If you watched the recent Gordon Ramsay Uncharted episode, you would have seen chef Melissa Kelly of Primo in Rockland. Back in 2008 I photographed a few Maine restaurants for a personal photo project, including Chef Kelly. She was super welcoming and accommodating (and the food was phenomenal!). Check out a few of the photos on my website.
A (Not So) Quiet Place
I saw A Quiet Place II in the theater last night and, as someone who loves film, it was great to be back! I’ll probably stick to seeing any films I can see at home actually at home, but what a treat to see something up on the big screen once again. Vaccines/science are great! The sequel was also just as good as the first one, in my opinion. Are you excited to see something in person?
A Shot in the Arm
This weekend I’ll be receiving my second COVID-19 vaccination dose. I’m super excited to be able to say that! I’ve been happily helping others find appointments, including co-workers.
While we’re here, I wanted to share this piece from CNN:
Covid-19 vaccine myths: These reasons for not getting a shot don’t hold up. In fact, they’ll set the US back
Pad Thai
This was not my first time making pad Thai, but was my first time working with tamarind, palm sugar, dried shrimp, and zha cai (I maybe didn’t even buy actual zha cai?). I also had to pick up a few different kinds of soy sauce (sweet and black). My first attempt was fine, so I want to give this a try again to see if I can improve. I’m fairly certain I know where I went wrong, too.
This is the first video I’ve watched by Joshua Weissman and his delivery is… interesting.
Full recipe here: https://www.joshuaweissman.com/post/homemade-pad-thai
Chipotle Weekend
Over the weekend I decided I wanted to cook something a little different from the usual. The answer was obvious… a bunch of copycat Chipotle recipes! This looks like a lot of work, but it was totally worth it. There’s a bunch of downtime while making some parts… the carnitas takes a little time and the broiling step can wait. The corn salsa is better with some time to sit as is the guacamole. Lastly, I covered the rice to keep it warm while I finished other pieces.
- Corn Salsa:
- I dialed back the jalapeño a bit, but the rest if the same.
- Beans:
- I used kidney beans instead and still great!
- Carnitas (for Ninja Foodi):
- I may reduce the agave next time, it was rather sweet, but really great overall!
- Guacamole:
- I watched the video mentioned in the post (see below). Chef chad says keep the stems in the cilantro. I removed the thickest parts, but kept the rest. The video differs from the written recipe, so I followed what was written and just grabbed some tips from the video.
- Cilantro Lime Rice
- The only difference is that I used the Ninja Foodi to cook the rice.
- The assembly:
- The end result was basically a rice bowl with (in order from the bottom) rice, beans, carnitas, corn salsa, guac, (vegan) sour cream from Forager.
- There was enough for more than one meal, so there was also a round of quesadillas with carnitas, beans, and Violife vegan cheddar.
Chef Chad of Chipotle demonstrates how to make guacamole:
The Weeknd: After Hours
If you’ve been paying any attention to The Weeknd for the last year you may have noticed a few things: the same red suit jacket and black clothes and a bloodied nose and face. You read right, he’s been making live appearances wearing the same outfit and with makeup and prosthetics to appear bloodied. He’s essentially been telling a story over the course of 10 or 12 music videos and live performances. I’m not sure I can think of a case where someone has sustained a character AND story arc across this many videos.
I’ve compiled those videos below in what I think is the correct order. Some are, uhm, explicit. I’m not sure if this is the last of the videos, but if any more are released I’ll add them to this post.
Album Title
Heartless
Blinding Lights
Until I Bleed Out
Snowchild
Heartless (feat.Lil Uzi Vert) Intermission
Blinding Lights (Live on Jimmy Kimmel Live)
After Hours (Short Film)
In Your Eyes
Too Late
Save Your Tears / In Your Eyes (live)
Save Your Tears
Other notable live performances and videos
Update:
Halloween III
Continuing on my horror movie and TV kick (see also Halloween and Halloween II, here are some more recent watches:
- Phantasm (1979)*
- Prom Night (1980)
- The Funhouse (1981)
- Chopping Mall (1986)*
- Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II (1987)*
- Sleepaway Camp II (1988)
- Sleepaway Camp III (1989)
- Body Bags (1993)
- Hereditary (2018)
- Lovecraft Country (2020)*
*Currently watching or started
I’ve slowed down a bit on the scary stuff as Die Hard and Home Alone season is in full gear. Maybe it’s time to fill in some of my Christmas/horror flick gaps!
Halloween II
Continuing on my previous post, I’ve watched even more horror films. With Halloween and a Friday the 13th so close together, it seemed only appropriate to watch a certain franchise (plus a few others) to stick with horror films.
- Friday the 13th A New Beginning (1985)
- Friday the 13th Jason Lives (1986)
- Jason Goes to Hell (1993)
- Jason X (2002)
- Friday the 13th (2009)
- Sleepaway Camp (1983)
- Ready or Not (2019)
- Lifeforce (1985)
- Maximum Overdrive (1986)
- Children of the Corn (1984)
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
Halloween
I’ve been on a bit of a thriller/horror kick lately, given the season. I’m normally not a huge horror fan, though I like it when it’s done well. There are a few more I will probably try to squeeze in over the next few days. Anything I need to watch? Right now I’m curious about Overlord – seems like a good combo of WWII and zombies!
Over the last few weeks I’ve watched the following movies and TV shows:
- American Horror Story 1984 (2019)
- Dark (2017-20)
- Raising Cain (1992)
- Sisters (1972)
- Evil Dead (1981)*
- Final Destination 5 (2011)
- The Thing (2011)
- Creep (2014)
- Creep 2 (2017)
- Poltergeist (1982)*
- Midsommar (2019)
*Previously seen
Faith Middleton’s Monday Night Flank Steak
At some point during the quarantine, I came to the realization that I wanted a steak night once a week. With that, I’ve been trying different cuts and experimenting with what works. Marinating flank steak was one that just didn’t work (maybe it does for you, but it didn’t for me). I found this recipe randomly and, as I often do, I made a couple of quick substitutions, noted below. The original recipe suggests some side options, including a horseradish sauce or tomato and arugula.
Recipe
- Servings 4-5 people
- Prep Time 15 minutes
- Cook Time 8-10 minutes
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (calls for sweet paprika)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 cloves fresh garlic, ground into a paste (calls for garlic powder)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 flank steak: 1-3/4 to 2 pounds and about 3/4 inch thick, trimmed of excess fat
Instructions
- In a small bowl mix together all the spice-paste ingredients.
- Brush the paste evenly over both sides of the flank steak. Let stand at room temperature while you prepare the sauce.
- Pan fry the flank steak over medium-high heat, until cooked to your desired doneness, 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium rare.
- Transfer the steak to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes.
- Cut the steak across the grain into ¼-inch-thick slices. Taste the meat and season with more salt and pepper if needed.