Slow Simmer

Sauces for all the wrong reasons

dennisbox — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 02:00:35 +0000

I love to make sauces.

My wife Ginny used to get after me for my sauces. I would come up with reasons to pour hollandaise, Béarnaise and velouté over almost anything. That was before I met up with Dr. Killyasoon.

Now I eat peas and tofu — and I hear voices –

I put together a quick casserole yesterday for my son. He finished it because I had to drive to the office and cover the McDonald’s crash story.

Alton Brown made a version of this and I lifted it from him.

I crisped fried about a pound of bacon and steamed a couple of chicken thighs — I cooked a quick tomato sauce with garlic, red peppers, whole canned tomatoes and other tomato sauce stuff and reduced it with red wine.

At this point I got the call and had my son finish the dish.

He put sauce in a casserole pan and layered flour and corn tortillas, cheese, bacon, chicken and more tomato sauce. I wanted him to put cottage cheese and tortilla chips on top then a final layer of cheese, but I was in a hurry and forgot to tell him.

He built it without the chips and said it was good.

I ate green olives and yoghurt — I need a doctor who skipped about two or three years of that pesky medical school.

Croque Madam from memory

dennisbox — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 04:30:40 +0000

Put together my breakfast version of Croque Madam for my son this morning, since he gets to eat food. I have the joy of watching him eat my concoctions and later he describes the experience. Food with sauce and cheese and everything ruled wrong to eat by my good Dr. Killyasoon. The memory of this experience is slowly fading from my feeble brain, but I still remember how to make it.

My version of Croque Madam was to first caramelize an onion with a red pepper in olive oil, butter and white wine.

Next I took two slices of bread, buttered them and grilled them enough to get the grill marks.

Instead of ham I cooked bacon. I loaded the bacon and onion mixture on the bread and topped with cheddar cheese, which is all I had in the refrigerator.

I broiled that to get the cheese bubbly, then put the other piece of bread on top and some more cheese and broiled until bubbly.

I topped it with an egg fried in butter. I made hollandaise sauces and poured it over the top. Béarnaise is more traditional, but hollandaise sounded right to me this morning for some reason.

A perfect arrangement for peace

dennisbox — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:28:22 +0000

I have stumbled upon the perfect solution for a problem that has plagued fathers since God mistakenly created daughters. The problem is boyfriends.
I’m not sure why God decided know-it-all daughters were such a dandy idea in the first place, but I didn’t get to vote on this one.
For the record, this entire boyfriend arrangement was not well planned by God. He must have been tired that day. I think there should have been a public hearing for dads only.
I have, however, devised the magic solution – arranged boyfriends. Not only will it solve the stupid boyfriend thing, I am convinced it will bring peace on earth. Such a deal.
Let me describe how this brilliant idea came to me.
Katy, my 23-year-old daughter who believes I have become dumber every day since she was born, called me a while back. During the conversation Katy happened to say she was “hanging out” with someone.
That’s how girls say it now. Hanging out.
Well I’m a quick one, despite what little-miss-run-my-life thinks.
“What’s his name?” I said quick as can be.
“I not telling you.”
“Why?”
“Because your nuts. You’ll try to investigate him or something stupid like that.”
“I would never do anything like that,” I said in a high-pitched whiny voice. “But do you think you could write down his social security number or driver’s license number? Just for my record keeping.”
“Not a chance,” she said.
OK, I will admit there may be a little, tiny bit of history for her comments, but that was a long time ago and I have reformed.
I have become a new dad and I now want to solve the boyfriend problem instead of crush it. Let’s remember this conundrum was not created by me, it was God’s fault, but I am willing to fix it.
Arranged boyfriends makes everything so slick. It is a simple and an easy-pleasy solution. It’s even Constitutional. All we have to do is skip certain sections in the middle that don’t really count anyway.
I rolled things around in my vacant head for a couple of days before I presented the exquisite harmony of my plan to Katy.
“I found you the perfect boyfriend that I know I will like. We’ll get along dandy. Maybe go fishing or bowling or play Yahtzee and do all sorts of zippy activities.”
She wouldn’t even consider it, not for a second. I couldn’t believe it.
The world I set up had such symmetry and balance – like living in a Nirvana with all the Twinkies and Ho Hos I could ever desire.
But no, let’s not listen to dad the dumb guy.
I patiently told her I could set this up with one phone call and a couple of boxes of chocolate dipped Twinkies. I told her I had only my best interests at heart, and I was thinking about her, too.
She threatened to have me sent to a home for crazy dads. Must be a long waiting list.
So much for peace on earth.
I hope you’re happy, God.

