I took a test at https://high5test.com/ for my public speaking course. Our first speech, week after next, will be prompted by the results of this test. We are to introduce ourselves and explain an aspect of our lives or career goals in terms of at least three of our top five strengths. Mine are:
Problem Solver -- This is fairly self explanatory.
Believer -- Note that this means that I'm motivated more by ethics than personal gain -- not that I go around believing in things. Although I still insist fairies are real.
Philomath -- I'll get to that.
Thinker -- Mental exercise is, to me, something to do for fun or sport rather than a chore required to complete work/school tasks. I question things for the sake of questioning things.
Deliverer -- Note that this does not mean that I am the Messiah, but rather I take my commitments seriously and value my reputation for reliability.
A philomath is, simply put, one who loves learning for the sake of learning. The fact that I immediately latched onto this word because I'd never heard it before is evidence that my assessment results are correct. I have a natural curiosity of the world around me. I need to know all of the things. Well, until that thing bores me and then I move on to the next thing I need to know everything about. According to my test assessment results a philomath craves novelty.
My speech is going to be centered around career goals -- ABA therapy; why I want to be an ABA therapist; what turned me onto it; why I think it plays to my strengths.
I know it's been a minute since I blogged. Quick catch up.
I lost my job. My agency assigned a new position. I started back to school. That position ended, even though it was supposed to be temp-to-hire. I decided I was done with temping. I found my new forever job and got fired within 4 months because of bullshit. (I know it sounds like I'm not taking responsibility, but even my direct supervisors at the last two places agreed it was bullshit.) Now I'm unemployed and focusing on school. I'm taking 18 hours this semester and most of it on campus, taking advantage of the free time I have due to unemployment.
Oh, and the D&D thing never panned out. We couldn't find a group that we fit into to join because apparently we don't geek properly. Whatever. Elitist geek fuckheads.
Okay, all caught up.
So I want to be an ABA or Applied Behavioral Analysis therapist. I can start now as an ABA tech with a high school diploma, a clean record, and 40 hours on online learning. I *might* have a part time job soon at an agency I applied at back in June. They are expanding and hiring new techs, but their timeline hasn't been going to plan. They wanted things to be swinging by early July and here it is almost September and they still haven't launched the expansion. Cross fingers for me. If I get this job I can grow with them, climbing their ladder as my education progresses through and beyond a master's degree.
And now I know I'm a philomath and that totally made my day.
Thursday, August 29, 2019
Monday, August 26, 2019
I Promised You Squash Two Years Ago
So.....I haven't written a blog entry in a damn long time. This is a thing I should be doing more often.
Also, it's the first day of school and I should DEFINITELY be blogging instead of getting a jump on homework, yes?
Yes. I thought so too.
I've been promising my squash casserole recipe forever, and I have one in the oven now so it seems like the time to make good. Remember, before we start -- this isn't the food blog where you get a long, annoying narrative followed by a nice, easy to follow recipe. I'm only here for the long, annoying narrative. There will be no nice, easy recipe at the end.
Squash casserole has been my favorite thing since forever. When I was a tot it was part of my mother's regular dinner rotation. I remember one time when she made it I asked for seconds. She gave me a choice between seconds or dessert. I chose seconds. And that's back when I actually liked sweets.
When I was a newlywed I asked my mom for her recipe and she gave me the basic rundown. She forgot to tell me to cook the squash first. Fuck you mom. Cooking the squash first -- indeed, HOW you cook the squash first -- is half the key to the whole thing. Well, 3/4ths of the key. Okay, maybe 7/8th of the key. The sriracha is just the kicker but I digress. (I digress a lot. Have you noticed?)
It took years but I took my mom's outline, as well as bits of ideas gleaned from various cookbooks (this was before the age of Google) and flat out perfected the recipe. And now that we live in the age of Google, I can't find a recipe like mine. Like I said -- it's the HOW you cook the squash. Every recipe I've seen calls for boiling or steaming the squash and then draining it and that's just nonsense. Boiling or steaming the squash leaves all of the flavor in the water and then you have mushy, flavorless nothing to put in your casserole. Fuck that. Sautee is the only way to go. When you sautee the moisture from the squash evaporates and the flavors concentrate and caramelize and it also involves a bunch of butter and butter makes everything better so put your damn steamer away and get out your biggest sautee pan.
I used to make this casserole for a very hungry family of 5. Now I make it for 3 and we have far more moderate appetites (no more growing boys). I'm giving you the smaller version. The larger version has an embarassing amount of butter, but you can double it.
Start by melting half a stick of butter over medium heat in that big ass saute pan while you chop your onions. If you're of the (correct) idea that onions make food taste like food use one big ass onion here or two small onions. If you're meh about onions, use one small onion. If you're allergic to onions (*ahem* you know who you are) mercy on your poor soul, not being able to eat food that tastes like food. You can either dice or slice your onions -- this will depend on how you prep your squash. If, like me, you appreciate the squashy texture of squash, you want to slice the squash potato chip thin -- in which case slice your onions as thin as you can. I have an antique slicer thing, but the slicing side of a box grater works too. If you have a mandolin that works, but also fuck you because I've always wanted one and they're stupid expensive. If you (or your squash-phobic family) aren't into the glorious squashiness of squash, grate it and dice your onions.
