Kate's Queen City Notes

March 31, 2015
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Pan-Searing Fish: I Ain’t Scared

I love fish. I love pan seared fish in particular. I’ve been afraid to try pan searing because this is the sort of thing that Ina Garten would describe as looking complicated. The pan has to be the right temperature. You have to shake the pan and ensure the fish slides across the heated surface to ensure no sticking. To use breading or not to use breading?

I few months back I bought a gorgeous set of stainless steel pans. That was the first step to success in pan-searing. This won’t work as well with Teflon or otherwise coated pans.

I snagged a couple of wild-caught Atlantic tuna steaks on a whim. I chose tuna because it’s a little denser than my other options. I thought that would hold-up to my novice pan searing attempts better than the other filets present.

I dug up this recipe. I followed it to the letter. I was even careful to see that the olive oil was smoking a bit in the pan to ensure that it was hot enough.

It turned out beautifully. The fish didn’t stick, although shaking it free of the pan immediately after placing the steaks in was completely necessary. I shook the pan when I turned them too. But the crust that formed on the steaks was super. And that cilantro relish mentioned in the recipe is really spectacular. I will make up a batch of that with all fatty fish. It’s bright and flavorful enough to stand up to the fat in salmon or tuna and augment them perfectly.

I served these with a baked sweet potato. It just so happened that I had them on hand. So, this wasn’t in intentional pairing. But the caramel sweetness of the potato was a wonderful contrast to the spicy fish and cilantro relish. We topped all of that off with greens tossed in balsamic vinaigrette. It was a lovely meal, and I am looking forward to pan searing a lot more fish.

March 23, 2015
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100 Books by 40: NIGHT WATCH

Book: Night Watch
Author: Terry Pratchett
Published: 2002

It’s an accident that I finished Night Watch a few days after Terry Pratchett passed away earlier this month. But I will call it a happy accident. Because I can’t think of a better way to celebrate him and his life. While I’m sorry that I didn’t get turned on to his books earlier in my life, I am thankful that I found them at all.

In the same way that I cannot resist any combination of chocolate and peanut butter, dry British humor in any form will delight me. The humor obscures the science fiction elements of the plot; since I am not a fan of sci-fi, that works for me. This is an excellent outcome considering that time travel is often a lazy plot device, a device that this book uses. Although, I don’t think time travel is used in a lazy manner in this particular book. This was a dazzling, funny whirlwind. Read it.

Time for an update on my list.

Reading now:
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel

Finished reading:
1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D’Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen – only 99 cents for Kindle edition
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens – have on Kindle
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy – have on Kindle
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens *I read this when I was too young to appreciate it; I would like to read it again as an adult. I will do so if I have time.
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding *I’ve read this twice. I will read it again if I have time.
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones’s Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac *I’ve read this twice. I will read it again if I have time. I have the unabriged unedited version and will probably take on that if time allows.
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo

Pending reading:
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight’s Children, Salman Rushdie

March 17, 2015
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Music Now Festival: Perfum Genius and The Lone Bellow

There isn’t really a formula that can be used to derive a wonderful performance. Performers can seek to engage the crowd. They can bare a piece of their soul. They can execute their craft flawlessly. Most of the best acts I’ve seen have some measure of all those things.

I went to Music Now intending to take pictures, but once there I wanted to enjoy the music. I love shooting, but when I am in a visual head space, I can’t properly enjoy what I’m hearing. Doing the technical work in my head to get the camera to capture what I see takes me to a different place mentally than listening. I did manage a couple shots below.

I bought the ticket to see Perfume Genius. I listened to him when he was booked for Midpoint 2013. He dropped off the billing a couple of weeks before the show. I was thrilled to see he was making his way back to Cincinnati as part of the Music Now Festival. His work is difficult to describe. His lyrics show a degree of vulnerability that’s rare. His songs digress off the verse-chorus-verse-chorus path. From song to song the textures vary intensely.

Perfume Genius shared the billing with Mina Tindle and Lone Bellow. These acts were vastly different. Mina Tindle was charming, and her music was accessible and enjoyable. Listening to her was like a lazy Sunday morning. Perfume Genius is a power house performer; I was unprepared for this pant-less, porcelain doll-faced, cherry red lipstick wearing feminine man to overwhelm me. He was energy restrained on the stage. When he let out a primal scream in one of the songs, it was a brief window into his raw power.

Lone Bellow felt like an old time church revival sans talking, guilt, and fleecing. They stepped away from the microphones and amplifiers and filled the hall with their harmonies. It was beautiful.

Having such dramatically different, but excellent in their own right artists on one stage demonstrated the power that Music Now has over most other fests. Music Now brings out all the music lovers who are prepared to go on a journey. And the people in that room couldn’t have been happier to ride along Sunday night.

