31 May 2015
al dente
[al den-tey, -tee; Italian ahl den-te]
adjective, adverb
1. (especially of pasta) cooked so as not to be too soft; firm to the bite:
spaghetti al dente.
Origin of al dente
1945-1950; Italian: literally, to the tooth
Dictionary.com
Examples from the web for al dente
– The rich, tangy sauce is a perfect foil for the tender green stalks, which should be cooked until just al dente.
(What to Eat: Spring Salads Cookstr.com April 5, 2010)
– Add the spaghetti and cook for eight minutes, testing it regularly toward the end to ensure it remains al dente.
(Eco-Chic Safari Sophie Menin July 26, 2010)
Anagram
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Today’s quote
You can always pick up your needle and move to another groove.
– Timothy Leary
On this day
31 May 1930 – birth of Clint Eastwood, American actor, director, producer and politician.
31 May 1948 – birth of John Bonham, Led Zeppelin drummer. Died 25 September 1980.
31 May 1965 – birth of Brooke Shields, American actor, model and producer.
31 May 1996 – death of Timothy Leary, American psychologist and author. Leary was a major proponent of the use of pscyhedelic drugs, particularly LSD and psilocybin (mushrooms). He conducted numerous psychiatric experiments using psychedelics, particularly during the 1950s and and 1960s, when the drugs were legal. LSD was banned by the USA in 1966. Leary popularised 1960’s catch-phrases such as ‘turn on, tune in and drop out’, ‘set and setting’, and ‘think for yourself and question authority’. He was friends with beat generation poets, such as Allen Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac. Leary was arrested numerous times over his possession and use of drugs. He wrote a number of books on the benefits of psychedelic drugs. Leary became fascinated with computers, declaring that ‘the PC is the LSD of the 1990s’. He encouraged bohemians to ‘turn on, boot up, jack in’. Leary was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1995. He chose to stream his dying moments over the internet. Seven grams of Leary’s ashes were placed aboard a Pegasus rocket, launched on 21 April 1997. It remained in orbit around the Earth for six years until it burned up in atmosphere. Born 22 October 1920.