Attorney General Rob McKenna’s statement on Supreme Court’s decision to hear Ref. 71 case

dennisbox — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 22:44:23 +0000

This is a press release from the office of Attorney General Rob McKenna.

Attorney General Rob McKenna today issued the following statement on the US Supreme Court’s decision to hear Doe v. Reed, a case involving the release of Referendum 71 petitions containing the names and addresses of those who signed the measure

• “This case involves a direct attack on public disclosure and transparency in elections. It affects not only all Washington state initiatives and referenda but also has major ramifications for every state with an initiative and referenda process and similar laws regarding public disclosure.

• Although the sponsors of Ref. 71 claim this case is about potential harassment and intimidation, the federal district court which blocked release of petition signers’ names did not address that claim.

• Instead, the legal issue in the case before the US Supreme Court is whether or not initiative and referendum signatures, gathered through a public process, should be considered anonymous political speech that is protected from public scrutiny.

The petitioners must file their opening briefs by Feb. 25, 2010, and the state’s response is due March 25, 2010. Oral arguments are expected in April 2010.

Man accused of serial rapes arrested

dennisbox — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 23:46:45 +0000

The following is a press release from the King County Sheriff’s office.

Sheriff detectives arrested a 22 year-old Skyway man on Friday, Jan. 8, for investigation of rape, robbery and kidnapping. They believe he committed at least two other rapes and perhaps more.

The suspect is currently in the Regional Justice Center with a $500,000 bail. Charges are pending.

In a Jan. 7 incident, the 26 year-old victim was in the Skyway neighborhood to respond to an ad posted on Craigslist for a “nude model”. Detectives believe the ad was posted by the perpetrator of the rape.

When the woman pulled into a parking lot about 9 p.m. to use her cell phone, the suspect suddenly appeared, got into her car and held a knife to her throat. He made her drive around for a short period of time before telling her to pull over. Then he forced her to perform a sex act. He took items from the car and the woman.

Detectives identified a fingerprint, which was found in the victim’s vehicle. They arrested the suspect on Jan. 8 as he left his Skyway residence.

Another similar case occurred in Skyway on Dec. 20. In that case the suspect reportedly got into the car while the 21 year-old victim was stopped at a red light. Again he held a knife to her throat and eventually had her perform a sex act. Detectives believe it is likely the same man is responsible for this rape as well, and are doing additional follow-up work.

Dec. 9, two women went to Skyway as a result of their Craigslist ad and were sexually assaulted by a man whose M.O. and description matched the other two cases. That investigation is also continuing.

Due to the connection to Craigslist in at least two of these cases, it is a possibility there are other victims who may not have reported the crime. Any additional victims should call the sheriff’s office at 206-296-3311, 24 hours or 911 to report the crime.

Critical injury accident on SR 18 involving motorcylce and car

dennisbox — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 06:52:35 +0000

The state patrol is reporting a critical injury accident at 5:37 p.m. today on state Route 18.

An 18-year-old Auburn man riding a Yamaha motorcycle struck a blocking disabled vehicle driven by a 30-year-old woman from Kent. She was driving a 1996 Dodge Neon.

The man was driving eastbound on SR 18 and hit the car at about Southeast 304th Street

The man was transported to Harborview.

View Larger Map

Tahoma High ‘We the People’ wins state championship

dennisbox — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 05:05:47 +0000

The Tahoma High We the People team won the state championship.

The team will go on to represent the state at the national championship in Washington D.C. in April.

The Reporter will d be publishing a story with pictures this week.

Windows broken at Den and community center

dennisbox — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 01:18:19 +0000

According to a preliminary report windows were broken out at the Maple Valley Community Center and Den sometime Friday night or early Saturday morning.

