Chowing down

I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Easter! The family is off to New Orleans for a week. It will be the first time I am back in the city since before Katrina. I am a little apprehensive about seeing it. Of course I went online and made sure I had a list of eateries. In no particular order they are:

Cuvee-never been so this should be great!

Restaurant August- Never been but I like what I see whenever John Besh is on the Food Network. Am very excited about this one

Palace Cafe- Going for setimental value. Had my bridesmaid luncheon here, first place my kids raved over because they were treated like gold. And if you go before 7pm you get three courses for the price of your entree. Sweet deal!

Harbour- Best eggplant pirogue, fresh oysters and $1.00 Abita Amber on draft. Can you get any better?

Have a happy Easter and may you eat as well as I am going to.

Lemon Butter Tilapia

My neighborhood Publix has started cooking and handing out recipe cards. This was easy to make and I added 6 oz of mascarpone to the pasta after draining. Gotta fatten it up a bit.


Ingredients
4 teaspoons flour, divided
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
large zip-top bag
5–6 sprigs fresh Italian parsley
juice of 1 lemon
1 1/2 pounds tilapia fillets
3 tablespoons butter, divided
1/4 cup white wine

Steps

1. Place 3 teaspoons flour and seasoned salt in zip-top bag; shake to mix and set aside. Chop (rinsed) parsley coarsely, leaves only, and measure (2 tablespoons). Slice (rinsed) lemon in half. Set both aside.
2. Preheat large sautй pan on medium-high 2–3 minutes. Check fish for bones by pressing on fillet with finger tips and remove. Add fish to zip-top bag; seal tightly and shake to coat. Wash hands.
3. Place 1 tablespoon butter in pan and swirl to coat. Add fish (wash hands) and cook 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon butter to center of pan. Turn fillets, using spatula, distributing butter under each fillet. Cook 3 more minutes until fish is golden and flakes easily. Place fish on serving plates.
4. Place remaining 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon flour, wine and juice from lemon in sautй pan. Heat 1–2 minutes until thickened, stirring occasionally. Stir parsley into butter sauce and serve over fish.

CALORIES (per 1/4 recipe) 249kcal; FAT 10g; CHOL 108mg; SODIUM 509mg; CARB 3g; FIBER <1g;>

Angel Hair Fresca

Ingredients
8 ounces angel hair pasta (1/2 box)
2 cups fresh broccoli florets
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup sun-dried tomato pesto

Steps

1. Fill large saucepan 1/2 full of water. Cover and bring to a boil on high heat for pasta.
2. Stir pasta into boiling water and boil 1 minute. Stir in broccoli and boil 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Drain. Add butter to saucepan, using residual heat to melt butter. Stir in tomato pesto and pasta mixture; toss to mix and serve.

CALORIES (per 1/4 recipe) 303kcal; FAT 6g; CHOL 8mg; SODIUM 384mg; CARB 48g; FIBER 2g; PROTEIN 9g; VIT A 15%; VIT C 56%; CALC 2%; IRON 15%

Wastin Away

Note: I did not put that hose in the manatee's mouth. I was just passing by. So don't fine me if you are FL law enforcement.

This picture was how my Keys vacation ended. I guess manatees love fresh water so they come scurrying over(as fast as a manatee can scurry. Note the propeller wound on head) if there is a hose in the water. So this guy was about 8 ft and had some of his flipper missing. He bellied up for about an hour before leaving the bar.

That was the last day of a four day excursion. The whole family went with my cousins and their wives.

I am close with my male cousins. I am the oldest girl so they had to hang with me. The rest of the girls that came along after were much younger and way more boring.

Anyway, we rented a house in Marathon and drove around the Keys like maniacs. It was cold. Need I say more.

To demonstrate how sick I am, the only place I wanted to go was a restaurant called Alice's that served a tropical fruit shortcake with passion fruit cream. That was really the whole vacation for me. That and the joy of arguing with my cousins.

Snark, while driving, hit a seagull at night. It landed in front of the car and looked at the headlights. The incident permanantly scarred my cousin's wife Jean. She is a fanatical animal lover. She said she would always be haunted by look on the stupid bird's face. I am going to be haunted by the fact the seagull could have dented my new car and the fact if Snark had swerved we'd be in the drink. I don't think I won any points with Jean after that comment.

