TV Talk

Lights, camera, action!

DAY 9
of the 30-Day Blog Challenge, 2011

For someone who doesn't own a television set, I happen to love watching TV. Not owning a cable box and the whole flat-screen-DVR package isn't an effort to seem "cool" or "detached" but rather, a function of limited space. Plus, I'm afraid that if I had a TV in my room, I'd enjoy it too much and that's all I'd do. Come to think of it, I already shy away from big shenanigans of the mingling and drinking kind, and if I start getting glued to the tube, there goes my (modest) social life.

Anyhow, I do get around watching my favorite shows, thanks to online streaming. ABC has an app on the iPad that lets you see their shows, including sitcoms like Happy Endings (super funny!) and Modern Family (I have yet to get on board).

My three faves at the moment happen to be on USA Network and are as follows (I read somewhere recently that they're still in the middle of having their app approved by Apple):

1) White Collar
2) Burn Notice
3) SUITS(!)

If you haven't seen #3, you have to ASAP! It's about two lawyers: one legit graduate from Harvard, and one who passed the bar without having gone to any law school. It's hilarious and entertaining. Hotshot closer Harvey Specter hires Mike Ross, who wows him at an accidental and well-timed job interview. The former covers up for the latter's lack of a law degree and the rest is bromance history. It's TV candy, alright. Both men are handsome—Specter in a dashing-debonair kind of way, and Ross, in a cute-hipster-who-wears-skinny-ties kind of way (the latter's character lives in Williamsburg and rides a bike to work). I love the New York street and office scenes in the show and get a kick out of recognizing areas where they shot.

Here's the trailer of the show. It's on every Thursday night. Happy viewing!

Nino

On the subway ride home from the Inglot event I'd attended, what usually is an easy, sleepy ride, became an anxious, existential inner debate—which is saying a lot since I don't even use those words (they sound pretentious, don't they?). Instead of dozing off by the nth stop, I was wraught with anxiety and questions about where I'm headed in my career, such as: When will I email so and so? When do I start pitching [these magazines]? Plus, random thoughts, like, New York beauty events are depressing; beauty bloggers are narcissistic. [Touché.]

I felt a sense of limbo. Estée Lauder (beauty person) or Food Network (assistant of an assistant of a sous chef of one of the TV chefs)? Be a senior copywriter at an "esteemed" advertising agency or apply in the page program at NBC (and get a chance to order Tina Fey's lunch)?

Walking home, I cut through the park where the snow has finally melted. There, I met Nino, a fat English bulldog being walked by a kind lady who stopped to let the adorable rotund heavyweight of a furball sniff my coat. I bent over to ruffle his ear and for a good minute let him sniff away. Within moments, Nino dragged his feet as we parted ways, and in that instant, I forgot all about everything else and felt a little smile sweep across my face.

All I Want for Christmas

Budget limits and practical reasoning aside (at least for certain items), here's what's on my holiday wishlist:

1) An ergonomic chair
For my back. For my writing. Enough said. I did finally manage to buy a desk from Ikea. I went to the store twice: the first day, to get the legs; the second day, to buy the tabletop. Up until then I didn't realize how easy it was to commute to the store in Red Hook, Brooklyn.

The new Canon PowerShot S95.

2) A new camera
I'm not too thrilled to say that my new Nokia phone seems to take better photos than my six-year-old Sony Cybershot, at least for certain shots in low light. And, since blogging is part of my livelihood, it's probably about time to do an upgrade.

3) A TV
I do not own a television set. I can go for months without seeing live broadcast. In fact, the first thing I did when I moved to the Bronx was remove the TV and cable box in my new room. The Food Network is the only channel that I've consistently watched whenever I've had television access. And, I catch up on favorite shows like 30 Rock, White Collar, and Burn Notice via Hulu.com, the NBC and USA Network websites, and others.

Yet, if I want to eventually work in TV, I need to watch TV and have daily access to it.

4) A citrine ring
Just because. Well, ever since I'd dropped my faux citrine cocktail ring two years ago, I've been on the lookout for a replacement. I saw a real, precious one while walking home from the library, and simply got reminded of this bejeweled craving.

