5 Favorites Link-Up

06 March 2013

I'm taking a break from my Spring Break paper-grading train to link up with Hallie. I'm very happy to do this because grading is most certainly my LEAST favorite, and so it will be a good exercise to remember the better things in my current vida. I'm using this post as an incentive to grade because you all are so much more fun than student writing. Even though I did have a student write "for-fill" instead of "fulfill" this morning which has almost (almost) made it worth it.

So 3 papers graded = add one more thing to your favorites list.


- 1 -
I'm sure I'm not really introducing her to any of you, but I'd be lying if I said Ana wasn't one of my five favorites this week. Not only because her kids say the funniest things ever but also because of her baby's hair and because she has made me a winner for this project and is sending me a prize and I'm quite quite flattered!

- 2 -
Three papers down and I'm back to dwell on nice things for a couple of minutes. One of those nice things is this ring: 
Which Jacob bought me for my birthday after scouring my giftable Pinterests. You can find it here. I'm hugely intimidated by jewelry. My accessorizing usually involves me putting on an unassuming necklace and maybe taking it off six months later. I want to get better at it, but I hardly have any jewelry and building up my collection just seems like one more way to make bad shopping decisions. This ring will be my gateway piece into a world of accessorizing like a grown up.

- 3 -
This book:
 
I've been making friends with the microcosmos recently, and I have some homemade lacto-fermented ketchup to show for it. My son's father recently introduced him to "tsapus"/ketchup, and now Jake routinely gets the bottle out of the fridge and brings it to me during the day. Since I wasn't too keen on the ingredient list, I pulverized and cooked down some tomato sauce and added some spices and honey and kefir whey. Then I let it ferment on the counter for a couple of days and voila, a healthier ketchup with all kinds of bacterial friendlies for my little guy, because, yes, I am THAT mom. 

I suppose this also outs me as the mom who's using ketchup to get her kid to eat whatever she wants.

Anyway. Next project: red wine vinegar. I just have to find myself a vinegar mother because I have plenty of red wine. Once my vinegar from Trader Joe's developed its own mother, but I didn't realize how precious it was at the time. Now you can find me at the West LA Trader Joe's holding up bottle after bottle of vinegar to the light to see if there are any wispy remains of yeasty bacterial life in any of them. 

For any of you germaphiles out there: could I use the mother in ACV for other vinegars? I should probably just find that out from Mr. Katz. Or Google it.

- 4 -
Brussel Sprouts


All day every day I just want to eat Brussel Sprouts. My favorite way to prepare them is to saute some butter with garlic and then add the halved sprouts face down and let them cook like that till they're done and their faces are all fried and crispy. My. I have to stop now.

- 5 -
 And finally: Salted Malt Shakes

Jacob has been making milkshakes recently with malted milk powder and salt, and they are absolutely divine. I highly recommend them to all of you who are not so interested in brussel sprouts and even less interested in lacto-fermented ketchup.

Happy Wednesday.

9 comments :

  1. There is no such thing as a bad shopping decision. Otherwise, I am constantly making bad decisions...which I probably am but regret nothing. And p.s. can you make me a salted malt shake next time I come over?

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  2. I discovered a love for brussels sprouts cooking them that same way - my 3-year-old goes nuts for them! But I have to admit, I'd rather have a milkshake any time...

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  3. Now my mouth is watering for brussels sprouts. MUST HAVE IN THE BELLY!

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  4. Salted Malt Shakes are a thing? Where have they been all my life? Thanks, love! I feel like this is a life-changing moment for me. ;)

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  5. We love Brussels sprouts here too.
    I've been toying with the idea of venturing into the world of lactofermentation. I'll have to see if my library has your book. Ketchup makes me gag (even thinking about it right now gives me dry heaves) so I probably won't try THAT out, but there are so many other things I do want to experiment with!

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  6. "For-fill." My life just got better.

    That ring is really gorgeous. I kinda love it.

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  7. Brussel sprouts. Eww. I just had to get that out there. I would LOVE to know how to make that ketchup. And the answer to making the red-wine vinegar. I grind my own wheat over here and make all our bread, so I'm all over that homemade stuff. Please share!

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  8. Hi! Just wanted to let you know that I nominated you for the Liebster Award:
    http://lifeslittlepatterns.blogspot.com/2013/03/liebster-award.html

    {and I love that ring!}

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  9. You don't know me, but I tagged you for this bloggy thing...the link will explain it!

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