Jamie says:  Merry Christmas!  I am so thankful for all of the many blessings in my life, especially my wonderful family.  I have been enjoying all of the family holiday festivities.  Last night, we had a beautiful Christmas Eve party at our house, too.

Last Christmas, my Great Aunt and Uncle sent us a Williams-Sonoma Panettone with Glazed Chestnuts.  My family loved it so much that my Mom bought us one this year.  (Panettone is a cake-like bread that is traditionally served in Italy on Christmas.)  Although this Williams-Sonoma treat is quite expensive (about $40), the flavor is out of this world!   Today for Christmas breakfast, I made panettone french toast.  I cut slices of panettone, quickly dipped them in a mix of eggs and skim milk, and cooked them on the griddle until the slices was nice and brown.  The dried chestnuts pieces in the bread are amazing.  The bread is so sweet.  If you ever have the chance to try panettone, don’t miss out.  Panettone is such a treat.  “It’s no Christmas fruit cake!”

Nutrition note:  When cooking with eggs, don’t dump the yolk.  Just go easy on the amount of eggs you eat.  Although the yolk does contain fat and cholesterol, it has many important nutrients in it, such as vitamin D and vitamin E.

I found these chocolates when I was stumbling. Yummy!

About them:

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Socrates, Galileo till date inventors are always short changed.
Story:
We all grew up listening to our parents tell us how talent, dedication and hard work would get us far in life. But the reality is that even if you go out and change the world, there’s no guarantee you’ll be rewarded for your efforts.

There have been plenty of people throughout history that made amazing contributions to modern culture and got precisely dick in return.

http://www.cracked.com/article/207_6-inventors-who-got-jack-shit-changing-modern-world/

Pakistan has to admit at least now that it is the breeding ground for terrorism and US citizens are also lured into it.Or could be they are framing these people to put US on the defensive.
Story:
ISLAMABAD — Pakistani police are pursuing terrorism charges against five detained American men, police said Friday, a move that could complicate efforts to bring the men back to the United States where they could also land in the courts.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,581138,00.html

Download AI URL: http://www.imgcapture.com/?p=1676

Material description:

Light blue butterfly elements of the perfect coffee modification of the water element of the design. Pink, orange, black fashion circle bring out the coffee and bread, a perfect circle with a yellow dot pattern for better performance out of this element of exquisite beauty.

It is no surprise for China shuts down its own people news about them.Loss is China’a.Chinese govt.has been taking Chinese people for granted on many area including Human Rights.Upheaval that is due, will be catastrophic.
Beijing issues rules to make the country more like North Korea.
This week, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released regulations, dated Dec. 15, requiring the registration of all Web sites.

Today, Beijing blocks a multitude of sites, in effect creating a blacklist. Under the new system, there will be a “whitelist”: only registered sites will be accessible inside the country. Once the regulation is fully implemented, China will no longer have an Internet. In effect, it will downgrade to an intranet. At this moment, there are perhaps 270 million Web sites across the world, and only a miniscule number of them will register with the Chinese authorities.
http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/24/china-internet-blacklist-beijing-opinions-columnists-gordon-g-chang.html?partner=alerts

A region-by-region look at the metros with the highest peak-to-present price drops.
http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/18/cities-property-value-lifestyle-real-estate-foreclosures-median-prices-chart.html?partner=popstories

Got some extra change in the bank? Blow it on one of these pricey rides.
Last month, sales of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (MSRP: $90,000 to $202,000) were up almost 12% from November 2008. That’s unusual: Overall, the luxury segment was down 8% year-over-year, and is down 27% for the year to date.

It turns out that while it’s tough to sell top-end luxury cars in a time of high unemployment and an uncertain economy, there are exceptions to the rule. Buyers will still flock to special cars with a lot of cachet and the price tags to match.
http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/23/expensive-2010-cars-lifestyle-vehicles-luxury-cars.html?partner=forbeslife_newsletter

Deliberate?
A YouTube video suggesting that face recognition cameras installed in HP laptops cannot detect black faces has had over one million views.
The short movie, uploaded earlier this month, features “Black Desi” and his colleague “White Wanda”.
When Wanda, a white woman, is in front of the screen, the camera zooms to her face and moves as she moves.
But when Desi, a black man, does the same, the camera does not respond by tracking him.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8429634.stm

