Some Schtuff... and Shrimp Fried "Rice"

*Long Ass Ranting and Raving Post - Prepare Yourselves!* Hold on to your chairs! I don't want anyone falling off because I'm actually posting something non-Daring Kitchen-y! :D As I mentioned in my last failure to get my Daring Baker challenge done, I spent some time in the hospital last month. I'm fine now - actually I feel fantastic! But I have a long road ahead of me and frankly, I'm scared shitless. :) Without going into the gory details, and in a semi-small nutshell, I was in congestive heart failure. I was retaining water like nobody's business and it was suffocating my heart/lungs. It's been over 3 weeks and I've lost FORTY pounds in water/fluid weight. Hello? I didn't think that could be possible, but apparently it is. Jebus. So now I'm working on living a low-carb lifestyle. Which is to say, I think it would be easier to cut out oxygen in my life. Kidding? Anyhoo, I've joined Weight Watchers and so far am doing pretty well. Their online tools keep me focused and I've kind of enjoyed lurking on low-carb blogs and recipe sites. It's been quite an eye-opener to read about alternatives to white sugar and white flour. I've purchased Stevia powder, erythritol, xantham gum and coconut flour and although I about had to take a loan out to pay for these items, I am looking forward to getting back into the baking thing once in a while. I've also "met" a new friend who has been sooooooooooo helpful in giving me tips and suggestions on how to stay on track. Thanks Michele! *hugs* And if all of this wasn't enough.. yesterday I went in for a bronchoscopy to make sure my tubes were open and to take a biopsy of the lymph nodes on my lungs. It seems that they are enlarged. When they were first discovered in this state, I was told it was pretty common in pneumonia patients, so to be safe, I was scheduled for another CT-scan 3 mos. later - which was the Friday before I went into the hospital for the CHF. Unfortch, the test results showed they were more enlarged than they were before, so the next step was a biopsy. *sigh* I'm not too worried about this. I mean, I'll know for sure on Thursday - but my pulmonary doctor (who is reportedly one of the best in these parts) and the doctor that admitted me to the hospital with the CHF both feel that this isn't c-word related. So I'm very optimistic. :) But I can't just let it go at that.. I must vent on how this bronchoscopy went down yesterday. I was told numerous times that I'd be put out and wouldn't feel anything or remember anything. This was very important to me. I can deal with pain, that wasn't my concern. My concern was my delightful gag reflex. It's horrible. Touch the tip of my tongue and I start to gag sometimes. It's quite sensitive and highly embarrassing when I'm at the dentist. Boo. So this "twilight sleep" they were going to put me under was suppose to just keep me slightly conscious so that my gag reflex would work, as I guess that's important when they shove a 50 foot hose down your throat. But I won't feel a thing! I won't remember anything that happened afterwards! BULLSHIT. I felt every fucking thing and I remember most of it. Bastards. I had two nurses, both under 5' 2" and 110 pounds. One of them comes at me with these 2 lil cups of "numbing medicine" so I won't feel the scope. "Uhh.. why do I need numbing medicine if I'll be out??" She stammered some and then said, "It helps the scope go down." :Uhh.. okay?" So I gargle with this stuff that tastes like bleach and lay back down. Then the doc comes in and asks if I've got any questions.. you'd think that I might have said.. "Dude, WTF is up with the numbing medicine if I'm going to be put the fuck out??" But noooo.. I just looked up into Ohio's version of McDreamy and smiled pretty and nodded my head. Gah. Then I hear tiny nurse no. 1 ask how much medication should she give me.. and he gives her 2 numbers.. there are 2 meds they mix together.. a highly potent narcotic for pain and for putting me into that "twilight" state and another medicine that will help me not to remember anything (I think?).. and then I heard him give her the two numbers. But then tiny nurse no. 2 says, "Are you sure? She'll need at least 120 to 140" and he then said, "Okay, 120 but that's it" and tiny nurse no. 2 says, "That's not going to be enough." and he said, "Shhhh." Again, at this point, wouldn't you sit up and say "Dude, I agree with tiny nurse no. 2, 120 isn't enough GIMME MORE GODDAMMIT" But.. nooooooo.. I don't say one fakking word. Now granted, I do not feel or remember him actually putting the cable in. But I DO feel and I DO remember him pushing it past my vocal cords and I DO remember just about shooting 10 feet up in the air when I felt that. I remember trying to say, "THIS HURTS" but I had some kind of plug thing in my mouth that prevented me from biting down on the cable, so it came out more like "cough - cough - gaggggg - cough - cough - OOD! GAHAMMIT!!!" Well that must have pissed off the tiny nurses, because the next thing I know, I've got one on each side gripping my lower JAWFUCKINGBONE and pulling down on it with all of their weight. I wanted to so give them both the evil "curses" eye but they had a towel over my face. How rude is that? The rest of it went pretty quickly, I'd say the bulk of time during this test is the actual prep and the nurses trying to figure out how to get the computer to work before 'he' gets there "or 'he' will be pissed.". I didn't feel the actual biopsy being taken, thank the baby Jebus. I am also proud to say that I did not projectile vomit at any point of the procedure. All in all, it wasn't THAT horribly bad.. but it wasn't THAT horribly good either. When it was finished, my friend Cindy (who got to babysit me all day, bless her cotton socks) came in and I could hear him talking to her and then she appeared at my side and the first thing I said was, "they lied to me." and she asked how and I said, "I FELT IT" and tiny nurse no. 1 said, "you did great!" and I'm like, "I'm so Delvecchio cursing you as soon as I can get this death grip off the bed rail." She laughed. Obviously, she has no idea how powerful the Delvecchio curse is. tisk tisk for her. Recovery was quick, after all I wasn't put to sleep AS PROMISED, so I came outta the fog after 15 min. or so and was allowed to leave. Next stop was a frosty beverage to cool the burning pipes and then back to my house, where we sat and laughed over the whole thing, then we put a movie in and I FINALLY passed out. Always a day late and a dollar short. Today the mild sore throat is gone, but I'm sporting a rather large face and neck. My cheeks are swollen as if I've been foraging for nuts and my neck is swollen quite like what a bullfrog looks like when he's offering his mating call to the sexy frogette on the next lily pad. That's hott. So what lessons have I learned from this experience? NEVER trust 2 tiny nurses and ALWAYS wear barbed wire around your neck when going in for a bronchoscopy, so they can't get to your jaw bone. Also? McDreamy or not.. always be prepared to administer the Delvecchio curse and DO NOT get lost in his sexy brown eyes, for he and his minions can be evil. Oh and I did find out why I couldn't be put under completely (had to do with low blood-ox levels).. and I understand that.. but maybe a lil heads up would have been nice? :P So anyhoo.. I've vented and I feel better. Back to the low-carb goodies! I found this recipe on a new blog for me. It's Healthy Indulgences written by Lauren. Lauren has taken so many high carb/high fat/high caloric dessert recipes and turned them into delicious looking low carb/low fat/lower caloric desserts that have just astounded me. So much so that I went and bought those alternative natural sugars and flours that I mentioned above. No more white sugar or regular all purpose flour for me! But I am not ready, quite yet (soon though.. very soon! hee!), to bake a dessert. I want to stay with my fruits and sugar free pudding for a bit longer. So when I found this vegetable recipe that was suppose to taste just like shrimp fried rice, I couldn't resist! And seriously, this stuff rocks. I'm not just saying it to make myself believe that CAULIFLOWER can taste like rice - it can! Actually it was better than the last batch of carry-out fried rice we had. It was super easy and super quick to put together and it's definitely going to stay on rotation often. Give it a whirl! Recipe is below with my minor changes, basically out of necessity than anything else. Thanks so much, Lauren! I'm looking forward to this being the first of many recipes from your blog that I will be enjoying in the future - guilt free! :)       Shrimp Fried "Rice" Adapted from this recipe by Lauren at Healthy Indulgences Makes 3 servings Ingredients: 2 heapings cups of grated fresh cauliflower 2 tablespoons coconut oil (any cooking oil is fine) - I used EVOO 1/2 cup sugar snap pea pods - I omitted these and used diced zucchini instead 1/3 cup onion, chopped 4 tablespoons wheat-free tamari or soy sauce - I used low-sodium soy sauce 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil 1/2 teaspoon sea salt dash of garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1-4 oz can of baby shrimp, or protein of choice 1/4 cup of green peas - I upped the amount to 1/2 c. since we like peas 1 cup of sliced baby portobello mushrooms since I needed to use them up! Not in original recipe 2 eggs, beaten green onion, for garnish (optional) Preparation: Grate cauliflower using a fine cheese grater. Heat up pan with 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. Mix together sesame oil, tamari, and seasonings in a bowl. Sautee onions (I also threw in the zucchini & mushrooms at this stage) for 3 minutes (I went for about 5 minutes to give the zucchini & mushrooms good coloring) over medium heat, or until translucent. Remove from pan and set aside. Sauté sugar snap peas until tender. Add more oil if necessary and all of the cauliflower, stir frying for a couple of minutes. Pour in 1/2 of the soy sauce mixture and stir fry to coat the cauliflower evenly. When the cauliflower is tender (this didn't take long at all.. maybe 4-5 min.), add cooked vegetables, shrimp, and peas along with the rest of the soy sauce mixture. Push "rice" to the side of the pan and scramble eggs on the other side, moving spatula quickly to incorporate eggs with the "rice" mixture. 7 grams net carbs xoxo

