Theme: Going in circles
18A. Poof : UP IN SMOKE.
23A. "Danger, Will Robinson!" sci-fi series : LOST IN SPACE.
37A. "Lincoln" director : STEVEN SPIELBERG.
53A. Gilbert and Sullivan work subtitled "The Lass That Loved a Sailor" : HMS PINAFORE.
And the unifier:
59A. Washing machine phase graphically shown in this puzzle's circles : SPIN CYCLE.
I really like the progression, where the "S" moves from the end position, one at a time, pulling the rest of the word along with it. But I have the feeling I have seen this theme recently...no?
The fill seemed like a Monday romp to me. I made one pass across and down, and was done. How was your experience?
Across:
1. Nine-time Grammy winner Mary J. ___ : BLIGE. Introduced to her from crosswords. But I do like her Mary Jane (All Night Long).
6. Honeyed quaff : MEAD.
10. High point : ACME. Or, a Road Runner supplier.
14. Pine product : ROSIN. Used often on my violin bow, in my ute...
15. Nobel Peace Prize city : OSLO.
16. Mount color : ROAN.
17. Kind of elephant : ASIAN.
20. Wide-headed fasteners : T-NUTS.
22. Peppy and then some : HYPER.
28. Big jerk? : TUG.
29. Actress Thurman : UMA. I loved her "Kill Bill" series.
30. ___ cotta : TERRA.
31. Frequent award for Tiger Woods : ESPY. Nice change from "Catch sight of" clue. Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly award.
32. Christmas buys : GIFTS. Santa Argyle, who are you gifting with coal this year?
35. River mammal : OTTER.
43. Godly : PIOUS.
44. Group scuffle : MELEE.
45. Layered haircut : SHAG. Like Mike Myers'?
48. Get a giggle from : AMUSE. Does he amuse you?
51. "Inferno" author Brown : DAN. He is a big crossword aficionado.
52. Prosciutto, e.g. : HAM.
56. Difficult high school sci. course : AP BIO. Advanced Placement Biology. One of my courses in H.S.
58. Solitary soul : LONER.
63. Private account : DIARY.
66. One still maturing : TEEN.
67. "___ go bragh!" : ERIN.
68. Common Sundance entry : INDIE. I always wondered why India was such a big presence at the Sundance film festival. But I finally learned that the name stands for "Independent" films.
69. Author Radcliffe and a cape : ANNS. Huh? An author and a Massachusetts cape?
70. Russian refusal : NYET.
71. Preppy collars : ETONS.
Down:
1. Strapped support : BRA. I bet Alessandra Ambrosio gets a lot of support from her fans.
2. UCLA article : LOS. Los Angeles ("The" Angels.)
3. "Can I come out now?" : IS IT SAFE?
4. Really big : GIANT.
5. Bordeaux boredom : ENNUI. Not sure why "Bordeaux" is in the clue. It's the same word in English.
6. Chocolate treat : MOUSSE.
7. Purported ability : ESP. "Purported" because it is not scientifically proven.
8. 2001 boxing biopic : ALI. Starring Will Smith.
9. Step into, as a pair of slacks : DON. Wha? Why not clue it as "Half of the Crossword Corner Dynamic Duo"???
10. West Point team : ARMY. My nephew is the athletic trainer for them.
11. Appropriates : CO-OPTS.
12. Facial cosmetics : MAKEUP.
13. Cabinet department created under Carter : ENERGY.
19. Lady's pronoun : SHE.
21. "Falling Skies" network: TNT. Never saw it. Any good?
23. Schleps : LUGS.
24. Replace with an ellipsis : OMIT...
25. Supports : PROPS UP.
26. Drawing intro : ART I.
27. Oscar winner Blanchett : CATE. "The Aviator" was one of my favorite films that year. She did a great job portraying Katharine Hepburn.
31. Kathryn of "Law & Order: C.I." : ERBE. No clue. Lots of ladies in this puzzle.
33. Freq. sitcom rating : TV PG.
34. Sicilian six : SEI. Had to sharpen up my Italian counting skills when I went to Italy in June. Uno, due, tre, quattro, cinque, sei...
36. Stately shader : ELM.
38. Author Chomsky : NOAM. From M.I.T. He's waaaay over my head!
39. Column enders : SUMS.
40. Mythical city of gold : EL DORADO.
41. Duff : REAR. Was thinking "golf" here! So, kick me in the butt!
42. DNA component : GENE.
45. Soda born at the base of a California mountain : SHASTA.
.JPG)
46. Go down, so to speak : HAPPEN. It's what's happening!!
47. Insomniac's prescription : AMBIEN.
49. Like one "k" in "knuckle" : SILENT.
50. Byrne's "Strange Overtones" collaborator : ENO. Brian, of elevator music fame.
53. Ad ___ committee : HOC.
54. Bill's "Groundhog Day" co-star : ANDIE. MacDowell. And Bill Murray. He is a regular visitor to my town. I have even had drinks with him at the local watering hole.
