Text 10760, 148 rader
Skriven 2014-03-10 18:12:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av NANCY BACKUS
Ärende: weather or not 305
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 ML> So how is a hole in the ground supposed to revitalize downtown?
 NB> Yeah, I know... the emperor's new clothes syndrome...  There's finally
 NB> a new (but much smaller) building in place... 

No public passage to the next sheltered spot, I presume.
Kind of shortsighted.

 NB> As far as I know, some of those small shops in the lower
 NB> levels still exist... and there is some access from one building to
 NB> another in some instances, just not the network that there was at one
 NB> time... 

So why don't they try again?

 ML> Funding? Call it investment instead. How shortsighted.
 NB> We're talking politics at work here... The approvals were slow, so the
 NB> investors dropped out... 

Ah, yes. I can't have my way, so you don't get your permits.
Makes me feel like going over to the Drum view of the world.

 ML> of at least .30 caliber if you leave the city limits, but
 ML> the critters occasionally invade town, and the unarmed
 ML> duck and cover). Okay, I am as crazy in my way as she is in
 ML> hers and would go there if alone. 
 NB> So stay in the city limits and duck for cover if the critters show
 NB> up...? 

That's the usual course. But we're talking about a $2000
ticket in coach, and I'm not supereager to do that.

 ML> By the way, it's colder and snowier here now than in Longyearbyen,
 ML> but there aren't any polar bears, just hyenas and jackals.
 NB> And where is here...?  ;)   (From the comment below, I'm guessing MD?)

Here was Washington, I think, but I've lost track.

 NB>> Yeah, that would give some time to warm things up a mite...  :)
 ML> There's a warm spell going on right now - almost 30F, when
 ML> the average high is 8.

This here was Longyearbyen.

 ML> Further, don't go to Rome in the summer -
 ML> it's like Washington, but they don't have air conditioning.
 NB> Will keep that in mind, should the occasion occur...  :)

I generally have had decent luck, but when it's hot in
Rome, it's hot.

==

 ML> He is now the conductor of the Singapore Symphony.
 NB> Where, presumably, his accent doesn't impede understanding... :) 
 NB> Certainly an interesting fellow... I like his augury..  ;)

An interesting fellow indeed.

 ML> Veering off on a tangent, I knew a guy who applied for
 ML> the music directorship of the Nashua Symphony and was
 ML> certain he'd get the job because his name was Nash.
 ML> He got the job.
 NB> Probably his name had little to do with it...  Would he have been
 NB> likewise as certain about getting a job with Nashville...?   ;)

I don't know, perhaps, though. He wanted to be within
commuting distance of his home on Cape Cod, though.

 ML> She seems to enjoy her meat-and-potatoes diet, and I
 ML> console myself that she'd not be as much fun to travel
 ML> with if she were a veggie. Of course, the chances of
 ML> our ever having done anything together in the first
 ML> place were she a veggie would have been slim and none.
 NB> There certainly is that..  ;)   Both in the enjoyment factor, and in
 NB> the probability factor...  ;)

We do generally pretty well, but I had my doubts when she
was served lamb when promised beef, and she didn't throw a
fit, but she did throw a fit on Sunday night two hours after
dinnertime when the roast pork was off at this little
Bierstube. She had a burger instead, and that appeased her
somewhat.

Beef Stew
categories: musical, main
Servings: 8

1 lb bacon
3 lb boneless beef shoulder/chuck roast
- seasoned with sea salt and pepper
- cut in 2" cubes
1 c all-purpose flour
750 ml good quality dry red wine
- does not have to be expensive
2 ts dried thyme
2 ts crushed rosemary
6 garlic cloves, smashed4 bay leaves
2 1/2 c beef stock
4 onions, peeled and cut in quarters
24 oz cn chopped tomatoes (or a 28 oz can)
9 sm new potatoes, scrubbed clean and cut in quarters
1/2 lb carrots, peeled and sliced
1 lb white mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb garden peas, frozen or fresh
Other vegetables to taste (optional) - green beans,
- bell peppers, broccoli, etc
Fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped for garnish

You will need a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven.

Chop bacon into 2" pieces, cook until crisp.

In the pot in which you cooked the bacon, remove bacon and
all but 2 Tb grease. Toss seasoned beef in flour, shake off
excess flour. Add beef chunks in a single layer to the pan,
careful not to overcrowd. Thoroughly sear beef on all sides
(work in batches, if necessary). Once beef is browned, remove
it to a plate, set aside.

Add wine to pan and bring to a simmer while you scrape the
bottom of the pan with the wooden spoon, being sure to loosen
up all those tasty bits. Once wine is hot, add bacon, beef,
thyme, rosemary, garlic, and tomatoes. Add pepper, salt to
taste, bay leaves, beef stock, and onions.

Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and cook
uncovered until the liquids start to thicken (15-20 min).
Cover and cook over low heat for 2 1/2 hr total.

After 1 hr, add potatoes and carrots.

After 2 hr add all the vegetables except peas, along with
a pinch of sugar to balance the acid from the red wine.
Turn heat up slightly and simmer, uncovered, for 30 min
more until vegetables and meat are tender.

Add peas during last few min of cooking.

To serve, place the stew in a soup bowl, garnish with
parsley. You can serve this over rice or noodles or
accompany with some crusty bread and hearty red wine.
As with most stews, this is even better the next day.

Blair Bollinger, bass trombone, Philadelphia Orchestra

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