#Joachim is just a noodle

[the-crow-binary]

@beevean and I were having fun with an AU where Mathias gets send to pre-cv3 castlevania and meets Hector BUT Dracula ends up turning Hector and then Hector elopes to LoI's era with Mathias and eventually what had to happen happen and they become vampire husbands + Joachim survived and stayed with them and became their lover too at some point

Anyway since we agree that Joachim is a snake... and Hector a wolf... and Mathias a bat... I got inspired. ❤️ (that wolf took me so long to draw. 😭)

Joachim wasn't going to eat him for real of course... or was he? 😏 (that bat was drawn without the use of a reference so I can't guaranty the quality of it's anatomy)

[o-hora-o]

your rambles are music to my ears... sadly it can't be considered canon i think but the evangelion event fueled my ae addition, and i recall a scene where ein wanted to sacrifice the children and tesla was like 'wtf is wrong with you, you changed lieserl' and ein was just like 'yeah, people change.' though she seemed fond of mei that she knew as a baby; knowing in canon that her father ryoma worked for ae and that she knew kiana extremely young as well i can't believe they wasted the potential of lieserl getting attached to the trio more than 'let's sacrifice them it is life' perhaps my perception is biased but back in the vn lieserl used to be the youngest, and seemed to be the most philanthropist among the group (excluding welt) implicitly at least. she was always trying to reasure him and let him live his life, barely minded tesla's antics, questioning edison's mindset bc it was harmful to mankind, they even decided that ae would use auto pilot mechas and not women as valkyries. tesla was far from misanthropist but she seemed more like 'life is life ?' now the tables are somewhat reversed, ein became a cold vessel with clearly morally questionable choices and tesla is the one grieving all their loss explicitly, esp those closes to her like joachim, welt, emma etc (even during a scene when talking to theresa, in present, she wanted to choke otto what all the bloodshed and what ae went through)

"headcanonical ramble" for a reason. Now here's my little events ramble-

Hell yes in the context of the event this was an insanely morally difficult conversation they had. And not just in this event but in general I think they have this interesting tendency of calling each other by their first names when they have some serious or intimate moments and they want to talk not with the mask but with the soul? (or when they tease each other, of course)

Can we also appreciate this scene? A masterpiece!

I'm sorry but can I also mention the Rosemary's event? I can't help but love that plot twist when it was revealed that Joyce didn't actually die and his soul was in Joffrey's body all along and Tesla and Ein were so bad at mourning him that Ein's poor acting skills gave themselves away? 😂

Idk I love all those events in which AE take part for they can be both dramatic and tragic as the eva and rosemary ones or they can be totally chaotic and ridiculous as Gemina Invasions (we've never seen the continuation of it have we? Like Tesla is forever stuck somewhere across Bubble Universes with Bronya on the bike trying to catch Rosa and Liliya and Ein is forever enslaved by the Jinn for the sake of instant noodles debt lmao) or this Odd Drifter einsla moment still lives rent free in my brain:

Once Upon a Time in Shenzhou was also freaking awesome. Especially the part when they had a breakdown and came to two options which are either blow up the whole place or

Ok sorry back to the topic

"now the tables are somewhat reversed, ein became a cold vessel with clearly morally questionable choices and tesla is the one grieving all their loss explicitly". Yeah, agree, nicely phrased. And this drastic psychological change is what I love about them but I can't help but wonder will this ever lead them to some sort of a conflict, especially with Joachim gone. Because Tesla often complains about Ein's "morally questionable choices" but it seems like she can't fully understand Ein's behaviour or do something with it. Maybe at this point It can't be fix. So I hope that the writers won't forget about them as a deeply written characters and they'll have the third and probably the final wave of development.

[beerecordings]

do Joachim and Eristibus ever hang out as tiny fluffy creatures. do they ever have like tiny hamster play dates. does Jackie ever become like a slightly larger hamster or ferret or some other kind of noodle scarf and just curl around his tiny anxious friend

whenever Jack goes out anywhere he always brings at least one of his spirits with him, even when he goes to Mark’s, so whichever spirits are with him then are allowed to come out and explore Mark’s house (and vice versa for Mark and his spirits). so absolutely the friendly spirits hang out with each other, and they don’t need to be human to communicate, so they’ll do it in whatever form is comfiest - often curled up near to or on top of Jack and Mark haha

and I bet Jackie would be happy to help Eric with his anxiety! he was forced to be so violent his whole life but now Jack is finally giving him a chance to be kind and he really, really likes it. having friends is really cool to Jackie!!! he’s never had that before!! he just wants to look after all of them!! Jackie is very protective because for the first few times he was summoned he was the assigned protector of the king of a country for generations and generations. he would protect the king, and then protect the king’s child, and then that king’s child, and on, and on... and mostly he was treated like a rather dangerous and uncared for pet, but secretly he always loved his masters and loved to protect them. now that he’s with Jack he finally gets affection in return for his protection, and he’s more determined than ever to be a good bodyguard.

[the-asia-trip]

Days 5-7: Town & Country

As mentioned in my last post, on Wednesday, I went out to Okutama.

Following a light breakfast near my hotel, I hopped on the Ome subway line. Japan’s subway fare system is proportional, meaning that you tap in when you get on, and tap out when you get off, and your fare depends on how far you’ve traveled. For the 2 hour journey out to Okutama, it cost me about $30 round trip. Getting on the subway in a busy downtown neighborhood, and stepping off in a literal mountain town nestled in a wooded valley. Still one of the most surreal experiences I’ve ever personally had. It’s a crazy, crazy place. 

I’ve talked before about Okutama’s incredible charm and beauty, so I’ll refrain from reiterating what’s already been said. It’s beautiful, it’s charming, it’s the kind of place you could see yourself going full hermit-mode in a mountainside cottage until a young adventurer comes calling on you to train them in swordplay or martial arts. After a little walk around town and some much-anticipated droning, I stopped into a local spot for some curry & rice. 

One thing that will always get me about mountains in Japan is the angles. Peaks rise at 50-60 degree angles and are still covered with trees. It’s quite surreal and something I thoroughly failed to capture during my last visit here. Luckily this time, I had a flying camera.

After some mountain time, I headed back into the city and closed out the day with some more curry over noodles.

The next morning, I started the day relatively late around 11, getting my first actual good nights’ sleep of the whole trip to date and took a slow day around Kanda in anticipation of the Halloween festivities to come. I got some cold noodles and a breakfast omelet-rice-thing, took a walk around Ueno Park and did some more people-watching in Akihabara and Harajuku.

Speaking of Akihabara, here’s an anecdote from a few days ago that I forgot to post about here: earlier this week, I was sitting across from two Japanese businessmen about 5-10 years my senior on the subway. We arrived at a station stop, and a visibly-American girl in a pink anime wig and full cutesy princess costume stepped onto the train. Their reactions were priceless (a combination of facial expressions that read pretty unmistakably as “oh, it’s one of those”), and the whole experience couldn’t help making me wonder about how actual Japanese people feel about the way world culture portrays them—and what some westerners are expecting when they come here. I’ve seen a lot of Anime t-shirts on a lot of paunchy balding white dudes. But, I digress.

Later that day, I got some Tonkatsu in Ginza with my friend from high school, then we headed over to Shibuya to watch the madness unfold. After meeting up with our two other Tokyo-dwelling classmates, we waded out of Shibuya station into a sea of costumed humanity. 

Only in Japan are riot police deployed and the sale of alcohol in stores throughout a whole neighborhood banned because of Halloween. The Japanese take Halloween very, very seriously. If you’re really into it, you’ll spend hundreds, even thousands of dollars on a costume. It also goes without saying that I saw more Joachim Phoenix “Joker”s than I could have ever expected—and I expected quite a few. 

