Pure Almond Extract

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Today's quick coffee tip:

When you are done brewing your cup of joe and have poured it into your favorit big cup, try flavoring it with a capful of pure almond extract. Mmmm mmm.

Yours truly has a nice tall thermal travel mug that I fill about 6/8 to 7/8ths full of coffee, with a capful of this pure almond extract, a teaspoon of stevia powder, two packets of Splenda and fill the rest with milk.

Deeeeelicious.

New Drink Recipe

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Fuck Poetry. Let's DRINK!!!

The Murky Mon Cherri Sunday Float:

For those of you into decadent drinks, here's one for ya.

Large (I mean LARGE)glass half filled with ice
2 tablespoons of marachino cherry juice
2 tablespoons of chocolate syrup
Fill almost to the top with milk.
Top with one scoop of ice cream (vanilla works well, as does coffee)
Garnish with marachino cherries.

Enjoy. Note: The drink will change consistency and flavour, adding mystery to your cool summertime secret treat. Never make one for anyone else but yourself.

Oh, and has anyone tried my ginger chicken recipe?

Murk

How to Bury a Post

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Let's bury the Angry Veteran's post (and his stopwatch) with a recipe for Ginger Chicken, requested by Hojo. Okay, it's not a drink recipe, but it was a request. I see only one spot where someone can mistakenly get all flamed up and bust my nuts about being a whiny recovering bitch and deserving every sarcastic jab I get even though I'm the one who's suffering while they sit back and manipulate people and lie and play fake doctor... um... nevermind.

By the way, get that Erotic Clown Guy on here. Not that I really have a vote being voted off the blog and everything.

Anywho, recipe for Murk's Ginger Chicken:

SERVES 2-4
INGREDIENTS:

2-3 boneless chicken breasts, or 4-6 chicken thighs, chopped into bite-size pieces

handful of fresh shiitake mushrooms, or dried (if dried, be sure to soak in hot water for 2 or more hours until soft)

1 package snow peas, OR approximately 2 cups bok choy, su choy, or other Asian cabbage

1 red bell pepper, de-seeded and sliced

1 small cooking onion, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 thumb-size roots of ginger, 2 sliced into matchstick-like pieces, and 2 grated

1-2 red chillies, minced

1 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 4 Tbsp. soy sauce or tamari

SAUCE:
1 Tbsp. soy sauce or tamari
1 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 Tbsp. brandy (don't worry, alcohol evaporates out)
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar (or other type of vinegar)
1 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp. water

OTHER:
2-3 Tbsp. oil for stir-frying
about 1 cup fresh basil for topping

PREPARATION:
Place chopped chicken in a mixing bowl together with the cornstarch dissolved in soy sauce. Stir well, so that chicken is covered in this quick marinade. Set aside while you prepare the other ingredients.

Make the sauce by mixing all the sauce ingredients together in a cup.

Have all other ingredients ready to stir-fry. Begin by warming 2-3 Tbsp. oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat.

When oil is hot, add the onion, garlic, chillies, mushrooms, chicken (together with the soy sauce/cornstarch), and the ginger matchsticks. Stir-fry for 5-10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked. Add a little water when wok or pan becomes dry (1 Tbsp. at a time).

Add the snow peas, bell pepper, and the grated ginger. Stir-fry for another 3 minutes, or until snow peas have softened. Again, add a little water as needed to keep ingredients frying nicely.

Add the sauce, stirring well to incorporate.

Finally, add the cornstarch dissolved in water, stirring quickly to dissolve in the sauce. When the sauce in the wok becomes thick, remove from the heat.
Do a taste test for salt, adding more fish sauce if not salty enough. (If too salty, add a squeeze of lime juice.)

Slide onto a serving platter, top with the fresh basil sprinkled over, and serve with plenty of Thai jasmine rice. This dish goes especially well with a cold Light Murk Perk.

Drinks Anyone?

Monday, June 25, 2007

It's been nine months (this upcoming Friday) since I've had any alcohol. I had a ten year binge drinking problem. It got seriously bad the last three years.

Funny enough, I don't have cravings. But I miss certain things. I miss the first hour of relief and forgetfulness. I've found that meditation helps with that. Also I'm on Zoloft (100 milligrams). It's a wonder drug. Sure, it's not a cure all and who knows, maybe ten years down the line, they'll find some sort of horrible consequences from long term use. Who cares? It helps me to manage the hamster running the wheel of worry in my head. I'll take my chances and sue the pharmacutical companies in that case.

But the one thing I miss most is mixing drinks. So, I've been mixing my own cool non alcoholic drinks. One of my favorites is loosely based on a Mohito. I call it a Light Murk Perk.

Take fresh mint leaves and crush them in a well chilled glass.
Add ice.
Add one half of flavored seltzer water (whatever flavor interest you have).
Add one half Green Tea.
Stir...

And BAM! Delicious and has some EGCG, which is a powerful anti-oxidant. I make it in a giant one liter glass. Light Murk Perk (awesome).

or

Try a Dark Murk Perk:
One Half EXTRA STRONG coffee
Granulated sugar to taste
A hint of dark brown sugar
Mix with one half cream or milk
Pour over ice

Another triumph! Costs about 1/3 the price of the canned cold coffee drinks or those specialty coffee shoppe iced coffees and tastes a hell of a lot better!

