It’s also the recap with the better looking pictures than the ones I posted on Posterous.

Bianca Richardson = a cracked-out black version of Serena van der Woodsen minus three inches.

Nicole Fox’s nicknames for the girls:  Because you’ve always wanted to know what A Shot at a Flavor of Munchkin looked like.

Nicole Fox’s pathetic attempt to scramble eggs is proof you either have to know how to cook for yourself on the post-UPN version of ANTM or look stupid trying.

American Apparel: The Musical!

Oh…I’m sorry you had to walk down a runway with some girl Tyra Banks “discovered” on her talk show.  My apologies.

This is the part of the show where you ASK FOR A CAN OF RAID and blame Tyra Banks for putting you in a house with candy lying around the runway as if that won’t attract pests, not go crazy over some damn snail on a window.

…although having popcorn in your bag isn’t going to alleviate the pest problem.  Bianca Richardson.

According to Laura, Brittany Markert’s foot injury here will result in her skin eventually being flayed off, causing her to die.  It’s not exactly how Laura put it but I assume that is what Laura meant when she said that.

Speaking of, this cycle would’ve been better with moar nipple.

I think there’s a guy dating a sheep somewhere in this film too.

and the best of the rest of the WTF clips

WHAT ARE THESE MUNCHKINS I DON’T EVEN.

Recipe 119: This is so much a classic, that it’s a dish we cook often when we want to eat a good and quick plate of pasta. In fact in my recent trip to Holland, on my last day we ate at home and we cooked spaghetti alla Carbonara.

Of course i first tried all the Dutch specialties , but a nice plate of pasta is very difficult to beat!

However if you pass for Holland you will need to try the fresh made dutch waffles, the Gouda cheese, you will need to eat out and try one of their mix-asiatic dishes (their colonies in Asia have created a nice food culture), the special queen Wilhelmina’s peppermints (but i can suggest you these very good gums too, also if the name is not really inviting) and finally you will need to try one of the FEBO’s specialties and you can’t avoid that considering there are so many FEBO and everyone goes around with french fries and this kind of food in the weekend.

But let’s comeback to the recipe of the pasta. The ingredients for 2 people are: 250 gr spaghetti – 2 fresh eggs – 1 onion – 75 gr pancetta – Parmesan (better if you can find Pecorino cheese) – salt – pepper. Very easy!!!

Cut the onion in little pieces and put it in a pan with a bit of oil. If you want you can also give more taste to the oil adding a little piece of garlic that you can cook and then remove.

Then add the pancetta and in the meantime put the Spaghetti in hot salty water. Wait a bit for the pancetta to cook and in the meantime you can grate the Parmesan or  Pecorino cheese (depending if you like a stronger flavor). Put the 2 eggs in a little container and mix a bit until you reach a worm yellow color. No comments about his portable colander!

At this point when the pasta is ready (and still just a bit hard) drain it and place it back in the sauce pan with the pancetta and onion, Parmesan or Pecorino, mix all and then add also the 2 eggs, without put anything on the gas. This is the secret of this pasta. You don’t need any cream, but just the eggs will give the necessary creamy consistence to the dish.

When ready just serve with some more Parmesan and black pepper.

Buon appetito!!!

PS. Mamy questa e’ la carbonara che abbiamo fatto con Carlo prima che prendessi il volo. Avevamo una fame e devo dire che lui e’ stato bravissimo. La cottura era perfetta ed immagina che c’aveva anche il pecorino! Che buono!Chi la batte la carbonara? Invece prima ho parlato di alcuni prodotti tipici danesi, che a dire la verita’ non sono moltissimi, ma buoni, specialmente i waffles.

Everyone loves this concept. Easy for adults- fun for kids! I took the opportunity to upgrade the breakfast by adding a few items I had already chopped in the refrigerator. I often say that if you have veggies chopped already it is so much easier to get them in the meal last-minute. This week I had chopped kale and red pepper left over from another meal. I simply added to the scrambled eggs. This served with tomatoes, broccoli, and whole wheat sourdough toast with coconut oil makes for one nourishing and nutritious meal!

A quick post for a quick meal!