My First Product Review!

About a month and a half ago, a very nice man, Daniel DeMoss of the PR firm Manning, Selvage & Lee, contacted me asking if I’d like to test a product from one of their clients. Specifically, parchment paper made by Reynolds. I was very interested so I sent him my address and waited patiently for my package of Reynolds’ parchment paper to arrive. 'kay so remember how I said things were a bit chaotic back in November-December? Well, I realized at that time that I did, indeed, own a brain. But I only realized that lil gem after I had misplaced said brain so many times. Gah. And one of those times would be right after I ripped open the box – I forgot to take photos. AND I pretty much forgot to take photos through my whole cookie baking experience.. go me! But what arrived was a rather large round cookie tin. Inside was the sample of pre-cut sheets of the parchment paper as well as a few cookie recipes. My first impression when I saw the sample paper was this: “Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!” Yeah, I know.. it doesn’t take much. But I really was quite excited, because the answer to my parchment paper prayers had finally come true! Pre-cut sheets! No more trying to slice a sheet off the roll that comes in those flimsy boxes! Truly, that is my biggest pet peeve when I’m baking.. knowing I'll have to wrestle the box to get the paper out. Drives me cah-rassseeeee! At that point, I decided to e-mail Daniel and ask if this is the way Reynolds was going to market their paper. Alas, he said no. :( It was just pre-cut for the sample, but I'd have to continue buying the roll from my supermarket. Bummer. Well, I managed to find time to bake my cookies a couple days later (and by a couple, I mean 2 weeks later) and although I did not bake the cookie recipes that came with the parchment paper sample, I did bake for 2 days straight and I did use the heck out of that paper. I remember back before I discovered parchment paper and how amazed I was once I used it the first time. Not one cookie spot-welded to the cookie sheet. Now that was a beautiful sight. Benne wafers awaiting the oven So yeah, this wasn't my first rodeo with Reynolds' parchment paper. It's the parchment paper I have been buying for years. I love this paper and won't bake without it. But that's kinda boring and there IS something I wish would change to make this awesome product even better and that's… The packaging is not a good thing, as my idol The Martha, would say. The box is too flimsy to be able to get a clean cut easily. I understand that the paper needs to come in rolls for there are some uses when you need a lot of it.. but cookie baking is a HUGE part of the home baker's repertoire and I know I'd be VERY GRATEFUL for pre-cut sheets that I could just slap on my cookie sheets without having to wrestle the box, nicking my finger in the process. I also think pre-cut common sized rounds of the paper for cake pans would also be fabulous as well. So if I'm thinking this, then there MUST be other home bakers who feel the same way, yes? No? Is it just me and my ease in finding something wrong with just about everything? Nah.. there are plenty of things I think are just perfect they way they are. So here's where you come in, friends! Leave a comment about how you feel about Reynolds' parchment paper if you've used it. If you haven't used it yet.. run out and get yourself some, whip up some chocolate chip cookies (I can send my address if you want to get rid of them) and then chime in! It doesn't have to be about the packaging.. it doesn't have to be about something you dislike or wish that could be better.. it can be a big sloppy wet kiss because you love Reynolds and their rascally paper. :D Or not.. whot-evah, kids. What's important is that your opinion counts and Mr. DeMoss and his firm want to hear what you've got to say. So let's hear it! A great big THANK YOU! to Daniel and MS & L for asking me to participate in this review. I enjoyed it and honestly am happy I could share my opinion. :) xoxo

