Sacrificed Animals, Restaurant, Bowling,

Wednesday night we watched an interesting programme on Nova about mummified animals. What really shook me is the millions of animals which were sacrificed over 500 years. They have found mummies in several places in Egypt. It wasn't just cats and dogs either, it was birds such as the Ibis too as well as crocodiles. The animals were purchased from the priests (they were on to a good thing) and you chose the animal which was associated with a particular god to whom you wished to appeal. The idea being the animal spirit would be able to keep reminding the god about your plea which, I forgot to mention, was written down to accompany the mummified animal. I couldn't get over the numbers though, in the millions. Of course some of them were beloved pets which were supposed to be company for you in the afterlife. There was also the sacrifice of the Apis bulls which were buried in the Serrapeum at Saqqara which were buried in huge sarcophagi which weighed up to 70 tonnes. Pretty interesting stuff we thought.

So Thursday, we went to New Hamburg for lunch and bowling. I must say I am not overly impressed with the restaurant food. Been there a few times. Later, at the alley, it was suggested we should try MeMes just across the road. It is supposed to have European food. Sounds good to me. New Hamburg is a nice little town and also the home of one of the best restaurants in the region, The Waterlot, although we haven't been for a year or two. We used to go there for Sunday brunch before we went to NC, but when we came back we went once and found their brunches not nearly as good. They offered good food, but no breakfast items like they used to have and in my book, to be brunch, there should definitely be breakfast foods too. Haven't been to dinner as we rarely go out in the evenings any more. Certainly would no longer travel that distance for dinner.

My bowling reflected that it was Thursday and was moderately good until the last game which was very good. I even bowled a Turkey today, don't often do that. (Three strikes in a row if you don't know). Why oh why can't I do that on a Monday for the league. Matt had 2 good games and one mediocre. Overall it was a fun afternoon. Next month we go to Elmira and eat at the Mennonite restaurant called The Crossroads. They have wonderful pies and I usually end up getting a mincemeat tart (or two) to save for Christmas. Yum. Elmira Bowling alley is another small lanes like the one in New Hamburg, but they make one very welcome and we always have fun there. I forgot to mention that the owner of the alley today has just had some major heart surgery and only been out of hospital 2 weeks so he wasn't around very much. I spoke to him briefly and he says is doing well (confirmed by the young man running the place for him) but to me he looked much thinner and very weak.

This recipe came from McCormick. I can't believe I am promoting a recipe with packet chocolate cake.

Creepy Crawly Spider Cupcakes

Turn innocent cupcakes into scary black spiders with black-tinted frosting, black string licorice and

other assorted candies.

                                 

Ingredients

Serves: Makes 24 (1 cupcake) servings.

• 1 package (2-layer size) chocolate cake mix
• 1 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 container (16 ounces) chocolate frosting
• McCormick® Black Food Color
• 
  
  Assorted decorations, such as chocolate sprinkles, black string licorice, red candy-coated pieces and white chocolate chips

Directions

• Prepare cake mix as directed on package, adding vanilla.
• Bake as directed on package for cupcakes. Cool cupcakes on wire rack.
• Tint frosting black with 1/2 teaspoon black food color. Frost cupcakes, mounding frosting in center of cupcake to create a dome shape. Sprinkle cupcakes with chocolate sprinkles. Cut string licorice into 2-inch lengths and use for the spider legs. Attach candy-coated pieces to flat side of chocolate chips with some frosting. Use for the eyes.

