Russia

     Hello again, viewers. 

     It's been a while, but I finally got on with the next destination in my personal peregrination.  My mum has been quite keen on this project of mine, and has been getting more involved lately.  It's been nice to have a human travel companion.  Not that Luie, Misa and Kitsu aren't excellent company, but it's nice to play this little game with someone with whom I can carry on a two-way conversation.

     For my Russian experience, I decided to dress up for it.  I don't have anything specifically Russian, but after researching traditional Russian apparel, I put together an outfit with what I had on hand.  I didn't wear it for long, but it was amusing while it lasted.  I felt rather like a matryoshka doll.

     We began this afternoon, by making borscht (beet soup).  While we made it, we listened to some lovely Russian folk songs, and then, as the borscht was cooking, we had a cup of strong coffee, and a slice of chocolate babka (a kind of sweet, swirled bread), which was absolutely delicious.  They sell it at the local market, and I've been eyeing it up for quite some time.  I was pleased to have an opportunity to try it, and I certainly wasn't disappointed.

     As is traditional, we ate it with a thick slice of pumpernickle bread.  Though it's not traditional, we topped our bread with goat cheese.  The flavours go together excellently.  With my meal, I had white grape juice in a pretty little glass from World Market.

 

     While we ate lunch, we watched the 007 film GoldenEye (1995) starring our favourite Bond, Pierce Brosnan.  This movie was filmed partly in St. Petersburg.

 

 

     After that, I put on the film White Nights (1985), which is set in Leningrad, and features the amazingly talented ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, who's character Nikolai 'Kolya' Rodchenko, a famous Russian ballet dancer (a fitting role for him, what?) had defected from the Soviet Union to the U.S.  Some years later, his plane crash lands in Russia, much to his chagrin.  Co-starring in this dramatic film, is famous tap-dancer, Gregory Hinds, who's character Raymond Greenwood had defected from the U.S. to the Soviet Union.  There is a very memorable scene in this film, in which the two men dance in sync with each other, having combined their individual dance styles.

 

     Watching White Nights put me in mind of a thesis I wrote in high school about Russian ballet.  I quite enjoyed researching the subject.  I had wondered why ballet seems more widely known as a Russian art than a French.  According to my studies, sometime in the 1740's a French ballet instructor took his best dancers to Russia to perform for the Emperess Anna.  She was so enthralled with the dance, that she opened a ballet school St. Petersburg forthwith.  From there, the art spread like wildfire.

 

     About four or so years ago, I took my dear friend Andrea to see The State Ballet Theatre of Russia perform Cinderella.  I had, and have since seen several ballet performances, but seeing the grace and elegance of those remarkably talented ballet dancers in person was breathtaking.

 

 

     While we watched white nights, I made Russian tea cookies (see previous post), and then set them aside to cool.  After the movie, I began making dinner, but we were then called away on a matter of business, so dinner was put aside for the time, and off we went. 

 

     On the way, I read some of The Selected Letters of Anton Chekhov.  I don't wonder that he was and is a celebrated playwrite; the fellow had quite a gift for words.  His letters, casual correspondance with his friends and family, are as diverting as strategically-written soliloquies.

 

 

     When we returned home, we finished making dinner.  We made beef stroganoff, served the traditional way over roasted potato instead of noodles.  On the side, I had another slice of pumpernickle bread, and pickled cabbage (saurkraut).  The stroganoff was fantastic.

 

 

    

     A little while after dinner, I had tea.  I made my own version of "Russian tea", using black tea, citrus, and spices.  I had several cups of it, together with my Russian tea cakes.

 

 

     While I had my tea, I watched the musical Fiddler on the Roof (1971), which is set in the town of Anatevka, in Tsarist Russia.  Although I had never seen it before, it brought back memories of my childhood.  When I was a very little girl, my mum bought me a cassette tape (back when cassette tapes were still popular), of broadway showtunes.  Listening to some of the songs from Fiddler on the Roof, such as "Tradition", and "If I Were a Rich Man", took me right back to my days of pigtails and dance class.

     And that was the conclusion of my "trip" to Russia. 

     Good night, viewers.  Or rather, good morning.  In either case, fare you well.

 

Russian Tea Cakes

      I've always loved these little confections (alternatively known as Mexican wedding cookies, butterballs, or snowball cookies), and I recently found a recipe for them in a cookbook.  They're remarkably easy to make.

• 1 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
• Additional powdered sugar

     Cream butter in a large mixing bowl; gradually add 1/2 cup sugar, beating until light and fluffy.  Stir in vanilla.

     Combine flour, salt, and pecans; gradually add to creamed mixture, blending well.  Chill until firm

     Shape dough into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake at 400 degrees F.  for 12 to 15 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.  Allow them to cool slightly, and roll them in powdered sugar while they're still warm.  If desired, after doing so, let them cool completely, and then roll them in powdered sugar again.