Still, not too warm, Some frost in the night. Finished the new latch. This will take 5 or 6 rows of potatoes. Showed the briar stocks to T[itley]., who explained that one must cut the side shoots off & bud those onto those which appear in spring.

7 eggs.

It’s been a long long week and after a round of gin and tonics (okay maybe more than 1 round), all I could think of to ease the “pain” was something sweet, chocolately and oooey gooey.  It’s hard for someone like me to just stroll on into a corner store and pick up a bar for a buck … almost 100% of the commercial brands of chocolate bars have soy lecithin in them so it’s a no go for me.  For me then, it’s always turn on oven, whip up a storm, bake, be patient, and hours later enjoy!.  With that … I give you one of the easiest craving satisfyers I know and love … the chocoholics brownie.  Hi, my name is Healthyhag and I am an addict.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup cold butter, cut into bits

150g rams (about 1/2 cup) dark chocolate, broken into bits

2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS:

1) Heat the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over LOW heat until completely melted.

2) Let chocolate/butter mixture cool for 10 minutes, and then preheat oven to 350F.

3) Mix sugar, eggs and vanilla together until fluffy.

4) Add in flour and salt to bowl and combine then mix in cooled chocolate/butter mix and blend well.

5) Pour into 11 x 8 greased baking dish and bake for 30-35 minutes (do NOT over bake!!!).

6) Cool brownies for at least 30 minutes, then cut into squares and enjoy!

This was back during the awful hay fever episode. I remember it distinctly as the night I barely slept and woke up at 6am and couldn’t go back to sleep. Generally, I would pick myself out of bed and go for a morning walk/run but because I barely slept I was just too tired so I figured let’s just hit Degraves St. for breakfast. So I pulled poor Josh out of a bed with a promise of breakfast treat.

(eggs florentine, poached eggs with spinach and hallandaise sauce – $12.00)

It was a lovely warm day and the day was heating up already (loves it) but we went in and sat in the booth at the back anyway. Unfortunately, I was grouchy to the max from lack of sleep and the fact that I had to be at work soonish didn’t help either.

The cafe was warmly decorated with interesting black and white photographs and while it was quite warm at the back, I didn’t mind. I am a tropical girl, after all. The breakfast options weren’t large with a few daily specials.

Due to grouchiness, I decided to be boring (I’m sorry, I try to not order the same thing over and over again) and ordered eggs florentine. The eggs were perfectly cooked this time (as opposed to my last eggs florentine) and I enjoyed it. Although still the hollandaise was a bit lacking. I’m yet to find perfect hollandaise sauce.

(Mediterranean omelet – $14.50?)

Josh ordered what was called Mediterranean omelet. I thought it was going to be normal runny omelet with ‘Mediterranean’ ingredients in them (like fetta, olives, etc.)  but surprisingly it was the Spanish style omelet (tortilla) which was served in a hot iron pan. The eggs were fluffly and cooked through – Spanish style with chorizo, onion and a few other things (can’t remember, too grouchy, no potato though).

Josh enjoyed it because he liked his eggs cooked through. I don’t but it wasn’t because it wasn’t done right. It was a fair portion of food. I ended up helping him with some. He’s not a big eater – especially for breakfast. It’s fantastic I married him. I get all his leftovers.

It was a good breakfast – typical of Degraves St. cafe standard. It did make me less grouchy before heading off for work. I’m so glad I work nearby.

The Quarter, 27 – 31 Degraves Street, Melbourne VIC

Give Old MacDonald a run for his money in this frenetic Farm Frenzy sequel. Feed hens, collect eggs, and stock your warehouse to ship your goods to market. Kick up your heels while earning enough money to upgrade your buildings. You`ll find a crop full of fun with 17 secret gags to locate, and 19 awards to win. Buy five products in the city and deliver goods for happy customers in Farm Frenzy 2, a Time Management adventure.

Frenetic Time Management sequel

Secret gags!

Bring produce to market

System Requirements:

OS: Windows XP/Vista

CPU: 1.0 GHz

RAM: 256 MB

DirectX: 8.0

Hard Drive: 41 MB

It Takes Just A second To Say Thanks,

It Takes Longer To The Work On This.

