NOPA

Finally tried one of the newer places in my neighborhood, NOPA.  It's an abbreviation/contraction/allthecoolkidsaredoingit portmanteau-esque word for NOrh PAnhandle, referring to the area north of the Golden Gate Park panhandle, a strip of park that's more like a boulevard -- a very very big boulevard -- that extends nearly to the geographic midsaggital of the city, which is approximately Divisadero, my old street.

I remember when they were gutting out the old, and large, laundromat in preparation for reopening the space, and, really, they've done a great job with the place.  Modern, but more wood than metal, earth tones, some frizzled glass and good lighting, it's also (typically) loud.  Full bar, and reasonable menu.  If you wanted to just go and fill up on appetizers small-plate style, you could easily do this.  However, they have five or six main courses, including a Morroccan tagine, which of course piqued my interest (verdict:  very hearty, not served on cous cous, but lots of potato; mine's better and more varied in flavor, but it's not a bad offering).  But the warm goat cheese, pickled beets, and frisée was delicious, as was the celery root soup, and the flatbread looked tasty too, as did the little gem lettuce salad.

I'll definitely be going back with Z-Man.

Ravioli Experimentation

Last night, I performed my second attempt at using the Kitchen Aid Ravioli Maker.  You may recall my first aborted attempt ended in gooey failure.  My suspicion that the dough was, indeed, too soft was put to the test.

I'm still playing around with dough consistency and composition, to see what I like, what holds up, how it transforms after rolling, etc.  Last night, I was cooking for Jennconspiracy, so I cook vegan.  I used 1 cup of superfine semolina flour and 1 cup regular coarse semolina flour and only a little less than 3/4 cup of water.  Yes, that's a dry, dry, dry dough, but all the opinions I've read say that 1) the dough should be leathery (check) and 2) rolling well breaks down the gluten enough to stay together in the boiling water (check).

I love butternut squash, and I based the filling off of this recipe here.  I made three subsitutions to make it Jenn-friendly:

1. Substitute olive oil for butter.  Now, that's kinda sad, given that it's a brown butter sage sauce, and that's what I love most about it, but we're being vegan friendly.
2. Substitute garlic herb tofu for ricotta.  This was inspired, if I do say so myself.  I got a very small packet of garlic and herb marinated tofu and when it came time to purée the squash, I used this instead.  Everyone said it was delicious -- and even creamy! When you initially prepare the squash, it gets roasted for a while in the oven with some garlic cloves lightly smashed, so the flavors went well together, and the roasted garlicky goodness made my whole house smell heavenly.  The tofu was just right for texture, mouthfeel, and flavor.
3. Substitute won ton wrappers for the real deal pasta.  This was the whole raison d'etre for even doing this, of course.  I've made won ton pasta ravioli before, and you know what? It sucks.  It's not the same and I don't think it even comes close.

One of the nicest things about making your own pasta is that you get to season it however you want.  I used nutmeg, cinnamon, balinese pepper corns, white pepper, and chocolate bonnet chilie peppers (mild and smoky -- not hot at all in the pasta) for my dough, and it complemented the squash nicely.

With the Kitchen Aid, first you roll out strips of pasta dough, and then you either run them through the cutter or you run them through the ravioli maker.  My first roll-through of the dough was almost perfect . . . and then I overworked it and the strip became useless. Gulp.  I prayed silently to Vesta and other kitchen spririts that the broken leathery mess I held was my sacrificial offering on the way to success.  More carefully, I rolled out the next batch and got some decent strips of pasta.

Meanwhile, I'm having my guests play sous-chefs and they're being good little workers.  To fortify them while they toiled, I had some Pride Mountain chardonnay ready and some of my perrennial favorite Buena Vista chilling.  Also, a rosemary bread slab with some gouda and marcona almonds too for nibbles.  The worked mostly on getting the salad ready:  curly escarole, watermelon daikon radish, fennel slices, gold beet julienne, and a light olive oil/tangerine juice dressing with some dried mint and basil.

