Month: June 2016
Death plays polo
Can’t say why, but this made me lol today.
Pure cacao, the not-so-new drug
The man behind the “chocolate shooter” is Belgian chocolatier Dominique Persoone.
His company, The Chocolate Line, makes a device that is basically a tiny catapult,
with two small, spring-loaded spoons that fling cocoa powder into the nostrils.
An unusual new craze has been hitting dance floors across the world over the past couple of years – and no, we’re not talking about twerking. In an attempt to get high without breaking any laws or putting dangerous substances into their bodies, revelers have turned to snorting chocolate. The trend appears to have originated in Berlin, where raw cacao has been served in place of alcohol or more conventional illicit drugs. More recently, a number of rave venues across Europe and the US have begun offering the substance in the form of powder, pills or as a drink.
You could argue, of course, that the craze actually started way before the German capital established itself as the hipster capital of the world, as cacao is well known to have been widely used by pre-Columbian civilizations like the Aztecs and the Mayans. Considered to have divine properties, the seeds of the cacao tree were often used during rituals and ceremonies in order to elevate participants to a state of ecstasy – which, in many ways, is exactly what it is now once again being used for.
Exactly how effective cacao is at getting people high has not yet been established, although there are a number of reasons why it might work. For starters, it contains endorphins as well as a chemical called tyrosine, which is a precursor to dopamine. Since both endorphins and dopamine are natural neurotransmitters known to induce feelings of pleasure, it’s unsurprising that people have been reporting that snocolate helps to elevate their mood. Cacao is also rich in antioxidants such as epicatechin, which increases blood flow to the brain and the muscles, giving people both a physical and an emotional kick that could help them dance for longer. Since epicatechin has also been shown to protect neurons and improve cognitive function, this is clearly a preferable option to other dance-fueling substances like cocaine and MDMA, even though cacao is unlikely to match the high generated by these drugs.
However, this shouldn’t be taken to mean that snorting cacao is necessarily safe. Understandably, there is no scientific evidence regarding the safety profile of nasal cacao, as it’s never really been high on any researcher’s list. Yet as a general rule, it’s a good idea to think of the nose as a one-way system, and that while things may regularly come out of it, sending material the other way and up towards the brain is probably not a wise move.
[recipe] Pesto
Basil pesto
15g / 2tbsp pine nuts
Pinch of salt
250g fresh basil leaves (pick off as much of the stalk as you can, as this discolours easily)
25g Parmesan, grated
25g pecorino, grated
300ml extra virgin olive oil
Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan, and then allow to cool completely. Lightly crush in a pestle and mortar, along with a pinch of salt.
Add the basil leaves a few at a time, and working as quickly as possible, pound them into the mixture until you have a thickish paste.
Work in the cheese, and then gradually incorporate the oil, reserving a little for the top.
Spoon the pesto into a jar, and cover the top with oil. Refrigerate until use.
Roasted red pepper pesto
15g / 2tbsp pine nuts
Pinch of salt
1 jar roasted red peppers (or 3 red peppers, if you want to roast them yourself)
60g fresh basil leaves (pick off as much of the stalk as you can, as this discolours easily)
25g Parmesan, grated
25g pecorino, grated
300ml extra virgin olive oil
Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan, and then allow to cool completely. Add pine nuts, red peppers and cheese in a blender. Blend at low speed and then gradually incorporate the oil, reserving a little for the top.
Spoon the pesto into a jar, and cover the top with oil. Refrigerate until use.
[recipe] One-pot teriyaki chicken, vegetables and rice
1 tbsp olive oil
2 chicken breasts, sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp ginger paste
500ml water
200g white rice, rinsed
180ml cup teriyaki sauce + 60ml water
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup broccoli
1 cup carrots
1/2 red bell pepper
Green onions for garnish (optional)
Heat olive oil in a large pot on medium heat. Add chicken, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for 8 minutes. Add ginger, sauté for 2 minutes until fragrant.
Add 2 cups of water and the rice and stir. Cover the pot and bring water to a boil. Uncover, stir, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
Combine water, teriyaki sauce and cornstarch to create a cornstarch slurry. Add the cornstarch slurry to the pot and stir, cooking until the sauce thickens (3-4 minutes).
Garnish with green onions (optional) and serve immediately.
[recipe] Chicken marsala
1 chicken breast, butterflied, pounded and divided into 2
Flour
Salt & Pepper
100g cup of slice mushrooms
250ml of Marsala wine
30ml / 2 Tbsp of lemon juice
15g / 1 Tbsp. of butter
1 Tbsp. of parsley
Butterfly, pound and divide one chicken breast into 2 pieces. Combine flour, salt and pepper, and dredge chicken breast in the seasoned flour. Dust off any excess. Fry the chicken in a little bit of oil on a hot skillet/pan. Fry 3 minutes per side. In the same skillet or pan, add the mushrooms. Cook until soft. Add the marsala wine, lemon juice, butter and parsley. Cook until sauce has slightly thickened.
Serve chicken on top of or with pasta/ rice and spoon sauce over. Enjoy!
The menu writer has officially lost it
Right. I’ve been suspecting this for a while, but now this proves it. The person who writes up the menus of the EPFL cafeterias has gone completely off the deep end with the gastro-twaddle.
It’s not even been a year!!!
So, about a year ago, I posted a Dilbert comic about Agile. History repeats.
This is Agile:
How we do it? Yeaaaah, no.
quote of the day
On planning and organization:
I imagine that she’s the sort of person who has 5 bottles of ketchup in her fridge, all of which are opened.