Mina Tindle

Perfume Genius

March 16, 2015
by allthenamesaretakensothisisreallyreallylong 2 Comments

100 Books By 40: THE GODFATHER

Book: The Godfather
Author: Mario Puzo
Published: 1969

I have seen many movie adaptations of books. Mostly, they are poor adaptations. The Godfather is an exception. The movie was as great as the book.

The book challenges our current system as being just as arbitrary and unjust as any power structure The Mafia might have. When The Don is dispensing retribution against someone who has violated his trust, is this anymore meaningful than juries convicting their fellow citizen? I am hard pressed to come up with an answer for that.

In some ways our legal system seems even more unjust. So much of a trial hinges on irrelevant factors apart from the crime in question. Eye witness testimony has been proven to be unreliable. The incarceration rates suggest that minorities are given harsher sentences than white people. And the money. People with money and connections often seem able to out run justice.

The 2008 financial crisis left thousands of Americans without homes and jobs. It wiped out retirement funds. That crisis had a measurable impact on millions of Americans. No one went to jail. Haven’t we arbitrarily decided that those misdeeds don’t deserve jail time?

I was just talking with a friend a few nights ago. We agreed that everything is a hustle. We dress accountants up in nice suits, but this time of year they are all breaking the spirit of tax law if not the letter. How is that more admirable than the panhandler up the street selling cigarettes? It’s not. We’ve just labeled it as such.

March 13, 2015
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Magnolia Sons and The Church

I fell behind. It happens. But in the interests of catching up, I am just going to share these shots and offer little to no commentary on these shows. Magnolia Sons were at The Drinkery, and The Church was at The Woodward Theater. Both shows were really spectacular in different ways.

Magnolia Sons

The Church

March 6, 2015
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Photography Success: Smoking The Ohio River

I have been trying to shoot The Ohio River all winter when the stars align for the river to let off water vapor at dawn. I have only captured it accidentally with my cell phone, but I was dying to get my SLR out to shoot it. The best I can make out, the over-night lows need to be very cold, and the skies need to be clear enough at dawn for the sun to warm the surface of the river water. It was 5 degrees when I was shooting this morning, and I suspect this is the last time the river will smoke this winter. The vapor coupled with the jubilant early morning light is at once eerie and magnificent. It was worth losing feeling in my fingers.

March 4, 2015
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100 Books by 40: HOLES

Book: Holes
Author: Louis Sachar
Published: 1997

I borrowed this from the library. I could see that I requested sound media. I expected an audiobook on CDs. Instead, I got this doodad.

Picture of a mp3 player with one audiobook on it

It’s like a baby MP3 player only with one book on it. I guess this gets people mobile with a book without supplying their own MP3 player.

The doodad worked fine, except that it randomly shut down a few times losing my place in the book. It was a mild inconvenience. I had no idea such a thing exists, but I am happy that folks without access to an MP3 player have some options.

I often don’t research books before I read them. Because this little doodad had virtually no writing on it, I didn’t benefit from any of the information the book cover typically imparts. After some minutes of listening, it was discomforting that I was unsure if the book was a young adult novel. I noticed that the prose was pretty simple. But the subject matter was a bit heavy. Yet subject matter is a poor barometer of a book’s category.

This mystery drove me to distraction for the entire experience. I learned that the book is a young adult title after finishing it. So, note to self, when I don’t have a book jacket to peruse, I should look up the book to at least assess the category it’s in. Wondering about it diminishes from the experience of the book.

The book itself is unremarkable. The story is of a boy coming of age in a labor camp. Unwittingly, he solves some family mysteries and resolves an outstanding family debt. The plot is a little too precious for me, but I would happily recommend this book to any young adult.

February 28, 2015
by allthenamesaretakensothisisreallyreallylong 1 Comment

Nobody Expects The Ridges or Final Friday

Last night was crazy at MOTR. I don’t know if spring fever made everyone hungry for a bender. I don’t know if Final Friday attendees finally succumbed to all their complementary wine tastings throughout the night. Maybe the agressive drunken crowd fell victim to a frothy mix of both of these things. I do know that last Saturday at MOTR wasn’t off the rails like last night was.

Now then, the music. I heard Automagic for the first time. Essentially, any band that brings melodic synth sounds is going to win my heart, and win my heart, they did. I got the sense that they are still figuring out their stage presence, but I am happy to watch their evolution.

Although The Ridges were struggling with sound issues for too many moments for the impatient crowd to endure, they opened their act with a fire in their bellies. This effervescent energy is what keeps me coming back to their shows. Of course it helps that they are well rehearsed and have rumbling Americana songs that resonate with any Midwesterner. Here’s what I saw.

Automagic at MOTR Pub

Automagic laying down their pop goodness.

The drummer from Automagic is killing it.

The Ridges at MOTR

Who doesn't love banjo?

Sound check blues.

MOTR is packed!