We spent the evening hopping between bars, eating dumplings, and getting good and drunk in the company of some of Tokyo’s wildest revelers. I only got a few pictures from the night, but they’re good ones. My friend had an early flight the next day, and our Tokyo natives had work and school, and so we called it a very successful night at around 1. 

The next day, the final day of the first leg of this trip, was pretty low-key. I returned to Tsukiji Fish Market for sushi and had one of the best meals of my life for the second time in a row. It can’t be overstated how good it is, and it’s almost impossible for me to truly describe here. Like Pizza or Pasta in Rome, it’s one of those things that will always just be inimitably better when you get it from The Real Place.

After that, I walked around a nearby park, then headed back uptown for a last walk through Akihabara. The people-watching here remains some of the best I’ve seen in the entire world, and the overall vibe the place exudes is truly chaotic in the best possible way.

I wasn’t sad to leave Japan the way I was last time. That was my first trip to Japan. Before I knew that I could come back. I knew that it was technically possible to go back, of course, but I didn’t know if I ever would. At this point, with two Japan trips under my belt, I can say with certainty that I’ll be back here again. I still love it here. It’s great. With that said, though, after two trips, I feel as though I’ve thoroughly exhausted all of the surface-level solo tourist activities Tokyo has to offer. The next time I come back here, it’ll have to be with more friends, or for a full-blown stint.

Last night, I set foot in Korea for the first time. While I’ve spent the bulk of my 12 hours here either in the airport or at my hotel, so far, so good. Korea, like Japan, feels very modern and sophisticated. Escalators are motion-activated, my hotel room came with a flash drive and a free wireless charging station for my phone, and the toilet is even more robotic than the one in my last hotel. So that’s all cool. Culturally and aesthetically, though, I haven’t been here long enough to say more than that. I just got breakfast, and I’m about to head out into Seoul for the first time and get a sense of where I am. Stay tuned for more.

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[michaelfallcon]

The Sprudge Coffee Guide To Penang, Malaysia

The history of Penang dates back to the 19th century when it was an important trade port in the Strait of Malacca for Europe, the Middle East, India, and China. Today, it is a booming tourist destination that retains the cultural diversity brought by merchants all over the world along with colonial-era architecture, especially since its George Town gained status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site back in 2008.

Traditional coffee shops in Penang are called kopitiam: they mostly serve breakfast of Chinese-Malaysian cuisine with dark-roasted coffee. But in recent years, third wave coffee shops have started to take over the island, where you can enjoy specialty grade single-origin coffee after your treat of asam laksa.

Constant Gardener

Constant Gardener was the first stop in my cafe-hopping journey around Penang, I must admit I went there on purpose—as SK Leng, the shop owner, was a coffee professional famous for his continuous research to coffee science who held various workshops on pressure profiling and water system across Southeast Asia.

The cafe occupies the first floor of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce Building, right around the most northeast corner of George Town, Penang. It is small—I walked past the entrance twice before noticing the shop’s name engraved on the window. Inside, the place is filled with occasional plant pots that lend a touch of greenery to wooden tables. Constant Gardener’s menu is impressive, reflecting Leng’s commitment to traceability and sustainability, as everything from coffee to tea to chocolate is meticulously sourced with details provided on their origins. Coffee here is roasted by Cloud Catcher, Factory Coffee, Artisan Roastery, and The Roast Things, pulled from the heavily modded Kees van der Westen Spirit. During my visit, Constant Gardener featured an Ethiopia Guji Peaberry “Purple” from Cloud Catcher, which was best enjoyed as a long black or with milk. Matcha comes from a direct trade relationship with a farmer named Yamauchi in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Constant Gardener is located at Ground Floor, Chinese Chamber Of Commerce Building, 9, Lebuh Light, George Town. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Macallum Connoisseurs

You will notice Macallum Connoisseurs from very far away—while crossing through Gat Lebuh Macallum, I immediately spotted a very huge building with a Macallum sign on top of it. The cafe’s sheer size (8,000 square feet) comes from the fact that the space was once a factory, and although it was transformed into a coffee shop in 2015, Macallum still retains that industrial feel from the high ceilings and metal structure. A square coffee bar sits in the centre of the cafe, hosting a Victoria Arduino Black Eagle and Nuova Simonelli Mythos One grinder and bags of coffee to bring home. (Macallum Connoisseurs is the only shop in this guide that roasts its own coffee.)

Taking advantage of its huge space, the cafe also doubles as a coffee academy. And if you are craving a sweet treat after your caffeine fix, there is a small bar by Nippy Gelato at the left corner of the building, where they sell their daily-made ice cream and waffles.

Macallum Connoisseurs is located at 1, Gat Lebuh Macallum, George Town. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Awesome Canteen

After a few days wandering around Penang, I noticed a distinct similarity among public places around the island, be it a shopping mall, restaurant or cafe—every place has indoor-grown trees, and Awesome Canteen is a great example of that. The cafe feels calm and refreshing, with naturally high-grown trees placed in between long rustic tables and rugged walls. Awesome Canteen is best enjoyed as a lunch spot, serving dishes inspired by Western and Japanese cooking styles. I suggest trying their delicious cold noodles before moving on to the coffee tasting.

Awesome Canteen starts its daily operation at 11:00am, so on the day of my arrival I was the first customer to open the door. The barista, Wen Han, kindly asked me to wait as he diligently re-brewed my filter coffee order because he was not satisfied with the first brew. And it turned out to the best cup of coffee throughout my trip—a Burundi Gitega Butemba COE #16 with notes of black tea, peach, honey sweetness, and spiciness.

Awesome Canteen is located at 164A-B, Lebuh Victoria, George Town. Follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Ome by Spacebar Coffee

A joint project by Joachim Leong and Shean Tan, Spacebar Coffee was founded in 2014. Initially, Spacebar Coffee occupied a space within Awesome Canteen before relocating to its permanent location on the narrow and quiet Lorong Toh Aka alley. I was surprised to discover Leong used to be a lawyer before he took on his job as one of the founding baristas at VCR in Kuala Lumpur. As for Tan, she got bit by the coffee bug during her time studying in the UK. The two met at VCR before moving to Penang to open Spacebar Coffee.

Ome, if you’re wondering, means “Home” (with the H omitted), as Leong and Tan wanted to create a space that felt like home to their customers. And they did. The duo has successfully formed a small coffee community here—Ome regularly acts as a location for coffee events in Penang, most recently a screening of the AeroPress Movie.

Ome, much like Constant Gardener, is a multi-roaster cafe. Joachim sources beans from roasters like Artisan Roastery and The Roast Things, along with occasional offerings from overseas roasters, notably Square Mile and Hasbean—Leong seems to have a thing for UK coffee professionals, “Buy it, it’s my bible,” he excitedly said as I pulled a copy of Colin Harmon’s “What I Know About Running Coffee Shops” from the retail shelves.

Ome by Spacebar Coffee is located at 1, Lorong Toh Aka, George Town. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Komichi Tea House

You can already guess from the name that this last mention is not a coffee shop, but a tea place. I choose to feature Komichi as I believe coffee and tea have many similarities—we drinkers all look for a complexity of flavor and balance in the drinks. (And you may remember that Sprudge launched a tea week earlier this year!)

Located just a few doors away from Ome by Spacebar, Komichi was carved out of a humble old building in 2017. It specializes in green tea, which Komichi founders Akane Nimura and Joeyin Chua source directly from plantations in Toyota City, Japan. Through my conversation with Chua, I was introduced to different kinds of green tea, while sipping a matcha latte served with some matcha cookies. My stay at Komichi ended with a pot of gyokuro, which means “pearl dew,” one of the highest grades of Japanese tea used in tea ceremonies. It has flavor notes of green tea, seaweed, with a salty undertone and a lingering savory finish.

Komichi Tea House is located at 20, Lorong Toh Aka, George Town. Follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

Tung Nguyen is a freelance journalist based in Vietnam. Read more Tung Nguyen for Sprudge.

