Paracosm

♫ do you remember that beat-down basement couch? / i'd sing you my love songs and you'd tell me about / how your mama ran off and pawned her ring / i remember, i remember everything ♫
♫ do you remember that beat-down basement couch? / i'd sing you my love songs and you'd tell me about / how your mama ran off and pawned her ring / i remember, i remember everything ♫
Our House

Kitchen

Recipe Book

Sick Girl's Notes

Things I've learned from being chronically ill. Name of the list is a reference from Sick Kids In Love.

  • Topical steroids and butter are equally hard to wash off.
  • The trachea is very malleable.
  • The best hospital snacks are dry cinnamon toast crunch and apple sauce.
  • Nurses unplug J and G tubes with coke.
  • Night shift nurses let you get away with more.

The Itch

Things I associate with what I call
"the itch", the concept Paracosm
was based off of.

  • the golden records
  • pulsar maps
  • extinct animals
  • the capitol crawl
  • the golden spiral/fibonacci sequence
  • laika
  • the introduction of keystone species back into their ecosystem
  • international scientists working together
  • hiveminds
  • big cities
  • mountains and canyons
  • the ocean
  • Lucifer
  • divinity vs. humanity
  • math
  • parallels between human features and earth
  • fate vs. free will
  • neuroplasticity

Paracosm To-Do List

  • Add games and collections to "Dining Room".
  • Add video game content and room pics to "Bedroom".
  • Add collages and "Meet" sections to the "Stages" that I've already experienced.
  • Add wish boards to "Stages" I haven't experienced yet.
  • Add books, comics, and other hobby content to "Play Room".
  • Make an actual index.

Breakfast


Yorkshire Tea-cakes

Cooking time: 10 mins
Preheat oven to: 400 degrees
Ingredients:

  • 1 lb OR 3 1/4 cup flour
  • 2 oz margarine
  • 2 oz OR 1/4 cup + 2 tsp sugar
  • 4 oz OR 2/3 cup currants
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 oz OR 2 packages yeast
  • 5 oz OR 6 1/4 cup milk
  • 5 oz OR 6 1/4 cup water
Instructions:
  1. Rub margarine into flour. Add sugar, currants, and salt.
  2. Put yeast into jug with a tablespoon of sugar. Add about 1/3 of the milk and water warmed. Let it get work until frothy.
  3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingrdeients. Pour in the yeast liquid and stir well.
  4. Knead into a light dough. Place in a bowl, cut splits, and let rise for 1 hour.
  5. Knead down lightly. Cut into 8 pieces. Form tea-cakes.
  6. Place on greased cookie sheet, prick, and let rise for 20 minutes.
  7. Bake at 400 degrees for ~10 minutes.

Banana Bread

Prep time: 20 minutes
Bake time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cups OR 3 medium mashed very ripe bananas
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup OR 1 stick softened butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
Instructions:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9 by 5 inch loaf pan.
  2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
  3. In a different bowl, combine bananas, milk, and vanilla.
  4. In a mixer, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs.
  5. Alternate adding flour mixture and banana mixture. Beat until blended.
  6. Pour batter into pan and bake ~1 hour 10 minutes. Makes 1 loaf.

Snacks


Chex Mix

Ingredients:

  • 3 tbsp margarine
  • 1/4 tsp garlic salt
  • 1/4 tsp onion salt
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • 4 tsp worcestershire sauce
  • 6 cups crispix
  • 1 cup mixed nuts
  • 1 cup pretzels
Instructions:
  1. Melt margarine.
  2. Stir in spices and worcestershire sauce.
  3. Add crispix, nuts, and pretzels and turn over with a spatula.
  4. Bake on baking sheet for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.

Dinner


Sausage Stuffing

Ingredients:

  • 5 slices stale bread, dried in oven until light brown (~250 degrees)
  • 1 large onion
  • 1/3-1/2 mild sausage
Instructions:
  1. Chop onion. Cover bottom of pan with water and cook until soft. Crush bread into crumbs and add some onions to moisten.
  2. Add sausage. Mix. Mash. Shape into patties.
  3. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes. Turn over after 10 minutes.

Dessert


Tiramisu

Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cup strong coffee (8 tsp coffee to 1 cup water)
  • 2 tbsp brandy
  • 8 oz marscapone
  • 20 toasted ladyfingers
Instructions:
  1. Combine egg yolks, 1 tbsp liquid coffee, and sugar and beat for 2-3 minutes. Add marscapone and brandy and beat for 3-5 minutes or until smooth.
  2. Beat egg whites with a pinch of sugar until stiff. Fold into marscapone mixture.
  3. Dip half of each ladyfinger in remaining coffee and layer with mixture.
  4. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Let sit in fridge for 2-3 days.

Shortbread

Ingredients:

  • 2 sticks butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 3 1/2 cup flour
  • pinch of salt
Instructions:

Cut butter into pieces and combine all ingredients with fingers. Grease cookie sheat and dust with flour. Spread dough on cookie sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour.

Carrot Cake

Prep time: 40 minutes
Bake time: 55 minutes
Ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 3 cup OR 6 medium shredded carrots
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 3/4 cup raisins
Instructions:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13 by 9 inch baking pan, 10 inch bundt pan, or 2 9 inch circular pans. Line bottom with wax paper and grease.
  2. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg.
  3. In another bowl, beat eggs and sugars (granulated and brown) until blended. Beat in oil, milk, and vanilla.
  4. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth. Fold in carrots, walnuts, and raisins.
  5. Spread batter evenly in pan. Bake for 55-60 minutes.
  6. Frost with cream cheese frosting.