Cooking tip

Test Kitchen Tips: For easier measurement, 1/4 tsp. Food Color = 20 to 25 drops

Have a great day

Howl at the Moon, New Hamburg,

We went to lunch yesterday - mainly because I was too lazy to prepare anything. The special at Howl at the Moon was Jambalaya made with pasta. I have never heard of a pasta Jambalaya before so decided to try it. It had chicken, spicy sausage and 3 shrimp. Not bad, but I must say, I still prefer Jambalaya made with rice. Matt had a half Reuben with a Cæsar Salad. (Hey just discovered I can do dipthongs). I remembered my mini camera so took a shot of my Jambalaya, with the flash, I couldn't see it, took one without, bit dark but with a little editing effort its not a bad picture. However, Matt's lunch didn't come out at all without the flash - need more practice with this camera obviously. In a little while, we will be taking part in our bowling tournament and then we will be going out to lunch again. How about that, lunch out two days running. There is a really good restaurant I have mentioned before called The Waterlot. I would like to go to lunch there, but the rest of the team may not want to go there so guess it ain't my choice. Its just round the corner from Riverside Bowling Lanes too. Hope you have your fingers crossed for us today. Indian Tomato Salad Canadian Living Cooks Yield: 4 * 1/4 cup vegetable oil * 2 tbsp wine vinegar * 1 tbsp lime, juice or 1 tbsp lemon, juice * 1 clove garlic, minced * 1 tsp Dijon mustard * 1/4 tsp ground cumin * 1/4 tsp salt * 1/4 tsp pepper * 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint * 2 large tomato, sliced * 1 onion, thinly, sliced * 1 x 7 inch piece English cucumber, thinly, sliced * fresh mint, leaves 1. In large bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, lime juice, garlic, mustard, cumin, salt and pepper. 2. Stir in mint. 3. Add sliced tomatoes, onion and cucumber; toss gently. 4. Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.) 5. Garnish with mint leaves. Have a great day.

Mandarin, Tournament, Ribs

Well I ate Chinese food like a starving child yesterday, funnily enough I didn't end up feeling stuffed to the gills as one often does with Chinese food, possibly because we were chatting between servings as it were so I wasn't up and down filling my plate at speed. Me, being me, started with Hot and Sour Soup, yummy. Then I had some salmon and some mussels which wasn't particularly Chinese but quite delicious nevertheless. From there I went into the noodles, beef dishes, chicken dishes etc. I also ate Tempura veggies (no I know, not Chinese, but there) I then decided to go to the sushi counter and tried some - original - sweet potato sushi? Different. Finally I ended up with rice pudding and crème caramel and a tiny carrot cake (not great that one). The picture shows their dessert buffet. One of our friends had found some chicken dumplings so I grabbed a small plate and put some on it before I ate dessert. They were delicious. Where they were served, I saw a couple of other things I'd like to try so I will remember next time, I don't usually go to that counter as its amongst the roast beef and pizza and I didn't realise there was anything else there. They did want proof of our age, I'm surprised but maybe they figure they have been conned a couple of times. I don't think there is a lot of doubt about Matt and I. There is a kind of competition taking place - they issue with passports and you have to get 5 stamps on a page and then hand it in. There is more than one stamp page in the passport. The prize is a trip for 2 to Japan. Wouldn't that be nice? Yesterday I received the registration for us to bowl in competition in New Hamburg for the Wilmot Senior Games. We are bowling at 9:30 a.m. which means getting up real early as I imagine we have to be there at 9 and its a fair drive away. I am trying to persuade Matt that we should go to the Waterlot in New Hamburg for dinner and stay the night there. At the moment its not working. If you would like to check them out click here their food is excellent. We've never stayed there, so don't know about the rest of it. Its quite close to the alley, one could almost walk. Dumb thing on GMA Weekend, I thought; one of their people has been checking barbecued ribs around the country and had brought back four finalists. I must admit they looked pretty good. There is a video on their page here which will show you the selections. However, they asked the TV audience to vote on the ribs. How on earth can we, we haven't tried them. I have no doubt thousands of people voted. That is one thing I have never cooked as Matt doesn't like chewing bones. However, he did try some ribs a friend cooked which he discovered had a lot of meat on them, so he enjoyed them more. So long as he can pull the meat off with a knife and fork, he hates to eat with his fingers!!! Now me, I get stuck right in there. We went to Tim Barrie's Asparagus farm yesterday for my weekly fix of asparagus. I am buying a $7 bag full this year which seems to last me about a week, Matt doesn't eat it daily like I do during the season. Tim gave me yet another raw stalk to try, I had never realised how delicious they are raw. I went to Eating Well again for the following recipe. Shrimp, Asparagus & Pesto Pasta Makes 6 servings, 1 1/2 cups each 8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 4 cups) ½ cup sliced jarred roasted red peppers ¼ cup prepared pesto 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 pound raw shrimp (21-25 per pound), peeled and deveined 1 cup dry white wine Freshly ground pepper to taste 1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add fettuccine and cook for 3 minutes less than the package directions specify. Add asparagus and continue cooking until the pasta and asparagus are just tender, about 3 minutes more. Reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water, drain the fettuccine and asparagus and return to the pot. Stir in peppers and pesto. Cover to keep warm. 2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink, about 3 minutes. Add wine, increase heat to high and continue cooking until the shrimp are curled and the wine is reduced, about 3 minutes. Add the shrimp and the reserved cooking water to the pasta; toss to coat. Season with pepper and serve immediately. Have a great weekend and, to those of you in the US, have a great Memorial Day.

