Well, the time has come for me to leave. I’m just taking a brief break from loading my U-Haul to write about the last Gwyneth recipe I ever cooked in Portland. I have a ton to do before I leave tomorrow, so let’s make this quick! But you know what’s not quick? Tortilla Soup. (Nailed that segue.) Continue reading
Monthly Archives: October 2011
The End of the Project (In Portland)
Filed under Soups
Mooooooving
Guys, I figured I should check in, even though no cooking has been done recently (it’s been all mac and cheese and leftovers and take-out for me all week), what with the impending move.
So here’s a brief update: I leave Portland on Monday. I haven’t packed anything yet. Not a single thing! Whoops. I also don’t have an apartment in New York yet. Uhhhhhh. So things are going well, clearly? Yikes.
I’m trying to keep this blog focused on the project, so I’ll be documenting anything amusing/stressful/whatever about my move (or anything else I feel like writing — maybe a five-act play?) over here: http://dgottleib.tumblr.com/
So bookmark/follow/RSS/anything else over thataways, if you want to be a SUPERFAN. Or, at the very least, if you just want to know what I’m up to if this place goes silent during my drive next week (which it WILL). And if THAT place goes silent, then you know I’ve driven my U-Haul off a cliff.
I do have some leftover vegetable stock in my freezer that I may try to do something with tomorrow after work (my last day!), so maybe we’ll get some good cooking out of me still before I go. Fingers crossed I don’t end up curled up in a cardboard box, sobbing quietly to myself instead.
On that note, if anyone wants to pack up all my stuff and move it all across the country into a nice, clean apartment in NY for me, that would just be fantastic. Thanks in advance!
Filed under Non-Gwyneth
Ivy Chopped Salad; Or, Holy F*$%
Just a quick one today, even though it’s technically two recipes. I love when this happens. Today is My Ivy Chopped Salad (which begs the question: as the only recipe specifically beginning with “my,” are all the other recipes not hers? Then why does this cookbook even exist?) and Balsamic & Lime Vinaigrette. Continue reading
Filed under Salads
Celebrating New York with Mediocrity
Last night there was a lot to celebrate: my friend Lisa is in town from Wisconsin, and oh also by the way I’m moving to New York in like two weeks to go work in an ad agency (and possibly also to gay marry Zachary Quinto, but that’s still only at about a 50/50 probability). So, everything is very exciting! Also? TERRIFYING. I have so much to do in the next couple weeks (including, much to my chagrin, this project, the bane of my existence). My head may just burst into flames at any moment. Fun! I’ll be sure to document all my meltdowns on Twitter. Anyway, I made three recipes last night, because I need to get this train a-rollin’ and also because I am a masochist.
I picked three recipes that seemed like they would go well together, based on absolutely nothing: Bruschetta, Artichoke & Pine Nut Pesto, and Sole a la Grenoblaise. And it all turned out pretty mediocre! Sorry, Lisa, it’s the nature of the beast. Continue reading
Filed under Main Courses, Pasta, Sides
Gwyneth Paltrow Invented Teriyaki Sauce
We’re flying right along here, as I completed two more recipes last night: Broiled Salmon with Homemade Teriyaki Sauce, as well as Fragrant Jasmine Rice. And both of these were almost comically simple, let me tell you. I mean, can you really claim as your own recipes the basic ingredients for a teriyaki sauce, as well as just throwing some spices into rice? I mean, really. This is just getting absurd. Continue reading
Filed under Main Courses, Sides
Midnight Soup
As part of my new, diligent effort to actually finish this stupid project, I completed two more recipes last night. Well, it’s really one recipe, served two different ways, so thankfully for Gwyneth and I, it still counts toward the total. Yesterday was a gloomy, drizzly, miserable day in Portland that — coupled with saying goodbye to Ali the night before — left me in a malaise. Some comforting soup would be perfect, I thought, turning the page to Slow-Roasted Tomato Soup: Two Ways, and smiling appreciatively at the “1 hour” total preparation time. Easy, delicious, and something I can serve grilled cheese alongside. Isn’t that the kind of dinner everyone is searching for? And then I noticed the main ingredient was Gwyneth’s slow-roasted tomatoes (previously completed for Chicken Milanese), which take FOUR TO FIVE HOURS TO MAKE. God damnit, lady, you’ve screwed me again. Continue reading
Filed under Soups
Oyster Po’Boys: Served With a Side of GUNFIRE
My dear friend and original Portland roommate Ali was in town this weekend, which is always a sure cause for lots of mayhem. And yes, lots of stuff did happen, and I won’t get into that because this is a family blog, but I’m going to blame her for all the bad decisions made. ANYWAY, Ali is a famewhore, and she knows the key to getting famous is to appear on this blog, so she requested a meal in her honor. I let her page through the sacred cookbook and pick out whatever she wanted me to make, and she, ever the New York Jew, chose the recipe with oysters: Oyster Po’Boys, to be specific. So Saturday night, we brought New Orleans to Portland (the gunfight outside on the street certainly added to the feeling that we were in the Lower 9th Ward; more on that later). Continue reading
Filed under Burgers & Sandwiches
Niçoise Salad: The Garbage Dump of Salads
And we’re back! How was everyone’s week? New York was a blast, of COURSE. The Big Apple! (I made sure to call it the Big Apple all the time out there, so everyone knew I was a local and therefore knew the city’s nickname.) Here is where you can read some unconnected things I saw and experienced out there. EXCITING. Anyway, let’s get back to this project because we have literally eight billion recipes to cook and we’re running out of time! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?
Last night was Monday Night Football, so you know what goes well with that: Niçoise Salad! Actually, I just wanted to do something easy to get back into it, as well as knocking out two recipes in one, since Gwyneth so helpfully separates the salad from its Chive Vinaigrette. But things quickly backfired, because this was NOT EASY IN THE SLIGHTEST. And on top of that, it just tasted horrible! I’m not sure I’m ready to relive this yet, but let’s get to it. Continue reading
Filed under Salads
The Danny/Gwyneth Project 