Robin's Egg Blue Paradise......

Is this dish to die for or what? It doesn't match anything I have yet I love it more than almost anything else I have! My mom, my sister and I went to the 'Rain of Glass Show'

as we do every year and this year, one of my neices came along as well. There's all sorts of collectable glassware...some gorgeous...some brings back memories as they are things my gramma owned, and some items are down right ugly! But most of all, it's fun to browse every stall and see what folks have for sale that particular year.
I usually walk away with some sort of treasure. Last year it was a square, pale yellow, refridgerator glass container that currently holds kosher salt next to my stove. I've also bought fun, glass toothpick holders, salt and peppers...whatever struck my fancy for the money I'd allowed myself to spend.
This year, I hadn't really allowed any budget for glassware. This year it would've been more of a luxury to make a purchase, but I always enjoy looking anyway :-) I did, though, happen along this beatiful robin's egg blue piece of bakeware - it's called Miramar of California. I salivated over it many times as we visited and passed by it's booth over and over again. I told my sister that it just screamed to have Macaroni-n-Cheese inside it! The contrast of colors would be so killer! The next thing I knew...my sister was telling me she was gonna buy it for me for my birthday and my mom immediately jumped in saying she wanted to go in halves! I coudn't believe it! The man selling the dish came down a few dollars and happily sold the gorgoues blue prize to my mom and sister, singing 'happy birthday' to me as he handed it over. I told him my birthday wasn't until September! Just then my sister stepped in telling me today was my birthday - and to have fun with the dish that I hadn't been able to take my eyes off of.
This isn't the first time my sister or my mom have done something so awesome out of the blue just to show their love and kindness - but it's the first time I've thanked them publicly. They deserve much more than this.....they deserve homemade mac-n-cheese! Suzanne and Mom...consider yourselves on the guest list......for life!!!

Today is THE day.....

Wow...how exciting is was to watch the inauguration today! It was inspiring and hopeful and true and real. My favorite part - word for word was:

"For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace."

I hope these words come to pass. I know the ecomnomy and education and a host of other issues are pressing. But for all of us to be equal is this country....for all of us to have the most basic of human rights.....that's my wish.

Peace, good will and a joyous year ahead to all of you!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrr.......!

Okay - venting time!

I'm a daily bus rider - and while the folks I ride with are all business commuters (which means clean, usually decent smelling and 'normal' as opposed to the freaks I used to have to ride the train with! Um, hi...bathe much?!?!), it doesn't mean there's not a clod or two in the bunch. This is what pisses me off.....people who sit in the aisle seat and leave the window seat 'available'. I put quotes around 'available' because the aisle-sitter means to advertise just the opposite. What this action really means is "I'm a big snot and I don't want to share my space and nobody's gonna sit next to me. So there!" You know what I wanna say to that? "Grow the hell up and move your fat ass over! Do you know how stupid and ass-hole-ish this one thing makes you look?!" This also goes for the dorks who take up a seat next to them with their purse/briefcase/computer. "Yeah...Umm....pick up your shit and hold it on your lap. I do it every freaking day and so can you, you rude snot""

Next up.....people in the mall. Ya know what walking is just like? It's just like driving. So, when you exit a store, how 'bout checking both directions before you bust right out into the mall traffic strolling by? It'll only take a sec and you won't look like such a hap-hazard jerk with the only intinerary that matters. If you were going to turn onto a road from a side street, you'd stop and look before barrelling into traffic, right? Pretty much the same thing here without the twisting, crushing metal. Along these same lines....if you walk at a snails pace, how about moving to the edge of the walkway (as you would the right-most lane) rather than making everybody and their brother halt and deviate around you? Same goes for those who just come to a dead stop in the middle of the walkway - How 'bout not doing that?! If you need to search your purse for a tissue for junior's nose or need to locate your gift card for the upcoming department store, veer off to the 'shoulder' or the 'center median' and do your business there. I actually amost tripped over someone once when they stopped right in the middle of the walkway and crounched down to tie their shoe. I understand them not wanting to trip on their shoelace...but, hey, shuffle on over to the side and tie-up there, Buddy! Oh...and rather than darting over to the side and cutting off someone walking right behind you...give a quick look back and make your way to the side/center - kinda like checking your side mirrors and signaling.

