Braised Beef, Peppers and Onions (Page 441)

• Date: Saturday, December 9, 2006 - 8pm
• Location: Somerville, MA
• Kitchen: My Apartment
• Dining Companion: Matty
• Recipe Rating: B+

I wanted to make some sort of stew this past weekend and I picked this one because it seemed like a good opportunity to get one of the longer recipes done. It was good. The broth had a slow-cooked richness to it that I really appreciated. The flank steak was perfectly cooked -- tender and delicious. My biggest hesitation about the dish was that it was quite sweet. The peppers were delicious but there were so many of them that the gave the dish a very sweet taste, which was a little bit much for me. I was also unsure about the pimento-stuffed olives. I would have preferred the dish without them. Overall thought it was a good dish, and while it took quite a while to make, the depth of flavor that resulted was definitely worth it.

Last night the Wednesday crew got together and made dinner. The food was disappointing, but we still had a good time and checked off another 6 recipes. It was out last Wednesday dinner of the calendar year! One of the things I am looking forward to the most about my holiday travels is getting to cook with some people that I haven't seen in a while! Mel and Rach: I am counting on you guys to help me cook/eat some food for my project!

Yesterday was the last day of class/seminar at MIT for the semester. Consequently everyone has been in a really good mood for the last few days. It is easy to let your stress build up throughout the semester, and at the end you feel as though you can finally really exhale, which is a nice feeling. I always enjoy the end of the semester. It's so pleasant to walk down the halls and hear students clapping for their professors on the last day of class. Honestly, I don't feel any less stressed out now that the semester has ended, but I am looking forward to having a change of scenery for a month while I work on my thesis.