55. False move : FEINT.
57. Places to stay : INNS.
60. Craving : YEN.
61. Howl or bark : CRY.
62. Tell a tale : LIE.
64. "A Dog of the Regiment" dog ___ Tin Tin : RIN.
65. "Without a doubt!" : YES. I believe we are done here!
And that's it for this week. Till next time!
Marti
72 comments:
Morning, all!
Nice puzzle, though not much to say about it. No circles in my grid, so the theme was invisible to me. Paused briefly trying to get UP IN SMOKE for the clue "Poof" and APBIO looks like a totally made up word (although I'm sure that abbreviation has been used somewhere by somebody before). Other than that, smooth sailing throughout.
Just an FYI, I'll be leaving on a trip early Saturday morning and will be gone for a week or so. Might be able to check in occasionally, but then again I might not...
[astsxpe]
We have not seen young Neville in a while; this one did not keep my head spinning, but went quickly fora Thursday.
We get Run Tin Tin again, AMBIEN and the lovely ANDIE. Also where did you find that SHASTA can, it looks like one I kicked many years ago. Thanks Marti and enjoy the rain Florida
Happy Thursday everybody!
Someone, somewhere, somehow must have mixed up the Monday / Tuesday for the Wednesday / Thursday puzzles. Like yesterday, I absolutely flew through today’s offering at record pace….
The SPIN theme revealed itself way before the unifer – mostly because Lost In Space was a gimme for this sci-fi fan. John Williams (Jaws, Star Wars, ET, the list goes on and on) did the theme music, but was listed in the credits as “Johnny” Williams…. He actually did two different theme songs, here’s the one used for Seasons 1 and 2, and here’s the one used for Season 3….
UP IN SMOKE took a couple of perps, but I had to laugh out loud when it revealed – another great film experience. So many memorable scenes and quotes – how about the original movie trailer…? Or this PEPPY instrumental from the band YESCA, Lost Due to Incompetence…?
Speaking of movies, Marathon Man is another classic, along with the catch-phrase IS IT SAFE…? Not a scene for the dentophobiac in the family….
Liked seeing the shout out to the GIANTs, even though they certainly don’t deserve one this year….
Finally, my favorite clue was Strapped Support for BRA, a device that seems to have endless possibilities, insofar as crossword clueing is concerned….
Good Morning, Marti and friends. YES! This certainly was an easier puzzle than our standard Thursday fare. I enjoyed it, though. The theme answers were easily filled.
I still remember thus little ditty from when I was a kid,so whenever I see the word OTTER, this runs through my head: If you like the water / then you really OTTER / Learn how to swim at the YMCA.
I thought Author Radcilff and a cape was a strange clue. I figured out the answer was ANNS, but had to look up the author. Ann Radcliff lived from 1764-1823, and is a gothic novelist.
QOD: [If] It’s so beautifully arranged on the plate ~ you know someone’s fingers have been all over it. ~ Julia Child (Aug. 15, 1912, ~ Aug. 13, 2004)
[ampopov]
Great write-up Marti and great puzzle Neville. This was almost a speed run for me. like Barry no circles but I had enough perps, clues, and knowledge to suss out the theme answers though not the theme until I read it hear. did not like AP Bio as my HS did not have the class since bio was for 10th graders AP Chem and AP Physics of course. Well sure happy its Thursday weekend around the corner and I will find out how far I will be driving my son for his travel soccer season.
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Neville Fogarty, for a swell puzzle. Thank you, Marti, for the swell review.
Sounds like others had a much easier time than I did with today's puzzle. It was not a speed run for me.
Did not know BLIGE for 1A. Came later.
Had RESIN for 14A. LOS fixed that after a while to ROSIN.
Tried TACKS for 20A. TNUTS came much later.
CO OPTS seemed clunky. 6 perps and I had it.
Had no circles in my puzzle since I am using the IPad this morning. Got going before the paper showed up. Them came after I read the blog. Got all the answers, however, or I would not be here.
AP BIO was not familiar to me. We probably had comparable classes, but not named as such.
HMS PINAFORE helped me with NOAM Chomsky.
Not familiar with INDIE, or ANDIE, and they crossed. A Wag worked for me.
Tried TEASE for 48A. That slowed me down in the center until AMUSE became obvious with SUMS.
SHASTA was easy once I had a couple letters. Been to Redding, CA many times years ago. Beautiful setting. The California Aquaduct appreciates Mt Shasta and all the snow that eventually melts and runs south.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
(elsumd)
Good morning!
This was a top-to-bottom dive this morning. My only writeover was ADOPTS/COOPTS, otherwise a speed run.
I'd never heard of APBIO. My little high school was lucky to have just the regular variety, and I managed to get kicked out of that one.
Hi Y'all! I concur that this was an easier puzzle than the usual Thursday although not without challenge. Took me five minutes less than yesterday. Great, Neville! There were some clues I didn't even see until I read Marti's wisdoms.
