house of warwick

Cooking for Fun and Profit

Steve Kirks — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:37:49 +0000

We moved (duh!) and that meant a larger kitchen for me. Tammy’s a baker and not as much of a cook, although she can whip up a mean soup on the strength of smells alone. I’m an event chef; I like to cook for people. That said, last weekend was a “pressure cooker” because I was cooking for some extended family, one of which was a chef himself. The menu was designed to be small courses served with social time in between.

The starter course was potato leek soup, a rustic Cook’s Illustrated recipe that rarely fails to disappoint. What’s funny is that it’s easy to make and not too expensive. Side note: if you have homemade broth then chose that over store brands. I used a organic chicken broth that cost on a quarter more than the name brand and it made a big difference.

Second course was butternut squash risotto, another gem from Cook’s Illustrated, which features a unique method to extract plenty of squash flavor: roasted innards! You scoop the stringy goo and seeds out, roast them in a skillet and add it to the broth as a base for the “stock” to add to the risotto later. I like the flavor where the sage punctuates the sweetness of the squash, but my experience is that it consistently comes out gummy. Most people that have tried it like it that way, but I’m hoping for a better texture that allows the shape of the arborio rice to come through.

Main course was a modified chicken saltimboca. We did the tenderloins instead of the breast and that allowed better portion sizes for everyone. My lessons learned here were important, especially regarding the correct placement of sage and prosciutto. I undercooked the pieces in the pan due to the falling sage burning on the skillet surface, so instead of warming in the oven, I moved the temp up to 375F and then 5 mins of broiling near the end. It produced fantastic results, so I made a mental note to restructure the cooking times with more broiling to crisp the prosciutto.

The title of the post mentions profit so here’s the money shot: cost savings. I was able to feed six people all of the food above (even a white cake and frosting for a birthday cake) for $37.00, much less than we all would have spent at a restaurant and the food was just as good.

Yum!

Still Alive

Steve Kirks — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:15:46 +0000

I’m still here and still trying to find time to write. When I’m home, I’m spending my time cooking, getting stuff from storage unpacked, ironing the occasional shirt and even playing some Halo 3. I’ve got some posts stacked up, so it’s time to write again.

Tweets on 2008-11-06

Steve Kirks — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 04:59:59 +0000

@kerner I’m with you–KY3 needs to get it together. KOLR10 made it work. in reply to kerner #
so far all of the votes are for “short” on the hair. I have to get a note from like three people to get my hair cut. Six months to grow back #
@kerner you’re crazy! Who shaves their head? :) in reply to kerner #
@r how could anyone -not- go vote with such a historic oppty facing us all? in reply to r #
@kerner Dare I say President Obama? in reply to kerner #
Gas in Ozark was $1.89 tonight. Wow! #
9:30PM and Obama is leading by a million votes. Still not at 270 yet. #
Staying up until McCain concedes. #
All networks calling the race with Obama the winner. Wow! #
McCain shows a little more than the minimum sincerity required for a concession speech. #
Staying up to hear President-Elect Obama speak. #
Chinese buffet for lunch==sleepytime #

Tweets on 2008-11-05

Steve Kirks — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Cut my hair short or leave it long? Vote with your tweets! #

My Ballot

Steve Kirks — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 21:17:23 +0000

Election Map 2008

Steve Kirks — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 22:28:16 +0000

Here’s Google’s election map for easy reference:

Blog like it’s 1995!

Steve Kirks — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 22:02:34 +0000

I’m writing this on an dial up internet connection. Yuk! The modern web is mostly usable on a 56K internet connection, but it drags. Online shopping is mostly a joke–photos and images take forever to download. We still don’t have DSL on at the new house. It’s a very long story, deserving a blog post of it’s own.

Tonight it’s dinner at Tuscan Grill on the east side of Springfield. We’re taking my mother-in-law and her husband to a nice restaurant to say “thanks” for their hard work over the last couple of weeks. Much like my parents did for us when we moved in to Kickapoo, Anne and Burl have sure “filled the gaps” with our new house.