The Sprudge Coffee Guide To Penang, Malaysia published first on https://medium.com/@LinLinCoffee

[shebreathesslowly]

The Sprudge Coffee Guide To Penang, Malaysia

The history of Penang dates back to the 19th century when it was an important trade port in the Strait of Malacca for Europe, the Middle East, India, and China. Today, it is a booming tourist destination that retains the cultural diversity brought by merchants all over the world along with colonial-era architecture, especially since its George Town gained status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site back in 2008.

Traditional coffee shops in Penang are called kopitiam: they mostly serve breakfast of Chinese-Malaysian cuisine with dark-roasted coffee. But in recent years, third wave coffee shops have started to take over the island, where you can enjoy specialty grade single-origin coffee after your treat of asam laksa.

Constant Gardener

Constant Gardener was the first stop in my cafe-hopping journey around Penang, I must admit I went there on purpose—as SK Leng, the shop owner, was a coffee professional famous for his continuous research to coffee science who held various workshops on pressure profiling and water system across Southeast Asia.

The cafe occupies the first floor of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce Building, right around the most northeast corner of George Town, Penang. It is small—I walked past the entrance twice before noticing the shop’s name engraved on the window. Inside, the place is filled with occasional plant pots that lend a touch of greenery to wooden tables. Constant Gardener’s menu is impressive, reflecting Leng’s commitment to traceability and sustainability, as everything from coffee to tea to chocolate is meticulously sourced with details provided on their origins. Coffee here is roasted by Cloud Catcher, Factory Coffee, Artisan Roastery, and The Roast Things, pulled from the heavily modded Kees van der Westen Spirit. During my visit, Constant Gardener featured an Ethiopia Guji Peaberry “Purple” from Cloud Catcher, which was best enjoyed as a long black or with milk. Matcha comes from a direct trade relationship with a farmer named Yamauchi in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Constant Gardener is located at Ground Floor, Chinese Chamber Of Commerce Building, 9, Lebuh Light, George Town. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Macallum Connoisseurs

You will notice Macallum Connoisseurs from very far away—while crossing through Gat Lebuh Macallum, I immediately spotted a very huge building with a Macallum sign on top of it. The cafe’s sheer size (8,000 square feet) comes from the fact that the space was once a factory, and although it was transformed into a coffee shop in 2015, Macallum still retains that industrial feel from the high ceilings and metal structure. A square coffee bar sits in the centre of the cafe, hosting a Victoria Arduino Black Eagle and Nuova Simonelli Mythos One grinder and bags of coffee to bring home. (Macallum Connoisseurs is the only shop in this guide that roasts its own coffee.)

Taking advantage of its huge space, the cafe also doubles as a coffee academy. And if you are craving a sweet treat after your caffeine fix, there is a small bar by Nippy Gelato at the left corner of the building, where they sell their daily-made ice cream and waffles.

Macallum Connoisseurs is located at 1, Gat Lebuh Macallum, George Town. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Awesome Canteen

After a few days wandering around Penang, I noticed a distinct similarity among public places around the island, be it a shopping mall, restaurant or cafe—every place has indoor-grown trees, and Awesome Canteen is a great example of that. The cafe feels calm and refreshing, with naturally high-grown trees placed in between long rustic tables and rugged walls. Awesome Canteen is best enjoyed as a lunch spot, serving dishes inspired by Western and Japanese cooking styles. I suggest trying their delicious cold noodles before moving on to the coffee tasting.

Awesome Canteen starts its daily operation at 11:00am, so on the day of my arrival I was the first customer to open the door. The barista, Wen Han, kindly asked me to wait as he diligently re-brewed my filter coffee order because he was not satisfied with the first brew. And it turned out to the best cup of coffee throughout my trip—a Burundi Gitega Butemba COE #16 with notes of black tea, peach, honey sweetness, and spiciness.

Awesome Canteen is located at 164A-B, Lebuh Victoria, George Town. Follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Ome by Spacebar Coffee

A joint project by Joachim Leong and Shean Tan, Spacebar Coffee was founded in 2014. Initially, Spacebar Coffee occupied a space within Awesome Canteen before relocating to its permanent location on the narrow and quiet Lorong Toh Aka alley. I was surprised to discover Leong used to be a lawyer before he took on his job as one of the founding baristas at VCR in Kuala Lumpur. As for Tan, she got bit by the coffee bug during her time studying in the UK. The two met at VCR before moving to Penang to open Spacebar Coffee.

Ome, if you’re wondering, means “Home” (with the H omitted), as Leong and Tan wanted to create a space that felt like home to their customers. And they did. The duo has successfully formed a small coffee community here—Ome regularly acts as a location for coffee events in Penang, most recently a screening of the AeroPress Movie.

Ome, much like Constant Gardener, is a multi-roaster cafe. Joachim sources beans from roasters like Artisan Roastery and The Roast Things, along with occasional offerings from overseas roasters, notably Square Mile and Hasbean—Leong seems to have a thing for UK coffee professionals, “Buy it, it’s my bible,” he excitedly said as I pulled a copy of Colin Harmon’s “What I Know About Running Coffee Shops” from the retail shelves.

Ome by Spacebar Coffee is located at 1, Lorong Toh Aka, George Town. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

  Komichi Tea House

You can already guess from the name that this last mention is not a coffee shop, but a tea place. I choose to feature Komichi as I believe coffee and tea have many similarities—we drinkers all look for a complexity of flavor and balance in the drinks. (And you may remember that Sprudge launched a tea week earlier this year!)

Located just a few doors away from Ome by Spacebar, Komichi was carved out of a humble old building in 2017. It specializes in green tea, which Komichi founders Akane Nimura and Joeyin Chua source directly from plantations in Toyota City, Japan. Through my conversation with Chua, I was introduced to different kinds of green tea, while sipping a matcha latte served with some matcha cookies. My stay at Komichi ended with a pot of gyokuro, which means “pearl dew,” one of the highest grades of Japanese tea used in tea ceremonies. It has flavor notes of green tea, seaweed, with a salty undertone and a lingering savory finish.

Komichi Tea House is located at 20, Lorong Toh Aka, George Town. Follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

Tung Nguyen is a freelance journalist based in Vietnam. Read more Tung Nguyen for Sprudge.

from Sprudge https://ift.tt/2QT2fFE

[newstfionline]

Arctic permafrost is starting to thaw. Here’s why you should care.

Amy Martin, PRI’s The World, November 11, 2018

On a lovely summer day in northern Sweden, Mathilda Nyzell is rowing a boat across a lake, as flocks of birds circle in the sky.

“We have so much fun in the boat when me and Jenny go out,” Nyzell says.

Nyzell and her colleague Jenny Gåling are master’s students at Stockholm University. They’re here in Abisko, Sweden, to study Arctic permafrost--soil that’s been frozen year-round for at least two years--and the gases that seep out into the atmosphere when it thaws. Specifically, they’re measuring the gas bubbling up from sediment in lakes like this one, which dots the landscape here.

These scientists love the research process and the places it takes them--places like this lake. But the data they’re collecting tells a very sobering story.

One of the main gases bubbling up and out of this lake is methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. As our human-caused carbon pollution causes the planet to heat up, that warming is thawing out Arctic permafrost, which, in turn, is triggering an increase in natural carbon emissions from places like this.

In other words, all around the Arctic, climate change caused by human pollution is causing even more of the same greenhouse gases to move from once-frozen soil into the atmosphere.

For researchers around the world, that is a very frightening change, because there is a lot of carbon in that soil.

“The amount of the amount of carbon that’s stored in [Arctic permafrost soil], it’s twice the amount that we have in the atmosphere,” says Joachim Jansen, lead researcher on this project and a doctoral student at Stockholm University. “And so if that will all be released into the atmosphere, that would mean a huge climatic change.”