BRA/BLIGE was a gimmee to start. Only other Mary K. I know sells MAKEUP.
Didn't know what AP BIO was. No such advanced courses in the boonies when I was in school. They finally got some when my youngest was in jr. high but they were kind of a joke with him.
The mount color slowed me down a bit. I wanted "blanc", then "red" then aha ROAN.
COOPTS was all perps for me too. Not a word I would expect from that clue.
ESP is not and never will be scientifically proven, but for those of us who have had spooky things happen, the reality leaves little doubt even if we'd like to. Some things just can't be explained and are not usually shared.
"Byrne's 'Strange Overtones' collaborator : ENO. Brian, of elevator music fame."
He's famous for reasons other than making "elevator music," and good reasons at that.
He was part of Roxy Music, worked with U2, Coldplay, Depeche Mode and, most impressively, collaborated with David Bowie on three albums, two of which were among the finest three Bowie ever made (i.e. "Low" in 1976 and "Lodger" in 1979).
In other words, Eno is a heavyweight.
Anon@ 7:31. David Byrne is also a major influence in Music. He was once with Tina Weymouth and the Talking Heads. He continues to make music and recently wrote a book entitled How Music Works.
I did the puzzle from Mensa on paper. Later I looked at my newspaper to see the circles. Fun puzzle, easy for a Thursday. Interesting blog, as always, Marti.
I stared at APBIO for a while and then I could parse it. We had no AP classes at my HS, but I thought it was a great clue.
NOAM is the most famous Chomsky I know. It seems to be a male name, but I taught an Israeli girl anmed NOAM.
I know Kathryn has a German surname, but I always need two perps to recall it.
ESP, purported ability, reminds me of RANDI.
Mount color=ROAN is clever.
Good morning everybody!
Good puzzle today. My only "Huh" was when I filled in COOPTS for 11D. It wasn't until I read the explanation that I got it: CO-OPTS!
I tried ONO for EMO at 50D, which reminds me of something my brother once said.
"I'd like to introduce UMA Thurman to Emo Phillips. It would sound something like this:
"Uma, Emo. Emo, Uma."
(Now try saying that three times fast!
Enjoy your day!
The Strawberry Roan by Curley Fletcher
I was laying round town just spending my time
Out of a job and not makin' a dime
When up steps a feller and he says, "I suppose
That you're a bronc rider by the looks of your clothes?"
He guesses me right. "And a good one I'll claim
Do you happen to have any bad ones to tame?"
He says he's got one that's a good one to buck
And at throwing good riders he's had lots of luck.
He says this old pony has never been rode
And the man that gets on him is bound to be throwed
I gets all excited and I ask what he pays
To ride this old pony a couple of days.
He says, "Ten dollars." I says, "I'm your man
The bronc never lived that I cannot fan
The bronc never tried nor never drew breath
That I cannot ride till he starves plumb to death."
He says, "Get your saddle. I'll give you a chance."
We got in the buggy and went to the ranch
We waited till morning, right after chuck
I went out to see if that outlaw could buck.
Down in the corral, a-standin' alone
Was this little old caballo, a strawberry roan
He had little pin ears that touched at the tip
And a big forty-four brand was on his left hip.
Link Entire poem
Anon @ 7:31, yes, of course ENO is a heavyweight. But unfortunately many people only think of him as "the guy who was the innovator of ambient music." (Unfortunately.) But it's not easy to summarize an artist's accomplishments in one or two sentences in a blog. That's why the comments are alway appreciated, because here we can go into more depth.
Hahtoolah, great quote from Julia Child, and it really does enter my mind when I am served a beautifully arranged plate like that.
Lemony, I had a lot of choices from images that I gg'd for SHASTA, but I'm glad I picked the one from your ute!!
Looks like we get to use a new acronym on the blog next week: WBWHS (what Barry would have said).
YR, here's that poem set to music: Strawberry Roan 3:23 from the same Marty Robbins album that contained El Paso.
I work out entire sections and so I probably took longer than Marti on this easy Thursday with a clever theme whose subtle progression I missed
Musings
-Religious symbols near the ROSIN BAG caused a kerfuffle in St. Louis this year
-My neighbor has four HYPER 5th grade boys she is getting tired of redirecting. It could be a long year for her
-Hudson’s 11th birthday yesterday garnered him cash and gift cards and no real GIFTS (except for the Darth Vader cupcake from his sister). Being Alex P. Keaton Jr., he was very satisfied
-Alessandro’s “hold up” is one I, uh, support
-This spring, OKC residents had to be asking IS IT SAFE now?
-“DON we now our gay apparel” has a whole different meaning these days
- My favorite EL DORADO
-Farmer’s motto about rain, drought, bugs, cost of fuel, gov’t policy,… - “If it’s gonna HAPPEN, it’s gonna HAPPEN”. Rural equivalent of que sera sera.
-One FEINT and Kobe would be past me like I was a fence post
-In what movie is the question “Do I AMUSE you?” sound very threatening?
