Next week marks 20 weeks of this grand thought experiment. I’m working on making some changes, mostly to the recipe section.
In other news, a little attention paid on a recent purchase!
My dear friends Adriana and Dave started a coffee business called Upwell Coffee, selling single-origin coffee direct to your mailbox, and donating to research & conservation efforts. We bought whole-bean bags of Limnetic Light Roast and Mesophotic Medium Blend, and y’all it is GOOD STUFF. This is not #sponcon, just passing on the good word.
LOTS OF FEELINGS IN THESE LINKS THIS WEEK
This week I took on a little light reading on the domestication of cats and found this research studying a central Asian cat from ~775 CE who suffered broken bones and teeth and survived thanks to human help and attention and, okay, you know what, just don’t read this if you’re feeling emotionally fragile, it might break you in a highly scientific fashion
Let’s talk about ghost towns! Fascinating photos in this walk around Pyramiden, a fjord in the Svalbard archipelago: “For most of its time, it was a coal-mining town, and a showcase of Soviet socialism for the rotten West to admire.”
Dealing with major house-buying fever right now, and this Augusta, Ga. bungalow house tour is not helping.
This take on the fall of Brooks Brothers has really stuck with me the past week; I think about it a lot lately.
Here’s a good companion piece on J.Crew: it’s a really excellent and provocative look at the mass retailers that have defined American Style, particularly considering the value of WASPy prep perspective has held up about as well as Gossip Girl.
HAMBURGER HELP ME
Longtime readers will recall a tuna helper recipe I published in Week 2 of In Good Taste (“Guilty Pleasures”). This is the full-on meat counterpart.
It’s one-skillet and easy for a weeknight; suitable for, say, anytime you’ve spent too long reading about cats from antiquity and their human friends.
Prep/Cook: Under an hour
INGREDIENTS
½ lb. extra-lean ground beef (use a whole package if you’re feeding more than 2 people)
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, diced
1 tbsp. tomato paste
½ cup red wine
1 tbsp. paprika
Salt & pepper to taste
Half a box of any small noodles, like spiral or elbow (2 cups? IDK)
1 cup of hot water
1 cup almond milk (or regular, if you have it)
½ cup heavy cream
1 cup shredded cheddar
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
WHAT TO DO:
Brown the ground beef in a deep, wide Dutch oven on medium-high, breaking up into chunks, salt & pepper. Add onions and sauté until almost translucent. Add garlic and cook until just brown and fragrant, mix all ingredients. Add tomato paste and paprika, letting the paste warm and bloom.
Pour in wine and let reduce until almost evaporated, about 7-10 minutes. Add water, milk, cream and stir to combine, tasting with additional salt & pepper, and bring to a boil. Pour noodles in as it’s boiling, cooking until they’re al dente. Mix in both cheeses, reducing heat to low, and stir until cheese pull status is 100% activated (melted) and everything looks glossy. Turn off the heat and let this stand for about 10 minutes.