This is a statistic worth remembering, so let’s put it another way: If all the carbon currently in the atmosphere could fit into one bucket, all of the carbon currently frozen in Arctic permafrost would fill two buckets of the same size.

Nobody knows how much of that carbon will actually end up in the atmosphere or how quickly. That’s why these researchers are here.

Not far from the lake, ecosystem ecologist Gesche Blume-Werry stabs the soil with a long steel rod called a permafrost probe to find out how much of the soil in this spot is frozen or not. At first, the probe makes a sort of hollow sound as it pushes into the soft soil. About a foot down, though, it hits something that sounds like a big rock.

“This is frozen soil,” Blume-Werry says.

And in that soil, there’s all kinds of stuff--plants, dead animals, and other organic material that Blume-Werry says was buried and frozen during the last Ice Age.

She pulls the probe back out and touches it. In just a few seconds, the end has become really cold--so cold that it’s uncomfortable to touch--just from brief contact with the permafrost less than a foot below.

Permafrost can be anywhere from a meter to a kilometer thick. It can be very cold or just barely frozen. But all around the Arctic, it’s starting to thaw.

You might’ve seen some of the pictures of the local impacts of this transition from rock-hard to squishy soil--roads that are sinking and buckling, homes shifting and cracking, and trees tilting at awkward angles, giving rise to the label “drunken forests.” In fact, there’s a line of telephone poles next to the meadow where Blume-Werry is working, including one that also looks a little drunk.

“That is probably standing in an area where the permafrost is just disappearing now,” she says. “So they will have to redo that soon.”

These changes are a big deal for people who live in the Arctic. In many northern cultures, cellars dug into the permafrost have been a reliable way to store food for generations--nature’s freezer. Now, people can’t always trust that their food won’t spoil.

Thawing permafrost affects newer kinds of infrastructure too--buildings, water mains, sewage drains, even cemeteries. Communities are scrambling to adapt as the ground literally shifts beneath them.

But the impact is far more than local. All that organic material in the permafrost has a lot of carbon in it. That’s what “organic” means--organic chemistry is carbon chemistry. And for thousands of years--all of recorded human history and then some--that carbon has been locked up. Put in the freezer, you might say.

Now, Blume-Werry says, “we are unfortunately kind of taking the plug out of the freezer, and it’s starting to thaw.”

When that happens, all the frozen organic material in permafrost finally starts to decompose. Microbes spring into action and start chowing down on the remains of those plants and animals.

“Microbes are eating it,” Blume-Werry says. “And then they emit carbon.”

That’s how the carbon moves from the permafrost into the atmosphere. As the microbes begin breaking down the buried organic material, they transform its carbon molecules into gas--methane or carbon dioxide--which then float up into the atmosphere and help trap heat from the sun.

It is a long, slow process, but it’s starting to reactivate around the Arctic as the region rapidly warms up. These scientists are trying to help figure out how quickly it’s happening here, right now, and what might happen in the years ahead.

Back at the lake, Nyzell steers her rowboat close to an odd contraption floating in the water. It’s a big funnel, sitting upside down with a big syringe sticking up from the skinny end. If the thing looks homemade, Jansen says, that’s because it is.

“The way we make them float is by using pool noodles,” he says.

The contraptions are gas traps, designed to capture bubbles floating up from the lake bottom below. Nyzell rows up to one of them so Jansen can reach over the side of the boat and suck out the gas that’s accumulated in it with a syringe.

“We [have] about seven milliliters of gas, most of which will likely be methane,” he says. Jansen’s team will measure the actual methane concentration of the sample later in the lab.

The team has placed 40 of these bubble traps on this lake, and a bunch more nearby, which they check multiple times a week, all summer long. That’s a lot of effort just to understand how much methane is coming off this one small area, this year, under very local weather and ecological conditions.

Groups of other scientists are at work elsewhere around the Arctic studying sites that are wetter or drier, colder or warmer, with more or less vegetation. They’re all trying to understand just how quickly the billions of tons of carbon locked up in all of the Arctic’s permafrost might be released.

It’s a massive challenge, but Jansen says it’s vital to understand what may happen to the Earth’s climate, with temperatures that could rise by as much as 4 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.

“The scary part is that we don’t know what an extra four degrees of warming will do to this huge amount of carbon that’s stored here in the permafrost,” Jansen says. “And we are trying to actively figure that out.”

The worry is not just about that possible 4 Celsius warming, though. Just one degree of warming, Blume-Werry says, can make “all the difference in the world.”

In many parts of the Arctic, she says, permafrost has already thawed enough to start emitting carbon. In other places, the frozen soil is right on the cusp of that pivot point, where a change of just one or two degrees can transform it from frozen to thawed, from something that stores carbon to something that emits it.

“And that is something that scientists are really worried about because there are many thresholds that you might cross there,” Blume-Werry says. “We might tip the scales of these really large exchanges, then we can have really dramatic consequences.”

We don’t know how close we are to a massive release of carbon from frozen Arctic soils, but we do know that every bit of carbon humans emit into the atmosphere gets us closer to that point. The pollution from our vehicles, businesses, and power plants will cause more carbon to be emitted from thawing permafrost.

Scientists call it a positive feedback loop: More carbon in the air leads to more warming, which leads to the release of more carbon, and the process just builds on itself.

Another thing we know is that we don’t get a second chance at this. If our pollution triggers a huge release of carbon from Arctic soils, we’ve put ourselves at the mercy of processes we can’t control, and that will dramatically reshape the Earth’s climate and our own civilizations.

[backfencemagazine]

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner

Dinner. It’s an inescapable occurrence, 365 days of the year.

Many of us have our go-to moves when all else fails — template meals that are easy and easily adaptable. Tacos. Egg scrambles. Pasta. Soup. And then there are the nights when it’s more about desperate calls for take-out. (It’s ok. You’re among friends. We understand.)

Yes, dinner. If we don’t plan it properly, it sneaks up on us at 4pm — or, yikes, later! — and we are faced with the perennial question: “What are we eating?”

Because we all get tired of the same-old same-old, I thought I’d share five favorite cookbooks for those of us who could always use more ideas for dinner.

The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Get it!)

Vegetables are definitely having their fair say these days, and thank goodness. The dynamic duo behind Beekman House, a self-described “lifestyle company” that revolves around their farm in New York, has produced a few cookbooks, but I particularly like this one because it’s focused on veggies, heirloom and otherwise.

If you’ve got veggies in your fridge and you’re not sure what to do with them, these are the guys you should go to for dinner.

Seasonal in its organization, this book presents creative ways to use all sorts of vegetables, from standards like potatoes, corn, and tomatoes, to lesser-known (and perhaps misunderstood) ones like kohlrabi and rutabaga (the latter roasted with a brown sugar and Guinness stout glaze – so good!).

Slightly left-of-center approaches in their recipes bring things like cucumbers into a creamy buttermilk sorbet and radishes into a butter made with sorrel. There’s also savory Vegetable Cheddar Breakfast Muffins, which come together in a flash with zucchini, peppers, and cheese.

The sweetest, homiest touch in this book, though, is the space after each recipe for your own notes; the design is reminiscent of an old-fashioned recipe card.

Cooking Light Global Kitchen by David Joachim (Get it!)

This is the book for those of us with ever-expanding palates, for the curious cooks, and for those who just get bored easily cooking the same fare.

Joachim and the editors of Cooking Light combed through the magazine’s storehouse of recipes to find the best of the best, plus added a good number of original recipes, and came up with this 150-recipe cookbook – the equivalent of a culinary world tour.

If you’re not sure about how to make pho, empanadas, or injera, Joachim breaks it down into easy steps. Those pressed for time at dinner will also appreciate the inclusion of “hands on time” and “total time” with each recipe. Those with different dietary needs will also like the suggestions for adapting classic dishes, like making a vegetarian version of Classic Pad Thai by swapping out the fish sauce for soy and omitting the dried shrimp.

