Oh, this might sound just a mite strange talking about the wonders and virtues of mouse pads… but even with the advent of optical mice years ago… I still find using one much much more comfortable and reliable.
Having become one of the worlds leading experts on mouse pads… it was my job to search the cosmos to find the perfect mouse pad manufacturer. Laura with the help of her daughters worked up a great design, and it became my job to find someone who would make it and sell it for very very little. hmmmmm
Here is Laura and her prototype… the rest arrive tomorrow!
I have noticed that if ingredients in a recipe tend to be pricey — as is the case with lobster tails — chefs tend to develop presentations to feature them. However, if you take the challenge to use lobster in a more ‘supporting role’ then I think you can really bring out it’s wonderful and tasty nature and it’s real beauty.
There are a few lobster pie or lobster quiche recipes on the net and most of them are relatively bland, some with virtually nothing added to distract from the subtle taste of lobster… some recipes come with virtually no spices.
This recipe is very different and filled with spices and various herbs, vegetables and sauteed in Sherry . Of course there is nothing wrong with preparing a wonderful dessert to complement the meal… and Baklava provides just the right sweetness for the occasion!
It’s always a bit disturbing when any government steps in to regulate an area that previously remained free.
Oh, I know there have been patent medicine salesman selling fraudulent cures, but they have been with us like ‘Jacek’ in a Stargate episode selling fake “stardust” on the net, forever. However, I do wonder, why our government is so interested in protecting us now? Why do they really want to be involved in regulating what is said on the internet? Hmmmm , I wonder, did I answer my own question?
A disturbing first ‘toe in the water’appeared in Advertising Age with the FTC showing interest in bloggers and their evaluations of consumer products. The FTC wants to protect us by holding certain bloggers liable for their opinions…. ok, this is interesting … where is this going? … and do we really need this?
Although you may not be selling anything more than your ideas, this is something worth keeping an eye on. After all, one loses one’s freedom easiest a piece at a time.
Laura has some fond memories from childhood regarding something called Gingerbread Cake often served with a ‘hard sauce.’ I am very familiar with many cakes… especially something called ‘spice cake’… but this isn’t that.
Gingerbread is a ‘firm’ cake sliced in layers and served often with a wonderful hard sauce… and ice cream ( which is how I like it). Laura enjoyed her serving with tea (Earl Grey), honey and lemon. The hard sauce contained: orange brandy, orange zest, cream, rye whiskey, powdered sugar, ginger and butter.
There are many claims to gingerbread and gingerbread cake alike. Both the Romans and the Chinese were fond of a honey cake with ginger. In middle age Europe, gingerbread was viewed as a medicinal aid to digestion with curative powers. In pre-Christian Europe, gingerbread was part of the winter solstice ceremonies and continued on to help ring in Christmas. The ancient Greeks and the Egyptians were said to use it in their ceremonies.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) has often been quoted as a fan of gingerbread:
“Had I but a penny in the world, thou shouldst have it for gingerbread”
In America, gingerbread has been a favorite from the very beginning . It is said that President George Washington’s mother served gingerbread to the Marquis de Lafayette on his visit to America in 1784.
The ingredients and preparation styles of gingerbread have always reflected the times. When stoves didn’t have ovens, gingerbread was cooked very much as you would Boston Baked Bread in a container surrounded by boiling water. The availability of spices and cost considerations also limit the recipe construction. I have even found recipes for gingerbread where the addition of ginger appears to be an afterthought and much reduced.
Fortunately, we won’t bother ourselves with trivial concerns for time, effort or expense in our recipe.
Sonrisa Gingerbread Cake
By the way, Gingerbread is one of those things you can bake the day before, reheat, top with hard sauce and it’s all to the good. I will be producing a hard sauce (tomorrow) to drip over the final creation… should be fun.
