Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Where I Spend My Days

Just got a whole lot nicer with the addition of my new desk! Pretty, isn't it?


Monday, January 29, 2007

Just When I Thought It Might Never Happen

It finally snowed!

And guess where the record accumulation in the city of 2.5" occurred? Right in our own Prospect Park! It may not sound like much, but 2 inches of fresh powder was enough to make my little snow bunny, Francine, the happiest prancemeister in the park.

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Tell All Your Friends

Self-employment has been good to me, so far, this second time around. I've been nice and busy, and happy to be in control of my own schedule and workload again. Projects have been rolling in with the new year and to make sure it stays that way I have been working on a wave of self-promotion materials including new business cards, promo mailers and an update to my website.

What are you waiting for? Check it out and pass it along!

Thursday, January 18, 2007

If I Were A Pimp

You can be a rappa too. Just try tha Baller fo` yoself – Try da textilizer!

***

Dur'n tha month of Shot Calla Brad n I were mackin' fo` a total of 16 days out of 31. We returned home on tha 2nd of January, n gangsta all tha food we consumed in restaurants while out of tizzown, I wanted nuttin' more than ta cook n eat at hizzle with my hoes on my side, and my strap on my back.


While tha rappa has yet ta be as brutal as one would expect friznom a New York City winta so far this season, it has been consistently grey, wet n now finally cold. So, as you can guess, tha food I've been crav'n has consisted mainly of soups, stews, hearty pastas n chilies . I started yo shit and i'll end yo' shit. This pleasantly spicy
Chickpea Soup wit Arugula was a goodie frizzom mah January issue of gourmet, as was this stewy beef recipe I found while chillin' online last week like a motha fucka. I had some success wit pulled pork this pizzle weekend using a tha BBQ sauce Brad learned last year , but tha biggest surprise – easy, delishizzous n sure ta be a motherfucka – was this vegetable chili I adapted from a recipe I found on epicizzle.

Do not fear, this is simple n sure ta pleaze. The bulgur is a pleasant n healthy addition, T-H-to-tha-izzat gives you tizzy T-H-to-tha-izzick "meaty" texture you crave in a good bowl of chili. We ate it wit cornbread coz Brad had mizzle some tha night before - but you don't need mizzle more than a salad fo` a bootylicious mizzy tizzle wizzill warm you frizzay tha inside fo' sheezy.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

It's Good To Be Home

During the month of December, Brad and I were traveling for a total of 16 days out of 31. We returned home on the 2nd of January, and after all the food we consumed in restaurants while out of town, I wanted nothing more than to cook and eat at home.

While the weather has yet to be as brutal as one would expect from a New York City winter so far this season, it has been consistently grey, wet and now finally cold. So, as you can guess, the food I've been craving has consisted mainly of soups, stews, hearty pastas and chilies. This pleasantly spicy
Chickpea Soup with Arugula was a goodie from my January issue of gourmet, as was this stewy beef recipe I found while scouring online last week. I had some success with pulled pork this past weekend using a the BBQ sauce Brad learned last year, but the biggest surprise – easy, delicious and sure to be a repeater – was this vegetable chili I adapted from a recipe I found on epicurious.com.

Do not fear, this is simple and sure to please. The bulgur is a pleasant and healthy addition, that gives you that thick "meaty" texture you crave in a good bowl of chili. We ate it with cornbread because Brad had made some the night before - but you don't need much more than a salad for a great meal that will warm you from the inside.

Spicy Vegetable Chili


2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled, thinly sliced
1 sweet potato, chopped
1 large poblano pepper, seeded, chopped
3 large jalapeño chilies, seeded, minced (about 4 1/2 tablespoons)
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (fire roasted if you can find 'em)
4 cups chicken broth
2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed, drained
2 15-ounce cans kidney beans, rinsed, drained
1/2 cup bulgur (cracked wheat)
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
salt and fresh ground pepper
1 cup freshly chopped cilantro

1. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, sweet potato, poblano and jalepeño and sauté until onion and carrots are almost tender, about 8 minutes.

2. Add garlic and spices and cook, stirring until spices are fragrant evenly coated on vegetable, about 2 minutes more.

3. Add tomatoes, broth, beans, bulgur, white wine vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, until bulgur is tender and mixture thickens, stirring often, about 20 minutes.

4. Stir in cilantro and ladle chili into bowls to serve.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

End Times

As we rung in 2007, Brad and I were stranded in Colorado for nearly 3 days thanks to snow storms that blanketed the deserts of New Mexico like I never could have imagined. Less than a week later, having returned to Brooklyn, we experienced a taste spring fever when temperatures topped 70˚ on January 6th. And now, only 4 days later, I looked out the window this morning and saw the first snow flurries of the season.

Apparently, the few minutes of snow flakiness I witnessed was the latest recorded first snow in New York City in 129 years.
What's going on?