More details when available.
View Larger Map

Body found by state Department of Transportation workers

dennisbox — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 19:20:25 +0000

A decomposed body was found yesterday, Jan. 7, by state DOT workers clearing brushing along I-5 just east of Federal Way.

The workers found the body about 2:30 p.m. near the 3100 block of South 298th.

Due to the advanced state of decomposition, it was impossible to tell the gender or cause of death. The remains were turned over to the Medical Examiner’s Office.

McKenna, Reed to ask U.S. Supreme Court to take felon voter case

dennisbox — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:44:25 +0000

The following is a press release from the state Attorney General’s office.

Attorney General Rob McKenna and Secretary of State Sam Reed announced today they will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court the recent 9^th Circuit decision granting felons the right to vote in Washington.

The 9^th Circuit yesterday in Farrakhan v. Gregoire applied the federal Voting Rights Act to Washington’s felon disenfranchisement law and overturned Washington law barring felons in prison and under community supervision from voting.

“This case began back in 1996, it’s been to the 9^th Circuit twice already and now it’s time for the US Supreme Court to step in to resolve the split between the federal courts of appeals that the 9^th Circuit has created,” McKenna said. “The felon disenfranchisement laws of Washington and 47 other states hang in the balance.”

“The US Constitution, the Washington constitution and the laws of 47 other states all agree that felons may lose this important civil right when they violate the rights of others by committing egregious violations of the law,” Reed said. “I’m pleased the Attorney General will be taking this case to the US Supreme Court and expect a positive outcome.”

The decision will not go into effect until the 9^th Circuit issues its mandate on the case which is not likely to occur for at least 14 days.

In the meantime, the Attorney General’s Office will file a motion to stay the mandate, which would prevent the Secretary of State and county auditors from having to devise new voting systems to accommodate incarcerated felons and would prevent felons in prison or under community supervision from exercising their right to vote until the matter has been decided by the US Supreme Court.

The request for appeal to the US Supreme Court, known as a petition for certiorari, must be filed within 90 day.

If the U.S. Supreme Court accepts the case, McKenna plans to argue it himself. He argued and won a similar felon voting case before the Washington Supreme Court in 2007.

