Fall is here?

Tonight was a typical Fall night with the moon out and the clouds passing by with a wonderful cool breeze. Oddly enough, it is still August...







Stef and myself with a fire in the pit in the backyard enjoying the cool night. Stef in the foreground.


Stef stoking the fire. Marshmallow skewer to the bottom right.

A Moveable Feast

Since we (really Tom) have started this blog, I can count the number of times I have blogged on one hand. I don't think I have much to blog about--nor do I believe that most of my daily activities would present themselves to be blog-worthy.

Oddly enough, I felt compelled to blog this evening after finishing a first time Persian-Mediterranean meal. Having had a lot of time on my hands the previous week, being laid up at home, healing from the effects of having my last two wisdom teeth removed (which Tom so lovingly chronicled) I spent my days off from work resting in bed with my furry companions tortuously watching Food Network. The act itself was not out of the norm for me--but being unable to eat solid foods I could only satisfy the food cravings with Boost Nutritional Drinks, Pudding, Applesauce, Sorbets, and Sherbets--this just doesn't cut it when Rachel Ray is cooking pasta with Gorgonzola sauce. In any case, I found myself planning future "solid food" meals. I kept a running list in a notepad file--short term memory was suffering a bit from the pain medications they gave me and I was afraid I would forget.

Somehow my thoughts drifted to Persian food. It has been a long time since I have had a good Persian meal. We don't have Persian restaurants in the Toledo area; the closest we get is Lebanese which, although similar, uses different flavor profiles--it is just not the same. I really wanted a Chelokebob--Khoobideh, saffron infused basmati rice, yogurt sauce, and a grilled tomato. Knowing that we could not just hop in the car and go to a beryani like back home, I came to conclusion that I had to make it myself. My former boss, Fatemeh, had tried to tell me how to make the Persian classics, but I admit, I did not pay as close attention as I should have. I remember thinking to myself--it takes so long just to make rice, forget it! Growing up Japanese with a rice cooker, other than rice in box, I don't know how to make rice on the stove top!

Being older, and I like to think, wiser and more patient, I scoured the Internet for Persian recipes. I was surprised that I didn't come up with more hits from my search. I ended up finding recipes for Khoobideh and saffron infused basmati rice with potatoes. The yogurt sauce I improvised, basically making tzatziki like I would for the Chicken Souvlaki Pitas we make; and the tomatoes we grilled, I bought from our neighbor's front yard veggie stand. I was concerned getting the ground meat marinating--one, I had no idea what to look for, and two, it bore no resemblance to what I was used to eating. In the end it turned out well, different than what we have had in the restaurants and at friends' houses, but good nevertheless. The rice was more complicated that what I am accustomed to (but pretty much anything is going to be more difficult than adding rice, rinsing, adding water up to the appropriate mark, and pushing a button) as it needed to be pre-boiled and then steamed for 45 minutes. The aromas from the pot told me I was on the right track, and the end result was wonderful. The meat accented by the creamy cucumber yogurt and some grilled pita was awesome!

Basmati Rice with Potatoes

Kabob (not really shaped like kabobs) and Grilled Tomato

The Saffron--which cost as much as a 20 lb. bag of basmati rice

A side note: The picture below is of some green onions I have started growing in a jar on my kitchen windowsill. Next Food Network Star Melissa D'Arabian had given a tip that you can grow your own green onions from the ones you bought from the grocery store. I had to try it out for myself--it is true! I asked Tom to buy a bunch Wednesday for a salad I was making. I had them cut down pretty far; they were completely submerged in the jar. To be completely honest, I was a bit skeptical, but I found about a quarter inch of new growth by the next morning! Since then I have had continued growth, and as you can see, it is already sticking out of the jar.

Tomorrow I move on to Italy. We finished the last of our homemade Bolognese Sauce (courtesy of Anne Burrell) right before my surgery. This sauce takes 4 hours to cook and makes a ton, so we like to freeze it in smaller portions for future use. It goes great with frozen spinach mozzarella raviolis from Costco!

Wisdom teeth. Check.

Last two wisdom teeth, or as Stefanie might say at the moment "Wvisdrum teefph," are now removed. They were pretty badly impacted, but the oral surgeon said all went smoothly.

A photo for your entertainment:

Obligatory Animal Photos...

Ready to play fetch.

Rusty wins and brings it back.

Tala performs a sneak attack maneuver and licks my ear to distract me. I think she tasted my inner ear.

Relaxation time. Tala takes a break on the couch with the cat.

Fourth of July

Our lab got together and enjoyed a wonderful evening at the local Farm-team (Mudhens) ballpark. Highlights: We won the game, post-game fire-works were awesome, baseball buffet was very good, and I fumbled my funnel-cake onto the ground (Big dissapointment). Erin tried her best to downplay the tastiness of the funnelcake, as she devoured hers. In her defense she did offer Stef and myself some of it, but I'm pretty sure it was more a gesture of empathy.

At any rate it was a beautiful evening.

From Left to Right: Tom, Stef, Dr. James Willey (Advisor), Katie (with the big smile), Jon, Seth and Erin (lab manager).

Lab Party

The weather was nice and it was time for some food, drink and relaxation with my lab friends/family.

Tom and Stef:

Lindsey and Russ

Sophia and Lauren:

Katie being too cute.

New Laminate Flooring...

Costco had an amazing deal on laminate flooring this past weekend. Plank style, with beveled edges, already had padded backing, with click and unclick style connection, deep cherry red coloring, very warm looking. We bought 500 sqft for the entry way, kitchen and dining room. It was on the to do list, we(really me) decided to bump it up the list when we saw the deal. Below are the pictures.


Before:

Entry-way

Before: Stairs

Before: Living Room

Before: Kitchen from entryway view

Before: Dining Room from Living room view

Before: View of kitchen from Dining Room

During: Taking a break from laying down laminate in the kitchen - Talking with Mom while she's commuting home from work.

Current: view of kitchen from upper stairs

Current: View of Living room from upper stairs

Current: view of entryway, stairs and dining room from living room

Current: View of Dining room from living room

Current: view of Kitchen, entryway and stairs from Dining Room