The hallucinations have stopped. The coughing fits have begun. I was forced from my cozy bed this morning by them, down the stairway and into two big mugs of tea. More of that to follow. I have things to get done this weekend, dammit.
Today is the birthday of both J.S. Bach and Modest Mussorgsky (or however one wants to spell it). That's pretty weird. I don't really know classical music, but I do love Bach, especially the Brandenburg Concertos, which I realize is overdone to death, but I just don't care. I still love them. I also love Pictures at an Exhibition - in particular, the 1950s Sofia concert performance by Sviatislav Richter, which crackles and zaps and gets silly and profound. Bach is 324, Mussorgsky is 170. Maybe we'll bake them a cake!
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Sunday, August 17, 2008
birthday dinner
So, we threw the big birthday dinner party yesterday, starting around 3, and ending around midnightish. Ten courses is a lot.
My favorite item was the shrimp with saffron mousseline.
Outrageous. The mousseline is a sort of hollandaise, with whipped cream added. I added saffron to the lemon juice reduction that is central to hollandaise, also to the egg yolks, also to the butter, and also to the cream. I added a little sugar, because saffron suggests this. Completely, completely insane preparation. Utterly ludicrous dish. Ridiculously flamboyant. I was giddy about it, giggling the whole time I was whipping butter into the sauce. I mean, who makes saffron mousseline? Who would have ever eaten it? See? amuse gueule! Tee-hee-hee-hee!
The other amuse was melon, mozzarella, and prosciutto en brochette.
I made a sauce for these from balsamic vinegar reduced to 1/4 volume, with a bit of sugar, Kirschwasser, and a plum in it (then strained out). Madness. It was tart and sweet and tasty and loved the holy heck out of the melon, mozzarella and prosciutto.
The last dish we took a picture of was the first entrée, tilapia with a basil-spinach-lemon-butter sauce.
Hah! I read a recipe for fish cooked "chartreuse," which means braised in tomato, carrot, onion, and spinach (for the color, hence the name), and made something really entirely unlike that, thinking "Hey, green sauce on fish. Cool." It was, in fact: the fish was served cold, along with all the first several courses, since it was 100 degrees at 3 pm. So, complete menu:
AMUSES:
shrimp with saffron mousseline
melon, prosciutto, and mozzarella skewers
HORS-D'OUEVRE
toasts with Provençal tapenade
SOUP
Portuguese consommé (cold, slightly spicy, tomato-infused consommé)
FIRST ENTRÉE
tilapia with chef’s chartreuse sauce
SALAD
SECOND ENTRÉE
ratatouille (cooked by roasting rather than stewing)
basil and rosemary sorbet
MAIN COURSE
herb-encrusted rack of lamb, with vegetables
DESSERT
fruits and cheeses
Everybody seemed to have different favorites. Everyone marveled at the sorbet, which was in fact pretty nifty, if I do say so myself. The ratatouille was perfect. The lamb was gorgeous. But nothing beats the satisfaction of the saffron mousseline.
My favorite item was the shrimp with saffron mousseline.
Outrageous. The mousseline is a sort of hollandaise, with whipped cream added. I added saffron to the lemon juice reduction that is central to hollandaise, also to the egg yolks, also to the butter, and also to the cream. I added a little sugar, because saffron suggests this. Completely, completely insane preparation. Utterly ludicrous dish. Ridiculously flamboyant. I was giddy about it, giggling the whole time I was whipping butter into the sauce. I mean, who makes saffron mousseline? Who would have ever eaten it? See? amuse gueule! Tee-hee-hee-hee!
The other amuse was melon, mozzarella, and prosciutto en brochette.
I made a sauce for these from balsamic vinegar reduced to 1/4 volume, with a bit of sugar, Kirschwasser, and a plum in it (then strained out). Madness. It was tart and sweet and tasty and loved the holy heck out of the melon, mozzarella and prosciutto.
The last dish we took a picture of was the first entrée, tilapia with a basil-spinach-lemon-butter sauce.
Hah! I read a recipe for fish cooked "chartreuse," which means braised in tomato, carrot, onion, and spinach (for the color, hence the name), and made something really entirely unlike that, thinking "Hey, green sauce on fish. Cool." It was, in fact: the fish was served cold, along with all the first several courses, since it was 100 degrees at 3 pm. So, complete menu:
AMUSES:
shrimp with saffron mousseline
melon, prosciutto, and mozzarella skewers
HORS-D'OUEVRE
toasts with Provençal tapenade
SOUP
Portuguese consommé (cold, slightly spicy, tomato-infused consommé)
FIRST ENTRÉE
tilapia with chef’s chartreuse sauce
SALAD
SECOND ENTRÉE
ratatouille (cooked by roasting rather than stewing)
basil and rosemary sorbet
MAIN COURSE
herb-encrusted rack of lamb, with vegetables
DESSERT
fruits and cheeses
Everybody seemed to have different favorites. Everyone marveled at the sorbet, which was in fact pretty nifty, if I do say so myself. The ratatouille was perfect. The lamb was gorgeous. But nothing beats the satisfaction of the saffron mousseline.
Friday, August 15, 2008
happy birthday...
... to Napoleon Bonaparte, 239 years old today!
, and to Julia Child, who woulda been 94
, and to India, independent in 1947
, and to the Congo, independent in 1960
, and many many more! Turns out it's also Oscar Peterson's, Sir Walter Scott's and Thomas de Quincey's birthday (I didn't know that until this morning), Rose Marie's as well, and also the anniversary of the opening of the Panama Canal. Also: Debra Messing (who was also born in 1968, but I don't think she's 26 like I am), Ben Affleck (meh), Flyers goalie Marty Biron. It's also the day Catholics observe the Assumption of Mary.
Us, we're going to Modesto. Ah, Modesto. Nothing more to be said, really.
Except this: Among these people whose birthday I share, Napoleon and Ben Affleck are not allowed in the house. Neither, also, are India or the Congo, or the Panama Canal. It's not that big an apartment. The Assumption takes up far more room than you'd probably expect.
, and to Julia Child, who woulda been 94
, and to India, independent in 1947
, and to the Congo, independent in 1960
, and many many more! Turns out it's also Oscar Peterson's, Sir Walter Scott's and Thomas de Quincey's birthday (I didn't know that until this morning), Rose Marie's as well, and also the anniversary of the opening of the Panama Canal. Also: Debra Messing (who was also born in 1968, but I don't think she's 26 like I am), Ben Affleck (meh), Flyers goalie Marty Biron. It's also the day Catholics observe the Assumption of Mary.
Us, we're going to Modesto. Ah, Modesto. Nothing more to be said, really.
Except this: Among these people whose birthday I share, Napoleon and Ben Affleck are not allowed in the house. Neither, also, are India or the Congo, or the Panama Canal. It's not that big an apartment. The Assumption takes up far more room than you'd probably expect.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
birfday present!
Wednesday is my birthday, but the gifts are already piling up! Look, here's a pen and pencil set that my sister turned for me:
My sister is cooler than your sister (unless you're Zach).
My sister is cooler than your sister (unless you're Zach).
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