Monday, August 28, 2006

CUCINANDO CON BRITPOPBABY

(I'm on the laptop so I'm afraid my art isn't up to the usual standards and I don't know what I'm about to do to Kermit.)

Benvenuto ai miei cari amici della cucina humble...okay, I'll stop with this now. While Jake continues to dodge charity events and appearences on Jon Stewart (don't freak too much, PG), he leaves us once again in this limbo, this purgatory between pap photos and sports award shows. Aah, what to do? What to do? WANNA COOK?

We all know Jake likes a good rumble in the kitchen but this post is a little more than some lame and vain attempt to reconnect with The Sex. This post is for prophecygirl because apparently she can't cook and guess what, neither can I. Well, I can make a mean bacon, brie and cranberry butty but that's the extent of it.

So, grab your pinnies and rolling pins and lets get busy. The first recipe I have chosen for us all to try to Potato Gnocchi, mainly because I had it on holiday and I would kill my granny to taste such lightness again.

You'll be needing:
750g/1lb10oz bintje potatoes, you can also use Yukon Gold or Yellow Finn potatoes
2 egg yolks
½ cup plain flour (plus extra if needed)
Sea salt, to season
Freshly grated parmesan cheese

For the tomato sauce:
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, sliced thinly
4 ripe tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp basil, sliced thinly

Instructions - it's way complicated!

Okay, I have no idea what those potatoes are all about - I think I'll be using the best value spuds the supermarket has to offer. As for the sea salt, I guess those of you who don't live by the sea can just use normal from-under-the-earth salt. Don't worry about that tomato sauce either cos that shit comes in tins, baby! And also remember that basil is pronounced bas-ill not bay-sill. Those are the rules in britpopbaby's kitchen so deal. You can buy ready grated parmesan, right?

48 comments:

britpopbaby said...

Forget about Jake! I'm up to my elbows in bintje and seem to have misplaced my mouli!!

britpopbaby said...

simon - not sure, someone emailed me saying he was scheduled but I don't know anymore than that.

salailama said...

i made potato gnocchi once and it was a disaster-i messed up the potatoes-flour-water ratio. good luck though, i love gnocchi.

hey, OT, but jake's tattoo mystery solved...?

there's a blurb about Kfed's fans getting free inner arm tattooes saying kfed night in olde english!

Fresno, CA. Fresno's most beloved son is already being honored by his city just because he's a bad-ass mothereffer. Just yesterday, the Fresno Grizzlies dubbed last night K-Fed Night in honor of their game against the Sacramento Rivercats ... the first 3,000 fans who attended the game were treated to a tattoo giveaway

go to trent.blogspot.com for the pic-- could it be jake is a hidden kfed fan? haha, im kidding of course. anyway, those tattoos seem to be in vogue, real or fake.

britpopbaby said...

Kfed? Omigod, I'm going to be sick.

cina said...

Okey, now I'm hungry. Guess I'll have to make spaghetti and meatballs as usual. Gnocchi sounds a bit too complicated. Although I'm proud to say that I know all those types of potatoes, living in the potato-loving country that I do. Bintje is the shit! LOL

cina said...

@ smurfette - Hey, I think I've found the perfect avatar pic for you! :-)

http://www.justbeingcritical.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/03/smurfette.jpg

Anonymous said...

Brit, um I don't think Jake was scheduled to be on Jon Stewart recently. He missed the DS quite a few months back and maybe they had him listed on a repeat. There is enough drama about him missing the L.A. even without adding something else.

Anonymous said...

That should be "event"

5:16 AM

Anneka's Alias said...

"And some other woman who's name I've forgotten...who was England's version of Martha Stewart...."

That sounds like Delia Smith, Simon. Or Jamie Oliver. I always get those two mixed up.

Loving the recipe. Is this the beginning of the Jake Watch cookbook? Yay!

Becky Heineke said...

Well, I can make a mean bacon, brie and cranberry butty but that's the extent of it.