Farm Frenzy 2

Dedicated to my Mom and to Lucile F. Locher Mishler “Mum”, her maternal grandmother.

Traditional Fruitcake

Ingredients:
2 cups mixed Dried Fruits, minced
1 cup Rum
1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Nutmeg
1 tsp Ginger
3/4 cup Granulated Sugar
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
5 Eggs
3 Tbsp Canola Oil
1/4 cup Rum
1 Tbsp Lemon Zest
1 Tbsp Orange Zest
1/2 cup Pecans, chopped
1 cup Pecans, whole
1 cup Candied Red Cherries
1 cup Candied Green Cherries
1 cup Candied Pineapple

Directions:

• Soak the minced Dried Fruits in 1 cup of Rum overnight.
• Preheat the Oven to 300°F.
• Sift together the Flour, Baking Powder, Salt, and Spices into a large bowl.
• In a second bowl cream the Eggs with the Sugars.
• Whisk in the Olive Oil and 1/4 cup Dark Rum.
• Slowly incorporate into the Flour mixture.
• Fold in the Dried Fruits, Zest, and 1/2 cup of crushed Pecans.
• Grease a bunt pan well.
• Pour mixture into the bunt pan, and lightly tap it against the counter.
• Decorate with the Candied Fruits and whole Pecans.
• Bake on the middle rack for about 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in it comes out clean.

NOTES: Fruitcake has always been one of my favorite deserts.  My mom tells me about how when she grew up her grandmother “Mum” used to make Fruitcake in early fall, and stick it in cheesecloth a tin.  Every couple weeks she’d pour Port on top of it.  By Christmas it was amazing.  I’m still nervous about keeping a cake in a tin and pouring alcohol on it for over a month…so here’s my version with a less pungent Rum.

Mixed Dried Fruit can include Cranberries, Raisins, Dates, Figs, Apricots, Apples, Pears, Pruns, etc.

which is why i had to make them today. i used my new mushroom brush-what a great little device! i sauteed brussels sprouts, one onion, shitake & crimini mushrooms in butter & topped with smoked gouda cheese. i whipped the eggs up with some light cream, salted it & gave it a shot. i expected it to turn into a scramble-the way it usually goes for me when i attempt to prepare an omelet. they were SO good the colonel actually ate 2! that’s 6 eggs! i guess i AM good at making omelets

Stuffing has got to be my favorite Thanksgiving food.  I remember Thanksgivings past where my dad & I would fight over the stuffing bowl like it was filled with gold, diamonds, and (for me) guitars.  The stuff is perfect.  Alone, with turkey, with gravy… the decadent amount of carbs is ridiculously awesome.

Last year was my first ever attempt at making stuffing… and my grandma told me that it tasted just like hers.  Is there a compliment better than that?  I had used as a guide an old recipe that my grandfather & grandmother had both used when making holiday meals.  My mom lent me the old cook book with my grandfather’s notes last year, I collected some others, and I made scans for myself.

I say “guide” because it’s not always an exact science when doubling/tripling recipes… and there really aren’t any cooking directions… it’s just a guide to make the stuff.  Also, I tend to do a lot of “oh, that looks about right” and a little bit of “hey, let’s add a little of this” in the kitchen, as most people comfortable there usually do.

A lot of times I see stuffing recipes online, on TV, or in the little books by the cash register at the grocery store… and they include sausage, apples, raisins, (yuck!) nuts, or even peppers, carrots, or mushrooms (all of the latter of which I’ like to try some time).  The philosophy behind this recipe seems to be a K.I.S.S. one.  I like that.  It’s a very simple accompaniment, and the taste that my mind goes to every time I think “stuffing”.

This year, it was definitely a two person effort.  I don’t know how I would have done it without Bethany and all four of our hands.  We made a lot of stuffing.  Sadly, I didn’t think to chronicle the thing with photos like I sometimes do with new recipes… but I did want to make a guide with my own notes, so when I do this next year, I remember what I did differently this year.  I know I altered things slightly last year, but the details were a little fuzzy.  I figured that if I’m going to do it for myself, I might as well share, right?  Plus, we got compliments from two moms, two grandmas, and an aunt… all excellent in the kitchen themselves!