Disgusting to say the least.
The heads of US mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may each receive pay packages of up to $6m (£3.7m) for 2009, depending on company performance.
The government has put $111bn of public money into the companies since taking them over and the awards go against moves to curb lavish pay packages.
But the regulator which decided the pay levels said the awards were 40% lower than before the government bailout.
The sums involved reflected the need to attract and retain talent, it argued.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8430383.stm

There is no other kind of happiness that can replace the joy of becoming a mother. Children are blessings from above. They are the fruit of love. For this reason, it's fun to welcome them with great gifts for kids adorable and useful. Gifts for children are often given to baby showers or just after birth. There are so many gifts for children to choose from, and one of the favorites are gift baskets for the baby.

If you are invited to a baby shower, baby gift basket is athe best for this tactic. Gift baskets are known to be very important not only because they appeal to the eye, but most of them contain all the practices of gift items inside. Gift baskets for children usually are useful products for children as clothing, blankets, diapers, bath products, baby bottles, toys and the like.

Both practical and beautiful gift baskets for children are really delicious for parents-to-be. Giving is now a wonderful ideaWelcome to the future bundle of joy, with functionality and style. With a gift basket for children, expectant parents will no longer crack my head on how to manage their budget of many elements critical to their children. Show your appreciation and your care by providing a basket that will delight the parents-to-be.

Your shopping cart child can be store bought or homemade. If you want to include your personal touch of the basket, so feel free toone yourself. Make a basket made at home is an ideal way to show your creativity and your taste. It's actually pretty easy to make a home for baby gift basket. First you must choose a container that contains a number of gifts. It may be an alternative to traditional wicker baskets, like a laundry basket, bucket, box of toys, diaper bag, car or baby bath. After choosing a container, you will be thinking about a topic you want to be passed to the basket.Next topic is optional, but since you want to be creative, is a great way to change course. Themes for the baskets of baby may be something of cartoons, animals, sports specific issues you have in mind. If you want to focus on bath products for babies, it follows a simple theme. Choose a theme for basketball is really a personal choice, but make sure that the elements included in it is useful and convenient for parents-to-be.

There are a wide range of baskets for children who arenow available online. If you do not have time to do your own home, a fast alternative is to buy online. Today, there are thousands of online stores that carry different selections of gifts, baby baskets. Beyond that, all the material needed for a baby shower will need can be purchased online, as baby shower favors, invitations, decorations, games, etc.

Thanks To : Cheapest Toys

Jamie says:  I remember my Mother making a delicious pecan cookie with confectioner’s sugar and jam.  When I asked her about it, she told me those were two different cookies.  I guess I combined two good memories into one.  So, I asked my mom for the pecan cookie recipe and decided I would try adding jam to it.  The recipe, titled Pecan Puffs, actually came from my Mom’s neighbor in Brooklyn, New York.  I slightly modified the recipe.  I preheated the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.  I then beat 1 stick of butter until it was creamy and then beat in 2 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp vanilla extract.  I measured 1 cup of pecans and then ground them in a blender.  Next, I measured 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt into a sifter.  I added the ground pecans to the butter mixture followed by the ingredients in the sifter.  I stirred the ingredients together until they were well-mixed.  I then spooned balls of the dough onto greased (using PAM Cooking Spray) baking sheets.  I made a thumb print in the middle and Kathryn filled them with strawberry jam (not recommended for future baking).  I baked them in the oven for about 40 minutes.  The recipe made about 1 1/2 dozen cookies.  (I guess I make big cookies because the recipe said it would make double that amount.)  When I took them out of the oven, the jam had exploded (spilled out onto the baking sheet).  I then put the cookies on a plate and sifted confectioners’ sugar on top.  I then added more jam (because there was virtually none left in the cookie) on top.  (Next time, I would bake the cookies with a thumb print in the middle without the jam, then add the confectioners’ sugar followed by the jam.)  Despite the mess, the cookies were so delicious.  They were moist, buttery, and sweet.  They look really festive, too.