She also says I have the malocchio. I guess it means I have some curse on my head. This revelation came about because I can't see wild-life to save my life. I go on an airboat tour in the Everglades and guess what? I see only one baby gator. I go to see Key deer and I am the only person that did not see one. I go to see snakes and can't spot them. I didn't even see the seagull that was in front of me. So being the superstitious Italian chick Jean is, she decides I am cursed. Isn't there some kind of spitting thing that gets rid of that?

Anyway, my cursed head is glad to be home. As much as I like vacation I love home.

Superbowl Wings

2-1/2 to 3 lb. chicken wings (about 12 whole wings)
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
3 Tbs. toasted sesame oil
2 Tbs. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. grated fresh ginger
1-1/2 tsp. Tabasco or other hot sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced and smashed into a paste using the side of a chef’s knife
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 Tbs. sesame seeds, preferably toasted

how to make

Heat a gas grill to medium high or prepare a medium-hot charcoal fire. With a chef’s knife, cut off the wing tips; discard or save for stock. Separate the remaining wing pieces by cutting through the joint. Transfer to a large bowl.

In a small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, Tabasco, garlic, and cloves. Whisk to combine and spoon out 2 Tbs. to set aside. Pour the remaining sauce over the chicken wings and toss to coat.

Grill the wings, basting for the first 15 minutes with any sauce left in the bowl and turning with tongs every 5 minutes or so to prevent burning. (If the wings start to burn, turn the heat down to medium or move them to a cooler part of the grill.) Continue to grill until all the wings are very dark, slightly crisp, and cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes total. Transfer the wings to a clean bowl, drizzle on the reserved sauce, sprinkle on the sesame seeds, toss to coat, and serve immediately with plenty of napkins.

from Fine Cooking #59, pp. 82C

Strollercize

To all you stroller mamas with your oversized treads and one track mind(gotta get to the ride), to all the older generation that comes to Disney and complains about the kids there, to all the new parents that are under the delusion that their six month old kid actually appreciates being at a noisy theme park this vitriolic letter is directed at you.

Don't come and nip and yap at my heels in your attempt to be two minutes ahead of me in a ride. I met you on Saturday when you were pushing your babies into the back of my legs, causing me to trip into my kids who actually know where they are. Do you really think your kids care about Thunder Mtn? All they care about is the bottle in your hand and the fact they are enjoying the breeze as you push your way over unsuspecting polite people. Lets be real. Babies don't care about Disney. You do. And by the way this goes out to the women who push their 10 yr old in the stroller also. Make them get up and walk. Rule of thumb: If they eat more than you and have a drivers license they don't need the strolller.

I love the older people and the childless that bitch about all the children. HELLO! This isn't Club Med(actually they are allowing kids also.) Look around you. There are snot nosed kids everywhere. Go somewhere else if you are going to complain about it. And don't tell my kid to look happy after you push her out of the way while she's waiting to enter the main gate.

Ahhh! I haven't vented in so long this feels good. It sucks to be polite all the time.

Adult Milk

Snark was going through his suit pockets the other day and found a Commanders Palace card with the manager's name on it. On the flip side was a recipe for Brandy Milk Punch. For my 21st birthday Snark took me to Commanders Palace. They have a conservatory there which is beautiful on a summer night. You have to walk through the kitchen to get there. It was a very memorable meal because the food was fantastic, the place is legendary, the service was impeccable and Snark remembered that I had always wanted to eat there. The waiters made sure we were well taken care of and recommended this delicious drink. We have eaten many times since and I always order this drink.

Brandy Milk Punch

In a shaker combine

shot cream de cocoa
1/2 shot brandy
1/2 and 1/2 about 1/4 cup
dash vanilla extract

shake it up and pour into highball glass filled with ice.

Vampires Bane

Garlic and Citrus Chicken


1 (5 to 6-pound) whole roasting chicken, neck and giblets discarded
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 orange, quartered
1 lemon, quartered
1 head garlic, halved crosswise, plus 3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 (14-ounce) cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves
Kitchen string or butcher twinePosition the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle the cavity with salt and pepper. Stuff the cavity with the orange, lemon, and garlic halves. Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen string to help hold its shape. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper.

