Buddhist Thought for the Day

I laugh, I love, I hope, I try, I hurt, I need, I fear, I cry. And I know you do the same things too, So we're really not that different, me and you.

--Colin Raye

It's a Marvelous Night For a Moondance

Above: A nearly full moon rises though the clouds just after Sunset, in Tyler, Texas on Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008. On Wednesday, Feb 20, there will be a total lunar eclipse visible in the evening over North America.
(AP Photo/Dr. Scott M. Lieberman)

The last total lunar eclipse until 2010 occurs Wednesday night, with cameo appearances by Saturn and the bright star Regulus on either side of the veiled full moon.

Skywatchers viewing through a telescope will have the added treat of seeing Saturn's handsome rings.

Weather permitting, the total eclipse can be seen from North and South America. People in Europe and Africa will be able to see it high in the sky before dawn on Thursday.

As the moonlight dims — it won't go totally dark — Saturn and Regulus will pop out and sandwich the moon. Regulus is the brightest star in the constellation Leo.

Jack Horkheimer, host of the PBS show "Star Gazer," called the event "the moon, the lord of the rings and heart of the lion eclipse."

Wednesday's event will be the last total lunar eclipse until Dec. 20, 2010. Last year there were two.

The weather could be a spoiler for many in the United States. Cloudy skies are expected for most of the Western states with a chance of snow from the heartland to the East Coast, said Stuart Seto of the National Weather Service.

"It looks like it's going to be a hard one to spot," Seto said.

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the full moon passes into Earth's shadow and is blocked from the sun's rays that normally illuminate it. During an eclipse, the sun, Earth and moon line up, leaving a darkened moon visible to observers on the night side of the planet.

The moon doesn't go black because indirect sunlight still reaches it after passing through the Earth's atmosphere. Since the atmosphere filters out blue light, the indirect light that reaches the moon transforms it into a reddish or orange tinge, depending on how much dust and cloud cover are in the atmosphere at the time.

Wednesday's total eclipse phase will last nearly an hour. Earth's shadow is expected to blot out the moon beginning around 7 p.m. on the West Coast and 10 p.m. on the East Coast. West Coast skygazers will miss the start of the eclipse because it occurs before the moon rises.

Unlike solar eclipses which require protective eyewear, lunar eclipses are safe to view with the naked eye.

Later this year, in August, there will be a total solar eclipse and a partial lunar eclipse.

Source: Associated Press___

Conspiracy buffs may feast on JFK documents

Above: Approximately one dozen boxes of documents and artefacts related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy rest on a table before the start of a news conference called by Dallas County district attorney Craig Watkins in the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas, Texas, February 18, 2008. REUTERS/Mike Stone

John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy buffs have been handed a Presidents' Day present they are sure to savor.

The Dallas County district attorney said on Monday that he could not categorically dismiss as fake a transcript of an alleged conversation between Kennedy's assassin Lee Harvey Oswald and Oswald's killer Jack Ruby.

The transcript is one of many items related to the Kennedy slaying in November 1963 and Ruby's trial that were found in an old safe in a Dallas courthouse about a year ago and have been painstakingly cataloged.

In the purported conversation nearly two months before the assassination, Oswald and Ruby discuss killing Kennedy to halt the mafia-busting agenda of his brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy.

"We don't know if this is an actual conversation or not," District Attorney Craig Watkins told a news conference. "It will open up the debate as to whether or not there was a conspiracy to assassinate the president."

Yet if it were proven these two key figures in one of the most captivating periods in U.S. history did meet ahead of that day in Dallas, then the Kennedy assassination was almost certainly a conspiracy.

One theory about the transcript holds that it is part of a movie script that Henry Wade, the district attorney who prosecuted Ruby, worked on later with producers for a film that was never made. Among the documents found was a contract signed by Wade for a movie deal.

Adding fuel to the conspiracy fires, Watkins said his predecessors in the DA's office were "aware of the contents of the safe" but had decided to keep them secret "for whatever reason."

