What's your Real Age?

I am one of the few lucky ones that have DVR (digital video recorder) available from the cable company. It's basically like TIVO where you can record live tv. Anyway, it's really wonderful because you can set it up to record the entire series or just one episode of a show. In the mornings, I watch the news before leaving for work and usually there's commercials for the Oprah and Ellen shows later in the day. I don't normally watch these shows but sometimes the commercials hook me and I set the show to record. Sometime later I'll watch the show. I did this a few days ago with Oprah. The commercial was "1 in 2 women will die from this." Now how could that headline not hook you. Dr. Mehmet Oz was on the show. He is a heart doctor and they were showing off the latest technology in heart scans. It was really, really cool. He also brought hearts on the show demonstrating what a healthy heart looks like and what an unhealthy heart looks like along with good and bad kidneys. It was VERY interesting and scary. Anyway, I put a hold at the library for his book "You : the owner's manual : an insider's guide to the body that will make you healthier and younger." In the description for the book it also provided his website RealAge.com. OMG! You have got to visit and take the different assesment tests to see what your real age is. Even though I am a little skeptical in the sense that the questions are a little to broad, it does give you a good idea of how to eat better and healthier and what you might be missing in your nutritional health with diet and exercise. (No not diet as in can't eat anything, but diet as in what you eat. It's way to confusing and cruel to have one word mean two totally different things.) Membership is free and so are the assessments. I took the nutritional assessment and realized how much I am not getting vitamin wise and I am going to try and do better with taking my multivitamin everyday. Drat...I missed it again today. My real age surprisingly is just a couple of years difference with my biological age. And they provide tips on how to make your real age even younger than your biological age by changing what you eat and how you exercise. There's also a fitness assessment and since I hardly ever exercise, they have two different plans to follow: a sixty minute plan and a ten minute plan. Now don't scoff about only ten minutes a day, you also have to walk for fifty minutes a day. On the Oprah show, Dr. Oz said for those who don't exercise start out striving for sixty minutes a week and build up. I think even I can do this. The whole thing is about making choices that fit your lifestyle and trying to exercise on a daily basis so you can live longer and healthier.

Veggies

We've been eating more veggies lately. My goal is to eat broccoli at least three times a week. So far we are doing it. Basically, I am sauteeing an assortment of veggies and then serving them over rice or potatoes. You get a great assortment of flavors this way and the greens really taste great. If you don't like crunchy broccoli, the secret is to microwave it in a zip top baggie for one minute before adding to the veggies. I've been reading about veggies and how oil helps release certain nutrients and allows your body to absorb them. So I am using olive oil to saute them in and then just for a touch of flavor I am adding a small amount of butter in with the oil. Last night we added asparagus to the mix and I microwaved it for a minute before adding it to the pan for sauteeing. We really liked this addition. My veggie mix consists of onions, garlic, mushrooms, bell peppers (green and red), broccoli, jalapeno, asparagus, dried parsley flakes, garlic powder and onion powder, a small pinch of cayenne, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Because there is such a large variety, you only need a bit from each veggie when serving two people. I don't really like veggies reheated so I try to cook just the right amount that we will eat for that meal. We are eating a great variety of veggies, which was a goal of this blog. We now need to increase the amount of veggies we eat for a healthier lifestyle. It's a work-in-progress but it tastes great!

