Author: Mark Linton

Corn Chowder

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• TBD olive oil
• 2 cans creamed corn
• 1 can corn kernels
• 1 large baking potato, chopped
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• TBD chicken stock
• Dried thyme, to taste
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• ½ to 1 cup half & half, (optional)

Directions

1. In a soup pot, sauté carrots, onions, and celery together in olive oil until the onion is translucent and the carrots and celery have a light caramelization.
2. Add creamed corn, corn kernels, potato, tomatoes, and enough chicken stock to make a good consistency. Add thyme, salt, and pepper to taste.
3. If you are in the mood, add ½ to 1 cup of half & half before serving.

Breakfast was a glass of orange juice and a slice of apple pie.



<ins datetime="2003-11-09T14:18:00-05:00">Dinner was left over crackers and port wine cheese, and we took the last steak and sliced it up to put on a steak salad, along with two Double Ds &mdash; we would have only had one, but it was starting to go flat.</ins>

Breakfast was a glass of orange juice.



We had Gretchen’s sister and her husband over for dinner to thank them for taking care of our animals while we were on vacation. We served port wine cheese with crackers, five ounce grilled marinated bottom sirloin steaks with sautéed mushrooms, baked beans, coleslaw, and a bottle of pinot grigio, with apple pie for dessert.

<img src="http://www.personal.psu.edu/staff/m/h/mhl100/images/churchsign.jpg" alt="Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here" height="232" width="313" />



This is clearly evidence of the inevitable march of progress. Now you do not even need Photoshop to make fake <a href="http://www.aboyandhiscomputer.com/churchsigngenerator/index.php">church signs</a>.

O&rsquo;reilly has a nice page about securely programming CGI with Perl that is a sample chapter from <a href="http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/cgi2/chapter/ch08.html" title="CGI Programming with Perl, 2nd Edition: Chapter 8: Security">CGI Programming with Perl, 2nd Edition</a>. It includes a nice discussion about tainted data, why it is a good thing, and how to remove the taint from it.

With the weather getting cooler, it seems to me that everyone’s thoughts are turning to soup. I am particularly fond of Potato Leek Soup, and French Onion Soup, though a good stew with a biscuit or a big bowl of chili with cornbread is very satisfying, in a warm and comforting way. The Washington Post has a nice article about soup and how simple it is to make including a nice versatile vegetable soup recipe.

Breakfast was a glass of orange juice. Today’s lunch will be with the gang at the HUB, and Gretchen and I are going to Otto’s tonight for a Caesar Salad and a Double D.

<ins datetime="2003-11-07T14:18:15-05:00">As expected, lunch was Panda Buffet&rsquo;s orange chicken on chow mien with hot and sour soup and a small sierra mist.</ins>



<ins datetime="2003-11-09T11:35:15-05:00">Also as expected, dinner was Otto&rsquo;s Caesar and Double D Ale. The unexpected part was that the Double D was on <a href="http://www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn?stage=1&amp;word=firkin" title="Web WordNet 2.0">firkin</a>, giving it a unique small batch flavor that we compared to the regular tap version. It was both sweeter &mdash; with considerable raw sugar still present in the mix &mdash; and more bitter &mdash; with a long hops aftertaste at the back of the tongue. This is the real pleasure of &ldquo;Firkin Friday&rdquo; at Otto&rsquo;s.</ins>

In case you have not heard, <a href="http://live.psu.edu/story/4586" title="Penn State Live">Penn State has teamed with Napster</a> to make music available to its students legally. Penn State Live has a little <a href="http://live.psu.edu/story/4583" title="Penn State Live">Q&amp;A</a> about the move. The student newspaper is running it as their <a href="http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2003/11/11-07-03tdc/11-07-03dnews-07.asp" title="Napster sharing coming to campus">headline story</a>. <a href="http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,61093,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_5" title="Wired News: Penn State, Napster Ink Pact">Wired</a> is covering it. <ins datetime="2003-11-21T06:59:00-05:00">The <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/07/national/07STAT.html?ex=1384750800&amp;en=1fe502a4b8b99637&amp;ei=5007&amp;partner=USERLAND" title="Penn State Will Pay to Allow Students to Download Music">New York Times</a> is covering it.</ins> Even Congress is <a href="http://lamarsmith.house.gov/news.asp?FormMode=Detail&amp;ID=330" title="Congressman Lamar Smith : 21st District of Texas">having its say</a>.

Tuscan Tomato Soup

©2003 Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Recipe Summary

Yield: 8 to 10 servings

• ¼ cup olive oil
• 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
• 4 carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 4 stalks celery, finely diced
• 3 medium onions, minced
• 3 quarts canned tomatoes with juice or 14 large, ripe fresh tomatoes, peeled and seeded
• ½ cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 6 leaves fresh basil (optional)
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• Croutons, for serving, recipe follows

Heat the oil and butter in a Dutch oven. Cook the carrots, celery, and onions for about 20 minutes, or until very tender. Add the tomatoes and continue cooking over moderate heat for 25 to 30 minutes longer. Stir in the parsley and basil, season with salt and pepper, cook a minute or so longer, and serve hot with croutons.

Croutons:

• 1 baguette, cut on the diagonal into ¼-inch-thick slices
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan

Heat the oven to 450° F.

Line a baking sheet with a silpat (a French nonstick baking mat) or parchment paper; set aside.

Place the garlic on a clean work surface. Sprinkle with salt. Using the side of a large knife, rub the garlic and salt together to form a paste. Transfer to a small bowl, and add oil, pepper, and cheese. Stir to combine. Spread the mixture onto the bread slices and place on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake until golden brown and fragrant, 5 to 7 minutes.

Yield: 8 servings

Episode#: MS1B11

Copyright ©2003 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved

A glass of orange juice for breakfast this morning.



<ins datetime="2003-11-06T14:09:00-05:00">Before lunch, I went for a walk over to the Armsby and Telecommunications Buildings. On the way back, I stopped at the <a href="http://www.hfs.psu.edu/bigonion/" title="Big Onion Web Page">Big Onion</a> and got myself a blueberry yogurt. When I got back to the office, I had a bag of popcorn. I went back out for a walk over lunch hour. Apparently, somebody had a catered lunch meeting because there were left over snacks in the break room. I grabbed a Big Grab&reg; Lays KC Masterpiece Barbecue Flavor Potato Chips (230 calories, 140 from fat). It seems like a bit of excessive cheating, but at least I figure that I walked around five miles today.</ins>



<ins datetime="2003-11-06T14:19:15-05:00">Dinner was a big salad and a glass of apple juice.</ins>