He said that may have been related to the "racist tone" of some of the documents that he said painted an unflattering portrait of the criminal justice system at the time. Watkins is the first black district attorney ever of Dallas County.

PRESIDENTS' DAY RELEASE

Watkins did not say why he went public with his find on Presidents' Day, the U.S. holiday that honors its leaders.

Watkins and others in his office came across the items after being told the gun used to kill Oswald was in the courthouse. The gun was not there because it is privately owned.

The purported Lee-Ruby meeting took place at Ruby's Carousel Club on October 4, 1963. The transcript reads like scripted cloak-and-dagger dialogue.

Lee: "There is a way to get rid of him (Attorney General Robert Kennedy) without killing him."

Ruby: "How's that?"

Lee: "I can shoot his brother."

Ruby: "You mean the president?"

Lee: "Yes, the president."

Ruby: "But that wouldn't be patriotic."

At one point, Lee says that to kill Kennedy all he needs "is my rifle and a tall building."

A bit later Ruby tells Oswald: "You're asking too many questions; remember, they know who you are already; but you don't know them. They'll be watching you ..."

Legions of conspiracy theorists have long questioned the conclusion of the Warren Commission that investigated the slaying that Oswald acted alone when he shot Kennedy as his motorcade swept past the Texas School Book Depository.

The commission said that Ruby and Oswald had never met. Ruby shot Oswald dead at point-blank range as police were escorting their prime suspect. Ruby died a few years later from cancer.

http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN2019908420080220?sp=true

Buddhist Thought for the Day

The unreal is more powerful than the real, because nothing is as perfect as you can imagine it. because its only intangible ideas, concepts, beliefs, fantasies that last. stone crumbles. wood rots. people, well, they die. but things as fragile as a thought, a dream, a legend, they can go on and on.
--Chuck Palahniuk


Dream Mandala by David Buxton

Equal Time for Martha - Chocolate Mint Icebox Cake

From: Food Everyday via marthastewart.com

This old-fashioned no-bake cake has just three components: store-bought cookies, homemade mint whipped cream, and chocolate chips.

Prep: 20 minutes
Total: 4 hours 20 minutes

Chocolate Mint Icebox Cake

Ingredients
Serves 8
1 3/4 cups heavy cream, chilled
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon mint extract
1 package (9 ounces) chocolate wafers
1 cup miniature chocolate

Directions
Make the mint cream: With an electric mixer, beat heavy cream, sugar, and mint extract until stiff peaks form.
Line a serving platter with two sheets of wax paper side by side. Assemble the cake: Spread each wafer with about 1/2 tablespoon mint cream, forming stacks. Lay stacks horizontally along seam of paper, pressing gently to form a log. With small spatula or knife, cover log with remaining mint cream. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 2 days.
To serve, gently remove wax paper from underneath cake (holding cake in place with a metal spatula, if necessary), and sprinkle with chocolate chips. Slice cake diagonally with a serrated knife.

http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.fc77a0dbc44dd1611e3bf410b5900aa0/?vgnextoid=d2af56866a80f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default&rsc=sl_chocolate_p2

EMERILIZED BANH PHO BO (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)

Ingredients needed:

BEEF BROTH:
1 tablespoon peanut oil
2 cups sliced yellow onions, plus 1 yellow onion, halved
3 star anise pods, plus 1 piece star anise
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
5 pounds meaty beef bones
2 carrots, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh gingerroot
1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
TO ASSEMBLE THE PHO:
Vegetable oil, for frying
12 ounces rice vermicelli noodles
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1/2 pound beef sirloin, very thinly sliced
1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
2 cups bean sprouts
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 small red chiles, sliced
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (green tops only)
Lime wedges, as garnish
Preheat the grill.

In a large non-stick skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the sliced onions and cook until just beginning to color, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat.

