Two new posts + images

_posts/2023-12-31-new-years-meals.mdx

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+---
+title: New Years Meals
+rating: 10
+cuisine: japanese
+date: '2023-12-31T12:12:12'
+author:
+  name: Jacob Aronoff
+  picture: '/assets/blog/authors/jacob.jpeg'
+---
+
+# Keeping it casual
+
+New years is one of my favorite events, I love being surrounded by close friends and enjoying some nice wine together. This year, I didn't want to go too over the top so I made yakitori and carl made latkes that we had leftover from Hannukah.
+
+## Simple Yakitori
+
+![Yakitori](/blog/2023-31-12-yakitori.jpg)
+
+I followed [this guide](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weZs_MPrvp8) to breaking down chicken for yakitori which is a bit different than my usual method. The first chicken I did was a bit rough, but the second went much more smoothly. For the skewers, I stuck to the easier parts for this dinner as this was more for sustinance than flavor. This meant, breast, tenderlion, and thigh were the main events. I threw in a few belly and skin skewers too, but that was pretty much it. From there, I broiled them in the oven one sheet tray at a time (three trays in all) and finished them by dipping in a thin (maybe too thin) tare mixture. This yielded some juicy and flavorful skewers. I kept some trays in the oven at 200 F as guests arrived, taking them out and plating them when people were hungry.

_posts/2024-01-01-first-vegan-meal.mdx

@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+---
+title: The start of veganuary
+rating: 10
+cuisine: italian
+date: '2024-01-01T12:12:12'
+author:
+  name: Jacob Aronoff
+  picture: '/assets/blog/authors/jacob.jpeg'
+---
+
+# Veganuary
+
+My yearly tradition of veganuary has begun. This month (and for however long I can avoid my meaty temptations) I will be eating and cooking solely vegan food. One small addendum, is that I won't waste anything already in my fridge that will spoil, so I probably will use some of the heavy cream, milk, eggs in there for a cake for a friend.
+
+## Vodka + kale / fennel caeser
+
+![pasta and salad](/blog/2024-01-01-dinner.jpg)
+
+Tonight I made a vegan vodka sauce with the Vesuvio pasta from Sfoglini. Pretty simple recipe of cooking lots of garlic and pepper flake in olive oil, add a can of san marzanos, sugar, and I added some white miso for umami. Cook that for a while, and then simmer with a bit of vodka. Meanwhile, microwave some cashews and water and then blend it. After that's been blended, add the cooked down sauce and blend until smooth.
+
+I also made a kale and fennel caesar salad with a [simple vegan caeser dressing](https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/vegan-caesar-dressing/) that fit well. I massaged the kale for a while, rinsed it, and then let it sit in some lightly salted water while I made the pasta. I added the sliced fennel, carl made the dressing and mixed it all together.
+
+We topped both with some breadcrumbs from croutons I made last month.