-What animal of song was in the water “…doing what he OTTER”?
Good morning everyone.
I got lost in space @ 23a not knowing that CATE started with a 'c' and had tugs before LUGS @ 23d. Sigh. Every thing else fell in well and overall it was a fun solve. Favorite fill was UP IN SMOKE.
@ 49d. I view 'knuckle' as a sort of 'cousin' word to the
German - Knochen (bone)
L. German - Knaken
And no, the "k" is not SILENT.
Have a great day.
Hi there~!
"I think he may fold under questioning~!", right HuskerG?
DAH~! Did not get my TA-DA today, I had rEsin, not rOsin, and the article in UCLA slipped past me.
Oh well.
Splynter
Someone on the Pittsburgh Pirates has pranked pitcher A.J. Burnett twice this season by sabotaging his ROSIN bag in the 1st inning. No one will claim the joke, however, because A.J. takes these things very seriously. Article with video.
To quote Doha Doc, "Someone, somewhere, somehow must have mixed up the Monday / Tuesday for the Wednesday / Thursday puzzles. Like yesterday, I absolutely flew through today’s offering at record pace….". My thoughts, exactly. But I am having oral surgery on my jaw this afternoon--I should have skipped watching that clip!
The college credit my sons got for passing AP tests was well worth the $60 cost. They did have to buy their texts but were able to sell them at the end of the year to next year students. I chuckled, several years later, when a student showed me some notes in the margin of his AP text that were Very Helpful. They were ones my son had written that first year we had AP classes..
I use an iPad and the circles show up for me. I got the theme fairly quickly.
Have a good day, everybody,
Montana
Forgot to thank YR for The Strawberry Roan. I read them with the tune going through my head.
Then D-O linked the song. Good memories! Thanks.
Same with Husker's post. "The Little White Duck" took over the mental airwaves.
Montana
Good Morning:
Same error as Splynter made, so a FIW. Easier than typical Thursday, but fun, nonetheless. Thanks, Neville, and thanks, Marti, for your always delightful " spin."
Abejo, I can't understand why your iPad/Cruciverb app doesn't show the circles, as mine does. You've mentioned this before. Any other iPad users have this problem?
Have a great day.
G'Morning all:
An early start to the day as school "pre-programs" begin SPIN up.
Thanks Neville for a fun puzzle and Marti for the write-up. I needed the expo for COOPTS.
Theme was easy to get, but 1a and 54d both required a Google to break open those corners, so DNF. 1d perplexed me forever as I'm thinking "Hurricane straps, truss, er, um..." Duh.
My favorite David Byrne reference is from the Crash Test Dummies in their song "When I Go Out with Artists:"
If I were David Byrne
I'd go to galleries and not be too concerned
And I would have a cup of coffee
And I'd find my surroundings quite AMUSing
And people would ask me
Which were my favorite paintings?
Bill G. - Your puzzle - I spent more time on it last night and realized, full powers of 3. If c=3, 1 wighing; c=9, 2; c=27, 3, c=81, 4. Thus, 25-25, take two from heavier pile, go with c=27, c=9, c=3. 4 weighings.
D-O we got 0.6" of rain yesterday. You?
Have a great Thursday all!
-T
I love a puzzle with circles, and am sorry many of you don't seem to have them. What a fun romp, Neville--many thanks! I breezed through this one, enjoying every moment and loving the theme. Only I didn't get the progression of the S (brilliant!) until Marti pointed it out. Anyway, a great way to start a Thursday.
Never heard of SHASTA soda even though I live in the state. Guess I haven't drunk soda since my teens.
Julia Child must have written her platter comment before tongs were invented. I make carefully arranged antipasto platters all the time, but place every item with a small set of tongs.
Barry, thanks for letting us know about your trip (so we don't worry what's happened to you) and have a great time!
Have a great day, everybody!
Hello, Marti and all. Wonderful analysis, HeartRX, thank you.
And thank you, Neville Fogarty, for a quick sashay today. It did have that Monday-Tuesday speed. The SPIN anagram was evident from the top.
Mary J. BLIGE gets around so I have seen her interviewed about her philanthropic activities. Not a big fan of her music, though.
Oh, YES, BRA gets firm support here in the Corner.
CO-OPTS took a while to suss as LUG was there first but then 23D took that away and TUGS replaced it.
CATE Blanchett nailed Jasmine in Woody's latest film. She is superb.
I'm grateful that our German and Italian lessons continue to expand here on the Blog. French is coming along, too. Que bien.
Last week I made meatballs with some prosciutto, ground pork and beef. Mama mia, they were delicioso!
The beautiful and talented ANDIE McDowell stars in a Hallmark series, Cedar Cove, on the weekend.
I hope your Thursday is terrific, everyone!
When my Mary Jane goes UP IN SMOKE, I tend to get LOST IN SPACE.
How come Bill G or CED haven't posted pictures of me yet?!
How about you, T? Show a cutie a little love...?