Catch Up Post

I've been so busy lately with work that I haven't had a chance to blog. I figured I'd do a catchup post because after all, the purpose of this blog is to help me remember what I ate for dinner. Monday - 3/27/06: Leftovers of Sunday night's meal. Sunday - 3/26/06: Grilled Steak, Baked Potato with Sauteed Veggies Saturday - 3/25/06: Chinese Food Friday - 3/24/06: Panko Fried Chilean Sea Bass, Pan Roasted Portobello Mushrooms with Sauteed Veggies and Mashed Potatoes Thursday - 3/23/06: Stir-fry broccoli with assorted veggies over rice with chicken Wednesday - 3/22/06: Leftovers Tuesday - 3/21/06: Jalisco's Mexican Restaurant Monday - 3/20/06: Leftover Corned Beef, Cabbage and Potatoes Sunday - 3/19/06: Steak and Fries Saturday - 3/18/06: Corned Beef, Cabbage, and Potatoes Friday - 3/17/06: Don't remember Thursday - 3/16/06: Don't remember Wednesday - 3/15/06: Don't remember Tuesday - 3/14/06: Leftover Barbecued Brisket Monday - 3/13/06: Roasted Chicken, Roasted Veggies, and Roasted Garlic

Dreamskies

Once upon a time there was a Polish woman who married a Southern man. This woman introduced her little sister to this man's little brother and soon the two married. The Polish women grew up in Chicago and then followed their husbands back home to the DEEP southern United States. And soon you had Polish women who were influenced by Chicago introduced to southern cooking. Needless to say, there was always an adventure in the kitchen. Several years into the future, a sweet southern gal (that's me) met this handsome southern guy and got married. Now this sweet southern gal who didn't know much about life outside of the DEEP south was now hearing words like Kolacky and Hoska as well as eating and enjoying these funny sounding foods. A new world opened up for this sweet southern gal's taste buds. However, it would be years later before she tried her own hand making these funny sounding foods. Kolacky is basically a thumbprint cookie filled with fruit or poppy seed filling. In honor of my husband's Polish heritage, I created a shortbread thumbprint cookie which I call Dreamskies. (Because they are a DREAM to eat and most last names of Polish people in our family end in SKI). Cookie Swap Chinese Take Out Container Front The creation was due to the 2005 cookie swap in which I participated. I made these cute little containers to fill with my cookies for the exchange. And since then I've made a couple more batches for Ron's work, well only one batch made it to his work and that was this Sunday's batch. I'm told they were delicious and gone by noon. Chinese Take Out Container Back Ready for the Oven Fresh from the Oven Ready to Eat

A Tisket A Brisket

I tested another recipe today for Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast for a Barbecued Brisket. I've never made brisket this way, so it was an interesting process. I'm sure it'll make it into her new cookbook she's writing.

Testing, Testing, Roasted Chicken

I made a Roasted Chicken with Roasted Veggies and Roasted Garlic today. It's a recipe I'm testing for Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast. I can't give you the recipe but check out her site and watch for her upcoming cookbook.

Freezer Worship

The freezer is one of the best inventions for the kitchen. I don't know about you but some days I pray I'll find something in the freezer for dinner. Saturday was the chosen day this week. The freezer gods answered with red beans and sausage. All I had to do was cook a pot of white rice. Easy! And very good! Nothing else to report for today.

TGIF!

TGIF!! I wasn't feeling well for Friday due to the medication I was taking and ended up staying home from work. Ron picked up the couple of items we needed to make the Cuban-Style Sea-Bass meal tonight. Our menu was Cuban-Style Sea-Bass with Black Bean and Pineapple Salsa and Saffron Rice. The rice was fantastic! Ron doesn't care for pineapple so the black bean and pineapple salsa was a flop. My fish tasted fine but Ron said his had a strong fish taste. After a bite of mine, he agreed it was just his fish and that the recipe was good. Cuban-Style Sea Bass with Black Bean and Pineapple Salsa Makes 4 servings Ingredients: 1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained 1/2 cup chopped fresh pineapple 1 fresh jalapeno or serrano pepper (I used one whole serrano pepper and 1/2 jalapeno pepper) 2 tablespoons orange or lime marmalade 2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar or white wine vinegar 4 (4 oz) fresh sea bass fillets, 1/2 to 1 inch thick 1 tablespoon reduced sodium soy sauce 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion Preheat gas grill or broiler. Combine the beans, pineapple, jalapeno pepper, marmalade, and vinegar. If desired, transfer to a small saucepan, then cook and stir over medium heat until heated through. Rinse fish; pat dry. Brush fish with soy sauce. Grill fish on the greased rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium heat or broil until fish flakes easily with a fork (allow 4 to 6 minutes per 1/2 inch thickness of fish). Turn 1-inch thick fillets over halfway through cooking. to serve, arrange fish on pineapple and black bean salsa. Sprinkle with onion. Saffron Rice Makes 4 servings 1/2 diced onion 1/2 diced bell pepper (I used green and orange that I had on hand) 1 tablespoon diced pimiento, drained (pimientos in a jar) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon butter 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. 1/8 teaspoon turmeric 1/8 teaspoon Spanish saffron 1 clove garlic 1 chicken bullion cube 1 3/4 cup of water 1 cup long grain white rice In a skillet over medium heat, saute the garlic, onion, green bell pepper, pimiento in olive oil. In a separate pan, bring 1 3/4 cup of water to a boil and add a chicken bullion cube. Once the cube dissolves, add rice, sauteed veggies, butter, turmeric, Spanish saffron, salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low heat 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Oops!

