Monday, August 31, 2009

Stop the Insanity!

So, it appears my wife is harassing celebrities now. Oh, the shame! Oh, the Humanity! Oh sure, it’s just a single post this time, asking for comment to be placed on our blog. But what next? Will she be inviting Tom Brady and Giselle Bundchen for dinner, or telling Molly Ringwald that I had this huge crush on her when I was a teenager and suggest to her that it might be fun to show up to our Oktoberfest party? Oh sure, Charlie the beagle would love to have the company. Tom could throw his toys in the backyard for him to fetch, and as we all know Charlie LOVES the ladies. And Jayne would be able to talk fashion with Giselle (I bet she secretly adores What Not To Wear just like Jayne does). And for all we know Molly brews her own beer , and is a beer snob like me. But really, to what end this making of famous friends? I’d then have to track down Neal Patrick Harris so he could come over and sing her some of the songs from Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog to even things out. Or invite Liam Neeson to tea and cakes. Mmmm, cakes. Sorry, about that, lost my mind for a minute. From there it would just get worse. I’d come home one day to find Alton Brown shackled in the kitchen until he made us the perfect batch of brownies. And next thing you know Stephen King would be coming by to help us with our Christmas Letters. Zachary Levi would be calling us every week asking if we wanted to go bowling, and Alyssa Milano would be calling to talk about baseball. Does Charlie fire Cathy the dog walker and replace her with Cate Blanchett? Does Green Day just move into our basement? Where will it all end! Where in heaven’s name will it end?

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Our puppy is very responsible

Today some medications--more specifically, birth control pills--were delivered to our house through the mail slot in the front door. Our puppy, being the responsible little fellow he is, opened the package and took a dose. Despite the fact that he is male. And fixed. And not human. Still, you have to admire his sense of responsibility. And we haven't even had the sex talk with him yet!

We Love Liberty Tavern

Yesterday was a rough day at work for both me and Mal, and with the sudden realization that it was Restaurant Week here in the DC area, we decided to treat ourselves. Normally we like to use Resaturant Week to try someplace new, but as reservations were few on short notice, we ended up at our old standby, The Liberty Tavern in Arlington.

Oh, Liberty Tavern! I almost hate to sing your praises, lest it become even harder to find a reservation or a parking space nearby. Since our first visit when you were newly opened, we've had nothing but wonderful food and wonderful service. Last night was no exception. Once again, the Tavern proves that pleasing their customers is their first priority by making their entire menu available for Restaurant Week--none of this stingy only-offering-three-choices-per-course business. Mal started with a spectacular duck confit la orange with Chevre and olives, and I with the grilled octopus and clams.

Yes, that's right, squirmy, grilled octopus, and if you're remotely interested in ever trying octopus, try it here. Octopus, like calamari, can be tough and rubbery when not treated just right, but at Liberty it is tender and meaty and sweet and really really really good. This was our second time having the octopus: the first time was a recent visit where our entrees were taking a little while to make it out to us. We hadn't actually noticed a great delay or complained, but a manager came and apologized for our wait and brought us a free appetizer (the octopus) to tide us over. This is the kind of service we run into time and time again here.

For our main dishes, Mal had the tenderloin, with an amazing roasted Concord grape sauce. Sounds sweet, but it was beautifully balanced, and Mal literally swiped the plate clean with bread at the end. I had egg noodles with rabbit confit, fresh peas, carrots, onions and mushrooms with a grain mustard sauce, and it was just wonderful. Again, if you've ever had the inkling to try rabbit but were too squeamish, here's a great dish to try... Mal won the dessert competition with his three sorbets: cantaloupe, strawberry, and pineapple-basil (sounds strange, but is incredible). I got the molten chocolate cake with homemade mint chocolate chip ice cream, but the cake was a littel dry and not really molten. A small disappointment, but very much the exception at this restaurant.

When we finally rolled out after a long leisurely evening, we were both back in good spirits again. Thanks again, The Liberty Tavern! We may be back next week to try the lamb shoulder confit.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

The Story of My Life


Jayne

NOT Julie and Julia, but Inspired By

So Mal and I recently went to see the movie "Julie and Julia," which we both really enjoyed. My take: the Julie part was okay, although I honestly didn't find myself personally interested in the Julie character. Julia Child, on the other hand, is my personal hero: imagine, she never even started cooking until age 37! AND it turns out she was lying all these years about being a secretary in the OSS and was in fact an actual spy... Meryl Streep did an astounding job of bringing her to life, and Stanley Tucci was wonderful, as always, as her husband Paul. Theirs was truly a wonderful love story.

Anyhoo, like everyone else who saw the flick, we came out of the theater hungry and rarin' to cook. Now I have a generous collection of cookbooks, certainly more than 100, possibly close to 200; I'm honestly not sure. Inspired by the premise of the movie we just saw, Mal and I have decided that each week, one of us will select a cookbook, and the other one of us will make something from that cookbook. The recipe can be for anything--main course, appetizer, dessert--but it has to come from the selected book. Mal got first pick, and he chose The Good Home Cookbook, which we just received as a housewarming gift from our wonderful sister-in-law. This is a fun book, with very old-school, no-nonsense recipes like those from your old Better Homes and Gardens book: American Food. The special conceit, though, is that the author recruited over 1,000 home cooks from all over the country to test different versions of all these familiar recipes in order to find the best ones, which were then gathered into this volume. So no fancy-schmancy stuff, but a lot of fun nostalgia. (When's the last time you've even heard mention of a Taco Salad, much less seen a recipe for one?)

And what am I going to make? I'm not 100% decided yet. BUT there is a recipe for creating your own sourdough starter and thus your own sourdough bread that sounds very appealing. We shall see.

Jayne

Thursday, August 20, 2009

You're so sweet

Just like a Grape Pop-Tart!

Dear Jayne

So, this is MAL, and this is MAL’s Haiku Corner. This will be a regular feature of IKBINT. I love to Haiku. It can be about anything, and often will be about the smallest things. But today’s Haikus are for Jayne, who brings me serenity every time I look at her.

First time I met you
I knew that you were special
But not what would come

Soon, we were good friends
Spent hours on the telephone
Long distance dating

First Date – Mount Vernon
Second Date – “Incredibles!”
Third Date…… Ireland?!?!?!

By that time I knew
That you were the one for me
The love of my life

Moving here was hard
Not just the drive down
But leaving all that I knew

It’s all been worth it
Our life a great adventure
‘Til death do us part

Apropos of Nothing

Just to prove it won't be all hearts and flowers and cupids around here...




Dear Mal

There is nothing quite so boring as listening to someone rhapsodize about their beloved and how happy they are together. This is why no one on soap operas, including Soulmates Who are Destined to Be Together (of whom there are a surprisingly large number), never actually live happily ever after. We all yearn for that happy ending, but we don't want to hear about someone else's. Why is happiness such a dull read?

Too bad. Tomorrow is our 2 year 4 month anniversary, and I wish to rhapsodize. Almost 5 years ago, I met my Mal, and my life changed in ways I never dreamed were possible. Two and a quarter years ago, I married the best friend I've ever had in life. And every day I wake up next to him is a gift whose value cannot be described.

We have our differences. We get on each others' nerves. And in our short time together, we've had to face some very painful times. But we have faced them together. And I can't imagine--don't want to imagine--any life without my Mal.

Love,
Jayne

Wednesday, August 12, 2009