Eternal tattoos: July 2011

Key Lime Cheesecake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...My family has been arriving in stages for our annual summer reunion and our older grandsons have been helping in the kitchen. They are both at an age where they love to cook and they've really started to master some of the simpler dishes that are our family favorites. Let me hasten to add, that the boys aren't terribly keen on the cheesecake I'm featuring today. They'll happily assist in making it, but when it comes to desserts, they are traditionalist and nothing will ever beat their favorite blueberry or lemon meringue pies. I am, however, determined to get them to try at least a bite of this before they leave. It is delicious and if I can't convince them to try it, perhaps I can talk you into it. While the cake is a bother to make, its taste more than makes up for the time and effort involved in getting it to the table. If you like cheesecake, this one must be tried. I've taken lots of short cuts with the recipe, but this still remains a 24 hour dessert. It truly needs a full day to set and mellow. While this is lovely when made with fresh key limes, the bottled product is perfectly acceptable and makes much better use of your time. I've also included whipped cream in the ingredients list for those who feel a key lime dessert is not complete without it. I'm not sure that a cake that uses a full pound of cream cheese really needs to be covered with two cups of whipped cream, but I let you decide. I hope at least a few of you will try this luscious dessert. Here's the recipe.

Key Lime Cheesecake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
Crust
2/3 cup butter, melted
1-3/4 cups sugar, divided use
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
Filling
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
3/4 cup key lime juice
4 eggs, at room temperature
2 egg yolks, at room temperature
2 tablespoons grated key lime zest
1 pound cream cheese, at room temperature
2 egg whites, at room temperature
Pinch of salt
Optional: 2 cups sweetened whipped cream

Directions:
1) In a mixing bowl, combine melted butter, 1/4 cup sugar and graham cracker crumbs. Mix well. Press crust firmly over bottom and 2 inches up side of a greased of a 9-inch spring form pan. Set aside.
2) In a saucepan dissolve gelatin in key lime juice, about 5 minutes. Combine 1-1/4 cups of sugar, eggs, egg yolks, and lime zest in a separate bowl and mix well. Add some hot gelatin mixture and whisk to combine. Pour mixture back into saucepan. Mix well. Over medium heat, cook until mixture thickens and is pudding-like, about 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat.
3) In bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese until smooth. With mixer running, add lime mixture slowly and beat until smooth. Remove mixture and turn into a bowl and cool completely. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, stirring every 10 minutes.
4) In a bowl of an electric mixer with a whip attachment, place egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup of the sugar. Whip on medium high until stiff peaks form. Remove lime and cheese mixture from the refrigerator. Fold egg whites into lime mixture and blend thoroughly. Pour mixture into prepared crust. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until set, about 4 to 24 hours.
5) When ready to serve remove from refrigerator. Run a sharp knife along the sides of pan and remove the spring-form. If using, spread whipped cream evenly over top of the cake. Cut cake into individual servings. Yield: 10 to 12 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Watermelon Limeade

Two Years Ago Today: Baked French Toast with Cardamom and Apricot Preserves

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Chocolate Strawberry Refrigerator Cheesecake - Passionate About Baking
Tiramisu Cheesecake - Amanda's Cookin'
No Bake Cheesecake Cookie Cup - This Little Corner of Mine
Nutella Cheesecake - Alterkitchen
Cheese Cake Bars- Big Fat Baker

10 Mindboggling Ways to Remember Your Deceased Pet

I'm always a big fan of Oddee.com because of their bizarre collection of odd things. It's also one of the website where I pick articles to post when I'm out of something to write to. Today, I choose their animal bizarre category.

It's always sad when a beloved pet dies. However, there are more ways than ever to honor its memory, be it by making a fur coat from its hair, jewelry in the shape of its nose or mixing its ashes into a record or a pillow.

