Food and heresy.
I just made the best freaking dinner ever.
Chicken Paprikas served over Almost Aunt Cathy Mashed Potatoes.
I think the secret to good Paprikas is twofold: 1. DO NOT serve it over rice.
2. Use a big-ass sweet onion, and cook it so that it still has a little bite to contrast with the spice in the paprika.
My potatoes weren't QUITE up to Aunt Cathy standards, but I think part of it was because I used red potatoes and a different kind of seasoning. I was going for vitamin content so I kept the skins. Still---I think she'd be proud. I've been trying to imitate her cooking for YEARS. Maybe I'll make this when I invite her and the rest of our giant wine swilling gypsy family over to see the house.
I think one of the reasons it is hard to duplicate family recipes is that everyone substitutes, no one writes anything down, and I personally measure all non-liquids in the palm of my hand and not with any sort of scientific instruments. Sort of like Granny Clampit, including the bun and the apron.
I gather that cooking this way is sort of food-snob heresy. Like, I'll take a recipe and substitute a shallot for a weaker tasting onion, slice it under running water, toss in a handful of random spices and a lot of cheese and still have the nerve to call it by the original recipe name when it would be more aptly named "Crap I threw into a pot, so either eat it and shut your gob or order a pizza. You're paying." Clearly that is too long of a name for a dish, although I believe that is the literal translation of "goulash."
Speaking of heresy, there has been a lot about knitting heresy on the internet lately, and...well...I'm a trend-whore, so I'm going to post about it too!
Here are the things I do that make the women in my local yarn shop cringe whenever I try to strike up a discussion.
1. I like Lion Brand. There, I said it! Their quality has gone up, and they have some good patterns. Check their website, not the ball-band. While I may be able to get a wool/acrylic blend for cheaper on the internet, I know how Lion Brand yarn will stand up in the wash, and I also know that the colors are nice and that it feels like a higher quality blend. They have stepped up and deserve some credit.
2. If I don't have the correct needle size, I will substitute and repeat "knitting stretches" a few times to myself. So far it's turned out OK every time (knock on wood!) Besides, it's not like the clothing I buy for myself fits perfectly anyway since I'm built like I was made from spare parts
3. I tie knots when I join yarn. In the middle of a row.
4. Sometimes, instead of weaving in ends, I just cut them really really short.
5. When people think of novelty yarn they think of fun fur. Well, novelty generally applies to something that's new and different and sort of a trend. Sometimes I look at the prices of average-quality homespuns and sock clubs and think to myself that these are the novelty yarns of Now.
6. I shop at Smiley's Yarns online, and I like it.
7. I think most lace is for old ladies.
8. I don't consider random yarn-overs to be "lace." Sorry, I just think of them as "openwork." It makes a difference in MY mind, at least.
9. I think some chunky knits are cool, and just because people knit chunky things it doesn't mean they're lazy. It's just fashion.
10. I don't care how much time and work you spend on that bulky fair-aisle collared cardigan---it's not flattering on you. It's beautiful handiwork, that would have been better used in something that doesn't visually pile 30 pounds onto your frame.
11. I knit Continental for some projects and English for others. It's not because I want to feel included, it's because certain weights of yarn or needle sizes sometimes give me knuckle cramps and I like to switch to keep my hands and wrists limber, especially when going from knit to purl as in ribbing.I don't think either is faster than the other, I think it just think it depends on how comfortable you are with it.
12. Knitting scarves can be really really boring.
13. I don't watch Knitty Gritty for the projects, I watch it to learn new techniques. I've never wanted to make anything from the show itself, but I think it's a really good learning tool.
I have always felt that someone with talent can take the most crappy tools and make something awesome out of them. A REAL photographer can use one of those disposable one-shots from the drugstore and take better photographs than I would ever imagine. I feel the same way about knitting and cooking, which is why I have no problem trying to learn new things while using ingredients from Drug Mart and yarn that cost me $1. That doesn't mean I don't go out and buy the good stuff some of the time, but it means that I do the best with what I have and there comes a point where effort has to overcome the materials you started with.
I hope that's what happens to me as a person because I'm sort of scrawny and lazy.