9th Circuit appeals bench would allow prison inmates to vote

dennisbox — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 00:25:43 +0000

The following is a press release from Secretary of State Sam Reed’s office.
Washington’s longtime constitutional ban on voting by felons has been tossed out by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The state is expected to appeal.
The surprise ruling contradicts holdings in three other circuits, with cases out of New York, Massachusetts and Florida, and it may well be up to the U.S. Supreme Court to settle the conflict. If Tuesday’s ruling were the last word on the case, it would allow inmates currently behind bars to vote in Washington. The ruling could also be the basis of litigation in the eight other states in the 9th Circuit – Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, plus Guam.
Secretary of State Sam Reed, Washington’s chief elections officer, said, “We were quite surprised at today’s 2-1 ruling by the 9th Circuit, and we would expect to appeal the decision. We certainly support racial equality and efforts to make our criminal justice system free of bias. But we also support our state constitutional ban on voting by felons who are under Department of Corrections supervision.
“We believe that the loss of voting rights is an appropriate and reasonable sanction for society to demand of felons while they are incarcerated or on community supervision. Most states have this sensible policy. Once inmates satisfy their prison sentence and community supervision, our Legislature has recently provided that they may apply to have their voting rights restored as part of reintegrating back into the community.
“We are hopeful that this longstanding policy will be upheld as this case is appealed further. We look forward to the courts giving some finality to this question, which has been in litigation since 1996.”
The case was originally brought nearly 14 years ago in U.S. District Court in Eastern Washington by Muhammad Shabazz Farrakhan and three other black inmates, and by a Native American and a Latino inmate. The inmates said minorities are disproportionately prosecuted and sentenced to prison, and that their automatic disenfranchisement violates the federal Voting Rights Act.
The Appeals bench concurred with the inmates that the state’s criminal justice system is “infected” with racial discrimination and that the challengers don’t have to prove that that it is intentional or racially motivated discrimination. The court said that “based on uncontroverted facts,” it would rely on academic research that showed Washington’s African Americans were over nine times more likely to be in prison than Caucasians, even though the ratio of black-to-white arrest for violent crimes was less than 4:1. Another study showed that Native Americans were twice as likely to be searched by state troopers than whites, blacks more than 70 percent more likely to be searched and Latinos more than 50 percent more likely. Other studies were cited.
The challengers didn’t assert that the felon disenfranchisement law was enacted with intent to discriminate, but said that when the law is applied in the context of the criminal justice system, it is more likely for minorities to lose their voting rights. That’s illegal, they contended.
The court held that the Voting Rights Act, adopted by Congress in 1965 for the purpose of eliminating racial discrimination in voting, does not permit disenfranchising voters who are behind bars when the criminal justice system is skewed toward greater incarceration of minorities. The judges also said it is irrelevant that the state Legislature last year approved a new law that takes away a felon’s voting rights only while in the direct custody of the Department of Corrections. Previously, voting rights were restored only after restitution and other costs were repaid, a matter of years for some ex-cons.
Three other circuits, the First, Second and Eleventh, have reached the opposite conclusion about felon voting. The decision in the First, out of Massachusetts, was in 2009; the 2nd Circuit decision, in a New York case, was in 2006; and the 11th Circuit, out of Florida, was in 2005.
In a strongly worded dissent, Judge M. Margaret McKeown said her colleagues have “charted territory that none of our sister circuits have dared to explore.” At the least, the court should have remanded the case for further fact-finding on some of the key points, she wrote.
State Elections Director Nick Handy said the conflicting opinions makes it likely that the U.S. Supreme Court will be asked to take the Farrakhan case on appeal.
The 9th Circuit opinion was written by Judge A. Wallace Tashima and signed by himself and Stephen Reinhardt.
Deputy Solicitor General Jeff Even of the Attorney General’s office said attorneys will review the lengthy opinion and consider the next steps. The state could ask the full 9th Circuit, rather than a three-judge panel, to consider the case. That would involve a hearing before 11 judges. Another option would be to ask the Supreme Court to hear the case, he confirmed.
The case has had a very long shelf life. It was originally filed in Spokane in 1996. The District Court upheld the state’s disenfranchisement law. That was appealed to the 9th Circuit, which reversed and sent it back to the district court for further consideration. The court’s subsequent ruling, along in favor of the state, was appealed a second time to the 9th Circuit. Last year, the state Legislature, at Reed’s request, amended the law to allow restoration of voting rights after an ex-convict completes his or her prison sentence and community supervision. Previously, an ex-convict also would have to satisfy all outstanding financial obligations, including court costs and restitution, before applying for restoration of voting rights.

Shooting in Burien

dennisbox — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:53:14 +0000

King County Deputies responded to a double shooting last night at an apartment complex located at 12445 Ambaum Blvd. SW.

When deputies arrived at 9.30 p.m. they found a juvenile male and a juvenile female both suffering gunshot wounds. The female later died from her wounds and the male is being treated in hospital for what appears to be a serious but non-life threatening gunshot wound.

At this time detectives are continuing their investigation. The preliminary investigation indicates the juvenile male shot the female and likely shot himself; however, detectives have not had the opportunity to interview him. He is under police guard at hospital while the investigation continues.View Larger Map



Suicide attempt off 520 bridge stopped by boater
dennisbox — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:29:08 +0000
At about 11:15 a.m. today (Jan. 1) the Washington State Patrol 911 dispatch center was flooded with calls reporting a female who had stopped her white passenger car in the right lane westbound on state Route 520 near the east high-rise and was threatening to jump.
The 55-year-old Bismarck, N.D. female jumped into the icy cold water of Lake Washington and was immediately affected by the frigid temperature.
Several motorists, whom stopped to help, threw her ropes or whatever they could find to assist the distraught woman.  Seeing the commotion from the water, the operator of a ski boat (whose name is not known) raced over to the woman and pulled her into the boat covering her with blankets until Seattle police officers and Mercer Island Harbor Patrol units arrived.
Seattle Police Harbor Patrol transported the female to the University of Washington where she was met by the Seattle Fire Department and investigating troopers.
The icy ordeal left the woman with minor medical problems; she was transported to Harborview Medical Center for treatment and psychological evaluation.
The right lane of westbound state route 520 was blocked for approximately 30 minutes.



