Stoned!
Part of: Ashlee Simpson , Brangelina , Food , Gossip , Sienna Miller , Stoned! , Television
--Colin Farrell should have shagged Angelina Jolie when he had the chance. He told OK! Magazine, ‘Nothing happened between me and Angelina – unfortunately…I just feel lucky to have worked with her - I'm sure many men would have wanted to be in my shoes.’ No, Colin. Most men are laughing their heads off at the fact that despite rumors to the contrary--a charismatic, young and well-endowed actor like you couldn’t get Angelina into bed. [Ananova]
--It looks like Sienna Miller and Jude Law are finally over—Sienna had her people remove her toothbrush, lingerie and Jude's favorite sweater from his London flat. Thank God. I was ready to purge if they got back together again. [3AM]
--Acclaimed photographer and director of Rize, Dave LaChapelle, is still holding a serious grudge against Jessica and Ashlee Simpson for backing out of a "too edgy" Rolling Stone photo shoot last September. Sources say that LaChapelle was acting like a diva with his original demands. Maybe he should STFU about getting a $10,000 cancellation fee from them and get on with his life. [Page Six]
--Tara Reid has finally woken up from her drunken stupor and realized that she is over 30, not that hot or talented, and has no career. Her new PR angle is that she’s a Sweet Innocent Child that the Big Bad Tabloids have wrongly accused of being a drunken party girl. Yeah, Tara… and that’s why E! gave you your own a show called Wild On! Taradise. [Female First]
--You might want to pass on the salmon at your next film premiere. If your caterer buys salmon from Wal-Mart, you are eating salmon raised in Chile where…’They are raised in packed underwater pens--as many as 1 million per farm--and fed prophylactic antibiotics to prevent disease. Here's a fact you'd rather not know: A million salmon produce the same amount of waste as 65,000 people. Combine that waste with unconsumed food and antibiotic residue, and you've got a toxic seabed.’ Sorry, I just puked. [Chicago Tribune]
--To cleanse your palate, buy some nice ‘desert island’ chocolate bars: Valrhona Manjari, Pralus Madagascar and Steve De Vries Costa Rican Trinitario at this site. Valrhona Manjari is one of my faves: hint, hint and you can buy it at Whole Foods. [NYT]
Ingrid's Spicy Hot Chocolate
½ vanilla bean
2 cups whole milk
2 tablespoons mineral or filtered water
1 pinch ground ginger
1 pinch cinnamon
1 pinch black pepper
1 pinch licorice powder (optional)
3 ½ ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 teaspoons Scharffen Berger natural cocoa powder
1 to 2 teaspoons sugar
3 tablespoons heavy cream.
1. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, scrape out the seeds and place the seeds and pod in a medium saucepan. Add the milk, water and spices and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Whisk in the chocolate and cocoa powder until melted. Add the sugar to taste and then the cream. Let cool for 45 minutes.
2. To serve, remove the vanilla pod, return to the stove and whisk over low heat until frothy and warm. Serves 4. Adapted from "The Chocolate Connoisseur."
Chocolate Financiers
Vegetable oil
9 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 vanilla bean
1 cup confectioners' sugar
¼ cup plus 2 teaspoons flour
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon finely ground almonds
1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon finely ground pistachios
4 egg whites.
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a financier mold (tops of mold should measure approximately 1 7/8 by 3 ¾ inches), madeleine mold or small muffin tin with vegetable oil and place on a baking sheet. If you use individual molds, you'll need 14.
2. Melt the butter over medium-low heat, stirring often, until it turns amber and smells nutty; keep warm. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over low heat and keep warm. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Set both the pod and seeds aside.
3. In a large bowl, sift together the sugar and flour. Add the almonds and pistachios and mix with a wooden spoon. Add the egg whites, vanilla pod and seeds and stir vigorously. Strain a quarter of the warm butter over the mixture and stir to combine. Strain in the remaining butter and mix well; then stir in the melted chocolate.
Let the batter cool to room temperature. Remove the vanilla pod. (The batter will hold in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.)
4. Pour the batter almost to the top of the molds. Bake for 12 to 13 minutes; rotate the pan after 6 minutes. Let cool slightly on the baking sheet and then transfer from the mold to a baking rack. Makes 14 financiers. Adapted from Chloé Doutre-Roussel.
Previously:
Angelina Hearts Butterflies
Le Ugly American
Plastic R Us
Happy Birthday, Paris!