The book is divided regionally, and I like that each section begins with a two-page spread about common ingredients, spices, herbs, and so forth — the flavor profile of the region. The overall presentation of the book is colorful and inviting – which makes a difference when you’re trying to get motivated to make dinner.

For a quick dinner, I like the flavorful Chiang Mai Pork Patties with some Thai sticky rice. Like Middle Eastern flavors? Tabbouleh gets a protein boost with the addition of some chicken thighs. Got a lazy afternoon? Classics such as French Cassoulet will warm your house with its savory aroma.

Food 52: A New Way To Dinner by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs (Get it!)

Approaching dinner in a systematized, game-planning manner is one way to tackle the demands of dinnertime these days. I like that the authors walk you through the grocery list for each week’s meals, and also include instructions for how you can prep the components of the meals ahead of time. The tone is encouraging and lively, and it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone do the thinking for you!

The cookbook is geared toward the four seasons, so if you shop — and eat — with an eye toward that first, these ladies have your back.

Right now, I’m loving their recipe for blistered cherry tomatoes in this book. There are so many ways to work them into meals throughout the week: an add-in for plain Greek yogurt, mixed with pasta or other grain, or as a pizza topping.

As the weather changes, I’m also eyeing the ricotta gnocchi and the creamy butternut squash soup with sherry.

Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast by Nigella Lawson (Get it!)

This one is an oldie but goodie. Lawson focuses on recipes that have been pared down to their essentials so you can make good meals in a flash.

If you have a decently stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, you’ll be prepped and ready to make something Coq au Riesling (a speedier version of the classic Coq au Vin), or Sesame Peanut Noodles, which is better than the takeout option most nights of the week and makes for great leftovers for snacking on straight from the fridge.

Express won’t win awards for being super-duper innovative or introducing you to new ingredients, but that’s not the goal here. It’s more about brevity. This said, Express is definitely comprehensive and global in its approach, so boredom won’t be an issue. Lawson is a Londoner, after all, with a cosmopolitan palate.

I treat this book as inspiration when I am feeling stuck in a rut or when am exceedingly pressed for time. Her potato and mushroom gratin, for example, is a meal in and of itself. Who even needs the roasted chicken?

Scratch by Maria Rodale (Get it!)

I like cookbooks with a strong voice and strong headnotes. Those that champion a hefty dose of veggies, too, automatically get my love. Rodale’s book delivers on all counts.

Maria Rodale is the granddaughter of J.I. Rodale, a pioneer in the organic and sustainable food movement and publisher of Prevention, Runner’s World, and countless other health and wellness publications and books. In this cookbook, Rodale brings you to her table. What she offers is homey, welcoming fare that you’ll want to return to again and again — and lots of pictures of her three daughters.

I’m digging her recipe for really green pesto pasta — blanching the basil keeps it from turning an unsavory shade of brown. We also share a love for Arnabit — a roasted cauliflower dish with tahini dressing that pairs well with Middle Eastern fare or simple grilled fish. When the weather changes, I’m headed straight for her savory spiced pumpkin soup, which incorporates coconut milk.

What are your favorite cookbooks for mealtime inspiration?

Continue reading “5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner” »

Simply Recipes

[mrocknroll]

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner

Dinner. It’s an inescapable occurrence, 365 days of the year.

Many of us have our go-to moves when all else fails — template meals that are easy and easily adaptable. Tacos. Egg scrambles. Pasta. Soup. And then there are the nights when it’s more about desperate calls for take-out. (It’s ok. You’re among friends. We understand.)

Yes, dinner. If we don’t plan it properly, it sneaks up on us at 4pm — or, yikes, later! — and we are faced with the perennial question: “What are we eating?”

Because we all get tired of the same-old same-old, I thought I’d share five favorite cookbooks for those of us who could always use more ideas for dinner.

The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Get it!)

Vegetables are definitely having their fair say these days, and thank goodness. The dynamic duo behind Beekman House, a self-described “lifestyle company” that revolves around their farm in New York, has produced a few cookbooks, but I particularly like this one because it’s focused on veggies, heirloom and otherwise.

If you’ve got veggies in your fridge and you’re not sure what to do with them, these are the guys you should go to for dinner.

Seasonal in its organization, this book presents creative ways to use all sorts of vegetables, from standards like potatoes, corn, and tomatoes, to lesser-known (and perhaps misunderstood) ones like kohlrabi and rutabaga (the latter roasted with a brown sugar and Guinness stout glaze – so good!).

Slightly left-of-center approaches in their recipes bring things like cucumbers into a creamy buttermilk sorbet and radishes into a butter made with sorrel. There’s also savory Vegetable Cheddar Breakfast Muffins, which come together in a flash with zucchini, peppers, and cheese.

The sweetest, homiest touch in this book, though, is the space after each recipe for your own notes; the design is reminiscent of an old-fashioned recipe card.

Cooking Light Global Kitchen by David Joachim (Get it!)

This is the book for those of us with ever-expanding palates, for the curious cooks, and for those who just get bored easily cooking the same fare.

Joachim and the editors of Cooking Light combed through the magazine’s storehouse of recipes to find the best of the best, plus added a good number of original recipes, and came up with this 150-recipe cookbook – the equivalent of a culinary world tour.

If you’re not sure about how to make pho, empanadas, or injera, Joachim breaks it down into easy steps. Those pressed for time at dinner will also appreciate the inclusion of “hands on time” and “total time” with each recipe. Those with different dietary needs will also like the suggestions for adapting classic dishes, like making a vegetarian version of Classic Pad Thai by swapping out the fish sauce for soy and omitting the dried shrimp.

The book is divided regionally, and I like that each section begins with a two-page spread about common ingredients, spices, herbs, and so forth — the flavor profile of the region. The overall presentation of the book is colorful and inviting – which makes a difference when you’re trying to get motivated to make dinner.

For a quick dinner, I like the flavorful Chiang Mai Pork Patties with some Thai sticky rice. Like Middle Eastern flavors? Tabbouleh gets a protein boost with the addition of some chicken thighs. Got a lazy afternoon? Classics such as French Cassoulet will warm your house with its savory aroma.

Food 52: A New Way To Dinner by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs (Get it!)

Approaching dinner in a systematized, game-planning manner is one way to tackle the demands of dinnertime these days. I like that the authors walk you through the grocery list for each week’s meals, and also include instructions for how you can prep the components of the meals ahead of time. The tone is encouraging and lively, and it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone do the thinking for you!

The cookbook is geared toward the four seasons, so if you shop — and eat — with an eye toward that first, these ladies have your back.

Right now, I’m loving their recipe for blistered cherry tomatoes in this book. There are so many ways to work them into meals throughout the week: an add-in for plain Greek yogurt, mixed with pasta or other grain, or as a pizza topping.

As the weather changes, I’m also eyeing the ricotta gnocchi and the creamy butternut squash soup with sherry.

Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast by Nigella Lawson (Get it!)

This one is an oldie but goodie. Lawson focuses on recipes that have been pared down to their essentials so you can make good meals in a flash.

If you have a decently stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, you’ll be prepped and ready to make something Coq au Riesling (a speedier version of the classic Coq au Vin), or Sesame Peanut Noodles, which is better than the takeout option most nights of the week and makes for great leftovers for snacking on straight from the fridge.

Express won’t win awards for being super-duper innovative or introducing you to new ingredients, but that’s not the goal here. It’s more about brevity. This said, Express is definitely comprehensive and global in its approach, so boredom won’t be an issue. Lawson is a Londoner, after all, with a cosmopolitan palate.

I treat this book as inspiration when I am feeling stuck in a rut or when am exceedingly pressed for time. Her potato and mushroom gratin, for example, is a meal in and of itself. Who even needs the roasted chicken?

