Oooh, That's Sharp!

The lone entry on my 2008 Christmas list was a Global 24-cm chef's knife, and I was lucky enough to get it. I have to say, it is not like any other knife I've ever used. I'm just getting interested in cooking, really, and I don't have much experience -- this is my first real chef's knife. I now have all kinds of respect for Japanese steel. This knife's job is to part matter, and it does it incredibly well. And it does it without prejudice, happily parting human flesh along with anything else that gets in its way. You may surmise, and correctly, that I found this out the hard way. My chef's knife is like a lightsaber, and I guess "Slater" is not a Jedi name.

The Good Thief

Just finished reading The Good Thief, by Hannah Tinti, on my Kindle. A terrific book, I thought. An adventure story full of action, mystery, likable rogues, pretty nasty villains, and some imagery that I think will stay with me forever. Every single character was flawed, as all of us are, but it was easy to like the good guys and hope that they found what they were looking for. Read, and enjoy!

Letters of Mozart

Another book I read on my Kindle over my break was The Letters of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Vol. I. Turns out that for all his genius Mozart was a real guy, who caught colds and got in trouble from his dad and sometimes failed in doing the things we know him for today, almost 220 years after his death. A fun read -- I'm going to look for Vol. II.

Flood

While I was in California for the Holidays, I read the thriller Flood, by Andrew Vachss, on my Kindle, and was duly thrilled. I believe it was a free download, and boy was it ever worth the price. Nicely done for a first novel, maybe due at least in part to some of the author's real-life experience. I found it to be pretty engrossing throughout, although there was a sort of Gilligan's Island Reunion part toward the end that I found to be a little unlikely, where most of the characters (each of whom is a loner and a misfit in their own ways) get together to do a job. Enjoy!

The Manhattan Transfer

Last night, Kelly and I went to see The Manhattan Transfer give a fantastic Holiday show at The Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center. They were absolutely amazing. I've been listening to them and admiring them since high school (yeah, that long ago; the current line-up started in 1972), so it was a real treat for me to finally see them live in concert. In the parlance of Mason and Emily, they were "tight." I just love to see (and hear) that kind of fierce talent. Go see them when you get a chance, or go to iTunes and check them out.

Yes, Virginia, There Is a Samurai

I enjoyed a great karate seminar last weekend. Sensei Toru Shimoji was hosted by Sensei Karl Burgart of the Tradition Karate Association of Wildwood, MO. Sensei Shimoji is 5th Dan. The seminar was phenomenal. He is a tremendous athlete and his karate is spectacular to behold. One of the things that impressed me most was how learned he is. As he was talking to us about ways to improve our karate, he easily used examples from physics, anatomy, and even some molecular biology. I know he's a sculptor. To me, he seemed just like the samurai warrior-poets that you read about. We need more people like him in the world, I think.

Delicious Seafood Pasta Fra Diavolo

Tonight I made some delicious Seafood Pasta Fra Diavolo in my cool new Le Creuset Enameled Cast-Iron Round French Oven with Cover (more on this below). I had some pasta fra diavolo from Brio Tuscan Grille earlier in the week, and I decided to make some myself this weekend. I suspect the stuff Brio made had some cream in it, but the stuff I made was pretty good, and it had seafood (shrimp, calamari, and scallops) instead of chicken which is always a plus in my cookbook.

If you decide to make some yourself (it's so easy), here are a couple of pointers. First, I used half as much crushed red pepper as was called for in the recipe, and it was still too spicy for my family (for me, it was just pleasantly warm).

Second, instead of basil I used Penzey's Tuscan Sunset, and I think that was a good substitution. More complicated, but really tasty.

Third, I used mini penne instead of linguine.

Finally, I added a bit more shrimp than was called for. There was plenty of room for it. The scallops were terrific, though; I should've splurged on those instead.

My new Dutch oven is my first ever. It's made of enameled cast iron, and it's a spectacular vessel. I highly recommend it. The color of mine is Dune ("... Arrakis... desert planet..."), if you would like to cleave to my ways as closely as possible. ;-)

Bon appetit!