Lisa is a 30mumble-year-old technical author, mum, avid cook, extremely amateur veg grower, novice knitter, and closeted graphic designer, who enjoys referring to herself in the third person. [more...]

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27 August 2004

rawk on


Oh yes oh yes, it's a long weekend here! It'll rain, hail, flood, and a plague of something will descend upon us and ruin any chances for a BBQ, but who cares? I don't have to work on Monday! Oh happy day.

It's Ed and Martine's monkey time, and this month's theme is:
"Something Weird: The Musical! In other words, tell us something weird about yourself that involves music."

The first thing that came to mind is my odd, but incredibly useless ability to think of obscure songs and then hear them on the radio or television. For example, for no reason, the song "Photograph" by Flock of Seagulls might suddenly pop into my head. This isn't something that would get played on the radio station I listen to, nor would it be a song I've heard recently elsewhere. Within the same day (usually within an hour or so), that song will pop up in an ad, article, or someone will mention it to me. Now, this doesn't work for any type of music. For some strange reason, I've had old commercial jingles running through my head ("My bologna has a first name...", and "Honeycomb's big - yeah yeah yeah! It's not small - no no no!") but none of these jingles have cropped up anywhere else in the world outside of my own head. Sadly, I can only do this with songs and not winning lottery numbers.

Have a lovely long weekend, everyone. For you North Americans, have a lovely long weekend in a week.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

26 August 2004

so what language do i speak?


Canadians, of course, spend half their time explaining they're not from the United States, and much of the rest being polite, spelling words with a "z" instead of an "s" and purchasing two-fours - or cases - of beer. [source]


Actually, I've always spelled words with an s, but that's not really the point. The point of this article is this:
Do they speak English in Australia?
"Well of course they do - like millions of other members of the big happy Commonwealth family. But new rules asking natives of those countries to prove they can speak English before getting UK citizenship has left some 'colonials' feeling a little insulted - and that's the same in any accent."


I'd laugh, but I am not yet a UK citizen and will have to actually prove that I can speak English - even though I have a work permit for a technical writing job. In English, thank you. Now before you Americans start giggling and making fun of the way we pronounce our "ou" words, this applies to you too. Anyone applying for UK citizenship will have to prove they can speak English.

Good thing I know how to make Yorkshire puddings, have all the Blackadder episodes on DVD, can sing the national anthem, and can name all of the winners of Big Brother UK. You never know what they're going to ask on that citizenship test. Cor blimey, guv'nor.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

breathe. relax. breathe.


[This is a post about a wedding-related incident, but I felt the need to post it here instead of the wedding blog. So sue me.]

I met up with the string quartet lady today to go over some details and she wanted to check out the hotel facilities for various things. One of the things she needed to check was to time my entrance from the doors where I enter to the front of the terrace where the registrar (and my husband to be, if he doesn't change his mind) will be. We're getting married in the terrace, which is a restaurant open to the public during lunch and dinner hours. It was 1pm, and I had to casually stroll through a terrace full of diners - not once, but twice. Apparently I didn't do the rehearsal walk quite right and the quartet lady asked me to do it again. As the restaurant staff looked at me with great amusement, I said "I am rehearsing for my wedding. I'm not going insane. Honest." and kept my gaze fixed on the floor as I walked by the tables verrrryy sloowwwwwly, pausing twice (as per the quartet lady's request). I felt like such an enormous dork. A dorky pregnant stressed out waddly dork.

I am now at the point where I don't want to meet with anyone, make appointments, make phone calls, or make any more decisions related to this wedding. I really don't give a flying spork how many roses I need for each centrepiece, where the photographer is going to take our pictures between the ceremony and lunch, or whether or not we can figure out a song for our first dance. There are still so many little stupid details left to sort out, and no matter how simple you think you're keeping things, there is always something left to do. All I really want to do is marry my lovely, very patient and understanding fiance, have a great lunch, and disco the night away with my family and friends. Pointe finale.