Scratch by Maria Rodale (Get it!)

I like cookbooks with a strong voice and strong headnotes. Those that champion a hefty dose of veggies, too, automatically get my love. Rodale’s book delivers on all counts.

Maria Rodale is the granddaughter of J.I. Rodale, a pioneer in the organic and sustainable food movement and publisher of Prevention, Runner’s World, and countless other health and wellness publications and books. In this cookbook, Rodale brings you to her table. What she offers is homey, welcoming fare that you’ll want to return to again and again — and lots of pictures of her three daughters.

I’m digging her recipe for really green pesto pasta — blanching the basil keeps it from turning an unsavory shade of brown. We also share a love for Arnabit — a roasted cauliflower dish with tahini dressing that pairs well with Middle Eastern fare or simple grilled fish. When the weather changes, I’m headed straight for her savory spiced pumpkin soup, which incorporates coconut milk.

What are your favorite cookbooks for mealtime inspiration?

Continue reading "5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner" »

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner published first on your-t1-blog-url

[kristablogs]

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner

Dinner. It’s an inescapable occurrence, 365 days of the year.

Many of us have our go-to moves when all else fails — template meals that are easy and easily adaptable. Tacos. Egg scrambles. Pasta. Soup. And then there are the nights when it’s more about desperate calls for take-out. (It’s ok. You’re among friends. We understand.)

Yes, dinner. If we don’t plan it properly, it sneaks up on us at 4pm — or, yikes, later! — and we are faced with the perennial question: “What are we eating?”

Because we all get tired of the same-old same-old, I thought I’d share five favorite cookbooks for those of us who could always use more ideas for dinner.

The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Get it!)

Vegetables are definitely having their fair say these days, and thank goodness. The dynamic duo behind Beekman House, a self-described “lifestyle company” that revolves around their farm in New York, has produced a few cookbooks, but I particularly like this one because it’s focused on veggies, heirloom and otherwise.

If you’ve got veggies in your fridge and you’re not sure what to do with them, these are the guys you should go to for dinner.

Seasonal in its organization, this book presents creative ways to use all sorts of vegetables, from standards like potatoes, corn, and tomatoes, to lesser-known (and perhaps misunderstood) ones like kohlrabi and rutabaga (the latter roasted with a brown sugar and Guinness stout glaze – so good!).

Slightly left-of-center approaches in their recipes bring things like cucumbers into a creamy buttermilk sorbet and radishes into a butter made with sorrel. There’s also savory Vegetable Cheddar Breakfast Muffins, which come together in a flash with zucchini, peppers, and cheese.

The sweetest, homiest touch in this book, though, is the space after each recipe for your own notes; the design is reminiscent of an old-fashioned recipe card.

Cooking Light Global Kitchen by David Joachim (Get it!)

This is the book for those of us with ever-expanding palates, for the curious cooks, and for those who just get bored easily cooking the same fare.

Joachim and the editors of Cooking Light combed through the magazine’s storehouse of recipes to find the best of the best, plus added a good number of original recipes, and came up with this 150-recipe cookbook – the equivalent of a culinary world tour.

If you’re not sure about how to make pho, empanadas, or injera, Joachim breaks it down into easy steps. Those pressed for time at dinner will also appreciate the inclusion of “hands on time” and “total time” with each recipe. Those with different dietary needs will also like the suggestions for adapting classic dishes, like making a vegetarian version of Classic Pad Thai by swapping out the fish sauce for soy and omitting the dried shrimp.

The book is divided regionally, and I like that each section begins with a two-page spread about common ingredients, spices, herbs, and so forth — the flavor profile of the region. The overall presentation of the book is colorful and inviting – which makes a difference when you’re trying to get motivated to make dinner.

For a quick dinner, I like the flavorful Chiang Mai Pork Patties with some Thai sticky rice. Like Middle Eastern flavors? Tabbouleh gets a protein boost with the addition of some chicken thighs. Got a lazy afternoon? Classics such as French Cassoulet will warm your house with its savory aroma.

Food 52: A New Way To Dinner by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs (Get it!)

Approaching dinner in a systematized, game-planning manner is one way to tackle the demands of dinnertime these days. I like that the authors walk you through the grocery list for each week’s meals, and also include instructions for how you can prep the components of the meals ahead of time. The tone is encouraging and lively, and it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone do the thinking for you!

The cookbook is geared toward the four seasons, so if you shop — and eat — with an eye toward that first, these ladies have your back.

Right now, I’m loving their recipe for blistered cherry tomatoes in this book. There are so many ways to work them into meals throughout the week: an add-in for plain Greek yogurt, mixed with pasta or other grain, or as a pizza topping.

As the weather changes, I’m also eyeing the ricotta gnocchi and the creamy butternut squash soup with sherry.

Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast by Nigella Lawson (Get it!)

This one is an oldie but goodie. Lawson focuses on recipes that have been pared down to their essentials so you can make good meals in a flash.

If you have a decently stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, you’ll be prepped and ready to make something Coq au Riesling (a speedier version of the classic Coq au Vin), or Sesame Peanut Noodles, which is better than the takeout option most nights of the week and makes for great leftovers for snacking on straight from the fridge.

Express won’t win awards for being super-duper innovative or introducing you to new ingredients, but that’s not the goal here. It’s more about brevity. This said, Express is definitely comprehensive and global in its approach, so boredom won’t be an issue. Lawson is a Londoner, after all, with a cosmopolitan palate.

I treat this book as inspiration when I am feeling stuck in a rut or when am exceedingly pressed for time. Her potato and mushroom gratin, for example, is a meal in and of itself. Who even needs the roasted chicken?

Scratch by Maria Rodale (Get it!)

I like cookbooks with a strong voice and strong headnotes. Those that champion a hefty dose of veggies, too, automatically get my love. Rodale’s book delivers on all counts.

Maria Rodale is the granddaughter of J.I. Rodale, a pioneer in the organic and sustainable food movement and publisher of Prevention, Runner’s World, and countless other health and wellness publications and books. In this cookbook, Rodale brings you to her table. What she offers is homey, welcoming fare that you’ll want to return to again and again — and lots of pictures of her three daughters.

I’m digging her recipe for really green pesto pasta — blanching the basil keeps it from turning an unsavory shade of brown. We also share a love for Arnabit — a roasted cauliflower dish with tahini dressing that pairs well with Middle Eastern fare or simple grilled fish. When the weather changes, I’m headed straight for her savory spiced pumpkin soup, which incorporates coconut milk.

What are your favorite cookbooks for mealtime inspiration?

Continue reading "5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner" »

[alshamey]

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner http://yourgradgear.com/2017/10/14/5-cookbooks-for-people-who-always-need-more-ideas-for-dinner/

New Post has been published on http://yourgradgear.com/2017/10/14/5-cookbooks-for-people-who-always-need-more-ideas-for-dinner/

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner

Dinner. It’s an inescapable occurrence, 365 days of the year.

Many of us have our go-to moves when all else fails — template meals that are easy and easily adaptable. Tacos. Egg scrambles. Pasta. Soup. And then there are the nights when it’s more about desperate calls for take-out. (It’s ok. You’re among friends. We understand.)

Yes, dinner. If we don’t plan it properly, it sneaks up on us at 4pm — or, yikes, later! — and we are faced with the perennial question: “What are we eating?”

Because we all get tired of the same-old same-old, I thought I’d share five favorite cookbooks for those of us who could always use more ideas for dinner.

The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Get it!)

Vegetables are definitely having their fair say these days, and thank goodness. The dynamic duo behind Beekman House, a self-described “lifestyle company” that revolves around their farm in New York, has produced a few cookbooks, but I particularly like this one because it’s focused on veggies, heirloom and otherwise.

If you’ve got veggies in your fridge and you’re not sure what to do with them, these are the guys you should go to for dinner.

