Things I learned (or just remembered) this weekend

My friend John, who I have known since I was a freshman in college, was down for a visit. Anyway, we hung out with some mutual friends and had a super fun weekend. Sometimes I think when you hang out with someone who knows you well, you can learn a lot about life. Such as:

Apparently, under the right conditions, I enjoy shopping. I had suspected this when I went boot shopping in Boston with my friend Tiana, but now I have proof. Pay attention now. I’m going to share the secret to enjoying shopping:

a.       Go on a nice day and shop where you can walk outside. We went to the Albertville mall. It’s easy to enjoy. You just walk until you see something you like, go in the store, check it out, and then walk outside again until you run across something else you like.

b.      Help others shop. That way, you get to see things you may not otherwise look for, and you feel brilliant and helpful when you help them find what they were looking for.

c.       Go with good company.

d.      Spot the cutest winter coat ever, while you are waiting in the check-out line, then try it on, and jump up and down with excitement when you realize it looks super cute on you.

Do not see the movie Loopers. Just don’t. While the actors do a fine job and the story line is interesting, it is very difficult to watch and it hurts your insides. Trust me. Go see a Bourne movie or something instead- even if it’s the sixth one.

When you goof up a recipe, patience is the key to making it work. I know that you are already well aware that trying to follow a recipe, for me, is challenging and requires patience and attention to begin with. So you won’t be surprised that when I went to double a batch of pancakes, I put twice again as much water as called for. I realized`this almost immediately, when the batter looked far too runny, but I didn’t want to quadruple the recipe, so I just added some more rice flour until it appeared to be the consistency of crepe batter, and hoped for the best. When I first poured it in the pan, it did not look promising. And then I was impatient to boot, and tried to get it out of the pan before it was cooked enough. It came out easily- in many pieces. But one thing about me is that I am stubborn, so I kept trying. And I discovered, completely on accident, that when I walked away from the pan and just let it cook, they started turning out WAY better. And I was much happier, just letting it be. (Plus it helps if you make an amazing sauce to serve over them NOT using a recipe. I melted some white sugar and  butter together in a pan to make a caramel base, then added 4 chopped fresh pears, a good dose of cinnamon, vanilla, and some red wine, and let it simmer on low while I made the pancakes.)

It pays to admit when you don’t know much, and you seek help. In my case, since I don’t cook a lot of meat, I had to rely on the butcher to give me advice. And guess what else I learned? Dry aged steak is amazing. I have no idea what dry aging does, but trust me on this one, it makes it good! So good, in fact, it requires only salt and pepper, and well-applied heat.  To be fair, it also makes a difference when someone who knows how to grill meat can take over the helm, while you make risotto with mushrooms and tons of finely grated parmigiano reggiano.

 

 

Now that's what I'm talking about. Yum! Turns out bacon is not the only thing keeping me from  ever wanting to be a vegetarian...

 

 

Margarita sunrises made with Cabo and Cointreau, with  fresh squeezed OJ, and lime salted rims, shaken in my new shaker, improve my quality of life. Just saying.

How to two step. One, one-two, is all it takes. Not that I’m prepared to teach anyone, but I could now scrape by in case of a two-stepping emergency.

Simple plans are the best. When the company is good, that’s all you need.

 

Case in point: taco bar + Apples to Apples+ fun interesting friends = good times. Lunch is super easy to make and keep warm in a crockpot (especially with a little help) and a game that’s easy to learn and makes everyone laugh is always a good thing. If you’re nice like me, you may have thought ahead to make an apple cake with cream cheese frosting. And you made beer and red wine available, just in case.

 

 

I am just as happy with my wine aerator today, as the day I received it as a gift. It was way too generous of a gift, but if the goal of the giver was to make me squeal with delight, it continues to work. Every time a friend comes over who hasn’t seen it (or who has, and wants red wine), I do a demo for them, and it makes this fun noise when you pour it, and it absolutely delights me.

 

Like my aerator, and my friends, always remember to appreciate what you have. I know you know this, and so do I , but we all can use a helpful reminder of this every now and again.