I think one time I made a grilled cheese. And I can scramble an egg in a pinch, but that's about it. Oh, Easy Mac. I can actually make mac and cheese in the microwave. You started us off really hard, brits! I think Jake should give us cooking lessons. I'm very disturbed that you're hungry enough to eat Kermit.

OK, I almost had a heart attack re The Daily Show news, but if it was from a time long past, I'm OK with that. I watched the ep when Jon said he wasn't going to be on the show a few months back. If Jake had stood him up twice, I'd have to take issue. I'm sure he's just saving his appearance for October 16 when I will be in the audience at The Daily Show. Jake likes to look out for me like that.

Dumbo said...

I like to think I can cook, but the last time I made something with potatoes it tasted more like glue than actual food.

I hope not on the Kfed thing, I can put up with Austin, his unfair treatment of Atticus, and the spandex. However, I draw the line at any attempts to join the FEDernation. No, no, no.

(*Jake, please don't miss the tv appearances, trips to buy cupcakes, eating salads, or varying your sock length. When you only put out a movie or two a year we don't have much else to look forward too). What is he up too?

britpopbaby said...

I have no idea what the Jon Stewart deal is - sorry for the confusion, it was just used for sentence rhythm. Erase it from your minds.

Jake Watch cookbook? Yes...britpopbaby's kitchen...

salailama said...

thanks for the avatar, cina! haha, i'm going thru avatar schizophrenia but it's fun.

yeah, the jon stewart thing was a long time ago, and i like to think they're cool now because jake's apologized/explained himself. If you watch the credits at the end of the oscars-- jake was the first one to pop out of his seat to congratulate JS and it's the sweetest thing.

oh yeah, i was TOTALLY kiddign re: the KFed tatoo. jake wouldn't do that to us. just thought it was interesting how olde english tats on male inner arms are suddenly everwhere.

Becky Heineke said...

Oh, Simon. Trust me, there will be a FULL account and I'll be expecting everyone to watch that night to see if you catch a half-second glimpse of the back of my head in the opening audience shot. :D Actually, it's not 100% certain, yet. I put in my request and I'm on the list, but I'm not sure how they decide who they actually send the tickets to. And yes, I fully plan on tracking down Stewart and telling him how much I love him. ;)

Anonymous said...

I had to teach myself to cook, since I didn't learn enough from my mother, who's deeply bored by standing around at a stove and who tends to hurry through those very bad recipes that one gets from the backs of Campbells Soup cans & the sides of Corn Flakes boxes. I wanted to eat more healthily than that. Got a good cookbook and set myself the task of making one dish from it every few days. Over time, I've acquired a decent repertoire of dishes. But nothing at all like what Jake does. (Bechamel sauce from scratch?) I think I'd just do the prep work of cutting things up for him, then watch & try to learn from him.

As for gnocchi, yes, Brits, they're deligthful, aren't they? But frankly, I buy them in vaccuum packs, dump them in boiling water, watch for them to float to the top & then lift them off with a slotted spoon.

The only British TV foodie personality with whom I'm familiar is Nigella what's her face -- Lawson?

Anonymous said...

joycedavenport said: I read about him missing the LA event and thought that was a tad unusual especially as his mum is on the board- now I hear he's missing TV shows?

Mmmkay I'm an idiot and apparently a really bad fan, but what LA event and/or TV show(s) did he miss (I guess aside from the Daily Show)?? Please tell me, I'm pitiful! Thank you.

Elena said...

Your recipe doesn't sound bad at all, Brits. I'm preparing my meal right now, but I won't take the risk, my fridge is half empty.

cina said...

Bechamel sauce from scratch isn't hard, it's just flour, butter and milk. Takes more than that to impress me, lol! ;-)
Now Bearnaise sauce on the other hand... that's tougher! But I'm sure Jake makes a mean Bearnaise. From scratch.

Agnes said...

Okay I'm hopeless in the kitchen and I'll probably burn the house down!!

Dumbo said...