Place a rack in a large roasting pan. Place the chicken, breast side up, on the rack in the pan. Roast the chicken for 1 hour, basting occasionally and adding some chicken broth to the pan, if necessary, to prevent the pan drippings from burning. Whisk the orange juice, lemon juice, oil, oregano, and chopped garlic in a medium bowl to blend. Brush some of the juice mixture over the chicken, after it has baked 1 hour. Continue roasting the chicken until an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the innermost part of the thigh registers 170 degrees F, basting occasionally with the juice mixture and adding broth to the pan, about 45 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Tent with foil while making the sauce (do not clean the pan).

Place the same roasting pan over medium-low heat. Whisk in any remaining broth and simmer until the sauce is reduced to 1 cup, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Strain into a 2-cup glass measuring cup and discard the solids. Spoon the fat from the top of the sauce. Serve the chicken with the pan sauce.

recipe courtesy of Foodtv.com

Happy New Year

I have made it through another year. I learned a few things along the way.

I could travel 27 hours on a plane with my kids without going insane

My mother is once again a married woman. A little sad. I was used to having her all to myself.

Never tell Snark about the various stages of girl puberty. It's the closest I've ever seen him come to vomiting.

Never volunteer for the PTA. There is always someone more psycho than you in it.

People who say they don't have an opinion are in denial

Insurance companies don't care that you were a day early on your cleaning. You must pay it all because you disobeyed the rules!!

My girls are hysterically funny. They get that from me.

There are still bitchy professors that are out to get you thirteen years later.

Twilight sleep is not an option for me. I actually have to usher my daughters through puberty.

There are people who have no shame. Case in point. I have had two people, who I barely speak with, ask me to babysit their children and house sit. The only time they call is when they need something. Shame on them for asking. Double shame on me for consenting.

No matter what my worries are, the fact that I have Snark and friends like Amy, Traci and Lisa make anything that I am upset about a little less worrisome.

Hopefully this new year brings a lot more revelations.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

We were jolted awake at 2am by a screaming 8 yr old. She was so excited that Santa had arrived. She woke her older sister who pulled the covers over her head and told her to go to bed. But insanity prevailed and we rolled out of bed and opened the gifts. The most played with in my house are Magnetix and 20 Q. We then went back to sleep.

Pork Chops with beer, cabbage and apples

Made this the other day. Very easy and very tasty. I rounded it our with dinner rolls.


4 center-cut pork chops, about 1-1/2 inches thick
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 Tbs. Dijon-style mustard
1/2 head Savoy cabbage (about 1 lb.), cored and thinly sliced
2 tart apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch slices
(see "How to core an apple")
1 cup beer or ale
2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp. dried
1/2 cup homemade or low-salt canned chicken stock

how to make

Season the chops on both sides with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the chops and cook on one side until well browned; turn and brown other side. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Put the onion in the pan and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 min. Stir in the mustard and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Add the cabbage and apples, season lightly with more salt, and cook, stirring, for another minute. Add the beer, thyme, and stock. Bring to a boil and cook for about 5 min. to intensify the flavors.

Return the chops to the skillet, burying them in the cabbage mixture. Cover the pan and simmer until the pork is just cooked through, about 15 min. Season to taste. Arrange the chops on plates and top with the cabbage.

from Fine Cooking #25, pp. 90

How was the Processional?

Glad you asked. Well my camera pooped out on me when I tried to take a picture of the kids in their cute outfits at Epcot. After dinner at Restuarant Marrakesh, which was pretty good, we had time to kill till 8:15 which was our processional time. The only thing I have a gripe about is our waiter Youssef, kept reminding us that 18% gratuity was standard and he did us the favor of not including it on the bill. Well, we did him a favor by leaving him a tip after his service. After all, tis the season.

As we are walking around, and mind you this is at 7pm, the adults in the family hit a new low. I look at Snark and yawn which he then imitates. "I feel like going home." I just put it out there. He looks guilty and chides me. The girls hear me and Isabelle says "I guess I can go home and watch tv." Anni says "NO WAY! I want to see the processional."

Being the horrible person I am I say "Aren't you tired? You did get up at 530 today."

"I am a little." she admits.

"Wowee, let's get home and go to bed." I start off toward the exit.