So, pasta strips are rolled out and ready, resting on layers or waxed parchment.  The squash has been puréed with the tofu, let's taste . . . ooo! Good sign! Delicious! And here we go, the moment of truth.

I begin with one of the rolled out ribbons of pasta, fold it and feed it into the cutter.  I give the handle a small twist to get it ready, and I can see where the dough pockets out for the filling.  With my tiny spoon, I feed a little filling onto the fold.  Here we go here we go.  Twist the handle . . . okay, it's a bit tough.  Apply more pressure.  Check surreptitiously to make sure it's not exploding out the sides like it did on me the first time.  Sneak a look under the cutter.  Huh, look at that.  Emboldened, twist it through and keep going.

Gasp! It's  . . . it's coming out right!! In short order, I've got an envelope of perforated ravioli, about nine squares.  I pull away the extra dough.  The ravioli holds up beautifully.  The pouches are sticking together, and the outside of the dough is still nice and leathery and tough.  The seams are totally fine.  OMG!

There's a cheer, some pictures taken, and I start on a longer strip.  Again, there's some resistance in the handle-turning, but it's coming out just beautifully -- perfect in fact!  Pretty soon, I have a reasonable amount of ravioli.  Feeling daring, I take the waste dough, ball it up, and roll out some more strips and get some more ravioli -- I still have some filling, so I save that in the fridge.

Result:  delicious.  I nearly cried in relief.  I can't wait to try again.

Heh, looks like Catherine Tate spoke too soon:

"Catherine Tate stitched me up good and proper. She goes on Jonathan Ross and makes up a load of old nonsense," [Tennant] said.

"Unbeknownst to me, she thinks I've made a decision - she'd clearly had too much coffee that morning.

"She said I was leaving, which was a decision I haven't made yet. Maybe she's made it for me, but I'm going to keep people guessing for as long as possible.

So, it's on his mind, even though he's not decided.  Whatever.  He's great, and I suspect he'll stick around a bit longer, given the show's success and popularity.

Also from the Daily Mail, here are some Kylie-rific shots.

Awww, they look cute!

In a previously-rumored and/or hinted-at twist, Jennifer Saunders may play the role of The Doctor for an episode of Doctor Who.

Russel Davies, the man chiefly responsible for the rebirth of the show, once hinted that a female Doctor could happen, early when the show restarted in 2005.  According to the article, though, this would just be a one-off. 

Several years ago, there was a Comic Relief special called "Doctor Who and The Curse of the Fatal Death," a non-canon, lovingly done spoof of the show where the Doctor, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Blackader) and Julia Swalha (Saffron from Absolutely Fabulous) meet the Doctor's old nemesis, the Master (Jonathan Pryce).  During the course of the short, he regenerates several times as the result of incompetence or violence.  Rowan turns into Hugh Grant, Richard E. Grant, and, finally and by far most humorously, Joanna Lumley, also from Absolutely Fabulous (and long, long ago from The Avengers, heh).

So, although it was a satire, the Doctor has already been one of the horrible women from Ab Fab.  But this time, it'll be an actual episode. Heh.

Also, Catherine Tate, the Runaway Bride from the Doctor Who Chirstmas Special 2006 is apparently reprising her role of Donna Noble and is the Doctor's season 4 companion.  Martha Jones, season 3's companion, left at the end of last season, but is supposed to make an appearance in season 4.  Tate mentioned that she's only doing season 4, and indicated that it might be David Tennant's last season as well.  Other sources mention that they're going on hiatus for a year so Tennant can do some other work, but then would be back for another season a year later.

Not sure how I'm going to go a year without Who.  Might have to start living even more in my own head, especially given the sad Pratchett news.

Terry Pratchett, one of my favorite authors ever, and one of the most popular and humorous writers alive, has been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's Disease.

