May 10, 2008, 2:39 pm
Meier (the one on South Atherton, not the filthy nasty one on North Atherton) has a major sale on ribeyes (called delmonicos here) and rib roasts, $5.99 a pound. Stew beef is usually $4.99 a pound here. So there’s a rib roast in the oven, and new potatoes (here called baby potatoes).
I quartered the potatoes, then sprinkled them with freshly ground black pepper and kosher salt. I drizzled extra-virgin olive oil all over them, tucked a sprig of rosemary from the back yard under them, and covered them with beef stock. They went on the bottom shelf.
I generously sprinkled the same salt and pepper mixture over the roast and pressed it in with my hand, put it in a heavy skillet just large enough to hold it, and put it on the shelf above the potatoes. In thirty minutes, I’ll stir the potatoes. In thirty more minutes, I’ll do that and also stick a thermometer in the moo cow and see where we are. Roast to 130, and let sit for 30 minutes before carving.
No port-mushroom sauce nonsense. Just beef, with salt and pepper. I may deglaze the pan with some beef stock for jus, but that’s it.
Shit, I just remembered it’s Saturday. Too late to hit Scott’s for sandwiches this week. Food’s already in the oven.
May 10, 2008, 2:26 pm
Dr Mercury of Maggie’s Farm fame has made all of the episodes of James Burke’s The Day the Universe Changed for download. They’re wmv files. I downloaded them and used Nero to transcode them onto DVD; we’re watching the first episode on TV now. You could just as easily watch the wmv files on your computer, of course. Dr Mercury has instructions posted.
James Burke is, of course, the creator and narrator of Connections, one of the most fascinating educational series to be televised. Burke’s Knowledge Web is a valuable resource of technological development and how technology molds us.
Burke is a science historian who takes a unique and fascinating approach to his topic. His approach to history is the world wide web to the encyclopedia. He sees history not so much as a chronological step-by-step development, but as interconnected seemingly unrelated developments that spur yet other seemingly unrelated developments. For example, how was Napoleon important to the development of the modern computer?
Napoleon’s troops in Egypt buy shawls and start a fashion craze.
In Europe the shawls get made on automated, perforated-paper control looms.
This gives an American engineer Herman Hollerith the idea to automate calculation using punch cards.
Which get used to control ENIAC, the first electronic computer.
Get em while you can. They won’t be online forever. Most of the episodes of Connections, by the way, are on youtube. Just search on connections and burke.
May 10, 2008, 12:23 pm
Finals Week is over and they’re leaving!