I can't believe I'm being overlooked like this...
Marti: Nice write-up & links. I'll bet you can guess my fave ...
Without a doubt the easiest Thursday/Circle puzzle ever. JMHO
Hmmm, Here at Villa Incognito, the "Insomniac's prescription" is scotch.
AMBIEN, or any other drug, for that matter, seems like a waste.
I wonder if my '50-Craft Beers On-Tap' pub has a form of MEAD?
Time to wander over and do some research.
Cheers!!!
Anonymous-T: My rain gauge showed 0.2 and Harold (who lives two blocks away) measured 0.4. Fingers crossed. There may be more coming today.
Do any of you dabble in genealogy? I just stumbled across the fact that my maternal grandmother was Pomeranian, not German. I thought a Pomeranian was a breed of dog; I didn't know it was a Polish region. I found grandma and most of her kin folk on a gealogical website devoted to Pomeranian people. Interesting....at least to me.
Greetings!
Again a fast, no hassle puzzle. Thanks Neville and Marti!
I watched Falling Skies about 4 times and got really sick of it. Too traumatic. Has anyone watched Crossing Lines? You cannot skip through the commercials. (What a drag!) I wonder if it was that way before VOD.
My 10 year old Panasonic 50" TV has severe sound problems. Does one try to have someone come and fix it or must one purchase a replacement?
Harv still hiding out. Have run out of many things. A friend supplied some great ratatouille. (And he never even watched the very funny movie!)
Seem to be sleeping in 2 hour increments. No fun. AMBIEN is not good for one and very habit-forming. So, do not have that anymore.
Cheers!
Fermat, if it's 10 years old it's time to bite the bullet and buy a new one. Today's TV's are lots better than they were 10 years ago.
Oops! I didn't mean geological, genealogical.
D-O: Yes, finger's crossed for more rain. The REAR door in the garage takes some ENERGY to close with the dirt pulling from the foundation. As far as genealogy - my dad did some and found Ellis Island records of Great-grandpa entering from Italy, but his mom's side is so mixed (Irish, Dutch, Native American, etc.) he can't get back beyond his great-grands on that side.
Speaking of Grandma C - Lucina: When's dinner? I've not had a good meatball since she passed. Is Prosciutto the secret? Recipe please!
Tinbini - the Crash Test Dummies song I mentioned has a few references to single-malts. I thought of you. Link to full song.
Cheers, -T
d-otto, I found out that many of my ancestors (grandfather's side) were from the Basque country of France. Does that make us all basqards?
D-O: Pomerania was historically part of Germany or Prussia. Western Pomerania is in the NE of today's Germany; while eastern Pomerania is in today's NW Poland. Racially, there would be some Slavic mixed in because the region is on the frontier of the westward Slavic advances of the early middle Ages. Prior to WWI, they would have been fluent in Low German and Standard German. But the history is complex, and there were 'minorities' in that region.
Marti, "Basquards" - I like it! I'll have to share that one with the familia. My grandparents were from the Spanish side of the Pyrenees. I make it a point to always stop off at a Basque restaurant whenever I'm in Bakersfield, CA. Tinbeni, it may interest you to know that that B'field Basque restaurants serve an alcoholic beverage whose label lets us know it is "Sheep Dip."
AnonymousT:
The meatball, spaghetti sauce recipe is from America's Test Kitchen and is available on their website. If you really want and can't access it I'll gladly post it though it is quite long.
And yes, prosciutto is the secret ingredient. Yummy!
Several of my relatives have traced our genealogy to the 17th century Spaniards who ventured into New Mexico where my grandparents were born and in fact originated from Sandoval County.
Doha Doc, I have often thought of hiking the Pyrenees from France to Spain, but somehow my trips always take me to the Alps. Someday...
Hello to All:
Thought today's puzzle was a very easy Thursday--and from what y'all been writing, it just wasn't me then. Strange week, I'd venture to say, then about the week's difficulty levels, no?
I did not like that SPIN was one of the mixed theme entries (Sorry, Neville) and in the reveal--despite the progression thing which I am sure was not easy. That's just me, tho, and what do I know! (LOL)
Enjoyed LOSTINSPACE as one of the theme entries. In other fill, I enjoyed ISITSAFE, APBIO, AMBIEN, and PROPSUP.
Thanks. Neville, for an easy Thursday, as it was.
---Matt
Very doable Thursday. I did not enjoy theme until coming here...no circles don't you know.
D Otto, Pomerian- I bet your people are cute!
Drank lots of SHASTA at kid's ballgames. Cheap and lots of unusual diet flavors.
ENERY and Carter- My memories are of all the "old ladies" dutifully turning their thermostats down their detriment.
SHAG- popular haircut in 70's that I remember being quite sever in the different hair lengths on the same head.
DIARY- I kept a journal when we were missionaries in Kenya in 1979. Very interesting now to see how much i have forgotten. Kind of wish I would have kept a journal of when the twins were toddlers.