Once you get the onions into the melted butter, salt generously. This helps to draw out the moisture. Slice (or grate) 3 pounds of yellow summer squash. (Dammit. Why didn't I take a picture of my pile of summer squash?) You can just dump each squash into the pan as you finish. Otherwise you're going to end up with so much squash on your work surface that have no place to work. You'll end up with a big ass pile of squash in your pan. (Imagine what a pile 6 pounds of squash makes!)
Salt generously again and stir until the squash and onions are incorporated and all coated with butter. You don't have to stir constantly, but do give it a toss every so often. As that sizzles away, steaming and smelling lovely, start working on the casserole part of the squash casserole. Grate about a pound or so (if you're going to or-so, or-so on the more side rather than the less) of the sharpest cheddar you can find. If it can cut a bitch, you're going in the right direction. Reserve a handful of cheese in a separate bowl for the topping. I usually eyeball this stuff, but if I had to guess I'd say I use a half cup each of FULL FAT (if I catch you trying to low-fat this mother fucker we're gonna have words) cottage cheese and sour cream. Then 2 or 3 eggs, depending on how eggy you feel and/or how many eggs you've got. Add to that a little squirt of sriracha -- but just a little. We are going for personality here, not heat. Lastly, smash an entire sleeve of Ritz crackers. Putting them in a freezer bag and whacking them with a wine bottle works for this. Add a small bit of cracker crumbs to the dairy mixture to tighten it up a bit.
After you've done all of this, melt the other half of that stick of butter in a small sauce pan. Pay attention to it. Don't get distracted by Twitter and forget about it and almost burn it, like I totally didn't just do. (We're going to call it "browned butter" and consider ourselves gourmands. Shut up.) Add the crumbs to the melted butter to cool them so you don't pour hot butter onto your reserved cheese and melt it. Not that I've ever done that. (Shut up.) Mix the buttery crumbs with the cheese and set aside.
Keep an eye on your squash. It should be reduced by a lot by now, but you want it to be all the way reduced. You want the bottom of the pan to be completely dry and the squash and onions start to caramelize. You want it more than good and dead.
This looks pretty dead but we aren't scraping browned bits off the bottom of the pan yet. Keep going. Now would be a good time to play on Twitter because you've gotta wait this shit out. I probably should have mentioned before now that you need to preheat your oven to 350. (That's 176.667 if you're European. Weirdos.)
Now we're scraping browned bits off the bottom and may proceed to the next step. Turn the squash out of the sautee pan and into the dairy slop. Scrape every last bit of the browned bits in. This is pure flavor y'all. I forgot to tell you to add a very generous amount of freshly ground black pepper. Rich dairy dishes just scream for copious amounts of black pepper in my opinion. Mix the squash and the dairy slop up thoroughly. Check the mix for seasoning. No, a little bite of raw egg won't kill you. Shut up.
Turn the mix into a casserole dish and sprinkle the cheesy, buttery crumbs on top. I found this casserole dish at Goodwill for $3 and did a happy happy dance. I love red kitchen things. I also love casserole dishes. I especially love casserole dishes with handles. Admire my dish.
Bake for about 40-45 minutes. You want a browned, crispy top, bubbly sides, browned around the edges, and it should set like very firm jello. It should be gorgeous. Admire.
Let it set for 15-20 minutes before eating it. Play on Twitter and bask in the smell of deliciousness. I'll be serving it up later with greens and fresh sliced tomato from my garden. Be jealous.
Also, it's the first day of school and I should DEFINITELY be blogging instead of getting a jump on homework, yes?
Yes. I thought so too.
I've been promising my squash casserole recipe forever, and I have one in the oven now so it seems like the time to make good. Remember, before we start -- this isn't the food blog where you get a long, annoying narrative followed by a nice, easy to follow recipe. I'm only here for the long, annoying narrative. There will be no nice, easy recipe at the end.
Squash casserole has been my favorite thing since forever. When I was a tot it was part of my mother's regular dinner rotation. I remember one time when she made it I asked for seconds. She gave me a choice between seconds or dessert. I chose seconds. And that's back when I actually liked sweets.
When I was a newlywed I asked my mom for her recipe and she gave me the basic rundown. She forgot to tell me to cook the squash first. Fuck you mom. Cooking the squash first -- indeed, HOW you cook the squash first -- is half the key to the whole thing. Well, 3/4ths of the key. Okay, maybe 7/8th of the key. The sriracha is just the kicker but I digress. (I digress a lot. Have you noticed?)