2008 Had Better Kick 2007's Heiney!

Hello out there! I do not cook anything exciting, new or interesting any more. What is a food blogger to do? She could stop blogging, which she's pretty much accomplished. But she hates not blogging. She misses her lil blog. She could force herself to start cookin' new and exciting recipes! But she is all about comfort right now.. it's fakking cold outside. Oh!! I know!!! She can snag a minute or two and read a few of her favorite blogs and STEAL THEIR IDEAS!! WOO HOOOO!!!!! And what's even better? These ideas aren't really food related! I hope I don't get kicked outta the food blogger's club! But I figure, it's my kitchen - at least that's what the title of this lil blog implies, yes? So if it's my kitchen and I wanna make myself comfy at the kitchen table with some books, magazines, writing paper and pens, then I should be able to do that once in a while, yes? :D So we are starting off with not so much an idea stolen, but with a meme that my lovely friend posted on her blog last summer and DIDN'T tag me with. The nerve! A chance to talk about myself and she didn't pass the opportunity along? Hrmph. I hope you find this entertaining (below).. I enjoyed filling it out, as it IS all about me. :) And speaking of me.. If I haven't come off as completely self centered yet, why not kick off the new year by pounding that concept into your gorgeous and sexy lil heads a lil further by telling ya'll about this fantastic opportunity that has arisen! Someone out there actually likes my writing enough to ask me to contribute to their website! AND PAY ME! Hello? Somebody pinch me! So let me ask your opinions.. if some fantastical website wrote to you and asked you to pretty much do what you already love to do for free.. and then actually pay you, what would you do? After saying yes, of course.. Would you put off your first assignment for a few days.. then start writing it one afternoon.. then get sidetracked and not even think about it again until you get a letter from your new bosses asking if you'll be submitting your article at said time and that said time was like 6 hours earlier? No? That's just something I'd do? Mmm hmmm... Talk about wanting to crawl under the nearest slab of concrete. Gah. THANKFULLY, my new bosses did not fire me, but accepted my article which was just 8 hours late! Not only that.. but they LIKED it. Even though it was LONGER than Gone With The Fakkin' Wind. And not only that? But they deposited my paycheck in my Paypal account THE! VERY! NEXT! DAY! SHUT UP! The website? It's called Foodieview - maybe ya'll have heard of it? It's a great source for finding recipes and even restaurants in your area. And they've got a Foodieview blog that is now hosting a newsletter called The Recipe Roundup. The newsletter features your favorite bloggers writing about subjects they love and including recipes that really mean something to them. I'm one of those bloggers! Woot! And so is Andrea, who is a fellow Daring Baker and all around fantabulous writer. =) The Recipe Roundup is still a baby, so there will be many more awesome bloggers contributing in the future. Check it out here and then go back and visit every Monday, which is when a new Recipe Roundup is posted. AND In an upcoming post, I will be reviewing a very important baking "tool", if you will. I'm not going to say what it is right now, but it's something we all use and most likely take for granted. A very nice man from public relations company has asked me to use this product and then, if I'd like, to blog about what I thought. Well, I like. So look for that in the next week or so, because I'm going to be asking ya'll a question about this product. Having absolutely no background in public relations or advertising, I feel completely comfortable enough to pass this info along in hopes that maybe your opinions will help him and his company. =) And now.. FINALLY.. that meme I mentioned about 38 paragraphs earlier! INSTRUCTIONS: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot, like so: (Okay so this meme was originally done back in the summer, so the original 5 have certainly moved on by now.. and since I’m stealing this meme, I might as well change the rules to suit my fancy, right? Oh and if you are on the first list of 5 you have to do the meme too. Heeee! Or not.. whichever you prefer. I’m so easy.) 1. Technicolor Kitchen - Patricia 2. Taste and Tell - Deborah 3. The Pie Lady - Brittany 4. Feeding My Enthusiasms - Elle 5. Culinary Concoctions by My Gracie. Next, select five people to tag: 1. Sara – i like to eat 2. Marie – A Year at Oak Cottage 3. Lindsay - Country Girl, City Living 4. Laurie - Quirky Cupcake 5. Kelly – Sass and Veracity What were you doing 10 years ago? I was on my 2nd year at my present place of employment and things were not good. Lots of in-house fighting, lots of back stabbing.. it was horrible. My father had just started becoming ill, so I was helping my mom take care of him as well (I lived with the ‘rents back then!) What were you doing 1 year ago? hehee not much. Working, blogging, baking, cooking, planting, marketing, working, playing, cuddling with my kids Nigel & Chloe, working, cooking, baking, creating friendships that I never thought I’d be lucky enough to have. Five snacks you enjoy: 1. Jif peanut butter on a spoon. 2. Red or black seedless grapes wrapped in prosciutto de parma. 3. Benne wafers!! 4. Popcorn – sometimes buttery, sometimes kettle corny and sometimes peanut buttery. 5. Dark chocolate Five songs that you know all the lyrics to: 1. Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody (complete with headbanging) 2. Tesla – Gettin' Better (and every other song they’ve EVER SANG) 3. AC/DC – Highway to Hell (and every other song they’ve EVER SANG) 4. Detroit Rock City – Kiss 5. Sister Christian – Night Ranger Five things you would do if you were a millionaire: 1. Make sure my mom, my sister, W’s mom, W's brothers and all of my friends never having to worry about money again. 2. Hire Oprah’s chefs and trainers. 3. Open my own Italian restaurant 4. Move to Italy 5. Travel Five bad habits: 1. Smoking! 2. Eating before I go to bed. 3. Swearing like a marine. 4. Letting my desk pile up with pish. 5. Biting my nails. Five things you like doing: 1. Taking care of my family. 2. Cooking and baking 3. Writing and making myself look like an ass. 4. Watching movies and reading 5. Marketing and/or 1 tank trips Five things you would never wear again: 1. Headbands.. circa 1989 and Jon Bon Jovi 2. Torn jeans. 3. Spandex shorts underneath the torn jeans.. ugh. 4. High top tennis shoes 5. Overalls Five favorite toys: 1. My PC 2. My brand spankin’ new cast iron dutch oven!! 3. My camera – sometimes. 4. Our outdoor grill.. all metallic and shiny.. 5. Nigel & Chloe – ‘kay they aren’t toys but I play with them ALL THE TIME. :D

OH NO!!