I'm sure I'll look back on all of this one day and laugh. (Hysterically, from a nicely padded room.) In the meantime, I will be hiding under my desk eating chocolate peanut butter squares.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

25 August 2004

it's the most wonderful time of the year


What joy, what fun! It's holiday planning time! I love browsing through sites and books before we go on holiday. I got a wonderfully detailed email from a workmate at our Ft. Lauderdale office about the Russian River region we want to visit in California, which has helped enormously. I also got some valuable information and tips from the lovely Martine of Montreal, which has helped us decide where we'd like to eat and stay for part of the journey.

It's funny how my priorities have changed; now my main source of excitement comes from picking out places to eat, shop, and visiting the Charles M. Schulz museum. Why does a 35 year old woman want to visit the Snoopy museum? It's a childhood favourite - promise I won't turn into one of those Mums who wears stretchy leggings and oversized Micky Mouse sweatshirts. Every night before bed, my Dad used to read to me from his old Peanuts comic books. When I got a bit older, I read them all myself, making my way through volumes and volumes of old, yellowing paperback books. It's not Christmas without "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (Paul very kindly bought me a copy on DVD as they will never show it on television here during the holidays), and happiness really is a warm puppy, it's true. Fans of "Calvin and Hobbes" recognise echoes of Peanuts in Watterson's strip (which he acknowledges). It ran for 50 years, becoming a fond childhood memory for me as well as my Dad. And well you know, it's about a dog, so what's not to like? ("Marmaduke" excepted.)

So along with the Snoopy museum, I've got several outlet mall web sites bookmarked (just for the San Diego/La Jolla portion of the trip, you see) and have downloaded menus from some very yummy looking places in Sonoma and Napa Valley. We've planned a day or two in San Francisco, a drive down to Monterey and a ferry ride over to Sausalito, a tour of the Napa Valley again to restock, scenic drives and walks around the coast, a visit to the Redwoods State Reserve, and a trip to Bodega Bay (where Hitchcock filmed "The Birds"). I think we're all set for a fabulous honeymoon.

Ready to go. Now.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

24 August 2004

listy things


Spotted at and stolen from J Dave's blog.

Last Cigarette: March 30, 2000
Last Alcoholic Drink: August 4, and don't look at me like that - it was one sip of three different glasses of wine to pick out bottles for the wedding. Before that, I think the last drink I had was in the beginning of June.
Last Car Ride: About 15 minutes ago
Last Kiss: About 30 minutes ago
Last Good Cry: Are you kidding me? I cry over everything now, sad or not.
Last Library Book checked out: Must have been something for a course at Concordia in the 90s.
Last movie Seen in Theatres: "Bourne Supremacy"
Last Book Read: _The Rough Guide to Pregnancy_
Last Movie Rented: Ummm can't remember the last time we rented anything.
Last Cuss Word Uttered: I don't think I've actually said anything rude today. I must do something about that.
Last Beverage Drank: A fizzy fruity drink of some sort
Last Food Consumed: Veggie hot dogs
Last Crush: Paul, Jasper, and Pip, in that order.
Last Phone Call: Old Bridge Hotel to confirm a booking with the wedding lady
Last TV Show Watched: "Location, Location, Location" rerun/Olympics during lunch
Last Time Showered: This morning
Last Shoes Worn: My Reebok mules
Last CD Played: An assorted CD of various MP3s in the car
Last Item Bought: Lots of food from Tesco
Last Download: Not a clue
Last Annoyance: That guy who was driving 10mph in front of me for about 3 miles today
Last Disappointment: Ummm I dunno. Running out of corn last night?
Last Soda Drank: Don't drink "soda"
Last Thing Written: This blog entry. Duh.
Last Sleep: That would have been last night. Except for the hour and a half stroppy miss across the road kept me awake yakking to her boyfriend outside of her house really loudly.
Last Weird Encounter: I work in IT. I have weird encounters almost hourly.
Last Ice Cream Eaten: Haagen Dazs vanilla
Last Time Amused: I am amused all the time
Last Time Hugged: This morning
Last Time Scolded: No one dares to scold a pregnant woman. I mean, come on.
Last Time Resentful: I am never resentful.
Last Chair Sat In: The one at my desk that I've got my arse parked on right now.
Last Underwear Worn: Something black and big enough to fit me.
Last Bra Worn: Something black and big enough to fit me.
Last Shirt Worn: Something black and...you get the idea.
Last Webpage Visited: blogger.com to post this entry.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

what's next, mud wrestling?