Gin,

I think this is refering to Jake not showing up at Bookeaters on Saturday in LA. Which was part of a charity event set up to raise money for a nonprofit tutoring program. Someone can correct me on this if I'm wrong.

salailama said...

dumbo, that's exactly it.

gin, revenge of the bookeaters a charity event for a children's literacy group run by author dave eggers. his mom's on the board. they're doing kind of a nationwide fundraising/awareness tour with celebrity bookreading and music acts. jake was scheduled to do a bookreading at the la one last weekend.

as for the daily show, to my knowledge, that's the only show he missed, and that was ages ago, before the oscars (see my post above).

Anonymous said...

I sure hope Jake apologized. Yes, it's only a five minute interview, but it's the freakin' Daily Show!

I would like to know what they did do to fill the time slot they left open for him, though. It must be tough to fill a gap like that when you've got a live audience and can't pause to think up another skit.

As much as I love The Daily Show, I'd kill to see Jake interviewed by Stephen Colbert, especially after doing Brokeback.

*x<3x*

Anonymous said...

I sure hope Jake apologized. Yes, it's only a five minute interview, but it's the freakin' Daily Show!

Yes, Jake most certainly apologized! At the very end of the Oscars telecast, after the horrendous announcement of Crash winning (ugh!!) you can see during the credits that Jake was the first person to go up to the stage to talk to Jon. Yes I am a geek and have watched it a couple of times, lol, but you see Jake give Jon a hug and then starts talking to him and it seemed like he was apologizing based on Jon's gestures, etc.

cina said...

Yeah you're right anon. I saw that he went up and talked to him, and you're probably not too far off about it being him apologizing to Jon. His gesture is like "Oh, don't mention it! Nothing to worry about!"

Mr. M said...

The earlier appearance miss(ages) were due to Zodiac shooting and weather. When he did Oprah he flew in, did the show and then flew right back out again. Why he'd even consider working with that director again so soon boggles the mind.

As for Jon Stewart, I believe he has some connection to the Gyllenhaals. So it wasn't really an issue for the show.

I've already said my piece on the DC boards (strangely) about Bookeaters so I won't bore anyone with it again.

salailama said...

girl friday, i wouldn't say a connection to the gyllenhaals, per se. they might be friends though. maggie's been on the show a few times, and it's really obvious jon LOVES her.

I've already said my piece on the DC boards (strangely) about Bookeaters so I won't bore anyone with it again.

sorry, what did you say? if you don't want to revisit, that's ok, i was just curious, sicne i don't visit the dc forums.

Anonymous said...

I LOVE your sauce recipe!
As for missing the bookeaters event, I'm mystified that so-called fans would direct so much anger at Jake. First, who knows if he even knew about it? Did the right people talk to the right people to coordinate his schedule? Did folk follow up? Did they get a firm commitment or an "I'll try." I mean, seriously, if they were planning a program, there would have been communication back and forth before the event to determine who was doing what, how much time each act would have, etc. The people producing the actual show would have been planning it. You don't just invite random people and let them do their thing without any guidelines, however loose they may be. Did they receive a heads up that he wouldn't be participating, but for whatever reason "forgot" to announce it, or remove his name from the programs because of time constraints? From all reports, Jakey is lovely to his fans. And I doubt very seriously that he'd just blow off a commitment to an organization when his mum's on their board.On the other hand, maybe the thought of hopping on a plane for LA just really made him cringe and he said, "Aw, man, I just can't do it." When you weigh this one thing against all the lovely things he is/does, while it was disappointing, it isn't the end of the world!

Anonymous said...

I think it's a tempest in a teapot. Sure there's disappointment, especially since some people got their "moment" on Martha's Vineyard at the poetry reading. Everyone wants their moment with Jake. Maybe he should spend the rest of the next twenty years making sure he has dinner and drinks with each and every fan, one on one. Seems like there's just not enuf Jake to go around. What to do???? Maybe we should clone him.

Anonymous said...

And what, pray tell, would you use for a pull-cord, dear Simon Agent 002????? I think the clone would give needed weight and dimension...as it were...