Chicken Paprikas served over Almost Aunt Cathy Mashed Potatoes.
I think the secret to good Paprikas is twofold: 1. DO NOT serve it over rice.
2. Use a big-ass sweet onion, and cook it so that it still has a little bite to contrast with the spice in the paprika.
My potatoes weren't QUITE up to Aunt Cathy standards, but I think part of it was because I used red potatoes and a different kind of seasoning. I was going for vitamin content so I kept the skins. Still---I think she'd be proud. I've been trying to imitate her cooking for YEARS. Maybe I'll make this when I invite her and the rest of our giant wine swilling gypsy family over to see the house.
I think one of the reasons it is hard to duplicate family recipes is that everyone substitutes, no one writes anything down, and I personally measure all non-liquids in the palm of my hand and not with any sort of scientific instruments. Sort of like Granny Clampit, including the bun and the apron.
I gather that cooking this way is sort of food-snob heresy. Like, I'll take a recipe and substitute a shallot for a weaker tasting onion, slice it under running water, toss in a handful of random spices and a lot of cheese and still have the nerve to call it by the original recipe name when it would be more aptly named "Crap I threw into a pot, so either eat it and shut your gob or order a pizza. You're paying." Clearly that is too long of a name for a dish, although I believe that is the literal translation of "goulash."
Speaking of heresy, there has been a lot about knitting heresy on the internet lately, and...well...I'm a trend-whore, so I'm going to post about it too!
Here are the things I do that make the women in my local yarn shop cringe whenever I try to strike up a discussion.
1. I like Lion Brand. There, I said it! Their quality has gone up, and they have some good patterns. Check their website, not the ball-band. While I may be able to get a wool/acrylic blend for cheaper on the internet, I know how Lion Brand yarn will stand up in the wash, and I also know that the colors are nice and that it feels like a higher quality blend. They have stepped up and deserve some credit.
2. If I don't have the correct needle size, I will substitute and repeat "knitting stretches" a few times to myself. So far it's turned out OK every time (knock on wood!) Besides, it's not like the clothing I buy for myself fits perfectly anyway since I'm built like I was made from spare parts
3. I tie knots when I join yarn. In the middle of a row.
4. Sometimes, instead of weaving in ends, I just cut them really really short.
5. When people think of novelty yarn they think of fun fur. Well, novelty generally applies to something that's new and different and sort of a trend. Sometimes I look at the prices of average-quality homespuns and sock clubs and think to myself that these are the novelty yarns of Now.
6. I shop at Smiley's Yarns online, and I like it.
7. I think most lace is for old ladies.
8. I don't consider random yarn-overs to be "lace." Sorry, I just think of them as "openwork." It makes a difference in MY mind, at least.
9. I think some chunky knits are cool, and just because people knit chunky things it doesn't mean they're lazy. It's just fashion.
10. I don't care how much time and work you spend on that bulky fair-aisle collared cardigan---it's not flattering on you. It's beautiful handiwork, that would have been better used in something that doesn't visually pile 30 pounds onto your frame.
11. I knit Continental for some projects and English for others. It's not because I want to feel included, it's because certain weights of yarn or needle sizes sometimes give me knuckle cramps and I like to switch to keep my hands and wrists limber, especially when going from knit to purl as in ribbing.I don't think either is faster than the other, I think it just think it depends on how comfortable you are with it.
12. Knitting scarves can be really really boring.
13. I don't watch Knitty Gritty for the projects, I watch it to learn new techniques. I've never wanted to make anything from the show itself, but I think it's a really good learning tool.
I have always felt that someone with talent can take the most crappy tools and make something awesome out of them. A REAL photographer can use one of those disposable one-shots from the drugstore and take better photographs than I would ever imagine. I feel the same way about knitting and cooking, which is why I have no problem trying to learn new things while using ingredients from Drug Mart and yarn that cost me $1. That doesn't mean I don't go out and buy the good stuff some of the time, but it means that I do the best with what I have and there comes a point where effort has to overcome the materials you started with.
I hope that's what happens to me as a person because I'm sort of scrawny and lazy.
posted at 6:45 PM
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