I don't remember AP (advanced placement) classes until about 15 yrs ago in Kansas. My daughter had to leave her small HS for a large inner city High School to take AP courses. AP classes led to college credit if you took the test at the end of the course. She also took honors courses in Math, Science And Literature, which our small HS didn't offer. She liked one of her AP teachers so well that she also took 3 years of Russian from him.
I bet Neville took AP courses!
OOPs. " to their detriment"
By popular demand here is America's Test Kitchen Classic Spaghetti and Meatballs for a Crowd (this can be easily downsized into halves or thirds)
Ingredients: MEATBALLS
2 1/4 cups Panko bread crumbs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 lb ground pork
2 lbs 85% lean ground beef
6 ozs thinly sliced and finely chopped
3 ozs grated Parmesan cheese, (about 1 1/2 cups)
6 Tblsps minced fresh parsley leaves
3 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed (about 1 Tblsp)
1 1/2 tsps powdered, unflavored gelatin, dissolved in 3 tblsps cold water
salt and pepper to taste
SAUCE
3 Tbsps extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups grated onion (1-2 onions)
6 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed (about 2 tblsps)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
6 cups bottled tomato juice
3 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
6 Tblsps dry white wine
table salt and pepper
3 lbs spaghetti
1/2 cut minced fresh basil leaves
3 tblsps minced fresh parsley leaves
(to be continued)
INSTRUCTIONS
1. FOR THE MEATBALLS
Place wire racks in 2 foil-lined rimmed baking sheets. Adjust oven racks to lower-middle and upper-middle positions and heat oven to 450 degrees. Combine bread crumbs and buttermilk in large bowl and let sit, mashing occasionally with a fork, until smooth paste forms, about ten minutes.
2. Add egges, beef, pork, prosciutto, Parmesan, parsley, garlin, gelatin mixture, 1 1/2 tsps salt, 1/2 tsp pepper to bread crumb mixture. Using hands, gently mix until thoroughly combined. Lightly formed 1/4 cup mixture into 2-inch round meatballs (about 2 ozs); repeat with remaining mixture to form approximately 40 meatballs.
3. Spray wire racks with nonstick cooking spray and place meatballs, evenly spaced, on racks; roast until browned, about 30 minutes, rotating trays from front to back and top to bottom halfway through.
4. FOR THE SAUCE
While meatballs roast, heat olive oil in large dutch oven over medium heat until simmering. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden around edges, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic, red pepper flakes, and oregano; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30s seconds. Stir in tomato juice, crushed tomatoes, wine 1 1/2 tsps salt and pepper to taste. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes.
5. Remove meatballs from oven and lower oven temperature to 300 degrees. Gently add meatballs to sauce, cover pot, and place in oven. Cook until meatballs are firm and sauce has thickened, about 1 hur.
6. Meanwhile, bring 10 quarts water to boil in 12-qt pot. Add pasta and 2 tbsps salt to boiling water; cook until al dente. Drain pasta and return it to cooking pot.
7. TO SERVE: Stir basil and parsley into sauce and adjust seasoning with sugar, salt and pepper. Toss pasta with 1 1/2 cups sauce until lightly coated. Serve.
Tonight we had Don Katsu, Japanese breaded pork cutlets. I buy thin pork cutlets and pound them to 1/8 inch thickness. My Japanese DIL pounds them twice as thin. Hers are better. Then we salt and pepper them and dredge them in flour. We bread them with beaten egg and panko crumbs, pressing to make the crumbs adhere.
My DIL taught me to refrigerate the breaded meat for half an hour. That way the breading does not fall off. It works with any kind of breaded food. We fry them in oil and drain them. They are good served with bottled Japanese Don Katsu sauce available in Asian stores. I love them.
Katsu Don rather than Don Katsu is an entirely different Japanese pork dish,
I am amazed how useful DIL's refrigeration tip is for any type of frying breaded dishes.
Lucina, your recipe sounds great, I would have to make it much smaller.
I'm sorry to break the 5 post rule but I see that I left off the Prosciutto!
6 ounces thinly sliced, chopped prosciutto (right after the beef)
I made this in two days; one day the meatballs, the next day, the sauce because it is so much. Serves 12.
But as noted, it can be easily divided.
YR
I like your recipe, too and I'll try it. I love Panko bread crumbs.
Lucina, I hereby absolve you of the 5 post limit for today, and give you a free THREE extra posts. Thank you so much for the recipe - I can't wait to try it!
Hi gang -
I'm generally not a fan of circled themes nor anagrammed themes, but this was really well executed. Thought some of the cluing was a bit dodgy, though.
AP BIO - totally from Perps. Danny, Ryan and Amanda all got credit for AP classes last school year.
Did the puzzle this morning, then we took Nate and Em to the zoo. Lots of walking, and I'm really tired.
I had that Marty Robins album when I was a kid. Quite different from my usual musical preferences, but I really enjoyed it.
Suddenly anemic Tigers start a 5 game series with the overachieving Royals tonight. Not a good feeling.