"You are bad. We paid for this." Snark got a conscience, which stemmed from the fact he realized he just put out some cash for this occasion.

"Yeah and....." I am still running for the exit. Unfortunately, Disney's Beatles tribute band was playing in England. So the melody of "Twist and Shout" pulled me over (I am a Beatles junkie). We stayed for the set and finally left.

How was the Processional? The choir sounded great as we dashed past them.

Get this

Costco, if you are lucky enough to be near one, and get Costco's 10 year old Tawny Port!! Yum. Tastes of dried fruit and caramel. I'm slightly addicted to it and at 16 bucks a bottle it's a steal.

Rionda Prosecco- tastes of flowers and spring at a nice price of 8.99 a bottle. I order it by the case every May.

Goose Island Demolition. Small batch beer that Goose Island Brewery, out of Chi-town, makes. Makes a beer hater turn to beer.

Toot! Toot!

I'm going to give Snark some props here. He is going for his MBA and finally took his GMAT today after toiling over prep-books and the like. What a pain in the ass that has been. So today he got a 730 on it. How good is a 730 you ask? Well the average MBA grad from Yale gets in with a 703

Wharton-713
Harvard-708

Well you get the picture. I am very proud of him and hopefully one of the above three come knocking with a scholarship and a job that enables me to buy a Tods purse at will.

Ham, Bean and Escarole Soup

Olive oil--2-3 TB
Ham-1/2 lb, thick sliced and cut into cubes
Onion-1 chopped fine
Garlic- 4 cloves minced
Chicken broth 7 cups
Escarole or another other green 1 head or 1 pkg spinach
2 cans white beans rinsed and drained( I use 1 1/2 cans)
rosemary fresh 2 TB minced
Red pepper flakes 1/4 tsp
parmesan 1/2 cup

In lg saucepan heat 2 TB oil saute ham till golden add onions and saute till soft then add garlic and saute for 30 sec. Set aside.

Bring 7 cups broth to a simmer and throw in greens and beans with rosemary and pepper flakes. When greens are wilted add the ham mixture and simmer about 10 minutes. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle on Parmesan.

Kitty Crack and other Christmas Musings...

I'm sorry I put Christmas. Actually, I'm not! I respect other religions but this is Christmas for me so I say "Merry Christmas" unless you're the one Jewish friend I have, and really the woman puts up a Christmas tree in addition to celebrating Hanukkah so I don't think she sweats it too much if I slip up and say "Merry Christmas."

The picture to the side here is my cat and her cocaine. The tree!! Never mind that it is fake. She nestles in it and when I stuck it up her big hiney was stuck underneath it. I tried to stop her but she's fourteen and it's one of the few pleasures she has left.

I was stuck on the Turnpike Saturday. There was an accident that caused mental distress for me since Snark and the kids were in the car. We all waited for it to clear. We stayed in the car because we're on the highway duh!! Stupid me, it was a cause for a party. Just imagine a bunch of morbid people getting out and staring at the accident(dead person) discussing what happened.

"Oh look, they're carting the body away."

"Where? Where?"

"Was he old?"

"Does someone have matches, I need a smoke."

Yes, there was a party and yours truly stuck her head out the window and asked if they were enjoying the view of the blood. Snark yanked me back in and told me if I got lynched he'd wait at least a year to get married again. I snapped a picture of the on-lookers but Sprint wanted to charge me five bucks to e-mail it so just picture it in your heads.

Speaking of Sprint, I cashed in on my 7+ years of customer loyalty and got them to give me two brand spankin new Treo 700p's for 50 a phone. Snark is singing his love for me. This is the geek phone and he's all about it. I like it but really, do I need organization in my life? I do use the internet on it. It's so great my friend Amy asked me to get a phone number so I looked it up on the internet and by the time I got the number she called 1800-Free-411 and got it. So I think it's wasted on me.

I was hand-slapped today by the above friend for neglecting this blog. She said "You didn't even post a recipe." I know, but might I add this is the same chick that said she "has never made any of the recipes."

