Aden said that the raspberry and white chocolate scone from Cobs Bakery was among the best scones she’s ever had. I decided to try a date scone and while it was good, I still think the best scones are at Butler’s Pantry on Roncey (blueberry, raisin, cranberry or plain served with cherry jelly).
15/06/2009
14/06/2009
[...consumed all new #164] Red Robin #1
It is straight forward, really. So they’ve given the mantle of the Batman to the first Robin, the former Nightwing, Dick Grayson, and they’ve made a new Robin for him out of Bruce Wayne’s illegitimate son, Damian Wayne, so what do they do with the last Robin, Tim Wayne, nee Drake, Bruce’s adopted son? I mean, there’s a new Nightwing (referencing the old, pre-Crisis Kryptonian Nightwing) over in Action Comics, so where else can he go? Who else can he be? Well, for the past few years, DC has been making great pains to incorporate the near-apocalyptic Kingdom Come series into continuity… all of those great Alex Ross designs shouldn’t be left to go to waste after all. That’s where Red Robin comes in. Unnerstand? It’s really quite nonsensical, and don’t even bother asking how the costume emerged into continuity (it involves the maligned Countdown series and second Robin, Jason Todd), just know that Tim Drake/Wayne now has a whole new persona.
The costume is basically Dr. Mid-Night meets Hawkman and hardly Batman or Robin-inspired, but that’s neither here nor there. Tim Drake/Wayne, feeling rejected after Dick chooses Damian to be his Robin, goes traveling around the world, fighting crime in random locales, his heart heavy with grief, and his fists raging with anger. Although he was never quite the happy-go-lucky Robin Dick was, Tim was never the grim avenger either, and Chris Yost is writing him darker and even a little crazier than anyone before. Does it work? Too early to say. My wife’s the big Robin fan, and she’s okay with it (”it’s reminiscent of his first adventures”, she noted), but it’s already far too generic for my liking, and Ra’s Al Ghul pops up, yet again, his over-exposure post-Batman Begins still carrying on. Ramon Bachs art is serviceable, but I find too dark, and even the great coloris Guy Major has dimmed his palette to something bleak and unexciting.
13/06/2009
[...learned #164] potatoes
Yes, boil ‘em, mash ‘em, stick ‘em inna stew, but what kind.
I never know what kind of potatoes are good for what purpose, and I’ve never really known how to tell them apart. I like potatoes that get soft and mushy when baking or roasting but apparently you need different ones for mashing.
Potatoes are categorized as amylose and amylopectin… the former being a long-chain molecule that breaks down easier in water, while the latter is a branched molecule, thus more stable. Amylose are good for mashing, amylopectin (or waxy potatoes) are good for things needing to hold shape, like, I guess, potato salad?
I didn’t like potatoes much growing up, and I’ve never properly educated myself on their differences.
Coarse skinned potatoes are starchy and good for baking, mashing or fries.
Russet Burbank, Russet Arcadia, Norgold Russet, Goldrush, Norkotah, Long White (or White Rose or California Long White), and Idaho.
Boiling potatoes are thin, smooth-skinned, with a waxy meat, good for soups, stews, salads, baking, roasting, and bbqing. I guess you just need to put them on for a good long time to get adequately soft.
Round White, Round Red, Yellow Potato, Red Potato, Salad Potato, La Soda, Red La Rouge, Red Pontiac, Red Nordland, Red Bliss, Yellow Finnish, Ruby Crescent, and Australian Crescent.
Yukon Gold, Peruvian Blue, Superior, Kennebec, and Katahdin are said to be “all purpose” but they’re probably more boilers than mashers.