The Lesser of Two Culinary Evils

(#13) Taste 25 Foods I've Never Tasted Before
1. Pattypan Squash
2. Beets
3. Eel
4.Wahoo
5.Lychee
6.Quinoa
7. Raw Oyster
8. Octopus

I think I mentioned before that this list item would be a bit of a challenge to me because there are a lot of foods I have already tried (for a 25 year-old with a modest income and relatively unadventurous parents) and there are a few foods I refuse to try-- okay, maybe just veal.

There are a lot of foods I didn’t see myself ever eating, and this was one of them. Namely because I happen to care a lot about animals and know that octopi happen to be very smart. Remember Paul? (btw Ronnie wants me to inform you that it is pronounced Pa-oool, not Paul)

But sitting at dinner with three friends, I was confronted with two foods that I had never tried before, and one of them was veal. So sorry Paul, I ate your little relative. Don’t worry, I probably won’t be eating any more of them any time soon.

I had enough self-awareness to know that I wouldn’t eat a whole plate of octopus, so luckily my friend Chris was willing to share a leg with me. And I’m glad, because it was much less intimidating in piece-meal form.

I cut off a piece from the burnt end of the tentacle first, where the smallest suckers were. Honestly, it wasn’t that bad. I had expected a worse texture, but it turned out to be a little like chicken. The taste was much fishier than I imagined though. I guess I was comparing it in my head to calamari (which I hate), and it was nothing like that. I was even bold enough to take another, larger piece- after which I promptly handed the rest over to Ronnie.

I’m guessing that nearly everyone reading this will fall into one of two categories- totally grossed out, or unsure of what the big deal is because they’ve had octopus a million times. I may have been in the former category a week ago, and now I find myself somewhere in the middle. I’m learning a lot about myself through this whole experience, including that things may not be as black and white as I’d like them to be. I encourage you all to to challenge your own conceptions as well. You may surprise yourself.

But I’m still never eating veal.

Little Sammy for a Big Appetite

(#10) Master 25 New Recipes

1. Stuffed Peppers
2. Risotto
3. Polenta
4. Beef Brisket

I had no intention of blogging this sandwich recipe. I just wanted to get some more use out of my slow cooker. But it turned out so well that Ronnie literally BEGGED me to share it with you. We aren't big beef eaters but it turned out really tender, and the other sandwich ingredients really complimented it. Something about the combination of the crunchy pickle with the soft roll and the spicy beef just makes it crazy good. I think it would be great to bring to a party or family gathering. So here it is. 

Barbecue Brisket Sliders

Courtesy of Rachael Ray Magazine, with some slight edits per usual. She didn't post the recipe on her website but she does have a lot of other great stuff there. I marinated it overnight but you could also do it in the morning and eat it the same afternoon. Just give yourself 6-8 hours to cook it.

Ingredients:

1 beef brisket (we used about a 2-pounder, so adjust other ingredients based on size)

1 14 oz can fire-roasted tomatoes (Rachael asked for crushed but I could only find diced- turned out fine)

12 oz cola

small potato rolls 

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 small can chipotle in adobo

sliced swiss cheese

sliced dill pickles

chile powder (to taste)

salt and pepper

olive oil

1. Trim most of the fat off of the beef. Drizzle with olive oil and then rub in the chile powder, salt, and pepper (Rub in with only one hand so you still have one clean hand to season the other side.) Cut it into even sections-I did four long pieces.

2. Heat some olive oil in a large skillet. Make sure the oil is very hot (but not crazy hot enough to splatter) before adding the meat. Then add the meat pieces. I had a big enough pan to fit it all at once, but if in doubt just do two batches. If you overcrowd the pan it won't be hot enough and your meat won't brown. Brown the meat on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. I actually set it on its edge to brown as well to add some extra flavor. Transfer the meat into your slow cooker (don't turn it on yet!)

