Kitchen Lore

Things to Eat in Singapore: Duck Rice and Popiah

2012-05-22T12:01:00.000-05:00

Undoubtedly, some of the best food in Singapore can be found at unassuming hawker centres. Singaporeans call this simply "local food" - it draws from the various cuisines of Southeast Asia and China, but the dishes travel to Singapore and are made the island's own with nuances that are rarely found elsewhere. Not only is hawker food cheap (you can get a full meal for less than $4 USD in a country where a mid-priced car easily costs $150,000 USD), it's the stuff that I dream about when I'm not here. It's important to note that all Singaporeans are food-obsessed by nature - eating and shopping are the two national pastimes, and any Singaporean will argue adamantly about which stall has the best version of their favorite dishes. The country does have an excellent gourmet restaurant scene as well, but when I'm here, I tend to focus on what one writer called "homesick Singaporean food." So here's Part I of a primer on local food:

Duck Rice (or Braised Duck)

Soy sauce braised duck rice with herbal soup is Teochew (a Chinese dialect group) in origin. Tradition says that the dish was originally braised goose, but since duck was more readily available, the recipe was modified and Teochew braised duck was born. If served with accompaniments like eggs or tofu, everything is usually cooked n the same braising sauce, though sometimes it's served with white rice. It's one of my favorite dishes.

Popiah

Popiah originates in Fujian and Chaoshan. It's a variant of the spring roll, a soft, thin crepe filled with chopped peanuts, bean sprouts, carrots, tofu, eggs, and Chinese sausage (the ingredients vary somewhat, but these are standard). And like the above duck, it also owes much to Teochew cooks.

This country takes good food seriously: The first thing a Singaporean will ask you is whether you've eaten. (Mind you, this is a slightly different question than asking whether you are hungry.) I remember a visit years ago where both sides of my family had conferred with each other weeks in advance of my trip to organize most of our meals. As for this trip, they may have to roll me home in a wheelbarrow.

Kickapoo: Original USA Joy Juice Recipe

2012-05-18T13:01:00.006-05:00

As seen in Singapore: "Kickapoo: Original USA Joy Juice Recipe." Given that I live in the US and I'd never heard of "joy juice" (I know what you just thought - this is a classy blog!), I inspected the can to discover that Kickapoo hails from Atlanta, Ga. A sip told me that "joy juice" was similar in flavor and mouthfeel to Mountain Dew. So, I thought, perhaps Kickapoo was a small, unknown company in the States that found a following in Asia?

"The two famous comic characters on the can are best buds Polecat and Hairless Joe from USA [sic]. They're the creators of the original Kickapoo Joy Juice, a magical concoction that leaves people all over the world happy and cravin' for more. Get that kick today!"

I was about to ask Atlanta readers if they'd ever heard of "joy juice," but a quick Google search turned up the tidbit that Polecat and Hairless Joe are indeed from the US - as fictional characters in the comic Li'l Abner. As for Kickapoo Joy Juice? In Li'l Abner, it was "a liquor of such stupefying potency that the hardiest citizens of Dogpatch, after the first burning sip, rose into the air, stiff as frozen codfish." Well, then. Not-Mountain Dew is rather disappointing in comparison.

9 Uses for Truffle Salt

2012-04-24T06:18:00.002-05:00

"The most learned men have been questioned as to the nature of this tuber, and after two thousand years of argument and discussion their answer is the same as it was on the first day: we do not know. The truffles themselves have been interrogated, and have answered simply: eat us and praise the Lord!" - Alexandre Dumas

Ever since I was introduced to truffled fries at the Jolly Pumpkin in Ann Arbor, Mich., I've been obsessed with truffle salt. As soon as I got back to Chicago, I pounced on a jar from the Spice House (my favorite local purveyor of fresh spices) and proceeded to throw white truffle salt on just about everything I ate for a good week. I learned that while the smoky flavor of truffle goes well with many foods, there are some items that are far better off without it. That said, when truffles are good, they're good. There's a reason that throughout the centuries, they gained a reputation as an aphrodisiac. I'm still dreaming about a truffle cream sauce I ate two months ago.

