Feelin' Human
So, wedding season is officially over (at least for us, at least for now.) The relief I feel is palpable. The final wedding of the season was certainly one of the most FUN and stress free we've done, possibly EVER. It was smallish (*only* 100 people) and in a great venue (The Schenley Park Ice Rink Meeting Room--I HIGHLY recommend it!) and for really great people, and their menu was awesome and they were going for a potluck feel, so we did everything in thrift store bowls and platters, and used our vintage table cloths. A friend of the couple grilled platters of meat to compliment the salad array and mac and cheese that we did. It was very chill, and we got out nice and early, and then I went straight into vacation mode. Enjoyed some East End Witte Bier and relaxed, and went to bed earlish.
Sunday was just lovely! We got up and had toast and coffee, and then headed to McKnight Road for Indian Buffet at Taj Mahal. I was most impressed with the saag and the manchurian cauliflower---not a traditional dish, but so yummy! Also, papadums on the buffet! And for dessert one of the choices was besan halva, perhaps my all time favorite Indian dessert. I grabbed a big bowlful and couldn't finish it of course, but oh boy was that good.
From there we stopped at Target. I was in need of some specific things, and some retail therapy. I got a couple pairs of earrings (since the move I have had a hard time finding any of my earrings, and with the new cute hairstyle I need to have something!) a couple of the amazing soft mossimo long sleeved tee shirts, a gigantic super soft flannel robe, some socks and tights, and some personal care items. Oh, and two new big bowls that ALMOST match my dishes---they're glossy black rather than matte black, but they're the same shape. Close as I'm going to get at this point it seems. None of it was really frivolous, but I still felt guilty at the total. I guess it's been so long since I've gone on a shopping spree in a new store as opposed to a thrift store I wasn't prepared. Anyway, it's all nice stuff, and I feel a little bit more prepared for winter, should she ever choose to arrive.
From there we returned to the city proper for the great Chest Freezer Acquisition. We made a desultory stop at the Sears Scratch and Dent but nothing there really turned me on and the sales people really turned me OFF. Just a little too pushy and yinzery. So we went to Home Depot and got a 7.2CUFt Magic Chef. It's nice. I can't wait to empty some of the stuff from the kitchen freezer into it, and then continue to fill it with supplies for the winter. The idea that we can have home preserved local vegetables for the whole winter is filling me with joy. I am highly emotional these days.
Rebby's friend Missy Charlotte came over to help move the thing into the basement ( I was not up for it in my delicate condition) and while they were working on it I worked on the brisket. There was a really delicious brisket at the wedding, and I wanted to make sure my brisket was at least that good. I checked a couple cookbooks and some online things, and then I ended up just doing my own thing with whatever I could find. I made a bed of onions and potatoes in a big roasting pan, and I made a marinade of elliot ness amber lager (great lakes! woo!), molasses, worcestershire, grainy brown mustard, garlic powder, a little splash of old colony sauce, and some black pepper. I bathed the brisket in it and then put it in the pan and dumped the marinade over it. Plopped it in the oven at 350 and tried to forget about it.
Unfortunately, you can't forget about a brisket cooking in all those good smelling things. So I poured another beer and settled in to watch St Elmo's Fire. Seriously.
That movie came out my freshman year of college and I went to see it at the local theater in Obieland with all of my new dorm friends. We were of course certain we would be those people....in fact, the first of the interfriend relationships had already started and there had already been some jealousies and intrigues. Watching the movie in hindsight I was so completely pissed off that the dudes are all such giant jackasses. The girls all behave irresponsibly too, but really the problems are all caused by the dudes just being incredibly selfish. I ended up feeling disgusted rather than nostalgic. Of course, the crucial scene when Jules has her breakdown and Billy makes the lighter blowtorch against the red walls with the blue curtains is still very effective. And I still teared up when Kevin and Leslie finally got together. But otherwise, I was pretty disappointed. Another touchstone of my youth de-mystified.
The brisket, however, did not disappoint. I think I cooked it just about perfectly, and I sliced it very thin and made some gravy out of the marinade. We had a little bowl of beef and potatoes and gravy before bed (probably not the best bedtime snack, but it was so yummy!) and we are all set for a delicious dinner with some steamed kale later tonight. Hoorah.
I'm on the swing shift today, which I really like. I'll just go in and bang out a whole bunch of stuff to get us ahead for the week. Then I'll go to the farmer's market and stock up for the new freezer! Life is good.
