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Polaroid Instant Film [updated 8/1/09]

Despite rumours otherwise, Polaroid is still intending to drop its famous instant film. Doesn’t look like any other company has picked it up yet. Ha! Yes there is a company who is picking up the Polaroid mantle! Polapremium! Yay! And more good news, they bought the manufacturing equipment and plan to start production of integral film in early 2010. W00t! Glad I held onto my vintage Polaroid!

This very helpful site says that Fujifilm makes film that will work in Polaroid cameras… Yes, apparently they do make film for Polaroids.

Despite the teeth gnashing, it certainly looks like Polaroid film will be available. Yay! I intend to pull out my family’s old Polaroid (100?) and try it out! Plus, I really like the Polaroid art prints that have been manipulated or transferred.

I’m glad I saw that news article and did this research! Perhaps it will serve to help others interested in Polaroid cameras!

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Butternut Squash Risotto

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Butternut Squash Risotto

This is very close to the Ina Garten recipe, which calls for saffron. If you have saffron, by all means, add it! Risotto has a reputation for being difficult, but it is NOT. It is easy to make, but you can't really rush it.
Course Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine Italian
Keyword butternut squash, risotto
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Author misangela

Equipment

  • 1 dutch oven or heavy bottom 4qt pot
  • 1 half sheet pan
  • 1 2qt saucepan

Ingredients

  • 1 med butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced about 2#
  • 2 Tbl EVOO
  • 3/4 stick butter, in several pieces 6 Tbl, I use salted ALWAYS
  • 3 Tbl diced pancetta sub 1-2 slices bacon, cut into 1/2" pieces
  • 2 med shallots, small dice or one large, about 3 Tbl
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, minced about 1.5 Tbl
  • 3-4 stems fresh thyme, remove leaves about 2 tsp, use 1 tsp if dried
  • 1 1/2 cups arborio rice NO substitutions
  • 5-6 cups chicken stock at a simmer
  • 1 cup white wine
  • 1 cup Parmesano Reggiano, ground get the good stuff!
  • S/P to taste
  • shredded parm to top

Instructions

  • Gather ingredients and prep the veg first.
  • Heat oven to 400°F.
  • Put diced squash on a sheet pan and drizzle with EVOO; toss to cover. Lightly season with S/P. Roast squash about 15-20 minutes until it is soft and getting browned. Set aside when finished.
  • Put chicken stock in a saucepan and bring to simmer.
  • Put dutch oven over medium heat. Add butter, pancetta, shallots and garlic. Cook gently until veg is soft, about 5 mins.
  • Add thyme and rice. Stir rice to cover each grain with butter.
  • Begin adding stock, 2 ladles (about 3/4 cup) at a time. Add stock, stir until the liquid is absorbed, repeat. Keep doing this until the rice is as done as you like it and a little loose. The parmesan will tighten it up, so looser is better.
  • Off the heat, stir in ground reggiano and stir vigorously for a couple of minutes. This develops the creamy starches from the rice.
  • Gently stir in squash. Check S/P levels.
  • Serve with shredded parm on top.

Notes

Photo credit: Food Network and Ina Garten

V1.22

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New Headers!

I hope you enjoy the festive new headers I did today. The photos are of our Yule trees, taken by Nick. Gold star to the reader who can identify the one that screams “GEEK!!” by telling me what is geeky about it. TWO gold stars if you can identify the type of, uh, object it is.

The header has 5 photos and is supposed to be random. It is not the best randomiser in the world, but if you click Refresh + Shift enough times, you should eventually see them all. :-)

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Spicy Italian Chili

Welcome Googlers! Hope you enjoy this recipe! If you’d like to see more, use the “View Whole Category” drop down menu to show the Angela’s Recipes category.

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Spicy Italian Chili

Another chili recipe! Similar to another one I make, but definitely tastes Italian! Lots of ingredients, but worth the effort.
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American, Italian
Keyword beef chili, italian chili, italian sausage chili, spicy italian chili
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Author misangela

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground beef 90/10
  • 1 pkg hot Italian sausage remove casings if you have links
  • 1 lg onion, diced about 1.5 cups
  • 1 lg red bell pepper, diced 2 medium, about 1.5 cups
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced about 2 Tbl
  • 2 Tbl flour any type
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 2 tsp dry basil
  • 1 tsp dry oregano
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 Tbl chili powder
  • 1 14oz can white beans, drained any kind
  • 1 28oz can Italian tomatoes, whole with juice break up by hand as you add them
  • 1 6oz can tomato paste or 3 Tbl from tube
  • 1 8oz can tomato sauce Italian herbs if you can find it
  • 1 cup red wine optional
  • 1-2 cups chicken stock as needed
  • S/P to taste
  • shredded parm to garnish

Instructions

  • Gather ingredients and prep veg first.
  • Put a large soup pot on med hi heat.
  • Add sausage and beef and sauté until about halfway cooked. A little browning is fine.
  • Add in onions, pepper and garlic. Stir and cook until veg softens. (Turn down heat if it is too dry and/or veg is browning. Add a bit of stock if it's too dry.)
  • Add in flour and all spices. Stir until incorporated into meat and veg.
  • Add beans, tomato products and wine. Bring to a simmer.
  • Add chicken stock to your preferred thickness and simmer for another 15-20 minutes.
  • Check S/P before serving.
  • Serve with shredded parmesan.

Notes

Photo credit: simplyrecipes.com
This chili freezes well. 
This would be excellent over orzo or other small pasta. 

V1.22

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Friday Five

The Friday Five is an olde tyme fad from way back in the late 90s. I know, hard to imagine, right? (whippersnappers!! GET OFF MY LAWN!)

Anyway, some fine soul has kept it going on LJ and this is today’s Friday Five:
1. Do you like the look of your country’s currency (bills and coins)?
Eh. It’s ok. It’s getting better, at least we have some color now (purple!!). I still think we should have different sized bills for the visually impaired.
2. Regardless of their actual value, do you like bills or coins better?
I’m all for a $1 coin. Maybe even a $5 coin. But I tell you, it would SUCK to open your change purse and have a $5 coin go scooting down the air vent, ya know? So I guess I’m for $1 coins, but bills for everything else.
3. What is your favorite foreign currency? And why?
I really like the Euro. I like that all the coins have the member countries’ symbols on the obverse. That’s nice. The next ones would be the really cool Asian coins with holes in them. I just love those!
4. Do you collect coins or bills? Elaborate.
Yes. I collect the state quarters – which just ended – the President $1 coins and the new nickles. I also have a fair number of foreign coins. I don’t collect foreign bills, just coins. I wish I had more Euros, actually.
5. Do you think human society could make do completely without money? Explain.
No. Humans are too petty and greedy to be able to let go of perceived value. While I think barter is an awesome way to go (and I’ve done a LOT of barter in my time), I think we’ve gone too far to be able to say, “Oh, sure, dude, you can totally buy my house with pretty shells, nice blankets and free car washings for 20 years.” Just won’t work.