In which we "make pasta..."

Upon being recently gifted with an All-Amazing-Superfabulously-Hawt-KitchenAid Mixer, my first thought was somehow that I could totally make pasta. Can't be that hard, I thought, it's just dough... I can make dough... and homemade pasta would be so... homey! interesting! so very... from scratch. Because I'm cool and good at making things from scratch. Perhaps I could even come off as looking talented.

Naturally, I'm not THAT good and for some reason, despite the fact that I bake my own bread on a regular basis and cook all the time, I don't own a rolling pin and am more prone to using large cans of the dog's green beans or whatever is in my cabinet when I'm trying to roll something out. So I tried to find the Kitchenaid Pasta attachment.

I googled and found little plates that you can attach to your meat grinder, which came complete with reviews like "caused kitchenaid motor to smoke like crazy" and the ilk and then, found reviews for the Kitchenaid Pasta Maker... which cost nearly as much as the mixer. Bah! I'm not spending hundreds of dollars on a pasta maker, sez I.

So dad and I impulsively went E-Bay shopping and the first thing that popped up was the Atlas Regina, circa the early 90s and made of plastic. We totally missed the all the other pasta makers on ebay, because the Atlas Regina promised to make SHAPES! SHAPES! None of the other pasta makers made SHAPES!

Drawn by the promises of homemade fusili, we ponied up for the Atlas Regina:



In all of it's completely weird-ass glory.

and then Brother Ari came over for an evening of pasta making.

First the All-Amazing-Superfabulous-Hawt KitchenAid mixer churned up Dough Batch One...



and Brother Ari kneaded the dough...



We have dough...



We have no idea what dough is supposed to look like... but it weighs a TON!



OMG! LITTLE BITTY PASTAS!!!



It's called an "extruder."



See them extrude?



Like... um, fuck, worms. Flour dusted worms. Unfortunately, they were too dense to really DO much with... Ari and I ate a few of them and they were reasonably pasta-like, just... very very dense. And very very sticky. Which is why we floured them.




WORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMMMMSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

We will try again through a proper pasta roller. Meanwhile, does anyone want a Atlas Regina?

Locally Grown Mexican Mangos

In which our local grocery store attempts to capitalize on the expanding "local food" movement, in support of small farmers and communities nearby.



Except freakin MANGOS don't grow in Virginia.

Come on, safeway, WTF? Product of Mexico? Mexico isn't local to Virginia either.



I also spotted some local plums (product of California).

More from our neighbors to the north...

http://www.vancouversun.com/Life/Yarn+bombers+take+Vancouver+streets/1342756/story.html

I'm sure I'm going to get some major hate mail from artistes for this one... but YARN BOMBING?!?!?!?!? These so-called "activists" are "bombing" the inner city with doorknob koozies. "Guerrilla knitters!?!?” In surreptitious UNIFORM (one admits to knitting herself a pink balaclava guerilla suit)?

"Knitting tags is almost all i do now," said one person on "www.yarnbombing.com."

Seriously, the rest of us only wish we had so much free time.

The world will burst forth with warm fuzzy yarns of every breed and color, every heart will soften as it connects looping love across the planet stitch by stitch till there is no separation in our smiles.

Maybe I'm just from DC, and we're too damn practical. But I did go to art school, and I can say damn well that anyone who rambles about "looping love across the planet" really, really needs to step out more. I daresay there are a lot of folks and animals out there that could benefit from some warm knitted clothing, you know, instead of a lightpost that's been "tagged." Once upon a time, activism had a pratical purpose beyond "looping love."

Ohhh. CNN.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/personal/01/16/mom.son.dead.pet/index.html


REALLY?


Names of the Week: Turqwaz. Gi'Norria.

The Nation Prepares...

... of the day...

CNN Headlines at this present time:



"Legendary band has 'unfinished music'"

"Harrison Ford's chest hair waxed, ripped off" (WITH VIDEO!)

"What will apple debut at Macworld swan song?"

"Obama reviewed cobbler on TV in '01"

"Artist tests Facebook 'nipple rule'"



This is the news.



Name of the day: Le-a.

Pronounciation: Le-DASH-A.

That dash ain't silent.

Names of the week...

In the interest of my sister's collection of Bad Baby Names, BHAC has decided to start a "Names of the Week" section. It may or may not be updated by the week, but whatever.

Included sections include Inappropriate Use of The Apostrophe, Inappropriate Spellings, Names We Can't Pronounce, and just about anything else that makes us laugh.

This week's are:

L'Aura.

Shabanna.

Spaetzle (Pronounced Spetzel).