Bialetti 3-Cup Moka Express

5) A Bialetti Moka Express...
...That I finally got to buy on Amazon! I initially lusted after a Nespresso machine or any of those pod-ready coffee contraptions, however, upon giving it some thought, I realized I preferred the Moka pot's natural approach to good espresso. Hence, I gifted myself with the shiny silver brewer (it's much, much more affordable, too, than the former!).

6) A manual pasta machine
There is an attachment for the Kitchenaid mixer but I would actually prefer a good ol' pasta maker.

7) A new daytime, full-time job.
For me to actually afford all of the above (not counting the Moka pot).

A new daytime job, where I could work for at least a year. While working as a consultant and freelancer has been FUN—and my writing plate has never ever been empty despite the lack of an office cubicle/corner office—I now desire something more long-term. It reminds me of dating—that stage when both parties decide to commit and go for the long haul.

Born Champagne Metallic flats.

Hence, it's all (cyber) window shopping and wishlists for now.

(Speaking of online shopping, check out Zappos.com for cute Born flats, clogs, and women's Oxfords.)

Images courtesy of Friedchillies.com, Canon.com.au, and Zappos.com.

Carrie, Can You?

DAY 14
of the 30-Day Blog Challenge

In the TV series and now, movies, Sex and the City, Carrie Bradshaw makes freelance (and novel) writing look so easy. In her fashionable frocks and Manolo Blahniks, she seems to breeze through her assignments with minimal stress.

Now, I'm no Carrie. While I read, write, and edit for a living, I don't exactly hop, skip about town meeting girlfriends for brunch or go shoe-shopping on a whim. I am more inclined to purchase a $400 camera than a $400 pair of stilettos. And, speaking of sky-high footwear, I can't imagine going up and down the subway stairs and maneuvering Manhattan's city blocks in them. In fact, I've just recently considered buying a pair of FitFlops—those cushioned sandals that are supposedly good for one's feet. My friend says she walked in them for days on a recent trip to DC.

Anyway, my biggest, biggest, most ardous challenge has got to be time management and deadlines. And, I realized [when I’d written this] that I'm too old to be stressing about something that should be easily manageable. Also, stressing about deadlines goes against my new mantra of being in the moment. When I postpone things on my to-do list, that's not being in the moment.

And going back to Carrie, if I'm on top of deadlines and all that, I can actually have more time to hop, skip, and brunch my New York days away. And, who knows, I might even consider stilettos once again.

[Update: I never got to purchase those FitFlops and I’d recently taken to wearing heels again.]

Image courtesy of Thesun.co.uk.

Perfecting Blueberry Muffins

[Reposting from "Baked!" at Yummy.ph ("Perfect Muffins") January 21, 2010]

Perfectly domed muffins require precise ingredient measurements and
the right oven temperature.

If there’s one baked treat that has proven to be the most elusive, I would say it would be muffins—blueberry ones, in particular. Sure, in the past I’ve made banana chocolate chip "muffins" from a basic banana bread recipe; or even airy chiffon vanilla cupcakes, but those are quite different from the honest-to-goodness breakfast domes—perfectly crusty outside, cakey and crumbly inside—that we all look forward to in coffee shops and bakeries.

It has taken me a year to finally come up with blueberry muffins I would be proud to share with the world. After dozens of flat, sunken disasters, I’ve deduced that there are two essential things a home baker must have when broaching the crusty/cakey-dome territory: a kitchen weighing scale and an oven thermometer.

For two reasons: One, a good weighing scale—ideally digital with a ‘zero’ button—ensures precise proportions of ingredients, in the same way as using measuring spoons for baking powder and baking soda help achieve perfect leavening balance in the recipe.

Two, just as one would tediously measure dry and wet ingredients, one should also factor in the right oven temperature. In the recipe I’d modified below, "Good Eats" host Alton Brown recommends preheating the oven to 380°F and raising the heat to 400°F upon placing muffins inside the oven. This temp-tango is achievable with the use of an oven thermometer. And even if one’s kitchen is equipped with an electric oven, a proper temperature reading helps a baker gauge oven calibration and watch out for maintenance or repair requirements.