I did take a photo today, because really, what’s a food blog post without a photo?  Perhaps I’ll see if my mom got any with her camera and amend the post later.

This year's effort was delicious, if I do say so myself.

This is my first time really writing out a recipe… so pardon me if it’s a little convoluted or long winded.  I don’t want to miss anything, and I hope to get it all in the right order as well as make it an entertaining read.

Here’s what you’ll need to do it the same way I did…

Food:

• 5 loaves of bread (equaled 56 cups once cubed)
• 1 bundle of celery (3 cups, chopped – the rest can cook w/ the turkey or be a snack)
• 2 Spanish or Sweet onions
• The giblets & neck out of your turkey.
• 1 can (14½ oz.) vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoons of salt
• ½ tablesppon Season All Seasoned Salt
• 1 heaping teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
• 1 heaping teaspoon sage
• 1 heaping teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 10 eggs
• 4 sticks (2 cups) butter
• some water
• 1 cup fresh parsley
• 1 bottle of Yuengling

Stuff:

• 2 cookie sheets
• cutting boards
• small pot
• electric skillet
• Magic Bullet^®
• electric roaster
• large crock pot
• knives
• a few large bowls
• whisk
• spatula
• several large spoons
• paper towels

OK, on to the directions…

1. Monday night, get your loaves of bread, open the bags, and put the loaves on cookie sheets before dinner.  Leave ‘em out on a table or counter while you do your thing.
2. Right before your favorite prime time TV shows come on, set up a station on the coffee table in front of the couch with the cookie trays of bread, some cutting boards with knives, and the pans out of your electric roaster.  Cube the bread and fill the roasting pan.  When I say fill it, I mean fill it.  It will be ridiculously full.
3. Cover it with paper towels, and set it on the kitchen table that you only use when company comes over anyway.  Over the next few days, stir it a few times a day, whenever you think of it.  This will get it nicely & slightly stale.  If you’re going to be doing anything that smells, like using cleaning chemicals, put it in the oven… but don’t turn it on.  It’s nice & warm & dry & not stinky in there.  The bread will absorb that stuff and the stuffing will taste like Mr. Clean made it.
4. Wednesday night, get out your turkey… and pull the disgusting papery bag of giblets out of the neck cavity, and the neck out of its butt.  (Why exactly do they put the neck in the butt, anyway?  Who’s idea was that?) Boil the giblets in your can of vegetable broth, or just use plain water… or even turkey or chicken broth.  I thought the vegetable broth would add a nice flavor.  I boiled them for a nice long time, and let it cook down quite a bunch.
5. Finely chop up your celery & onions… or use the Magic Bullet, like I did.  I’m not real big on chunks of slimy or crunchy stuff in bread-like consistency foods.  I probably had half of each chopped finely, the other half rendered to near-paste by the genius little piece of equipment that list the Magic Bullet.  I’m sure any food processor would work.. but this one is easy to pot pout of storage, use, and clean when you’re done.
6. Then I popped out the electric skillet to sauteé the onion & celery mixture… probably in some Country Crock & a bit of extra virgin olive oil… adding some of the spices mentioned above, and maybe even some paprika… although, they don’t come the totals listed above.  These are the aforementioned “oh, that looks about right” and  “hey, let’s add a little of this”.  You’ve sauteed stuff, you know how it works.  I love this step because it turns the onions from gross into awesome… especially the Spanish onions.  The sweet onions are oddly enough not as sweet to me when cooked.
7. Next time, I’m totally getting a pair of swimming goggles or those glasses that I’ve seen at Bed, Bath & Beyond for when I chop & pulverize the onions.  I was crying like a little girl who just watched a car run over a kitten.
8. I popped the onions and celery into separate containers for the ‘fridge to save for Thursday morning.
9. Next, I pulled out the giblets and chopped them into tiny pieces, & put them with the reduced broth from cooking into a 3rd refrigerator bound container to be used on Thursday morning.
10. Go to bed.  You have to get up early.
11. Thursday get up about an hour before your turkey needs to go in the roaster oven, and start to mix all this crap together.
12. Add the dry spice ingredients to the now stale-ish cubed bread.  Good luck not getting any on the floor.
13. Chop the fresh parsley.
14. Nuke your butter in a microwave safe bowl, add it to a large mixing bowl, crack open the 10 eggs, and whisk away.
15. Add the fresh parsley to the buttery gooey egg mixture.
16. Add 2-3 cups of the broth from the giblets, and the finely chopped giblets to the now even gooier butterier egg mixture.
17. This is where I got the bright idea to dump in some Yuengling.  It wasn’t a whole bottle… but I had it out & only needed about ½ cup for my butter/garlic/beer turkey injection/baste,  so I dumped some into the gooey buttery gibletey mixture, and drank the rest… all before 8:00 am.
18. Dump the celery & onion concoction on to the bread, mix around, and then dump on the gooey buttery gibletey Yuenglingey mixture.  This is where it was imperative that there were two of us.  Bethany opted to use her hands to mix while I poured.  The mixing gets easier when it’s wet, as it goes down a little.  You should probably wash your hands before you do this.  Not that I think you’re stupid or anything… but there are signs out there all over the place… so someone somewhere must need reminded.  Use soap, and hot water.
19. Now, this needs to come out of the roaster so the turkey can go into it… and you should be doing this around the same time as turkey prep… so stuff what you can into the turkey carcass’ various cavities, and put the rest in the crock pot.  I had Bethany scoop it into a bowl small amounts at a time as I stuffed it into the bird, so I wasn’t touching raw poultry and the stuffing that wasn’t going into the bird.  She made it clear that she wasn’t touching the raw dead bird, or sticking her hands into it.
20. I sewed up the turkey and popped it into the roaster to cook, and then put the stuffing in the crock pot on low to cook for the same amount of time.
21. Everyone told me last year that stuffing + crock pot = bad idea.  This is where I say that you could not be more wrong.  It was perfectly moist and heated well throughout.  I did break the cardinal cock pot rule by removing the lid every hour or so and stirring a little so it didn’t stick to the sides or burn.  This worked well, except that I didn’t get the bottom well enough.  You could add more liquid throughout if t looked necessary… or not stir if you like the crusty part as much as the other part.  If you use the crock pot enough, you get to know what works for yours.  Pop it on to warm or off a while before you eat.
22. When the turkey’s ready, the stuffing’s ready.  Stuff yourself silly, send people home with leftovers, and eat for breakfast, lunch, & dinner the next day.

