things I love, vol. ii

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19. doughnuts

I have been known to eat more than my share of doughnuts. I don’t want just any doughnuts, however. I want them fresh. I want them good.

Bob’s Donut & Pastry shop was a friendly walk away from where I stayed in San Francisco, and I certainly availed myself of their fine services. Too much so, really. I liked the apple fritter and the plain glazed stick…

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Sadly, there are no excellent doughnuts within friendly walking distance of where I live now. Perhaps it is better this way.

Also see: things I love, vol. i

weekend distraction: tastespotting

I’ve been browsing tastespotting a lot recently, looking for presentation ideas and just any ideas. It usually ends badly, with me wanting to make eight different meals simultaneously, not quite having the ingredients for any of them, feeling very hungry and cheap (because I won’t just go out and buy them, if that is even a possibility, as I am always saving my money for something or other (which thing is invariably of either limited or outright dubious utility, but that is beside the point) and food is most often cheaper (and simply better) to make yourself, especially in the long run). I compromise by making a list of what I want to make ‘sometime soon’.

Here are some of the dishes currently on the list.

[When I ultimately get around to making the dish I usually look up several recipes and cobble the most appealing elements together. These links, then, are just starting points. Images link to source blogs/recipes.]

1. Pho!

I love pho. I have really only had it a few times but it is for me so comforting and warming and delicious. There is also an undeniable pattern involving me liking dishes that feature some complex system of garnishes.

I was craving this so decidedly that I went out and bought a Thai basil plant. Beef, chicken, vegetable…any which way. This is going to happen soon.

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2. Coconut cardamom rice pudding with blueberries

There is something hearty and rustic about rice pudding that always appeals. Not exactly the first thing you think when the weather warms, I suppose, but it’s what I want lately. [Keeping the arsenic issue in mind when sourcing the rice.] I love both blueberries and cardamom. And coconut.

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3. Burger with bourbon caramelized onions

More cooking with alcohol. This is maybe what started the burger cravings? Though I also like the idea of putting these onions on a pizza. With…artichokes, maybe. And sardines? I’m pretty into sardines at the moment. No! Sausage.

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4. Gingerbread caramel corn

This needs no explanation.

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