What I Learned on Christmas

Yorkshire pudding was one of the sacred rites of my family. The roast was splendid, of course, but the pudding--never made in muffin tins, but in a fluted or otherwise oddly shaped baking dish, so that the crust could rise up in eccentric shapes to delight the eye, as the pudding itself would delight the palate--was the centerpiece. For my father's birthday one year he asked for (and received) a triple recipe of YP all for himself. And I should note that the man is now 96--the eggs and beef dripping and milk and salt don't seem to have harmed him materially, even as to cholesterol.

Yesterday I learned that rice flour is not an optimal substitute for regular wheat flour. It still tastes pretty good, but the miraculously eggy salty custard part was a little gritty and too heavy. It worked for my gluten-averse sister-in-law, and I might experiment with different flours to see if it can be improved. But for household use, I want the canonical Yorkshire pudding of my yout', wheat flour and all.

The Sherlock Holmes Movie

This is not Conan Doyle's Holmes. Nor Jeremy Brett's, nor Laura King's nor...well, never mind. It's Holmes as Action Hero (with the kung-fu grip). Once I let that go, it was surprisingly fun, and the byplay between Holmes and Watson was just delicious. Also: Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law (what's not to like?). Could have done with Irene Adler's name being pronounced properly. Could have wished she wasn't an international thief (!). But the only thing that just grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and pulled me right out of the movie was the long, sloppy side-bang worn by Mary Morstan when she meets Holmes for the first time. They never got her hair right.

That's the worst I can say; it was pretty enjoyable. Avocado thought it was just swell.