An oops turns out a great meal. It was a crazy day for me. I had to "get worked in" to the doctor's office and then pick up a prescription. Nothing serious, which is seriously good! But this problem threw off my entire day. I was planning on making a Cuban-Style Sea-Bass meal from my 20-minute Super Suppers cookbook, but didn't have two key ingredients on hand. Oops! I was supposed to pick those up on lunch. Oh well! In the middle of assembling what we needed for the fish meal, we realized my oops! After looking at each other crazy like and going through the pantry and freezer we came up with a dish we are calling Turkey Manicotti. Ron normally doesn't like ground turkey because he says it is dry, but he really liked this creation. Turkey Manicotti Makes 4 - 8 servings, depends on how much your family eats. We had a little meat mixture leftover so we just baked it up with cheese on top in a separate casserole dish. Ingredients: 14 Manicotti shells (1 package of shells) 1 lb. ground turkey 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided 4 eggs, beaten slightly 1/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (grate more if you would like to sprinkle parmesan on top of prepared shells.) 3/4 cup finely chopped onion 1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 cups spaghetti sauce (We used homemade sauce we had in the freezer). Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and cool. In a large skillet, brown turkey, drain and cool slightly. Mix together meat, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, eggs, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, onion, bell pepper, oregano, salt and pepper. Spread a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish. Stuff each manicotti shell with meat mixture until full and place into baking dish. When dish is full, cover with spaghetti sauce. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese, if desired. Bake 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Eat and enjoy!

Shanghai Lo Mein

This week I am making recipes from "20-Minute Super Suppers", a cookbook I recently purchased. The title hooked me and the recipes cinched the deal. I narrowed it down to five recipes for the work week. For Wednesday, I made a recipe originally calling for pork but we changed it to shrimp for the meat. We tried two new products for this recipe. First were the dried somen noodles (Sun Luck brand, Tomoshiraga Somen Japanese Style Noodles) and the second was House of Tsang's Szechuan Spicy Stir Fry Sauce, both of which are now pantry staples. Ron did a fantastic job of stir-frying the meal in our wok. He was pretty skeptical about the mandarin oranges added at the end but he had to admit that they complimented the meal. And we both agreed it's a keeper. Two noodle substitutes were included in the recipe if you are unable to find them. But the somen noodles are worth finding. They have a great flavor to them. I found them at Albertson's in the Asian Foods section. And on the House of Tsang bottle, they provide a web address for additional recipes, check it out at World Food. Shanghai Lo Mein Makes 4 servings Ingredients: 6 ounces dried somen noodles (Substitutes: fine egg noodles or angel hair pasta) 8 ounces shrimp (Substitute: 8 oz. pork tenderloin, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4 inch thick) 2 teaspoons cooking oil 2 - 4 teaspoons Szechuan Spicy Stir Fry Sauce (optional and more equals spicier) 2 cups sliced bok choy 3/4 cup chicken broth 1/4 cup orange juice 3 tablespoons soy sauce 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 1 (11 oz) can mandarin orange sections, drained Instructions: Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Meanwhile, in a wok or large skillet stir-fry shrimp in hot oil for 1 1/2 minutes (pork for 3 minutes), adding more oil if necessary. Add bok choy; stir fry about 2 minutes more or until bok choy is crisp tender (and pork is no longer pink). Add the broth, orange juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, and red pepper; bring to a boil. Stir in the cooked noodles. Cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Stir in orange sections. Eat and Enjoy! Felicia