The news came out a few days ago, but I'm just getting to it now.  This makes me sad beyond words.  No, really it does.  There are lots of terribly things in the world right now to be sad about.  Things much, much worse than one man's bad news about old age.  There are many men, women, and children who won't live to see old age because actions that my government has supposedly taken on my behalf even though I didn't want them to.

 But, you see, to me, reading Pratchett is one of those things that makes them more bearable. I'm not too proud to take an analgesic once in a while.

Even in the face of the news, he's still himself, still funny (italics mine).

"Frankly, I would prefer it if people kept things cheerful, because I think there's time for at least a few more books yet )" he wrote in his message. "I know it's a very human thing to say 'Is there anything I can do,' but in this case I would only entertain offers from very high-end experts in brain chemistry."

Blogging has been light due to a combination dry skin, lack of time, and the heartbreak of psoriasis.

• Improv Class.  Foundations 2 started two weeks ago.  The teacher is okay, although so far, Laura (my Foundations 1 teacher) is a hard act to follow.  I'm giving this new one a chance.  In some ways, I'd like to be thrown in the deep end more.  In others, the class is about foundations of improvisation, and it's good to know how to walk, even if one prefers flying.
  
• Tori Amos.  In one of the best impulse purchases ever, Z-Man got tickets to Tori Amos at one of the most lovely theaters anywhere, Oakland's Paramount theater.  It was the last weekend of her American Doll Posse Tour, and she performed Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  We saw Sunday's show.  The last time I saw her was in Gainesville, shortly after the Under the Pink album was released.  That show was more about Tori and her Bösendörfer.  She had a guitarist that would occasionally accompany her.  This show, however, had a drummer, bassist, and guitarist and a brilliant, almost-eclipsing light show.  It was Rock, with a capital RAWR.  There was a brief interlude where the phrase "T & Bö" was lit on the curtain backdrop that was just her and her piano (she did "Baker, Baker," one of my favorites from Pink).  But for the most part, wow, she ripped.  The only thing I wish I'd heard her do was "Icicle," also from Under the Pink.  But I'm not complaining.  I was wowed.
  
• Travel.  Z-Man left today for Munich to visit his brother.  He's going to be in Europe until the 9th of January.  We're meeting up in London on New Year's Eve.  Dr Rogish will be joining us and, in fact, driving us up to York for a little visit.  We're planning on going to the Lake District, home of Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter, that Miles assures me is lovely, and probably will still be gorgeous even in dark, wet English winter.  Here's hoping for a dry spell.  I'll miss my boy.
  
• Goldfrapp.  Still obssessed.  New album in February.  Oh, la, la.
  
• Pope Palpatine (see Sidebar).  The Devil Wears Prada.
  
• Scary Stories.  I really enjoyed writing that Halloween story.  I have another story in the works based on a nightmare I had a while ago that was, despite my waking up screaming, fascinating.  But if I don't have time for blog posts, I sure don't have time for fiction writing.  Sad.

And that's a quick wrap-up.

It's been nearly a year since I first went to Michael Mina.  I was last there for Valentine's Day, and so I decided it was time to go back again and bring someone new.  My boss just had a birthday, and I thought that would be a nice thing to do.   He's quite generous himself and has rarely ever let me foot a drink bill when we socialize post-work.

The upshot is that this was another excellent evening at Michael Mina's, and I'm still über-stuffed.  I was a little concerned, because my boss is a big eater and his partner can be very discriminating in his tastes.  Happily, I had nothing to worry about..  We were all stuffed by the end of the evening, and everyone had something they enjoyed (tasting menu for the win!).  Here's what I can recall of the vegetarian tasting menu, which varies slightly from what's currently listed on the website.