Dinner at Home

Steve Kirks — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 03:28:06 +0000

Tammy and I chose dinner at home tonight, a small part of a larger plan to spend less money on eating out. We had leftover port filets from the night before so that became the base of a fantastic pasta dish. Thepork had been grilled and wrapped with bacon so a carbonara was a perfect choice. To save a pit scrubbing, I used a single skillet, starting with the pasta. I cooked it until just under done then reused it for growing butter and making a white sauce. Not to rush the story here, but since it’s time for bed, everything was added to a cassarole dish and put under the broiler. Poof! A great dinner for pennies!

Tweets on 2008-10-30

Steve Kirks — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Driving home after a 14.5 hour day working a phone system cut. Ugh. Have to be back at 8AM #
Gas in Ozark, MO: $1.98 a gallon. Down 60 cents since Oct 10th #

Tweets on 2008-10-19

Steve Kirks — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Out of the old house. In the new house. TiVo powered up and trying to find an antenna I packed. #

Tweets on 2008-10-18

Steve Kirks — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

We are homeless for about 30 minutes. The Kickapoo house is offically sold! #

Tweets on 2008-10-17

Steve Kirks — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Last post on weblog from the old house on Kickapoo is up on houseofwarwick.com #

Last post from Kickapoo

Steve Kirks — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 21:30:50 +0000

This is the last weblog post I’ll write from the comfy confines of 853 S. Kickapoo. I’ve enjoyed my time here, and while looking around at the nearly empty house, I know I’ll miss it. It’s a house of a little over 1000 square feet and that makes for an intimate experience, but most of all, the house had very different environments. The kitchen was filled with windows and curtainless, so during the summer, it was like a screened-in porch. The den was just right for the two of us to watch TV and feel completely isolated from the rest of the house. It’s also the warmest and coolest in the appropriate seasons, making it Tammy’s favorite room.

There’s not much to say here except “Goodbye old friend.”

Goodbye Kickapoo…

Tweets on 2008-10-14

Steve Kirks — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

In meeting. Lasting too long. #

Tweets on 2008-10-11

Steve Kirks — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Gas in Ozark, MO $2.58 a gallon. #

Home Stretch

Steve Kirks — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:09:23 +0000

We’re in the home stretch of the move. The appraiser took their time to return the list of items to fix, and while none are major, it’s obvious that she took the inspection and copied it word-for-word. That said, the items can easily be fixed in the next few days, but I would have loved doing it without the extra drama.

Today is painting the parts of the house that I scraped and primed and then patching the chimney mortar on the cap. Both are really easy to do but the chimney has me nervous because I’ll be climbing up the ladder and on to the roof. It’s not the height, it’s the transition from ladder to roof and the risk of falling.

What’s life without a little risk, eh?

Old House Sadness

Steve Kirks — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 01:19:39 +0000

When I look around at the mess that our old house becomes, I try not to be sad. It’s odd to think that six months ago, we had no idea that we’d be moving. I didn’t know that last Christmas was the last one with the aluminum tree centered in the front window. That was also the first Christmas that we did large light outlining the front of the house and it looked great.

I’m crying now.

This house has meant so much to me. It’s been the place where Tammy and I “grew up” together. We got better jobs and weather good times and bad while learning to be a real married couple. This house held the first “wine tasting” party, a nearly epic event with friends and family.

I can’t hold on to everything in my life forever. This house has been a physical and mental stabilizer for me for so long that leaving it sometimes scares me. I know that it’s the right thing to do and I know I’ll love the other house, but for now, this old friend doesn’t want to leave my heart.

Tweets on 2008-10-07

Steve Kirks — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Driving home in the rain. Ugh. #

Getting started with a business plan

Steve Kirks — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 22:03:25 +0000

When daZZee shut down their Springfield office, I promised myself that I would not get so easily waylaid again. I’ve been enjoying my new job so far, but I need a way to get started with software programming. That means tools like software development kits and computers like a new MacBook or MacMini.

Any savings I’ve had was erased during the five weeks without a job and the first two weeks of the new job before regular paychecks started. I can’t use credit cards for many reasons, but the main one is that they are the tool of the weak. If you don’t have the money to buy something, credit cards enable your weakness to be satisfied.

