Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Seriously?

Sometime back in the 80s, a co-worker and I were having lunch at a Mexican restaurant in the college town next door to OurTown; a Beatles tune (I forget which one) was playing on the piped-in music. As we enjoyed the music and waited for our food to come, while munching on some blue-corn tortilla chips (with a delicious jalapeño cheese dip, in case anyone is wondering), we overheard two college kids in the booth behind ours. . .

Kid1: Hey, that sounds just like McCartney!

Kid2: You doofus, that IS McCartney!

Kid1: No it isn't - that's the Beatles.

Kid2: Idiot, McCartney was in the Beatles!

Kid1 (impatiently, condescendingly): Nooo, McCartney was with Wings!

While my co-worker (who was the same age as me; for the record, I’m pretty sure neither of us was 30 yet) and I banged our heads on the table. . .

-------------------------

And just because that's the kind of generous guy I am, I'll post Molly's recipe for Jalapeño Cheese Dip, which is really good (and posting recipes is a sure sign that your blog has 'jumped the shark', isn't it?). . .

1 24oz container cottage cheese
1 16oz container sour cream
2 cups shredded cheese – Monterrey Jack or mozzarella
(Pepper Jack is also good, for a spicier kick)
3-5 chopped green onions or scallions
3-5 garlic toes, pressed or minced
1-3 jalapeño peppers, chopped (mix in habañero peppers for a hotter bite)

(This is the basic recipe; we have also occasionally added other ingredients, like salsa, chili powder, or cayenne powder, as variations; feel free to be as creative as you feel like)

Combine ingredients at least 24 hours before serving, and refrigerate; serve with tortilla chips (we like blue corn best, but we’re not dogmatic about it), and DON’T rub your eyes without first washing your hands, preferably a few times. . .

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jump the shark? I jumped the shark? How'd I not know that?

This recipe looks like a keeper, gotta give it a try.

And "I banged our heads on the table"? Never knew you were so violent in your younger days! :-)

Sailor said...

Sigh. These days, I've actually encountered kids who have never- not once- heard a Beatles song that they recognized or knew was the Beatles. (Qualified because of course they've heard the music, but have no idea who it is).

for a different kind of girl said...

No, there are a lot of very successful recipe blogs out there. I think just posting a photo of foodstuffs without a recipe consitutes jumping the shark. Especially if you make it sound dirty.

;)

Bijoux said...

You know what else about kids these days that drives me nuts? When they think a song some rapper has stolen (whole song or a few riffs)is original!

And I'm only about the salsa when it comes to chips, but I'd be happy to have a frozen margarita with you, Desmond!

Desmond Jones said...

Xavier - We were head-bangers before head-bangin' was cool. . .

And I didn't mean YOU had jumped the shark. . . ;)

Hope you like the recipe, tho. . .

Sailor - All of my kids both know and love the Beatles' music. The last time I saw Sir Paul, I almost got ejected by the ushers for phoning 2F during 'Hey Jude'. . .

The thing that got me was, the kid obviously knew something about the Beatles music, and knew who McCartney was, but didn't know McCartney had been a Beatle. And this was the 80s, for pete's sake. . .

faDKoG - Blogs that have jumped the shark don't get 50 comments, luv. . . ;)

And listen, I keep telling my kids - sex is NOT dirty. . . But, anyone who can make strawberries sound erotic has my undying respect. . . ;)

Cocotte - I know; my kids were dumbstruck when I played Bill Withers' version of 'Lean on Me' for 'em, instead of the 'rappified' version that was on the radio a few years back. . .

And re the frozen margaritas - you got a deal, sister; anytime, anyplace. . . ;)

Anonymous said...

I feel an urge to post a recipe while listening to something by Paul McCartney, or maybe Wings, or maybe the Beetles, or maybe one of the duets he was part of, or maybe...

lime said...

well if recipes is a sign the shark has been jumped then i am positively death defying in a massive way!

as for the generation gap, i recall the first season of american idol when calypso said i just HAD to hear this awesome ensemble piece all the singers did. it was called "california dremain.'" the kid was shocked when i sang every word and asked how i knew the words to this new song. i pulled out my mamas & the papas to play the original and she was blown away. i was at least glad she recognize superior song artistry when she heard it. ;)

lime said...

also, could tell you a story about mr lime learning from experience about the importance of proper pepper handling....

the recipe sounds yummy

Desmond Jones said...