Truffles don't hold their flavor very long at high heat, so truffle salt is best as a finishing salt. Cook your dish and sprinkle the truffle salt before serving. In my experience, truffle salt tends to enhance recipes that are fairly plain, without a laundry list of other spices and strong flavors. Here's a list of some great foods to try:

Lamb
Popcorn
Avocados
Tomatoes
Pork (here's a great recipe)
Chicken (most chicken recipes pair well, but I didn't think the truffle salt added anything to fried chicken)
Steak
Fries
Eggs (frittatas, scrambled, omelettes)

Truffles: once you start, you can't stop. If you have other ideas for truffle salt, post them in the comments!

Life-Size Stormtrooper Cake

2012-04-20T23:13:00.000-05:00

These are not the cakes you're looking for. Move along.

Folks, this is epic. Not only is our stormtrooper friend quite tall at 6'4", he weighed a full 300 pounds before 600 geeks mercilessly ate all of his cakey goodness, which included Rice Krispy legs. (Largest. Rice Krispy. Ever.) It took a team of 10 people from Oak Leaf Cakes a full two weeks to build him for the Arisia Sci-Fi Convention in Boston.

Want to watch Mr. Stormtrooper devoured by hungry nerds? See: How to Eat a Stormtrooper. Never stand between a geek and her cake.

Recipe: Truffled Char Siu Pork Chops

2012-04-03T06:59:00.000-05:00

Since an encounter with truffled fries at the Jolly Pumpkin in Ann Arbor, Mich., I've been obsessed with truffle salt. Over the last few months, I've been experimenting with it in a number of different dishes, and I've learned that the earthiness of truffle goes well with a host of ingredients. Char siu, one of my favorite Chinese foods, is a traditional preparation of spiced, roast pork. And since pigs eat truffles and are used to find them, I figured both flavors would work well together. It may be slightly strange logic, but it worked. The result? A delicious melding of the East and West.

Truffled Char Siu Pork Chops

Servings: 2
Active Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

2 pork chops
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon Chinese five spice
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon truffle salt

Preheat the broiler on high heat with the oven rack around 8 inches below it.

Coat the pork chops with olive oil, Chinese five spice, and brown sugar. Place them on the broiling pan. Broil the chops for 8 minutes or until the top is nicely browned.

Flip the pork chops and broil for another 3-4 minutes until they reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. Take the pork chops out of the oven and cover them loosely with aluminum foil. Allow them to rest for 5 minutes (this will bring up the internal temperature and make them juicier). Sprinkle truffle salt on both sides to finish.

Hamburger Cupcakes

2012-03-19T18:50:00.000-05:00

They would make the perfect birthday treat for the Hamburglar.

Courtesy of Cutest Food.

Don't Blink

2012-03-14T02:06:00.000-05:00

The angels have the phone box.

TARDIS and Weeping Angel cookies courtesy of Bakingdom.

Pikolo Espresso Bar

2012-03-13T05:47:00.002-05:00

In a city filled with coffee shops, Pikolo Espresso Bar stands out. No, they're not open 24 hours, like the plethora of Cafe Depots you'll find at regular intervals. And they don't have instant brand recognition, like the Starbucks cafes that have proliferated around the world. But what they do have is arguably the best coffee in Montreal.

A labor of love for Marie-Ève Laroche, who worked at cafes in Sydney, Australia before opening Pikolo, every cup is crafted with care. Quality is more important than quantity. Elegance comes in simplicity. You won't find 15 variations on a latte on the menu. But every latte will be a small work of art.

This attitude carries through to everything at the cafe. Pikolo only serves a handful of pastries - chocolate chip banana bread, pecan tarts, cheddar and bacon scones - but the items are homemade, and the banana bread in particular is fantastic.

Located in the McGill Ghetto, the cafe feels comfortable enough for college students to spend hours typing up papers (there's free wifi) yet upscale enough to appeal to professionals on their way to work. It's an inviting space, with high ceilings, dark wood, and plenty of light, that manages to feel hip without being pretentious. And the staff are friendly. Class, character, style, and substance: if you're in the area, I highly recommend a visit.