I have many others. Most interestingly, you can make flavored water or flavored seltzer. Get some good healthy juice you like. Add a lot of ice and water and/or setzer. Add juice to your tsste. Why pay twice as much for Sobe Life Water, Gatorade Propel, or any of those other flavored waters that have become so popular?

Advantages: much cheaper, fun to make, completely customizable, and saves you from having to recycle plastic bottles.

Disadvantages: Is a tiny bit time consuming, takes experimentation to find what you like, not portable unless you wash and reuse plastic bottles or have a good travel mug (I hate travel mugs, but that's another rant altogether).

So, try a Light Murk Perk or Dark Murk Perk TODAY! Okay, it's a bit late at the writing of this, so I'll give you until tomorrow might.

This has been a Murk Health Moment. Enjoy life and be well.

Murk

Why I Live in New England

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Don’t think The Angry Piper can cook? Well, you’re wrong. I’m about to bust out one of my all-time favorite recipes for summer. I made it last night, in fact.

We’re spoiled here in New England. We have the best seafood in the country, hands-down. Sure—you folks in the Pacific Northwest have your geoducks, your Alaskan king crab and your salmon. You folks on the Gulf Coast have your grouper, shrimp and crawfish. Doesn’t matter. New England is the place to be if you want really great seafood. Our fish form the elite snobbery of the culinary world.

You still arguing? Two words for you, snapperhead: “Maine Lobster”. Bam!

Now, I’m really spoiled, because not only do I live in New England, I happen to live next to the biggest commercial fishing port in the United States. Growing up, I was half-jokingly referred to as “The Seagull” by my father; because like my namesake, I would descend upon any tasty seafood and devour it noisily, as well as aggressively defend my prize against any and all who would seek to share. (Of course, seagulls will eat pretty much anything, so it wasn’t really a flattering or cool name, but whatever.) In fact, there are only two things in the entire ocean I do not care for: octopus and oysters. Octopus is a popular dish in the mostly Portuguese community where I live; yet despite having eaten it many different ways I just can’t like it. It’s a texture thing. Oysters, to me, taste and look and feel like snot. I had my first oyster in an outdoor café in Paris, while gazing at the Eiffel Tower at night. It was a Hemingway moment—until I gagged and hawked that vile oyster onto the sidewalk, much to the disgust and chagrin of the (predominantly French) café patrons.

But on to the recipe, which requires another kind of shellfish: the lowly mussel.

I love mussels. They’re plentiful year-round, cheap as hell, and quick and easy to cook. And they taste awesome, especially if you follow the recipe below. I know about 10 different ways to make mussels, but this recipe is my favorite.

Start with two lbs. of mussels. Although that sounds like a lot, remember most of the mussels’ weight is in their shells, which you don’t eat. I prefer Prince Edward Island mussels, if available, because they’re smaller and more flavorful, but any mussels will do. The mussels should smell faintly of the ocean. Don’t be a choad and buy mussels that are dry and stink like the docks at low tide.

As any of you who have read my blog know, The Angry Piper hates facial hair, and mussels are no exception. Clean and de-beard the mussels by scrubbing their shells with a stiff brush. Then THROW AWAY any mussels that don’t close when you smack the shells with the back of a knife; these are dead. There are many things you don’t want to get in this life, and trust me, shellfish poisoning is high on the list. Unless, of course, you enjoy uncontrollable vomiting and shitting. Then, by all means, cook and eat the dead ones.

Next, melt half a stick of butter in a stock pot or deep saucepan that’s large enough to accommodate all your mussels. Sauté at least 6 cloves of freshly-chopped garlic (I use more), until it’s soft. Next, add 1 cup of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half, and one bell pepper, also finely sliced, and cook for 2 minutes or so. Add 1 tsp. of garlic powder, 1 tsp. of dried red pepper flakes, and 1 Tbsp. of pepper juice (skim the top liquid of a jar of crushed red pepper). Stir well, and cook until the pan is very hot (about 1-2 minutes).

Next, add your mussels and give them a good stir to coat them with the sauce. Cover and simmer for about 3-4 minutes, until the shells open. Then add ½ cup or so of good white wine—don’t be a loser and use shitty supermarket cooking wine or your mussels will taste like it. Make sure you wait until the shells open so the mussels best take the flavor of the wine. Stir them again and cover, cooking them for another 2 minutes or so until they’re falling out of their shells.

To serve: ladle a generous portion into a bowl and cover with the sauce. Throw out any mussels that didn’t open (see “uncontrollable vomiting and shitting”, above). Serve with crusty bread to mop up all the juices, and compliment the meal with a bottle of the cold, white wine of your choice (I prefer Sauvignon Blanc) or a light beer (like Corona). I’ve been known to put away 2 lbs. of mussels (and a couple of bottles of wine) by myself, so if you have a lot of guests, increase the recipe.

I make this about once a week in the summer. It would be a great dish to make for an outdoor get-together at Dr. Murk’s palatial estate.

Too bad he’s dead.