I’ve been on a pomegranate kick the past couple of weeks. I find pomegranate juice a little too strong (and a little too overpriced), but I love the seeds themselves. I guess it appeals to the part of me that still wants to play with my food.
Archive for the ‘Photographs’ Category
As Pictured Below: Pomegranate binge
Posted in As Pictured Below, Eats, Photographs, tagged food, fruit, juice, photograph, pomegranate, seeds on January 5, 2010| 2 Comments »
The final holiday project: cake balls
Posted in Christmas, Eats, Photographs, tagged Bakerella, cake balls, Christmas, food, gloves, holidays, iPhone, kitchen, party, photograph, red velvet cake, whistling on December 28, 2009| 2 Comments »
I don’t make pretty food. (I also don’t seem to be able to make pretty photographs of light-colored objects.) So why I zoned in on Bakerella’s Red Velvet Cake Balls several months ago is up for discussion.
Whatever the reason, I decided they were the perfect dessert for wherever I was going to spend Christmas. Red velvet cake, mixed with cream cheese frosting and coated in white chocolate, seemed to be the most festive food I could contribute.
I had seen plenty of attempted cake balls on last year’s holiday party circuit. Most were delicious, but they were also about the size of ping-pong balls, making them difficult to eat. Most also suffered from a common rookie mistake: The balls hadn’t been properly chilled before they were dipped in the chocolate mixture, and thus coverage was spotty. Picture big, unruly wads of cake with about 75 percent chocolate coverage.
From the moment I hauled out the mixer, I knew this project was going to turn into a big mess. My old, scratched-up countertop has lost any stain-guarding properties it may have ever had, so I had to be ever so careful not to drop any (OK, much) red batter. Luckily, I had food-safe disposable gloves in the cabinet, because I don’t think I could sell bright red palms as part of the charm on Christmas morning.
Part two of the mess was the actually coating of the cake balls with melted chocolate bark. Bakerella says to use a spoon to dip and roll each cake ball in the chocolate. This didn’t work out for me, and I was left with uneven coverage. A couple of comments on the post recommended using a toothpick for the dipping and rolling; this worked out much better, only it left a tiny hole in the top. A tiny hole that looked way worse after my futile attempts at re-dipping or filling. (I realize now that a little creative drizzling would have upped the wow factor substantially.) And if I didn’t remove the toothpick soon enough, it left a huge crack in the top, leading to a small pile of discards. Tasty, tasty discards.
The non-discards were also delicious. And I guess they looked good enough to eat, since I don’t have that many left.
I’m almost sad to see the holidays end, since now I don’t have much reason to turn the kitchen into my own experimental lab. My solace is the hope that the office Whistling Guy will take the Christmas songs out of his repertoire.
As Pictured Below: It’s on
Posted in As Pictured Below, Cats, Photographs, tagged cats, home, Hotmix, iPhone, photograph on December 22, 2009| 4 Comments »
Just another Monday night at the Haggerty compound: two 13-year-old cats (brothers) posturing for domination of a towel-filled basket. Shot with the iPhone and stylized using the Hotmix filter on Vihgo.
(No cats were harmed during the making of this photo. Even as the basket kingdom was taken by threat, an under-the-bed kingdom was being formed.)
Culinary pursuit ends in delicious victory
Posted in Christmas, Eats, Photographs, tagged appliances, childhood, Christmas, cookies, cooking, crystallized ginger, food, ginger, Gingeroos, hummus, kitchen, Las Vegas, molasses, Nashville, oven, OXO, photograph, recipes, Trader Joe's, vacation on December 14, 2009| 14 Comments »
I’ve been on a cookie odyssey for a couple of years in search of a proper substitute for Trader’s Joe’s Gingeroos, which I discovered while vacationing in Las Vegas. (And yes, I DO always visit grocery stores on vacation. You should too.)
I don’t think molasses was a big component of my childhood treats, because these cookies were richer, darker, more sultry than any I had ever tasted. Chunks of crystallized ginger closed the deal … these were my new go-to favorites, only it was not to be. Double tragedy: The nearest Trader Joe’s is two hours away in Nashville, and they don’t seem to stock Gingeroos.
Admittedly, by cookie odyssey, I mean that I found one nearly suitable recipe and tried it a couple of times before my oven joined the Great Appliance Rebellion of 2009, rendering all cookie-baking attempts futile at best, infuriating at worst.
Then, November. My search is renewed after installation of a new stove.
I had found this recipe last year, but never got to try it. Miracle of miracles, it appeared in a sponsored link atop my gmail last week. It was culinary fate.
Triple Ginger Cookies, from the recipe journal 101 Cookbooks, are a huge ordeal to make, but they’re worth every minute. They’re what I call “grown-up cookies.” Not everyone will like them – they give off a bit of heat – and they’re not the kind of cookie that you eat a half dozen of in one sitting with a big glass of milk. You relish one or two with a cup of coffee or other hot adult beverage that may or may not be spiked with Bailey’s.
Just to make things interesting, I also made my own crystallized ginger for the recipe. I remembered paying a premium for crystallized ginger last year (around $4 extra a pound at the Fresh Market), and this recipe uses A LOT. The clerk at my Asian grocery store said they hadn’t received a shipment of crystallized ginger in months, so my backup bulk supply option was off the table.
Crystallizing ginger was a pretty big ordeal, too, but it made the house smell DELICIOUS and it reinforced my assertion that I do too need that OXO mandoline that I’ve got my eye on.
I’m not going to claim they’re just like Gingeroos, but they’re close enough.
Next kitchen project: the perfect hummus recipe. Also maybe, just maybe, fixing that hole in the ceiling.