Pikolo Espresso Bar
3418 B Avenue du Parc
Montreal, QC H2X 2H5
514.508.6800

PBR: In China, It's Art

2012-03-03T08:46:00.000-06:00

Pabst Blue Ribbon: Beer of choice for the hipster crowd. It's cheap, going for $1-2 a bottle on special at Chicago bars. But did you know that PBR has a fancy cousin? Blue Ribbon 1844 is being sold in China as a premium brew, going for $44 a bottle. Ads extol the beer's status as a "heritage classic breakthrough" and "a piece of art." Yes, the brewery says it's a different recipe than your average American PBR - but all the beautiful advertising the world would have a difficult time convincing any Chicagoan to pay an extra $40 for what they know as cheap beer.

Hello Kitty Airplane Food

2012-02-29T06:25:00.000-06:00

For most of us, flying is an ordeal. Security inspections and their associated lines, airlines that treat you like cattle, cramped seating, and bland food often add up to a less-than-pleasant travel experience. I know people who will go through great lengths to avoid air travel, including one who took Amtrak all the way from Chicago to New York (20 hours later, she wondered if she should have opted for the two-hour flight instead).

But Taiwan's EVA Air wants to put the fun back into air travel, and they've found just the mascot to do it: Hello Kitty. Brand owner Sanrio is partnering with EVA to operate three themed jets from Taipei that will offer Hello Kitty boarding passes, luggage tags, headrest covers, toiletries - and, most importantly - food.

Airline food, but in a Hello Kitty bento box? Adorable. Suddenly it's kind of appealing.

Valentine's Day for Geeks: Dalek Cookies

2012-02-14T02:03:00.000-06:00

This goes out to my fellow single friends who could use a little extra love today. See, Daleks love you! (They may also want to exterminate you, but hey, that's a minor complication. At least they brought you a still-beating-and-impaled heart as a gift! Aww, how sweet.)

Daleks. So romantic. Happy Valentine's Day!

Cookies courtesy of Geek Sweets. I first saw them months ago and have been itching to post them ever since!

Shrimp, Avocado, and Strawberry Salad

2012-02-06T01:32:00.003-06:00

My college roommate Alex and I used to cook dinner well after midnight on a regular basis. He came to visit me from Ann Arbor this weekend, and following longstanding tradition, we ended up at the grocery store late one night and came home with a large bag of shrimp. Post-midnight dinner turned into a multi-course affair utilizing lots of our crustacean finds. This was the starter.

Shrimp, Avocado, and Strawberry Salad

Servings: 2
Active Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

10 large shrimp, cooked
1 avocado, sliced
6 strawberries, sliced
1/4 teaspoon sugar
garlic powder, to taste
fresh black pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste

Divide strawberries evenly into 2 bowls. Sprinkle with sugar. Place half avocado and 5 shrimp into each bowl and top with a sprinkling of garlic powder, pepper, and salt.

100 Foods To Eat Before You Die

2012-01-31T01:56:00.020-06:00

If you're on Facebook, chances are high that you've seen the Food List Challenge being passed around. The makers of the app say, "We think most people will have tried fewer than 20 of these 100 foods to eat before you die." Which I'm sure is just a ploy to get people to click on something that will allow a third party to read their personal information. Being the ornery person I am, I found the list floating around the internet instead, which I present to you below in all its glory.

What I've seen is that most people have actually eaten around 30-50 of the items on the list, not 20. Like any good overachiever, I come in at 91/100 - only good for a lowly A- that would earn the ire of my Asian parents. (Just kidding. We're grading on a curve here, right?)

Here's the list - post how you did in the comments!