Bistro Beef and Mushrooms

This week I am making recipes from "20-Minute Super Suppers", a cookbook I recently purchased. The title hooked me and the recipes cinched the deal. I narrowed it down to five recipes for the work week. Tuesday night's dinner was Bistro Beef and Mushrooms with Homemade Garlic Cheesy Smashed Potatoes. While the meal was good the steak could have marinated beforehand. I understand why these are 20 minute meals. While they cook fast, they lack substantial flavor as written. Aside from marinating the meat and possibly sauteing garlic before the steaks went into the pan, the meal was good both Tuesday evening and Wednesday for lunch. Bistro Beef and Mushrooms Makes 4 servings Ingredients: 4 beef tenderloin steaks, cut 3/4 inch thick (1 pound) 1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard or coarse grain brown mustard 2 tablespoons olive oil or roasted garlic olive oil 2 (4 oz) packages sliced crimini, shiitake, or portobello mushrooms or one (8 oz) package sliced button mushrooms (about 3 cups) 1/3 cup dry red wine or sherry 1 tablespoon white wine Worcestershire sauce 2 teaspoons snipped fresh thyme Instructions: Trim fat from steaks. Spread mustard evenly over both sides of steaks. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat. Add steaks; cook to desired doneness, turning once. (Allow 7 to 10 minutes for medium rare or 10 to 12 minutes for medium.) Transfer steaks to a serving platter; keep warm. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to drippings in skillet. Add mushrooms; cook and stir for 4 minutes. Stir in wine, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme. Simmer, uncovered, for 3-minutes. Spoon over steaks.

Manic Monday: Fettuccine Verona

This week I am making recipes from "20-Minute Super Suppers", a cookbook I recently purchased. The title hooked me and the recipes cinched the deal. I narrowed it down to five recipes for the work week. Manic Monday night's dinner was Fettuccine Verona. The recipe lived up to the cookbook title and even with preparation I only had 20 minutes invested in dinner. While the ingredient list is short, the pasta proved difficult to find. I finally found it at Whole Foods in their dairy section. You could substitute any fettuccine or similar pasta for the meal. Ron said the roasted red pepper fettuccine I purchased really didn't taste any different from any other pasta I've served him but the color was pretty on the plate. Ron also commented that the dish was good but was missing a sauce and there was not enough spices/flavorings for him. Next time I would add fresh thyme or parsley, black pepper, crushed red pepper, and make a light butter sauce. I thought the meal was good but it was lacking in the flavor department. We are so used to seasoning our food with fresh herbs and spices that standard recipes taste pretty blah most of the time. Fettuccine Verona Makes 4 servings Ingredients: 1 (9 oz) package refrigerated red sweet pepper fettuccine (or any similar pasta) 8 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast strips for stir frying 1/4 of a 7 oz jar oil-packed dried tomato strips or pieces (1/4 cup) with 2 tablespoons reserved oil (or olive oil) 1 large zucchini or yellow summer squash, halved lengthwise and sliced (about 2 cups) 1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan, Romano, or Asiago cheese (2 oz) Salt and Pepper, to taste Instructions: Using kitchen scissors, cut fettuccine strands in half. Cook pasta in lightly salted water according to package directions; drain. Return pasta to hot pan. Meanwhile, rinse chicken; pat dry. Drain the 1/4 cup tomatoes, reserving 2 tablespoons of the oil from the jar. Set reserved tomatoes aside. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the reserved oil over medium-high heat. Add zucchini; cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove from skillet. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to skillet. Add chicken; cook and stir for 2 to 3 miutes or until no longer pink. Add chicken, zucchini, and reserved tomatoes to cooked pasta; toss gently to combine. Sprinkle each serving with cheese. Season with pepper to taste.

