geeking moments

[mari4212]

You know you're a literature geek when, after you've been dicing beets for borscht, you start channeling Lady MacBeth while cleaning your hands.

Meantioning this to my mother had her commenting that at least it didn't look like blood. My response then proved that I'm also a sci-fi geek, as I pointed out that the fuschia color resembled Klingon blood. Add in the sour cream, and the illusion is complete.

By the way, sirutka, while I really appreciate you putting up the recipe for borscht, problems enter in when anyone else tries to follow it. You didn't include any measurements or proportions on anything! This makes it kind of difficult to repeat your recipe with any certanty unless someone's seen you cook it often enough.

Comments

[sirutka.livejournal.com]

Mea culpa, I’m afraid that’s a problem endemic of all my recipes. That and most of the Russian recipes I’ve seen are of the “eh put some in, put some more in if you feel like it” style. Let me try to find a proper recipe for you. Granted by the time you’ve read this it’ll be too late to really do you much good.

You do get massive points in my book for both the Klingon and Lady MacBeth references.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Mom and I were saying that your recipes reminded us of my father. For both of you, cooking is more of an art than a science, which means that you can cook wonderful recipes, but aren't that great at explaining how you made it work so that someone else can recreate it. It also reminded me a bit of medieval recipes that I've seen, which seem to have all been written as memonics for the current chef rather than instructions for anyone else.

We figured out most of it, and it tasted as good as the version you made us, so that went well.

[sirutka.livejournal.com]

Well I'm glad to hear that it turned out well. And be afraid, your father and I agree on another thing.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Do I want to know?

is very curious and very afraid now

[sirutka.livejournal.com]

Why, only that we agree on word plays and recipes. Why are you so afraid? *smiles evily*

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

I know you, I know my father. Why wouldn't I be afraid?

Cooking rules

[(Anonymous)]

Mari4212's dad here

I long ago learned the rule best said by a Boy Scout leader, "Cooking is an art. Baking is a science." he believed that exact recipies were advisory only, to be modified as needed by taste, time and available ingredients. Once you've learned the basic techniques, you should feel free to experiment. See your own previous cooking comment from Monday.

Re: Cooking rules

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Agreed, to a point. Yes, we should experiment and play around with cooking, but on the other hand, I want that baseline around for the first few times, so that I have somewhere to start my adjustments and improvisation from. And if I'm going to share my recipe with someone else, I do at least try to write down proportions and amounts.

[million-moments.livejournal.com]

Everytime I spend to much time in the shower because I don't quite feel clean yet I always start going "Out Damned Spot!" as well.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Exactly the line I was thinking of.

[sileri.livejournal.com]

Heh, borscht. Nobody in my family is enough of a fan of beets to make or eat it. Whenever someone says they got borscht, it's not so positive. Now that I think about it, I haven't tried to feed beets or borscht to Verushka.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

It's definitely not to everyone's taste, but I've had the stuff made properly, so I like it.

If Verushka is anything like my cats, as long as you put the sour cream in the borscht, she'll at least try it.