Christmas is here because

Neiman Marcus has their purses on sale.
Starbucks has put Peppermint Mocha on the menu
Bath and Body is selling spice candles
Snowman Shop at school was a hit with the kids and wore me out
I'm running around the house keeping the kids away from the closets
75 degrees is sweater weather down here.
"A Christmas Story" is on
Snark is playing "Charlie Brown Christmas" in the car
My favorite Christmas song "Merry Christmas Darling" sung by Karen Carpenter is on
Jingle Bell Bark is on
Salvation Army is ringing bells(but not outside Target!)
The candlelight processional at Epcot is going on and I will have picture from that. Hopefully, someone as hot as Jim Caveziel is there this year.

Dijon Chicken with Double Cheese Bake

I bought a Land O Lakes cookbook about 13 years ago. I thought this cooking thing would be a passing phase. I still use it and it has some of the best recipes I have made. This was one I used to make for brunch. I hope everyone appreciates the fact that I am typing the recipe out.


6 cups cubed French bread
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar
1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella
10 eggs(Yow!)
1 1/3 cups milk
1/3 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp pepper

Grease a 13x9 pan and place bread inside. Layer with chicken, mushrooms, and cheeses. In a large bowl whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour over layered chicken mixture. Cover and refrigerate 6 hrs or overnight. Pre-heat oven to 325. Uncover and bake for 50-60 minutes or until set in the center. Let stand 10 minutes.

Bread Part Deux

This is how the bread turned out.

Dawn of the Bread

As always, I am the last one to catch a trend. Remember the whole poncho thing. Well, when it comes to food I try to stay current. There is a column in the NY Times called the "The Minimalist." by Mark Bittman. He writes about easy ways to create great dishes. Now remember, easy doesn't equal fast.

This past week he wrote about a bread you make in bowl that you DO NOT knead! Isn't kneading the hassle. I think so. This weekend Snark and I are setting out to make the recipe. I am amazed at how many posts there are about this bread and it has been positive. So being the geek I am I am going to take digital pictures and post it. But if the bread turns out bad I'm posting someone else's pictures :)

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1 1/2-pound loaf.

Happy Birthday, Cupcake

Today my youngest is 8. She has always marched to her own drummer including choosing when she was going to arrive (3 days late!). We had to drag her out of her temporary housing to meet the world. This kid impressed us immensely with her excellent timing. When we took the diaper off, she would shoot poop out 2 feet (I know, I took it upon myself to measure it one day.) Her sense of wackiness was just blossoming. Up till the age of 3, she thought it was hilarious to scream in a quiet room and then laugh at everyones' startled looks. She has yet to get a filter between her brain and her mouth. "Mom, can all ladies grow mustaches?"

The woman Anni was talking about was standing 5 feet in front of us in the store. The woman looked up. I said, "Anni, let's go!" Anni replied, "Yeah, but she must want one, she grew it."

In honor of Anni's birthday, Snark and the girls baked up some peanut butter cupcakes for the occasion. No, Snark didn't frost each one with a mustache. ... Like Anni, they're a load of fun, and sure to inspire guilt!

Chocolate peanut-butter cupcakes (from Epicurious)

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons double acting baking powder
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup chunky peanut butter
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy cream

In a bowl whisk together the flour, the baking powder, and a pinch of salt. In another bowl with an electric mixer cream together the brown sugar, the peanut butter, and the butter and beat in the egg and the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, beating well after each addition, and stir in 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips. Divide the batter among 12 paper-lined 1/2-cup muffin tins and bake the cupcakes in the middle of a preheated 350°F. oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Turn the cupcakes out onto a rack and let them cool completely. In another bowl combine the remaining 3/4 cup chocolate chips and the cream, scalded, let the chips soften, and whisk the mixture until it is smooth. Let the icing cool completely, whisk it until it is fluffy, and spread it on the cupcakes.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

Baked Shrimp

4 scallions
2 garlic cloves
1 1/2 pounds large (21-25 count) shrimp
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
One 28-ounce can chopped tomatoes in juice
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or oregano

PREP Chop white and green parts of scallions. Finely chop garlic. Peel and devein shrimp.

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat olive oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add scallions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until scallions wilt, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and their juice and bring to a boil. Cook until tomato juices thicken, about 5 minutes. Season with freshly ground pepper to taste.

2. Remove from heat and stir in shrimp. Sprinkle with feta cheese.

3. Bake until cheese melts and shrimp are firm and opaque, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with dill and serve hot.

Receipe courtesy of epicurious.com