Number three bitchable matter..... Doors - specifically entry doors. Lots of stores, restaurants, office buildings etc. have two - or - double doors, if you will. So....How come if there are two doors - allowing for easy, two-way traffic, do people inevitably wait for someone to pass through a single door before passing through the very same door themselves?! Yeah, um, Ding-a-Ling? Open the other freaking door and go on through! Fer craps' sake! There are TWO doors! Feel free to use one of your very own!" My God!!! Wake up people!

Lastly (for today anyway) - umbrella etiquette..... If it's raining and you are using an umbrella....get the hell out from under the awning!!!!!! Here in Portland where we can get lots of rain, this is an issue - but should be a non-issue if you ask me! If you are carrying a 'cover' over your head , don't walk under another cover...leave it for someone else who doesn't have a cover/umbrella...get it? Puh-lease!

Okay - that's enough for today - negativaty bring on more negativaty and that leaves us nowhere but in a murky mess. So.....Venting done! Let's get on with the day and let's make it a good one!

Yummy Rice Bowl.....

Oh boy.....had another pound and a half of ground turkey to turn into something my family would wanna eat for dinner on Sunday. I don't think it's necessarily hard to think of things to do with the turkey - or really any protein as my husband is always willing to try whatever I feel like whipping up, but my daughter, bless her heart, does want to hear an idea that sounds really yummy when she asks the inevitable "what's for dinner?" Can't say I blame her. I remember being about her age and asking that same question of my mother only to have my heart sink when I'd hear "Hamburger patties and baked potatoes". Gawwwwd.......I heard that more times than I care to remember. And though it's a favorite meal of mine now, back then it was bo-ring! Now, last night, I have to say, I, myself was craving something different with this ground turkey. I didn't want to turn it into a stew or chili-type dish. I wasn't feeling 'saucy' and I knew I wanted flavor. I tend to crave Chinese from time to time as I haven't had any good Chinese since we moved to a new house almost 4 years ago. Panda hardly counts, but in a pinch, it's gotten me through - my daughter loves it - but it really isn't 'Chinese food'. So...last night I remembered a dish my sister and mom used to order at this little burger place in downtown PDX. It had lots of celery and sliced broccoli stems and some kind of meat (which is a little disconcerting now to not really know what meat it was) served over white sticky rice. Mystery meat or not, it was good and knowing I had celery and broccoli in the fridge, I set my sights on tyring to make up my own match to this hot & tasty plate of good memories. I have to say - It was killer! My husband and daughter also really liked it and I'm glad to have another new recipe in my arsenal of dishes with lots of savory flavor. Served in some fun bowls with an Asian flare that my sister gave me several years ago, I only wished I'd had some chopsticks to make it perfect. A light, bare-fruit salad accompanied our steamy rice bowls - it was a super yummy and easy comforting dinner.

Yummy Rice Bowl

Ingredients:
3 stalks celery - sliced down the middle and finley diced
1 small head broccoli - thickest part of stem discarded, but rest of stem (as it branches into small stalks toward flourettes), thinly sliced all the way to the flourettes

pretty much causing them to fall apart into very small clusters
1/4 cup diced red pepper
1/2 yellow onion - sliced and rounds quartered
3 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 T. olive oil
1/2 T. sesame oil
1 t. Asian seasoning blend (I use Pampered Chef)
Salt
Pepper
Several shakes reduced sodium soy sauce - aprox. 2 T
1 t. garlic powder
1 1/2 lbs ground turkey breast
1/2 envelope fried rice seasoning (I use Sunbird brand)
White sticky rice - (2 cups uncooked) - prepared according to package directions

