Guess who's coming to dinner...and not leaving?
Yes, house guests are descending on me tonight….one human… and one cat. My daughter’s apartment is being bombed(as in fumigated) tomorrow…and since her cat Spencer is somewhat delicate with his kidney problems…she and Spence will staying with us a couple of days. She’s a little upset over the whole thing…evidentally next door neighbors in her building left for a few months, and left food and stuff they shouldn’t have around(bad neighbors, bad)…now there’s a roach problem.(You’re not a real Baltimorean/New Yorker until you kill a cockroach with your bare hand!….courtesy of How I Met Your Mother).
talk about cooped up...poor Spencer...
This presents a couple of issues, the biggest of which is my cats. We’ve decided(meaning I’ve decided) that Baby Girl and Muffy really won’t cotton to a new housemate, especially a huge, new, male, feline beast. And you know I have my own issues with Baby Gaga being put on prozac(read here)….for inappropriate peeing, so the last thing I want to do is upset her apple cart right now. So Spence will be corralled in my daughter’s room, along with his litter box, food and water.
B to the G says, "Bring it, Spencer."
My daughter cried foul over this, saying how cruel it is to Spencer, to be cooped up in one room, blah, blah….I replied that really, he already lives in a one room place( a studio apartment), soooooo…it can’t be that different, can it? Plus he can explore his limited space in peace, without the hissing and howling of two female kitty-cats who will loathe him on sight. And they’ll all be separated by several rooms…each with their own section of the house. I hope this works.
Catfish fingers...dusted with cornmeal and fried....
Dinner at Darker Than Blue Cafe on Greenmount was really quite nice…it’s a tiny place, so when the jazz trio(which was very good) was really jamming, it was LOUD…forget about conversation or even hearing what the specials were…I just ordered from the menu. The Catfish fingers were ab fab….dusted with cornmeal and quick fried…divine. I ordered the ribs…really tender..and only one quibble with my meal. I’m pretty sure the mashed potatoes were from a box. I know what they taste like, because my Mother thought they were the best thing ever invented when we were growing up(she was wrong). But…no. Just make real mashed potatoes or don’t serve them…it’s lazy cooking. But it was a nice evening…and I’ll go back…just won’t order mashed potatoes. My daughter loved her shrimp and grits, and the service was lovely….and byob!
Made it...loved it...
Oh, I have to tell you I did make the recipe for Olive Oil Cake….adore it…but I have a suggestion for a slight change. Instead of coating the pan with olive oil and flour as the recipe suggests, coat it with corn meal instead…gives a nice little extra crunch to the edges. And while I did dutifully poach pears and figs in red wine to go with it…I would have liked even better fresh orange segments, to pick up the orange flavor in the cake(I also used orange liqueur instead of Amaretto ’cause I didn’t have any). And the cake was even better the next day-love that!
