April | 2011 | Jenna's Everything Blog

I took my sweet time about it, but today I have a few final pictures to share from the Regency Ball we attended in South Bend, Indiana a couple weekends ago.

Here is the entrance to the venue: the Palais Royale.

Palais Royale. Sounds so fancy . . . so French . . . Everyone froze their buns off as I snapped pictures. No more buns for you.

Eric was looking debonaire in a top hat.

Nice job looking the part, Eric.

And my sister Erica did such a lovely job with our dresses. I love the back of mine:

The little lace peeking out around the neckline, the delicate fabric–I couldn’t have envisioned anything more beautiful! Thanks, Spankypants.

Note: everyone that I love at some point gets called ‘Spankypants.’ Be forewarned.

We headed inside and were immediately transported to another era. The elegance of the ballroom was a major part of it . . .

. . . but it was especially mind-blowing that everyone in sight was dressed in period clothing.

Hello, random blond girl. I like your curl.

Our first move was to stake out some chairs where we could drop off our scarves, purses, and camera before the dancing began.

Hey, baby. You’re looking très attractif in that cravat.

Very soon, it was time to dance.

In Regency period movies, the dancing always seemed so calm and effortless. The heroine is always able to talk to the hero as they weave in and out of a long line of couples, and sends him meaningful and languid glances as she steppity-steps around.

But don’t be fooled: we worked up a real sweat.

With the exception of a brief photographic excursion to the balcony, we danced for about 3 out of the 4 hours.

The dance master was excellent, and called out the steps as we moved through the dances.

Mistakes were made, and laughter was quick.

You know those events and parties that are supposed to be fun but really aren’t? Oh, we had a great time, you say when recounting the evening–but if you really think about it, there was a lot of standing around, a lot of stiff conversation, and a lot of general uncomfortableness. When will this be over? you’d been asking all along in that very tiny voice at the back of your mind.

Well, this ball most definitely does NOT fall into that category: it was actually fun. I laughed so much during the dances as I tried to master the left arm-right arm cross-overs and watched my husband execute little jumps and twirls with his characteristic intense concentration.

Most of the dances did require a lot of focus on the feet for this novice, but there was one dance that I was able to learn just enough to start letting go. The steps were pretty simple, so by the end I was floating through the moves. I felt elegant, I felt light on my feet; I felt like I was in a Jane Austen novel. This feeling lasted all of 5 minutes, and then the dance was over and my focus was back on my feet. But during those brief moments, I got a little insight into what these dances are supposed to feel like.

And yes, I just used the word ‘feel’ 5 times in that paragraph. Does that just mean I’m a girl, or is it an indicator of bad writing? Then again, it’s too early to think too hard about. Pass the coffee.

Both my husband and I were surprised by the wide variety of age groups represented at the event. There was a big group of pre-teen and teenage homeschoolers; there were couples in their 20s, there were parents, middle-aged couples, and groups of elderly men and women who gossiped and watched the dancing from the tables along the side.

The ball ended with a waltz.

Looking good, you guys!

We took some final pictures.

And then it was time to go! After all that dancing, we headed exhausted back to the parking garage to pick up our wheels.

I amused myself with snapping even more pictures of the cold and tired bunch, and making up fake headlines.

Time Traveling Trio from 18th Century Mysteriously Appears in South Bend, Indiana! Very Hot Guy in Cravat Seems to be Sporting Anachronistic Rainjacket!

Strangely Garbed Time-Travelers from Distant Past Spotted in Midwestern US! Full report inside!

So! Who wants to join us for the ball next year?

After sitting in my recipe box on TastyKitchen for a few weeks, this gem of a recipe from this lovely blogger got its turn. Have I mentioned that I have over 180 recipes in there? And that I feel firmly committed to making them all? If I make one per week, it should only take me about 3 and a half years–totally doable, eh?

Anyway, I’m so glad I bumped this to the top of my priority list, because what a phenomenal dish! The simplicity of the stirfry, the perfect balance of sweet and sour in the sauce, the golden brown tofu–I can’t rave enough about it. It’s got some kick–not over the top, but I hope you like things a little spicy! Because if not, you are henceforth banned from this blog forevermore and are no friend of mine.

Wait! Wait! I’m totally kidding! Please don’t go! It’s just my sometimes-abrasive humor–you’re not supposed to take me that seriously! Here, I’ll tell you what–I promise to post some non-spicy recipes asap, just for you. Like Lemon Crinkle Cookies. Okay? Okay?

Okay. I love everyone, The End. Phew. Nothing like tearing up relationships and then making amends to give you an appetite, eh?

And yes, this little conflict was staged just to make everyone hungry and thus more likely to make this stir fry. The lengths to which I go to spread the deliciousness . . . ah, the lengths to which I go. The world may never know.

But enough falderal–back to the recipe we go: I made it with tofu, but if you have an aversion to the block of soy stuff you could easily substitute chicken, pork, beef. Any protein would be great. And the sauce is so good that I’m salivating just thinking about it.

Ingredients

(Serves 3)

For the sauce:

1/4 red bell pepper, minced

3/4 cup pineapple juice

3 TBS rice vinegar

1/4 tsp sesame oil

2 TBS soy sauce

2 tsp cornstarch + 2 tsp water, mixed

1 TBS sugar

1/2 tsp ground white pepper

For the stir fry

1 TBS peanut oil

1-16 oz package extra firm tofu

Salt and pepper, to taste

4 cloves garlic

3/4 red pepper, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

4 green onions, diced

Mince 1/4 of the bell pepper, and assemble all the ingredients for the sauce.

Everyone say ‘cheese!’

Now we’re simply going to add all the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan. The vinegar and pepper . . .

. . . the soy sauce and sugar . . .

. . . the white pepper (this is where the kick lieth; and the kick, it lieth herein) . . .

. . . the water and cornstarch slurry . . .

. . . the pineapple juice . . .

. . . etcetera, etcetera.

Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.

The sauce will reduce by half, to about 1/2 cup. Taste and adjust the sugar to your liking–I added an extra teaspoon.

In the meantime, assemble the ingredients for the stiry fry.

Cut the block of tofu into two ‘sheets’ (with the blade of the knife parallel to the cutting board), then into strips lengthwise.

Place the strips between some paper towels and kitchen towels . . .

. . . and put a heavy book on top.

You can probably learn a couple things about formatting your scholarly papers while you’re at it.

Let it sit for about 15 minutes–this will help dry out the tofu, which in turn will help it brown better when fried.

Remove the tofu from the towels and cut it into cubes.

Now for some knife work: chop up the bell pepper and onion, and set them aside; mince the garlic and set it aside; dice the green onions, and set them aside as well. You should have three little bowls of happiness at the end of this chopping fest:

Heat the peanut oil over high heat in a wok or large cast iron skillet. When hot, add the tofu cubes and fry for 4-5 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

Season them generously with salt and pepper while they’re frying.

Add the garlic and fry for about 1 minute, stirring so that the garlic doesn’t burn.

Add the red pepper and onion, sprinkle with more salt and pepper, and fry for about 6 minutes until the vegetables are starting to get tender, stirring frequently.