The joy of Procreation

Procreate® must be one of the most poorly named apps out there. It has nothing to do with the making of babies, with which I am already well-versed, but is instead a best-selling program for making art (not love) on the iPad. Cassie recently introduced me to the Procreate app (check out her collection of beautiful pieces sometime), and I took a course for beginners that she recommended. There are also tons of YouTube videos, one of which I adapted to make this, which you should all be very familiar with:

Now you have a fancy-schmancy, fully downloadable version of the index card of fatherly wisdom, just in case you ever forget the complex principles I formulated to guide you in pursuing a happy life.

 

After the index card, my next project was a no-brainer: after six years, it was time to design the Use a Kitchen Scale logo. For those of you who haven't noticed yet (shame on you), about a week ago I deployed the logo on the right side of the screen, above the "SEARCH THIS BLOG" gadget. See it over there? 

↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗↗

 

And here it is blown up so you can really appreciate my surprisingly refined, albeit nascent, artistic sensibility:

Nice, right? Licensing opportunities are available at attractive rates for anyone who wants to use the logo to move some merch.

 

*********

When not engaged in weighty artistic endeavors, I have continued with the microwave experiments, among other things. I expected very little from this other than a quick meal on a night when no one felt like cooking, but I was pleasantly surprised that this turned out to be one of the best microwave dishes yet. For almost no work (maybe 5 minutes active), this was actually deeply satisfying and more filling than expected when topped with some cotija cheese and scooped up with tortilla chips. Mom and Cass both loved it.

 

Chipotle Black Bean Soup

Adapted from Anyday

Time: ~20 minutes

The recipe says to use 2 jalapeños, but I only used a half for Mom’s sake. If you took my advice in episode 371 and stored your leftover chipotle chiles in adobo by pureeing them and then freezing them by the tablespoonful, 1 frozen disk will be perfect here. A recent issue of Cook's Illustrated said they actually love garlic powder, which I've hardly ever used before. Apparently, they all taste the same, so "any garlic powder will do."

1 (29-ounce) can or 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained
1½ cups (355 grams) vegetable stock (I mixed 1½ cups (355 grams) boiling water with 1½ teaspoons (9 grams) Better Than Bouillon Seasoned Vegetable Base)
½ of a Fresno or jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced, or to taste (see note)
1 tablespoon chipotle chile peppers in adobo (see note)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
½ teaspoon garlic powder (see note)
½ teaspoon ground cumin
salt, to taste

To serve

sour cream

diced avocado

freshly chopped cilantro

a squeeze of lime

crumbled cotija cheese

tortilla chips

    1. Stir all the ingredients together in a 2-quart, microwave-safe bowl. Cover with the lid (cracked or knob lifted on an Anyday bowl), if it has one, or almost all of the way with a dinner plate.
    2. Cook until the ingredients are tender and the liquid is slightly thickened, about 10 to 12 minutes depending on the power of your microwave (it took 12 minutes in our ancient 700-watt microwave), stirring once halfway through.
    3. Using a regular blender or, preferably, an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth (or leave it a little chunky if you like). Adjust the taste for salt and acid. Serve promptly with any of the suggested items. Serves 2 or 3.