AliThinks

August 1957

August 1957, originally uploaded by Alison.

Someone carved this date in the door of the shed. It was more than a shed, but the proper name escapes me right now. This was the first time I'd been there in 15 years; the roof has caved in. I wish I didn't have to forbid my kids to enter. There's a lot of history there.

Space Not For Rent

I've been silent, but in my real life I've been busy it's none of your business. And now my kids are here, so that means much less time on the computer.

The past week or two I've gotten a lot of requests to post about this or that on my blog. Sometimes it's a charity, sometimes not. And I generally ignore these requests, especially if they talk about my influence (read: as a high-traffic blogger). Because they can't see my stats, but I can. And I assure you, this is not a high-traffic blog. (She had potential, but... -ed.)

Also, I still have my Ad-Free Blog icon over there in the sidebar. So, you know.

"But wait, Alison!"  I can hear you exclaiming it already. "What about the Baconnaise?!"

What about it? I was offered a product to review, and I did so. (SHIT, that reminds me, I still need to post my review of Petite Anglaise's book. Ah well, six months late is better than never.)

So why would I write about a product rather than a worthy charity? After getting some feedback from a friend on Twitter, I realized that charity is a personal thing. I won't ask you to support anything that I don't personally support. And I don't really want to talk about it, because it's *gasp* personal.

I also won't post about a random charity that I've never heard of. Sorry.

But hey, I'll try something out and tell you what I think of it. I'll probably never be able to give away a Wii, but at least I can make semi-amusing (to me, anyway) video blogs about random products. Or not.

"But isn't that advertising?" Not really. I reserve the right to give a negative review to any product I'm asked to try. And to date, I've received two products to review (and one of these was the results of a Google search for "I love mayonnaise," so, um, yeah).

Here's a recommendation for ya: Go watch Grosse Pointe Blank. (This is one of those cinematic gems I missed out on while I lived in France.)

Also? Happy Holidays!

Overheard At My Local Rite-Aid

Cashier, to the person buying Tucks medicated pads and Preparation H:

"So, are you getting ready for a busy holiday?"

I See You Crying And I Want To Kill Your Friends

One of my favorite snippets of song lyrics, ever. I heard "Oblivious" in the car this afternoon and had to share the 80s goodness.

You're welcome.

It's About Freakin' Time

Typepad has finally seen fit to include me in their new platform, which was introduced in, oh, JULY.

I'm not sure what this means for me since I don't seem to blog anymore.

Oh, you wanted photos? I've put some on Flickr, and will add a few each day.

Ali and Allan's Lex Vegas Wedding

Sneak Preview

Sneak Preview, originally uploaded by Alison.

Just a teaser. We finally got our wedding photos today!

One Minute And Twenty-Seven Seconds Of Genius

h/t to Booby Gonzales

My Mom's Corn Chowder

In my recent videopost, I mentioned my mother's corn chowder recipe. I had to call my sister (Hi, Elisa!) in order to get it, and was surprised at how few ingredients there are:

1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 - 2 1/2 cups milk
2 cups frozen corn

Mix together, heat, and eat.

Now, living in France got me out of using recipes which required "cream of whatever" soup, because such an entity does not exist over there. However, I was hell-bent on making corn chowder with my Baconnaise, and yet, the four ingredients in my mom's soup (which I loved as a kid) didn't appeal.

So I lightened up my mom's soup, in a manner of speaking.

If you've been reading me for a long time, you'll know that this isn't a food blog because I never measure anything when I cook. However! I happen to remember some of the proportions I used in my chowder! Yay!

First, I started by sauteing a mirepoix in a little bit of oil. Once the onion was translucent, I added some chopped pancetta (leftover from our raclette from a couple of days before), because I figured you can't have too much bacon.

Once the pancetta was cooked through, I added the first of three cups of chicken broth and scraped the bottom of the dutch oven to get all the browned bits up. Now, normally I make my own stock* or broth, but we happened to have some store-bought broth in the cupboard, so I used it.

With the bottom of the pot scraped clean, I added two more cups of chicken broth. Then I added a cup and a half of 2% milk and a half cup of the Lite Baconnaise. I whisked it all together over low heat, then added 2 cups or so of frozen corn.

I let the chowder sit on the stove for a while on low heat. I didn't want it to boil, but I did want the flavors to meld. Also, I didn't add any salt because of the pancetta and the salt in the Baconnaise. And in the store-bought broth.

While I didn't make a lower-fat soup, I did lighten it up (if only in my own head). It was really tasty, and yeah, it was better than my mom's corn chowder.

*I made stock from our Thanksgiving bones (duck confit, if you're interested) and made soup tonight. Duck stock, mirepoix, leftover duck confit, and a rice and lentil combo, bought in bulk last year — two kinds of rice, two kinds of lentils — that was languishing in the cupboard. I love making stock and soup. The possibilities are endless!