So to start a business I need to raise capital in a more traditional way. The easy first step is the business plan–a list of what you need and how much it will cost versus the likely ways to get revenue and repay investors.

Needs:

Software development kit for the chosen platform. This is easy and free since most companies want you write for their platform. My choice is the Mac and that means…
Platform. I need a Mac and, while I have three (!) they are all older G4-based machines. New software development can’t be done on a machine without an Intel processor.
Training. That comes from books, the web and time, all of which are affordable.

Tong’s Restaurant in Springfield

Steve Kirks — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 14:13:14 +0000

Tammy and I took some time for a “date” tonight and headed to Tong’s, a Thai place on Campbell near the Honda dealer in Springfield. Tong’s has been around for several years, taking the place of legendary Kim’s Korean Barbecue. Tammy had a chance to get a salad from Tong’s while at work last week, so we headed there tonight, looking for something new. We were not disappointed.

I had Emerald Chicken, a fantastic and simple dish of grilled chicken breast, sliced and placed on top of steamed vegetables and covered tastefully with a traditional Thai peanut sauce. Paired with a Chardonnay, it was a great entrée that satisfied my craving for Thai and a need for solid protein. Tammy’s dish was a local invention called the “Thai-rito”, an inspired food mashup of Mexican and Thai cuisine. The bite that Tammy shared made me wish I could trade plates. We also had a few appetizers–a soup called Tom Kha Ghi and a fried cake made of ground chicken and shrimp called the Todd Gunn. Both were authentic and the flavor was great.

I’m running out of superlatives so I’ll wrap this up by saying: treat yourself to Tong’s. You won’t be disappointed.

Tweets on 2008-10-03

Steve Kirks — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Long time no tweet. #
I’ve been re-run the Halo 3 campaign on Legendary. It’s hard. Very hard. Almost to Tsvao Highway. #

The coming Crash?

Steve Kirks — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 22:02:44 +0000

From the Woot.com home page, a prescient product description:

All Tomorrow’s LAN Parties

Boy, the aphids are bad this year. Look at these turnips. At this rate, we’ll be lucky if there’s any left for the Harvest Feast. Well, hand me that cottonseed oil. Let’s see if it’ll keep them away this time.

What? Oh, yeah, sure, I remember the Crash. I was 14, 15 when it all went down: the oil running out, the oceans rising, the 2nd Civil War. I’ll never forget those Chinese peacekeeping troops rolling a tank right down the main corridor of the Oakwoods Galleria. I was at this place called GameZone, looking at these things called video games. Oh, you’ve heard about video games, huh? Yeah, us old-timers used to spend a lot of time talking about video games around the village fire.

It sounds funny now, but I was going to be a professional video-game player. That very day, I’d scraped up some of the Old Dollars to buy a pair of Everglide S-500 Professional Headphones. See, wanna-be pro gamers like me would wear these things over our ears, so we could hear our game and not the guy’s next to us. So I was looking for a pair that would fit over my ears and shut everything out – something huge, like these Everglide S-500s. They sounded great for games, and had a decent frequency response for music, too. I bought them after I spent, like, days figuring out which headphones were going to help me make a living playing video games.

It’s funny what people used to get paid to do, huh? And funny what people used to consider important.

Ah, well. You could drive yourself crazy wrestling with memories of the old world. Look at old Barry Gomez, sitting at that bus stop on the town square like it’s going to rumble down the road any minute. No, those days are over. You missed it, kid. Now let’s get back to tending these turnips.

One Week Down

Steve Kirks — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:15:50 +0000

Hello Weblog!

I’ve landed just fine at CenturyTel. I’ve got a week under my belt and I’d have to say it’s sure nice to come to work and enjoy the stability and resources of a larger company. I’m working with current generation gear and have a great group of people to support.

Tweets on 2008-09-20

Steve Kirks — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Our offer on the Charing house was accepted! #
@E5c bits don’t roll–they’re square in reply to E5c #

Tweets on 2008-09-19

Steve Kirks — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 04:59:59 +0000

Our house is under contract! #