TSM - Just so long as it's not 'The Girl Is Mine'. Or 'Wonderful Christmastime'. . .

Lime - OK, OK, I retract what I said about recipes and 'jumping the shark'. But your recipes are awesome. . . (I do hope anyone who tries the cheese dip agrees that it's yummy. . .)

Sweet story about the song.

And you know, any and all references to stories that 'could be told' are fully encouraged to be posted in full, either here or on your own blog. . .

(But I will say, by way of parenthetical comment, that I have learned, most sorrowfully, that eyes are not the only 'sensitive moist tissues' which shouldn't be touched by jalapeño-laden hands. But Molly has mostly forgiven me by now. . .)

(Oh yes, I did. . .)

(*sigh*)

Schweeney said...

My 16 year old daughter has almost every Beatle album ever released on her Ipod (downloaded from our cd's), she probably wouldn't recognize a Wings song though, and our 20 year old boy just attended his first Dead show.
I couldn't be more proud of them.

The dip sounds great from a taste standpoint but I'm having a little bit of a texture problem. Does the 24 hour rest period make the cottage cheese and shredded cheese less "lumpy" for lack of a better word? Or is the texture part of the allure?
PS I've never heard of a garlic segment (I call it a clove) referred to as a "toe" is that a regional reference or perhaps idiosyncratic?

lime said...

oh sweet fancy moses, poor molly!

ok, mr lime and the habaneros (which rank considerably higher than jalapenos on the scoville scale). he got it in his mind to make a pot of chili with inferno strength heat to share with some pals. he asked me which were the hottest peppers and i steered him accordingly. he began to prepare the chili and in the process diced the pepper finely...with bare hands. i recommended using gloves. he insisted gloves were for wusses. i exhorted him greatly to wash his hands VERY thoroughly. he disregarded me and gave them a quick rinse. off to bed we went. in the middle of the night he sat bolt upright and tore off down the hallway. sometime later he returned and i asked if everything was ok. he said he had rolled over and rubbed his eyes, then scratched his nose, then moved southward to some truly tender skin. a moment later everything he had touched was on fire. forgive me...i laughed. and gave silent thanks that he had not been feeling amorous earlier.

Desmond Jones said...

Schweeney - I can understand why you'd be proud. My kids have occasionally heard a Wings song they weren't familiar with, and recognized McCartney's voice. . .

The 24 hours is about the flavors having time to blend and flow thru the whole mixture. You could eat it right away, but it's more like eating cottage cheese with chunks of stuff in it; a day later, the flavors have mixed, and you get a 'whole' flavor. As to texture, I have known some folks who run the cheese mixture thru a blender to 'smooth it out', but we like it 'chunky'. . .

Garlic 'toes' - I don't know if that's a regionalism, or not. When I first started cooking for myself, back in my college days, people I was learning from called 'em 'toes', and I just picked up on that. And you know, they sorta look like toes, don't they?

Lime - Sounds like he had that coming to him; I mean, you warned him. So, it might not have been kind, but your laughter was at least somewhat apropos. . .

But yeah - you can be VERY glad that he wasn't feeling amorous. . .

Phyllis Renée said...

RL, who just turned 50 last week, made a comment (not in the distant past) about George Harrison being part of Aerosmith. Um, yeah, really.

And maybe it would have been a little less shark jumping (though I don't think you have indeed jumped the shark) if it had been more of a Paul McCartney and Buffalo Wings post. Just sayin'.......

Desmond Jones said...

Aw, Phyllis, that's bad. . .

;)

Bunny said...

Please tell me it was El Az where this occurred . . . I miss the old one, down in a horribly dangerous dungeon. But the "new" one above-ground is good too.

Desmond Jones said...

Bunny! Long time no see!

It was, indeed, the old, 'dungeon-y' 'Teco! These days, Molly and I are in the habit of going to the 'West Side' one, but if the weather's nice, we'll hit the 'college-town' one, and try to get a rooftop table. . .

And now you've got me wondering how many times you and I were there at the same time, without knowing each other. . .