Amuse #1:  Roasted Chestnut Soup
Amuse #2:  Tempura Battered Haricots Verts with (meyer lemon?) aioli
Course #1:  Hearts of Palm (a medallion, lightly seared) with Hayden Mango, Hass Avocado, and Macadamia Nuts, with Crispy Wild Cilantro
Course #2:  Roasted Young Beets, Braised Fennel, Laura Chenel Goat Cheese, Beet Vinaigrette
Course #3:  Matsutake Shabu-Shabu, Sudachi Lime, Watermelon Radish, Shungiku (this dish was delicious, basically a red miso soup in a hot pot with matsutake mushrooms that was ladled over the aromatics)
Course #4:  Pumpkin Ravioli, Pomegranate Cream, Crispy Shallots, Arugula Rabe (supposedly arugula in flower and the flowering parts)
Course #5:  Porcini Pot Pie, Creamy Sherry, Pearl Onions, Carrots
Course #6:  English Stilton, Aleppo Oil, Marcona Almonds
(Alternate Course #6:  Apple Tarte Tatin, Burnt Cinnamon Ice Cream (really good), Sable Breton, Mulled Cider

The wine pairing with the beets was a Bodegas Naia verdejo that was really, really good.  The waiter also informed me that this particular verdejo was still growing on its original European Vitis vinifera rootstock.  In the 1800s, European vineyards were decimated by the phylloxera aphid, which the European vines were susceptible to, but North American rootstock wasn't.  Europe was able to recover from the epidemic by hybridizing and by grafting European varietal grapes onto North American rootstock, but those vines cultivated in sandy soil were spared, as the aphid can't survive in that media.  This particular verdejo was spared the ravages of the insect. 

Thanksgiving in Napa was everything I hoped it would be.  La Toque was amazing, as was Ubuntu.  The sommelier at La Toque recommended a couple of wineries, Pride Mountain and Storybook.  Both did not disappoint.  The accommodations were awesome, and I did brave the chilly night for a dip in the hot tub.  Relaxing antidote to the toxic levels at work that were eating away at my patience.  Photos? Why yes...

I'm reading Neil Gaiman's first collection of short stories, Smoke and Mirrors.  I'd read his second collection (Fragile Things) first, and had no idea why I hadn't gotten his first one yet.  It's been out for years.

This morning on the shuttle to work, I read a story called "Changes."  It is, itself, sort of a compilation of smaller shorts or vignettes, loosely based around a man who develops the cure to cancer.  However, the drug, called Reboot, has the unintended side-effect of flipping your gender.  Males become females, females become males.  The story is more science fiction, rather than his usual fantasy/horror genre.  He explores, briefly, the ramifications of this drug -- the religions that are against it, the underground drug culture that resulted, Chinese families changing their daughters to sons, Islamic women in repressive societies flipping to male to avoid being second class citizens, the end of gender reassignment surgery, even a linguistic taint on the word "change" which comes to be associated with the drug and considered vulgar in everyday speech.  Woven through these explorations is the story of the life of the drug's developer, with the sense that he's a bit horrified at what the side effects have done to the entire world.

It's a damn good story, and of course, the question lingers on the mind: if you had a terminal illness that could be cured but the side effect is that you'd change genders, would you take the cure?

For the record, in the story, the drug becomes recreationally used by kinky folk as well as the persecuted or discriminatory.  You can take it again at a later time and, Tireseus-like, revert back to your original gender.  Some people flip back and forth on a regular basis.

But for the purposes of this question, let's say the change is permanent.  So, would you?

Long weekend was oh, so nice.  Glad this is a) and abbreviated week and b) next week is even more abbreviated.  Napa is just around the corner! But a stolen Monday where I actually got out in the sunshine, walked around downtown and Union Square, shopped at Williams-Sonoma and Macy's and bookstores and such, with a casual lunch at Café Bastille . . . heaven and therapy.

Last night:  Ice Skating at Justin Herman Plaza! This made the fourth or fifth time in my life I've ice skated.  Surprisingly, given that I grew up in Florida, I'm adequate.  Z-Man, on the other hand, resembles a tentative penguin.  Heh.

Birthays for my Scorpio people, Katie, Karla, David, others. I've got to give them a shout, and I'm late on a few already.

And, damn, I've got to book a hotel in London for New Years . . .