Press three star anise into the flesh of the halved onions and place on the grill. Grill until blackened, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Add the bones to a large stockpot and cover with water by 2 inches and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes, skimming the top to remove any foam that forms on the surface. Add grilled and sauteed onions, and the remaining ingredients, stir well, and simmer partly covered for at least 6 and up to 10 hours, adding more water as needed to keep the bones covered by 1-inch. Strain through cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer. Remove meat from bones and set aside. Discard everything but the meat from the bones and the broth.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil, and heat enough vegetable oil in a large saucepan to come 4 inches up the sides. Add half of the noodles to the water and boil until just tender, then drain in a colander. Add the remaining noodles to the hot oil and fry briefly until golden brown and crisp, then transfer to paper towels to drain.

To make the Pho, bring the soup to a simmer, as needed, and add the fish sauce. Transfer to a large tureen or pot that can be placed on the table and kept warm. Drain the boiled noodles in a colander and divide among 6 soup bowls. Divide the remaining ingredients and the reserved meat from the bones among the bowls and ladle the broth over each portion at the table. Garnish with lime wedges and serve immediately.

http://www.emerils.com/recipes/by_name/emerilized_banh_pho_bo_(vietnamese_beef_noodle_soup).html

It's a Good Thing, BAM!!!

In this photo provided by 'The Martha Stewart Show', Martha Stewart and celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse work in the kitchen for a full hour to prepare a New Orleans-style Thanksgiving dinner featuring seafood gumbo, roasted turkey breast and oyster dressing, in this Nov. 14, 2007 file photo in New York. The New York-based media and merchandising company founded by domesticity maven Martha Stewart announced Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 that it bought the rights to the Emeril Lagasse franchise of cookbooks, television shows and kitchen products for $45 million in cash and $5 million in stock at closing.
(AP Photo/The Martha Stewart Show, Anders Krusberg, file)

Pakistan's Ruling Party Concedes Defeat

Above: A cyclist rides past a billboard showing the portrait of slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, right, and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, top, displayed along the road side in Rawalpindi, Pakistan Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008. Opposition parties dealt a crushing electoral blow to allies of President Pervez Musharraf, a private TV network reported Tuesday, winning enough seats to form a new government that could threaten the eight-year rule of America's close ally in its war on terror.
(AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
---------------------------
Pakistan's ruling party conceded defeat Tuesday after opposition parties routed allies of President Pervez Musharraf in parliamentary elections that could threaten the rule of America's close ally in the war on terror.

Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted in Musharraf's 1999 coup, suggested that the Pakistani president should listen to the "verdict" of the people in the Monday balloting and step down.

Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, head of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q, told AP Television News that "we accept the results with an open heart" and "will sit on opposition benches" in the new parliament."

"All the King's men, gone!" proclaimed a banner headline in the Daily Times. "Heavyweights knocked out," read the Dawn newspaper.
The results cast doubt on the political future of Musharraf, who was re-elected to a five-year term last October in a controversial parliamentary ballot.

The private Geo TV network said the party of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and another group led by ex-premier Nawaz Sharif had so far won 153 seats, more than half of the 272-seat National Assembly.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Q party was a distant third with 38 seats. A ream of party stalwarts and former Cabinet ministers lost in their constituencies.

Final results were not expected before Tuesday evening, but the election's outcome appeared to be a stinging public verdict on Musharraf's rule after his popularity plummeted following his decisions late last year to impose emergency rule, purge the judiciary, jail political opponents and curtail press freedoms.

Sharif reminded reporters Tuesday in Lahore that Musharraf had said he would step down when the people wanted him to do so.

"And now people have given their verdict," Sharif said, adding that political parties should "work together to get rid of dictatorship."

With the support of smaller groups and independent candidates, the opposition could gain the two-thirds majority in parliament needed to impeach Musharraf, who has angered many Pakistanis by allying the country with Washington in 2001 to fight al-Qaida and the Taliban after the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.

Musharraf has promised to work with whatever government emerges from the election. But the former general is hugely unpopular among the public and opposition parties that have been catapulted into power are likely to find little reason to work with him — particularly since he no longer controls the powerful army.