Nutrition Note:  Try freezing cookies and sweets.  They last a lot longer (months) than storing them at room temperature.  They are also out of sight, which makes them easier to enjoy in moderation.  And you won’t feel like you have to eat them soon because they will spoil.

http://digg.com/d31Dh43

http://digg.com/d31DhYz

I have recently thrown together a rather delicious eggplant dip than I have decided to share with you, reader! I may add pictures soon, so stay posted! Enjoy!

photo by Heather Irwin of BiteClub Eats

For your baking (and eating!) pleasure, The Gluten Free Lab would like to share with you one of our very favorite cookie recipes from our upcoming cookbook. Use it, love it, share it, and keep in touch with us as we continue to develop, edit and hone our cookbook recipes!

. . .

Garam Masala Snickerdoodles
This soft and crackly classic is made sophisticated and exotic with the unexpected use of garam masala – an Indian spice blend of primarily cinnamon and clove – and fits perfectly into the repertoire of traditional holiday flavors. If you don’t have this spice blend handy, combine 2 teaspoons cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon clove, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon finely ground white pepper. Or just use cinnamon to make the traditional version.

Makes 1 1/2 dozen cookies

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons garam masala
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 egg
1 teaspoon GF vanilla
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup white rice flour

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a baking sheet. Combine 2 tablespoons of the sugar and the garam masala in a small bowl.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, cream butter and the remaining 3/4 cup sugar. Add egg, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Gradually add brown rice flour, almond meal, and white rice flour, stirring until well combined.

Form mixture into 1-inch balls, roll in garam masala mixture, and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Bake until set but still soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet then transfer to an airtight container for storage.

I made one of my favorite desserts to bake (er, the only one I know HOW to make) for friends coming over to our Bible study last Thursday. The pie actually turned out awesome, thanks to a little tweaking of some simple recipes:

Preheat oven to 350 F

Pie Crust:

2 C All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp Salt
2/3 C Cold Vegetable Shortening in Tablespoons
1/2 C Ice Water

1. Mix the flour with the salt
2. Cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles course meal.
3. Sprinkle on the ice water and mix lightly with a fork.
4. Gently knead the dough until it just comes together.

That’s actually the recipe from Grant Achatz, the cousin of the owner of the place I used to work. I added a little more water than what the recipe called for, and kneaded it a little longer. “Just” coming together usually doesn’t work for me… I like it to have the flexibility of new playdough . . . in my opinion, it shouldn’t have somewhat-dry chunks falling off when you roll it in a ball… it should stay together, but not be a sticky mess. So I knead it just a little longer. Be careful NOT TO KNEAD IT TOO MUCH, though, as this will activate the gluten, making the pie crust shrink in the oven. Cut the ball of dough in half and roll it out. One is for the bottom crust, and one for the top of course. When I roll them out, I use wax paper, because the crust comes out way smoother, and having the top crust in between 2 pieces of wax paper makes it easier to flip it on to the top of the pie. If you had some extra dough, this is a good time to make some shapes with cookie cutters to decorate the top if you want.

Filling:

5 1/2 C Cherries (tart or sweet)
1 1/4 C Sugar
2 T Tapioca granules
2 T Corn Starch
1 T fresh lemon juice

Nothing special, just throw it all in a bowl and mix it together. Make sure you have really good soap, because it’s super sticky. But then I like getting my hands into things.

Anyways, the rest is easy: Fill the bottom crust with the filling, then take one piece of wax paper off the top crust and flip it on tothe pie. Make sure you put vents in the top, to release the steam. And don’t forget the cute little shapes if you made some! Next, spray the top of the pie with water and lightly sprinkle sugar on top (the sugar is optional). Last, bake the pie for about 45 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. It took mine a little over an hour, and still didn’t look quite right. But if the filling is coming out around the edges and the vents for a little while, it should be good.

*The cherry filling is actually from Achatz, but I just added a little more cherries, because i like it tart, and chunky, and big and fat. That’s probably why it took longer in the oven. When you’re done it should look somewhat like this:

Only when you work in a kitchen do you win a giant ball of mozzarella at the holiday raffle.

The raffle, where I won this gorgeous ball of cheese, took place in time set-aside during work hours to reward kitchen staff for their hard work at this busy time of year.  It also coincided with an organized Secret Santa, for which I’d purchased a set of white t-shirts that a coworker has requested for wearing under his whites, and I received a replacement miniature off-set spatula (I’d lost mine to the dish room at Corporate the Giant), a bowl scrape (Again, the one I came with was eaten by the dish cart,) and a new whisk (My current “whisk,” could be more appropriately described as “dilapidated wires looped upon a stick.”) 