Seasonal in its organization, this book presents creative ways to use all sorts of vegetables, from standards like potatoes, corn, and tomatoes, to lesser-known (and perhaps misunderstood) ones like kohlrabi and rutabaga (the latter roasted with a brown sugar and Guinness stout glaze – so good!).

Slightly left-of-center approaches in their recipes bring things like cucumbers into a creamy buttermilk sorbet and radishes into a butter made with sorrel. There’s also savory Vegetable Cheddar Breakfast Muffins, which come together in a flash with zucchini, peppers, and cheese.

The sweetest, homiest touch in this book, though, is the space after each recipe for your own notes; the design is reminiscent of an old-fashioned recipe card.

Cooking Light Global Kitchen by David Joachim (Get it!)

This is the book for those of us with ever-expanding palates, for the curious cooks, and for those who just get bored easily cooking the same fare.

Joachim and the editors of Cooking Light combed through the magazine’s storehouse of recipes to find the best of the best, plus added a good number of original recipes, and came up with this 150-recipe cookbook – the equivalent of a culinary world tour.

If you’re not sure about how to make pho, empanadas, or injera, Joachim breaks it down into easy steps. Those pressed for time at dinner will also appreciate the inclusion of “hands on time” and “total time” with each recipe. Those with different dietary needs will also like the suggestions for adapting classic dishes, like making a vegetarian version of Classic Pad Thai by swapping out the fish sauce for soy and omitting the dried shrimp.

The book is divided regionally, and I like that each section begins with a two-page spread about common ingredients, spices, herbs, and so forth — the flavor profile of the region. The overall presentation of the book is colorful and inviting – which makes a difference when you’re trying to get motivated to make dinner.

For a quick dinner, I like the flavorful Chiang Mai Pork Patties with some Thai sticky rice. Like Middle Eastern flavors? Tabbouleh gets a protein boost with the addition of some chicken thighs. Got a lazy afternoon? Classics such as French Cassoulet will warm your house with its savory aroma.

Food 52: A New Way To Dinner by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs (Get it!)

Approaching dinner in a systematized, game-planning manner is one way to tackle the demands of dinnertime these days. I like that the authors walk you through the grocery list for each week’s meals, and also include instructions for how you can prep the components of the meals ahead of time. The tone is encouraging and lively, and it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone do the thinking for you!

The cookbook is geared toward the four seasons, so if you shop — and eat — with an eye toward that first, these ladies have your back.

Right now, I’m loving their recipe for blistered cherry tomatoes in this book. There are so many ways to work them into meals throughout the week: an add-in for plain Greek yogurt, mixed with pasta or other grain, or as a pizza topping.

As the weather changes, I’m also eyeing the ricotta gnocchi and the creamy butternut squash soup with sherry.

Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast by Nigella Lawson (Get it!)

This one is an oldie but goodie. Lawson focuses on recipes that have been pared down to their essentials so you can make good meals in a flash.

If you have a decently stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, you’ll be prepped and ready to make something Coq au Riesling (a speedier version of the classic Coq au Vin), or Sesame Peanut Noodles, which is better than the takeout option most nights of the week and makes for great leftovers for snacking on straight from the fridge.

Express won’t win awards for being super-duper innovative or introducing you to new ingredients, but that’s not the goal here. It’s more about brevity. This said, Express is definitely comprehensive and global in its approach, so boredom won’t be an issue. Lawson is a Londoner, after all, with a cosmopolitan palate.

I treat this book as inspiration when I am feeling stuck in a rut or when am exceedingly pressed for time. Her potato and mushroom gratin, for example, is a meal in and of itself. Who even needs the roasted chicken?

I like cookbooks with a strong voice and strong headnotes. Those that champion a hefty dose of veggies, too, automatically get my love. Rodale’s book delivers on all counts.

Maria Rodale is the granddaughter of J.I. Rodale, a pioneer in the organic and sustainable food movement and publisher of Prevention, Runner’s World, and countless other health and wellness publications and books. In this cookbook, Rodale brings you to her table. What she offers is homey, welcoming fare that you’ll want to return to again and again — and lots of pictures of her three daughters.

I’m digging her recipe for really green pesto pasta — blanching the basil keeps it from turning an unsavory shade of brown. We also share a love for Arnabit — a roasted cauliflower dish with tahini dressing that pairs well with Middle Eastern fare or simple grilled fish. When the weather changes, I’m headed straight for her savory spiced pumpkin soup, which incorporates coconut milk.

What are your favorite cookbooks for mealtime inspiration?

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[foodnetworkusa]

5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner

Food Network: Dinner. It’s an inescapable occurrence, 365 days of the year. Many of us have our go-to moves when all else fails — template meals that are easy and easily adaptable. Tacos. Egg scrambles. Pasta. Soup. And then there are the nights when it’s more about desperate calls for take-out. (It’s ok. You’re among friends. We understand.) Yes, dinner. If we don’t plan it properly, it sneaks up on us at 4pm — or, yikes, later! — and we are faced with the perennial question: “What are we eating?” Because we all get tired of the same-old same-old, I thought I’d share five favorite cookbooks for those of us who could always use more ideas for dinner. * The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Get it!) Vegetables are definitely having their fair say these days, and thank goodness. The dynamic duo behind Beekman House, a self-described “lifestyle company” that revolves around their farm in New York, has produced a few cookbooks, but I particularly like this one because it’s focused on veggies, heirloom and otherwise. If you’ve got veggies in your fridge and you’re not sure what to do with them, these are the guys you should go to for dinner. Seasonal in its organization, this book presents creative ways to use all sorts of vegetables, from standards like potatoes, corn, and tomatoes, to lesser-known (and perhaps misunderstood) ones like kohlrabi and rutabaga (the latter roasted with a brown sugar and Guinness stout glaze – so good!). Slightly left-of-center approaches in their recipes bring things like cucumbers into a creamy buttermilk sorbet and radishes into a butter made with sorrel. There’s also savory Vegetable Cheddar Breakfast Muffins, which come together in a flash with zucchini, peppers, and cheese. The sweetest, homiest touch in this book, though, is the space after each recipe for your own notes; the design is reminiscent of an old-fashioned recipe card. * Cooking Light Global Kitchen by David Joachim (Get it!) This is the book for those of us with ever-expanding palates, for the curious cooks, and for those who just get bored easily cooking the same fare. Joachim and the editors of Cooking Light combed through the magazine’s storehouse of recipes to find the best of the best, plus added a good number of original recipes, and came up with this 150-recipe cookbook – the equivalent of a culinary world tour. If you’re not sure about how to make pho, empanadas, or injera, Joachim breaks it down into easy steps. Those pressed for time at dinner will also appreciate the inclusion of “hands on time” and “total time” with each recipe. Those with different dietary needs will also like the suggestions for adapting classic dishes, like making a vegetarian version of Classic Pad Thai by swapping out the fish sauce for soy and omitting the dried shrimp. The book is divided regionally, and I like that each section begins with a two-page spread about common ingredients, spices, herbs, and so forth — the flavor profile of the region. The overall presentation of the book is colorful and inviting – which makes a difference when you’re trying to get motivated to make dinner. For a quick dinner, I like the flavorful Chiang Mai Pork Patties with some Thai sticky rice. Like Middle Eastern flavors? Tabbouleh gets a protein boost with the addition of some chicken thighs. Got a lazy afternoon? Classics such as French Cassoulet will warm your house with its savory aroma. * Food 52: A New Way To Dinner by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs (Get it!) Approaching dinner in a systematized, game-planning manner is one way to tackle the demands of dinnertime these days. I like that the authors walk you through the grocery list for each week’s meals, and also include instructions for how you can prep the components of the meals ahead of time. The tone is encouraging and lively, and it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone do the thinking for you! The cookbook is geared toward the four seasons, so if you shop — and eat — with an eye toward that first, these ladies have your back. Right now, I’m loving their recipe for blistered cherry tomatoes in this book. There are so many ways to work them into meals throughout the week: an add-in for plain Greek yogurt, mixed with pasta or other grain, or as a pizza topping. As the weather changes, I’m also eyeing the ricotta gnocchi and the creamy butternut squash soup with sherry. * Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast by Nigella Lawson (Get it!) This one is an oldie but goodie. Lawson focuses on recipes that have been pared down to their essentials so you can make good meals in a flash. If you have a decently stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, you’ll be prepped and ready to make something Coq au Riesling (a speedier version of the classic Coq au Vin), or Sesame Peanut Noodles, which is better than the takeout option most nights of the week and makes for great leftovers for snacking on straight from the fridge. Express won’t win awards for being super-duper innovative or introducing you to new ingredients, but that’s not the goal here. It’s more about brevity. This said, Express is definitely comprehensive and global in its approach, so boredom won’t be an issue. Lawson is a Londoner, after all, with a cosmopolitan palate. I treat this book as inspiration when I am feeling stuck in a rut or when am exceedingly pressed for time. Her potato and mushroom gratin, for example, is a meal in and of itself. Who even needs the roasted chicken? * Scratch by Maria Rodale (Get it!) I like cookbooks with a strong voice and strong headnotes. Those that champion a hefty dose of veggies, too, automatically get my love. Rodale’s book delivers on all counts. Maria Rodale is the granddaughter of J.I. Rodale, a pioneer in the organic and sustainable food movement and publisher of Prevention, Runner’s World, and countless other health and wellness publications and books. In this cookbook, Rodale brings you to her table. What she offers is homey, welcoming fare that you’ll want to return to again and again — and lots of pictures of her three daughters. I’m digging her recipe for really green pesto pasta — blanching the basil keeps it from turning an unsavory shade of brown. We also share a love for Arnabit — a roasted cauliflower dish with tahini dressing that pairs well with Middle Eastern fare or simple grilled fish. When the weather changes, I’m headed straight for her savory spiced pumpkin soup, which incorporates coconut milk. What are your favorite cookbooks for mealtime inspiration? Continue reading "5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner" »

