Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Brandy Alexander and Espèces de Dinde

Poor old blog. Hast thine writer abandoned ye for the ease of facebook status updates to speaketh on her behalf? Must thou endure bad shakespearesque mockery?

It's true that Facebook is sucking the attention span out of me. Everything is in little bits like Sesame Street. No long, meandering, self-absorbed rants... But then again, no one reads poor bloggy anymore for the same reason. Joby? Are you there? My one readership. You are resisting the steel-cabled strength of Facebook allure. I salute you and I encourage your corruption at the same time because Scrabble is stronger than anyone's will.

Also, I'm super boring these days.

Thanks to Feist I've been wondering what exactly is in a Brandy Alexander. God that song is catchy.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 oz Brandy
1 oz Dark Crème de Cacao
1 oz Half-and-half or Heavy cream
1/4 tsp grated Nutmeg
Mixing instructions:

In a shaker half-filled with ice cubes, combine the brandy, crème de cacao, and half-and-half. Shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with the nutmeg.

[edit] Alternate recipe
Ingredients:

2 jiggers dark crème de cacao
1 jigger brandy
1 pt. vanilla ice cream
1 c. crushed ice
Mixing instructions:

Put all ingredients in blender. Cover and frappé until sherbet consistency. Serve in small brandy snifters with nutmeg sprinkled on top. Yield: 6 (3 oz.) drinks.


Alright then, I will have to admit that this sounds like a remarkably tasty drink although I would make it with soy ice cream. SO there.

Speaking of soy products. As it's Thanksgiving this weekend, we are on the prowl for a Tofurky. Quite tricky to find here and all the more tricky to explain in a second language. "Uhhh, c'est un espèce de dinde qui est fait de tofu." To someone who has no idea what a tofurky is this is an alarming and confusing description. Someone, at a health food store even said to me: "This exists?" Well yes it does and it's very tasty. The thing I'm sure everyone imagines and even I myself imagined before I saw it the first time, is that it is NOT in the shape of a turkey. Nor does it taste like a turkey or have the consistency of a turkey. It's a mound. A big mound of chewy tofu with a core of rice stuffing. Ha ha, and it's tasty as hell so turn your noses up if you are so inclined. More tofurky for me.

It's strange though. I can't process that it's October already. It's still quite warm even though the leaves have turned. I have a love hate relationship with this time of the year. I find it the most exhilarating and exciting change of season. Maybe because it means my birthday and christmas are on the horizon, or because I prefer orange and red leaves to green?

I don't know why I always get so thrilled when autumn comes but at the same time, the days get shorter and I can feel the old coffin lid of darkness closing in on me. I'm ecstatic during the day and then at dusk, I physically feel the light being dragged down as it disappears like the force of gravity has increased and I get all panicky like someone is throwing dirt over me at the bottom of a six foot deep hole. Once it's gone down and it's all the way dark, I adjust and feel okay but MAN, that 45 minutes at dusk is killer in the fall and winter. I should hate those seasons but I don't. I love them. I love you fall and winter, even though you partially kill me.

Perhaps I should greet each dusk this season with a Brandy Alexander.

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