Unexpected indecision

My orchid is in full bloom again!



I swear, it can tell when I'm happy. As soon as Step 1 ended and ER started, the buds popped out, and they've held up ever since. Maybe I'll go buy it some plant food as a reward. After all, the guinea pigs get ample treats; why shouldn't it?

Emergency medicine is awesome. Too awesome, in fact, for someone who was pretty positive that she was going to match into neurology and then do an ID/immunology fellowship. Updates on raging inner battle to follow.

Also awesome: Quorn burgers. I got a little spooked after I Googled them and the first ten hits were about horrible reactions to the mycoprotein therein, but Real Scientific Papers don't seem to back up the anecdatal fearmongering, so I'll continue chowing down. They're a mere 100 calories each, so I feel justified eating them with rich, buttery homemade hamburger rolls and plenty of aioli.

Horse meat not included.

Tips for baking excellent hamburger rolls: use bread flour, don't
overknead or overproof, and brush with ample, ample melted
butter before sprinkling with sesame seeds.

I also made a ridiculously good (if I do say so myself) gruyere macaroni and cheese that I couldn't photograph because Andy ate it all by the time I got home from a late shift. Just use your favorite roux and add 6 oz white cheddar and 14 oz gruyere. Tonight, for a slightly healthier option, I made miso ramen.



The picture's a little busy. I started with some (well, lots) of my last batch of frozen mushroom broth and boiled it with about half a tablespoon of garlic, a little over a tablespoon of ginger, one sliced chili, and a large spice bell full of bonito flakes. Into that went about a quarter-cup of white miso, a drizzle of soy sauce, some cooking sake, and a little extra ginger for the road. Meanwhile, I soft-boiled some eggs, cooked some bean stick noodles, and sliced up carrots, mushrooms, bell pepper, edamame, scallions, and nori.

The setup.

 Pour some broth over noodles and top with ample veggies, scallions, baked tofu, halved eggs, and nori. Sprinkle with toasted sesame oil, sriracha, and sesame seeds, and finish with bean sprouts, ground ginger, and black pepper.

It's shockingly filling. Even Andy couldn't finish a whole bowl. As usual, I didn't measure anything exactly (up to and including the broth), so please taste throughout the process and adjust the proportions prn. The broth wasn't up to my umami standards. I suspect the secret ingredient is meat.