steadyhand

birthday brownies

inspired

had a little "relapse" yesterday and found myself on the computer checking out erin's new weekly post among other things (blogs). totally fun and inspiring to watch. she's always full of surprises...

last week i went to see the showing of this documentary. very good and fun to watch.  the turn out was great and it was fun night with a panel of artists to speak right after the film.  if this film shows around your neck of the woods...go see it, go support it.  you won't be disappointed.

white rice

i can't believe one, how easy it was...and two, that i never tried this method for cooking white rice before.  throw in some uncooked white rice in a big pot, rinse well and drain.  throw rice back in and fill pot with a generous amount of water, boil until done (test like pasta) then drain in colander and pour back into pot (do not rinse after cooked) and partially cover to keep warm.  that's it.  it's like cooking pasta, except for the pre-rinse part.  (i know this is not a good method to keep the nutrients in, but i never really think i'm getting too much when i eat white rice anyway)
that said, i'm going to try this with brown rice next.

note:  i do not believe this would be a good way to make a stickier rice, though with my results the rice worked well for a base for the green curry topping i made yesterday and i think it would fair very well as a fried rice. 

a little update:  studio is organized and i'm working on brainstorming some ideas about what to put in my shop right now.  also, i've been inspired by one of my daily reads to do something fun with my two neices.  i'm over the top and super excited about this one.  i'll fill you in on it soon!

progress!

wow.  i've actually made some progress in getting some of the things i wanted to get done around here.  i guess my decision to limit my time on the computer really helped.  i've been working on getting the studio a little more organized and am hoping i can get back into creating again.

that said, i haven't completely shut myself off from my much needed blog-fix. 
how wonderful is this?  to have one created by her (and him) would really be tops. 

totally unrelated, but not too long ago my husband and i shared a meal with some friends and they made the most delicious asparagus.  the secret is in the sauce.  oyster sauce.  plain and simple.  it's a staple for chinese cooking, and i often prefer it over soy sauce for a lot of things.  i can't believe i never tried this!!  so quick and easy too!
go out and buy a bunch of asparagus (smaller ones taste better i think), wash and cut stalks into
1 1/2 to  2 inch pieces.  discard the lower (tougher) ends.  mince a clove or two of garlic.  heat a skillet, add a little olive oil, throw in the the garlic and asparagus together (to prevent the garlic from burning) and toss around for a couple of minutes.  at the end, drizzle about 2T of the oyster sauce in the pan with the asparagus, stir and toss it to coat for a bit, then turn off burner.  you're done!!  super easy side dish..especially since the asparagus cooks really well this way i think.  no blanching involved and they come out tender, yet not mushy and full of flavor.
hope you enjoy!!