1 - Hug A Pillow Containing Their Ashes

If you've ever wanted to give your long gone furry friends a big fat hug, the soft-hearted pillow will let you cuddle up and take a nap with your deceased pet. The Soft-Hearted pillow contains a small plastic pouch that will seal in their ashes tight so you can cuddle them for eternity. You can even personalize your pillow with embroidery or trimmings to further memorialize your critter.

2 - Rock Out With Their Record

Whether you named your pet after a musician or “How Much Is That Doggie In The Window” makes you think of your beloved critter, sometimes music is one of the best ways to remember your lost loved one. That's why And Vinyl presses ashes into vinyl records for you to listen to forever after. You can either use your favorite song or have the company write a track specifically for you and your pet. The company will even paint a portrait of your pet using its ashes and include that as the album's cover art.

3 - Make A Necklace From Their Hair

If your fluffy kitty or puppy left hair all over the house, or if you had a chance to shave off some of their fur before their cremation or burial, you can always try rolling their fur into balls and then turning those balls into jewelry like designer Kate Benjamin.

4 - Wear A Sweater Made From Their Fur

Alternatively, if you want a bigger tribute made from your critter's fur then you can always have the hair turned into yarn and then knitted into sweaters like these people who are part of Erwan Fichou's Dogwool series. While the models used in Fichou's series are given their own jackets made from their dog's fur courtesy of the photographer, you'll have to find your own knitter to work with the fur because Fichou will only accept volunteers who are willing to pose in the jackets beside the pets who provided the fur.

5 - Load Bullets With Their Ashes

Did little Fido love hunting with you? Then why not take him on one more hunt by loading up your shotgun cartridges with his ashes like Joanna Booth did with her husband's ashes? While you can probably find a weapons dealer locally who could help add the ashes to your bullets, Caledonian Cartridge Company in England will most certainly be willing to take on the challenge, being as how they already helped Mrs. Booth with the process.

6 - Form A Diamond With Their Ashes

Pets only live for a short while, but diamonds are forever, so why not let your past pet live on forever in a stunning piece of jewelry? A Japanese company named Lido can turn your pet's ashes into a yellow diamond up to one carat in size, which can then be set into a jewelry piece for you to wear for the rest of your life.

7 - Create Jewelry From Their Nose

Artist Jackie Kaufman uses a quick-forming silicon mold to take imprints of pet's noses, which she then uses to cast metal pendants. While the process is fast enough that it doesn't bother living cats and dogs, it could just as easily be adapted for those who have recently passed away.

8 - Tattoo Them On Your Arm

Sure you could tattoo a portrait of your pet on your arm, but if you really want to personalize your tribute tattoo, you could always incorporate some of your furry friend's ashes. While there are a lot of tattoo shops willing to mix the ashes in with the ink they use, be sure you ask ahead of time because some shops are unwilling to perform this procedure.

9 - Immortalize Them As Art

If you aren't up to inking a permanent tribute of your pet onto your skin, then you can always have a more traditional portrait of them painted by artist Wayne DeFrances, who will incorporate your pet's ashes into the paint he uses.

Note: The Image is for illustration purposes and is not of Wayne DeFrances or his artwork.

10 - Clone Them

If you just can't give up your beloved pet, you can always try cloning them if you have a DNA sample and $50,000 lying around like Bernann McKinney did when she got five clones of her beloved pit bull created. Of course, the new puppy clone may look just like your old furry friend, but it will not grow up to have the same personality and behavioral traits, so really, aren't you better off adopting a new puppy from your local animal shelter?

I will try number 10 to clone Pam(My deceased dog). I missed her a lot. She died when she accidentally cross the street and run on a huge truck. Feels so sad now, though it's been part of our life's journey and the important part is that, once in my life I know someone named Pamela that cheers when I go home everyday.

Reference/Source: Oddee.com

10 of the Most Wanted Free Stock Image Resource Websites

What are Stock Photos? Stock photos (stock photography) are professional photographs of common places, landmarks, nature, events or people that are bought and sold on a royalty-free basis and can be used and reused for commercial design purposes.
Stock photography is a cost-effective method for designers to obtain professional photos and images without the costs of hiring a photographer directly.