Sharif has been especially outspoken in demanding that Musharraf be removed and that the Supreme Court justices whom the president sacked late last year be returned to their posts. Those judges were fired as they prepared to rule on whether Musharraf's re-election last October was constitutional.

If the opposition falls short of enough votes to remove Musharraf, the new government could reinstate the Supreme Court justices and ask them to declare the October election invalid.

Musharraf, at best, faces the prospect of remaining in power with sharply diminished powers and facing a public hostile to him. Last year he stepped down as army chief, and his successor has pledged to remove the military from politics.

Sen. Joseph Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and one of several U.S. lawmakers who observed the election, said Tuesday the results mean the United States can shift its Pakistan policy.

"This is an opportunity for us to move from a policy that has been focused on a personality to one based on an entire people," Biden said, adding that Washington should help democracy take deeper root in Pakistan.

The PML-Q said it accepted the results, but Pervaiz Elahi, the party's president, noted that the party had stood by Musharraf for five years.

"We respect him, and we are still with him," Elahi, the outgoing chief minister of Punjab province, told Geo TV on Tuesday.

The results could have far-reaching implications for the U.S.-led war on terror, especially Pakistani military operations against al-Qaida and Taliban-style militants in border areas of the northwest. Sharif and others have called for dialogue with the extremists and have criticized military operations in the area because of their impact on civilians.

Religious parties fared badly, and were set to lose their control of the North West Frontier province gained in the last parliamentary elections in 2002, when they benefited from Pakistani anger over the U.S.-led invasion to topple the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Afrasiab Khattak, a leading opposition politician from the northwest, said his Awami National Party did not believe "that a military solution will work," adding his group "will never support American forces coming here and operating."

The Awami National Party, a Pashtun nationalist group, was leading in the northwest with 30 of the 99 contested assembly seats while Bhutto's party was trailing second with 15. The party of pro-Taliban cleric, Maulana Fazl-ur Rehman, won only eight seats, according to a tally reported by the Geo TV station.

In Karachi, the Pakistani stock market rose 2.15 percent to 14,669.87 points and the rupee gained against the U.S. dollar. Traders said the market was reacting positively because the election was generally peaceful.


Souce: MATTHEW PENNINGTON, Associated Press

Castro Retires

Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro said on Tuesday that he will not return to lead the communist country, retiring as president 49 years after he seized power in a revolution and became a central figure of the Cold War.
Castro, 81, who has not appeared in public since undergoing stomach surgery almost 19 months ago, said he would not seek a new term as president or leader of Cuba's armed forces when the National Assembly meets on Sunday.

"To my dear compatriots, who gave me the immense honor in recent days of electing me a member of parliament ... I communicate to you that I will not aspire to or accept -- I repeat not aspire to or accept -- the positions of president of the Council of State and commander-in-chief," Castro said in a statement published in the Communist Party's Granma newspaper.
President George W. Bush, who has tightened a decades-old economic embargo against Castro's government, said he hoped Castro's retirement would mark a new era in Cuba.

"I believe that the change from Fidel Castro ought to begin a period of a democratic transition," Bush said in Rwanda during a tour to Africa. "Eventually this transition ought to lead to free and fair elections. And I mean free and I mean fair."

Cuba's National Assembly, a rubber-stamp legislature, is expected to nominate Castro's brother and designated successor Raul Castro as president. The 76-year-old defense minister has been running the country since emergency intestinal surgery forced his brother to delegate power on July 31, 2006.

Raul Castro has raised hopes of economic reforms but he is unlikely to make bold political changes to the one-party state. Fidel Castro will remain influential as first secretary of the ruling Communist Party.

"This is a crucial moment. Cuba wants change, the people want change," said Oswaldo Paya, Cuba's best-known dissident. He said a succession headed by Raul Castro would not satisfy Cubans and called for an end to censorship.

Cubans on the empty streets of Havana were not surprised by Castro's retirement, first announced on Granma's Web site in the middle of the night.