Now don't get me wrong, I understand that volleyball is a legitimate sport and simply moving it to another venue (say, a beach) doesn't make it any less legitimate, but do we really need bikini-clad "cheerleaders" and snippits of music between points - and a minimum clothing restriction for the female competitors? Maybe I wouldn't be as bothered by this if it was showing on some sports channel but I'm surprised to see it at the Olympics. The music is bad enough (really, I was hoping the last time I would ever hear that "Hands Up" song was in Club Med ads in the early 90s), but the intermittent bikini dancing is cringeworthy. For a sporting event that prides itself on being the epitome of athletics, for which participants train for four years, it seems a bit odd to have one sport that features buttcheeks and bad wedding music.

Besides, it makes me feel fat.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

23 August 2004

poor poor pitiful me


I'm at home with a cold today, sniffling and snorfling like that kid at the back of the classroom who always had a runny nose and got picked last for sports teams. Not like that was me as a kid - I only had a runny nose during allergy season and I usually got picked second or third last. Jasper and I have been watching the Olympics bundled up under a blanket and sipping tea. It's been very confusing for him because I think he's not sure who to root for: Canada or Great Britain. At least I assume it's been confusing for him and that's why he couldn't bear to watch the rowing on Saturday morning. He spent the morning despondently chewing on his toys and sighing wistfully. He seems to interpret any cheering for an invitation to please jump on me and place all 36kg. of your body weight on any part of my anatomy that might really hurt when you do that. Needless to say, my cheering tends to go something like "Yaaaay! No no no, down! DOWN!!!"

The wedding blog has been updated; probably for the last time before The Big Day.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

20 August 2004

i am a bad mutha


So I was working from home this afternoon, typing away in my office. I half heard the sound of the back door being thumped, but assumed it was Jasper leaning up against it in the kitchen. As he does. About an hour later, I heard a small whimpery squeak and realised that I hadn't seen my dog in a very long time. I called him, no answer, so I headed downstairs. Jumping up and down outside the back door was my poor, neglected doggy. Apparently he wandered out back at some point, but the door blew shut on him. Luckily, I did manage to notice his absence before the massive thunder and lightening storm. I am a bad mother. In a non-Shaft kind of way.

Speaking of motherly things, a belly picture has been posted to the baby blog. No actual bare bellies were used in the filming of this entry - don't panic.

Have a loverly weekend, everyone.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

19 August 2004

oh, be-have


The lovely and talented Caroline at work made this origami beaver today:



I don't know why people giggle when they hear about beavers. They are cuddly, hard working, noble animals. I am proud to have a beaver on top of my monitor at work. I smile at the sight of a beaver on a shiny new Canadian penny.

Stop giggling!!

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

17 August 2004

shaking a virtual fist at the world


So I made banana bread on the weekend and I brought some into work yesterday. And it was good. Today, I slathered some Nutella on a slice of banana bread with the intention of bringing it into work as an afternoon snack. Where is it right now? Sitting in my fridge at home. Fiddlefaddle, I say.

By the way, Nutella counts as a nutritious food (look, the words "Nutella" and "nutritious" even share many of the same letters) as it contains both dairy and legumes. Combined with the fruit and fibre in the banana bread, it's extremely good for you.

*cough*

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

16 August 2004

kibbles n' bits


We went to see the film "Bourne Supremacy" yesterday, which wasn't too shabby at all. Not having read the book, I can't complain about any inaccuracies or missing plotlines. It was good fun for a Sunday afternoon - but I must protest about some of the camera work. Chase/fight scenes shot entirely by handheld camera gets really irritating after three minutes, and may induce nausea in children and the elderly.

