Sunday, January 31, 2010

Hef's very first!

Ok I know it is embrassing and I should be ashamed but Hef had his very first carrot top last week. I never bought them for him before because a.) he has never much liked carrots and b.) at the Tops they don't have carrot tops, wegmans does however. I am happy to say that when left overnight this carrot top quickly disappeared. Hef's a picky eater and doesn't like to eat much outside his cage or with people watching. After I kept shoving it buy his mouth for a few minutes he was polite enough to give me the nibble shot.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

One of those...

Yup, today has been one of those days where you just want to crawl under the covers. And we tried that too and we couldn't even take a nap! *THUMP* First off someone from our dinner party last night feed Shadow the Dog something that disagreed with her and she was sick this morning. Then she perked up for her walk and we went. It was about 29 degrees out with wind gust up to 30 mph and we had to dodge flying debris occasionaly since it was also garbage day. Then I tried to do some online shopping but could just not find a nice dress at a reasonable price. Hmph.
We need some sunshine on this island, we get a little bit of a warmup then bam! snow's back, ugh!

Monday, January 25, 2010

They came and they were delicious!

PLEASE NOTE: Hef''s Dad and I were standing right there next to Hef and the lobsters were rubber-banded so don't turn me into the SPCA, Bunns I'm looking at you guys!
This guy was pretty lively and it made me kinda sad. He kept going all "BLAHHHH!" and stretching out. Right before we were throwing them in the pot, I felt very sad and almost didn't do it. I used the recipe for steaming in wine in MtAoFC btw. All my guilt was washed away when I took one sweet delicious bite. We also made clarified butter and Hef's dad the raging carnivore even ate a Porterhouse steak afterwards. Also we had extra dry chapmagne.

And of course Hef was aptly rewarded with a big hunk of field mix, his favorite lettuce blend. I also bought really big carrots with big carrot tops but I didn't give those to him yet. Tommorrow I will.





Sunday, January 24, 2010

HIDE! A Warning from Hef


"HIDE ME HIDE ME HIDE ME"

Mama says that these things are coming! That I have to pose with them before she cooks them for Daddy's birthday! She says they have claws and are going to turn bright red!
But Momma also said she is going to the good salad store, that Momma is very tricky!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Love Letter to Shadow

Oh my dog! Since this blog started about two years ago and Shadow wasn't part of the family yet she often is left out of this blog. Poor Shadow the Dog! However, she is adored and spoiled at the bunny lounge. Shadow's not the typical dog out there. She doesn't fetch or play with toys. She has one toy that she likes and will play with it when she very well feels like it thank you very much. Shadow does love rawhides in all shapes sizes and flavors, include to my surprise, vanilla rawhide. She is a treat and food girl and eats almost anything. She hates Tabasico sauce and likes Jack Daniels better then beer.
It doesn't take much to make Shadow happy, which I adore. Sometimes all it takes is talking to her and her tail starts spinning like a propeller. Shadow is always close by, always earning her Shadow name. I love her dog optimism, thinking someday she will have 40 walks and 10 car rides and unlimited treats. Just uttering certian words are the most exciting thing, no matter how many times that she doesn't "go for a walk" or "go outside" she still has this giddy hope at the sound of the words. Shadows a cuddler when you want, just watching when you need it and sometimes so surprising, like running halfway up the street instead of just going potty on the front lawn.
The most amazing thing about Shadow and I assume most dogs, is this hope and joy that everyone might be a friend, even the dog who tries to bite her throat and this nasty send her mom running down the street garter snakes.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Laughing Rabbits Going to Get It

Oh yeah, Hef is laughing away! Hef's mom here has unhappily put on 7lbs. It doesn't sound like a big deal I'm sure. However I want to curtail it before it goes higher like the 28 lb gain of years past and my skinny pants don't fit. ARG!
On Sunday we made Mint Juleps and used too much mint at first. This is why it looks like swamp water, which Hef's Dad thought was a hilarious observation. Also we didn't have bourbon, so we used the MASSIVE Jack Daniels. So its more of a Swamp Julep but it was tasty. We both really liked it.
Also on Sunday I boiled artichokes and made hollandaise. YUM! (Hef says: This is why your fat, Mom!) I had the desire to make artichokes, I don't know why. I had never ate this dish before. I've never had a plain artichoke or hollaindaise sauce. Based on a liking of Asiago Artichoke dip I went for it. I am quickly falling in love with Wegmans over Tops for my specialty cooking, herbs, salt pork, artichokes, things like that. They have little perfect sized bundles of herbs for 1.29, which brings us back to the juleps....
Hef & I have to go eat a salad now.