February 27, 2015
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Talk, Talk, Talk, About It: Bunbury 2015 Line-up

True story: I have been disappointed by the Bunbury line-up in the past. Last year’s line-up was lackluster. Of the headliners, I was unpassionate about Empire Of the Sun and Flaming Lips and don’t enjoy Fall Out Boy and Paramore. Turned out, Empire Of The Sun was one of the best live performances I have ever seen. And the Flaming Lips, although not my thing, put up a really fun show. All in all I was satisfied with my experience regardless of what was, IMHO, a bummer booking in Fall Out Boy and Paramore. I am rarely at the fest for the headliners, and there were plenty of mid-tier acts that I enjoyed. Kopecky Family Band, Kishi Bashi, Wild Cub, Cage the Elephant, Holy Ghost!, The Lighthouse and the Whaler, Bronze Radio Return and more, made my ticket well worth it. For my past Bunbury thoughts check these out.

This year? I was concerned when the fest was sold to Promowest. The line-up was anyone’s guess. Given that I purchased my VIP tickets right after Bunbury last year (pro tip: they are cheapest then, but clearly it’s a risk as there’s no line-up announced), I had some skin in this game.

I am thrilled that Promowest put a line-up together that is better than my highest hopes for this fest. Granted the bar was a bit low, given that last year’s line-up was not my favorite. Check out the full announcement here.

Bunbury 2015 Line-up

I haven’t checked out the Avett Brothers, Tame Impala, Atmosphere, and Matt & Kim, so I am excited to see them. I’ve seen The Black Keys, The Decemberists, Twenty One Pilots, Walk The Moon, and Manchester Orchestra, and I am trilled to give all of them another go. While Twenty One Pilots aren’t exactly my bag, their show was really fun to watch. And while Walk The Moon’s fans are little rambunctious for this 38 year-old, the band is so thrilled to play their hometown and with their sound reminiscent of The Talking Heads (if you know me, you know 80’s pop is my catnip), combines to me enjoying their shows. What’s not to love about The Black Keys and The Decemberists? Top it all off with ticking Snoop Dogg off my bucket list, and I am a happy, happy ticket holder. So, cheers to you Promowest!

One other wonkish thing to note, Promowest “leaked” the line-up to Cincinnati local media early. Nice marketing move there. My Facebook feed exploded when that happened. I was a little concerned that a Columbus company might misread the Cincinnati market in terms of line-up and media. This is one of those rare circumstances in which I am happy to be wrong. In a couple months, I will start my Bunbury music reviews, so check back in April. Happy listening!

February 24, 2015
by allthenamesaretakensothisisreallyreallylong 4 Comments

Crock Pot Adventures

I bought my first slow cooker at the beginning of the winter. Mostly I wanted a slow cooker to aid in existing recipes that I make. When we make and can apple sauce, it’s easy to have a crock pot to the side slow cooking the apple butter. We do the same with pumpkin butter. Oh, and if you’ve never eaten pumpkin butter, you’ve never lived.

I was dubious that I would find enough delicious vegetarian recipes to make constant use of the slow cooker, but I was completely wrong. Here’s a sampling of my favorite recipes with my comments. And here’s some of the recipes that I will try in March.

Veggie Minestrone – This recipe is DELICIOUS. I didn’t realize how much I love minestrone until I had my first bites of this. I make no modifications to this recipe. The only thing you might want to note is that I use my own veggie broth and my own home canned tomatoes. Without the parmesan rind, this recipe can easily be vegan. As a cheese lover, I always add it.
Veggie Gumbo – This recipe is hearty and warms any winter chill. Pair this with some rice and it’s a satisfying meal.
Chick Pea and Butternut Squash Curry – This curry is creamy, and unlike many of these recipes, you can throw the chick peas in the cooker dry. Plus, it’s not necessary to saute the veggies before they go in the pot. For how easy this is, it’s amazingly good.
Madras Lentils – Like the recipe above you can throw the veggies in without a saute, and the lentils go in dry. I thought I would need to embellish the spices in this recipe to get it flavorful enough for me. I was shocked at how great this tasted, as is.
White Chili with Roasted Poblanos and Quinoa – This recipe is super healthy, but it requires considerable prep work. I modified the recipe by cutting the amount of beans by half. For my taste, I wanted more pepper and spice flavors in the chili, and the most direct way to do that was to cut down on the starch. After that modification, the flavors were better balanced. Also, be careful with the poblanos. The amount of heat they pack can vary pretty significantly. Make sure you taste before you Tabasco.

Here’s what I will try out in March:

With spring around the corner, I have two things that I would like to make before canning season starts. I want to make fig jam, although I know that will be dependent of if I can find fresh figs. Check out this recipe. I also want to make a second batch of yellow mustard. That mustard was the shit, and now that I know how good and easy home made mustard is French’s just isn’t cutting it. Then bring on canning season, also known as summer.