So, wedding season is officially over (at least for us, at least for now.) The relief I feel is palpable. The final wedding of the season was certainly one of the most FUN and stress free we've done, possibly EVER. It was smallish (*only* 100 people) and in a great venue (The Schenley Park Ice Rink Meeting Room--I HIGHLY recommend it!) and for really great people, and their menu was awesome and they were going for a potluck feel, so we did everything in thrift store bowls and platters, and used our vintage table cloths. A friend of the couple grilled platters of meat to compliment the salad array and mac and cheese that we did. It was very chill, and we got out nice and early, and then I went straight into vacation mode. Enjoyed some East End Witte Bier and relaxed, and went to bed earlish.
Sunday was just lovely! We got up and had toast and coffee, and then headed to McKnight Road for Indian Buffet at Taj Mahal. I was most impressed with the saag and the manchurian cauliflower---not a traditional dish, but so yummy! Also, papadums on the buffet! And for dessert one of the choices was besan halva, perhaps my all time favorite Indian dessert. I grabbed a big bowlful and couldn't finish it of course, but oh boy was that good.
From there we stopped at Target. I was in need of some specific things, and some retail therapy. I got a couple pairs of earrings (since the move I have had a hard time finding any of my earrings, and with the new cute hairstyle I need to have something!) a couple of the amazing soft mossimo long sleeved tee shirts, a gigantic super soft flannel robe, some socks and tights, and some personal care items. Oh, and two new big bowls that ALMOST match my dishes---they're glossy black rather than matte black, but they're the same shape. Close as I'm going to get at this point it seems. None of it was really frivolous, but I still felt guilty at the total. I guess it's been so long since I've gone on a shopping spree in a new store as opposed to a thrift store I wasn't prepared. Anyway, it's all nice stuff, and I feel a little bit more prepared for winter, should she ever choose to arrive.
From there we returned to the city proper for the great Chest Freezer Acquisition. We made a desultory stop at the Sears Scratch and Dent but nothing there really turned me on and the sales people really turned me OFF. Just a little too pushy and yinzery. So we went to Home Depot and got a 7.2CUFt Magic Chef. It's nice. I can't wait to empty some of the stuff from the kitchen freezer into it, and then continue to fill it with supplies for the winter. The idea that we can have home preserved local vegetables for the whole winter is filling me with joy. I am highly emotional these days.
Rebby's friend Missy Charlotte came over to help move the thing into the basement ( I was not up for it in my delicate condition) and while they were working on it I worked on the brisket. There was a really delicious brisket at the wedding, and I wanted to make sure my brisket was at least that good. I checked a couple cookbooks and some online things, and then I ended up just doing my own thing with whatever I could find. I made a bed of onions and potatoes in a big roasting pan, and I made a marinade of elliot ness amber lager (great lakes! woo!), molasses, worcestershire, grainy brown mustard, garlic powder, a little splash of old colony sauce, and some black pepper. I bathed the brisket in it and then put it in the pan and dumped the marinade over it. Plopped it in the oven at 350 and tried to forget about it.
Unfortunately, you can't forget about a brisket cooking in all those good smelling things. So I poured another beer and settled in to watch St Elmo's Fire. Seriously.
That movie came out my freshman year of college and I went to see it at the local theater in Obieland with all of my new dorm friends. We were of course certain we would be those people....in fact, the first of the interfriend relationships had already started and there had already been some jealousies and intrigues. Watching the movie in hindsight I was so completely pissed off that the dudes are all such giant jackasses. The girls all behave irresponsibly too, but really the problems are all caused by the dudes just being incredibly selfish. I ended up feeling disgusted rather than nostalgic. Of course, the crucial scene when Jules has her breakdown and Billy makes the lighter blowtorch against the red walls with the blue curtains is still very effective. And I still teared up when Kevin and Leslie finally got together. But otherwise, I was pretty disappointed. Another touchstone of my youth de-mystified.
The brisket, however, did not disappoint. I think I cooked it just about perfectly, and I sliced it very thin and made some gravy out of the marinade. We had a little bowl of beef and potatoes and gravy before bed (probably not the best bedtime snack, but it was so yummy!) and we are all set for a delicious dinner with some steamed kale later tonight. Hoorah.
I'm on the swing shift today, which I really like. I'll just go in and bang out a whole bunch of stuff to get us ahead for the week. Then I'll go to the farmer's market and stock up for the new freezer! Life is good.
posted by sheryl at 8:59 AM
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