Unusual defective equipment results in D.U.I. arrest
dennisbox — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 00:15:28 +0000
A state  trooper assigned to the King County Holiday Enforcement Team arrested a 62-year-old Seattle resident for D.U.I. after spotting the man driving his sports car through downtown Seattle without a right rear tire.

On Dec. 29th a trooper spotted James A. Stephenson driving eastbound on Pike Street from 3rd Ave in his Porsche 911 sports car. Pedestrians on the sidewalk stopped and stared as the vehicle was making a loud grinding noise and emitting lots of sparks.

The trooper stopped the vehicle and when asked for his driver’s license Stephenson quickly informed the trooper that his transmission was going out. The trooper advised Stephenson that his vehicle was not having a transmission problem. Stephenson continuously attempted to convince the trooper that his vehicle problems were a result of a faulty transmission.

Stephenson became belligerent and asked the trooper if he was a mechanic or a cop. The trooper advised Stephenson that he was not a mechanic and asked Stephenson to step from his Porsche so that he could show him something. Upon exiting his Porsche, the trooper pointed to the right rear tire, which was completely missing from the wheel. The trooper continued around the Porsche and pointed to the right front tire which was completely flat.

Stephenson was at a complete loss for words and told the trooper that the car was in good condition when he left his friend’s house. Further investigation by the trooper determined that Stephenson was heavily intoxicated and he was arrested for DUI.

It is unknown what Stevenson collided with prior to the traffic stop.



State patrol searching for man considered armed and dangerous
dennisbox — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:13:48 +0000





The Washington State Patrol sent out an alert for suspect 42-year-old Bradley Steven Robinett. The state patrol warns he is considered to be armed and dangerous.

The state patrol release stated extreme caution should be used if contact is made with Robinett. If he is located, or for any leads contact: Washington State Patrol Detective Sgt. John Anderson 425-401-7745.
The following is from the Washington State Patrol release.

Robinett has been identified as a suspect that ran from a stolen vehicle in the Eastgate park and ride on Nov. 24. Robinett was driving a stolen black 2009 Honda Pilot at the time. The Honda had been stolen from the Portland area, bearing switched plates belonging to a Kia Sorrento from Vancouver, Wash.

Sept. 12 Bainbridge Island had a similar run-in with Robinett, who fled with another Portland-area stolen Honda Pilot, bearing switched plates stolen in Vancouver. A stolen handgun and stolen body armor were recovered in the Bainbridge case.

Robinett appears to be living in the stolen vehicles and in both Pilot cases had rigged a curtain that snapped to the roofline to conceal his presence in the vehicle. Robinett has a history of auto theft and bank robbery and it is possible he was casing a local bank when contacted by WSP.
WSP, Bainbridge Island, FBI, and Marshals service are currently actively looking for Robinett. He has an outstanding felony warrant for escape and unlawful possession of a firearm (OCA: 0860525920 – US Marshals). Probable cause exists for possession of a stolen vehicle and property from the WSP case.

Robinett is known to be a survivalist and very active, normally running 3 miles daily. He is believed to be armed at all times and possibly equipped with body armor. It is likely he is living in a stolen vehicle and/or outdoors in a secluded area.



