Monday, July 28, 2008

HAS WILL SMITH EATEN MY COOKIES?!

When I have a lot on my mind, I like to eat. It's such a good distraction and I've been lucky to come across some fantastic recipes. Last night, Lauren brought the best potato salad to a BBQ we attended. She said she got it off of the Well Fed blog. I have to say, her's looked more beautiful because she used small purple potatoes in the mix. We should have taken a photo.

Then there's the bourbon, ginger ale, lime cocktails I learned about on KCRW's Good Food. Martha Foose publishes enticing recipes in her new cookbook Screen Doors and Sweet Tea.

The other evening, while at a friend's dinner party, I had fun meeting Lulu who is a chef for some movie stars and I happened to get her ginger cookie recipe, which I baked for yesterday's BBQ. They were a huge hit. Allison kept yelling "Siobhan made these!!" Here are the details:

Lulu's Lucious Ginger Cookies

2 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 c. butter
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. molasses1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/4 c. finely chopped crystallized ginger
topping: 1/4 c. sugar, 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice, 1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. In medium bowl, mix flour and baking soda and set aside. In large bowl cream butter and sugars. Add egg, molasses, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Mix in the flour/baking soda mixture. Lastly, add the crystallized ginger. Roll into balls, then roll in the topping mixture. Place on parchment lined cookie sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes.

PS - Another food blog favorite of mine is Smitten Kitchen.
PSS - I made this pizza recipe a while ago and loved it. Alterations: I used pre-made pizza dough and baked (vs grilled) the pizza as indicated on the dough instructions and then added a bunch of arugula on top. Delicious.
PSSS - This series is pretty interesting: Gourmet's Four Farmers Project

Sunday, July 27, 2008

GETTING IT ALL OUT

A very abbreviated catch up session on my latest busy-ness:
Boys of Summer - nephews visit so cal!
Firestone Wedding - Jonathan sings in the ceremony, including (upon the couple's request) a finale of Living On A Prayer; lots of fun the whole weekend; and even saw gals in the restroom feeling up each other... comparing their "jobs" I guess.
Took the neon down at Mary Goldman Gallery on Monday... and working like crazy to close the place.
House sat for friends in the 'hood.
Thursday's open of Roni Horn at Gagosian... dinner after was delicious and entertaining. Went to back to the gallery to retrieve our cars only to find a 30 ft flat-bed truck blocking us. It was 11 or so by then and no one around, though I discovered the keys were in it so Jonathan jumped into move it... funny, strange and lucky.
Interviewed with Santa Fe's LewAllen Contemporary on Friday at the Sunset Tower Hotel... not sure if I could dig it enough.
Last night's discovery of bourbon, ginger ale and lime was delightful. Later, at the art-movie screenings down on Chung King Road was satisfying... a good turnout and good flicks.
Celebs: Besides Andrew & Ivana... let's see there was Ron Livingston at Mike (aka Dennis) Koch's art opening, then we got to know Anne Anka/de Zogheb at the Gagosian dinner party... she was lovely and very interesting. Hmm... is that it?!

Sunday, July 06, 2008

THE BIRDS AND THE CROAKING

mocking bird destroyed in the dead of night
look, she sees, a bird in the palm
a hawk drops its pestering passerine
the water ripples

the bullfrogs call
gravel moves underfoot
as sunset closes my eyes
and I breathe in
this could be home,
upended