Higher percentage?

One of the big New York city specific issues in the newspapers is Mayor Bloomberg's bid to get re-elected to a third term as New York mayor. Putting aside what I think, I wonder if people have considered a sort of modified term limit structure, allowing candidates to continue running but against higher thresholds? For example, why shouldn't Bloomberg have to get 55% of the vote this time to stay in office? That way, really popular incumbents can stay in power in tough times, but only by virtue of a very difficult to secure super majority.

EDIT: I found a letter to the editor on point.

One way tax calculator

I notice that the Obama-Biden tax calculator that Althouse links never actually says "your taxes are likely go up under the Obama-Biden plan", but only gives information if you're getting a tax cut. Not, to be clear, that I believe anyone's going to get a tax cut under either Obama or McCain in the final analysis, not in the midst of our dreadful fiscal condition, but I did find it amusing.

Chanterelle cookbook

I spent a couple of hours yesterday afternoon flipping through the newly released Chanterelle cookbook (I have never dined at Chanterelle, but am told it is very good). The book is exceptionally well conceived, especially from the perspective of a home cook planning a fancy dinner party, and the recipes provided are both accessible and seem delicious. This is nothing like the Alinea cookbook, which both makes it a more useful resource, and also, paradoxically, a less compelling buy.

What if firefighters ran the world?

Am I alone in thinking that this commercial, entitled "What if firefighters ran the world?" is disturbingly totalitarian?

Weekend eating (pumpkin risotto, greek style kebabs)

I roasted one of the two halloween pumpkins we brought back from lake George last weekend, and make a simple risotto of pumpkin and greek yogurt (so much better than the fat laden risotto we had at the Sagamore). I also boiled and roasted the seeds, coating some in ras al hanout and salt for snacking, and using others in a low fat pumpkin bread with some more of the pumpkin puree.

On Saturday, I continued working on my version of a greek classic - ground lamb kebabs with yogurt sauce, as we always enjoy at the excellent Agnanti. My experiments have led to the following recipe - add one measure of lamb to a third measure of fresh bread crumbs, and season heavily. Add one egg, and form into football shapes. Broil under the highest heat possible until well charred (a barbecue is better). While broiling, fill the center of a plate with greek yogurt, and top with any kind of spicy tomato sauce (even salsa, believe it or not, works fine). Line the kebabs in a pinwheel around the yogurt, dust the plate with a hot pepper (I use a ground pepper mix my mom has friends send us from Syria), and serve with pita. The result is a very light meatball, with good accompanying flavors that make even those a little wary of lamb dig right in. With less ambitious meals like this one, we have been drinking pinotage, which satisfies both some of my burgundy craving while being cheap and undemanding.

* Grind your own lamb, or have the butcher do it for you. It's so much better.

** I suppose its helpful to note that my previous attempts involved soaking the bread crumbs in milk (the kebabs become too light and hard to handle), using pita bread (no real difference) and using a higher percentage of breadcrumbs (too light). This really is not a complicated recipe, and I was trying to do too much.

Food dilemmas

Is it better to have ordered the insipid black bass and root vegetables everyone else ordered, or was I right to order the amazing langoustine pasta, even though I cannot even imagine how much flavor sat mocking me in the plate as I realized that grinding the shells in my mouth and sucking the roe from what was left over might give the potential summer associate I was interviewing the wrong idea?

Eh, I still think I did the right thing.