~~1. Abalone~~
~~2. Absinthe~~
~~3. Alligator~~
~~4. Baba Ghanoush~~
~~5. Bagel & Lox~~
~~6. Baklava~~
~~7. BBQ Ribs~~
~~8. Bellini~~
~~9. Birds Nest Soup~~
~~10. Biscuits & Gravy~~
11. Black Pudding
12. Black Truffle (I have, however, been obsessed lately with white truffle salt.)
~~13. Borscht~~
~~14. Calamari~~
~~15. Carp~~
~~16. Caviar~~
~~17. Cheese Fondue~~
~~18. Chicken & Waffles~~
~~19. Chicken Tikka Masala~~
~~20. Chile Relleno~~
~~21. Chitlins~~
~~22. Churros~~
~~23. Clam Chowder~~
~~24. Cognac~~
~~25. Crab Cakes~~
26. Crickets (I'm adventurous, but I draw the line at insects. I don't even want to look at them, much less put them into my mouth.)
27. Currywurst
28. Dandelion Wine
~~29. Dulce De Leche~~
~~30. Durian~~ (This also happens to be one of my favorite things in the world.)
~~31. Eel~~
~~32. Eggs Benedict~~
~~33. Fish Tacos~~
~~34. Foie Gras~~
~~35. Fresh Spring Rolls~~
~~36. Fried Catfish~~
~~37. Fried Green Tomatoes~~
~~38. Fried Plantain~~
~~39. Frito Pie~~
~~40. Frogs' Legs~~
41. Fugu
~~42. Funnel Cake~~
~~43. Gazpacho~~
~~44. Goat~~
~~45. Goat's Milk~~
~~46. Goulash~~
~~47. Gumbo~~
~~48. Haggis~~
~~49. Head Cheese~~
~~50. Heirloom Tomatoes~~
~~51. Honeycomb~~
~~52. Hostess Fruit Pie~~
~~53. Huevos Rancheros~~
~~54. Jerk Chicken~~
~~55. Kangaroo~~ (Granted, this was in jerky form - I'd love to try fresh kangaroo, though they're so cute you have to feel kind of bad eating them.)
~~56. Key Lime Pie~~
~~57. Kobe Beef~~
~~58. Lassi~~
~~59. Lobster~~
~~60. Mimosa~~
~~61. Moon Pie~~
~~62. Morel Mushrooms~~
63. Nettle Tea
~~64. Octopus~~
~~65. Oxtail Soup~~
~~66. Paella~~
~~67. Paneer~~
~~68. Pastrami on Rye~~
~~69. Pavlova~~
70. Phaal
~~71. Philly Cheese Steak~~
~~72. Pho~~
~~73. Pineapple & Cottage Cheese~~ (I'm counting this because I've had both separately on countless occasions. Putting them together doesn't seem terribly different.)
~~74. Pistachio Ice Cream~~
~~75. Po' Boy~~
~~76. Pocky~~
~~77. Polenta~~
~~78. Prickly Pear~~
~~79. Rabbit Stew~~
~~80. Raw Oysters~~
~~81. Root Beer Float~~
~~82. S'mores~~
~~83. Sauerkraut~~
~~84. Sea Urchin~~
~~85. Shark~~
~~86. Snail~~
87. Snake
~~88. Soft Shell Crab~~
~~89. Som Tam~~
~~90. Spaetzle~~
~~91. Spam~~
92. Squirrel
~~93. Steak Tartare~~
~~94. Sweet Potato Fries~~
~~95. Sweetbreads~~
~~96. Tom Yum~~
~~97. Umeboshi~~
~~98. Venison~~
~~99. Wasabi Peas~~
100. Zucchini Flowers

Happy Chinese New Year!

2012-01-23T02:16:00.000-06:00

Kung Hei Fat Choi! May the Year of the Dragon bring you many culinary adventures.

This adorable bento box is brought to you by Bento, Monsters - can you believe that Ming wasn't happy with how he turned out? I think he's incredibly cute. Happy New Year!

SOPA and PIPA

2012-01-19T01:37:00.010-06:00

This is a non-food related post.

If you visited Kitchen Lore yesterday, you saw that we were participating in the SOPA Strike along with 75,000 other websites (update: make that 115,000 websites) including Google, Wikipedia, Mozilla, Craigslist, and Wordpress. The SOPA Strike is over and Congress has been continuing to drop its support of the bills, though the numbers are still pretty close (67 supporters, 72 opponents). It looks like we made a difference, though the fight's not over just yet.