In the "It Still Won't Make the Food Taste Better" department, here's a story about the new look for the Little Chef. It makes as much sense as getting rid of the Pillsbury Doughboy's jolly tummy, but who said that marketing is ever based on logic. According to Little Chef's chief executive (Big Chef?), "We have had a lot of customer feedback about the Little Chef's tummy. A lot of people have also written in to say they assumed it was a small child carrying hot food." A lot of people have way, way too much time on their hands, and are likely incarcerated.

And finally, I must admit that I've got Olympic fever. It's not just pregnancy hormones, I really am hooked on the Olympics. Spot the sad Canadian: the USA team marched in during the opening ceremony and I shouted "Hey! They're wearing Roots gear!!". I did this two more times when the British and Canadian teams appeared (after being with me for over two years, Paul can also spots Roots athletic wear from a mile away). In every event containing a Canadian, I cheer like a lunatic. When we come in something like 8th out of 9, I like to chant "We're not the worst! We're not the worst!"

Okay, maybe it is the pregnancy hormones.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

14 August 2004

aw, you guys


Thank you so much for all of your congratulatory messages, comments, and good wishes in person. It's really nice to finally be "out of the closet" about the baby, and has stopped me worrying if everyone is thinking that I'm just getting fat. (And don't you try to tell me that I shouldn't be showing yet. It is so NOT extra chocolate and ice cream. Is not. Shaddup.) I am eternally grateful for all the fantastic women around me who are Mums and Mums to be - I will never be short of friends who can appreciate stories about sore boobs and who will get emotional about our scan pictures. So, thanks. Truly.

Blog from a bride has been updated, for the curious or very bored. Gosh, this place is getting really girly lately. I must try to blog about beer, boobs (not sore pregnant ones), and curry more often.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

13 August 2004

told you so


A man and a woman had a little baby,
Yes, they did.
They had three in the family,
And that's a magic number.



Baby arriving Feb. 23, 2005 (or thereabouts). Blog from a baby now available in the links on the left. Have a splendid weekend. :) xx

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

12 August 2004

oooooh aaaahhhh


And just to make sure that you'll come back tomorrow to read my blog (I'm desperate for any attention, really), I would like to inform you that tomorrow's entry will contain something exciting, shocking, and downright scintillating. Or not, if you're not into that sort of thing.

It won't involve food, my work (although it does involve a workmate), trashy television, wine, Heat magazine, dogs, weddings, or DIY. It may involve pictures. Whee!

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

i like nature, but get it the hell out of our house


This morning we discovered a very large spider dangling from our living room ceiling, a jumpy insecty thing that looked like a bright green leaf sitting on Jasper's tail, and a wasp tried to kill me (or maybe it was just flying around the house, I couldn't tell). Paul's been swatting at mosquitoes in the evenings, and that plague of hoverflies is still taking up residence in our kitchen and dining room windows. I keep spotting spiders the size of my head (roughly) crawling around the ceiling. At least the ants stayed outside this year. I like the creatures that live in our garden like the dragonflies that swoop down collecting mosquitoes, and the frogs, tadpoles, and goldfish in our pond. Even the fat ginger cat from next door can be quite entertaining when he sits perfectly still on our fence whenever Jasper notices him. I'm just not keen on our house turning into an insectarium.

Perhaps we need to invest in some carnivorous plants.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

11 August 2004

spaced out


Our new bed is fantastic. It's so roomy and comfortable, and I woke up in the morning feeling slightly surprised that there was another person next to me. Oh yes, you sleep here too - hello! I'll meet you in the middle. Bring tea.

Cheeky little doggy Jasper decided to leap up on to the new bed this morning (we wondered if it was too high compared to our old bed - mystery solved). Although there is plenty of room for Jasper and all of his fully grown 6 brothers and sisters, it could really do without the dog hair.

