use real butter

Oooh, I felt so energized when I woke up this morning! In contrast to the weather each morning this entire week, the sun was bright on the hillsides at daybreak. Not that I don’t like my overcast mornings, I really do cherish them since they are the exception rather than the norm here. But it seemed to enhance my already good mood.

In the afternoon I picked Jeremy up after all of his meetings with his students were done. We got ourselves some brand spanking new trail runners at the Road Runner sale. Then we caught a matinée showing of Ratatouille since we assumed all of the kids would be seeing Harry Potter. Oh, Ratatouille is such a delightful film – and beautiful to watch.

We did our grocery shopping after the movie and poor Jeremy was feeling hungry from the moment the film began. But I had a surprise up my sleeve for him. I plan the weekly menu and usually our first meal after grocery shopping is something fresh. Tonight, I made some sashimi rolls. Too bad Joyce (who is Japanese) and Kell (who is Japanese on the inside and Aussie on the outside – an Egg) weren’t there to either instruct or critique. That would have been fun. I requested sake belly and some lovely maguro from the Whole Foods fish counter. Oh, to have access to Sydney’s fish markets now *sigh*.

**Jump for more butter**

Recipe: tea jellies

When thunderstorms rage overhead, I try not to work on the computer. So this afternoon I busied myself in the kitchen cleaning the dishes listening to the sound of hail pounding on the deck and roof of the house. It lasted a little longer than anticipated and I wound up digging through the cupboards, looking for something to trigger an idea.

Summer calls for refreshing food, which is why I love salads, fruits, cold dishes, iced drinks, and jellies. A child of the 70s, I actually ate a lot of Jello&trade, not jellies. Although I did eat almond gelatin with fruit, grass jelly, and lemon agar jelly – all Chinese desserts, I didn’t get the full scope of Asian jellies available to the masses until I began frequenting Asian grocery stores in college. These days you’ll find an assortment of tiny jelly cups with a piece of jackfruit suspended in the matrix. They are delicious and apparently deadly if swallowed incorrectly. I imagine that would apply to almost anything though.

**Jump for more butter**

Today, I made mini panna cotta with espresso gelatin. They turned out wonderfully and make a great little pre-dessert or dessert chaser. Obviously, the quality of the espresso will determine how well the whole thing goes down. The last time I made panna cotta it had yogurt and cream. This one was half cream and half milk. Next time I will try Donna Hay’s recipe which I think has almost all cream. Decadent.