laetitiae's Profile

In honor of this, I am going to have a Corpse Reviver #2 which is, I think, one of the very best cocktails ever concocted.
1 oz gin
1 oz contreau
1 oz lillet
1 oz lemon juice
small bit (~1/4 t) of pastis.

Shake, strain, drink, repeat.

Mmmmm.

A few:
Unnamed?: Sparkling wine, St. Germaine, lime juice.
Dark n' Stormy: Rum, ginger beer, lime juice.
A play on a Manhattan: rye whisky, Lillet, orange bitters.

I have one of these right in front of my sink. I do admit that I delay washing dishes until the heat kicks on and I can enjoy the pleasure of warm water on my hands and warm air on my feet.

I'm in love with sopa de ajo (garlic and bread soup), both when I have a cold and, often, just when I want some comfort food. Here's the recipe I use (and love): http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/05/sopa-de-ajo-garlic-soup-recipe.html

Also, those amazing Pao de Queijo (http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-po-de-queijo-brazilian-cheese-bread-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-176118). I've done it making them a bit smaller and finger-food sized. Everyone loved them.

I'm *loving* Deb's Smitten Kitchen cookbook. Both the recipes and the pictures are outstanding. I have yet to cook/bake something from it that hasn't been absolutely delicious. And I keep telling myself if she can create these recipes while in a tiny kitchen with a toddler then I can follow those recipes in my larger kitchen without children underfoot. A bit of a kick-in-the-pants inspiration that I often really need. :)

As someone who lives by myself, I like making mini-foods because I can store/freeze the extra portions much more easily. It also does force portion control pretty well. I am more likely to be moderate in choosing what amount to take out of the freezer to thaw than I am when eating dinner. Just one or two mini quiche/lasagna/pot pies and lots of salad rather than more of the heavy stuff and less of the salad.

Just to be clear - this is for pre-cooked pasta and *not* tips for freezing fresh homemade pasta, right? Because I would recommend not cooking fresh pasta at all but just freezing it after you've rolled and cut it.

Nevermind about the eggplant. I'd imagine that, like most eggplants, their flowers are purple, not yellow.

I, too, have had really good luck with my IKEA dishes. I haven't had any of my 365+ line dishes break, even having moved three times (once across the country). I have a couple of their super cheap 75 cent bowls that have hairline cracks. But I figure that for 75 cents, I can deal with a few hairline cracks. It hasn't really affected the integrity of the bowls, though.

Their glasses are another matter. I've had several break in my hands as I was cleaning them. And, as with others, this is something about their glasses and not about my handling of them, as I have other glasses from other sources that have lasted 10+ years and are still going strong. I've since replaced the glasses rather than risk more breakage.