Clown in Spite of Himself

Oh dear.
We've been going to productions at Wayne State's Hilberry for many years, but this season has been a bit disappointing thus far.
Big Love was a fairly poor update of Aeschylus (The Suppliant Women). Parts were OK, but in general it stood as evidence of why one ought simply to perform the classics rather than try to "fix" them.
Ah, but it seems quite good in light of the clownish disaster of the "translation" of Moliere's A Doctor in Spite of Himself.
Good grief. Moliere wasn't a clown. Frankly, his comedies are right there with Shakespeare's. No one would ever have thought that after seeing this production.
Here's hoping some of the plays yet to come will redeem the season.

It Was Quite Appropriate for Hallowe'en

I hadn't really thought of that when I made the purchase, but thinking back, I probably should have done.


At any rate, Jim Beam Devil's Cut is crazy delicious. Smooth, flavourful, and powerful.


Highly recommended to any of appropriate age and inclination.


Please enjoy it responsibly - don't add anything. Good bourbon is meant to be taken neat.

Carnage du Jour - 23 October 2013

Leg of Lamb.
No, not the elf from Lord of the Rings, that's Legolas. Legolamb was his doppelganger in Bored of the Rings. Sorry for the digression. (OK, not really.)

Anyway, we have this wonderful old vertical rotisserie which was rescued from the 60s or so, and it's just the right size for a boneless lamb roast ... or a whole chicken ... or a pork loin roast ... or lots of other stuff.

So, the text came from Heidi - what seasonings would you use on that lamb roast?
I replied with cumin, white pepper, and savory (the salt was understood, don't you know).

Well, I got home earlier than anticipated, and got to do the job myself. Heidi did mention that she was surprised I didn't say herbes de provence, and I toyed with the idea of switching, but decided to go with my gut, as it were, and use the stuff from my text.

Good grief but it was good.

The ~2.5lb roast cooked in about 40 minutes, and we finished up the accompaniments as it rested - a lovely gratin of broccoli and cauliflower (with bacon), and some egg noodles with mushrooms.

At any rate, we each ate more than was right, but it couldn't be helped. As I cut the last bits of leftover meat into the last bit of leftover pasta, I handed Christian a bit of the crust (despite his protestations), and he headed off to bed where he planned to "cry myself to sleep from happiness."

Give that blend a try. Delicious is only the beginning of it all.

Guinness Red Harvest Stout

Yes, Guinness Red Harvest Stout.

Drink it. It's spectacularly delicious.

Enough said.

Go buy some and drink it.




Hurry up - I'm serious.

Carnage du Jour - 20 August 2013

Smoker bags are wonderful things. If one doesn't have a smoker, whether an outdoor model or a stove/oven type (and I do not), one can still do a fine job of smoking smaller items in the oven with these little gems.

It really came down to what to smoke that day, and - in the end - a pork tenderloin won out. I have to say I'm quite happy that it did.

I cleaned the silver skin off the tenderloin, then added a bit of a rub of white pepper, beau monde, and cumin all around. The meat was popped in the bag along with a nice selection of fresh herbs - rosemary, thyme, and sage - and then the bag was sealed and popped into the preheated oven (about 475F as I recall).

After about 25 minutes, the bag came out, the meat was tested for doneness (it was), and the sides finished up - egg noodles with a creme fraiche and parmesan sauce, and lima beans with butter.

All in all, it was a delicious meal. The meat had just the right amount of smoke to it, and was as tender and juicy as ever a pork tenderloin has been.

Try it, you'll like it. Highly recommended.

Where Were You Ten Years Ago?

If you're anywhere near me, you were probably in the dark.

Yep. Ten years ago today was that spectacular blackout across vast tracts of Eastern North America. (Thanks, Ohio.)

I actually have vaguely fond memories of using a bunch of food from the refrigerator on the grill, along with breaking out the camping equipment and the corded telephones.
Yes - we actually have some phones that work from the power in the phone line alone; no need to plug those guys in just to connect with someone else.

It feels a bit odd to be nostalgic about a power outage, but it was an almost-fun time.

Next Time You're in Fairbanks

be sure to visit the University of Alaska at Fairbanks.

We had a wonderful time - actually times - there.

• Once we visited the Museum of the North. This is an excellent museum of Natural History, culture, and art all rolled into one. Extremely well done and highly recommended.
• Next we visited the experimental farm and botanical gardens. What a cool place! Who knew that by being clever about how to irrigate and warm the soil, Alaskans can grow all kinds of crops - including giant cabbages weighing hundreds of pounds, and still worth eating?!
• Finally we visited the LARS - the Large Animal Research Station - to see their herds of caribou, reindeer, and muskox. Again, fascinating stuff that you won't see anywhere else as far as I know.

 Alaska is an amazing state with beautiful scenery, friendly people, great parks and museums (musea?), and excellent beer. I believe we'll make the trip up there again one day.