Well, I hope you enjoyed the process, and I’m sorry for jumping tenses.  I think I did anyway.  All over the place.  Maybe Dave and Kristin can give me some pointers on that.

I’d love to know what you think of this recipe, and how you do your stuffing.  I’m always up for trying things new ways… and I’m always up for eating stuffing.  In fact, even better — make some, and invite me over for dinner!

]]> http://uhohmommyscooking.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/egg-and-tortilla-not-burritos/ Fri, 27 Nov 2009 20:25:02 +0000 uhohmommyscooking http://uhohmommyscooking.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/egg-and-tortilla-not-burritos/

If you can scramble eggs you should be able to make this:

Feeds about 5 people, easily add more or less if needed.
1/2 pkg. Bacon, cut up cooked
In bacon pan keep about 1-2 Tbsp grease, tear or cut 8-10 corn tortillas into pieces ( not too small, I break into 1/4 then a little smaller) cook tortillas on med-med high for about 7 minutes.
Add a dozen eggs and scramble. Cook through. Salt & pepper to taste. I eat mine with cheese and ketchup.
* you can also use sausage instead of bacon or no meat. Try with salsa or hot sauce. Enjoy

This week was a short week due to the Thanksgiving holiday, so I worked out with Alan 3 times this week instead of the usual four. Enjoyed two fabulous turkey dinners, one for lunch and one for dinner with different sets of friends; and both were really fun and muy delicioso. I abstained from any pie but nibbled on the olives. I’ve still only lost 14.5 pounds, so I ordered some goodies off Amazon to give me some extra help… more on that later.