It took years but I took my mom's outline, as well as bits of ideas gleaned from various cookbooks (this was before the age of Google) and flat out perfected the recipe. And now that we live in the age of Google, I can't find a recipe like mine. Like I said -- it's the HOW you cook the squash. Every recipe I've seen calls for boiling or steaming the squash and then draining it and that's just nonsense. Boiling or steaming the squash leaves all of the flavor in the water and then you have mushy, flavorless nothing to put in your casserole. Fuck that. Sautee is the only way to go. When you sautee the moisture from the squash evaporates and the flavors concentrate and caramelize and it also involves a bunch of butter and butter makes everything better so put your damn steamer away and get out your biggest sautee pan.
I used to make this casserole for a very hungry family of 5. Now I make it for 3 and we have far more moderate appetites (no more growing boys). I'm giving you the smaller version. The larger version has an embarassing amount of butter, but you can double it.
Start by melting half a stick of butter over medium heat in that big ass saute pan while you chop your onions. If you're of the (correct) idea that onions make food taste like food use one big ass onion here or two small onions. If you're meh about onions, use one small onion. If you're allergic to onions (*ahem* you know who you are) mercy on your poor soul, not being able to eat food that tastes like food. You can either dice or slice your onions -- this will depend on how you prep your squash. If, like me, you appreciate the squashy texture of squash, you want to slice the squash potato chip thin -- in which case slice your onions as thin as you can. I have an antique slicer thing, but the slicing side of a box grater works too. If you have a mandolin that works, but also fuck you because I've always wanted one and they're stupid expensive. If you (or your squash-phobic family) aren't into the glorious squashiness of squash, grate it and dice your onions.
Once you get the onions into the melted butter, salt generously. This helps to draw out the moisture. Slice (or grate) 3 pounds of yellow summer squash. (Dammit. Why didn't I take a picture of my pile of summer squash?) You can just dump each squash into the pan as you finish. Otherwise you're going to end up with so much squash on your work surface that have no place to work. You'll end up with a big ass pile of squash in your pan. (Imagine what a pile 6 pounds of squash makes!)
Salt generously again and stir until the squash and onions are incorporated and all coated with butter. You don't have to stir constantly, but do give it a toss every so often. As that sizzles away, steaming and smelling lovely, start working on the casserole part of the squash casserole. Grate about a pound or so (if you're going to or-so, or-so on the more side rather than the less) of the sharpest cheddar you can find. If it can cut a bitch, you're going in the right direction. Reserve a handful of cheese in a separate bowl for the topping. I usually eyeball this stuff, but if I had to guess I'd say I use a half cup each of FULL FAT (if I catch you trying to low-fat this mother fucker we're gonna have words) cottage cheese and sour cream. Then 2 or 3 eggs, depending on how eggy you feel and/or how many eggs you've got. Add to that a little squirt of sriracha -- but just a little. We are going for personality here, not heat. Lastly, smash an entire sleeve of Ritz crackers. Putting them in a freezer bag and whacking them with a wine bottle works for this. Add a small bit of cracker crumbs to the dairy mixture to tighten it up a bit.
After you've done all of this, melt the other half of that stick of butter in a small sauce pan. Pay attention to it. Don't get distracted by Twitter and forget about it and almost burn it, like I totally didn't just do. (We're going to call it "browned butter" and consider ourselves gourmands. Shut up.) Add the crumbs to the melted butter to cool them so you don't pour hot butter onto your reserved cheese and melt it. Not that I've ever done that. (Shut up.) Mix the buttery crumbs with the cheese and set aside.
Keep an eye on your squash. It should be reduced by a lot by now, but you want it to be all the way reduced. You want the bottom of the pan to be completely dry and the squash and onions start to caramelize. You want it more than good and dead.
This looks pretty dead but we aren't scraping browned bits off the bottom of the pan yet. Keep going. Now would be a good time to play on Twitter because you've gotta wait this shit out. I probably should have mentioned before now that you need to preheat your oven to 350. (That's 176.667 if you're European. Weirdos.)
Now we're scraping browned bits off the bottom and may proceed to the next step. Turn the squash out of the sautee pan and into the dairy slop. Scrape every last bit of the browned bits in. This is pure flavor y'all. I forgot to tell you to add a very generous amount of freshly ground black pepper. Rich dairy dishes just scream for copious amounts of black pepper in my opinion. Mix the squash and the dairy slop up thoroughly. Check the mix for seasoning. No, a little bite of raw egg won't kill you. Shut up.
Turn the mix into a casserole dish and sprinkle the cheesy, buttery crumbs on top. I found this casserole dish at Goodwill for $3 and did a happy happy dance. I love red kitchen things. I also love casserole dishes. I especially love casserole dishes with handles. Admire my dish.
Bake for about 40-45 minutes. You want a browned, crispy top, bubbly sides, browned around the edges, and it should set like very firm jello. It should be gorgeous. Admire.
Let it set for 15-20 minutes before eating it. Play on Twitter and bask in the smell of deliciousness. I'll be serving it up later with greens and fresh sliced tomato from my garden. Be jealous.
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