Not much else to say, really. I'll leave you with this culinary thought: if you want to make a creamy pasta sauce without all the fat and calories of cream (mmmmmm cream), use light soft cheese/cream cheese instead. I've been doing this for ages, but some Italian guy ripped off my idea and demonstrated it on a cooking show yesterday. Bah. Egg yolks also work well to thicken sauces, like for macaroni and cheese (add grated cheese, a bit of milk, and an egg yolk to drained macaroni and heat through). Thank you, have a splendid day.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

10 August 2004

super king size me


Our super king-sized bed arrived today - it's 6 feet wide and 6 1/2 feet long. Oh yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes. No more elbows and knees in the ribs! No more falling off of the bed because your partner has rolled over onto your side! No more being woken up when your partner gets up to pee five times a night! Paul will be so happy. Me, I sleep through anything anyway, but it's still going to be very nice to have a new comfy mattress.

Can't wait to go to bed tonight. Oh get your mind out of the gutter, you people.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

09 August 2004

trio


I have three things to blog about today. That's right - three! And on a Monday, even!

blame canada
Roots has designed the British Olympic team's gear, and Canada's too, I would imagine. You may be familiar with Roots if you have Canadian friends and/or family members, as you will often receive items of clothing with "Roots Canada" stamped all over it as gifts. I read an article in the Daily Mail, expressing outrage at the hideously designed athletic gear made by some Foreign Company when there are perfectly good British designers wandering about with no work, for goodness sake. Meanwhile, they failed to realise that Roots designed the gear for the British Commonwealth Games teams a few years ago, so they're a tad late with their complaint. Silly rabbits.

don't judge a restaurant by its beaded curtains
I came across an ad in our local paper for an Italian restaurant, and thought we should give it a go. Unfortunately, all I could remember was that it started with M and it may or may not have been in St Ives (one of our neighbouring villages). I looked through the yellow pages and there was indeed an Italian restaurant in St Ives starting with an M, so we booked a table for Saturday night. As we approached the restaurant, I could tell that it wasn't the one I saw in the ad. The picture in the ad showed a sleek, modern, trendy bistro, and this place had beaded curtains at the front door. Two different kinds of floral wallpaper adorned the walls and ceiling, and it was furnished with dark wooden tables and chairs only seen in 80s kitchens. My heart sank and I apologised in advance to our friends, explaining that this was not the restaurant I saw in the paper. Things started looking up when we realised that everyone serving was Italian and we leafed through the extensive (and authentic looking) menu. We were served by a friendly, but slightly insane man and were waited upon by several others throughout the meal. The food was simply brilliant. I had a perfectly cooked spaghetti alla arrabiatta (spaghetti with a spicy tomato sauce), and Paul had a filet steak in gorgonzola sauce that was beautifully grilled. I haven't enjoyed pasta this good since Rome. We will definitely return, although I'm still curious about that other place I saw in the ad.

wasps! UNGH! what are they good for? absolutely nothing
Not only are we plagued by swarms of hoverflies, apparently there is an increase in the wasp population this year as well. According to the papers, this is due to the decrease in pesticides used recently and the warm winter and spring weather. Now I'm all for mother nature's creatures being able to defend themselves, but wasps will sting you for looking at them funny. I am convinced that they perch themselves on our fence and wait for me to bring food or beverages outside of the house, then swoop towards us like kamikaze pilots with low blood sugar levels. There were no wasps in the area when we were sitting in the garden reading the paper, but as soon as I brought out a glass of orange juice, twenty of them buzzed straight towards my glass. You can't tell me that they can sense food and drink and be able to fly over to our table that quickly from afar. If you can light citronella candles to deter mosquitoes, what can you do to deter wasps? Please enlighten me.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

06 August 2004

all the news you need to know


Dog and bride blogs have been updated - visit via the links on the left. Or not. Totally up to you, really.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

wipe that smile off of your face


For all you British people who sent me umpteen articles about Canada's ban on passport grins, all I have to say is:
HAH!
You can look miserable too, just like your Commonwealth cousins! Mind you, at least you're still allowed a demure, closed-mouth smile. I look like I'm ready to beat the crap out of someone in my photo, which is really not the look you're going for when trying to convince passport control that you're not a deranged lunatic.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

05 August 2004

forget your troubles, c'mon get happy


I am going to share an important life lesson I have learned in the 35+ years I've been on this planet. It's a simple truth, and yet it seems to elude many people.