Cool regards!
JzB
Thanks for the write-up, Marti! It's always great to read the comments here at Crossword Corner. Interestingly, I don't think I had circles in the original puzzle I submitted to Rich at the end of last year. (I'd check that, but I'm away from home today.) I wonder how different the solving experience was depending on whether you saw the circles or not. I know this was a very straightforward Thursday crossword, and it seems like those solving without circles still had a fairly easy time with it. I suppose it didn't matter too much!
Lucina, thank you for that great recipe! Can't wait to try it.
Is HeartRx now the blog administrator? What happened to CC?
Hi everybody. No circles for me at the Mensa site. So I didn't suss out the theme right away but I got it OK without them once I got to 59A (though I didn't get the progression until I read Marti's great writeup). Thanks Marti and Neville.
I really like it when the constructor stops in. I wish Rich would visit too from time to time.
The trouble with ESP and other paranormal occurrences is that we notice them when they occasionally happen but we don't notice them the far greater number of times when they don't happen. We notice when something happens in threes but then we disregard it when the fourth thing happens.
AnonT, good job! Dividing things by threes was counterintuitive for me.
Barbara bit the bullet and scheduled Verizon to come and replace TimeWarner with FIOS. It's cheaper, supposedly better and the foofaraw with CBS is annoying. I never look forward to the new learning curve but I'm sure it will all work out OK after I get used to the new DVR.
Hola Everyone, Late to the party today. Still trying to catch up from vacation chores--grocery shopping, laundry, and e-mails.
My questions, problems, and those answers that needed to be erased and reentered were already commented on by others.
At first glance I didn't think this was going to be a very easy puzzle, but as it ended up, I was finished in a fairly good time. My one question was Indie for Sundance entry. Thanks Marti for clarifying that answer.
Yellowrocks, I enjoyed the poem about the Roan today. Thanks for posting.
Lucina, Thanks for the great sounding recipe. I can't wait to make it. But it would taste twice as good if you could share it at our table.
Have a great evening everyone.
I have to check the spam filter more often. Sorry, little guy.
"An Olinguito said...11:11 AM
How come Bill G or CED haven't posted pictures of me yet?!
How about you, T? Show a cutie a little love...?
I can't believe I'm being overlooked like this...
August 15, 2013 at 11:11 AM"
Here is the latest link for Olinguito. LINK
Argyle - Thanks for the link on the Olinguito, CBS News had it on tonight.
Yes thanks A. I heard about the Olinguito driving home and here it was waiting for me. Why did auto correct accept Olinguito?
Also just did a fun NYT by Jeff Chen.
Neville good to see you, school keeping you busy?
Neville, so glad you checked in! Great fill and a tight theme made it a great Thursday puzzle! I actually liked that the circles were added, although I think I would have "gotten" the theme without them...
Anon@ 7:02, whoever writes the blog for the day writes all the rules!! (^0^) Harrgh, Harrgh, Harrgh....
The olinguito can type and is a blogger apparently. Very excellent! Cute little fellow.
Here's a pretty amazing photo of the thinnest crescent moon you'll ever see I'm guessing. Crescent!
Lucina:
Thanks for posting the recipie. Its not the one I found today, so now I know I've got THE ONE! It will be a few weeks before I get back on my results (next two weekends are booked), but those meatballs, the sauce, and some home-made noodles sound like a fun way to spend the September weekend before I get a physical :-)
YR - I will try that with the bread-crubs. Usually, I only bread cheep fish (telapia (I know we just had that word, but, without perps, my spelling is off :-). I will try it with some pork one night.
I don't know why I'm still talking about food - I just took my kids to dinner and then we watched a movie. I'm still stuffed, but those recipies sound so yummy.
BillG. The three's came to me when I went to base case (I like recursive algorithms). Unfortunately, my arithmatic never keeps up with my math.... I can do algebra, trig, and calc in my head, but there are 4 threes in 12, not 3. I looked back and when, shoot, 3-3,3-3 and didn't reconsider why I started with 12. Doh.
What's tonight's puzzle.
Neville - thanks for stopping by and giving us behind-the-thinking...
Lem - is that todays NYT with Jeff? If so, maybe the corner store still has a paper left (I'm in Houston, so its sometimes a crap-shoot).
Argyle - thanks for the link on the new animal. I'm going to read the whole thing when I get caught up with email (4 hours gone; I can't belive how it stacks up).
Cheers, -T
Absolutely loved today's puzzle. At 1st those circles threw me off, but made it more fun to solve. Will read later, but wanted to share this.
So glad this was not at Sallie's house, although she might be close by.DH still follows the Naples news.
AT, yes it is today's NYT and I really enjoyed it.
Crocodiles and bears, what next for Florida
AnonT, I don't post a new puzzle everyday 'cause there'd be an uprising; not even every week; just when the mood strikes me. Say, have you thought about adding to your profile (resumé) and maybe including your e-mail address among other improvements?