Monday, January 18, 2010

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Bunny Bunny Good

Hef has found the upside to Mom's sudden cooking mania, fresh leafy carroty tops.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Wild Hare Wednesday

Okay so todays Wild Hare is this whole cooking blog business. I tried it being seperate and felt guilty posting to one and not the other and back and forth and such. Also part of what I love most about my blog is my followers and their comments and I would have to start all over again obtaining followers. So you my faithful readers are gunna hear about food sometimesfrom now on ok?
This is a nice Moscow Mule with a bowl of Broccoli Soup with Cheddar Cheese.To make a Moscow Mule you will need Vodka,Ginger Ale, Ice, and Lime Juice. I personally use diet ginger ale because alcohol has enough calories for me. So if your a by the books person add two measures of vodka and a measure of lime juice and shake over ice. Half fill a glass with ice cubes and strain the cocktail over then top up with ginger ale and garnish with lime. I personally just put a spash of vodka over ice top up with ginger ale add lime juice and stir, I told you I have been lazy.
Now this was when I wasn't lazy! I also had help with this from Hef's Dad. It is Mayonnaise. The recipe can be found on pg. 86 of Mastering The Art of French Cooking Vol. 1. It was very hard to make, as mayonnaises can seperate or not emulsify. Of course the first direction was to warm the bowl slightly, which I didn't even though I can hear Meryl Streep saying it in the movie in my head. It turned out anyway, woo! Hef's dad and I took turns beating the mixture and streaming in the oil and our arms were tired! Hef's dad doesn't want to buy mayonnaise at the store anymore so its a success.
Now here it is! Bouef Bourguignon!
Ok so my bouef is slightly differently which you can probably tell if you know the dish. I could not find the little pearl onions. Also I had mushrooms but they were bad so they got tossed. I improvised and used carrots and celery. I also forgot to take a picture before we ate because we were very hungry. Well I was very hungry Hef's dad was just ready to eat and I had been waiting for him to be ready.
For the wine I used a 2007 Cotes Du Rhone, who's winery I can't tell you because Hef's dad recycled and subsequentially broke the bottle, but it was very very good. I wish I had bought two bottles. I had walked into the wine store and it wasn't my usual store so when the clerk asked if I could use help, I asked him for a burgundy wine. He asked be how much I wanted to spend and I was like ummmm. Because sadly there is a 35 dollar bottle of wine at my regular wine store that has a RABBIT on the label, and I know there are 10,000 dollar wines out there. So he takes me to the Paul Masson really says just Burgundy on the label. Ok I admit I buy Paul Masson White Zin, but thats because Hef's dad doesn't drink it and I don't want to splurge on it and I have had Paul Masson Irish Cream, but this is BOUEF BOURGUIGNON. BTW funniest quote Hef's dad goes "You and your bouef". So he leads me over to some reds and I happen to spot the Cotes du Rhone. "Ok, thank you, I think this is the section I want to be in," I selected my Rhone and contemplated buying a second bottle but I thought I only need 1/2 cup of wine so I skipped. Yeah well ya need 3 cups so i didn't get to drink much of it but I saved some to have with my meal.
Then I went to Wegmans, which is not my usual store, I shop at Tops, on the island, nowhere else. I was at Wegmans because I thought they had French Macaroons which I wanted with my french stew. They didn't have them. However they had really nice prices on fresh herbs, 1.49 for a bunch of thyme, NICE. I also got a chunk of salt pork for my bacon. The salt pork was my favorite part of the meal, mmmm. It was all I could come up with a rind on it. Like I said I couldn't find the onions and thought I had mushrooms and would use regular onions cut up.
Then we went to Hef's grandparents on his dad's side. I had to borrow a casserole pan from Hef's grandma in order to even cook the bouef so I was glad to visit.Unfortunately i had to urger Hef's dad to go because I knew had to cook the bouef and it's not a quick cook. We got home around 4pm, the car loaded with things from the grandparents basement, mixed in with my herbs and wine. I believe it was done at around 8pm. While it was cooking I forgot when I put it in the oven so I was guessing totally. We ate around nine because that's when Hef's dad was hungry. It was absouletly delishes and I plan to make it right next time. Whew, nap time!


