bohemian hellhole

Just to have something to do

{via PBS} *

{via simply recipes}**

 It feels like fall is the perfect time to start cooking. So, it was timely to see the movie Julie and Julia, which just makes you want to cook. All the time. With lots of butter.

So, grab a cookbook, some pearls, some good butter {western family will not do}, some heavy french cookware, and enjoy the simple pleasure of making something out of nearly nothing.

* These hooks are fantastic! A hook for every pan, and a pan for everything!

**I am especially fond of Julie Powell's apartment transformation in the movie, so pay attention if you see it!

Waiting for the sun to come out, Alice

House Toast

Everyone should have house toast once in a while. It's just so satisfying to eat a chimney.

Gearing up for the Project Runway finale, Alice

Death by Chocolate

 
via lost at e minor

D.L. & Co. has the most amazing chocolate. At least it looks that way. I think I might have a hard time eating one of these, so I might have to get a non-edible skull from them. {visit their site and find the little silver skull under 'memento mori'}

Wishing Gene Wilder was really Willy Wonka, Alice

Coke Robot

images via Gizmodo

Look at him, on the moon or some other planet, protecting the universe and still, dispensing coke.

And this guy, while in the middle of some kind of world war,  he manages to offer refreshment across the front lines.

If we were as cool as Japan, we would have a real live Coke Robot on our streets, defending humanity, and selling soda.

Trying to figure out how to make these images into {wall sized} wallpaper, Alice

The Sazerac: If it's good enough for NOLA...

Photo and post by yma

All the bartending bloggers are clacking about Tales of the Cocktail this week, going on in the birthplace of the cocktail, New Orleans.

Now the official cocktail of the city of New Orleans, some say the Sazerac was the very first cocktail. The story goes that apothecary Antoine Peychaud made an elixir of brandy, a spoonful of sugar (helps the medicine go down?) and his proprietary aromatic bitters in his French Quarter shop in the 1830s. The drink became popular in New Orleans bars, and a few decades later the restaurateur Thomas Handy switched the liquor from brandy to rye whiskey. At some point a bit of absinthe was added, and the recipe reached its pinnacle.

Chill an old fashioned glass, then coat the inside with absinthe* (rinse out the excess).
*The green fairy is legal again in the United States, but if you can't get your hands on any, you could substitute with a pastis such as Pernod. Note that pastis is much sweeter, so you'll probably want to use less sugar.

In a mixing vessel, combine:
a sugar cube & a splash of water OR 1/4 oz simple syrup
4 dashes Peychaud's bitters
1 dash Angostura bitters*
*Thanks to Jeffrey Morgenthaler for this suggestion - it may anger the purists, but it gives the drink a bit more flavor and body, so they can just hush.

Muddle til the sugar is dissolved (skip this step if using simple syrup).

Add several ice cubes and 2 oz. rye whiskey, such as Old Overholt (neither bourbon nor any other kind of whiskey is as good - it's gotta be the spicy-ness of rye).

Stir - don't shake - til well chilled then strain into the glass.

Squeeze a lemon twist over the glass to release the oils, then discard, or be saucy and drop it into the drink.

Thinking fondly of the vieux carré, yma

Coffee Mate

The Columbia Coffee Press by Bodum

After several incidents with Mr. Coffee, where the floor was the beneficiary of our morning brew, we decided to explore some alternative coffee making methods. The traditional French Press was our first choice, although I never liked seeing the grounds or how quick it cooled off. I saw this one at a friends house and fell in love with its insulated body, and space-ship exterior.

Pair it with coffee from Stumptown, available in Seattle at several shops, including my favorite - Neptune Coffee on Greenwood Ave - for excellent morning revival.

Still waking up, Alice