It was Luverly

My friend picked me up at 10:30 and we headed off to the theatre at Grand Bend, Ontario. We made one slight mistake, we were looking for Highway 83 and it turned out it was marked as 20 at the beginning although there was a signpost to Grand Bend. Very confusing. However, we got there OK in plenty of time to have our picnic although disappointingly the sun wasn't shining and it was quite windy. The sun came out later before we went into the theatre, so we sat at another picnic table and enjoyed it for a while. As you can see from the map it is close to the shores of Lake Huron, hence the wind. It is a delightful area and a delightful theatre. Well, in fact there are two theatres. One much smaller one which is described as "intimate". Basically I think it is a big barn which has been converted.

It was not Rex Harrison of course, but the production was excellent. It turned out my friend had never seen either the show or the movie before so it was a new story for her. The singing was very good and the acting complemented it. I was impressed with the handling of the scenery and the ease with which they turned from a street at Covent Garden to a bachelor English Gentleman's study. The accents weren't bad either. I did hear "here, here" instead of "'ere, 'ere" but generally the cockney wasn't glaringly awful as it often can be when played by non Brits. I was somewhat surprised at the singing of Professor Higgins, then remembered of course, Rex Harrison was no singer. I worked it out later that the first time I saw My Fair Lady was in London about 45 years ago, give or take a year. That was Julie Andrews in the part; subsequently Audrey Hepburn played it in the movie. I am not sure why they chose an American actress for the role in the movie. Be that as it may, we both thoroughly enjoyed the show yesterday and being a sentimental idiot, I cried at the end. The audience gave the cast a standing ovation.

The drive to Grand Bend is through some wonderful farmland; it makes one appreciate the countryside which, unfortunately, we don't often see. It fascinates me to see the horses grazing in the fields with masks on their faces to protect their eyes from flies. Never saw that when I lived in England, don't know if they have adopted it since. We first came across these fly masks when we visited a local stable where there is also a very nice restaurant called the Troika. You can sit at the table dining and watch horses being worked and trained in the indoor ring through a large window forming one wall of the dining room. We've only been there once, not sure why, we had a very good meal there.

Everywhere you look on the roads we took, are vast fields of green pasture and lots of farm buildings in reds, whites and greens. There appears to be a lot of livestock in that area, horses and cows. It is just the kind of area I would like to live in - no wait a minute, what about the winter? Nah, don't think so after all. We drove through New Hamburg which is known locally for its excellent restaurant, The Waterlot, then through Shakespeare, a charming little town; after that Stratford, on Avon of course, where the Shakesperean festival is held every summer. Another attractive town. They have other shows as well as Shakespeare; for instance I know they are staging The Musicman this summer (you know, 76 Trombones!) amongst others.

We got back home about 6:30 or shortly after by which time I was beginning to be ready for supper. I was tired too, had a power cut at about 6:23 a.m. (I'd just checked the alarm clock) yesterday morning so I got up anyway, yaaaawn. It is almost a 2 hour drive to Grand Bend and we were very lucky with the weather as it was trying to rain all day, but never quite made it.

Here's another recipe from the Ontario Asparagus Growers' Marketing Board, Asparagus in Bed, which is just where I wanted to be when I got home last night.

Asparagus in Bed

1 lb	Ontario asparagus, trimmed
8	eggs
1 tbsp	vinegar
2 tbsp	unsalted butter, melted
2 tbsp	fresh lemon juice
8 slices	prosciutto
	freshly grated pepper
1/2 cup	freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 450º F (230º C). Steam or simmer asparagus just until tender-crisp, 3 to 5 minutes; drain well. Fill large skillet with water. Add vinegar and bring to simmer over medium heat. Slip eggs, one at a time, into simmering water; cook until whites are firm and yolks are just set. Remove eggs with slotted spoon and carefully blot dry with paper towel. (Eggs may be poached several hours in advance; transfer to bowl and cover with cold water. Drain well before proceeding.) Divide butter among 4 gratin dishes. Divide asparagus among dishes; drizzle with lemon juice. Drape proscuitto over top. Arrange 2 eggs on top of each prosciutto. Season with pepper to taste. Sprinkle cheese over top. Bake for 3 to 4 minutes or just until cheese melts. Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings

Have a great day.