3. Add one cup of cola to the pan and deglaze (scraping up the browned pieces). Pour the cola over the meat in the slow cooker. Pour the can of tomatoes over the meat. I piled my tomatoes on top of the meat as well to help it stay juicy. At this point either transfer to the fridge or get ready to cook. I really think allowing it to marinate overnight actually made it even more tender.

4. I cooked on low for 10 hours because it was cooking while I was at work. If you're going to be home all day, cook it on high for six hours.

5. Remove the meat from the slow cooker and transfer to a plate to cool. Once it is cool, shred it with a fork. It should come apart easily. Meanwhile, pour the juices from the slow cooker into a pan and add the other 1/2 cup of cola. Add the shredded meat to the pan and toss in the sauce to cover.

6. Cut open the rolls, add some Swiss cheese and toast them under the broiler. 

7. Mix the adobo sauce from the chipotles with the mayonnaise (to taste- the sauce is pretty spicy). Remove the rolls from the broiler. Spread the mayo on the top roll and add pickles on top of cheese. Then add the shredded beef. 

8. Enjoy!

Another Testament to the Cultural Significance of the Simpsons

(#17) Watch 25 classic movies.

1. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

I’ve been putting off watching this movie because, as with most movies based on books, I wanted to read the book first. But with an ever-growing list of books to read, I decided to just go for it this time.

I think it is a testament to good movie-making that I now want to read the book even more. 

Yes, I know that Ken Kesey said that they were butchering his work and absolutely refused to watch it. But the only problem I saw from a film-making perspective was that they tried to fit too much content into two hours. Which means the book should be even better.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, set in 1963 in Oregon, is the story of Randle McMurphy, a convict who pretends to be crazy in order to “escape” from prison and be sent to a mental institution instead. In a classic case of the cement is always greener on the other side of the iron bars, Randle finds out that the nuthouse isn’t all he had dreamed it to be.

Led by the infamous Nurse Ratched, who has since become a symbol of systematic repression, the hospital employs a routine of humiliation and subtle mind-control that numbs patients into submission. When McMurphy tries to shake things up, she tightens the noose on him even more than the others, and an epic power struggle ensues.

Nurse Ratched and Billy

Jack Nicholson is probably one of the most famous elements from this movie, and while I’m beginning to think he is just playing himself in these types of roles, I think he deserved the Oscar that he won. I think the real stars of the movie though were the supporting actors- Billy, the Chief, Martini, et al. I’ll never forget the scene (shortly after the image above) where Billy is dragged away, begging Nurse Ratched not to tell his mother about his indiscretion. Or the look on the Chief’s face in the last scene…if it hasn’t been spoiled for you already I won’t spoil it now! The interactions between all of the characters are what made this movie so memorable, and what made me want to learn more about them in the book.

The movie is a little off-beat and not for the mentally squeamish. But it is definitely intriguing and well made. I would say it is worth watching.


Also, when I included this list item I chose movies that had cultural significance- in and of themselves but also in pop culture. So I’m happy to say that I finally understand the episode of the Simpsons called "The Old Man and the C Student" where Bart breaks the old people out of the nursing home and takes them fishing. Also the birth of the infamous "Chief Break Everything."

Dreams from an Absent Father

(#2) Read 25 Books

1. Room by Emma Donohue
2. Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
3. Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama

Let me just start by saying: I know things are really intense in the political arena right now. And if you know me, you know my views. I'm not shy about them. But my purpose today is to review a book that I've read.

In fact, this book was recommended to me by a very conservative friend of mine. That it was recommended during a very heated argument, and why he suggested I read it, I won't discuss here either.

Now, about the book.

There have only been 43 presidents in history (relax, Grover Cleveland is counted twice in the 44 total. I looked it up), and there has only been one African-American president. So politics aside, I was interested to find out what it was in Barack Obama's life that made him the one. Unfortunately I should have paid more attention to the description of the book, because he wrote it in 1995 and doesn't even discuss becoming senator. Woops.