The fact is, sometimes people aren't going to like you. These people might be family members, friends, flat or housemates, or work colleagues. They might not like you for legitimate reasons (e.g. you flushed their cat down the toilet and never did apologise properly) or for nonsensical reasons (e.g. you wear far too much Polo cologne), but the truth is that you're not always going to be everyone's cup of tea. Following me so far? Excellent.

Although it's not very nice to discover that you're not on everyone's top ten list of people they enjoy spending large amounts of time with, it's not the end of the world. Far from it. It's how you deal with it that makes you come out looking and smelling like a daisy. Regarding the people who dislike you for no good reason, just let it go. These people have what we call "issues" or "Mylifesuckssoimtakingitoutonyou-itis", and they are not worth your precious time nor your energy. If people don't like you for a legitimate reason, take a close look at that reason and try to be objective about it. Was flushing the cat without saying anything really the best way to deal with the situation? Or could you have conducted a simple, honest chat with the kitty's owner explaining what happened? Maybe you had a good reason for flushing Mr. Mittens; it could have been an accident, perhaps. Addressing the issue directly not only shows your maturity, it demonstrates your ability to take responsibility for your actions and shows you are willing to make an effort to amend things. Slamming the lid down quickly, spraying an Airwick, and quietly closing the bathroom door does not. Nor does it help if you subsequently make out like Mr. Mittens had been bullying you for months and you had to flush in self defense. Even worse if you get someone else to defend you on your behalf.

With me still? Sorry, I truly don't dislike cats; it was the first analogy that came to mind. I do apologise.

So here's what I have learned: when you are dealing with people you have to see almost every day of your waking life, you learn to get on with things. If there is a problem, talk to the person about it. Most people are reasonable and don't expect much anyway. It takes mere seconds to show others that you are being productive and to acknowledge an issue someone may have. People like that. It also takes far more time to ignore people or to raise a stink about a situation. People don't like that. To summarise: being open and communicative is good. Being mean and petty is bad.

Tomorrow's lesson - how to make a joke without offending anyone. (This will be extremely brief.)

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

04 August 2004

just for laughs


Whilst flipping through the paper this weekend, I noticed that Billy Connolly is doing a tour this Autumn. I have been dying to see him live since we watched all the "World Tour" series, which is probably some of the funniest stuff I've ever seen. Prior to this, I always thought of Billy Connolly as that Scottish guy who swore a lot in the "Secret Policeman's Ball" film and took over for Johnny Fever in that godawful sitcom "Head of the Class". He is, put quite simply, brilliant. Although we could only manage to get seats up in the stalls, it'll be great to see him perform.

Now if only Kate Bush would go on tour...

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

03 August 2004

a plague of insects and nigella's sin


So first of all, what is up with all these hoverflies? I know that they don't sting or bite and they eat aphids, which is all well and good, but do we need a kajillion of them in our back garden? They make me nervous because they look a bit like wasps (what with all that stripey yellow and black happening), and I hate wasps. Why do wasps exist? They don't produce honey or spread pollen, and they will sting you for no good reason - repeatedly, without dropping dead. They are angry little buggers and they are only after your beer and Coke. Anyway, about these hoverflies. They keep coming into the house, our dog keeps trying to eat them, and they annoy us when we eat outdoors. I've never noticed so many of them before; what is the reason for this year's infestation?

[Update: An explanation regarding The Swarm!]

On a totally unrelated subject, I was watching "Nigella Bites" this morning and she was making something resembling a risotto. It was all going merrily along; she fried some onions and garlic, added the rice, ladlefuls of stock, and so on. Then, at the very end, she dumped in an egg yolk mixed with a 1/2 pint of cream and parmesan. It turned into a very yellow, runny, savoury rice pudding. It wasn't pretty. To me, the secret to a great risotto is adding as few extra ingredients as possible. Mine usually involves the obligatory onion and garlic sauteed in olive oil, arborio rice, white wine, stock, seasoning, and another main flavour or two. I tend to favour porcini mushrooms and basil, with a healthy handful of parmesan thrown in at the end. It's a bit like pasta, I think people tend to add so much sauce that it goes completely overboard. One of my favourite pasta dishes is so simple: sautee garlic in some olive oil, add a chilli or two, a splash of white wine, seasoning, chopped fresh tomatoes (peeled and deseeded), and fresh basil. I also add some seafood (grilled prawns and scallops are lovely) and a squeeze of lemon. Chuck in some spaghetti or linguine and grate some parmesan on top. Fantastico.

