Pepper in a Pepper

While chopping red bell peppers, I found one with a small green pepper growing inside it. Tasty, tasty mutations. Read More......

Chicken and Spinach Dinner

A particularly nice looking dinner I made: lemon-herb chicken breast on baby spinach with cheesy noodles and sliced tomatoes. Read More......

Marshmallows

Marshmallows!



After a discussion with my sister-in-law about how commercial marshmallows have deteriorated into disgusting, un-roastable little snowman turds, I looked up a recipe for marshmallows on www.cookingforengineers.com. This is the first batch -- I stirred in some mini chocolate chips before setting them, then dipped them in chocolate once I cut them into squares and tapped the edges in corn starch to prevent sticking. The recipe called for using powdered sugar on the edges, but they were plenty sweet without it.


In the next batch, I stirred chopped maraschino cherries. Can't locate a picture, but I plan to make another batch of those for Lupercalia 2010.

Evil Bitch-Monster of Death's note: I find the marshmallows too sweet with 2/3 c. corn syrup. In the recipes in which I replaced most of it it with something else (chocolate, maraschino cherry liquid), the sweetness came out great. For plain batches, I suggest using only 1/3 - 1/2 c. corn syrup.
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Rainbow Heart Easter Cake

Happy Easter!

I made this cake after a failed Sprite cake experiment with some friends. This particular cake was made using regular cake batter and food coloring. It was delicious! The icing is cream cheese and sugar, also colored with food coloring. The gist of the recipe is to make 6 bowls of colored batter. Pour 2/3 of the first three colors in the center of a circular pan, one after the other, then 1/3 of the next three colors (again in the center -- the lower layers mush out to the edges). For the square pan, I poured in an "X" shape to force the batter to mush out to the corners.


Batter for the rainbow cake in 8-inch circular and 8 x 8-inch square pans.


Cakes baked.


Cakes cut and shaped into a heart.


Slices of the rainbow cake.


Cake sliced.
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UM crochet pouches

UM crochet pouches. Three varieties -- green, orange, and white backed, each with magnetic snap attached.


The division of academics in which I work at the University of Miami has between 17 and 20 employees. For gift-giving seasons, I have taken to making UM-themed crafts for my co-workers. These are pouches from a few years ago, made with nylon thread/cord.


Front of pouch with pattern

This is the final incarnation of the pattern -- the first few were a scratchy mess. Note that the pattern is drawn green-side-left, which means it is worked essentially from the back. Keep this in mind if you try to make a pouch, and tie off/weave in accordingly.


Nylon crochet thread used to make pouches. It is fun to work with, washable, durable, and the ends are easily sealed by a careful application of fire -- or fray sealant, for the non-pyros out there. I bought the nylon cord from Creative Yarn Source, an excellent distributor of many knit and crochet ingredients.

For those of you interested, below is the pattern. There may be errors. I will eventually post detailed carry and color change instructions, possibly with videos.

UM Crochet Pouches
Pattern by Evil Bitch-Monster of Death

14 x 22 stitches
Omega La Espiga nylon size 18 (comparable to #5 cotton, #3 linen; purchased from Creative Yarn Source)
Size E/F crochet hook (I have a very tight crochet stitch, so I used F -- 3.75mm)
magnetic snaps
yarn needle (for sewing sides together)

UM “U” has orange on left, green on right – crochet pattern works backwards. This was on purpose for some right-side/wrong-side reason, but that was before I revised the pattern. It will likely turn out fine started on orange.

Stitches used:
ch = chain
sc = single crochet
slst = slip-stitch

Begin: with white, chain 14
R1-3: ch1, turn, with white sc in each – 14 sc
R4: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, tie on green next sc, with green carry white sc in next 9 – drop, switch to white sc in next 3 – 14 sc
R5-6: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, with green carry white sc in next 10 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R7: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, with green carry white sc in next 2 – drop, switch to white sc in next 10 – 14 sc
R8: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 10, with green carry white sc in next 2 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R9: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, with green carry white sc in next 1 – drop, switch to white sc in next 11 – 14 sc
R10: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 11, with green carry white sc in next 1 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R11-12: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 14 – 14 sc
R13: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, tie on orange in next sc, with orange carry white sc in next 1 – drop, switch to white sc in next 11 – 14 sc
R14: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 11, with orange carry white sc in next 1 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R15: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, with orange carry white sc in next 2 – drop, switch to white sc in next 10 – 14 sc
R16: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 10, with orange carry white sc in next 2 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R17-18: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 2, with orange carry white sc in next 10 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R19: ch1, turn, with white sc in next 3, with orange carry white sc in next 9 – drop, switch to white sc in next 2 – 14 sc
R 20-22: ch1, turn, with white sc in each – 14 sc, tie off

Begin: with white, green, or orange, chain 14
R1-9: ch1, turn, sc in each – 14 sc
R10: ch 6, ch1, turn, sc in each ch (6), sc in each sc (14) – 20 sc
R11-13: ch1, turn, sc in each – 20 sc
R14: ch1, turn, slst in 6 sc, sc in next 14 sc – 14 sc
R15-22: ch1, turn, sc in each – 14 sc, tie off

Using white, sew back to front except for side with tab. Press magnetic snaps into tab and top middle of front of pouch.
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Halloween Decorations

Halloween decorations on the side table.



Rubber bat on the fan puller.
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Watermelon Brain, Chocolate Spiders, Frozen Frog Eggs, and Bloody Teeth

The Halloween brain display from the tray I made for work.



The finished Halloween display. Brain, spiders, jello worms that turned out to be more intestine-like than worm-like, bloody teeth (pomegranate seeds), and some bat and skull rings I swiped from my brother's Halloween party.


Another shot of the brain display.


A watermelon carved into a brain. This watermelon was oblong, so I first chopped it in half. Then I de-rinded it with a large knife, just enough to expose the light green part. The brain-ish pattern was cut with a small knife, exposing the reddish watermelon. It is a good, creepy, delicious Halloween treat. In last year's second brain, I poured semi-solidified, reddish flavored gelatin over the brain so that it sank into the crevices and shined up the exterior.


Chocolate "spiders" made with Chinese snack noodles, melted chocolate chips, and peanut butter. I like using a variety of ingredients in these tasty snacks, but for Halloween spiders I used a simpler recipe:

about 2 tblsp peanut butter
7-8 oz. chocolate (semi-sweet chips)
about 5 oz. chow mein noodles (the whole bag, of a regular bag -- whatever a regular bag is)

Melt chocolate chips, stir in peanut butter, stir in crispy chow mein noodles. It may seem like the melted goodness won't be enough to cover the noodles, but keep stirring. It will be fine. Drop by the spoonful onto wax paper, let set, store in fridge if you're in Miami.


Kiwi, lemon juice, and honey blender concoction, poured into cups with kiwi slices pressed into the bottom and frozen. Mmmmm, tasty frozen frog eggs.


Halloween gelatin and whipped cream pie. It was actually more orange than it looks in the picture. On the side are the pomegranates that became 'bloody teeth.'
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Alien scribble

This is a terrible first post and will likely be removed once I find the rest of my pictures. These notes were taken during a staff meeting in July, 2007. Alien is inspired by H. R. Giger. Read More......