Can't-Believe-It's-Not-Take-Out Shrimp Fried "Rice"

There's no run-up to this one: last night I made the most delicious imitation ever-- shrimp fried "rice" that uses my favorite culinary chameleon, cauliflower, instead of rice. Don't be intimidated by the long ingredient list-- this dish is actually quite easy and would be great for a cozy dinner party on an ugly winter night. Enjoy! Thanks to Tastespotting for bringing me this recipe If you have two frying pans, you'll need both. If not, just make the cauliflower and then the vegetables. Ingredients  --1/4 c water  --3 TBS fresh lime juice (to taste) --2 TBS green curry...

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A Very Kefi Christmas

"It is a miracle if you can find true friends, and it is a miracle if you have enough food to eat, and it is a miracle if you get to spend your days and evenings doing whatever it is you like to do, and the holiday season—like all the other seasons—is a good time not only to tell stories of miracles, but to think about the miracles in your own life, and to be grateful for them." —Lemony Snicket There are many things that have afforded me great success in this world-- I'm a white person from the US who went to college and is employed.  To 99.99% of the rest of the...

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"There's No One I'd Like To Have Dinner With"

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Occupy the Grocery Store: Slow Cooker Mustard Brussels Sprouts

Last week I did something crazy--I met up with some friends the night before I had to work and stayed out until 10:30 PM, which is WAY past bedtime. The resulting "Nurses Gone Wild" video should be released in time for Christmas delivery. But seriously--it was getting late and I had nothing to eat for lunch during the 12.5 hour shift the next day. Not wanting to brave the hospital cafeteria, I peered into my refrigerator and came up with... a bag of brussels sprouts. Without time to DO anything with said brussels sprouts (btw: did everyone else know that it's brusselS sprouts, not bussel...

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Water No Get Enemy

Yasiin Bey (TAFKA Mos Def) does Fela. If this doesn't get your weekend going, nothing wil...

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Spanakopita, Deconstructed

I've made no secret about it: spanakopita, practically the national dish of Greece, is no favorite of mine.  This indifference is, in large part, owed to the strong contrarian spirit that dominates at least two-thirds of my opinions ("Oh, you think puppies are cute? Let me tell you why I find that to be misguided...")-- but mostly it's just because I'd rather be eating my Aunt Lena's eggplant pie.  Why eat a spinach/lemon/feta concoction when you could be sinking your teeth into an amazing amalgamation of eggplant, tomato, and onion? I rest my case. But, alas. Winter is coming and...

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Chocolate Chestnut Pie

Chestnuts and figgy pudding are two of a kind. Everyone sings about them, but no one actually eats them. Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. Luckily for chestnuts, Thanksgiving at the Kef Household lets them shine once a year--MamaKef has always loved adding chestnuts to her stuffing (though I'm sad to report I have yet to see her roast them over an open fire).  This year, we also threw some chestnuts over our roasted sweet potatoes to a spectacular result.  And this got the Kefwheels turning... What else can we do with these creamy, delicious treats? What we have today...

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What treats do you look forward to this month?

"One of the secrets of a happy life is continuous small treats." -- Irish Murdo...

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World AIDS Day 2012

It's World AIDS Day. Today, I send out all the love and light in the world to those who fight HIV every day-- the testers and counselors, the patients and researchers, the advocates and the educators.  I just watched the remarkable How to Survive a Plague and was reminded of how far we have come in the fight against this 100% preventable epidemic and how far we still have to go. Washington, DC still has the highest rates of HIV in country. Our women, our poor, our communities of color, and our most marginalized neighbors are still living and fighting this plague -- help them...

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