Mmmmm...

15 brussel sprouts shredded (like cabbage)
10 anchovy fillets
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 lemon
several cloves of garlic

Melt anchovies in hot oil until they fall completely apart and look like sand (about 2 minutes), add garlic and cook, barely, add brussel sprouts and cook on very high heat for just a minute, squeeze lemon over the whole thing. Eat.

The Accountant and the Librarian

The accountant and the librarian lunched one day
on a sunny side street off Hollywood way
She cleaned her glasses he rattled his voice
they fell in lust. One chance, no choice

They sat together that evening come.
He rattled, she laughed, she prattled, he hummed
she led them inside, a hurt in her belly
he kisses it and turned that hurt into jelly
all better all happy she went out the door
a sweet beasty bird warning, "eyes on the floor."

A cliff, but she missed it and stepped into the air
no amount of accounting could hold her up there
when the next day calls came in and then not
the librarian crumpled a bit, then stood, taut

with her pencil to calculate and glasses on nose
about the accountant and her, she wrote prose
and armed with milk and black tea in a cup,
discovered: read carefully, things didn't add up.

Macallan 18 yr

So, Orin and I went back for another scotch tasting. It just didn't seem right to have left without figuring out what my favorite scotch was: Macallan 18 yr, which turned out to be $30 a glass, regular price. So, we'll only be drinking on Sundays.


This is an actual glass, not a tasting portion. I swear. Look how my library-bling key lights up with the scotch hits my lips:


We were quite happy (and very wrinkly, please don't enlarge photo) at this point. 10 tasters between the two of us and one full glass.


Overall it was another thumbs up with the best part of the meal being one of the sausages from the house-made charcuterie and the molasses cookies with brown sugar ice cream. Insane. So good we forgot to get out the camera until it was all gone.

Chicken Liver Mousse/Paté

I wouldn't exactly say mousse or paté is quite the right word, but this is the hot emulsification chicken liver spread that we've all had on a slice of bread. So, so so very very good! This made enough for about a week, unless I have Orin over in which case it will last about 15 minutes. I didn't follow a recipe or measure anything, so I'm pretty sure it's good no matter what, but here's a guestimate of what I did.

10 anchovies
1 onion
1 lb chicken livers
1/2 cup butter (!)
1/2 cup cognac
salt and pepper

Melt the butter and add the anchovies. When anchovies start to fall apart (you can help them with a fork) add the onions. Cook until translucent then add livers. Cook for about 8 minutes then add the cognac and let cook until a bit reduced. Put everything into the blender while it's hot and add salt and pepper to taste (remember you already have a lot of salt from the anchovies).

It's good warm, at room temp, and right out of the fridge.