YoJess's Profile

Bogart in grey or yellow!

I'm a big fan of Malbac after living in Buenos Aires.... I'd add to this list: Norton, which is ubiquitous in Argentina and carried in the U.S. at Trader Joe's for $7, and Guggenheim at about $13. Other cheap favorites from Argentina that are next to impossible to find: Marcus Malbec from Patagonia and Callia, a Malbec/Syrah blend.

I'm a huge fan of the no-knead bread. For me, it's all about the taste of the perfectly crispy crust and perfectly chewy inside. Knead, don't knead, whatever it takes to get bread that good.

AND here's a relatively little known fact: you can make no-knead bread in 4 hours! In my experience it tastes 95% as good as the 12 hour version. You simply add 1/4 tsp of vinegar and use hot water. Lahey's quick recipe is at the end of this video (and no where else, it seems!)

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2008/10/07/dining/cooking/1194822343127/no-knead-bread-revisited.html?scp=1&sq=no-knead%20revisited&st=cse

http://photopop.etsy.com/ has a new shop that focuses exclusively on photos of area codes to show off your hometown pride. They look great framed.

I also love http://cricketpress.etsy.com/ for beautiful art screen prints.

Finally, I loved the commissioned collage I got from http://selflesh.etsy.com/

Also, their restaurant is wonderful!

Wow. I always buy salted butter -- my mom taught me that it was the UNsalted butter that was weird and useless! I don't bake much, but I use salted butter for all of my cooking (and add the specified amount of salt on top of that!). Everything still tastes good. But I might have to try this unsalted stuff....

Regarding the "you live in a city so put up with me being annoying argument":

You may find your neighbors' actions annoying: their occasional bbq parties, their smoking outdoors, their loud children, their sex noises. But all of these things (within reason) fall within the realm of reasonable and acceptible biproducts of human living. And when you chose to live in a city--in close quarters with thousands of other humans--you make a choice to occasionally put up with things that annoy you, or go crazy. If you are experiencing the latter, please do everyone a favor and go somewhere more comfortable.

The Watergate looks like a third world monstrosity.
-DC resident.

I just bought a 4 set of Ikea Jeff folding chairs in white. For $10 a pop they are unoffensive and useful!

During the warmer months, we do a LOT of grilling. This pasta salad was my favorite as a kid, and with a few tweaks, I've made it my own. It's known in my circles as "THE pasta salad." I'm hesitant to let out my secret, but joy should be spread. Here it is:

12 oz Rotini/penne (I like the tri-color stuff) cooked, drained, cooled
1 pint cherry/grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 small red/yellow bell pepper, diced
1 bunch Green Onion, chopped
1/2 box frozen peas, defrosted
1 can whole kernel corn, drained (fresh peas and corn even better!)
8 oz Feta Cheese, chunked
any other veggies you want to throw in there

Dressing:
~1/2 Cup Olive Oil
~1/2 cup Seasoned Rice Vinegar
2-3 tbs sugar
1-2 cloves garlic (optional)
some dijon mustard (optional)
Salt and Pepper, lots

Refrigerate at least 1/2 hour. Even better the next day.