    

Another Scarlet Pimpernel Story

     My dear mum and I have at last finished another book in the Scarlet Pimpernel series, The Way of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1933), which of course involves Sir Percy being unmitigatedly awesome.  There wasn't quite enough of him in this one, in my opinion, but the central characters who received the most attention were sufficiently interesting.

     We've ordered the next in the series, and we're very excited to begin reading it.  This one is called Sir Percy Hits Back (1927). 

     In this one, a young and pretty girl named Fleurette, becomes, for a reason yet unknown to me, suspected as a traitor to the Revolution, and is therefore arrested, much to the chagrin of her doting papa, who will go to any lengths to save her from death.  Who is her papa?  Why, none other than The Scarlet Pimpernel's own arch-enemy Chauvelin!  Dun dun dun!  Chauvelin will have to decide if he's willing to (temporarily) bury the hatchet, so to speak, and ask for help from the only person who could possibly save his darling daughter.

     I think the thing that fascinates me most about this, is not that Chauvelin has a random child that we never knew about, but that he's actually fond of somebody, which, from Orczy's depiction of him, hardly seems conceivable.

     In any case, I'm very much looking forward to Percy's next epic adventure.  After this one, I have only 3 sequels, 2 short story collections, 2 prequels (involving one of Percy's ancestors), and a much much later sequel (involving one of his descendants) to go before finishing the entire saga.

Blueberry Cream Muffins

     Salutations, viewers.

     Today was not a day for "travels" and epic adventures; instead, I made muffins.  A nice alternative, what?

     Speaking of alternatives, I used the recipe found in Rocco Dispirito's cookbook:  Now Eat This! Diet.  I did not use all of his alternative ingredients, so I adapted the recipe with what I had on hand. 

Here's my adaptation --

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup cane sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tablespoons agave nectar
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 egg whites
• 4 ounces reduced fat Neufchatel cheese (this is basically the same thing as cream cheese), cut into small chunks
• 1 cup frozen blueberries

     Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper baking cups, and lightly coat the cups with cooking spray.

     In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.

     In a medium bowl, stir together the wet ingredients until well incorporated, then add the mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.  Fold in the cream cheese and blueberries.

     Spoon the mixture into the prepared muffin tin.  Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean, about 18-20 minutes.

 

     These muffins are not especially sweet, which suited me fine.  Like scones, or crumpets, not-so-sweet muffins go excellently with tea, which, as you see, I experienced myself.  I had a cup of blueberry tea, to go with my blueberry muffin.

 

     If you want these muffins to be sweeter, you can change the amount of sugar to 2/3 cup, or change the amount of agave to 1/4 cup.  Rocco DiSpirito's recipe called for 4 packets (about 4 grams) of powdered stevia, and 1/4 cup of agave.

Wales

     Hello again, viewers.

     Today's destination was Wales.  I'd been very much looking forward to this one.  I got a rather late start, and didn't experience any "Welsh-ness" until late afternoon. 

     I wore my green Celtic knot earrings for the occasion.

     After running some errands with my mum, we came home and made Welsh "rarebit", which, I understand, was meant to be a sort of imitation rabbit, in an ironical sort of way.  The dish consists of toasted bread covered in melted cheese, or béchamel sauce.  When served with tomato soup, this dish is called "blushing bunny".  The name amused my mum and I, and we decided to give it a try.  I picked out a nice loaf of bread, and an all-natural brand of tomato soup, and I made my first ever béchamel sauce.  And it was lovely, if I may say so.  What could be better than a sauce of butter and melted cheese?  I had read that in this Welsh dish, ale, and/or mustard is sometimes added, and we just so happened to have a piece of British cheddar with ale and stone-ground mustard.  We were very pleased with this dish.  It tasted rather like a grown-up version of the classic "grilled cheese with tomato soup."

 

     While I made it, I sang my favourite Welsh folk songs, Ar Lan Y Mor, Myfanwy, and Suo Gan.  The Welsh language is so lovely.

 

     After lunch, my mum and I watched The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (1995), which is set in the fictional village of Ffynnon Garw ("Rough Fountain" or "Rough Spring").  It was filmed in Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and Llansilin in Mid Wales.  The story, which is set in 1917, revolves around two English cartographers, one of which is played by Hugh Grant.  They go to Ffynnon Garw to measure their "mountain" and discover that it is, in fact, only a hill, much to the outrage of the community, who are very proud of their mountain.  The townspeople band together, and resolve to add the 20 necessary feet of earth to the mountain top, to make it qualify as a true mountain, and, in a series of comic events, sabotage the Englishmen's attempts to leave until they've accomplished this task.

 

 

     Afterwards, my mum made a shepherd's pie (otherwise known as a cottage pie) - a savoury pie of meat and vegetables topped with a layer of mashed potatoes instead of a crust.  She used ground lamb, leeks, kale, mushrooms, and goat cheese.  She served pan-fried brussel sprouts on the side.  With my dinner, I had a cup of black tea.