As Pictured Below: Sensational Santas
Posted in As Pictured Below, Christmas, Photographs, tagged childhood, china cabinet, Christmas, crystal, decorating, eggnog, grandmother, holidays, memories, mugs, retro, Santa, silver on December 11, 2009| 4 Comments »
For several years, my grandmother has been trying to send me home with items from her china cabinet. I think she’s always a little surprised when I pick out things like the tiny collapsible tin cup that belonged to my grandfather or a weathered aluminum cake carrier instead of fine crystal platters and silver pitchers.
For me, memorable beats fancy every time, which is how I ended up with these four Santa mugs. My grandmother would break them out once a year for eggnog, though I’m not sure how many family members actually drank from them, given their paltry size (they may hold 4 ounces).
They’re the coolest retro Christmas accessories I have, but most importantly, they store memories that the fanciest crystal glasses could never evoke. Best of all: no polishing required.
As Pictured Below: A Cat-Resistant Christmas
Posted in As Pictured Below, Cats, Christmas, Home, Photographs, tagged animals, cats, Christmas, decorating, iPhone, TiltShift Generator on December 8, 2009| 2 Comments »
This is the most complicated Christmas display that I’ve dared to put up since obtaining two rambunctious cats 13 years ago.
As Pictured Below: Winter’s Burden
Posted in As Pictured Below, Photographs, tagged cats, iPhone, iTunes, lake, Photographs, photography, water, winter on November 26, 2009| 1 Comment »
Inspired by fellow blogger SevenDead, I’ve been playing around with TiltShift Maker, an online application that manipulates images to look like model photos.
Inspired by actually being able to remember my iTunes password, I have added CatPaint to my iPhone’s photo arsenal. Happy Thanksgiving indeed.
Take a ride on the wild side
Posted in Photographs, Travel on November 17, 2009| 1 Comment »
Llamas are hilarious and they know it.
I have no idea how I lived in Huntsville for almost three years without visiting the Harmony Park Safari. Although I’m not much of a zoo person anymore, I can totally get on board with a drive-through safari.
Animals including deer, goats, llamas, miniature horses, a bison, a zebra, and a small variety of fancy-looking cattle will come right up to your vehicle door, expecting a handful of corn.
Note: Buy at least one bucket of corn for $5 at the entrance. Do you really want to be the one piker on the whole safari path who doesn’t feed the animals? They can smell cheap, you know.
The drive-through park is open from 10 a.m. until sunset March through November. It’s an awesome way to spend a fall or spring afternoon. Summer afternoons I cannot vouch for, since intense heat and pasture animals can be an odorous combination.
Entry fee is $6 a person. If you’ve got kids who are in any way scared of large animals, don’t bring them, because the animals are decidedly not scared of you and will hover menacingly next to your vehicle. Especially the emus.
Harmony Park is located at 431 Clouds Cove Road SE. Google Maps will get you there, but it’s a rural area and cell service is spotty, so you may not be able to follow the blinking blue dot the whole way.
He's tiny, but he's persistent.
African tortoises taking a nap in the reptile house.
Fancy livestock abound.
Technically you should keep your arms inside the vehicle. I married a rebel.
As Pictured Below: Where the Wild Things Really Are
Posted in As Pictured Below, Huntsville, Photographs, Travel, tagged animals, fun, Huntsville, iPhone, safari, ToyCamera, weekend, zebra on November 10, 2009| 2 Comments »
Harmony Park Safari in South Huntsville: If you live here and you’ve never been, GO. It’s a riot.
More pics TC.
The Tiles that Bind
Posted in Home, Photographs, tagged awkward, bathroom, beige, color, decor, decorating, design, dilemma, glass tile, home, homebuyers, house, paint, photograph, plumbing, redecorating, renovation, renovations, shower, tiles on October 21, 2009| 5 Comments »
I’ve toured a couple dozen brand new bathrooms over the past couple of weeks. The Huntsville/Madison County Builders Association’s Parade of Homes gives renovating rubberneckers carte blanche to take a look at the latest and greatest in home design and decor, without that awkward “We’re not really looking to buy a house” moment that invariably occurs during the average Sunday open house.
I currently have a deconstructed master bathroom awaiting further action, so I need inspiration. If only beige inspired me, I’d be in business.
The color: Every Bathroom in Town Beige. Nice tiles, and excellent installation, but so incredibly beige.
There seems to be an “offend no one” movement in the home decor business, with beige being the No. 1 non-offending element. I’ve never purchased a brand new house, so I’ve never had the opportunity to turn up my nose at walls that are just the wrong hue of olive, or kitchen cabinets that are too shiny. With any house over, say, 10 years old, you’re pretty sure you’re going to be redecorating anyway.
Which brings me to the tile dilemma.
I like color. Lots and lots of color. Tile is reasonably permanent – it’s not like paint, which can and should be changed on a whim. So I stand the chance of picking out something that will offend the delicate sensibilities of some beige-loving potential buyer down the road.
But in the end, how much of my decor should be dictated by some imaginary future buyer, especially when I have no idea how long I’ll be living in this house? Do I have to live with beige because it’ll make it easy to sell the house in three years? Five? Ten?
I’m looking at glass tiles now. They shimmer in the light, and the color spectrum is endless. I found two bathrooms on the tour that featured some fantastic examples of glass tile use.
Still working the beige tiles, but a glass-tile design in the middle really gives it some flair.
These blue circular tiles are more vibrant than they appear in this photograph.
There are plumbing and window-installation problems to be solved before I have to worry about the final tile decision, so I have plenty of time to stew over it. It’s going to be one heck of a shower when it’s all done, whatever the final color scheme turns out to be.
-
Join 67 other subscribers
Join the discussion
-
-
Categories
Archives
Entirely Adequate 