That’s it.

Now the dog gets to be part of Weekend Herb Blogging and I’m neglected again?

Hrrrmph. Last week it was all about rock stars.

Well, I said I’d show them, so guess what? I made a few phone calls (yes, my paws can hit one number at a time, what of it?), and I tracked down some assistance. Sure, my male captor cooked dinner for a rock star, but did he then get the rock star to write lyrics for him? Hmm? I think not.

And okay, I admit it; my female captor did give me a nice, smelly, crumply paper prezzie to go along with these photos, but the things I had to do…

Well. I’ll let my rock star lyrics tell the rest of the story.

Just an angry cat on an island called San Juan.
If I could have my wish, I’d wish this puppy gone.
More misery than any cat could bear.
Rescue me before I shred your favorite chair!

Hurkin’ up some big hairballs
Hurkin’ up some big hairballs
Hurkin’ up some big hairballs…

(For more weekend cat blogging, check out Clare and Kiri’s hep cat pad over at Eat Stuff!)

It’s the anchovies. It’s all their fault. I kept thinking about those cute little fish, and I kept thinking about that anchovy-mobile I’d mentioned during Paper Chef, and the fact that I hadn’t actually made one…

And then Weekend Dog Blogging came along with this week’s theme of featuring dog pics with food, and, well, anchovies are a bit small for the dog but I’m still feeling the need to create art, and… wait a minute…

Bacon!

Lots more bacon-mobile pics over on Flickr. No puppies were taunted too horribly during this photoshoot. Oh, and we shared the bacon with her when we were done. :-)

(Check out Sweetnicks for more Weekend Dog Blogging!)

December 24th,

12 am, PST.

Hey you!

Yes, you!

See that deadline up there? The one just 32 or so hours away? That’s the deadline for this year’s Menu For Hope campaign. So… whaddya waiting for?

The food blogging community’s lined up some seriously cool gifts (including our own Belly Timber Island Insanity Package) to make this far more than just your every day fundraiser, and don’t forget — all of the donations go to Unicef and are specifically earmarked for Kashmir earthquake relief. So… if you haven’t had a chance to check out the gifts and donate… go! (Cracks whip!)

Ah, I wish we could be around to watch the total climb up to $15,000 (and I think it will), but alas, we’re on the road for two days, hauling our exhausted asses down Interstate 5 to visit relatives in Portland, and then hauling our exhausted asses back up here — bright and early on the 25th so Chopper can cook dinner at the restaurant for silly people who want to eat out on Christmas Day.

Who are these silly people, anyway?

Well, never mind them.

Oh, and about these holidays…

I finally figured out what’s bugging me so much about being around food bloggers during the holiday season.

It’s the dairy products. They’re everywhere. Puddings, cream-filled pastries, cheeses, egg nogs… no, no, please, not egg nogs!! Aaaaaauughhhh. It’s enough to make me want to throw my hands over my ears and sing lalalalalalalala I can’t hear you till January.

Seriously, you’re all wonderful people, I’m sure, but you’re killing me with these dairy products.

(Yes, the Holiday Season is the worst time of year for the lactose intolerant. In the summer, we’ve always got sorbet. Now? We just stare longingly at platter after platter of scrumptious, untouchable food and drown our sorrows in mulled wine.)

Mmmmm…. mulled wine….

So, just ‘cuz, here’s a gratuitous food photo of sushi. Neener, neener.

“One night I had a frightful dream in which I met my grandmother under the sea. She lived in a phosphorescent palace of many terraces, with gardens of strange leprous corals and grotesque brachiate efflorescences, and welcomed me with cookies.”

–H. P. Lovecraft, The Shadow Over Innsmouth,
Revised Home Economics Edition, The Sisters of Pi Beta Omega, Miskatonic University, 1939.

Cookie recipe:
Alton Brown’s Sugar Cookies from the Good Eats episode, “The Cookie Clause,” substituting 1/ 1/2 cups cake flour for AP flour, for extra lightness.

Frosting:
Powdered sugar and vanilla flavored rice milk.

Cookie cutters:
Good old-fashioned DIY poster board templates and an Exacto knife.