's disappointment. Afraid of our own. And I think on a certain level, afraid that we might succeed.

We might actually have to admit we are proud of ourselves, and sometimes that's the scariest of all.

What is so incredible, and this is what I am slowly discovering, is that if we regard ourselves with a kind of calm self-awareness, if we understand what we are really capable of and allow ourselves room to grow, if we are willing to reach, to journey and to be proud of every step along the way, we will find that so many small successes add up. When we don't over-do, what we do do we do better. And the result is so much more fulfilling.

Another very important mentor in my life once wrote this on the inside of a journal she gave me:

"Pay attention to what you notice. And notice what you pay attention to."

I notice when I get a 98 instead of 100. I notice when my apple crisp is just slightly sweeter than I had intended. I notice that though I've lost 5 pounds I haven't lost 10. I notice that even though I've done tons of research I haven't written the papers that are due a month from now. And even though I've been working my butt off all semester, the only thing I notice is that I haven't worked on my book.

The longer I go on only noticing what I haven't done, and apologizing to myself and the world for my neglect, the farther and farther away the moon seems. And eventually I just sit in the grass not-reaching.

This can change.

First off, there will be no more blog apologies about how I haven't blogged. I realize now that this will work better as an organic project, not as some hackneyed log of forced profundity ever other day.

Secondly, I will make more practical goals, like this one: I have about 2 weeks between New Year and the start of the semester. I will use that free time to get a head start on the book. And then I will add to it as the semester goes along. As much as I can.

Thirdly, I will TRY to realize that life is unpredictable, and that no matter what kind of plan or system we try to organize ourselves around, it will most likely change. We adapt, we learn, we achieve, we succeed, and sometimes we don't. And that's okay.

There is important and there is urgent. The important is what is essential, fundamental, vital, the things that bring life to our life. It is usually what we believe to be urgent that gets in the way.

My Favorite Colour is Autumn

2009-11-02T08:19:00.003-05:00

October has come and gone.

What a beautiful autumn we are having. I was worried at first, by dry August and the late change, that all our soggy summer would have been for naught. But no...

Autumn in Rochester is as brilliant as ever. And it didn't even snow on Halloween.

I think I go through some sort of reverse hibernation, where my brain slows to an unmanageable listlessness in the summer months, only to wake again with renewed fervor in early October, when I find myself suddenly being able to wrap myself in scarves and stoll through streets lined with crackling flakes of tree-light. To breath in fresh woodsy breezes that have washed away the stale concrete-stench of August. To roast harvest vegetables, and pick apples, and bake, and carve pumpkins, and drink hot cider, and infuse a little bit of my world with a subtle, lingering taste of cinnamon and home.

The summer sleep is wiped out of my eyes and I feel alive.

Halloween is over, and as I pick through the last of the roasted pumpkin seeds, I hear myself humming..."It's the most wonderful time of the year"...and salivating over thoughts of turkey and cranberry relish, giddily planning for lights and stockings, and obsessively checking the window for the tell-tale traces of the first falling snow.

It really is the most wonderful time of the year.

There's No Place Like Home...Again.

2009-10-14T12:24:00.005-04:00

Remember all those fond memories of living on the floor of the next door apartment while we got new kitchen floors, or of John and I rearranging and redecorating our home that was now so nice and cozy? Well, guess what. WE HAD TO MOVE! That's right, after all of that our landlord informed us he could not get a Certificate of Occupancy from the city and we had to find a new place to live.

So for a couple of weeks we whined and moaned and whined some more about how we can't seem to get a break this semester and how we so do NOT have the time for this, then one day we were like "What the &@#$ are we waiting for?! Let's do this thing!" So Saturday the 3rd we went apartment hunting. We found a place we loved. We looked at other places. We went back and signed a lease for this apartment, up by the Memorial Art Gallery in the Neighborhood of the Arts...

Saturday night we scrubbed the place down.

We had the option to move slowly, but we are both homey, cozy people and half-living in two homes didn't sound all that fun. So Sunday morning we woke up and thought, why drag it out? I called my dad at 10am...

"Hey Dad! You busy today?"
"Er...I guess not, why?"
"Want to help us move?"

So with a wonderful group of family and friends, a Uhaul truck and some pizza delivery we packed and moved our whole apartment in 11 hours!!!!

And then it looked like this...AH!

But we worked our tired butts off for days...

and now it looks like this!

After many days of no sleep, unexplained bruises, sore muscles and cardboard cuts, we are nicely, warmly and so happily settled in our NEW home-sweet-home. We've yet to decorate the walls, but one thing at a time, right?

It's nice to be settled though, and back to work. So stay tuned for more posts! Now that my biggest stress is out of the way, there will be lots of writing going on.

It really is wonderful here. It's open, with lots of light, beautiful windows, high ceilings, exposed brick...just gorgeous! And so much more space than our last place. Also, there is something incredibly nice, wonderful and heart-warming (after all your cardboard cuts heal) about making home, home.

Even Journey loves it here!

Excuse me, Sir. My brain is full.

2009-09-28T08:31:00.001-04:00

They say the mind has a mind of its own. Mine has unionized itself and is currently on strike. I've tried peaceful negotiations. I've tried subversive cohersion with the secret innundation of various formulations of caffine and B vitamins. I've tried overhalling the rebellion by brute force, and still my mind won't seem to budge. "There will be NO learning!" is its fervid cry.

At least I know it's resilient.

Before school started, I should have sat my brain down and had a talk.

"Excuse me, Brain. Things are about to change. You are going to go from being bored, lazy, underfed and settled in your state of (albeit uncontent) complacency, to suddenly having to work, oversaturate yourself, work some more and still remember when and how to make dinner, wash dishes, fold your clothes, call your family, drink when you want to but not more than you need to, sleep (which you'll desperately need but not have time for), carry on a somewhat coherent and charming conversation, take time to appreciate autumn just for your own sanity, work some more and LIKE IT, DAMN IT!"

If only it had been prepared.

So, barring the fact that my brain is on strike, I'm still sitting here typing, possibly a great load of faff. Why? Because, despite being wholly unable to learn or think, the one thing it does want to do is write.

Being away from Academia for so long, and then jumping back in with both feet has been quite the challenge. When I step back and look at it, or when I let myself listen to John, who is ever-practical and full of sense, it's really not all that bad. In fact, it's amazing. I'm doing fine. I'm doing the work, I'm involved, I'm loving my classes, I'm loving my classmates, I'm getting more comfortable in the department. So what's the problem?

The problem is my brain hurts. All that's fine, but it feels like I'm running a marathon with a broken leg. Somehow I'm still running and up in the lead, but every motion is first shocking then numbing. I keep pushing, my brain keeps working, but it is so NOT happy with me right now.

All it wants to do is read Harry Potter, drink some wine and go to bed. It's 8:25 am.