LiveJournal peeps, I’m back.

Update 10 Oct 2009: Feed URLs are now redirected to their new locations.

Improvisation

One evening recently, though, I had started making a double-batch (10 cups) of dashi, when I discovered that I only had enough bonito flakes for a single batch. The konbu was already heating up in the water. I could’ve just reserved half of the broth after removing the konbu, but I also had some dried shiitakes in the cupboard for making vegetarian dashi. I decided to do half bonito, half shiitake in one pot.

Discovery

The result was a step above the basic konbu-bonito dashi, and this is now the way I make it every time. Here’s the recipe for your enjoyment.

     10 cups fresh, cold water
     2 large pieces of konbu (5 by 5in or 12 by 2in)
     5 large dried shiitake mushrooms

Wipe the konbu with a wet cloth or paper towel (don’t rinse it). Combine with water and mushrooms in a stock pot or saucepan of at least 3qts over medium heat. Heat gently until just below the boiling point, then remove from the heat. Don’t be scared to let it simmer a wee little bit: a few bubbles will get you the right amount of flavor, but boiling it will overdo it.

Let stand 5 minutes, then remove the konbu and mushrooms (as in Ming’s recipe). Return to medium heat, and again bring it almost to a boil as above. When it reaches the same point just below boiling, remove from the heat and toss in
     2 cups bonito flakes

When the bonito flakes sink, strain the dashi thru a fine mesh strainer. (Ming recommends cheesecloth, but if you use high-quality bonito flakes and konbu, this is overkill.) I make a batch at the beginning of the week, and use a bit of it every morning to make miso soup for breakfast.

Here in Minnesota, it’s already snowed, and it’s meant to again tonight. The past few days have been damp and cold and gray. Right now it’s apparently sleeting outside my office window; but the trees in the courtyard are still green.

I woke up this morning in a shade of gloom best described by a song, in this case studying stones: “i am out here studying stones / trying to learn to be less alive … but any more pent up emotion / and i think i’m gonna explode”. (I usually describe my moods by particular songs or albums or lyrics.) I’m not sure why the mood came over me, though having spent the last few nights rapidly working through the first season of Gilmore Girls can’t have helped.

But not to be too emo, I’ll leave you with a bit of Burns (from the full text here):

That wee bit heap o’ leaves an’ stibble, Has cost thee mony a weary nibble! Now thou’s turn’d out, for a’ thy trouble, But house or hald, To thole the winter’s sleety dribble, An’ cranreuch cauld!

…

Still thou art blest, compar’d wi’ me The present only toucheth thee: But, Och! I backward cast my e’e. On prospects drear! An’ forward, tho’ I canna see, I guess an’ fear!

Well, in a couple more months, she’ll have a new playmate:

On the last day of Ren Fest, someone brought a litter of six-week-old kittens for adoption. A friend of mine brought this one home intending to foster her (including getting her spayed and vaccinated) until someone else adopts her. I layed tentative claim immediately, pending talking to J about it. J of course was thrilled.

So when Lilith (as we’ve named her; Lily for short) is a few months old and well socialized with other cats, we’ll bring her home. In the meantime we get to introduce Jezebel to her slowly, in small doses. (Jezebel’s sister, who continues to live with Jezebel’s previous family, was not so happy when a new kitten came home; Jezebel however ought to handle it better.)

More pictures here. I’ve also just posted more pictures of Jezebel.

For the first 24 hours or so, she wouldn’t let me pet her or play with her much. She wasn’t all that freaked out, since she’d been to my house last weekend, but she’s still getting used to me. So last night I brought out the wire brush, placed her on my lap (and didn’t try to hold her there), and brushed her–and immediately she was purring and rubbing on me

Last night was her second night with me. The first night, I left my bedroom door open. Last night, I closed it and kept her out. (I’m not highly allergic, but enough that having my bedroom as a place to recover while sleeping ain’t a bad idea.) She was meowling and scratching at the bedroom door all night, and was quite surly this morning as I was getting ready for work. :/ We’ll see how she feels tonight.

And here’s another picture, your reward for reading this far. I’ll have better pictures as soon as I can duly abuse J’s digital camera.