Cooking corn smut

It sounds awful. I looks awful. But it tastes pretty darn good! We found "corn smut", which is more commonly called Cuitlacoche or the Mexican Truffle, at the Stockton farmer's market last Saturday -- there's a mushroom seller there who has some pretty unusual stuff at times! (Cuitlacoche can also be found in cans at larger Mexican grocery stores).

I found a few sites with recipes, this one being one of the better ones. Cooked it up with some garlic, a little chili hot sauce (didn't have any real chili poblanos) and tried a little that night. My husband and I didn't get sick or anything, so the next day, I made a quesadilla with it.

It has a slightly gritty texture on the tongue and a bit of a bitter taste. If I had some epazota leaves, it would have brought out that exotic flavor even more.

So if you're lucky enough to live near a corn field, you might want to ask a local farmer if they have any corn smut on their fields. You'll get a pretty strange look, but give it a try!

You're always welcome to stay with us

A colleague of mine, Shar VanBoskirk, stayed with us for two days (hotels were scarce in SF because of Oracle World). Last night, we went out to dinner with my two kids. Katie is completely enamored with Shar, and asked her to stay with us forever. Here's the conversation:

Katie: Can you stay with us forever?

Shar: I think your mom would get tired of me being around all the time.

Katie: (pause) We're around all the time and she's not tired of us.

Gotta love that me-centric viewpoint.

Why a blog?

I've been blogging professionally for almost a year and have been tempted to venture into it on a personal front. And herein begins that adventure!

So why blog?

- I have something to say that I think others might want to hear, be it my mother or just another like-minded person on the other side of the world. I'm often tempted to write about something that I've come across, but realize that the readers of my other blog wouldn't be interested in the cute thing that my kids just did!
- It's a place to try new stuff. Everything from podcasting to actually making money via ads.
- It's a journey into self-discovery. There is something about the discipline of writing that helps develop and the thoughts and ideas that I hold so dear. My hope is that I begin a dialog with others that will push those ideas further.

Just to be *absolutely* clear about what this blog is not. It is not an extension of any other blog or publications that I may write -- especially not the one I write for my current employer. I will not write about technology topics that I would normally write about as part of my job. But I will write about technology -- I'm too much of a geek to stay away from the topic! In any case, all of these ramblings reflect my personal views and should not be associated with any other employer, group, or individual.

And why call this blog "Midnight Musings"? Just check out the time stamp!