"Everyone knew for a while that he would not come back. The people got used to his absence," said Roberto, a self-employed Cuban who did not want to be fully named.

"I don't know what to say. I just want to leave. This system cannot continue," said Alexis, a garbage collector.

In a deserted Revolution Square, the site of many hours-long speeches by Castro to massive crowds, a lone soldier stood guard at government headquarters. The city was calm.

Source: Reuters

China Regrets Spielberg Decision

China has expressed regret over film director Steven Spielberg's decision to pull out as artistic adviser to the Beijing Olympics over the Darfur issue.
The foreign ministry said "ulterior motives" may be behind criticism of its links with Sudan.The director said his conscience would not allow him to continue in his role. China has strong economic and military ties with Sudan, which campaigners say it should use to put pressure on Khartoum to resolve the Darfur crisis. A UK newspaper has published a letter from 80 Nobel laureates and artists urging Beijing to help end the conflict.
'Empty rhetoric'
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said: "We have taken notice that recently there have been many controversies and actions involving China and Darfur.
"It is understandable if some people do not understand the Chinese government policy on Darfur, but I am afraid that some people may have ulterior motives, and this we cannot accept," he told a news conference. "China is also concerned about the humanitarian situation in Darfur. [But] empty rhetoric will not help. We hope that relevant people will be more pragmatic." Beijing says it has appointed a special envoy to Darfur and sent peacekeepers to the region. But many, including Steven Spielberg, say that is not enough. At least 200,000 people have died and two million forced from their homes in the five-year conflict in Sudan's Darfur region, where pro-government militia are accused of widespread atrocities.Sudan denies backing the Janjaweed militia and says the suffering in Darfur has been exaggerated.
Sudan sells some two-thirds of its oil to Beijing, while Beijing sells weapons to the Sudanese government and has blocked efforts to pressure Khartoum in the UN Security Council. Campaigners say arms sold by China to the Sudanese government that have been used in Darfur. Mr Spielberg's announcement late on Tuesday is Beijing's first big setback in staging the Olympics, analysts say.
The renowned director, who had been brought in as artistic adviser for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Games, said his conscience would not allow him to continue in the role. Sudan's government bears the bulk of the responsibility for these ongoing crimes, but the international community, and particularly China, should be doing more," he said. Adding to the pressure, British newspaper the Independent has published on its front page the full text of a letter signed by 80 Nobel laureates, politicians and artists to Chinese President Hu Jintao urging greater action on Darfur. Signatories include South Africa's Archbishop Desmond Tutu, US former Senator Bill Frist and British playwright Tom Stoppard, as well as a host of former Olympians. The letter, released by campaigning group Crisis Action on 12 February, said China had both the opportunity and the responsibility to help bring peace to the troubled region.
"Ongoing failure to rise to this responsibility amounts, in our view, to support for a government that continues to carry out atrocities against its own people," the letter said.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7244133.stm