For graphic designer, there will be a times (In fact, most of time times) that you need to incorporate some stock images on your work. Hope this lists will help graphic designers out there.

So here's Top 10 of the Most Wanted Free Stock Image Resource Websites

1 - Stock.xchng, The leading free stock photography site

2 - Photogen, FREE Stock Photos and Images

3 - Twicepix.net, over 5000 pix for free

4 - Openphoto.net

5 - Morguefile.com, Where photo reference lives

6 - Stockvault.net, Free Stock Photos and Free Images

7 - NationsIllustrated.com, The World in Pictures

8 - Think Stock

9 - Freerangestock.com, Totally Free Stock Photography and Textures!

10 - FreePixels.com

That's all folks. Hope the above listed sites may help you in managing your images online. Thanks to Manuel Garcia for sharing me his top 10 list.

Reference/Source: Photoshopph.blogspot.com
About Your Photoshop World | Resource Collections
Photoshop PH is a huge directory of the best free Photoshop Resources from all over the web. The ultimate list with different kinds of Photoshop Resources: PSD, Brushes, Styles, Patterns, Gradients, PNG, Tutorials, Inspirations and many more.
About the Author, Manuel Garcia
s currently a 3rd year student taking up Education Course. He loves to interact with Photoshop artist and Professional blogger.

10 of the Best Movie Soundtracks Better than the films they represent

My very good friend, Jay of ComicBookAndMovieReviews.com shared to me this MTV's list(Originally exempt from 15 Movie Soundtracks Better Than The Movies They're For) of movie soundtracks that is better than the movies they represents. This seems a very good list to add on our collection.

MTV's Clutch Staff quoted " Soundtracks are an overlooked yet important factor in the movie-watching experience. Far more interesting, though, is when a solid soundtrack is paired with a steaming pile. When this happens, the music becomes one of two things: a show-stealer, outshining the very movie it's featured in; or a trickster, fooling people into believing the movie is a classic."

So here's 10 of the Best Movie Soundtracks Better than the films they represent.

1 - Garden State, 2004

Category: trickster

The breakthrough indie songs from the likes of The Shins, Frou Frou and Thievery Corporation were good enough to distract viewers from the fact that the film was a gloppy intravenous drip of sad giggles and unabashed Natalie Portman idolatry. Zack Braff: curator of indie, purveyor of twee, voice of toilet paper-using puppy.

2 - The Twilight Saga, 2008-2012

Category: show-stealer

The trilogy's track list boasts a roster of heavyweights--Muse, Thom Yorke and Vampire Weekend--and reads like a fantasy music draft between the editor of Pitchfork and the founder of Emo Weekly. The film itself appeals only to the latter.

3 - Boiler Room, 2000

Category: show-stealer

The film's high-rolling hustlers are set to the sounds of raw hip-hop from some of New York's best MC's: Biggie, Rakim, De La Soul and a still-underground 50 Cent. Clearly an attempt to draw a profound parallel between Wall Street and rap's paper-chasers, the juxtaposition only served to make the Wall Street meatheads playing with Monopoly money seem even more outlandish.

4 - Vanilla Sky, 2001

Category: trickster

This movie is always in the HBO cycle because of Tom Cruise's particularly Tom Cruise-y performance, the Penelope Cruz nip shots, and the incredibly eclectic soundtrack featuring classics from Bob Dylan and Peter Gabriel, as well as somber cuts from Radiohead and R.E.M. Fortunately, this all diverts your attention from the nonsensical plot (I mean, really, why would you set your splice point for AFTER the disfiguring car wreck?). Although, maybe that's why it's nonsensical in the first place.

5 - Hot Rod, 2007

Category: show-stealer

When a movie is utterly dumb, it can be painful. But when music is utterly dumb, it can be a blast (see: Ke$ha). This dumb comedy celebrates some of the best dumb, montage-ready songs of the '80s, including forgotten gems like "Two Of Hearts" and "You're The Voice," plus four Europe songs. Is it absurd to include four Europe songs? Of course. Which is exactly why it works.