Confirmed case of measles in a King County adult
dennisbox — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 00:14:13 +0000
 Local public health officials have learned of a confirmed case of measles in a King County adult female who was exposed during international travel.  She is an unvaccinated adult who developed symptoms on Dec. 12 after returning to King County.  The woman was not contagious during travel, but she did have several health care visits and community exposures subsequently.  She was not hospitalized during her illness and is recovered. 
Because most people in our area are vaccinated against measles, the risk to the general population is low.  Persons who are unvaccinated, pregnant women, infants less than 6 months of age and persons with weakened immune systems are at higher risk if exposed to measles and should contact their health care providers promptly if they develop an illness with fever or an unexplained rash illness. 
The period of time when members of the public could have been exposed is December 11^th through December 20th.  If they become ill with measles, they would be expected to develop rash onset between December 18^th and January 10^th. 
Public Health notified affected healthcare facilities and locations where community members may have been exposed. 
Persons who were at the following King County sites between December 11^th through December 20th (times noted) were possibly exposed to measles:
 

December 11^th, 2009
Thumra Thai Restaurant, 12549 116th Ave. NE, Kirkland WA from 8 pm to 11pm 

Totem Lake Cinema, 12232 Totem Lake Way, Kirkland WA, 9:30 pm showing of Rocket Singh
 

Dec. 12
Evergreen Urgent Care Redmond, 8301 161st Ave NE, Redmond, WA from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm

Fred Meyer Bellevue, 2041 148th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA from 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm
Dec. 16
Bartell Drugs Bellevue, 16116 NE 8th St, Bellevue, WA from 3:00 pm to 5:15 pm
People who may have been exposed are asked to look out for symptoms and contact their health care provider if they become ill.
Background on measles

Measles, also known as rubeola, is a highly infectious and usually severe illness that causes fever, rash, cough, and red, watery eyes. The rash begins on the face and spreads to the rest of the body. Fever (often greater than 101° F), cough and other symptoms begin two to four days before the rash appears.
People are immune to measles if they had measles or were properly vaccinated. People who lack immunity can get measles if exposed. Exposed people who are either not immune or unsure of their immunity should contact their health care provider. This is especially important for people at the greatest risk for severe illness: those under one year of age, pregnant women, and persons with weakened immune systems.
Measles symptoms begin seven to 21 days after the exposure to measles occurred.  Measles is contagious from approximately four days before the rash appears through four days after the rash appears. People can spread measles before they have the characteristic measles rash.
Measles spreads easily among susceptible persons and can result in serious infections complicated by pneumonia, encephalitis, seizures, and death. Most persons born before 1957 had the disease in childhood, and younger persons are routinely vaccinated against measles, both of which provide protection against the disease.
Persons with possible measles should call their health care provider before coming in to be seen to avoid exposing other vulnerable patients, and should wear a mask covering the nose and mouth, avoid public places, and minimize contact with others.
For more information about measles, a fact sheet is available in multiple languages at http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/communicable/diseases/measles.aspx
For measles or other immunizations, contact your health care provider.
For help finding a doctor call:

Community Health Access Program (CHAP): 206-284-0331 or 1-800-756-5437

CHAP staff can refer you to a local a Public Health Family Health Clinic and/or a Community Health Clinic. These clinics offer full health services, including immunizations. If you do not have medical coverage, clinic fees are based on your income. 



Shopping early
dennisbox — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:30:32 +0000
I consider shopping early for Christmas to be the day before Christmas Eve.
Now that’s getting right on top of the problem of shopping in my world.
However,  my daughter Katy believes I am a borderline psychotic.
Define borderline .



Murdered victims brother to offer reward
dennisbox — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 21:26:27 +0000
At 1:45 a.m. Nov. 29  a large group attacked two brothers outside Good Time Ernies in Burien. Both brothers were stabbed several times and one died at the scene. The deceased was identified as Mark K. Ebinger. His brother, Peter K. Ebinger, spent several days in hospital, but will recover from his wounds.

Detectives believe there are witnesses who have not come forward and that these witnesses have information that would help the investigation.

At 1:30 p.m. Dec. 28 Peter Ebinger will speak to the press and offer a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who killed his brother.

The press event will be held in Sheriff Sue Rahr’s office, King County Courthouse, 3rd and James, first floor.



Christmas dessert a plum sweet memory
dennisbox — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 03:04:20 +0000
Sometimes I like to remember Christmas from years past. Oh for the days when I could eat real food and not worry about my evil doctor telling me I will be dead before New Year’s Day.

When I was a kid, I was skinny…very skinny. I was so skinny my mom and grandma decided I should be taken to the a doctor.

I’m not sure what the doctor said or what internal organ they hacked out of me, but I do know my relationship with doctors have been shaky ever since.

