AliThinks

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!

What Are We Doing In This Handbasket And Where Is It Going?

On Thanksgiving morning we were watching the Macy's Parade, because my cousin was a handler for the Dora The Explorer Balloon. It was the first time I'd seen the parade since I was a kid, and the first time the TV had been on in the morning in ages.

This commercial came on, and my head almost exploded:

If you don't have 53 seconds to spare, or are afraid your head might 'splode too, let me sum up: It's a child's stationary bike, attached to a video game. Granted, it's an educational game, but people, this is so many kinds of wrong.

Sure, at least it makes your kid MOVE while playing the game. (Wii, anyone?) But whatever happened to GOING OUTSIDE?

Letting your child (yes, even a four- or five-year-old) ride her bike in the driveway or *gasp* the street gives you, the parent, a chance to teach your child about bike safety, traffic, and other such important things.

And not to knock video games, because I do realize they can give children some skills, but how about singing to your child, or saying rhymes so that he can learn his letters, numbers, and colors?

I'm sure there are some arguments for this type of product. It just seems to symbolize so many things that are wrong with parenting today. And believe me, I'm not a perfect parent and I don't pretend to be one.

If you'd like to read more about where I am coming from, check out this blog called Free Range Kids. It's about letting our kids grow up the way we did, without constant supervision (all the while using safety items such as helmets). And then there's this book I know of, Last Child In The Woods, but which I haven't read yet. (Note to self: read that book.) It deals with something called nature-deficit disorder, which might sound hokey, but which is actually A Serious Thing.

And if any of you who happen to be reading this own a Smart Cycle, please leave a comment telling me why you like it (or don't like it).

I Love Mayonnaise — The Baconnaise Edition

A couple of weeks ago I got the following e-mail:

Hi Ali –

 

I just did a Google search for “I Love Mayonnaise,” and believe it or not you’re the first result. Great blog by the way!

 

I own a little food company up in Seattle. Our first product, Bacon Salt, has done very well, but the main reason I’m contacting you is that we just launched something new I thought you’d be interested in. It’s called Baconnaise, and it’s exactly what it sounds like – bacon-flavored mayonnaise. The website is at www.baconnaise.com. It’s great on BLT’s, fries, burgers, sandwiches, dips, salads, fish, chicken and a lot more.

 

We’re looking for a few good product testers that would be willing to post their reviews of the product on their blogs and give us their feedback.  If you’re interested, please let us know and send us your address, then we’ll send you a free jar of Baconnaise to try out.

 

Thanks sincerely,
Dave

Bacon-flavored mayonnaise? How could I resist? So I wrote back.

Dave,

Being the number one Google search for "I love mayonnaise" is a point of pride with me. Really.

Thank you for contacting me. I've heard of both Bacon Salt and Baconnaise, from either Buzzfeed, Serious Eats (or both), so I would be honored to try Baconnaise and post about it. I love bacon about as much as I love mayo (and no, I don't weigh 300 pounds) (yet), and my first reaction upon reading the word "baconnaise" was salivation. My second was "that's gotta be so much better than Dijonnaise." And I might have to put that in my blog post about the stuff. Hope you don't mind.

My name is Alison [redacted], and my address is [redacted]

Best (or Hellmann's, if you're me),

Alison

A few days later, I received a package in the mail. It was a Saturday, but I think we waited until the following Monday to crack open the Baconnaise.

Below the fold is my video review of Baconnaise. I crack myself up with the hand-wiping; the jars are a little greasy and I didn't want to get any mayo on my laptop!

And yes, the video is also on YouTube. But I didn't like the way it looked, and thought Dailymotion might have it going on. Meh. It might just be the way iMovie makes stuff.

Taking A Poll

Whoopsie!

It's been brought to my attention that I neglected to create a Beaujolais Nouveau video this year. Not only did I not make a video, I completely forgot about the Beaujolais Nouveau.

I KNOW, RIGHT?

Maybe later in the week I'll drink some Beaujolais for ya, but first I have to tell you about the bacon mayonnaise.

Four Words

Bacon mayonnaise.

Stay tuned.

Nobody Believes Me!

That adds up to 300 napkins, two light bulbs, and a cushion that looks exactly like Luci.

It's A Miracle

We went to IKEA this afternoon and spent less than $30.00.

I KNOW.

A Salute

I've been silent because my laptop couldn't connect to the wifi where we were staying. No matter, I was in France to be with my kids, not be on the internet.

So we did it. I cried when I turned on Sky News early Wednesday morning; they were tears of joy and pride and my kids didn't quite understand my reaction.

We did it. Yes, we did.

But despite our historic choice of president, despite overcoming deep-seated prejudice to elect an African-American man to the highest office, we still have a long way to go in the quest of equality for all.

Unless you've been under a rock the past couple of days, you'll know that Prop 8, which bans gay marriage in California, has passed. The margin was slim, 52 to 48%, I believe. Similar bans were passed in Florida and Arizona.

But those of us who believe that marriage = love, that sexual orientation doesn't and shouldn't matter, are saying "enough." I got the idea for this from AndreAnna, who got it from Swistle, who got it from Allen.

So here's what this newly-married heterosexual mother thinks about Prop 8:

Update: Catheroo has a better explanation and a better photo than I do!