Monthly Archives: December 2010

thank you, in-laws, for not taking any of our roast home…

for christmas dinner last night, we made a prime rib/roast beast, and it was pretty delicious. we also had way too much of it and could easily have fed another three families. 

today, we used that leftover beef to make an awesome roast beef hash. i think ours ended up looking much better than the picture published with the recipe, but here’s the recipe that was published in saveur magazine, issue #114. i don’t know why or how they say that the egg is optional because it’s really not.

1/4 cup beef drippings or canola oil
2 cups boiled and cooled yukon gold potatoes, cut into ¼” cubes
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cups cold roast beef, cut into ¼” cubes
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp. fresh thyme, finely chopped
1/8 tsp. cayenne
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp. chopped parsley

1. In a 12″ skillet, heat beef drippings or oil over medium-high heat. Add potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 8–10 minutes. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add beef, garlic, thyme, cayenne, and nutmeg; cook, stirring occasionally, until beef browns, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

2. Add heavy cream, stir to combine, and press hash down into the skillet with a metal spatula. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, turning hash in parts every 2 minutes, loosening any browned bits, until the cream has reduced and hash forms a crust, about 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve hot with fried or poached eggs, if you like.

SERVES 4

here it goes again…

christmas morning

this wednesday morning, my mom checks into the hospital to have surgery. nothing big, at least if you listen to the surgeon — just removing some vertebrae, fusing them together, shoving a rod in there, and putting everything back together. i suppose you want that confidence out of a surgeon, but i’ve seen LOST, i see what can happen during spinal surgery. to make myself feel better about it, i kind of joke about my mom become some sort of bumper car with a big metal rod sticking out of her back keeping her on the track. or maybe a shopping cart at a small supermarket that can’t leave the store. but really, i’m pretty upset about the whole thing.

four years ago, my dad checked into the hospital pretty much exactly this time of the year to have what should have been routine surgery. the day after christmas, they found a gigantic tumor on his bladder that was inoperable, and they had to remove his bladder. a little more than two months of passing from hospital to rehab center and back, he passed away in early march. it sucked. it still sucks. it makes me not really enjoy this time of year, and i’m much more of a fan of the time off from school than i am of christmas itself.

it was a terrible christmas. christmas morning was a rushed affair, ripping open some gifts with henry before rushing to the hospital to hang out there all day with my parents. but our car was having trouble, and there was some ludicrous situation where we needed to whack the starter with a swiffer mop handle that we pseudo-affectionately called the “whacking stick,” but then after starting the car we locked the car keys inside the running car. but we eventually got the car started and opened, presents opened, and i ended up eating a bowl of lucky charms at the hospital cafeteria. 

did i mention that my car (a different one) is having absurd troubles now, too?

this should be no big deal. in and out, they say. but i’ve got an absolute feeling of dread about the next couple of days, and i’m especially thankful that the surgical gods decided that it would be a good idea to schedule surgery so that our christmas would again be a rushed affair with a hospital trip later that day.

sigh. maybe next year…

#TEDxNYED — apply now!

Binary_apples

one of the more gratifying things i’ve been a part of in the past year was in helping to put on TEDxNYED this past march. it’s amazing to see that, even thought they’re starting to dwindle, discussions are still going on around the speakers we were able to bring together and the amazing talks they gave. it was so much fun that we decided to do it again.

we’re still finalizing our speaker lineup, looking for generous people to help us pay for it, and putting the finishing touches on the day, but we’re now accepting applications to attend. before you start thinking “i have to apply to attend this thing, and THEN have to pay a ticket fee on top of that?” it’s the reality of the situation. we’re very fortunate to have enough interest in what we’re doing that we couldn’t possibly fit everything that wants to come in our space (which, this year, is The New York Academy of Sciences). it also costs a lot of money to put on, and we need a ticket fee to help us defray costs. (we also hope that many will be able to get their schools and school districts to cover this amazing day of professional development. it’s a bargain for day-long pd filled with inspiring talks. and did i mention that we give you breakfast and lunch, too?)

so please fill out an application to attend. you won’t be disappointed, you’ll get to see the awe-inspiring views that NYAS’ location at 7 world trade center offers, and i promise you’ll learn lots of stuff, too.

(photo by SpecialKRB)

se habla espanol… sort of

seriously the most amazing piece of technology i’ve seen in, well, maybe forever. this has the potential to be an absolute game-changer and second language education, and maybe also something to help you out while on a winter vacation. 

holiday party inspiration

inspired by some of the music choices at our faculty holiday party yesterday, i’m posting songs that have been stuck in my head for a long time. both are (so much) better than the original and very fun. listening to them again, i’m inspired to record a couple covers over the break. lady gaga, i’m looking your way.