Okay.. Right now, Ivonne and I are going over the submissions to La Festa al Fresco 2007 (thanks everyone!) And she's sending me the submissions that were sent to just her and I'm looking at these and noticing that quite a few were originally also sent to my lamiacucina67@gmail.com account - BUT I NEVER GOT THEM! So.. for shits and giggles, I decide to go check out the gmail.com website (I have my lamiacucina67 email forwarded to another email address so I can get my mail in the email program I use) and I click on the SPAM box which holds over 1,000 emails.. to my HORROR not only do I find all these wonderful submissions - plus other's that were sent only to me.. but TONS of requests to join the Daring Bakers!! I AM SO SORRY!!! Holy crap all I can think about is all of you wonderful people who I never responded to, getting together and forming a posse to come beat my ass while calling me all kinds of bad names for being so rude to you!! Okay so yeah, I know no one is out there forming a posse.. you wouldn't do that would you?? :P But honestly, I am so very, very sorry I never got these e-mails. I ALWAYS reply - it might take a bit, but I always do reply. And I will reply to each and every one of you who sent something to me. Although it's going to take a bit to get through them all. Now, here's what's even worse.. until today, every month or so (sometimes 2 or more months - eek!) I'd go check the spam box on that website and simply hit the DELETE ALL without going through them because I had such high regard for Gmail and it's filters. I rarely get any spam from that account but I never stopped to think, "What else am I not getting?" UGH. I feel horrible.. I've had my lamiacucina67@gmail.com now for well over a year.. so if any of you who wrote me before uhh.. July? and didn't get a reply, I'm really not rude! I swear! Write me again! Or leave me a comment and I promise to get back to you! I will be checking the spam account EVERY DAY FROM HERE ON OUT. I promise! To those who had requested to be in the Daring Bakers.. we'll get you all in October, okay? I'll be writing to you shortly. =) Again, I'm so sorry this has happened. xoxo

A Jumble of Salads Because it's a Stravaganza!!