Directions:
Heat oils in a large frying pan and put rice on to cook. When oils are hot, stir in celery, broccoli, red pepper and onions. Season with salt and pepper, the Asian seasoning and a few shakes of soy sauce. Cook for aprox. 5 minutes (adding in the garlic half way through) until the vegetables just begin to get tender. You want bite to them - no mushy veggies! Remove veggies from pan and add the ground turkey, breaking it apart with wooden spoon to crumble - you may need/want to add a bit more oil to the pan. Season with salt, pepper and and 1/4 of the envelope of stir fried rice seasoning and a few more shakes of the soy sauce. Once the meat is almost all the way cooked through, add veggies back in and add another quarter of the fried rice seasoning. Stir well to combine and let flavors meld while the rice finishes cooking. When the rice is done, spoon it into individual bowls and top it with the steamy, flavorful meat mixture. Dig in and enjoy! You may choose to squirt on a bit more soy sauce or rooster sauce - dress it to your liking. I chose neither as I loved it the way it came right out of the pan. Yummy!

Happy New Year - A Little Late...

Well...it's been a while! I've been feeling bad about not posting lately - there was stuff to put in...pics of the ever deepening snow in our yard the week before Christmas, New Year's wishes and pics etc.... But time seems to get away from me or I feel what I have to say isn't "all that" and next thing you know, weeks have gone by.

Anyhoo...enough of that - let's get down to business. Things have taken a turn back to the healthy at our house. Earlier this year, I very happily melted off 30 pounds. I felt terrific, but something about hitting that number, even though I wanted to rid myself of another 25 or so, made me pretty darn pleased with myself and I stopped working to lose weight and let myself sit with the 30 for a while. Well, over the holidays, the 30 lbs has back-peddled to about 22 (yes, I'm guessing...there's no way I'm stepping on the scale to see the actual goodie-damage. I'm not stupid!) So....right about January 3rd, the pantry and fridge were cleansed of their evil carbs and sugars - and low fat, whole wheat, sugar-free, fresh-from-the-farm items took their place. I have to say...it feels great to eat better. It's actually a relief to not eat fat-laden crap. I already feel better - popping right up the stairs rather than trudging, rising easily in the morning instead of feeling like a sack-a rocks. I've truly missed steanmed broccoli and taking a few pieces of fruit to work with a great-tasting, mayo-free sandwich. 2009 is off to a terrific start!

So - in coming up with new ways to cook up ground turkey and chicken etc, this awesome new dish came out of my kitchen last night. Its low fat, uses whole wheat pasta and is full of rich, chickeny flavor. I'm not one for resolutions...they seem to set you up to fail -but I'm calling this dish Resolution Chicken Pasta because if you are one to make resolutions of the diet kind, this one will fit the bill!

Resolution Chicken Pasta

2 T olive oil
1 medium onion - halved & sliced (not too thick, not too thin)
1/2 red pepper - diced
4 cloves garlic - chopped (or minced)
4 medium, skinless chicken breasts - sliced into thin strips while raw
3 - 4 T flour
2 1/2 cups chicken broth (your choice low sodium, fat-free etc.)
1 can 98% fat-free cream of celery soup (undiluted)
1/2 can 98% fat-free cream of chicken soup (undiluted)
1/2 t dried basil
1 t celery seed
1 t red pepper flakes
1/2 t onion powder
1/2 t garlic powder
salt (used throughout)
pepper (used throughout)
1 box (13.25 oz) Barilla Whole Wheat Thin Spaghetti