6 - Above The Rim, 1994

Category: show-stealer

One of a multitude of forgettable sports flicks, except it has arguably the best hip-hop soundtrack of all time: Dr. Dre in the studio, 2Pac's first go-round with Death Row, Snoop Dogg and, oh, maybe you've heard of a little ditty called "Regulate." If aliens wanted to know what West Coast rap sounded like in the early '90s (these aliens are incredibly curious about incredibly specific topics), you'd hand them this album.

7 - Good Will Hunting, 1997

Category: trickster

Now that we're well past the 10-year statute of limitations, can we all finally admit this movie was an overrated fluke? No? Well, let's at least agree that the aching Elliott Smith-centric soundtrack still holds up. The album also contains Gerry Rafferty's "Baker Street," which is the melted Velveeta of songs: unnaturally smooth and cheesy, but undeniably appealing.

8 - Idlewild, 2006

Category: show-stealer

You know what they say: A bloated album from Outkast is better than a fine-tuned effort from anyone else. Highlights include "Mighty O," "N2U," "Morris Brown" and "Call The Law" featuring Janelle Monae. Andre 3000 and Big Boi can do no wrong (cinematic endeavors notwithstanding).

9 - 21, 2008

Category: show-stealer

A murderer's row of late-aughts hit-makers: Rihanna, LCD Soundsystem, MGMT, Mark Ronson, Peter Bjorn and John. We'll just pretend that remix of The Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want" didn't happen (which is also what Kevin Spacey does with this movie).

10 - RocknRolla, 2008

Category: show-stealer

All of Guy Ritchie's crime capers are injected with a rollicking mix of songs. But this is the first collection to surpass the film, thanks to stompers from The Hives, The Clash, Wanda Jackson and a few gritty blues covers.

Suggestion: Regardless of the category, be sure to erase this on your Netflix queue files and go straight to iTunes instead.

Reference/Source: MTV.com by Clutch Staff (Movies, Music)

Baja Summer Slaw

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This bright and colorful salad is a wonderful addition to a summer barbecue. It's packed with tropical flavors and its vague sweetness is a perfect foil for the smoky and spicy flavors that come off a grill. The salad is based on one that was served with seafood, particularly shrimp and lobster, when Bob and I were trekking through Baja Mexico, a very long time ago. We were without chick or child at the time and our spirit of adventure was far larger than our wallets. The Baja had not yet been discovered, so it was still possible to explore the peninsula and the Sea of Cortez on the cheap. We camped and cooked on open fires and every so often we'd dine out. My entree on those occasions was always shellfish because it was fresh and abundant and you could watch it being prepared. Were it not for its freshness, that would have been a strange choice. Pacific lobster, at least in my opinion, lacks the flavor of its Atlantic cousin. It needs something to perk it up and slaws or salads of this type really did the trick. I've fashioned a recipe of sorts for you, but as you read through the ingredients you'll see how you might be able to play with it. I love the freshness of this salad and I think you will, too. It's very easy to make and you can be as creative with the ingredients as you like. It is a lovely slaw, but I must admit I miss the dash of adventure we added all those years ago. Perhaps you can add your own. Here's the recipe.

Baja Summer Slaw...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1/4 cup pineapple juice from canned pineapple tidbits
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (10-oz.) bag very finely shredded cabbage (angel hair)
1 (8-oz.) can pineapple tidbits packed in pineapple juice
1 cup diced papaya or mango
1 cup diced sweet red bell pepper
1 small jalapeno pepper, finely chopped with seeds and ribs removed
1/4 cup minced cilantro
Salt and pepper

Directions:
1) In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine pineapple juice, oil, lime juice, cilantro, cumin,sugar and salt in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake well.
2) Combine cabbage, pineapple, papaya, bell pepper, and jalapeno pepper in a large bowl. Drizzle with dressing and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Add cilantro and stir just before serving. Yield: 6 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Beginner's Whole Wheat Batter Bread