Good news is, these two initially unnecessary kitchen gadgets aren’t ultra-pricey investments: My thermometer from Landmark cost less than P400, and the digital scale from the department store set me back around P980—worth the mini-splurge considering a can of Comstock blueberries from the grocery, or a bag of frozen ones from Healthy Options are way too precious to be tossed in the trash if the muffins fall flat or form undesirable concave dips in the middle.

That said, baking truly is a numbers game. But for every patient participant, the rewards can be very fulfilling—and delicious.

Blueberry Muffins

Yield 12 medium-sized muffins or 6 extra-large ones Prep Time 15 minutes Baking Time 15 to 20 minutes


1 cup plain yogurt (or two 125-gram packs of Nestle Creamy yogurt)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 small egg

6.25 ounce cake flour
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup blueberries (or 1 can of Comstock blueberries, drained); reserve 1/4 cup for the topping


1 Use a fine sieve or a regular strainer lined with cheese cloth to drain extra liquid from yogurt. You’ll end up with about half a cup of thick yogurt. Set aside.

2 Preheat oven to 380°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan with oil or cooking spray, or use cupcake liners for easy removal and cleanup.

3 In a medium bowl, sift all dry ingredients together and discard tiny leftover lumps.

4 In a large bowl, blend yogurt, vegetable oil, sugar, and egg until pale yellow. You can either use a hand mixer or large whisk for this.

5 Add dry ingredients and stir for exactly 10 counts. Do not overmix or you’ll end up with holes—or ‘tunnels’—inside the muffins. Gently fold in 1/2 cup of blueberries into the batter for 3 counts and stop immediately. (Don’t worry about the flecks of flour, they’ll disappear during baking.)

6 Pour batter into muffin cups and top each one with a small mound of berries. Place in the oven and raise temperature to 400°F.

7 Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn pan around after seven minutes to distribute heat evenly. Muffins are ready when a toothpick inserted comes out clean or lightly crumbed.

8 Let muffins cool inverted on a parchment paper-lined wire rack. Store in a Ziploc bag in room temperature for the first two days, and transfer to the refrigerator if storing longer.

Lemon Vanilla Caramel Cake

[Reposting from "Baked!" at Yummy.ph, November 2009]

I must admit, I’ve made cakes in the past that have lingered quite a bit in the kitchen, uneaten. But this lemon vanilla caramel cake wasn’t one of them. It was gone within three days of baking, filling, and frosting it.

It’s also fun to make. The steps may come across as tedious (as with anything that involves folding fluffy egg whites into batter) but honestly, the least enjoyable part will probably be the first thing you have to do when making a cake, which is cut rounds of parchment paper to line the bottom of the pans with, and buttering all sides. I find this part of baking anti-climactic yet essential. Once you get that out of the way—don’t forget to preheat the oven—the baking process is quite soft and relaxing, just like the two spongey white cakes you come up with.

What sweet dreams are made of

This cake is a combination of two recipes, plus a lemony tweak I picked up from watching Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa. The base is a white cake recipe from Martha Stewart, and the caramel filling is from a Fleur de Sel (a special flaky salt from France) chocolate cake recipe from GoodBite.com. A quick Google search will yield video results for all of the above. Out of convenience, I've taken to culling recipes from all sorts of websites, versus getting them from cookbooks.

This lemon vanlla caramel cake can also easily transform to cupcakes. I would suggest using a melon baller to make a small hole on top to fill with caramel, before frosting the top with your marshmallow icing of choice. Personally I love watching egg whites transform into fluffy white frosting, so I don't mind making it from scratch. Here's the quick recipe I follow, also from Martha Stewart:

Seven Minute Frosting
[Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/perfect-seven-minute-frosting]

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
6 large egg whites
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 In the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a saucepan of simmering water, combine sugar, corn syrup, water, and egg whites. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 2 minutes.

2 Attach bowl to a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat mixture on high speed until glossy and voluminous, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Use immediately.

You'll have a lot of extra frosting left to eat from the bowl. Enjoy!

Tell me: What's your favorite cake? Please feel free to comment and share!

The Perfect Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Easy, cheesy goodness

Over here at NyMinuteNow.com, at least half of my posts are food-related. I can't help it: While I've never gone to chef school or anything fabulous like that (it's still a distant dream of mine to be able to attend the French Culinary Institute in New York City...on full scholarship), food—and the creation of food—is very close to my heart. Ever since I'd put two and two together that it's cheaper and immensely enjoyable to go to the supermarket and whip up my own fare, the kitchen has been one of my favorite places to be in.