That evening, I came home to find several of my roommates playing cards around the kitchen table.  “Guys! Look!”  I pulled out The Ball from its festive, holiday pouch, holding it up high for all to see.  “I won it at the raffle at work,” I exclaimed proudly with a grin. 

A moment’s exchange passed silently between my roommates.  Being sympathetic souls, they mustered enough energy to react with a supportive, ”Wow! Mozzarella!”  Although it’s clear they didn’t share my passion for free cheese (as actors and performers, they seem to live mostly on eggs, cottage cheese, spray butter and rice cakes), I like to believe that they found my enthusiasm endearing, if not also a bit peculiar.     

With the coming of the New Year and the sparkles of Christmas all around, I start to reflect on the past year.  This year I feel particularly lucky (and not just because of the mozzarella).  A year ago at this time, I’d not yet even embarked on my culinary school adventure, I didn’t know about pate a choux, I’d never dreamed of working in a kitchen as large as Corporate the Giant’s and I probably wouldn’t have gotten very excited about being given a ball of cheese for Christmas.   I’ve come a long way. 

I am so happy my life made the turns down the roads that it did, or perhaps in the spirit of Doc Brown I might even say, “Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.”  Over the past year I’ve made a couple big jumps, several big falls, and, tomorrow, I plan to use some puff pastry I have in the freezer, cover it with some tomato sauce, slice up my newly acquired cheese to create myself a little Christmas snack.  Merry Christmas everyone!

We had another case recently, when a mother Twitted as his son lay dying.
Though the concept is is good, its utility depends on its usage.Unfortunately you can not control what is being posted on th net;nor can you stop any criminal actions arising out of it.The more you try to regulate , more the people shall circumvent it.
So, as with all technological innovations, you have to take with a pinch of salt.
Story:

In our meeting today we all were able to come up with a story regarding Facebook. From the case of Anthony Stancl the American teenager who blackmailed fellow students at his secondary school into having sex after using their Facebook images . To a story here in the UK about Craig Lynch, he is on the run from police after absconding from prison three months ago, but is still finding time to update his Facebook page. And apparently according to a British study a fifth of divorces are due to Facebook.
http://ramanan50.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.php

Ah, just the thought of Cioccolata Calda sends me into a frenzy! Chi-o-co-la-ta Call-da is Italian for Hot Chocolate. I’m going to attempt to describe this to those of you who have not experienced an authentic Italian Hot Chocolate.

Italian Cioccolata Calda Is a cup of thick, delicious, creamy, pudding like consistency, hot chocolaty goodness!

It’s great with a dollop of fresh whipped cream.

Ingredients:

100g of Good Quality Bittersweet Chocolate 70% or higher
1 1/2 cups of Whole Milk
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp of Corn Starch

How?:

Into a saucepan over LOW heat add your chocolate & a smidge of the milk & stir with a wooden spoon until melted. SLOWLY add in the milk until it’s well combined. Add in the sugar, mix well & then whisk in the corn starch. Continue cooking over LOW heat until it becomes thick & creamy & coats the back of the wooden spoon.

Optional: You can top with fresh whipped cream, a dash of cinnamon or even a dash of chili powder (if you’re adventurous)

Buon Appetito!

Funny.If you one disease, you will not have another.
Story:

Alzheimer’s disease is associated with a reduced risk of cancer and vice versa, a study suggests.
US researchers followed 3,020 people aged 65 and above for the study, published in the journal Neurology.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8425824.stm

As things stand China’s financial control over US govt.is high.When they enter private sector, the results will be not good for US.Look at the African countries where china has invested, leading to local unrest, following Chinese policy of hiring only Chinese.Also China shall use this as a lever in diplomacy.
Story:

Chinese manufacturers are looking overseas to acquire the means to move into broader markets.

It is easiest for any developing country’s firms to grow and internationalize in areas that lack head-to-head competition from U.S. and European firms. China’s carmakers are in the vanguard of those Chinese companies now showing a readiness to acquire the wherewithal to move out of the niches and into broader markets.