Two Years Ago Today: Apple Onion Bread with Cheddar Cheese

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Oil and Vinegar Coleslaw - Brown Eyed Baker
Sweet and Spicy Coleslaw - Inspired 2 Cook
Creole Coleslaw - My Catholic Kitchen
Asian Coleslaw - Elly Says Opa
Pineapple Coleslaw - Good Thymes and Good Food

50 Women Game-Changers in Food - #8 Judith Jones - Frenchified Meat Loaf

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I love tales told by those who are the power behind the throne. Those stories are especially delicious when they are told by people who have compelling stories of their own to tell. Judith Jones, the book editor who brought the likes of Julia Child, Marcella Hazan, and Madhur Jaffrey to print, is such a woman. Her work with these and other authors has changed the way we write and think about the food we eat. Her publishing career career began at Doubleday where she saved The Diary of Anne Frank from the rejection list. She later moved to Knopf where she saved Mastering the Art of French Cooking from a similar fate. Her stellar culinary roster was matched by literary clients who included John Updike, Anne Tyler and John Hersey. She has also written a number of her own cookbooks and a charming memoir, The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food. She believes that recipe writing should engage the senses and enable readers to use their own judgment. Her own recipes do just that. It's entirely fitting that she claim 8th place on the Gourmet Live list of 50 Women Game-Changers in Food.

I have chosen the simplest of recipes to represent her work. She calls it a Frenchified meat loaf. Having just made and served this for our supper, I can tell you it bears no resemblance to the meat loaf of childhood memory - unless of course you're French. This is a lovely entree whose flavors carry with them the scents and tastes of Provence. It's a dense loaf with a texture that is far more like a pate than a meat loaf. It will make wonderful cold sandwiches for tomorrow's lunch. I really think you'll like it. Here's the recipe as it was written by Judith Jones.

Frenchified Meat Loaf...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Judith Jones

Ingredients:
3 slices homemade-type white bread, crusts removed
3 pounds ground beef, veal, and pork (about 1/2 beef portion and 1/2 each of veal and pork)
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 large egg
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons salt
2 fat garlic cloves, peeled, chopped, and mashed with 1/2 teaspoon salt (see below)
Several grindings of black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (basil, tarragon, marjoram), or 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
2 bay leaves
2 strips bacon
1/2 cup red wine

Instructions:
1) Spin the bread in a blender to make crumbs; you should have 1-1/2 cups. Dump everything except the bay leaves, bacon, and wine into a big bowl, and blend well, preferably with your hands.
2) Arrange the bay leaves on the bottom of a large loaf pan, and pack the meat mixture in. Place the strips of bacon on top, then pour the wine over, punching a few holes into the meat with your fingers so it will seep down a little. Let marinate for an hour or so, then bake in a preheated 325-degree oven for 1-1/2 hours. Turn out of the pan, and remove the bay leaves. And pour any pan juices on top. Serve hot. Yield: 6 servings.

Note: If veal is too expensive or hard to get, use about 3/4 beef to 1/4 pork, ground. If you prefer, slice the peeled garlic instead and press into the top of the meatloaf, then remove the slices before you turn the meatloaf out.

The following bloggers are also paying tribute to Judith Jones this week. I hope you'll visit all of them.

Val - More Than Burnt Toast
Joanne - Eats Well With Others
Taryn - Have Kitchen Will Feed
Susan - The Spice Garden
Claudia - A Seasonal Cook in Turkey
Heather - girlichef
Miranda - Mangoes and Chutney
Jeanette - Healthy Living
April - Abby Sweets
Katie - Making Michael Pollan Proud
Mary - One Perfect Bite
Kathleen -Bake Away with Me
Viola - The Life is Good Kitchen
Sue - The View from Great Island

Next week we will highlight the food and recipes of Irma Rombauer. If you'd like to join us please email me for additional information. Everyone is welcome.