After a stormy week with temperatures in the 50s & 60s, Old Man Winter has decided to re-assert himself in a big way. It seems that most weather forecasters are predicting an icy mix tonight with temps in the 20s and snow tomorrow with the high around 30.
I. AM. NOT. HAPPY.
I'm supposed to have book group tomorrow night, but I live a good hour from my friends and I hate the thought of the drive for their sake. I've been unable to concentrate on a menu because of this impending storm.
Do I plan for guests? Do I shop for groceries? What if they can't come? What do I do with all of that food? I need a nap!
My plan is to clean tonight. If the weather people fail in their predictions, I will get dinner ingredients tomorrow after work and go to it then. Otherwise, I will drop back 10 and punt.
Showing posts with label cold weather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cold weather. Show all posts
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding
I have book group on the 29th and I'm trying to set the menu. Since the book is set in Victorian London, I thought a traditional Victorian meal might be interesting. I combed cookbooks and the web and the most traditional thing I found was Roast beef & Yorkshire pudding.
I've never had Yorkshire pudding. I have no idea of how it should look or taste. But I gave it a whirl. The results were sketchy. It puffed up and browned like it should. It tasted like a rather bland pancake. The texture was much like a souffle. A bland souffle. And like a souffle...it fell. But this much I knew to expect.
Because I needed the drippings, I didn't do my usual roast beef (Coke, Dale's, garlic & Worcestershire)but instead applied a rub after letting it marinate for several hours. It, too, seemed bland.
And at some point during the day I decided to bake a cake. It's been so cold lately that I've had trouble staying warm. In my head, I know that it is 72 degrees in my home, but my feet and arms have trouble believing it. So I've turned to baking to a)warm up the kitchen, b) keep myself busy thus keeping warm, and c) bribing my co-workers.
I made a Maraschino Chocolate Cake. The recipe called for maraschino cherry juice and chopped cherries. It also called for melted chocolate. As I've said, my home feels cold to me, but I was honestly surprised that the chocolate hardened when added to the batter. Maybe my thermostat is the liar, not my feet!
I took pictures, but since I am neither proud of nor happy with the results of my experiments yesterday, I refuse to publish photos.
And by the way, I didn't make my bed yesterday because I just didn't have the heart to remove the cat from between the covers.
I'll try the Yorkshire Pudding one more time, but then I may move on to a working class Victorian tea...meat pies. We shall see.
I've never had Yorkshire pudding. I have no idea of how it should look or taste. But I gave it a whirl. The results were sketchy. It puffed up and browned like it should. It tasted like a rather bland pancake. The texture was much like a souffle. A bland souffle. And like a souffle...it fell. But this much I knew to expect.
Because I needed the drippings, I didn't do my usual roast beef (Coke, Dale's, garlic & Worcestershire)but instead applied a rub after letting it marinate for several hours. It, too, seemed bland.
And at some point during the day I decided to bake a cake. It's been so cold lately that I've had trouble staying warm. In my head, I know that it is 72 degrees in my home, but my feet and arms have trouble believing it. So I've turned to baking to a)warm up the kitchen, b) keep myself busy thus keeping warm, and c) bribing my co-workers.
I made a Maraschino Chocolate Cake. The recipe called for maraschino cherry juice and chopped cherries. It also called for melted chocolate. As I've said, my home feels cold to me, but I was honestly surprised that the chocolate hardened when added to the batter. Maybe my thermostat is the liar, not my feet!
I took pictures, but since I am neither proud of nor happy with the results of my experiments yesterday, I refuse to publish photos.
And by the way, I didn't make my bed yesterday because I just didn't have the heart to remove the cat from between the covers.
I'll try the Yorkshire Pudding one more time, but then I may move on to a working class Victorian tea...meat pies. We shall see.
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