Strawberry shortcake

I thought strawberry shortcake would be an all-American dessert.  In the New York countryside strawberries would come into season nearly the same time as corn.  In 2008 my friend Kristen and I spent a morning picking strawberries at a nearby farm.  They were delicious and it was difficult not to eat them as we were picking.  We confessed this to the farmer but he didn't charge us for it, probably because we had picked enough to fill a large basket.  Only after we paid did we begin to worry about the massive quantity of fruit.  We shouldn't have worried because my roommate, Chris, was a very large, very hungry man.  He was of Swedish decent and looked every bit like one of those vikings that you find on the cover of romance novels.  He had long, blond hair and spoke in such a low growl that he was somewhat unintelligible.  It was futile to carry on a phone conversation with him because all you would hear was the sound of an idling engine.  He consumed over a hundred strawberries in less than an hour.

To my great shock, SB didn't know what I was serving him for dessert.  He had avoided strawberries as a child because he thought they looked too much like his nemesis, the tomato.  He did not understand how difficult it is to make a good shortcake, one that is light and fragile instead of dry or dense.  He didn't know how truly American this dessert is, how it is associated with lemonade and sweet corn and fireworks.  All he knew was that it tasted good, but it was enough.

Strawberry Shortcakes for two

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
very, very small pinch of salt
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter in small pieces
½ cups cold heavy cream

Preheat the (toaster)oven to 425°F (205°C).  Lay parchment paper on a baking sheet, to go in the middle rack of the oven.

Mix the dry ingredients together.  Add the butter and pinch it together with the flour until you break the butter up into small flakes.  You do not want to overwork the flour and butter or your shortcakes will be hard instead of light.  Pour the cream into the ingredients and mix gently with a fork just until it is blended.  You may have to knead with your hands (gently).  The dough should be sticky.
Divide the dough into who portions and place on the baking sheet so that the shortcakes are more than three inches apart and about an inch high.  Bake for about 20 minutes when they are lightly golden and puffy.  They will be fragile so carefully transfer them to the cooling rack.

Whip 350ml or so of cream until it is light and fluffy.  You may add some sugar or vanilla to the cream but I prefer it plain.

Wash a container of strawberries and slice them.  You may sprinkle a tiny bit of sugar on them to release some juices that you can drizzle over the top of your shortcakes.

Use a serrated knife and carefully cut the shortcakes in half horizontally.  Don't worry too much if they break because you can hide it with the whipped cream.  Put some whipped cream and then strawberries on half of the shortcake and then place the other half on top.

of mountains and mole hills

I wasn't aware that there were any large swaths of untamed wilderness or towering peaks in Hong Kong Island but we all have our own definitions of what big is.  I learned this lesson when I was living in Italy; like Hong Kong's mountains, the size of a stallion is vigorously debated.

green eggs and sham

For those who aren't aware, Hong Kong has made effort to promote six industries (aside from those relating to the finance and real estate services) that they have identified as advantageous, crucial to the development of economy and able to propel Hong Kong toward a knowledge-based economy: testing and certification, medical services, innovation and technology, cultural and creative industries, environmental industries and education services.

I am never so relieved of Hong Kong's high level of testing and certification services as when I read articles like this one from the L.A. Times regarding food fakery and contamination.  I hope that Hong Kong can continue to remain as an protected harbour against any filth that may trickle down the delta.

Your Friendly Catholic Converts



Bob Hope

Watching Catholic Converts, was like looking through my old photo albums. I do not know any of the people personally, but having read and heard about many of them, I felt like I was reminiscing with family and friends, e.g. Bob Hope, St. Paul, Judge Robert Bork, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross and G. K. Chesterton.

St. Paul

G.K. Chesterton

I felt so proud to be Catholic, proud to have chosen the same path that these well-accomplished converts chose. 

St. Teresa Benedicta
of the Cross

Perhaps my experience was deepened by memories of my own conversion back to the Catholic Church.  It was patriotic in nature, except that it was a fervor for my religion, rather than my country. 

 

images - http://www.bobhope.com/bob.htm

http://www.chromaonline.com/teachers/jody_cole/commissions/panel_paintings

http://logismoitouaaron.blogspot.com/2010/05/i-liked-him-for-his-goodnessgk.html

http://www.sfdsnyc.org/?p=1889

 





pumpkinhead

Another bad haircut.  The stylist tried to give me the layers I requested and somehow it went terribly wrong.  I had two flaps on the side like dog ears and a short, blunt cut in the back.  The stylist who I wanted but was busy came over in the middle of the haircut and stopped the one who was hacking away in what I think may have been panic.  Maybe he confused layered with bi-level.  They conferred for a few minutes and then the good stylist asked me if it was okay.  I wasn't sure what he was referring to but no, I wasn't a fan of looking like a basset hound.  I repeated my original request for shoulder length, layered hair.  Long pause.  I had not yet seen the back but I suspected that it was several inches beyond shoulder length. 

To make matters worse SB came along from his shampoo and audibly sucked in his breath.  Oh dear.  This was not going well.  I looked at the floor and noticed a large pile on long hair.  Now it was my turn to feel panicked. 

To cut a long story short (heh) I now have a bowl on top of my head.  Like I used to have when I was a child and my mother cut my hair.  It was the best that they could do. They had to shave part of the back of my head to get it even in length.  I used to have hair down to my waist.  SB loved running his hands through it.  Now he can rub on the prickly part in the back, that is if I can get him to stop weeping.

HappiShop

Matagal ko nang gustong magkaron ng sarili kong tindahan online, at sa wakas, nararamdaman ko na ang katuparan ng pangarap na ito.  


HappiShop ni Happinay.


Abangan! :)

Juno

SB and I attended three weddings in June.  All of this matrimonial fever had us thinking of our own plans again.  It has been almost two years since his decision to marry me now.  He still hasn't met my parents.  And I won't make it official without at least one meeting of the families.  It doesn't seem too much to ask for but somehow it has been a monumental undertaking.  My parents are very active retirees; they are constantly moving about the country back in the States.  They spend the fall and winter in Tucson where my father is a docent at the desert museum (I think I previously mentioned his work with the Harris hawks and other desert raptors).  During the spring my mother works as a tax counselor for the elderly.  They spend their summers at a national park in Utah.

SB's parents are no less busy.  He also has two sets of them to round up.  His mother and stepfather are in the process of moving to be closer to his eldest sister and grandchildren.  His father started another family later in life and has one son in university and a daughter still in boarding school. 

I feel reinvigorated by all the June weddings and maybe rededicated to our plans.  We are tentatively planning a meeting during the Christmas season.  That gives me plenty of time to get myself worked up worrying if they will like each other.  Wish me luck.