bad words were said

Two things have inspired me to get back in the kitchen: Top Chef All Stars, which began on December 1st, and an interest in macrobiotics I picked up from one of Tim's new hippie housemates. She lent me a book called The Hip Chick's Guide to Macrobiotics, which I skimmed through as she went to meet with her chi healer.



I haven't been able to go on a decent grocery run in a while, so Chinese takeout and eggs and toast have been featured as recurring dinner entrees lately... not ideal. Even though it was pouring rain today, I braved the elements to head to Real Foods and stock up on staples.

First up: an interesting macrobiotic recipe I made for dinner (and will be eating for the next week), polenta with broccoli and pumpkin sauce. An odd combination of flavors, but felt very clean and healthy and comforting at the same time. Perfect for a rainy Sunday.

Then I decided to get ambitious: bacon and cashew caramel corn from Bon Appetit, which I was hoping to bring to work to woo my coworkers.


Looks pretty good, hmm? Well, while making the caramel (which was supposed to boil on high for a full 13 minutes), I noticed the sauce was turning brown after only about 5 minutes. I turned to the computer to double check the timing, and before I knew it, the smoke detector was going wild, my caramel was burning, and all was lost. I was torn between waving at the smoke detector with a pillow and saving the sauce, and didn't manage to do either successfully. Bad words were said.

It's probably for the best, though - I don't know if bacon cashew caramel corn really vibes with my new macrobiotic kick.

The Holiday Ball was this weekend, and I have only two pictures to show for it. I'll have to do a fuller post later, when I can steal from Rachel's photo collection.

Reading: nothing! Finished Liar's Poker a few days ago. Any recommendations?