Hi! I have no time, but wanted to post quickly on a couple things that I've been meaning to share. Salads! I know I've been posting everything but salads lately, but that doesn't mean I haven't been eating them left and right! Okay well at least 2 times a week for dinner and 5 days a week for lunch. Although I have not tried any of the AMAZING submissions we've received for the Salad Stravaganza yet, I have finally got out to buy the ingredients and will be experimenting starting today. Yay! This first salad I want to share is the best grilled chicken salad you will ever eat! As long as you over-look my horribly lit pictures and try it. ;) It's a simple salad.. your basic greens.. and yes, I'm an iceberg lover.. even though there are definitely many more lettuces out there that have more flavor, I usually buy iceberg. Do you see now how badly I need salad help?? hehe But the crunchiness of the iceberg lettuce works nicely with this recipe. So all you do is, marinate your chicken breast - I do this simply with Wishbone Robusto Italian salad dressing. I swear by this stuff. Although I can't stand it as a salad dressing, for marinating chicken it's wonderful. I marinate for at least 30 minutes if I'm in a rush, but usually at least 8 hours. I either grill the chicken or pan sear it until it's nicely browned, being careful not to over-cook it. Cut it into bite sized chunks and throw into a salad made of iceberg lettuce, sliced cukes, grape tomatoes, diced bell peppers, black olives, and small diced pancetta - cooked until crispy. I prefer pancetta in this salad as it's not as potent as your basic bacon. DO NOT GET ME WRONG. There is nothing better than bacon!!!! But, for me, in this salad, I prefer the dressing and the chicken to be the main flavors with the pancetta adding a nice crunch and background hit of heavenly porkiness. heee! 'kay so you've got all your components in a big giant bowl.. I am now sharing with you my most favorite and pretty much only dressing I eat.. where there is nothing spectacular about the ingredients, I firmly believe it's all in the shake and the salt. I sprinkle garlic salt on the salad.. just when you think you've got enough, go ahead and give it one more little sprinkle (nope the salad doesn't turn out salty). And then in some kind of vessel, I use the cruet that you can buy with Kraft's Good Seasons packet dressing (I sometimes use the packets in a shrimp marinade, I'll have to blog about that one day, eh?). I fill the cruet up past the line for the vinegar (about an 1/8 of inch over) with balsamic vinegar. Then I fill the rest of the bottle with canola oil. I'm not a huge fan of olive oil and balsamic as a salad dressing. I prefer the lighter canola oil on my salads, and the olive oil in my cooking. Anyhoo.. once it's filled, I pop the cap on and I shake the mo'fo until I've got an emulsion - and then I shake some more. I have no idea if I'm adding anything to the emulsion by shaking it longer than necessary.. I just like prancing around my kitchen while shaking it. :P Once you're emulsified, pour a generous amount over your salad. Wait there's more shaking involved!!! I put a tight fitting lid on my bowl of chicken salad (or plastic wrap secured with a rubber band) and I shake, shake, shake.. shake, shake, shake, shake my salad.. shake my salad.. I know!!! Am I a freak of nature when it comes to my salad dressing, or what??? But I'm telling you - it comes out perfect each and every time.. SO GOOD!! Ohhh and if you use this method for just veggies without lettuce and let it sit for an hour or two, or even over night - heavenly when you finally dive in. I do this with bell peppers a lot - slice 'em up, shake 'em up with the dressing and just let them sit, with maybe an extra shake every once in a while for good measure - then we snack on them later. SO GOOD. SO FAKKIN GOOD. But Wait! There's more!!! As an added bonus, if you really get into your shaking abilities, you'll burn off the pancetta before you even eat it! How's that for a bonus?? :D The second salad, is basically the same dressing - although the components are different. This one is made with our first harvest of the leaf lettuce we are growing in our garden - squeeeeeeeeee! We may not have 'maters yet (Sher :P ) but we've got lots of lettuce and it's fab. I just threw on some cukes and grape tomatoes, gave it a shake with my balsamic and oil dressing and shaved some Parmigiano Reggiano over top.. heavenly. Finally.. potato salad. My mom's potato salad, to be specific. Quickly (as if, like I could be quick and to the point in my posts.. har!) boil potatoes with their skins on and take them out the very second they are fork tender.. let cool. Peel and dice - throw into big bowl. Dice some white onion - as much as you prefer. Dice some bell peppers, black olives, green olives, celery, and boiled egg - all amounts are what you feel is right for you. Give it a quick mix in the bowl with the potatoes. Now find some vessel again - the cruet won't work here, you need something bigger. Add 3-4 TBS. of Hellmann's mayo or Kraft or whatever, but NO MIRACLE WHIP (or as I like to call it, Miracle Sh*t), add 2 good squirts of either Dijon or plain yellow mustard, add a good sprinkling of celery salt, spanish paprika, onion and garlic powders and black pepper. Now, drizzle in eh? 1/4 c. - 1/3 c. milk - be careful on the milk, you don't want your dressing to be too thin - and you can always add more if it's too thick. Now, put the lid on your vessel and.. you know what to do, ladies and gents.. SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE - SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE - SHAKE YOUR POTATO SALAD DRESSING - SHAKE YOUR POTATO SALAD DRESSING!! Please feel free to frolic in your kitchen while shaking. It adds to the flavor. I just realized that's a crappy picture because you can't see all the good stuff in it.. but trust me there was good stuff in it. :D Pour your freshly shaken dressing over your potato salad and give a good mix, but be gentle so you don't mash your potatoes.. cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.. longer if you can - over night is best.. The ONLY potato salad I'll eat. =) I'm also linking to past salads I've made as they all need re-introducing.. each one is sooooo fakkin' good.. Such as: - My Summer Tortellini Salad - Mmmmmmm - Chopzanella! - A savory Broccoli-slaw - Kevin's Grilled Corn & Shrimp Salad that I make all the time now! - My Dad's favorite Fish Salad - A low cal/low fat Mango Rice Salad with Grilled Shrimp And finally - a quick fruit salad - which I haven't made in a while for some STOOPID reason, but will post pictures when I do.. take your favorite melons and cut into bite sized chunks, add your favorite type of grapes, maybe some mandarin oranges, strawberries and other types of berries are excellent as well. Give 'em a light toss.. now in some kind of vessel (methinks you know where I'm going with this) combine (whisking is allowed here, but you don't burn as many calories in whisking as you do in SHAKE SHAKE SHAKING your booties!!) 2 TBS. honey with 2 tsp. freshly grated ginger and 3/4 c. citrus juice - I've tried them all and they all work wonderfully, but orange is my favorite - Pour over your fruit, give quick, gentle mix and let macerate for a couple hours. You can do this in the fridge or on the counter top, depending on if you prefer your fruit salad to be cold or room temp (I usually go room temp) - mow down.. is fabulous. =) And lastly, I attended what I guess is becoming my yearly Women In The Outdoors (since I'm all about the linkage today) event with my friends again last week. Although I was not as awestruck as I was that first time, I did have fun and I kicked 14 out of 20 clay pigeon's arses. WOOO! Okay well I'm sorry I squished all these delectible salads into one very long and not so quick post - but, as I'm sure some of you can relate to, summer blogging isn't as easy as winter blogging... that sunshine, fresh air and my pooches are what I crave, so my PC is getting the cold shoulder more often than not. =( Nigel is being sneaky here.. this is when he looks away from you but keeps walking very... slowly... towards you and then POUNCE! He'll try to tackle your knees. We call it stalking - it's hilarious. =) How can you resist that face and that schnozz?? Chloe likes to play ball. And after a 20 minute game of catch the ball and bring it back, she likes to play ball again. Then after that she likes to play ball AGAIN. It's kind of never ending. :D Enjoy!! xoxox

My Annual Gardening Brag :)

Every year, Hubbs and I spend hours upon hours cleaning out our flower beds, planting new flowers, dividing established plants, mulching, weeding, roto-tilling the vegetable garden & planting the veggies, etc. We also spend hundreds of dollars on new plants each year. My God, we need a 12 step program. It got so bad this year that we nervously joked, as we were walking out of the last nursery we hit with our huge bootie of gorgeous perennials & annuals, that we could very well lose the house because we had just spent some of the mortgage money.. but hot damn it'll look fantabulous at the Sheriff's Auction! He's always had a green thumb and has always had flower beds and gardens throughout his life. I, on the other hand, never had either. Oh sure, my mom would buy a few impatiens every year and plant in the lil flower bed outside of our back porch, but that was it. The closest we ever had to a garden was an Italian plum tree, which died when I was in my mid-teens. So, when I bought my first house I promised myself that the yards would be beautiful and, lucky me, he feels the same way. So keeping up the tradition of showing my blogging friends some of what we've planted and cared for - the rest of this post will be photos of this year's beauties. Happy Summer to all of my northern hemisphere friends! To everyone else who are starting (or will be starting in the near future) to experience the colder temps, I hope these photos warm you up a bit! Enjoy :D Sweet William Columbines My absolute favorite Coleus "Saavy" LOVE the Autumn-like colors =) The other plant with Autumn-like colors that I covet, but still don't know what the hell it is. :D Peony - they got HUGE this year Snapdragons Two of my 3 smaller variety Dahlias (my favorite flower), the 3rd was just budding when I took these photos, but I'll post later because it's gorgeous! "Lady Luck" is what the tag said, not sure what kind of flower this is though. 1- My herb pot. This year, lots and lots of basil, chives, tarragon, thyme and sage. 2- Big old bucket o'cilantro and smaller planter is oregano. 3- Pineapple sage. 4- Lavender in a bed that obviously needs weeded again. Also that lil curly looking vine coming through our new fence? A gorgeous Clematis that he thought he killed last year when he put the new fence up.. now it's sandwiched between the old and new fences - so he's going to take some boards off and try to bring it inside the new fence. Oops a daisy! And my most favorite photo of the summer - our new Zinnias. Do they rock or do they not rock, people?! They totally rock. :D More pictures here xoxo

I Made Him Think? Huh.