When I’m not watching Giada de Laurentiis or Ina Garten whip yummy, yummy things—I, of course, am only too happy to copy—on Food Network, I'm online checking out Alton Brown's Good Eats episodes.

I got the perfect grilled cheese recipe from one of these YouTube uploads. Basically, it shows you how to spread dijon mustard on a slice of bread (just on one side), grate cheese over it, add salt and pepper, cover it with another slice, and then press onto two hot, lightly-buttered pans.

If you happen to own a panini press, I suggest we become friends.

I've made mine using a sandok, pressing the sandwich down as flat as I could with a big peppermill on top of the utensil (you can also use a big can of corn to do this) and flipping the sandwich back and forth—like that scene in The Devil Wears Prada wherein Adrian Grenier’s character is standing by the stove, making a Jarlsberg cheese sandwich.

I usually accompany my sandwiches with a big pile of Nacho Cheese Doritos, but this time, I've 'kicked it up a notch' by lightly oiling a small bowl, grating fresh parmesan cheese over the bottom—forming a circle of cheese—and microwaving it for about a minute. You'll know it's done when the kitchen smells funky. What you end up with is this crispy, delicious, knock-your-socks-off accompaniment to a classic, comforting grilled cheese sandwich.

Finish this off with an icy glass of iced green tea or lemonade. And for dessert, a scoop of vanilla ice cream drizzled with chocolate syrup and topped with sliced almonds sweetly caps a truly delightful meal (or midnight snack)!

Tell me: What’s your favorite comfort food? What ultimately makes you salivate?


Part of this month's Cosmo Series, 14th of 16 posts also published at Cosmo.ph.

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A little TV break...

Spend funny Friday nights with Gus and Shawn on Psych.

I hope you're all enjoying the Cosmo Series. I'm almost at the homestretch (more than halfway the 16 posts). So yesterday, Friday, after submitting one post and working on the next two drafts, I decided to reward myself and finally make a chocolate cake I've been wanting to make since early this week. I'll blog about that in the next entry and post pics, too.

Evenings are usually when I move from the desktop computer and to the bed and get on my laptop to either blog or work on pending deadlines. And as of this month, I've decided to make 11pm to 1am my manuscript editing schedule.

Anyway, last night, after making the cake, I went to bed earlier than usual and watched TV.

I have a funny relationship with TV: I can go for months without watching, or get glued for hours until my eyes get droopy. If I had Direct TV I probably would have totally different viewing habits. (If you live in the US, click here for more info on Directv and get up to 5 months free when you subscribe.)

Two of my favorite shows to watch are Psych and Burn Notice, and a third I'm curious about is White Collar—out on October 23. All are part of the roster of shows on USA Network (House, Monk, etc.).

Psych (pictured above) features fake-psychic Shawn Spencer and best friend Burton Guster who help the Santa Barbara Police Department solve crimes. Shawn has developed a heightened awareness of his surroundings thanks to the strict and regimented upbringing of his police officer father, Henry, played by L.A. Law alum Corbin Bernsen (who also has great comic timing).

Gabrielle Anwar and Jeffrey Donovan play sleuthing spies in Burn Notice, back this winter.

Burn Notice, on the other hand, is slightly more serious, featuring burned spy, Michael Westen. I've been following it for a few seasons now and it's gotten a bit darker and grittier over time, but still overall fun to watch, with Fiona and Sam (played by Gabrielle Anwar and Bruce Campbell) as Michael's smart and dashing 'sidekicks.'

"White Collar is about the unlikely partnership of a con artist and an FBI agent who have been playing cat and mouse for years," according to the USA Network website. Click on the image below to read up on the upcoming series. I'm guessing Matt Bomer, who plays con artist Neal Caffrey hired by the FBI to help catch other white collar criminals, is the network's answer to Don Draper of Mad Men—a show I have yet to watch.

(For more info on DirectTV, visit http://www.blogtelevision.net.)

Images courtesy of http://download-apps.net (Psych), http://zoknows.wordpress.com (Burn Notice), and http://www.usanetwork.com (White Collar).