Divinity, served cold with onion and miracle whip

In searching for a nice, basic pasta recipe that I could make for this evening: something involving maybe some good parmesan cheese, broccoli, spinach, olive oil, garlic, maybe some asparagus or sundried tomatoes or something... I came across one of the reasons that, from a culinary perspective, sometimes America sucks.

I give you MAC RANCH!

1/2 bottle ranch dressing
1/2 container vegetable dip
1/3 cup purchased salad dressing
4 stalks celery, diced
4 hard boiled eggs, peeled
1 box spaghetti noodles, cooked
1/4 cup milk
5 scallions, chopped

Chill noodles and eggs. Chop eggs into noodles. Add mixture of onions and celery. Add ranch dressing and vegetable dip. Add salad dressing and milk then mix.

The author helpfully notes that her favorite salad dressing "is Miracle Whip."

I'd never thought of Miracle Whip as "salad dressing." I'd also never thought of mixing the above ingredients and calling them a meal.

I'm reminded of the casserole made for us last XMAS, with canned asparagus, hard-boiled eggs, canned peas, cream of mushroom soup, and crackers.

If you haven't seen it before, check out The Amazing Mackerel Pudding Plan. It's snappy and it makes me die a little inside every time I read it.

"Disorderly" conduct

http://www.wlwt.com/cnn-news/17589970/detail.html



BEST. MUGSHOT. EVER.

"The chuppah is closer than you think!"

Are you Jewish, and want to get married? Perhaps this might pique your interest. I think it's like The Rules for Jews.

Oh yes, and there are games:

"The Discovery Wheel is a simpler, more direct communication tool that singles can play on dates to ask each other specific questions about their lives and dreams."

(PS anyone ever hear of having a conversation?)

And speaking of The Rules, those chicks have recorded a RAP SONG. Hey, "Just do the Rules." It's "inspirational," according to their website. Hmm.

On a slightly related note, we can all rest assured knowing that these men will never get laid, no matter how good they think their game is.

(posted by Katie)

Obama's (tartan) lover

http://www.smh.com.au/news/us-election/i-had-sex-with-obama/2008/06/19/1213770824274.html?feed=RSS

Obama's alleged "gay lover" books a room at the Press Club to hold a press conference regarding them doing drugs and having sex. Oh, and his attorney is Montgomery Blair Sibley, aka DC Madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey's attorney, and he is wearing a kilt.

"I don't mean to be impudent," said one reporter, "but why are you wearing a kilt?"

Sibley explained: "It has to do with genitalia. If you are on the smaller side, then pants are not uncomfortable."

WOW

A Los Angeles woman claims she was injured by her Victoria's Secret thong, prompting her to sue the underwear manufacturer.
The plaintiff in the case, Macrida Patterson, 52, attributed the May 2007 injury to a Victoria's Secret "low-rise v-string," according to a court document posted on The Smoking Gun.
Patterson's lawyer told The Smoking Gun that a "design problem" caused a decorative metallic piece on the underwear to fly up and hit Patterson in the eye while she was putting the underwear on.
Patterson's product liability lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court last week.
The Smoking Gun reported that, prior to the lawsuit, officials from Victoria's Secret had asked to see the offending underwear but were refused by Patterson's lawyer.

Extreme Wedding Planning

From Newsweek.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/140148/output/print


Bridesmaid Pre-Nuptial Agreement. Yes, you read that right. If having to squeeze into a puffy, unflattering horror of a dress wasn't bad enough, now bridesmaids have another indignity to contend with. Some brides are so worried about the way their wedding party will look, they have a lawyer draw up a pre-nup that can include things like requiring that a bridesmaid not gain more than 7 pounds before the wedding, not consume too much alcohol at the reception, vow to take extra care of her skin and hair, and not to make any inappropriate advances toward male guests at the reception. [For a peek at a sample agreement, go to the American Bar Association Website).
Although brides who've used pre-nups were reluctant to go on the record for this story, several of them explained that the agreements were necessary to ensure that their day was perfect.
"People can have a contract for just about anything that's not illegal," says Randy Kessler, who teaches family law at John Marshall Law School in Atlanta. "This sort of document simply states that if the woman keeps the requests of the contract, she will be a bridesmaid. If not, she won't. It's not the craziest contract idea I've seen or heard of."
If worded correctly and signed by both members, the contract, which can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 to draw up, could be used in court. For example, Kessler says, if a woman flew all the way to Hawaii for a wedding and didn't end up being a bridesmaid because of a breach in her contract, and then she tried to sue the bride for the expenses of her flying to Hawaii, the contract could be used in court as proof that the bride had the right to take away the privilege of being a bridesmaid.
But Kessler cautions overzealous Bridezillas: "A wedding should be a happy time. And to be honest, getting lawyers involved always puts a damper on things."