Quiet and Alone

awww, meeces. But if I had EVER taken one of my rats out when Jake was in the same room, I have no doubt whatsoever that he would have figured out a way to abscond with it. We *are* talking about the cat that managed, inexplicably, to catch and hang onto a New York City freakin' PIGEON *through* a window screen. Not even by a wing or tail, either, by the BREAST. I looked up when I heard a mighty flapping, and there's my cat, Mojo Kitty looking on as though he had just seen the most coolest thing in the whole entire universe, with his paw up at the window screen holding onto a PIGEON. Crikey. I had to remove his claws one by one from the pigeon (and the screen) and he was none too happy that I was not going to let him eat his pigeon.

Pigeon looked alarmed but none the worse for the incident, far as I could tell.

At any rate, it's good that Paul is going to take care of his family, even though it's yucky that you are lonely. You'll be fine :) - hehe, I have been cooking tons, I should start posting you recipes here for while you're home alone.

Dude! That reminds me! I found the COOLEST THING EVAR: a recipe for modeling chocolate! It's only two ingredients! And then when it's cold you can MODEL the CHOCOLATE! I made a flower yesterday. And then you can eat it! It rawks! You should totally try it. I'm amusing myself greatly with my Sculpey Chocolate.

Hooray for modeling chocolate:

you need some chocolate. I mixed together Baker's Semi-Sweet with Ghiradelli milk chocolate chips, but next time I'm skipping the milk chocolate because it's already plenty sweet even with only semi-sweet chocolate.

Then you need some Karo Light Corn Syrup.

Ratio is 8 ounces chocolate (one pkg Baker's = 8 ounces) to 1/4 cup + one tablespoon Karo.

You melt the chocolate in a double boiler, which if you don't have (I don't) just take one big pot and one little pot and put a couple inches water in the big pot then put the little pot over the water and put the chocolate in that. Stir frequently while melting and if the big pot's water starts boiling turn the heat down a bit.

When the chocolate is completely melty with no lumps, stir in the Karo until completely mixed.

Then put in fridge (if you have Ziploc freezer gallon bags those are easiest to get it back out of but otherwise tupperware will do) for three to five hours (or as long as you want) and when it's all chilled you pry pieces up of it and knead it and you can make fun things! I buttered some wax paper and rolled a bunch of it out between two buttered pieces of wax paper (so it doesn't stick) and cut the petals out of that.

And you can use whatever chocolate you want. I'm gonna make a smaller batch with some white chocolate so that can be dyed and also used for features on the dark chocolate cuz me & Carly are gonna make entertaining chocolates for Easter. I'd put money down that either her or her friend she's bringing produce at least one obscene chocolate.

That is just too cool! :)� I have semi-sweet chocolate chips (like, a huge Costco sized bag) and karo syrup in the house already so I'm all set, no?

And oh yeah, totally there will be obscene chocolate. I mean, were we any different? You're the one who drew a picture of an alien masturbating on me and my black sweatshirt. :)

Yupyup, all set. And the chocolate can be kept for something ridiculous like three years after you make it. If you chill the things you make when you're done in the fridge they will harden and that way they won't wilt or melt in the house heat. It's lots and lots of fun. For Saturday I'm gonna make some buttercream icing which is a huge pain in the butt but it dries hard and it's more dyeable so can be turned into more kinds of decorations than the white chocolate can. That's the kind of icing used for wedding cakes and stuff with the roses etc.

Obscene chocolates: excellent point. Hell, my plans at present include a crown of thorns. Easter and all.

Oooh I could make Paul some chocolate sculptures and send them to him! I wonder if they travel well...probably not, but who cares? :)

hehe. If you made things that were kinda flat? Or small & solid. Like faces or portraits or little kitties? those would travel fine as long as they were kept reasonably cool :)

(yeah, I'm procrastinating, sue me)

Okay. I've made a whole bunch of fish recipes round here the past few months, and this one was absolutely to-freakin-die-for. I'm not as a rule hugely fond of fish, but I could seriously have this every week. Even better, it's one of the least complicated recipes I've ever tried with fish. Damn this was good. I took a basic recipe I found online and modified it almost completely. Here 'tis:

Fillets of flounder, sole, or other flat white fish (was yum with flounder)
1 tablespoon butter (for the baking pan)
Salt and pepper to taste
bit lemon juice
bit mayonnaise
1 cup bread crumbs (Italian or plain, whichever is fine)
bit olive oil
bit dijon mustard
If you have cooking white wine that's nice too, and a little bit onion

Put bread crumbs, salt and pepper in plate, mixed around a bit, for dredging the fish. Butter the baking pan.

Take bit of mustard and spread on one side of fish - maybe about a quarter or half-teaspoon per fillet. Not much, just enough to taste. Take bit of mayo and spread over mustard. More mayo than mustard, enough to coat one side of fillet with thin coat of mayo. Then dredge fillet in the bread crumbs, coat all over with crumbs. Place in baking pan.

Drizzle olive oil and lemon juice over fish. A couple passes over each fillet is enough. Cooking white wine just a splash in the pan and a couple drops on fish. If you have a small bit of onion: in pan, couple pieces on fish; if you have parsley and basil around a couple pieces on each fillet.

cook @ 350 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes. Tips of fillets will be a bit crispy when done, middles will be flaky and opaque when cut into.

Andrea don't do fish. Ever. :) But I'll make it for Paul when he returns! (He loooooooooves fishies.)