Cauliflower Is The New Black

This may sound ridiculous, but in my estimation cauliflower is the new black. My bet is that soon trendy restaurants everywhere will start offering this often forgotten vegi. Why? I'm not sure exactly, but I just feel it.

Yes, I know, most give this bland and often tasteless vegetable short shrift. Many don't even know what it is. Others call it the poor man's broccoli.

Not in my kitchen!

Here's a little recipe that I promise will power charge any cauliflower no matter how bland and change your mind about this incredibly underrated vegetable.

Ingredients:
1 head cauliflower
healthy dose of salted butter
fresh garlic
fresh cracked pepper
soy sauce
Parmesan cheese
Tabasco sauce

Tools:
Cast iron skillet
Sharp knife

Instructions:
Heat pan and season with a few dabs of salted butter. Toss in bite-sized chunks of cauliflower and saute to coat each piece with butter. Throw in diced garlic and cover everything with cracked pepper, a few splashes of soy sauce, and a healthy dose of Tabasco. Cover skillet and stir every few minutes to brown cauliflower (about 15 minutes). Two minutes before serving, coat each piece with cheese and melt to a crusted finish.

This is the perfect side dish for steak, pork chops, or as a tapas style snack. For added kick, experiment by adding fresh jalepeno peppers, curry or your other favorite spices. And be liberal with the Tobasco too.

Read This Book!

If you are at all interested in marketing communications or better understanding modern day politics then I highly recommend you pick up a copy of "Don't think of an Elephant" by George Lakoff. His elegant package of essays is the best explanation I have read yet about the differences between modern day Republicans and Democrats. More importantly, he explains the how and why both parties are positioned the way they are presently, and he outlines a clear plan to enable progressives to frame the debate and communicate their values in a way that ordinary people can actually understand.

Click the headline above to read more about the book.

Major Progress On The Stoakes Farm -- Finally

The Stoakes Hughes Farm is finally making progress during what has been a -- no kidding -- 20 year renovation job. The good news is that over the last year, major progress has been made. It's moving along so quickly now, I don't even recongize some of the rooms. Here is a picture from over a year ago where you can see the old structure of the 125 year old farm house. Click the link below to see new pictures and how the house project has progressed over the years:

(http://www.stoakes.com/underconstruction).

I don't know Mom...you're making it pretty tempting to come home for Christmas this year...Is my old bedroom still around? Or has it been turned into something like a big bathroom. Doh!

Sticker Design Help

I am looking for a designer to help me design a 2 x 4 inch sticker for my site www.graffitiproject.com. Check out the site and if you know someone who would like to help on the project have them email me at infograffitiproject.com.

Customer Service Cheat Sheet

Tired of waiting on hold or getting caught in phone loop hell? Check out this incredibly useful cheat sheet that helps you find the easiest way to reach a human when calling customer service line:

http://www.paulenglish.com/ivr/

Thanksgiving Day Pumpkin Pie

Isn't this time of year the best? Hot cider, comfort food, cozy fires...And perhaps best of all: Pumpkin Pie!

Here's a Unity Stoakes secret: Pumpkin pie is much easier than you think to make. If you've ever made it before than you know what I'm talking about. Here's my super-fast, super-easy, super-duper Pumpkin Pie recipe.

First, the ingredients:

1 pre-made pie shell
1 can pumpkin
1 can evaporated milk (4% is best)
2/3 cub sugar
2 fresh eggs
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnemon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of All-spice
Pinch of ground nutmeg

All you have to do is mix everything in a bowel really well. Pour it into the pie shell. Place in a pre-heated oven at 425 degrees for 15 minutes; turn temperature down to 350 degrees and bake for another 45-50 minutes. You know pie is done when it firms up and you can stick a knife in the center and it comes out clean.

I usually place on a rack to cool and then toss into the fridge for an hour or so to really harden. Get out the whipped cream and it's pie time.

Enjoy! And Happy Thanksgiving.

The Coney Island Cyclone

Sadly, this park and this ride will soon be turned into a Disney-style tourist zone. Get to Coney Island as soon as you can. The Cyclone is closed for the season, but the bumper cars are still going! 

My Amazon.com Referral Link

Happy Birthday Orny!

Happy 35th B-day...Have a great set in Tahoe. Talk to you when you
get back to LA.

Looking For Camera Recommendations

I am in the market for a new digital camera. I've read all the
reviews on Amazon, DPReview, etc., but haven't found a clear winner
for the best DIGITAL point and shoot on the market now. If you have
any suggestions please post...

Farm House Renovation

For what seems like 15 years...oh, wait it has been 15 years, my family has been renovating and remodeling our 125 year old farm house in Iowa. This is an areal view of our property. For a partial, but extensive photo historyof the project, check out this ongoing photo essay here: http://www.stoakes.com/underconstruction.

The good news is that in the last few months, extensive progress has been made and we should have a new kitchen and bathroom by Christmas. Mom will be happy!

The Lightning Field

Do yourself a favor. Check out Walter De Maria's Lightning Field Web site. Get out your calendar. Plan a trip to Southwestern New Mexico and spend a few days in awe. Just don't tell too many other people about this special place. Enjoy!

The Bathroom Graffiti Project

Who thinks the face drawn here is Woody or God? Take a look at the BETA launch of The Bathroom Graffiti Project and tell your friends to do the same! Go to www.GraffitiProject.com for all the fun...

Other ways, you can help:

1) Submit your pictures of Bathroom Graffiti
2) Email your friends about the project
3) Join the BGP Sniper Team

Find out more at www.GraffitiProject.com.

Enjoy...

33 Legends

In my mind, these are the greats. My 25 favorite (famous) legends. Although I only know these iconic figures through their work, their writings, film footage, and images of them, these are the characters who make me dream, the thinkers who make me think, and the names that immediately come to mind when I hear the word legend:

(This list is not in order...)

F. Scott Fitzgerald
Jack Kerouac
Bob Dylan
Steve McQueen
Chief Seattle
Mark Twain
JD Salinger
Federico Fellini
Noam Chomsky
Winston Churchill
The Marx Brothers (especially Harpo and Groucho)
Stanley Kubrick
Thomas Edison
Johnny Cash
Sun Tzu
Albert Einstein
Hercules
Andy Warhol
Galileo
Henry Cartier Bresson
Frank Lloyd Wright
Helmut Newton
Frank Gehry
Charles and Ray Eames
Charles Bukowski
Phillip Johnson
Martin Luther King Jr.
Siddhartha
George Orwell
Ayn Rand and her character Howard Roark

Who are your favorites? Post here...

The Delta Queen

Just a few week's ago, I had planned to post a recommendation note about the Delta Queen Steamboat Co. and its Mississippi cruises that run up and down the river every week. These beautiful ships are the only remaining traditional paddleboats that still run from New Orleans to St. Paul through America's Heartland. They are grand old ships and offer the perfect way to discover small-town America in style. Although I have not yet had the good fortune to take one of their river cruises, I have dreamed of doing so ever since reading Huck Finn. So after a recent dinner discussion about the river trips with my friend and world traveler Prof. Gerry Powers, I figured by posting it on my own blog, it would remind me to actually book a trip into my schedule.

That was three weeks ago.

Makes one realize just how quickly things change. And how big things impact little things. Only a few weeks later, the company, their employees and the waterway they call home were hit hard by Hurricane Katrina. Sadly, the boats are docked and all future trips have been cancelled at least through this year.

Like the communities along the gulf, the Mississippi is strong. The Delta Queen will be back. I look forward to supporting the great Delta Queen just as soon as it is up and running again.