If you still don't understand what the fuss is about after all the internet craziness that happened yesterday, here's a succinct post about why both acts are bad for the internet and fail to accomplish their stated goal of addressing piracy.

This is important - contact your Congressional representatives if you haven't already (if you did - thanks!).

And now we head back to our regularly scheduled posts.

Alien Sculpted in Banana

2012-01-14T07:12:00.000-06:00

At least it's not bursting out of your chest. Did you realize the first movie came out in 1979? Anyone feel old yet?

Photo courtesy of Imgur.

Pepsi Says Mountain Dew Can Dissolve Dead Mice

2012-01-07T04:20:00.000-06:00

In a bizarre legal move, Pepsi Co. is claiming that Mountain Dew is capable of dissolving dead mice. A man in Madison County, Ill. "claims that after opening and beginning to drink soda he purchased from a vending machine at work, he tasted something foul. He claims he spat out the soda to reveal a dead mouse." I'm not sure how you can drink such a large gulp of soda that a mouse carcass would escape notice at first, but that's beside the point. In November 2009, Ronald Ball filed a suit against Pepsi Co. for over $50,000 in damages, and the case is going to court next week.

In an affidavit, Pepsi's expert witness testified that Ball's claim is false, writing that the mouse would have turned into a "a jelly-like substance" by the time he opened his can of pop 74 days after its bottling:

By 30 days of exposure to the fluid, all of the mouse's structures will have disintegrated to the point the structures (excepting possibly a portion of the tail) will not be recognizable and, therefore, the animal itself will not be recognizable. Instead, after 30 days in the fluid, the mouse will have been transformed into a "jelly-like" substance.

Even if Pepsi wins the case, I'm not sure that you can actually count this as a win overall. A can of mouse-dissolving acid to go with your fries, anyone?

Ice Cream Bear

2012-01-05T00:26:00.001-06:00

Adorable.

Courtesy of our friends at Cutest Food.

Recipe: Spaghetti Squash Cacio e Pepe

2012-01-03T01:42:00.001-06:00

Cacio e Pepe is a classic Roman dish. It's usually prepared with spaghetti, so when I bought my first spaghetti squash and was wondering what to do with it, I thought the vegetable would work nicely in place of pasta in that recipe. Kitchen experiments! As it turns out, spaghetti squash works quite well with a few modifications to the original recipe (real cacio e pepe omits the garlic and salt, and there's great debate as to whether butter belongs in the recipe).

Since there are so few ingredients, use the best quality pepper and cheese that you can find - it makes a huge difference. Ground black pepper that's been sitting on the shelf for a year won't allow you to experience the full flavors of this dish.

Spaghetti Squash Cacio e Pepe

Servings: 3 as a main dish, 5-6 as a side
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash
1 cup water
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons freshly cracked black pepper
1 cup freshly shredded Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Microwave the spaghetti squash for 1 minute.

Cut the squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and membranes. Place cut side down in a baking dish with water. Bake for 25 minutes or until the inside of the squash is fork tender.

When the squash is cool enough to touch but still nicely warm, use a large fork to remove pasta-like strands. Combine with butter and garlic (the heat of the squash should melt the butter) in a medium-sized bowl and toss with salt, pepper and cheese. Serve warm.

The Ten Best Things I Ate (2011)

2012-01-01T21:00:00.005-06:00

There's a law somewhere in the writing universe that requires bloggers to create end of the year lists. So here's mine, with the following ground rules: 1. No food from Asia (the continent) appears on the list, even though Singapore could easily fill half the list on its own - unfortunately, I started this blog after my last trip to Asia and I didn't document my restaurant visits very well. Even though they were quite delicious. 2. For obvious reasons, home-cooked items aren't on this list either. 3. Every item was eaten for the first time in the last year.