Mr. M said...

girl friday, i wouldn't say a connection to the gyllenhaals, per se. they might be friends though.

I was using "connection" as an amorphous term for friends. What is a friend anyway? [I'll spare you deep philosophical comments on this.]

sorry, what did you say? if you don't want to revisit, that's ok, i was just curious, sicne i don't visit the dc forums.

I don't generally visit there either. I've found a happy medium here between IHJ and DC.

I pretty much reiterated what Pops G said although I didn't realize I was doing it at the time. Although I went a little, John "I see your dead aunt! Does her name have an A or E in it?" Edwards for a while there though.

I directed this at one person in particular over there and said, "I will say that rather than dwell on this incident you should learn from it. Take the time to validate and appreciate the people in your life today as opposed to casting those good feelings and thoughts to someone who you don't even know. I find that the return on doing that is much better than you can get from any actor or actress you dig. That seems to be what he's doing, why shouldn't you? Ultimately this 'celebrity' thing goes away. The smart ones know this and realize where they need to put their focus. [On yourself, friends and family.]"

I said a bit more than that, I was just trying to make the gal feel better. It seemed to have an impact on them for at least a little while.

I'm going to go back to shaking my ass to Beyoncé's, "Déjà Vu" now. Yes, I'm at work. I swear.

Anonymous said...

I read the stuff on DC and I must say I think it''s kind of, I don't know...to get all mad at Jake when you don't even know the circumstances.

britpopbaby said...

I think the folks that attended were annoyed mainly because it cost so much money - for a ticket, parking and then another donation on the night.

It's a bit odd he didn't show up if his name was still on the program but I'm sure he had good reasons.

I mean, it wasn't because he was catching a plane to Manchester to visit a certain blog owner or anything...

Anonymous said...

Interesting article in the New Yorker about stage fright. Anecdotes from Stephen Fry, Ian Holm and stories about Sir Lawrence Olivier. People you would hardly imagine getting so totally paralyzed. But they did/do. So, I wouldn't be surprised if every public appearance presents challenges to Jake/Maggie and tons of others. I think Jake has a bit of exhibitionist to him, tho. And he gets "wacky" sort of as an overcompensation for being really nervous. I think Jake is probably more outgoing than Maggie who seems more cautious. Oddly, I think Jake probably gets more nervous the older he gets. Less inhibited as a kid, maybe? And yes, I agree, they probably have some "stories" prepared to help make the conversation flo. One of the reasons I often enjoy Leno, is bcz he seems sensitive to that and really helps his guests overcome their nervousness and be fun.

Anonymous said...

Muffin, I agree, people who complained they have no money and they get mad at Jake and the Charity because they spent $$$ for no reason should truly check themselves carefully... this was a CHARITY event, if you do not believe in the charity do not go, if you do not have the money you don't go either. Sounds like rather childish behavior ... considering some of those people seem they were all but in their teens...

Anonymous said...

@12:03 PM I agree also, I think many people went, in hopes of a Jake sighting and not so much to support the charity. I can understand disappointment...but anger? and for a long period?
They don't know for certain what happened, regardless of whatever their reading on the internet.

Becky Heineke said...

Muffin, John Krasinski came to his aid?! Be still my heart. John is my number two, should Jake improbably shun me and my hysterical self when we inevitably meet. I agree. Seems unlikely there wasn't a little warning beforehand.

Anonymous said...

HAHA PG! Jake would never do such thing as shun you!

Anonymous said...

Perhaps Jake is just a little sick of public appearances, since he's done so very many. Perhaps he's not looking forward to grinning like a good sport through the umpteenth "Brokeback Mountain" joke. Maybe now & then he blows something off, simply because he feels like it. He woke up on a rainy day, maybe, he felt sleepy, he rolled over, he couldn't face the airport, he thought of everyone else he knows lazing around Marth'a Vineyard during the doldrums of August, and he said, "Aw, fuck it." He's mortal flesh, therefore he's fallible. He may get into certain moods at times. Who knows? He's exceptionally attractive, he's personable, he's gifted -- but that doesn't mean he actually behaves any better than the average person in real life. He's probably much like any of us who might call in sick at work -- and then spend the day just hanging out or catching up on other unimportant personal stuff.