I've been given an award. How the hell do you like that? And it's one of the nicest awards to be given.. I'm quite flattered and more than a lil shocked! heee! This award.. it's a "thinking" award.. It means someone has been readin' this lil blog o'mine and it's made him think! Well terrific! I think that's great! Not that he needs to think about my blog filler so much, as he has no problems coming up with his own fabulous food creations just fine on his own! But Thank! You! Jerry! for such a nice surprise =)) Okay well, a small task comes with receiving this award and that is, I need to list five other bloggers who make me think! Well the only thing I think about that is, it SUCKS! Just five?? Holy cow, that hurts my brain. After much debate and over a week of going through my VERY LONG list, I have decided on 5 other bloggers to give this award to. And by decide, I mean I made a list on notebook paper, taped it to a wall and flung little glue tabs at it. Whatever blog they landed on is the lucky recipient of this very sweet award AND now has the job of trying to figure out five of their favorite bloggers to pass it on to next. MUAHAHA! Okay here is my list, in the order upon which my lil glue flingy was flung: Ilva of Lucullian Delights - When I first started reading her blog well over a year ago, the food she wrote about was foreign to me. This is not how most people I know eat. But the more I read, the more I realized.. why the hell aren't we eating this kind of food?? It looks delicious, it sounds delicious and it's healthy food! It's not drowning in marinara sauce! There are not 3 inches of cheese on top! Just healthy grains, vegetables and fruits! I aspire to cook like Ilva one day, it's hard to break my butter / mayo / sour cream addictions but by learning more and more how she cooks, makes it all that much easier for me to start incorporating her ways into my own cooking. Ohh... and, by chance, have you noticed her photography?? *swoon* Callipygia of FOODchair - If you've read her blog, then you can skip this explanation of why she makes me think. You already know. Callipygia's writing sucks you in and won't let you go even after you've read the last word. Her descriptions are so vivid that if you were to close your eyes, you'd clearly see what she's talking about. She has a great sense of humor as well and I am always guaranteed a chuckle at some point through her post. She'll write about a particular food that I either am not familiar with or would normally turn my nose up at. But after she's told me about her experience with it, not only do I want to try it - but I want to try it RIGHT NOW. Take, for instance, yummy cheese balls... and I do mean yummy... Kirsten of Kirsten's Home Cooking Adventures - Now this gal just makes me think about how I can incorporate her mouthwatering foods into my repertoire! I love the way she cooks and have asked her REPEATEDLY if she'd just ADOPT me (I might have even asked her to marry me).. but I've seen no papers come across my desk yet. *sigh* So what's so great about her blog? It's the simple fact that she somehow knows exactly what I've been craving and then goes and makes it - to taunt me with! I don't think I've come across one entry of her's that did not make me say to myself, "I am SO going to make that!" Laura Rebecca of Laura Rebecca's Kitchen - Laura's is one of the first blogs I had ever read and she's one of the first friends I'd ever "met". Her blog is about real food being eaten by a real family with all their different likes and dislikes. About how a very busy mom, wife and teacher still has time to cook fabulous dinners and treats for her family. But, aside from how she makes me drool and uhh, react when I read her posts or try her recipes, I know I can count on her to let me know when something important is happening in the food world. Her accounts about organic farming, the e coli outbreak, mad cow disease, how the big wig bastards are trying to f*ck with our chocolate, net neutrality and this atrocity get me thinking about things that I normally like to pretend just aren't there. I'm grateful that she's not afraid to let her readers know her opinions and how she provides even more information to whichever it is she's writing about. And last but certainly not least - Sara of i like to cook - Sara likes to try new things. She doesn't seem to be scared of what the outcome could possibly be, she's more into it to see if she can discover something new. I've never gotten the impression that Sara's recipes come from a list of tried and true's, yanno? I know some are, but mostly she's willing to go beyond what might be normal fare (rice burgers! Yum!) for herself and her husband. Therefore, when she tries something new, regardless if I'm brave and try it myself or not, she makes me think outside my normal comfort zone. Most recently, the subject of tofu came up. Seriously kids, there is just no way, up until the point of reading her posts, that I would even entertain the thought of eating tofu. I'm sorry it just squicks me out. But she taught me to think differently about the stuff - to use it in recipes where you really don't know it's there, that it's so much better for your body than the stuff I've been shoveling in. I want to get healthy and she's given me one option. Okay gals.. here's what you are suppose to do: If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think, Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme, Optional: Proudly display the ‘Thinking Blogger Award’ with a link to the post that you wrote. So there you have it kids.. five of the many blogs that make me think on a daily basis. Thank you again, Jerry! xoxo

What are my goals - in meme form!