Most of the foods on this list are things that I daydreamed about for days and weeks (sometimes longer) after having them once. And anything in Chicago has been eaten on multiple occasions. So without further ado, I present to you the The Ten Best Things I Ate in 2011 (listed in no particular order):

1. JP Burger and Truffled Fries, Jolly Pumpkin (Ann Arbor, Mich.)

Ground grass-fed beef with melted cambozola cheese, crimini mushrooms and thick-cut Berkshire bacon on a toasted challah roll: I'm not usually one to rave about burgers, but this may be the best burger I've ever had. I'm also not usually one to rave about fries, but the truffled fries (truffle salt and rosemary) are like crack. You won't be able to stop eating them. Order a full appetizer portion of the truffled fries or pay an extra $3 to upgrade the plain fries that come with the burger. Trust me, it's worth every penny.

2. Peeky Toe Crab Benedict and Dehydrated Bacon, Longman and Eagle (Chicago, Ill.)

Brunch may be the best way to enjoy this Michelin-starred gastropub - even the menu items that sound a little strange are reliably delicious. The crab benedict comes with a few slices of dehydrated bacon, one of those strange-sounding items that I end up dreaming about at night. It's crisp, sweet, and reminds me of bak kwa, one of my favorite Singaporean snacks.

3. Tonkotsu Ramen, Wasabi (Chicago, Ill.)

Thus far, Wasabi makes the best ramen I've found outside of Japan. Their tonkotsu comes with egg noodles, berkshire pork cheeks, soft boiled eggs, marinated bamboo shoots, scallions, sesame, and kikurage mushrooms.

4. Braised Eel, Craft (New York City, NY)

Craft follows a simple philosophy that allows food to taste like it's supposed to - instead of covering dishes in spices until the actual flavor of the meat and vegetables becomes buried, what you get is something like the platonic ideal of a food. The eel is tender and served in a wonderfully rich sauce.

5. Valrhona Brownie, Floriole (Chicago, Ill.)

Speaking of platonic ideals, this may be the platonic ideal of a brownie. It's dense, rich, and packed with flavor.

6. Dark Chocolate Ice Cream, Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams (Columbus, Oh.)

As a University of Michigan graduate, I have to look down on Columbus - the city, and especially the university that resides in its borders - in principle. But Jeni Britton Bauer is an ice cream making genius. And her ice cream shop has to be the best part of Columbus.

7. Belgian Liege Waffle, Taste of Belgium (Cincinnati, Oh.)

I had no idea. We Americans do not understand the true glory of an authentic Liege waffle, a creation that's simultaneously dense and light (no, I don't understand how this is possible either) and crisp with a coating of melted pearl sugar. Adding syrup or whipped cream to this beauty is a mistake. Eat it plain - it needs no adornment.

8. Salty Caramel Brownie, Juliette et Chocolat (Montreal, Qué.)

I'm an unrepentant chocoholic (amusingly, Firefox's built-in spell-checker recognizes this as a real word). And Juliette et Chocolat is a haven for all things chocolate. This intense brownie comes surrounded in a pool of salty caramel. That plus one of their signature hot chocolates will put even the most passionate chocolate lover into a sugar coma.

9. Wagyu Sirloin Tip, The Purple Pig (Chicago, Ill.)

Tender and cooked to a perfect medium rare, the wagyu sirloin tip comes with fingerling potatoes, red onions, olives, and bone marrow vinaigrette. I spent my last birthday at the Purple Pig, and even though all of their dishes are served tapas-style, we might have ordered two sirloin tips between the three of us. I also highly recommend the milk-braised pork shoulder.

10. Congee with Ground Pork and Salted Egg, Me Dee Cafe (Chicago, Ill.)

You'll find Chicagoans talking about the "secret" late night congee menu at Me Dee, but if it's a secret, it's a pretty open one - just appear at the restaurant after 9pm or so, and they'll hand you the appropriate menu, no code words or hand signals required. I'm at Me Dee so often that they know my order now, which always includes this ground pork dish and the Thai crab omelette as accompaniments to plain congee. The congee - rice porridge with little flavor of its own - balances the strong saltiness of the pork and egg.

Happy New Year! May you try these and other delicious things in 2012.

Images courtesy of the Taste of Belgium and Wasabi websites.