Steven Spielberg Does The Right Thing

US film director Steven Spielberg has withdrawn as an artistic adviser for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. In a statement, he accused China of not doing enough to pressure Sudan to end the "continuing human suffering" in the troubled western Darfur region.At least 200,000 people have been killed and two million forced from their homes in the five-year conflict. Beijing has not yet responded to the move, which correspondents say is its first big setback in staging the Games.
A source in the Beijing Olympic Committee said a response was being discussed at the highest levels but had not yet been made public.But the BBC's James Reynolds in Beijing says the decision will anger and worry the authorities there.Since Beijing won the right to host the Games it has always tried to keep China's politics and China's Olympics separate, he says, and it has attacked anyone who has tried to link the two.
Boycott call
Mr Spielberg, who had been brought in as artistic adviser for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Games, said the cause of Darfur was more important than his role. "I find that my conscience will not allow me to continue business as usual," he said in a statement."At this point, my time and energy must be spent not on Olympic ceremonies, but on doing all I can to help bring an end to the unspeakable crimes against humanity that continue to be committed in Darfur."
He added: "Sudan's government bears the bulk of the responsibility for these on-going crimes, but the international community, and particularly China, should be doing more." Rebel groups in Darfur said this was exactly the kind of pressure that was needed to get Beijing to change its policy towards the Sudanese government.
"This is a noble move by Spielberg," Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) leader Abdul Wahid Mohammad Ahmed al-Nur told the Sudan Tribune newspaper."He will certainly go down in history as someone who gave human lives precedence over fame and money."
Ahmed Abdel Shafi, who leads an SLM splinter group, told the BBC: "I commend him for his strong position. This is a lesson to the rest of the world that people should distance themselves from China." Another group, the Justice and Equality Movement, has appealed to countries sending teams to boycott the games. The International Olympic Committee said the decision was a personal one made by Mr Spielberg.
"The IOC recognise Darfur is a highly complex issue, with tragic circumstances, but is a matter for the UN to resolve," the committee said in a statement.
Desperate time's
Sudan, with its vast oil reserves, sells some two-thirds of its oil to Beijing.
In turn, Beijing sells weapons to the Sudanese government and has defended Khartoum in the UN Security Council. As a result, China has been criticised for its links with a government ostracised by many for its role in the ongoing crisis in Darfur.
Earlier on Tuesday, as part of a "Global Day of Action" focusing on Darfur, an open letter signed by Nobel Peace Prize laureates and former Olympians was sent to China's president. Actress Mia Farrow, who signed the letter and had pressed Mr Spielberg to end his involvement, said his decision sent out the right signal to the Chinese government.She said: "I'm delighted by his decision and it's a desperate time for Darfur, so this is a shred of good news in a very bleak week."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7242016.stm

Fewer Bees = Fewer Ice Cream Flavors

Haagen-Dazs is warning that a creature as small as a honeybee could become a big problem for the premium ice cream maker's business.At issue is the disappearing bee colonies in the United States, a situation that continue to mystify scientists and frighten foodmakers.That's because, according to Haagen-Dazs, one-third of the U.S. food supply - including a variety of fruits, vegetables and even nuts - depends on pollination from bees.Haagen-Dazs, which is owned by Nestle, said bees are actually responsible for 40% of its 60 flavors - such as strawberry, toasted pecan and banana split."These are among consumers' favorite flavors," said Katty Pien, brand director with Haagen-Dazs."We use 100% all natural ingredients like strawberries, raspberries and almonds which we get from California. The bee problem could badly hurt supply from the Pacific Northwest," Pien said.Pien said Haagen-Dazs is hoping scientists get a breakthrough in this mystery soon. Otherwise, she said, the company may have to "re-examine the flavors that we currently offers our customers." "We have to ensure that we have enough supply to maintain our variety," she said.Additionally, a supply shortage of key ingredients could push up retail prices for its products, she said.Pien said the company is donating $250,000 to both Pennsylvania State University and the University of California, Davis to fund research into the bee colony collapse disorder (CCD).She said Haagen-Dazs is also rushing to raise consumer awareness about the problem by launching a new flavor this spring called Vanilla Honey Bee."We'll use part of the sales from this flavor help the honeybees," she said."This is the first time that Haagen-Dazs has adopted a cause like this," said Pien. "We are taking this very, very seriously because it impacts not just our brand but the entire food industry."

http://money.cnn.com/2008/02/17/news/companies/bees_icecream/index.htm?postversion=2008021712

Buddhist Thought for the Day

All things appear and disappear because of the concurrence of causes and conditions. Nothing ever exists entirely alone; everything is in relation to everything else.
--Buddha

Apple Crostata

Apple Crostata (serves 6) with Caramel Sauce

For the pastry (2 tarts):
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated or superfine sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 pound very cold unsalted butter, diced

For the filling (1 tart):
1 1/2 pounds McIntosh, Macoun, or Empire apples
1/4 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated or superfine sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (1/2 stick), diced


For the pastry, place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and toss quickly with your fingers to coat each cube of butter with the flour. Pulse 12 to 15 times, or until the butter is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the 1/4 cup ice water all at once through the feed tube. Keep hitting the pulse button to combine, but stop the machine just before the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured board and form into 2 disks. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate one of the disks for at least an hour. Freeze the rest of the pastry.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Roll the pastry into an 11-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer it to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

For the filling, peel, core, and quarter the apples. Cut each quarter into 3 chunks. Toss the chunks with the orange zest. Cover the tart dough with the apple chunks, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border.