What he does discuss is his unusual childhood- largely spent in Hawaii and partially in Indonesia- and his struggle to find his identity as a black man being raised in a white world (and never does he refer to himself as half-black or half-white, always black). Raised by progressive grandparents who had let their daughter marry an African man in the 1950s but who could still never quite understand his situation, and a father who he met once and who spent more time idealizing their relationship more than actually participating in it.

I was surprised by the frankness with which he spoke about race relations. I guess, again, I was thinking of Obama the President who has to speak more politically today. But seeing Chicago's South Side through his eyes opened up a new perspective for me. As he starts his career in politics as a community organizer, I wonder why he never quit. The situation seemed totally, totally hopeless. I encourage anyone with the "pick yourself up by your bootstraps" mentality to give this section a read. These people were getting screwed over from ever angle.

There were also a few fun moments where Obama doesn't realize that he's foretelling his future a little bit, where I'm sitting in 2012 thinking HA!

From a literary standpoint, of course this was no masterpiece. Obama is a politician, not a writer. Pretty much every page leads him to a life-changing epiphany that has little to no relevance on the next page. The writing is a bit choppy, with some details left out and others running on and on.

But overall, it was an interesting read. I like to throw in some non-fiction every once and awhile to hopefully learn something new. And I learned a lot- about our 44th President (it is 44 in this context!), about Kenya and Indonesia and Hawaii, and about a side of America I'd like to hope no longer exists. But almost certainly does.

And to be fair, if anyone wants to recommend a good book written from the other side's perspective, I'd be happy to oblige.

Raw Courage

(#13) Taste 25 Foods I've Never Tasted Before


1. Pattypan Squash
2. Beets
3. Eel
4.Wahoo
5.Lychee

6.Quinoa

7. Raw Oyster

Its true. It happened. Resist your impulse to gag and lets back up for a second.

I was on vacation in the Outer Banks last week. And when I take vacation I commit to it- I barely checked my phone and I certainly wasn't getting on the internet. But I was still working on my list.

Every year we go to Dirty Dicks (yes one of those cheesy beach places with the slogan "I got my crabs from Dirty Dicks"- see souvenir glass pictured below. But they have great crab.) 

And every year Ronnie and his dad order a plate of raw oysters. Never in my life, not even for a millisecond, have I even considered eating one of them. But this year when Ronnie's dad announced he was ordering oysters and looked around the table to see who wanted one, Ronnie gave me a look and I knew I had no choice. Twenty-five new foods. I HAD to do it.

I'm fairly certain I've never had oysters before, unless they were mixed in with other seafood. But I probably wouldn't have counted just regular oysters. I've had clams and mussels, and once you've tried one shellfish, you've tried them all. But RAW oysters- now that is worth blogging about.

They came on a tray of ice with the necessary accoutrements, looking like a grey blob of misery:

I let Ronnie fix mine up since he is the expert. He dressed it with Tabasco, cocktail sauce (made from the horseradish pictured above), and lemon. Then he "loosened it up" from the shell, though he encouraged me to double-check the loosening. 

To you reader I say this- always double-check the loosening. 

What was supposed to slide easily down my throat wound up being more of a struggle than I cared to participate in. I wound up pressing it out with my finger. 

Anyway, I cheersed shells with Ronnie's sister Julie and her two friends Arielle and Anna who (I believe for at least two of them) were also first time oyster slurpers, and down the hatch it went.

It wasn't nearly as slimy as I expected. In fact (aside from touching it with my finger) you could barely detect the texture at all. You don't chew it or anything, you just swallow it whole. All you can really taste is the lemon and the horseradish. And it did have that briny, savory flavor that people love about shellfish. 

Would I recommend it to you? Looking at that picture I almost want to chicken out all over again. But if you have a gracious significant other who is willing to do all the dirty work for you like I did, I would say definitely go for it. 

I also worked hard on list item #11 (get a tan) and of course did a lot of beach reading, so look out for those posts soon!