I've discovered another fantastic blog to which I am addicted to. Kellementology is written by Kellypea who has a terrific sense of humor and a great way of writing that pretty much leaves me wanting more after reading her posts. Thank God she left a nice comment on this lil blog a couple weeks ago, or I probably would never have discovered her. Thanks, Kelly! Well one day I got an e-mail from her, she was letting me know that she had tagged me for a meme. I IMMEDIATELY got soooooooo excited, as I love those meme things with a burning passion! They are usually in list form, and being the Queen of Dorkdom, I am all about the list. So I opened up my browser, clicked on my favorites and took a look at her blog. The post was titled Setting Goals: Tag, You're It. The title alone should have been my first clue that this wasn't your everyday meme and soon after sinking into her post, I realized that this meme was not going to be easy to write about. This meme is asking you what your top goals are to achieve your wildest dreams.. ohh lordie.. some of my wildest dreams really can't be shared on a foodie blog - even the ones that include Gordon and Tyler! Hell, especially the ones including Gordon and Tyler. *dreamy sigh* Is it getting warm in here? Moving along! After removing my mind from that luscious, luscious gutter, I realized those weren't the wildest dreams Kelly was referring to. No, what she was asking me was to share with you those goals that I want to achieve to really maximize the enjoyment and fulfillment of my life. As flattered as I was that she picked me to tag, I was also more than a bit squeamish to actually follow through with this post. You see, this meme forces you to take a look at your life - where you are at now, where you've been and where you want to go. I am not a big goal setter.. quite possibly because I've never really learned how to set a goal - a realistic one anyway. I'm more of the mind-set that you just have to deal with what life throws at you moreso than the mind-set of life needs to deal with what you throw at it. Yanno? I'm also a creature of habit.. and although I can't speak for anyone else, I know that in my case a creature of habit doesn't set goals because that would mean leaving your comfort zone behind - and often. Sure I enjoy a challenge - as long as that challenge stays within the perimeters of my comfort zone. Kinda pathetic, isn't it? Well after much thought, I decided to go ahead and try to write this post.. to try to venture out past my comfort zone of writing about the foods I make and the dork that I am. And the reason for that is, eventually this blog - if I intend to stay with this - is going to have to change.. I'm hoping for the better - we'll see. ;) What I came to realize is that many goals are definitely not for me. If I am to be true to myself AT LEAST ONCE in my life, there is really only one goal that needs to be set and met- and then after that, the biggest hurdle of my life, has been accomplished then any other goal would be a cake walk. I need to get healthy. It's that simple, yet so complicated. I need to lose a boatload of weight. I need to get my sugar under control. I need to quit smoking. I need to start taking care of myself in ways I've never bothered with in all of my close to 40 fakkin years. I need to retrain myself, I guess. Not an easy task. Especially for a creature of habit. So far, I've been more than lucky that my sugar hasn't caused many problems. But I know if I continue to half-ass it, one day I'm going to start having problems with my feet or my eyes or God forbid my kidneys. My father had diabetes and took 2 insulin shots a day for 10 years. He lost a boatload of weight and was taken off the insulin, as if he'd never had the disease. Unfortunately, who knew how long he had it before he was finally diagnosed (and that was a fluke!) because ultimately, it was complications of diabetes that started his kidneys to fail. He was on dialysis for the last 3 years of his life. I don't want to go through that. And so, I firmly believe in my heart of hearts, if I can get my weight and all around health under control, any other hurdle in my life will not be any where near as difficult or scary. I will gain self confidence and the true worth of accomplishing something difficult. So that's it - that's my goal to make my life worth living. Wish me luck. ;) You're not getting off that easily, kids.. I'm tagging: Morven Julie and Jerry xoxo Nahh.. there's no way I can be THAT serious on this lil blog o'mine! Kelly did another meme that looked fun to do, and although she didn't tag me for that one, I'm stealing it because I haven't seen this one yet. hee! Three Things Three things that scare me 1- Heights and falling from them. 2- Bugs!!! 3- Something bad happening to one of my fur babies Three people who make me laugh 1- Denis Leary 2- Lewis Black 3- Mike Rowe (and drool) Three things I love 1- My dogs 2- The wee hours of the morning before anyone else is awake 3- 80's rock Three things I hate 1- My dead-end, boring, life sucking job 2- Braggarts 3- Having to pee when there is no bathroom close by Three things I don’t understand 1- George Dubya 2- Why we are "helping" a country that hates us 3- What the fuck is up with America and the voting on AI this season?? Three things on my desk 1- Pictures of the dogs & assorted dorky friends 2- Shite loads of DVD movies 3- A coffee mug Three things I want to do before I die 1- Visit and/or move to Italy 2- Visit Ireland 3- Go on a no-limit shopping spree that someone else pays for Three things I can do 1- Take care of my family 2- Make my friends laugh 3- Bring home the bacon and fry it up in a pan Three things I can’t do 1- Perform brain surgery 2- Flip crepes (Gah) 3- Shoot lightning bolts from my finger tips Three things I think you should listen to 1- Your heart 2- A hellacious thunder storm 3- The sounds of silence Three things you should never listen to 1- Sanjaya Malakar 2- Someone belittling you 3- Any unsolicited advice I might throw your way Three things I’d like to learn (but won’t) 1- Forensic science 2- How to do that Riverdance dancing.. what's it called? 3- Curling Three shows I watched as a kid 1- The Brady Bunch!! WOOO!! Go Brady's!! 2- Gilligan's Island 3- Looney Tunes (actually, I still watch all these shows) And YES I am going to tag a few more people... Laurie Gattina Helene xoxo

*Update*

Just wanted to let you know.. very muchly long overdue - I updated my blog roll --> over there --> Close your eyes and click.. doesn't matter where you land, you won't be disappointed. =) xoxo