Happy Monday!

Well, it may not be happy returning to work but the sun is shining here which makes it a good day. It was a busy weekend for us with a lot of running around so this is my catch-up post to help me remember what we had for dinner each night. After working all day on Friday, we went the leftover route. Ron ate leftover hamburgers and I took a hamburger pattie, covered it in spaghetti sauce, topped it with cheese and had a mini meatloaf. Running around all day Saturday left us famished by the end of the day. We settled on pizza for dinner. Normally we buy fresh made pizza's from Sam's Club, which was too far away to travel just to buy a pizza. Costco is close by so we tried there. However, Costco closes at 6 pm on Saturday. Then we tried QFC because we recently saw them carrying fresh made pizza's. They had one supreme pizza left and the ingredients looked rotten. Luckily we saw a Papa Murphy's pizza place in the same shopping center. We figured what the hell let's try them. Our streak of bad luck in finding a pizza was solved forever more. Thank you Costco for closing at 6pm on Saturday's and thank you QFC for having horribly unfresh pizza's. Papa Murphy's is fantastic! We have our new pizza place! There is no way I could have bought all the ingredients they used (over 5 pounds) and made a pizza within a reasonable amount of time for the $13 they charged. Granted I still had to cook it, but it was definitely fresh and great tasting. One slice filled each of our tummies and we still had 3/4ths of a pizza left. After eating it for breakfast on Sunday, we still had 1/2 a pizza left. A great value indeed! Sunday, we tested a recipe, Horseradish Crusted Snapper, for budding cookbook author, Ruth at Once Upon a Feast. Unfortunately you'll just have to wait until the cookbook, Every Kitchen Tells Its Stories – Recipes to Warm the Heart, is published for the recipe. I have a few more to test for her which will be over next weekend. Horseradish Crusted Snapper with Roasted Yukon Gold Potatoes But this week, I have five meals planned from my cookbook "20-minute Super Suppers." I hope they taste as great as they sound. Tune in each day to see how they turned out. Now go and have a Happy Monday! Only four more days 'til TGIF! Felicia

The Net Gazette - Erin Eats

Food Porn Watch is a wonderful service offering hourly information on blog updates. A few days ago, I followed a link to Erin Eats. Utah based Erin is new to the food blogging community with just a month on her blog. The spin on Erin Eats is a woman on a mission to eat three balanced meals, mostly homemade, and all at or below 500 calories. Down 17.5 pounds since January 1st, it appears her mission is succeeding. So surf on over to Erin Eats and read about her culinary mission.

Unexciting Dinners

While dinner the last couple of nights have been good, I didn't post about them individually. Though this post is a catch up just so I can remember what we had for dinner and when. March 2, 2006 - Ron grilled hamburgers, which were very good. March 1, 2006 - Ron made spaghetti with meatballs. Another good meal. Hope everyone has a nice weekend. It looks like ours will be sunny! Yay!!!!