However, the good part of my trip to the doctor was I was allowed to eat candy until I had a near-death experience.

My favorite was divinity.

My grandmother made divinity of different colors and she always stacked them on this three tier, silver serving tray.

Peanut brittle was also on the tray, which I hated. For some reason peanut brittle was a big hit for my grandma and her friends. I just remember my mouth was cemented shut for five minutes after eating it, so I couldn’t figure out the draw. Maybe dentures were the secret.

But grandma’s divinity was food from another world. For some reason I liked the pale green ones the best. I think they were probably all the same, except for food coloring, but I was easily swayed by my stomach and twisted imagination.

Nothing could match my grandma’s divinity.

That is until my wife, Ginny, made her plum pudding a few years after we were married.

Ginny said it was a tradition in her family. When Ginny described it to me I had been married to her long enough to have learned to nod and smile even though I though it sounded like fermented barf.

Believe me I had reason to think my life was in danger. This was like no plum pudding recipe I had heard of or have read about since.

Ginny started making the stuff the day after Thanksgiving. She would whip up this secret concoction from suet and a slurry of secret mumbo jumbo glop of something, something, something. It was frightening.

After mushing this goo together she pounded it into a 3-pound coffee can and it sat on the back porch rotting until Christmas.

Now I ask you, what was I to think?

On Christmas Eve I ran to the liquor store and bought the strongest hooch I could find, hoping I could kill it with booze and fire before it killed me.

Our two children were seated around the table when Ginny unveiled her mystery.

My daughter Katy took one look and said politely, “I’m not eating that stuff unless you kill me.”

My son was younger, more trusting and willing to eat nearly anything that appeared dead enough not to run away.

My job was to light the booze and not burn the house down. I considered that multitasking.

I lit the match and the little mountain of brown burst into flames. Katy dove under the table. Fortunately the flame didn’t quite reach the ceiling.

I thought I’d killed it for sure, but the flame died and my date with destiny had arrived.

I had no choice. I told Ginny how wonderful it looked and she gave me the biggest portion. Katy waited patiently for me to croak.

Ginny poured hard sauce over it, which was made of white sugar, butter and rum, and set it in front of me.

I will never know how she did it, but Ginny had made the best dessert ever eaten. Even better than grandma’s divinity.

The flavor was sweet, complex and satisfying. It was incredible. It was truly food from heaven.

I think about it every year, every Christmas. The recipe is lost, but the memory of that plum pudding and Christmas Eve dinner will never leave me.

Merry Christmas.



The answer to a dark secret
dennisbox — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 03:08:01 +0000
In the spirit of Halloween I have come up with a solution to the No. 1 problem in the world, how to find a girlfriend.
Every pathetic male on earth has faced this riddle, and a good answer has never been discovered.
The general pattern is how I finally stumbled upon a girlfriend and wife, which was Ginny had a moment of blind weakness. Even I get lucky once in while.
My moment of enlightenment on solving the world’s darkest secret came a few weeks back while I was covering a Black Diamond City Council meeting.
Unlike some meetings I cover, this one was very quiet and polite, until a woman approached the microphone to address the Council and mayor.
She requested permission for her group to search for ghosts in the Black Diamond cemetery. Suddenly the sleepy City Council chambers broke into a clamor with nearly everyone offering their ghost encounters past and present. We were all having a pile more fun than five minutes earlier.
This started me thinking and a light went on, which is never good, but I couldn’t help myself.
I recalled an advertisement I saw on TV where pathetic guys find girlfriends by entering a bunch of lies about themselves on the Internet, which is a very good business plan.
But it occurred to me a new path was needed. How about ghost girlfriends? That seemed the perfect fit.
I have a friend who does fine with his imaginary girlfriends, but the ones who use real words and can move their arms and legs at the same time are nothing but trouble for him.
I immediately called him with my brilliant brainstorm.
“What would you think of a ghost girlfriend?”
“I don’t know. How do I find one?” he asked.
“I’ve heard you can rent a machine to find them. How great is that? It’s a lot easier than the usual methods that never work.”
“Where do I rent one? Can we get it tonight?”
I told him there may be a few details to work out, but he was very excited about the concept.
Think of the advantages. Lots of transparency in the relationship and no expensive dinners to worry about.
If you forget to open the car door for your girlfriend it’s no problem. She goes right through it, and you never get in trouble for making the wrong comment about her hair or makeup…. I don’t think.
Admittedly there are a few kinks to work out.
If the boyfriend does get in trouble, which has always been an issue with me, the downside could be troubling. A mad ghost girlfriend might be a little scary, and she could be somewhat hard to hide from, which is another small problem.
But think about it. If your girlfriend or wife is mad there is no hiding.
How much worse can it be with a ghost girlfriend?
I may have stumbled upon the answer to the most vexing riddle facing mankind – ghost girlfriends.
Have a happy Halloween.



