Like so many things in life, it turns out that the ontology of my project is a sham. Also, like so many things in life, I found this out in reference to food. Last night Laura and I finished the Alsatian coq au vin and retired to watch a movie. Toward the end of two hours, I started to feel a rumble in my stomach--slight indigestion perhaps. But, it got worse-and-worse as the night wore on. By the time I turned the lights out to go to sleep, it was evident that this was going to be a rough night. I woke from a tumbled sleep at 3, feeling exactly as I had the night I thought I came down with food poisoning from an Indian Restaurant. While coincidences happen, two cases of food poisoning in one week was just too unlikely.
The mental gears started turning--blunt pain onset after meals, worse at night, better when not recumbent, responds to antacids--Sighh. Peptic Ulcer. Fearing the worse for my epicurean lifestyle, I made an appointment with Trinity's health service. The doctor there sorted it out quickly. The missing piece of the puzzle was that, in an effort to cure a sinus problem, I had been placed on a strong glucocorticoid (a type of non-anabolic steroid) two weeks before. One of the side-effects of Glucocorticoid's is inflamation of the gastric mucosa which can mimic ulcer symptoms.
So, with a prescription for an anti-acid drug in hand, I was on my way back to health and eating. Only one problem--I started the blog to prevent me from eating out for fear of being food poisoned. But, in reference to this, I'll stand with Oscar Wilde in noting that metaphysical inquiry's have little to do with the real world. The human process of cooking is a marvelous thing and should be done and shared for its own sake.
That said, my meal today was very plain as my stomach remains a bit tender. Just bread and butter and apricot jam (store bought). But, what bread it is, my first loaf of no-knead-bread left to rise for the appropriate 18 hours. The outside shatters like a cracker when you bite into it and coupled with the mouth-filling but soft and chewy crumb makes every bite so rewarding. The high temp. at which the bread is baked also leads to the carbonization of some stray flour on the bottom of the loaf which results in a slight acrid, burnt undertone, like one finds in a great slice of new york pizza. The addition of creamy-fat-butter and sweet apricot jam makes this simple bite one of the most rewarding food experiences possible.
There is a wonderful quote about bread in Bernard Clayton's book on the subject. And, I will have to paraphrase, but it was from a nun in a monastery who once declared, "Bread is the one food you can eat 3 times a day forever and never get tired of it." True.
Tomorrow something quick and easy, I think a Thai shrimp-fired-rice. Until then.
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