Paint My Kitchen

We purchased this home a few months ago. This is the realtor picture of my kitchen. I want to bring some life into this beige cube. All of my appliances are stainless steel and black. Eventually, I would like to remodel the entire kitchen, but for now I just want to paint the walls. Ron likes contemporary, sleek, modern, and clutter-free designs. I'm fine with this design as long as it's not cold in feeling. I want people to feel welcome and enjoy spending time in the kitchen. That doorway you see is the dining room, which contains this table. This is the dining room, which is an open room with the living room. The wallpaper has to go. I am not a fan of wallpaper. And turning around you are in the living room with it's beautiful bay window. It shares the same floor space as the dining room. The front door is to the left. And here you are looking at the foyer from within the living room. To the right is the front door, you see the stairs to upstairs and the coat closet. And this is the breakfast nook and family room as seen from the kitchen. The breakfast nook has a sliding glass door and on the opposite wall is a pantry. The family room has two skylights, a sliding glass door and a picture window. Lots of light which I love. My furniture is a tanish leather, but I plan on buying new furniture this year. And lastly, this is the foyer that empties into the kitchen. Yes, that is a sliding glass door in the breakfast nook. I've already changed out the ceiling fixture to one that matches the breakfast nook pendant. To the left is the dining room and to the right is the family room. Your virtual tour of my downstairs is complete. We have an alarm system and an attack cat so please don't break in. :) So now you know all the problems with this kitchen. Four doorways and a window. It's not a huge space and I would like to keep it light and airy. The entire downstairs is open to every room. Remember Ron likes clean and contemporary. Now who is up for the design challenge? If your design passes the Ron test and I choose it, I will feature it here on the WebSorceress Cooks. *All designs submitted to the WebSorceress Cooks become property of the WebSorceress Cooks. This is a non-compensated challenge.

Share and Share Alike

He's normally a taste inspired cook, sampling the food as he goes along, adding his own blend of spices concocting a palate teasing experience. Rarely does he follow a recipe instead considering them general guidelines stimulating those creative brain cells transforming something common into something special. Last night was no exception. Arriving home just a few minutes before him, I gathered the ingredients measuring out precise amounts stated in each recipe. Allowing him a few minutes to settle in once he arrived, I delegated the pork dish. Always up for a challenge, he appeased me and mixed the glaze exactly as stated. However, his need to excite his taste buds captured his imagination and thusly, the alchemy began. Meanwhile, I went about assembling my half of dinner, a rice pilaf. Boring in my process but the flavors were nonetheless tantalizing. Of course, with my first production of a new recipe, I followed the recipe exactly as written. Though after preparing, I find no reason to change the ingredient combination. Sometimes you find a well thought-out and organized recipe that suits your tastes perfectly providing no reason for change just for the sake of change. Combining the two dishes produced a delightful meal with flavors complimenting each other through and through. The other white meat does not receive the recognition it deserves in this household in preparations such as this. Normally, pork is rubbed down with his own unique spice blend, barbecued, and smothered in another concoction of homemade barbecue sauce better than any blend sold on the open market. However, I foresee the other white meat in our future menus a little more often. These are both handwritten friend shared recipes from my to-try pile. Seasoned Rice Pilaf Serves 4 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 cup onion, diced 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup uncooked rice 1/3 cup sherry 1 cup water 1 can chicken broth (1 1/2 cups) 1 teaspoon dried thyme 1 teaspoon dried rosemary 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil. Stir in onions and garlic and cook until onions are translucent, stirring constantly. Stir in rice. Add sherry to skillet and stir to coat. Cook 3 to 5 minutes until liquid is absorbed, stir occasionally. Add water, broth, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Transfer rice mixture to a baking dish and cover (with lid or foil). Bake 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Serve immediately. Glazed Pork Serves 4 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 1/4 cup olive oil 2 teaspoons honey 1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 1/2 to 2 lbs. boneless pork tenderloin or center-cut roast Light one side of your grill. In a small mixing bowl, add mustard, olive oil, honey, vinegar, and crushed red pepper together. Set aside. Salt and pepper the pork. Grill pork on hottest side 5 to 7 minutes on each side until browned. Move pork to other side of grill and brush glaze on one side. Cook until meat reaches 150 degrees F internally. Brush often with glaze while grilling. Rest meat 10 minutes before slicing. Cook's Notes: You might want to make a double batch of the glaze and set half aside for eating with the sliced pork at the table.