Evening late nighters,
No circles for me but didn't hinder my solve or getting the theme.
Nicole took AP classes thru HS and earned college credits for some of them. Best money spent IMO. Yet I could not parse APBIO for the life of me. Now my baby is off to college next Weds. So happy for her but it's going to be really tough to bring her there and see her off.
Now I'll no one to argue with at dinner time.
H.G. Joe Pesci and Ray Liotta wouldn't think you were such a Goodfella talking about them.
Some great stuff here on the blog today.Marti, as always, you make it a pleasure to read all your comments.
Neville, with or without circles, this was a perfect puzzle... just enough oomph for me, maybe not enough for the Sat solvers.
Lucina, recipe looks like a winner.. great for our Sunday night family dinners. Thanks.. I will tape Cedar Cove.
Yellow rocks, enjoyed reading the poem, and then listening to Desper-otto's link. DH then played Marty Robbins' White Sports Coat and a Pink Carnation song.. and that is a catchy one.
Bill, lovely picture. My parents had a "thing" about a new moon. Always kissed when they saw one- was sweet. I just took a photo class on Sat, so I should be able to take better night shots. I've mastered "jumping off couches"!
Manac, where is Nicole going to school? You probably said but I forgot.
So what do you argue about?
JD, I'm glad you liked the moon photo. That is the newest new moon I've ever seen!
Bill, I probably did tell you where but that was via private email.
And what else would father and daughter argue about???? BOYS!!!! ;~)
I had to laugh about the bear on the lanai. Some local woman came home the other day and found a homeless man sleeping in her bed. She'd gone to a nearby park for a little while and left her door unlocked. (Bet she doesn't do that again.) She had to call the cops to get him out, but refused to press charges because she felt sorry for him.
Marti, thanks for the reprieve. I know it's legal because you are, after all, the blogger-in-charge today. Forgive me, C.C., I'm just expanding on the joke and having fun.
Neville, it's great of you to stop by our Corner and comment.
Chickie:
I would love to be a guest at your table! Especially now that I have been enjoying your pepper jam. That is soooooooooo good. Thank you again.
America's Test Kitchen airs on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday on PBS at 2:00 P.M. (in our area). They have some really good recipes and always explain the science in combining flavors. I highly recommend it especially because you can watch step by step how to cook the recipe.
Lucina.... thanx for the heads up about Cedar Cove... brought back a conversation with my sis... the gal that wrote the Cedar Cove series of books lives not far from my sis... my sis nearly had a coronary when I told her the author wrote for Harlequin Books... :) and of course told me I was wrong...
At that time I recognized the author's name but not the Cedar Cove part... now after a little research the gal my sis was talking about and your Cedar Cove gal are one in the same... I really need to check it out.... :)
I never watch tv earlier than the late news unless it is nascar.... but this I need to watch.... the author says about her books that she wants you to meet her neighbors... :) I really do need to see if she has anything remotely close to my sis... :):)
Thanx again... :)
thelma
Just hung up with mother-in-law. She says Hi all and thanks Neville!
Lucina - We've set Labor Day weekend to do the meat balls - she wants to come over a play. However, she's makes for an awful sous chef - always asking "are you really going to do it that way?" :-) When I read the ingredients, her first reaction was "gelatin?"
I'm ribbing her of course. My wife does not like / can't cook so MIL & I play. We always do Thanksgive & Christmas yummies together. We even made pickles (both dill & bread&butter) from the garden last year,
Bill G - I'll setup email association with my account this weekend.
With all the nature today, for those needing a nightmare - here's an interesting video where Japanese Bees lure a hornet and then kill it using body heat. Link .
Cheers, -T
Anonymous T said,
Usually, I only bread cheep fish (tilapia,)
Surprising. Now if it were fried chicken, it may have cheeped at one time. LOL
YR - Ahhh, cheap. Another one of those words in our language that trips me up. I hate vowels - they hide from dyslexics like me. If the computer doesn't underline it in red, it looks good to me. That (combined with general ignorance) is my puzzle handy-cap (or is that handie-cap?). The chicken reference is a cheep shot (and funny)...
Seriously, I don't understand how spelling works. You were a teacher, so maybe you have insight. My wife is an English Prof, but she just tells me these rules that then are broken almost immediately. I before e, except after c, unless sounding "a" (neighbor & weigh). Weird.
Have a grate night :-) -T
Hello Puzzlers -
A bit late to the party, I guess. Feeling pretty swamped these days with housebuilding projects; after we move in I plan a month-long nap.
Apropos of today's posts - one of the builders, an eccentric fellow by any measure, brings his two Pomeranians (dogs, to be clear) to the site every day. They're cute little rascals.
Abejo - Some of us are using the iPad app which is named Crosswords, from Stand Alone Software. Circles are shown on that one. Which app are you using?
Lucina - I am not a cook, but I am much impressed with the effort you took to type up that recipe. You are a gem!
Morning Marti, belated thanks for bloggage.
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