Medical, Kiev.

I seem to be having trouble with the medical profession lately. Tuesday morning it was snowing, the roads and sidewalks were a mess and parking for the specialist was some distance away so Matt dropped me off. I arrived at 10:45 am for my 11 am appointment. By 10:15 we had been listening to the doctor talk to a colleague and I was getting antsy. Another couple also waiting, I asked them what time their appointment was and they said 11 am. Oh really!! I then spoke to the secretary/receptionist who said my appointment was 12:40 pm which is what she had faxed my family doctor. My response, I phoned and changed the time (I never book lunchtime appointments because of my diabetes). She said did I speak to her, I said if you are the only one here, then yes. In the end she gave me another appointment for Feb 25. Grrrr. Because of the lack of time before bowling, we had made some lunch to carry with us. Got to the bowling alley really early because of not seeing the specialist and discovered that on Tuesdays they have someone come in to cook food. Didn’t know that. Oh well. We munched on our lunches quite happily and they provided us with coffee and water. Matt bowled two really good games. Nuff said.

Pretty serious rioting in Kiev at the moment. My IT guy comes from the Ukraine so I hope, for his sake, it doesn’t affect any of his family. The last report I saw said Kiev was on fire and 18 people were dead in the rioting.  Haven’t really studied it so don’t know what it’s about, will have to check it out. Oh, a struggle over the nation’s identity. There is a protest camp in the centre of Kiev and thousands of police tried to get rid of them. A lot of police were shot and/or injured with seven died along with 11 protesters. What a terrible situation.

I didn’t really watch any Olympics as we were out bowling so can’t tell you what’s happened. I am told Canada is doing well in ice hockey and curling. I do hope so because we have dropped behind lately on the medals.

Rusty Carl mentioned Lemon Meringue Pie in his comment the other day which made me want some. It is one of my favourites and Alton Brown is a source of very good recipes.

Lemon Meringue Pie

Food Network

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2003


6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

• Lemon Filling:
• 4 egg yolks (reserve whites for meringue)
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1 (9-inch) pre-baked pie shell
• 1 recipe Meringue, recipe follows
• Meringue Topping:
• 4 egg whites
• 1 pinch cream of tartar
• 2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Lemon Filling:
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Whisk egg yolks in medium size mixing bowl and set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, water, sugar, and salt. Whisk to combine. Turn heat on medium and, stirring frequently, bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and gradually, 1 whisk-full at a time, add hot mixture to egg yolks and stir until you have added at least half of the mixture.
Return egg mixture to saucepan, turn heat down to low and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 more minute. Remove from heat and gently stir in butter, lemon juice, and zest until well combined. Pour mixture into pie shell and top with meringue while filling is still hot. Make sure meringue completely covers filling and that it goes right up to the edge of the crust. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until meringue is golden. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Make sure pie is cooled completely before slicing.
Meringue Topping:
Place egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg whites until soft peaks form and then gradually add sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Use to top lemon filling.
Yield: topping for 1 (9-inch) pie

Have a great day.