Death By Chocolate

What a sweet, sweet way to go. Actually, I've always thought just the opposite about death and chocolate.. there is a strict rule between myself and a friend of mine - if I were ever to get hit by a bus or happened to be frolicking in the forest during deer season and was accidently mistaken for a 9 pt. buck and shot in the head - she is NOT to perform CPR on me.. she is to shove a chocolate bar in my mouth.. either that chocolate will miraculously bring me back to life (because it's good for you, dammit!).. or it will be the last thing I taste before I go.. and that's alright by me. :D Have you guys ever wondered.. how long of a run on sentence I can make.. with lil ..'s in between thoughts? Anyhoo.. This month's "challenge" and fun crosspost with my baking blogger buddies was a bit different. We've decided to add a few people (or baking bitches) each month to our lil "club", or brigade, or as I like to call it, Team Tasty. This month's inductees are 3 lovely and talented bakers: Tanna, Hester and Mary. And, of course, for those of you who follow our lil monthly excursions into the baking unknown, you already know the rest of the crew by now - My second in Dorkdom command, Brilynn. The loves of my life, the apples of my eye, the creams in my coffee, the ménage in my trois, Ivonne and Helen (the quiet one). The extremely talented baker, photographer and the gal I now call Gracie, Peabody. My twin sister (at least in my mind), Veronica. And last, but certainly not least.. as she's the cutest Mommie Baker, I know, Jenny. It was also decided that we'd each submit a suggestion for the month's challenge then we'd all vote - whichever suggestion gets the most votes is what we'll be trying to accomplish by some set date that we also all decide on.. kinda cool, eh? This month's winner was Peabody's suggestion for a flourless chocolate cake. And a damn fine winner, if I do say so myself. As we wondered which recipe we'd all bake.. Ivonne suggested the recipe in Tish Boyle's The Cake Book. I still do not own this book, but if the rest of her cakes turn out as magically delicious as this cake did, then I seriously need to fork over the cash to purchase it. Dear sweet baby Jebus was this cake heavenly. No, orgasmic.. the kind of orgasmic that makes your eyes roll back in your head and your toes curl like the locks on lil Cindy Brady's head. Here's what happens when you take your first bite: Your throat will lock up because your mouth refuses to let go of the velvety, creamy, chocolatey goodness. Your eyes will roll so far back in your head, that you'll be taken for one of the Undead. The sweetest of shivers will slowly work it's way down your spine until it reaches your toes.. see above for what happens next. When your mouth finally allows your throat to swallow - you'll hear angels singing and harps playing.. the light will get a little brighter and the colors will get a lil more vivid. You'll lose all train of rational thought and will only be able to focus on the task of scooping up more deliciousness with your fork. Ohh.. and your dogs will look at you in what seemed to be confusion and fear with a lil nervous excitement thrown in. This cake is to be made on special occasions.. if you want to W.O.W. your guests, this is a must serve. When you've had a bad week and nothing will make things better than velvety chocolate - you will make this cake. This is like no other flourless chocolate cake that I've ever experienced - and lemme tell ya - I've experienced quite a few FCC's before. When the cake is left out to come to room temperature it takes on a light texture.. like a dense chocolate silk pie - silky but not as heavy as your average flourless cake. When it's eaten straight out of the fridge it is fudge like - but not your ordinary fudge.. the creamiest, deepest, richest chocolately fudge you've ever had. (I know this because I had a room temp slice for LUNCH people - and then I had a straight outta the chiller slice during Grey's Anatomy - do NOT tell my doctor.) Okay well.. seriously? How much more can I rant and rave about this cake? Copy this recipe and make it at your next earliest convenience. If you aren't having guests over any time soon, then either invite some or consider the dust bunnies under your bed as the guests of honor. If there is no special occasion comin' up - then make one up. Just make the cake and enjoy the eye rollin-spine shiverin-toe curling experience. Holy Crap! I got so quivery over the pictures I included in this post that I fakkin' forgot to include the recipe! Special thanks to Mary - because I'm going to be way lazy and just copy from her post. heeee! :D Chocolate Intensity from Tish Boyle's The Cake Book Makes one 9-inch cake 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (preferably 62% cocoa), finely chopped 12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup brewed coffee 6 large eggs 1 tsp vanilla extract 1/8 tsp salt Preheat oven to 350º F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch round cake pan. Line the bottom with a parchment round and butter the parchment. (If you're using a pan with a removable bottom like a springform, make sure to wrap the pan with 2 or 3 layers of foil.) Place chopped chocolate in a large bowl. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, stir butter, sugar and coffee until the butter is melted and mixture is boiling. Pour the hot mixture over your chopped chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute then gently stir until chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs vigorously until blended. Whisk in the vanilla and salt. Slowly add about 3/4 cup hot chocolate mixture to the eggs, whisking constantly. (Tempering the eggs with a little bit of the hot chocolate mixture will prevent "scrambled eggs" when combining the two mixtures.) Add the egg mixture to the hot chocolate mixture and whisk to combine well. Strain the batter through a sieve (to catch any cooked egg bits) and then pour batter into prepared pan. Set cake pan in a large roasting pan and fill the pan with enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until the center is shiny and set but still a bit jiggly. Transfer cake pan to a cooling rack and cool for 20 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake. Place a cardboard round on top of the pan and invert the cake onto it. Remove pan and carefully remove the parchment paper. Refrigerate the cake for at least 2 hours before glazing with chocolate glaze. Bittersweet Ganache 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped 2/3 cup heavy whipping cream 1 tsp vanilla extract Place chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Remove pan from heat and add the chopped chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute then gently stir until chocolate is melted and the glaze is smooth. Gently stir in the vanilla. Transfer glaze to a small bowl and cover the surface of the glaze with plastic wrap and let cool for 5 minutes at room temperature before using. To glaze the cake: Place the chilled cake, still on the cake round, on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Slowly pour the hot glaze onto the center of the cake. Smooth the glaze over the top and sides, letting the excess drip onto the baking sheet. Scrape the extra glaze from the baking sheet and put it in a small ziploc bag. Seal the bag and cut a tiny hole in one of the bottom corners. Gently squeeze the bag over the top of the cake to drizzle the glaze in a decorative pattern. Refrigerate the cake at least one hour before serving.

My Two Favorite Spaces

As I mentioned a few days ago, the beautiful Ilva has made a request to see pictures of our kitchens. I am only too happy to oblige as I heart my lil kitchen to bits. :D This is my kitchen's west wall looking out to our backyard. When we first moved in, I hired my friend, Beth, to paint a few rooms in my house - and the kitchen and dining area were the first two she hit. I wanted a Tuscan feeling - mainly the look of plaster chipping off a brick wall with the brick peeking through. I also wanted lots of curly whimsical vines and grapes. She gave it all to me and I was very pleased with the results. =) Below are just some different views: The east wall - the fridge is now barely noticeable as the front and sides are pretty much covered up by pictures of my nieces and nephews! This angle just shows that my kitchen opens up into my living room. And this picture is my living room looking into the dining area - which seems to be the only picture I took of the dining area. If you look on top of the bookshelf you'll see a picture of Chloe when she was a puppy - she use to literally fall asleep in her water bowl. hee! Below are pictures of my office - my 2nd most favorite place in my house =) The office has a nautical theme and Beth painted the walls to look like wood planks. Yes, you don't see much blue wood around, but I saw a picture of a room with blue wood walls so I hadda have it. :D This is my desk, btw. If you look closely at my monitor, you will see a picture on my desktop of a breathtaking view of an italian hillside. This picture was taken by Ilva many months ago (back when this picture of my office was taken) and I fell in love with it so much that I made it into my wallpaper so I could look at it alla time. This is Hubbs' tiny lil desk, with my old Gateway PC - that he uses to play online poker and read up on where the good fishin' is happenin'. hee! So there you have it.. the 2 spaces where I spend all my time. Now it's your turn! Show us yours! :D Whoops! I forgot to include the e-mail address - so please send your permalink to Ilva so she can add it to the round up! =) xoxo