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5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner

Dinner. It’s an inescapable occurrence, 365 days of the year.

Many of us have our go-to moves when all else fails — template meals that are easy and easily adaptable. Tacos. Egg scrambles. Pasta. Soup. And then there are the nights when it’s more about desperate calls for take-out. (It’s ok. You’re among friends. We understand.)

Yes, dinner. If we don’t plan it properly, it sneaks up on us at 4pm — or, yikes, later! — and we are faced with the perennial question: “What are we eating?”

Because we all get tired of the same-old same-old, I thought I’d share five favorite cookbooks for those of us who could always use more ideas for dinner.

The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Get it!)

Vegetables are definitely having their fair say these days, and thank goodness. The dynamic duo behind Beekman House, a self-described “lifestyle company” that revolves around their farm in New York, has produced a few cookbooks, but I particularly like this one because it’s focused on veggies, heirloom and otherwise.

If you’ve got veggies in your fridge and you’re not sure what to do with them, these are the guys you should go to for dinner.

Seasonal in its organization, this book presents creative ways to use all sorts of vegetables, from standards like potatoes, corn, and tomatoes, to lesser-known (and perhaps misunderstood) ones like kohlrabi and rutabaga (the latter roasted with a brown sugar and Guinness stout glaze – so good!).

Slightly left-of-center approaches in their recipes bring things like cucumbers into a creamy buttermilk sorbet and radishes into a butter made with sorrel. There’s also savory Vegetable Cheddar Breakfast Muffins, which come together in a flash with zucchini, peppers, and cheese.

The sweetest, homiest touch in this book, though, is the space after each recipe for your own notes; the design is reminiscent of an old-fashioned recipe card.

Cooking Light Global Kitchen by David Joachim (Get it!)

This is the book for those of us with ever-expanding palates, for the curious cooks, and for those who just get bored easily cooking the same fare.

Joachim and the editors of Cooking Light combed through the magazine’s storehouse of recipes to find the best of the best, plus added a good number of original recipes, and came up with this 150-recipe cookbook – the equivalent of a culinary world tour.

If you’re not sure about how to make pho, empanadas, or injera, Joachim breaks it down into easy steps. Those pressed for time at dinner will also appreciate the inclusion of “hands on time” and “total time” with each recipe. Those with different dietary needs will also like the suggestions for adapting classic dishes, like making a vegetarian version of Classic Pad Thai by swapping out the fish sauce for soy and omitting the dried shrimp.

The book is divided regionally, and I like that each section begins with a two-page spread about common ingredients, spices, herbs, and so forth — the flavor profile of the region. The overall presentation of the book is colorful and inviting – which makes a difference when you’re trying to get motivated to make dinner.

For a quick dinner, I like the flavorful Chiang Mai Pork Patties with some Thai sticky rice. Like Middle Eastern flavors? Tabbouleh gets a protein boost with the addition of some chicken thighs. Got a lazy afternoon? Classics such as French Cassoulet will warm your house with its savory aroma.

Food 52: A New Way To Dinner by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs (Get it!)

Approaching dinner in a systematized, game-planning manner is one way to tackle the demands of dinnertime these days. I like that the authors walk you through the grocery list for each week’s meals, and also include instructions for how you can prep the components of the meals ahead of time. The tone is encouraging and lively, and it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone do the thinking for you!

The cookbook is geared toward the four seasons, so if you shop — and eat — with an eye toward that first, these ladies have your back.

Right now, I’m loving their recipe for blistered cherry tomatoes in this book. There are so many ways to work them into meals throughout the week: an add-in for plain Greek yogurt, mixed with pasta or other grain, or as a pizza topping.

As the weather changes, I’m also eyeing the ricotta gnocchi and the creamy butternut squash soup with sherry.

Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast by Nigella Lawson (Get it!)

This one is an oldie but goodie. Lawson focuses on recipes that have been pared down to their essentials so you can make good meals in a flash.

If you have a decently stocked pantry, fridge, and freezer, you’ll be prepped and ready to make something Coq au Riesling (a speedier version of the classic Coq au Vin), or Sesame Peanut Noodles, which is better than the takeout option most nights of the week and makes for great leftovers for snacking on straight from the fridge.

Express won’t win awards for being super-duper innovative or introducing you to new ingredients, but that’s not the goal here. It’s more about brevity. This said, Express is definitely comprehensive and global in its approach, so boredom won’t be an issue. Lawson is a Londoner, after all, with a cosmopolitan palate.

I treat this book as inspiration when I am feeling stuck in a rut or when am exceedingly pressed for time. Her potato and mushroom gratin, for example, is a meal in and of itself. Who even needs the roasted chicken?

Scratch by Maria Rodale (Get it!)

I like cookbooks with a strong voice and strong headnotes. Those that champion a hefty dose of veggies, too, automatically get my love. Rodale’s book delivers on all counts.

Maria Rodale is the granddaughter of J.I. Rodale, a pioneer in the organic and sustainable food movement and publisher of Prevention, Runner’s World, and countless other health and wellness publications and books. In this cookbook, Rodale brings you to her table. What she offers is homey, welcoming fare that you’ll want to return to again and again — and lots of pictures of her three daughters.

I’m digging her recipe for really green pesto pasta — blanching the basil keeps it from turning an unsavory shade of brown. We also share a love for Arnabit — a roasted cauliflower dish with tahini dressing that pairs well with Middle Eastern fare or simple grilled fish. When the weather changes, I’m headed straight for her savory spiced pumpkin soup, which incorporates coconut milk.

What are your favorite cookbooks for mealtime inspiration?

Continue reading “5 Cookbooks for People Who Always Need More Ideas for Dinner” »

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