Damn. Hungry now. I'd venture out for some food, but the hoverflies will get me.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

02 August 2004

bless me


Apologies to my workmates who sit close to me. My allergies have gone cuckoo caca today and I can't stop sneezing, sniffling, and blowing my nose. What's worse, the only tissues I have are adorned with a teddy bear, which are a) far too small and b) really inappropriate for a 35 year old broad.

*snurrrf*

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --

one bbq, hold the ribs


Tim the Butcher did not have any ribs (in his shop, that is. I'm sure Tim himself had ribs, otherwise he probably wouldn't be standing upright. Or breathing.), so we went with chicken instead. Oh. My. God. It was good. Really, really good. I had to alter the recipe somewhat (mostly because we don't tend to have five varieties of chilli peppers in English supermarkets), and reduce the cooking time. Next time, I will make the sauce in advance. Here's the altered recipe I used:

New Orleans Style BBQ Beer Chicken

Spice Rub Mix:
2 tablespoons kosher salt (I used sea salt)
1 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon toasted and ground cumin
1 tablespoon toasted and ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated lime zest

Chicken:
6 chicken breasts (with skin and on the bone)
1/2 pint chicken stock
2 cans beer (any lager will do)
2 bay leaves

Sauce:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 jalapeno chilies, chopped
1 medium onion, roughly cut
4 cloves minced garlic
2 carrots, roughly chopped
tabasco sauce to taste (we bought some chipotle tabasco sauce last time we were in the States and used this - mmmmmmmmmmmmm)
2 tins chopped tomatoes
3/4 cups molasses (if you're in the UK, use about 1/2 cup dark muscavado sugar instead)
1/2 cup honey
1 orange, peeled with pith removed and chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup lime juice


Spice Rub Mix: Mix together all ingredients.
Chicken: Preheat gas grill on low for 1/2 hour. If using charcoal, let the coals burn to embers, also about 1/2 hour after lighting.

Season the chicken with a 1/2 of the spice rub mix. In a large roasting pan, add chicken stock, beer, and the bay leaves. Lower the chicken into the liquid. Bring up to a simmer and poach for 15 minutes.

Take the chicken out of the liquid and season with the other 1/2 of the spice rub on both sides. Bring the poaching liquid up to a boil over low heat to reduce.

Add the olive oil to a large, preheated saute pan. Add the chillis and onions, and saute for 5 or 6 minutes, until carmelized. Add the garlic and carrots, and saute another 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and let it simmer 20 minutes. Add the molasses/muscavado sugar, honey, and tabasco. Add the orange, then salt and pepper. When the initial braising liquid has reduced by half, add this to the sauce mixture. Let everything simmer for 20 minutes, or pop in a preheated 350 degrees F oven for 20 minutes.

Blend sauce mixture in a blender or food processor until smooth. Stir in red wine vinegar and lime juice. Strain through a fine sieve if you want the sauce to have a very smooth texture.

The coals should be at the ember stage. Gas grills stay on low. Place chicken on the grill and grill for a couple of minutes on each side. Brush the sauce on the chicken for the last few minutes of grilling.

It was so, so good and we will definitely try this on ribs one day. I made this one relatively tame in terms of chilli heat (Paul's Dad isn't a fan of spicy food), so quite a bit more can be added. By the way, don't get in a snit because I use cup measurements - you UK people can still follow the recipe. I got my measuring cup (with American cup measurements) at Tesco, and they also carry them at Lakeland. You can always use a standard tea cup as a guide (not a mug) as it has roughly the same volume as one US measuring cup.

Mmmmmmmmm. Hungry now.

[posted by: Lisa Durbin] --