dennisbox — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:55:45 +0000
One of the good guys from the Maple Valley city staff, (there are many), gave me some vegetables, which prompted a flurry of food tonight.
I think a food ghost is haunting me, but that will be the subject of an upcoming column.
I caramelized four large onions in olive oil and butter. I start them on the stove top and finished in the oven. If I was preparing a French onion soup I would take them back on the stove top, but for this dish I went the fast way.
While the onions were caramelizing, I sautéed four zucchini, a red pepper, four garlic cloves,  a peperoncini, a few slices of pickled jalapeno, fresh basil, (from the Farmers’ Market), celery, carrot, red pepper and maybe something else I forgot.
I had some vegetable stock left from last week I put in with a (meatless) tomato sauce I made a month ago and froze.  I seasoned with salt, fresh ground pepper, thyme, oregano and some pickled ginger, soy sauce and some red wine.
I simmered it to reduce while the onions finished caramelizing (it took about two hours).
I made a cucumber salad with cored tomatoes, garlic, some more of the fresh basil and one peproncini.  I used yogurt and rice wine vinegar.
Now I am too tired to eat. Good for the kid.



dennisbox — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 06:25:03 +0000


Pralines nuts and the Hollywood 10
I have spent the evening concocting my newest nutty attempt at the search for the perfect praline. 
I used a mixture of light and dark brown sugar with cream, cooking it to the softball stage, which is similar to my brain function.
It may be a little grainy. I didn’t add butter (or bacon fat) except on the cookie sheet I ladled them onto. I think the next batch will be with a little more cream and butter.
My other job tonight is researching Edward Dmytryk, one of the members of the Hollywood 10.
I watched “Crossfire” last night starring Robert Young, Robert Mitchum, Robert Ryan and Gloria Grahme.
A good film, but I was intrigued when I remembered up Dmytryk’s past with the blacklisting period in America.
He refused to testify before the House Committee on Un-American Activities or  HUAC. He went to jail and after a few months decided to testify.
I want to know more about his transformation. 
Crossfire is a picture that brought together numerous dark elements of our society.
It is knows as a film noir picture. Film noir is a German influenced genre with very dark themes.
Crossfire was based on a Richard Brooks novel. Brooks would later write the screenplay and direct “In Cold Blood” among many other pictures.
Crossfire, which was based on Brooks’ novel “The Brick Foxhole” was about murder of a man by a Marine. The man was murdered because he was a homosexual. 
The story was changed when made into film. In Crossfire the man was Jewish. which was supposed to make it a more palpable story.
Dmytryk admitted he joined the Communist party and was part of the Hollywood 10. Ryan fought the red-scare movement. Richard Nixon was a member of the HUAC and made his first mark nationally going up against Alger Hiss.
Curious.
A good movie, but a much better film noir picture is the “The Big Heat” directed by Fritz Lang. He understood the darkness of the genre and saw it visually.
I will return to my pralines.
 
 
 




dennisbox — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:22:45 +0000


Pralines.
I am on a quest for the best praline recipe in the world.
There is nothing I like better than making food I cannot eat. Living vicariously through the wicked is the best part of being nearly alive.
I have been working on this brownie recipe with praline frosting and M&M candy in the batter.
God let’s me imagine food like that to help me enjoy not having fun. And I do.
More to come.