          For dessert, I had a dish of fresh blackberries with sweet cream.  This was not listed among traditional Welsh cuisine, but I have read that they enjoy a variety of berries in Wales, and after a hearty supper, a dish of fresh berries was a pleasant after-note.

 

     Later in the evening, my mum and I watched I'll Be There (2003).  The exact location in Wales where the film is set and filmed was not specified, but wherever it was, it was lovely.  The film is about a teenage girl named Olivia (played by the vastly-talented Charlotte Church), who has an intense passion for singing, though her overly-protective mother discourages her from pursuing her musical dreams, and wishes for her to inherit her hair-cutting business.  Olivia discovers that her father is a Scottish rock star, who is unaware of her existence.  Having found out who he is, she decides to remedy this.

 

     I bought a 2013 calendar recently, which features pictures of castles from around the world.  The one I liked the most happened to be in Wales.  Here it is, the picturesque Penrhyn Castle.



     It also happens to be in Gwynedd, which is my favourite county in Wales.  A couple of years ago, I began writing a novel set in Wales, and in great detail, I described exactly what the setting looked like.  When I researched various Welsh counties, however, they looked nothing like what I had envisioned, and I thought I'd have to re-write my description.  But then I looked up Gwynedd, and the description matched almost word-for-word what I had written, and I knew that that's where my characters lived.

     Then, I had another cup of tea, and a Hobnob biscuit.

     While I had my tea, I read the slight bit I had written of my novel (having been reminded of it by Penrhyn Castle), and listened to the lovely vocals and harp-playing of Bethan Myfanwy Hughes.

     And then, like my tea, my adventure in Wales was finished.  I had a lovely time there.

     Hwyl fawr, viewers; until next time.

More to Come

    Good morning, viewers.

     It's been almost a week since my last "adventure", but I've only just begun my personal peregrination.  I've had to pause to give myself time and opportunity to gather supplies, but I'll be "traveling" again very shortly.

     And on a bright note, a dear chum of mine is planning to visit from out of town soon; and is keen on having some global experiences with me.

     In the meantime, have a lovely day, and keep warm.

Mexico

     Hola, viewers.  Today's destination was Mexico.

     I wore this necklace that a friend brought back for me when she went there on a cruise.  Pretty, no?

     I began this morning with a cup of café de olla (coffee with cinnamon), with a bit of vanilla.

     Then, I went out for a change, together with my mum and grandmother, to an authentic Mexican restaurant called Tortilla Flats.  We used to go there often with my grandad.

     We started the meal with the restaurant's complimentary tortilla chips and salsa.

     And my grandmother got a mango marguerita.  The stem of the glass was shaped like a cactus.

     She and my mum ordered a seafood burrito. 

     I got my "usual", or what was my usual when I went there often.  I always got the carne asada (pork) quesadilla, and a flan. 

     We each got through about half (more or less) of our meals, and then my mum and grandmother helped me eat my flan.  The food there is very good, but also very filling.

     A little while later, I went to a tiny little Mexican restaurant in my small town, to pick up a couple of dulce de leche-filled churros.  While I waited, I had a lime-flavoured Jarritos soda.

     After they had finished making my churros, I went home and relaxed for a while, and had a cup of café con leche ("sweet coffee"- similar to a latte), with cinnamon and vanilla.

   

     Later, I watched clips of the film From Prada to Nada (2011), which is the Latino version of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.  The film actually takes place in Los Angeles, California, not Mexico; even so, it offers a charming glimpse of Mexican culture.

 

 

     After that, I made huevos y frijoles (eggs and beans) for dinner.  I whipped two eggs with fajita seasoning and a splash of milk, and then poured the mixture into a hot pan, creating a flat, tortilla-like disk.  On top of that, I added some mixed beans that my mum had cooked in a crockpot, and topped it with pico de gallo salsa, sour cream, and a bit of shredded cheese.  This was a new dish for me, and I quite enjoyed it.

 

     Then I watched two Esther Williams films that were set in Mexico.

     The first, Easy to Wed (1946), is based on the 1936 film Libeled Lady, about, well, a libeled lady, in a classic story of lawsuits, convoluted schemes, and the male lead inevitably falling for the woman he's trying to fool.

     Then I watched Fiesta (1947), which was filmed in Puebla Mexico.  It's about a twin brother and sister, who's father was a famous bull-fighter.  After meticulously grooming his son to be a top bull-fighter, the son grows up wishing to be a musician, and the daughter wants to be the bull-fighter.

     While I watched it, I had my churros, and a cup of extremely thick hot chocolate, made with quite alot of unsweetened cocoa powder, a bit of agave syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, and a pinch of cayanne pepper.  This beverage doubled as a dipping sauce for the churros.

 



     And thus, my "trip" to Mexico came to an end. 

     I've been throughly enjoying my global experience.  I don't yet know where I'm going next, but I'll no doubt decide soon enough.  Until then, Adios, viewers.