The 12 Days of Christmas: Gingerbread + Geek Edition

2011-12-25T01:02:00.004-06:00

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: two small stormtroopers and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: seven Daleks floating, six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: eight ninjas kicking, seven Daleks floating, six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: nine Serenity crew, eight ninjas kicking, seven Daleks floating, six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: 10 yogis stretching, nine Serenity crew, eight ninjas kicking, seven Daleks floating, six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: 11 TARDIS ships, 10 yogis stretching, nine Serenity crew, eight ninjas kicking, seven Daleks floating, six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: 12 comic heroes, 11 TARDIS ships, 10 yogis stretching, nine Serenity crew, eight ninjas kicking, seven Daleks floating, six Android mascots, five Portal Cubes, four Starfleet crew, three AT-ATs, two small stormtroopers, and a gingerbread Enterprise-C.

Merry Christmas!

Thanks to The Mary Sue, Geeks are Sexy, Where's the TARDIS?, Imgur, Inhabitat, Walyou, Dorkly, Smosh, Daily Bits, Frøken Trondsen, Fandomnia, Mon Pays, Livejournal, Metallicar on Deviant Art, Texas Kiwi on Deviant Art, Merdog7 on Deviant Art, Buzzfeed, Gamefrosting, Makey-Cakey, Neatorama, ThinkGeek, Sangofairy on Deviant Art, Android Forums, Brainfood, rKrovs on Flickr, Smcgee on Flickr, and Kewing on Flickr.

Musical Glasses

2011-12-22T22:32:00.000-06:00

Imagine touring Europe for 16 days with a bus full of high school band geeks. It was awesome being one of the high schoolers. But I imagine it was less awesome being one of the chaperones. Especially when we did things like play with the crystal glasses in a semi-formal Swiss restaurant. Hey! It's real! At least we were all musicians.

Some creative person decided to make life better for chaperones of musically-inclined, crystal-playing high schoolers (and those of us who would still play with their wine glasses on occasion, even into adulthood). Instead of guessing at pitches, these glasses conveniently mark how much water needs to be filled in order to get specific notes. The set of 12 glasses gives you a full octave.

My question: but in what key?

Found at Luna and Curious.

Recipe: Vincent and the Doctor

2011-12-21T05:20:00.002-06:00

Try to see what I see... Look at the sky. It's not dark and black and without character. The black is in fact deep blue. And over there! Lights are blue. And blue in through the blueness, and the blackness, the winds swirling through the air. And then shining. Burning, bursting through! The stars, can you see how they roll their light? Everywhere we look, complex magic of nature blazes before our eyes.

Yes, I've named a cocktail in honor of one of my favorite Doctor Who episodes. If you're an artist, if you grasp the beauty and wonder of the world in a way that others don't quite seem to understand, if you're one of the many that works hard and excels at your craft but still can't live well from it, you will appreciate Van Gogh's appearance in this episode. If you're a geek (or British), well, it's Doctor Who. For everyone else: watch it anyway. It's fun, and you'll gain a new appreciation for Van Gogh and the creative people in your life.

Vincent and the Doctor

Ingredients:

1½ oz. ABSOLUT Ruby Red
1/2 orange, juiced
1 lime, juiced
simple syrup, to taste
blackberries, for garnish

Combine ABSOLUT, orange juice, lime juice, and simple syrup in a rocks glass. Pack with ice and garnish with blackberries.

Tip: Maximize the amount of juice you can get from citrus by starting with fruit at room temperature. Roll the fruit around a few times on a hard surface with heavy pressure before cutting and squeezing.

The Cake is a Lie

2011-12-18T18:53:00.001-06:00

Boy meets girl. Wedding bells play. A Katamari cake is served. Three years later, they commission a Portal 2 cake for their anniversary. I think they have many more happy years ahead of them.

Image courtesy of Flickr. Made by Mike's Amazing Cakes in Redmond, WA.

Gingerbread AT-AT Says Merry Christmas

2011-12-10T05:27:00.001-06:00

Gingerbread AT-AT will destroy your rebel candy cane defenses. Where are Luke and Wedge when you need them?

Courtesy of 9GAG.