Begin by filling your pasta pot with salted water and keep the heat high enough so that the water boils quickly later on for your pasta. Heat oil in large frying pan over medium high heat and add sliced onions and red pepper. Season with salt and pepper and cook until onions start to loosen up - about 5 minutes. Add chicken pieces, a bit more salt and pepper and stir to combine then refrain from stirring for a few minutes so the chicken can pick up a little color on the bottom. After about 4 minutes, add the garlic and stir the mixture so the chicken just cooks throughout. Next, add the flour and stir well to combine. The flour will coat everything in the pan and make is rather tacky and kinda pasty - this is exactly what you want to have happen. Let this cook for a couple of minutes so the flour picks up the flavors in the pan and won't just taste like flour. Next, pour in the chicken broth. Stir well and scrape your stirring implement along the bottom of the pan to get up all the brown and wonderful 'leavings'. Stir until the mixture bubbles and you'll notice it will get thick pretty quickly in just a minute or so. Add in the two cream soups and stir well to combine. You can now turn the heat down to medium. Add in the basil, celery seed, red pepper flakes, onion powder and garlic powder. Stir well. Allow the mixture to bubble for just a few minutes - taste it for salt and pepper, then you can turn it down to medium low or low until the rest of your dinner is ready. The rest of this dish is the pasta. While the flavors of the chicken dish marry, crank the heat on the pasta water and once boiling, cook the entire box of whole wheat thin spaghetti (I like to break my spaghetti in half). Cook acording to package directions then drain, drizzle with a little olive oil if desired (just so it doesn't stick together). To serve, put the desired amount of pasta on your plate and ladle the chicken mixture on top. Then, twirl your fork into the hot, steamy, creamy deliciousness and enjoy!

Happy healthier eating in the new year!

Cookies-n-Creme Heaven.....

OMG....I could've also called this blog, White Chocolate Heaven, Truffle Heaven or just plain Delectable Heaven!
I came across a recipe about two weeks ago and something just told me these candies would be really special.
So...when snow forced me to go home early from work one day this week, I figured it to be the perfect time to try these beautiful little treats. And....seeing as how the Hershey's Cookies-n-Creme candy bar is my daughter's favorite, I knew they'd probably be a winner.
They are simple to make and so worth it as everyone who's tried them so far (family & I took a few to work with me), have loved them - save for my bosss who doesn't like chocolate. But the way I see it, Oreos (which are one of the ingredients) aren't chocolate...they're just Oreos! But she doesn't eat Oreos or chocolate of any kind, so there ya go.
Anyhoo....give these a try, you will not be sorry. For the holidays you might even sprinkle them with red and green jimmies if you want. Personally, I like them elegantly plain :-) So - without further adieu.......

Cookies-n-Creme Truffles

1 package Oreo sandwich cookies
1 8 oz. brick cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 packages white chocolate chips

Put oreos - all of them, but in stages if you like - in a food processor and blend until they are very fine crumbs. If you have chunks that did not break down, pour out the crumbs and repulse the chunks till they are fine as well. Put all crumbs back in processor and add the brick of cream cheese. You may want to cut the brick into four or five pieces and distribute them around the mixer-bowl for more even blending. Add the vanilla and blend until mixutre is very thoroughly incorporated. You do not want to see any white cream cheese....only a smooth, very dark mass.

Once blended, the mixture needs to be rolled into balls and placed on wax paper on a sheet pan. I used a very small cookie scoop to measure mine out so they'd all be the same size. You could also use a melon-baller or just your own eyeballs to size them up them yourself! The diameter of mine were probably close to that of a quarter. You can make yours smaller or larger if you want but it could affect the amount of white chocolate you use to cover them, so there's fair warning for ya. Once all of the chocolate mixture has been formed into balls, place the sheet pan in the freezer so the balls can firm-up - at least an hour, but two if you have the luxury of time on your side.

After about two hours in the freezer, begin to melt your white chocolate chips. Do this over a double boiler and make sure the water in the bottom is only simmering, not boiling. Matter of fact, every once in a while, once the chips start to lose shape and begin to melt, remove the bowl from the double boiler and stir them vigorously. I get paranoid of getting the chips too hot as chocolate can cease so easily. When the chips are melted velvety smooth, remove the sheet pan of frozen chocolate balls from the freezer and get ready to dip! The easiest way to do this is to stick a toothpick in the top of one of the balls, place it into the white chocolate and use a spoon to mound the chocolate up and over it's sides. Don't worry about getting chocolate all around the toothpick area, we'll take care of that in a minute. Let most of the excess white chocolate drip off the ball, then place it back on the wax paper. To remove the toothpick that's stuck in, give it a gentle twist, or use another toothpick as leverage to hold down the truffle and pop the 'stuck' toothpick right out. Dip a few truffles this way, then, using the spoon, get a little white chocolate on the tip of the spoon, and gently 'mound' it on the very top of the truffle where the toothpick hole was. Give the it a little 'DQ swirl' so-to-speak, if you will, for fun. :-) You may want to put the sheet pan back in the freezer about half way through if your house is warm and the ball begin to soften too much. But - once all of the balls have been coated, place the sheet back in the freezer for about 30 minutes, then you can transfer them to the fridge.