I like to top the Crostata with Caramel Sauce (recipe follows)

Caramel Sauce

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


Mix the water and sugar in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cover and cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a medium brown, about 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Watch it carefully at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Stand back to avoid splattering, and gradually add the cream and the seeds scraped from the vanilla bean (or vanilla extract). Simmer until the caramel dissolves and the sauce is smooth and thick, about 2 minutes. Serve warm, or add another 1/4 cup of heavy cream and serve room temperature.

from http://barefootcontessa.com/

Writers Strike Ends, Now They Must Write

Above: FAMILY MATTERS: Writer Greg Fields lets 3-year-old son Caelan cast his ballot at the Writers Guild of America Theater.

Hollywood writers' brief moment to savor the end of their 100-day strike gave way Wednesday to the cold reality of a blank page and networks and studios eager for new TV episodes."What we're all finding is there's a certain amount of, `OK, what are we going to do now?' said Shane Brennan, writer and executive producer for the CBS drama "NCIS.""You go back to your desk, open your computer, look at the last thing you planned, the last thing you wrote," Brennan said, "and figure out how to go from there."Cheryl Heuton, executive producer for CBS' "Numb3rs," has been making a flurry of calls to muster crew members, writers and others connected with the drama.
"We're just gathering everybody. The offices are pretty dark and lonely and will be for a couple more days," said Heuton.Members of the Writers Guild of America members voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to lift the union's strike order, allowing the industry to jump-start stalled production of numerous TV sitcoms and dramas.For the Feb. 24 Academy Awards, the vote by East and West Coast guild members ended the threat of a boycott by writers and actors that would have robbed the ceremony of its celebrity luster.Sid Ganis, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which stages the Oscars, responded effusively."I am ecstatic that the 80th Academy Awards presentation can now proceed full steam ahead," he said, and without "hesitation or discomfort" for the nominees.The writers' decided overwhelmingly in favor of ending the strike: 3,492 said yes, with only 283 voting to stay off the job. The number of guild members involved in the strike was 10,500, with countless other industry workers forced into unemployment because of the walkout.Writers did not vote on the tentative contract agreement that already has won approval from the union's board of directors. The contract ratification vote will be conducted by mail and at meetings and will conclude Feb. 25.Approval is expected, given Tuesday's lopsided decision and the enthusiasm for the proposed contract expressed at guild meetings held last weekend in New York and Los Angeles."At the end of the day, everybody won. It was a fair deal and one that the companies can live with, and it recognizes the large contribution that writers have made to the industry," Leslie Moonves, chief executive officer of CBS Corp., told The Associated Press on Tuesday.Under the tentative agreement, writers would get a maximum flat fee of about $1,200 for programs streamed on the Internet in the deal's first two years and then get 2 percent of a distributor's gross in year three — a key union demand.Other provisions include increased residual payments for movies and TV programs downloaded from the Internet."These advances now give us a foothold in the digital age," said Patric Verrone, president of the West Coast guild. "Rather than being shut out of the future of content creation and delivery, writers will lead the way as television migrates to the Internet."