It seems everyone assumes that I must be eating like a horse since I’m being completely faithful to my workouts yet not losing weight, but in fact, I’m eating healthier than ever and in very reasonable portions. For instance, a yogurt for breakfast; a salad with hard-boiled egg for protein for lunch and no dressing; a bowl of homemade chili for dinner; yogurt for a before-bed snack; and water, water, water, water. That can’t be more than 1200 calories, surely. All I know is to stick with it, and my contrary metabolism has got to cave sooner or later. I did splurge and have one beer on Wednesday evening at the school festivities, but all I got for that was a horrible headache. Me + beer = Le Miserable!

Alan is planning to mix up my workouts since he says my core is very strong now; so we will be doing an assortment of upper and lower body weight training in addition to cardio intervals and core exercises. I just keep doing whatever he recommends, because I always feel better after my workouts than I did when I walked in; and I’m so energized and strong, I don’t want to lose all the progress I’ve gained. I just want to keep making significant gains in my confidence, endurance, energy, and strength. The amazing thing is that when I first started I was so far behind everyone else, but now I’m one of the strong ones. I’m one of the people who’s always hanging out in the weight room after school, dressed and ready to work. I’m realizing that one reward I’m receiving that was totally unexpected is the confidence that other people are expressing in my determination, and the respect in their voices when they comment on how I’m so consistent and faithful to my regimen.

Another thing that never seemed real to me before is that once I started to change my story, I could also help other people to change theirs too. I mean, if I can become disciplined in this, ANYONE can. And it’s not by strength of will except for the first two or three weeks; after that, my motivation has been totally based on the benefits I’m reaping in how I feel every day, and how I sleep, and how much more content I am with my life. It also helped me a lot to have people I didn’t want to let down. Alan is a terrific friend, and I didn’t want to let him down. My friends Gretchen, Kim, Beth, and Rhonda were cheering me on. That has been so helpful! So even though I’m kind of bummed about not magically dropping 25 or 30 pounds over the last 13 weeks, I know I’m on the right track, and since this is a life change, I’m not stopping for anything.

Things I never imagined before have now become a possibility to me. Firstly, trekking all over Egypt and climbing pyramids was my short-term goal. And that is only two weeks away!!! But I’m also looking forward to coaching soccer next year. I was already planning to do it this year, and all excited about it, but then there was a scheduling conflict with the classes I’m teaching to my colleagues every Tuesday and Thursday after school, so now that is postponed till next year. I’m thinking of my future vacations as opportunities to hike and bike and climb and swim and challenge myself in all sorts of ways. Isn’t that crazy?

More importantly, as I take more risks in the physical realm, I believe it will empower me to meaningfully demonstrate more faith in other areas of my life… being courageous and positive in my actions where before I was fearful and negative.

This week, I watched the movie Pay It Forward, and the words of the main character, a middle school student who believed in the power of change, really stuck in my mind.   It was less about helping yourself than being available to help others.  He said that it’s not enough to plan something out that you want to do for someone; you need to keep your eyes open and see where the need really is; and the thing that you give has to be a huge sacrifice, something you really don’t want to give.

No Guts, No Glory

After reading the book A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller this week, I became inspired to “rewrite” my own life story, to throw away the boredom and routine in order to live a life more stressful, more painful, more sacrificial, and more REAL than I could have dreamed possible. Because things that are worth achieving are worth earning the hard way.

Open to Change

I no longer desire a life of comfort and ease, of TV and movies and pseudo-happy endings; of selfishness, vanity, safety and security. I want my life to BE more, to MEAN more, to MATTER more. I don’t know exactly what that entails, but I’m open to change. And at my age, I don’t have a lot of time to waste!!!

Heavy rain in the night & all this morning. Finer & windless this afternoon. Everything very sodden. Dug another trench. Have now almost finished the amount I intend doing of the new bit. Stuck in 2 more briar roots. Shall plant about 6 of different heights & see how they do. Collected another sack of leaves. This amount (about 10 sacks) fills the frame. Covered over with fine soil & shall not disturb till next year.

7 eggs.

[1] Orwell noted collecting 8¹/₂ sackfuls. Peter Davison

love in the morning…

ecstatic…