Posts from — February 2005

Whoa!Google has apparently made an offer to host several Wikimedia projects!

This could help solve many of Wikipedia’s bandwidth and server issues, while still allowing editorial independence (which has never really been a problem anyway since Anybody Can Edit Wikipedia). And that announcement states pretty unambiguously that there’s no inducement to advertise, though I can’t help but imagine a “Sponsored by Google” or “Hosted by Google” image or blurb on every page. (As long as it’s small, I have no problem with that.)

But still, this is kind of out of left field… I’m definitely keeping an eye on this one.

Two of ‘em, referred to me by others.

Juan Cole throws down. Day-um. I almost feel sorry for Jonah Goldberg.

Why hate-crime laws are necessary, or “some motives are more reprehensible than others, fuckheads”. (The word “fuckheads” never appears in that [excellent] post. i just like it.)

So as I was moving out of the old beloved apartment a few months ago, I began seriously tinkering in the kitchen in an attempt to burn through some perishable foodstuffs that I didn’t want to have to deal with. Most of the resulting dishes were only slightly acceptable, and there were a few nights when I said “fuck that” and hit the drive-thru.

This recipe was the only one that showed true potential, so I’ve been refining it ever since. Last night, it reached a point that was beyond merely palatable, so I’m posting the still-imperfect and still-imprecise recipe here. Please feel free to experiment on your own with it and offer further refinements to the recipe itself or to my phrasing. I’m also unsure about what to call it — “sausagey thing” just won’t cut it any more — so please offer suggestions on that front as well.

Jeem’s untitled concoction

Serves four ordinary mortals or two mildly peckish Jeems

Ingredients

• 1 lb. smoked sausage or kielbasa, in quarter-inch slices on the bias
  
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1 medium shallot, finely chopped
  
• 1 non-green bell pepper, roughly chopped — Red, yellow, and orange all work here, but green does NOT.
  
• 1/2 lb. mushrooms, sliced
  
• 2 tbsp butter
  
• Herbes de Provence (heretofore abbreviated as “HdP”)
  
• red wine — I’ve had my best results with a Cabernet Sauvignon.

I’m unsure about exact quantities of HdP and wine, since I’ve always just eyeballed them; any indication of quantity here is an estimate. Also, you can use a commercial HdP mix or do your own, but in either case all components should be dried, chopped, and well-mixed.

Preparation

1. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat.
   
2. Add shallot, garlic, and ~1 tsp of HdP and sauté.
   
3. When shallot bits are translucent, add sliced sausage and sauté.
   
4. When sausage is cooked through, add chopped bell pepper and mix well.
   
5. When bell pepper is soft on the outside and firm on the inside, add sliced mushrooms and mix well.
   
6. When the mushrooms have reduced to half their original size, add wine almost to cover and another ~1 tsp of HdP, mix very well, and turn the heat up to medium-high.
   
7. Simmer uncovered until the sauce reduces by half. Serve over jasmine rice.

So there you go; it’s quick, tasty, filling, and smells soooooo good, even though it doesn’t even have a real name at the moment beyond “sausagey thing”.

I only have 50 left. See?

So if ANYBODY wants one, please say so.

[Because I just know somebody's going to ask, this is what GMail is.]