Anonymous said...

Ah potato gnocchi are a speciality here at our house. I can give some very important tips if anyone here is interested. Since Jake loves to cook maybe he would appreciate us more if we could handle ourselves better in the kitchen. My grandmother always told me that "The way to a man's heart was through his stomach" I assure you all that if I were cooking for him he would NOT be looking so thin as he does now.

Becky Heineke said...

Pickle, oh God! I can only hope! I tend to act like a total spaz around famous people and cute boys (I'm developmentally behind in some ways) and considering Jake is both, this doesn't bode well. Maybe he'll think it's cute? :)

Anonymous said...

I was anon 12:03 forgot to put in my name, sorry. Kind of sad some people did not really give a f**k about the charity, and were probably so upset that Jake was no show they did not pay any attention to the reading... well, Muffin, I am glad at least someone did ... And if this John Krasinski was brought in as a replacement, I think it was a fair legit substitution. After all that was a book reading for God sake, it was not like the focus of the event was for Jake to go up on stage, undress for the benefit of his fans. There were other quite interesting acts too who played at the venue.

Anonymous said...

Yes PG, Jake will be so flattered that he won't be able to think otherwise. Plus, you need to give yourself some credit! I'm sure your wit and charm will definitely impress the man.

And Amerita, I totally agree. Sucks that he didn't show, but please feel good about the cause.

OKAY back to work. GRRR....

Anonymous said...

After all that was a book reading for God sake, it was not like the focus of the event was for Jake to go up on stage, undress for the benefit of his fans.

Imagine the mayhem if, for a Democratic fundraiser for 2008, Jake says he'll recreate the Santa Hat Dance scene from "Jarhead" live & in person.

After the sellout, imagine the prices achieved by bootleggers & on eBay.

Now if he didn't show up for **that,** I'd sympathize with those who were really pissed off after the announcement was made at the event.

"Boo! Hiss! I wanted my Nake Jakey!"

Anonymous said...

Nice anonymous, wow that's an idea for a democratic fundraiser! I would go, gladly pay $$$ for that, then get pissed to no end if he did not show up and ... go vote for the Republicans since those useless Democrats and Jake did not keep their word. To hell with ideologies! :-)

Becky Heineke said...

Thanks, Muffin! I think that only confirms JK had some advance notice. I religiously read Jenna Fischer's blog on MySpace (who plays Pam on The Office) and EVERYONE from that show was seriously into the Emmy action. Considering the timing, he had to have known in advance. Case solved! :)

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Pickle. All I know is that should the opportunity arise, I would try only to do this blog proud. Hee. ;)

Bobbie said...

Prophecy Girl, John Krasinski is my number two also!! I have so much love for Jim Halpert. Jake will always be first in my heart but I'm just saying...
I would LOVE to see Jake on the Daily Show. I know he was on a few years ago. I've tried to track down the video but now such luck.

Becky Heineke said...

Was he?! Oh my God, project!!! I didn't know he ever actually made a Daily Show appearance. I must find this. OK, if I find it I'll let you know, and vice versa, 'kay?! :) And yes, John is adorable in a completely non-Jake way but I still drool a little every time he comes on screen. Maybe I just have a thing for guys with foreign, three-syllable last names.

Anonymous said...

I don't know why there has to be Jake drama every single day. Well that's what it seems like anyway. I can completely understand that people were disappointed because I know that I would be. I also can understand being a little annoyed/frustrated when reading that Jake had instead spent that same time having fun at a concert in Martha's Vineyard instead of showing up at the charity event. However, I think that it's completely terrible and obnoxious for those people who actually are going to try and get their money back. There was never any 100% guarantee that Jake was going to be there so they took the chance when they decided to go and it's a charity event and I don't think it's ever right to try and take money back from a charity. JMO.