Tuesday, January 12, 2010

LAZY!

Yes! I ADMIT IT OK! I have been blog lazy lately. I suspect the fact that I have been eating a lot of holiday leftover chocolates and big french meals with wine is part of it. I swear I have not been neglecting Hef. I took this picture a few days ago.

Yup, even in the winter cold we represent the bunny!(Hef is guarding the evil box of chocolates) I have a matching scarf and they are reversible with a pink bunny on the otherside. There isn't much going on here, working, cooking, sleeping, thats about it. I am thinking of instead of having two blogs, to instead combine them and add some more cooking features here. What do you guys think? I am picturing something similar to Shell's rabbits/sewing, etc. and Roadbunner's Mario/Running.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

I think someone is feeling ignored


Since I have started another blog that doesn't focus solely on Hef, I worry about neglecting him to cook. Therefore I think he has began a love affair with our toaster. Its a really nice toaster so I don't blame him. Its red Oster Toaster that I very proudly bought myself for this home shortly before we moved in. Sorry sorry Hef, here are some treats, I will play with you right now!
Hef and I are going to mix up one of my favorite drinks, a Moscow Mule. Its simple, just a splash of vodka to your liking over ice, top with ginger ale (diet for me), and a splash of lime juice, which makes it this amazing new flavor stir it and enjoy. YUM!
It seems I drink more when I have to work the next day, how is that for employee happiness?

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Wild Hare Wednesday










I personally did not realize it was wild hare wednesday until I saw Shell's post. Its early and I think I am half asleep but I should wake up and be excited because this is a great hare! We did it over the New Years weekend. I woke up on December 28th and decided I could not live with my yellow kitchen anymore. I had said it enough and it had to be done. It took a day or two but I got Hef's dad on board! We luckly had a spare cabinet in the garage. We thought they had painted the cabinets over wood, thats how it looked. Off to the Home Depot, we purchased paint stripper and stain and sand paper. Hef's dad sanded the spare cabinet and came in from the garage. "It's not wood, its particle board," woo.... well Hef's dad tried it anyhow, it looked like a smoke stain from a fire. Back to the Depot! This in truth made the job size shrink considerably. We seleceted Rustoleum Painter's Touch in semi-glass black. Hef's dad took off all the cabinets.

Hef's dad set up this spiffy paint corner in our basement. See that yellow? Thats what the kitchen is like too! ICK! Hef's dad let me paint too this time, we had to do three coats according to our test door.
Poor Shadow the Dog was not allowed in the kitchen with her swishy tail and cluelessness about how big she really is. Shadow the Dog was saddened, but she liked our color choice.Ooooooo! I love it! Next this wallpaper needs to come down. Walls need to be painted white and on the other wall I need a black and white damask wallpaper. Hef's dad wants to change the countertop! Right on! I love my kitchen makeover so much I started a cooking blog, Cooking for Mr. Picky

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Hey Check it Out!

Hey guys, please check out my NEW additional blog, about my cooking adventures, hefsshadow.blogspot.com THANKS! Tell your friends!

Lazy video post

I have a really cool post to share but I am saving it until Wild Hare Wednesday. So here is a video of Shadow playing with the christmas toy her grandma gave her. Its the only toy she has ever played with.

Friday, January 1, 2010

More Bunny Champagne Party




More Photos of Hef with the Champagne (Tosti Asti YUM!) Because its so darn cute!