Tilted

And Shifted.  

I hadn't known about tilt-shift photography until a recent spate of photos in my flickr contacts cued me in.  It's rather neat effect - the above photo is a tilt-shift fake of me at the Wave.  I made it using Tilt-shift Maker. Someone pointed out that it actually looks like I'm a wee mini standing on some sort of wood-grain structure in this photo - with the color pushed, it does remind me of cedar or cinnamon.  

Unwinding

This appears to be the state of things of late - I'm still in the process of coming up to speed on a new-ish job, and it's safe to say my brain is full up and I'm not good for much else on the evenings other than unwinding and preparing for the next day.  But I am still here :) and hooping (tho I haven't really learned any new tricks, for fear of accidentally taking out the ceiling fan and I'm too shy to hoop in the greenbelt out in front of the house, and believe it or not, the backyard doesn't offer much more room to experiment than the inside of the house due to the prickly landscaping).  The time sure is flying by - I can't believe it's May already! I completely spaced about Maryland Sheep and Wool - and TNNA is just around the corner in June! 

On Brunch and Burgers

Mmmm. Brunch and burgers, not together of course, but both things I enjoy :)  I think both chefs got it right in their respective books:

There is just something to be said for a weekend brunch, whether it's just you and your family, or with additional guests for weekend entertaining.  I have good memories of brunching while growing up, and now that I've a home of my own, it's a nice break from my weekday routine.

Gale Gand's Brunch! is a great compilation of fantastic things to prepare for brunch, or even for other meals (who says you can't have breakfast all day?) - the book is laden with gorgeous photography, and each recipe has a nice introduction.  Split into multiple chapters, each focusing on different aspects of brunch such as: drinks, basics, more eggs, pancakes, waffles, french toast and other sweets, bakery items, brunch bits, savories and sides, salads and soups, and finally fruits and condiments - the book includes a total of 100 recipes.  The back of the book also includes some menu plan suggestions, in case you need some assistance in making selections.  In case you're wondering, the basics section features old standards such as omelets, strata, fritattas, quiche and crepes - each with a number of variations listed.  The "more eggs" section features some other egg preparations including the stunner on the cover - baked eggs in ham cups.  The "bakery" section includes both sweet and savory preparations (heavier on the sweet than the savory, but all look delicious) including scones, pretzels, muffins, coffeecake, turnovers, tarts and doughnuts.  I'm looking forward to digging into this book the next lazy weekend I've got at home :)

Now then....onto Burgers.

While I am trying to cut down on the general meat intake, and red meat in particular, there are times when I crave a nice big steak - or more simply, a really good hamburger.

Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries, and Shakes is a cookbook based on the chef's restaurant Bobby's Burger Palace.  At home, I tend to go for plain old cheeseburgers, but sometimes have a craving for something a little "more" - and this cookbook has plenty of variations to choose from, each beautifully photographed.  33 mouth-watering burger variations (in all fairness, there are a few that are fish-burgers and one turkey burger), 10 sides (regular fries, plaintain fries, sweet potato fries, potato chips and onion rings) and a slew of milkshakes.  If you're curious for what you might be in for, you can sneak a peek over on the Amazon listing where you'll find the recipe for the Miami burger and Sweet Potato fries posted.