Ryan's Jurisdiction

Friday night I started making pasta fagioli to have for dinner with some chicken cutlet and after I prepared everything I realized that I forgot to soak the beans.  With no canned beans in the apartment I put everything in the fridge and gave up.  Then Jen and I went on a grocery run to get her desert and to get me some quick easy cheap food.

I used to LOVE chef boyardee ravioli as a kid.  I used to eat it 5 cans at a time in high school.  I haven’t had the stuff in 7 or 8 years at least, and I must say, I still LOVE it.  Some things only taste good when you are a kid or a poor college student (shrimp ramen for me).  Other things manage to stay with you forever.  I might have to make another trip to the grocery store to pick some more up.  10 for 10 dollars.  Don’t mind if I do.

Jen doesn’t always cook, but when she does it’s DELICIOUS!!! 

accordingtojennifer:

My mom’s beef stew recipe is excellent. It’s so simple. So quick to put together. And it never disappoints. I would never believe that putting together such simple ingredients could create such a delicious flavor, but it does.

Here’s the recipe:

3 lbs of beef (2lbs is fine)

6 onions (cut into quarters or eighths)

1 can of tomato paste - I like to use the larger can - it’s the size of a campbell’s soup can.

two cups water — sometimes I up this a bit.

two teaspoons salt (salt to taste)

1/4 teaspoon pepper - I up this a bit.

6 carrots (go with 8)

Tobasco!

brown beef, stew meat. I like to go with the better stuff if it’s available in the grocery store.

add onions, carrots, tomato paste, salt and pepper (I put in a lot of black pepper)

Bring to a boil, and then let simmer for 1.5 - 2 hours. The longer it cooks, the better it tastes. If it looks like it’s getting too thick, add some water.

I know it’s summer, and not exactly beef stew season, although it’s always beef stew season in my house, hold onto this recipe and try it when it gets a little colder. It’s a tried and true favorite.

I ran out of rum on Friday, and incase you didn’t know I’ve been drinking Bicardi Select (the darkest Bicardi rum I could find at the liquor store) on the rocks lately.  Why?  That’s what everyone has been asking me.  Why Ryan have you been drinking rum straight?  Because I ran out of orange juice and pinapple juice.  That’s why.  And then I never went back.

Captain Morgan Black Spiced Rum definately improved this weekend.  It is almost TOO good.  I know a liquor is too good when Jen drinks it straight and says its good, and its 94 proof.  Between this and the Bicardi it looks like this summer is going to be the “Summer of RUMMMM”. 

This means three things:

1.  Jen is going to get increasingly annoyed at me for saying “Yo ho ho and a bottle of ruuummmmmm” every time I pour myself a glass.

2.  I may have to rewatch Rum Diaries.  Over and over.

and

3.  I am going to find unsuspecting victims and convince them to drink full glasses of rum with me until they can’t stand…

“Summer of Rummmmmmmmmmm…”

Yeah, Union puts on a fucking phenomenal fireworks show for their Alums.  I’ve never seen a firework show so good that you can sit so close to.  I nabbed this picture from a friend on my facebook newsfeed.  Jen, my dad and I were basically right underneath it all.  AMAZING.  Every year I’ve never been let down.