Godiva Chocolate Rum Balls

Godiva Chocolatier traces its roots to 1926, when Pierre Draps started making chocolates in Brussels, Belgium, for sale to local shops. His son Joseph began working for the family business at the age of 14 and shortly after World War II took control of it. When he decided to open a shop of his own, he sought a distinctive name to give it and turned to his wife for ideas. She suggested Godiva, after the legendary countess who had protested high taxes by riding nude through Coventry, England, and Draps chose it for the new endeavor.
Godiva's signature offering was a creamy ganache, or hazelnut praline filling, that was inserted into a molded shell of high quality chocolate. Over the years, Draps built up a repertoire of distinctive products, many of which had been introduced to commemorate specific events. His best-known creation was the Comtesse, which celebrated Lady Godiva herself and was made from dark or milk chocolate with a chocolate cream center. Another was the Autant, a hand-decorated chocolate leaf made from coffee and chocolate creams covered in milk chocolate, which had been made to commemorate the 1939 premiere of the film Gone With the Wind. Other popular offerings included the Fabiola, introduced in 1958 to celebrate the engagement of Queen Fabiola to King Baudouin I of Belgium, and the Golf Ball, which honored Draps golf-playing friendship with Belgium's King Leopold III. Godiva would later be named the official purveyor of chocolate to the Belgian Royal Court.

Godiva Chocolate Rum Balls

1 lb. fruitcake, sliced and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 cups (8 ounces) walnut pieces
3 cups confectioners' sugar, divided
2 bars (1.5 ounces each) Godiva Dark Chocolate, chopped
1 /4 cup rum

Place fruitcake and nuts in bowl of food processor fitted with metal chopping blade. Cover and pulse until mixture is very finely chopped. Transfer to mixing bowl.

Add 2 cups confectioners' sugar and chocolate. Mix well with fork. Add rum and mix until ingredients are uniformly moistened. Add a little more rum, if needed, to hold ingredients together.

Line baking sheet with waxed paper. Shape fruitcake mixture into 1-inch balls by rolling between palms of hands. Repeat to make about 50 balls. Place remaining confectioners’ sugar in shallow bowl. Roll balls in sugar until thoroughly coated. Transfer to waxed paper-lined baking sheet and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Store rum balls in covered container for up to 3 days.

www.godiva.com

Dost Thou Needeth an Action Figurine of a Man of Great Wit and Intellect - Looketh No Further

from the folks at www.shakespearesden.com

He touched our minds with his plays and sonnets, and now you can touch him by putting a firm grip on your very own William Shakespeare action figure. Let him watch over your copy William Shakespeare: The Complete Works, Deluxe Edition [UNABRIDGED] (Leather Bound) or let him do battle with your Star Wars action figures and see who wins, for the pen is mightier than the light saber. Features removable quill pen and book and is proudly displayed on an illustrated blister card with Shakespeare facts printed on the back.

Jane Austen was one of the greatest English novelists in history. Despite a rather sheltered life, she was able to capture the subtleties of human interaction so perfectly that her novels continue to be immensely popular to this day.
As magnificent of a finger puppet as there ever was one. Jane Austen wrote lots of books, and now she can be in lots of your own finger puppet shows. When your tired, stick her on your refrigerator, she's also a magnet.
If Jane Austen were alive today, she'd want you to buy this. Don't make her sad.

Buddhist Thought for the Day

To be enlightened is simply to be absolutely, unconditionally intimate with this moment. No more. No less.

-- Scott Morrison

Returns Lips to Near Virgin Quality

"Lookin' Good for Jesus" lip balm is seen in an undated file photo. A Singapore-based retailer pulled a line of cheeky Jesus branded cosmetics from its shelves after complaints from irate Catholics, the local newspaper reported on Tuesday.
REUTERS/Blue Q/Handout

Be worthy! Be noticed! Get tight with Christ! Look your Sunday best on every day. Returns lips to near virgin quality. Redeems you in his eyes and takes the edge off sinning.

Yes, Folks, It's Time To Watch That Christopher Guest Movie Again!!

Vikki, a Toy Poodle and winner of the Toy Group, is presented by Kaz Hosaka of Japan during judging at the 131st Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden in New York on Feb. 12, 2007.

Yes, folks, it's that time of year again. The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is back in town. Surprise, surprise of course the winner of the toy group was a poodle. Apparently a poofy haircut gives you extra super dooper bonus points with the judges. Personally, I always wind up rooting for the pugs.