Happy Birthday to Francine!

This is Francine. And today is her birthday.

Francine is a really super person. I don't talk to her as much as I'd like to (entirely my fault), but I think about her quite a bit. We were roommates one year in college, and friends all four years, and I think she is as yet the only person ever to match (and even exceed) my love of keeping things clean. She got me hooked on black appliances (she had a black fridge, and I went on a special search to get a black microwave to match). She also taught me that you CAN play with your food, or at least, put it on your face. :) Bananas, tomatoes... and egg whites, which I've gotten several other people to try as well.

Freshman year at college, when it was "tradition" to throw everyone into the fountain on their birthdays. Right.

She is also one of the most devoted people I know. She studies hard, exercises regularly, takes good care of herself, is always looking out for her friends and family, and is a concerned and active participant in the world around her. When I'm feeling lazy or like I'm not up to taking on a task, I often motivate myself by thinking that she would just do it. Like staying up late to get something just right... or running in midday in Claremont, CA. (She had to take me in person to try out that one.) She's also given me a lot to think about regarding the truths about racial profiling, discrimination, and inequality that happens even today, every day; she's done some very valuable research, and I'm often reminded of the results and stories she shared with me.

This is Francine and me when I visited her in Spain; photo compliments of her friend Santy.

When I was studying abroad in Paris, she was studying abroad in Spain. I went to visit her there, and she came up to visit me in Paris. She also braved the (freezing) cold weather in Stockholm to spend Christmas with me and my family up there. That really meant a lot to me, especially as it was just a few months after my Swedish grandma died, and she was a wonderful and supportive friend for me to have there. She taught me how to make a few dishes that her mom would make, and I still make them and enjoy them. One is a puréed vegetable soup, which basically involves cooking broccoli, carrots, potatoes, onions, and tomatoes with chicken bouillon, puréeing them, and adding milk. The other is a real shrimp cocktail:

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Shrimp Cocktail

Need:
- Medium shrimp (peeled)
- Cucumbers
- Cilantro
- Tomatoes
- Onion
- Avocado
- Lemon
- Tomato juice
- Fake crab

Do:
1) Boil shrimp until pink. Set aside.
2) Cut up cilantro, cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions. Mix together in bowl.
3) Add crab and shrimp. Mix again.
4) Add tomato juice and some shrimp water (about 2:1 ratio juice:water).
5) Put in the refrigerator and let cool.
6) Serve cold with the avocado, tortilla chips, and lemon. This is delicious. I promise.
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We also made warm Swedish rice porrige, to try and combat the cold. It's technically a Christmas dish, but here is the recipe for that:

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Risgrynsgröt

Need:
- 3dL water
- 1.5 dL pearl rice (a short-grain round rice)
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 8 dL milk
- Sugar to taste
- (optional) vanilla

Do:
1) Bring water and butter to a boil in a pot.
2) Add rice and stick cinnamon, cover and simmer until all of the water is absorbed.
3) Stir in milk, cover, and simmer 40-45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all of the milk is absorbed.
4) Season with a few tablespoons of sugar, or to taste.
5) (optional) add in vanilla, to taste.
6) Serve hot, with milk and extra sugar/cinnamon, if desired.

When I'm not making the traditional version for our yearly smörgåsbord, I usually add the vanilla, like French ris au lait.
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A friendly French person offered to take this photo when she visited me in Paris.

In short, Francine is a great friend who I have had some great times with. We're now living in very separate areas, and we are both busy with life, but I often think of her and wonder how things are going and hope she is having a wonderful time of it. I'm sure that whatever she is up to, she is doing it 100% and is amazing everyone around her.

Happy Birthday Francine! I miss you!
(Pastry shop, Toledo, Spain)