Once ready to eat/serve, place your lovely truffles on a pretty serving plate or candy dish. You may want to give them a few minutes - say, 10 or so - to lower their temp just a bit.

Then - serve these beautiful candies to your guests and watch their eyes pop! You, and they, will love them!

Enjoy!!!

Our Halls Are Decked...

Our house smells like pine! Mmmmm.....nothing smells as good as a Christmas tree! Real pine, with sticky sap to dot your hands and the occasional dropped needle is the best - reminds you that the stuff in the Pine-Sol bottle is not pine you really want to smell!

Although we got our tree from a 'U-Cut' farm again this year, we did get it from a different farm than we have in the past several years. There was hot chocolate and Santa was there and they passed out candy canes...it was fun. But to me, the best part was that they had one of those machines to shake the crap - literally - out of the tree! Stray, brown needles went flying and, more importantly, any and all tiny, buggy critters as well! Then, our tree was wrapped in twine and loaded in our truck - that was a first for us, but boy did it make it easier to deal with once we got it home. Windy Hill Tree Farm in Ridgefield, WA has made me a customer for life!

Sunday evening was all about decorating at our house. Although December is my husband's fave month (after the 3 summer months, that is), he's never really been interested in the actual decorating aspect of Christmas, so my daughter and I dug right in, as usual. I have to admit, putting the lights on the tree is one of those chores like balancing your checkbook...the thought of doing it is waaaay worse than actually doing it. And, once it's done, you realize it wasn't all that bad afterall! But always, the best part is getting out all of the wonderful ornaments. We have so many special ornaments, that the plain, colored balls from some 25-odd years ago have fallen into the background and get used as 'filler' deep inside the tree - for extra sparkle - if they get hung at all. Not only do I buy my daughter an ornament every year, but my mom does as well (she buys me one too!). So each year, our collection grows by at least three, specially chosen ornaments. Stupidly, we've never thought to date each one on the bottom or wherever - so now that my daughter is 14, it can be hard to remember the exact year each ornament was recieved :-( But it does give us something to chat about every year as each sparkling gem is unwrapped and hung on a limb to shine for yet another season. Best of all, those new ornaments get to hang among all the special, dare I say 'vintage' (my childhood ornaments are vintage?!?!) decorations and ornaments. Just as shown above in the photo...that's my daughter's newest chosen glass-blown ornament, right next to my childhood elf, now 44 years old. What an awesome feeling it was to see them right next to each other on our tree.....

What is it about a Christmas tree that makes a home seem so warm....is it the glow of the colorful lights? Is it the sparkle and twinkle of the glass-blown ornaments? Maybe it's the mere idea and tradition that the tree brings. All I know is that our home feels different once the tree and decorations go up - and it's such a good feeling - One of childlike antipation. Christmas does bring out the child in all of us!

Yes, there is nothing like the Christmas tree to bring it all together. The Christmas tree is such an important part of our celebration that it so pains me to hear it called a 'Holiday tree'. It's not a holiday tree...it IS a Christmas tree! A decorated pine tree with tinsel and lights and ornaments IS a Christmas tree! Why would calling a Christmas tree, a Christmas tree be offensive to anyone? Are we gonna start calling a Jewish Menorah or a Kinara used for Kwanzaa a holiday candelabra? I'm not thinkin' so...! We gonna call a Dreidel a holiday top? Can you imagine the uproar if we did! Let's just call things what they are.....let us all have our traditions as they are....as they were meant to be.

Here's hoping your home is aglow in all the warm and loving tradtions of your own family, be they spiritually based, or not. One way or another, just dive in to the jingly season and enjoy it for all it's worth!