I've been tagged! Lisa at A Shower Fresh Garden tagged me with the 8 Happy Thoughts meme. Much like Lisa, I've pulled the week from H - E- Double Hockey Sticks! I just checked my hours and as of Thursday night I am up to 60 hours for the week. YUCKY! It is really only the happy thoughts below that are keeping me going! I'm stealing some of Lisa's thoughts as well!
Here are the rules:
When tagged, you must link to the person who tagged you. Post these rules before your list, then list 8 thoughts that make you happy. At the end of your list, you must tag and link 8 other people.
1) Oxford, Mississippi. Ole Miss, Square Books, the Square. Rolling hills and green fields. Lovely lakes to walk by each morning.
2) Yocona River Inn. Mmm...Yocona filet and roasted mushroom ravioli.
3) Vacations: Seaside, Telluride, Italy, Seattle...I'm not picky!
4) Reading cookbooks and cooking. Doesn't matter what I'm cooking, it's major stress relief.
5) Making sugar cookies with my Mom and sisters and nieces. Sugar cookies and chocolate truffles are a Sullivan Christmas tradition! There is nothing better than spending all day in the kitchen talking and laughing and baking!
6) Anything Christmas: Trees, garland, wreaths, candles, lights, and music. What did I do before all the XM Christmas stations?
7) Spending a whole day doing nothing but reading a good book. I LOVE IT!
8) My life. Although my job wears me out, I am very thankful to have a job that pays the bills. Although my house may need cleaning and laundry may need washing, I love my home and get pleasure in taking care of it. Although my pets constantly spawn the words "this is why we can't have nice things", I love them and how happy they are to see me when I get home. Although Daniel and I might drive each other nuts sometimes, I love him and wouldn't want to face each stressful day without him by my side. We constantly find ourselves looking at each other and just saying how much we love our life and how happy we are to be married to each other. These are some of the things that make me happy.
And I'll tag:
Corinne at She Do Nothing All Day
Meg at Harris Family Blog
Shelby at The Trustys
Angela
Jenn at The Janii
Rachel at No Really... This is My Life (so glad she's alive :))
Kathy at The Whole Lott
Ree The Pioneer Woman: I know it will never happen :)
Friday, November 30, 2007
Friday, November 02, 2007
More Halloween Fun!
This post is gonna be mainly photos (which Daniel likes...what am i too wordy for you? I do have an English degree ya know!), but I did want to share one funny story from Halloween. There was a little boy, probably about 6?, dressed as a power ranger (or something similar) who came to the door while his parents stood back on the sidewalk. When we answered the door in our costumes he got this scared look on his face and his eyes slowly took us in from feet to masks. I thought he might actually cry, but instead, he simply said, "Nith Cothstumes". He had the most adorable lisp and Daniel and I have been repeating that ever since. Nith Cothstumes. It was so nerdy and funny and cute! Anyways, on to the pics. Enjoy.
Here we are as Lord Voldemort and Bellatrix LaStrange. If you don't know those names, we can no longer be friends. Of course, considering what dorks we are, you probably don't want to be our friends anyways.
Here is our front door in all it's Halloween glory! The moths seem to revel in the fake spiderweb... I hope we didn't lull them into a false sense of spiderweb security...oh well. c'est la vie (or death in the moths' case)!
This is Cinderella...I mean Grace. She is the daughter of my college roommate/ sorority sister/ friend/ neighbor Jennifer. As my sister Anna would say, "I just LOOVVVEEE Cinderella!!!"
Ok, this is when we had had some beer and were being silly. Don't the red eyes just make the pic though?
This was supposed to be my 'Sassy Deatheater' pose, but Voldemort cut my arms off. Not in real life, silly, just in the picture. It would be hard to blog if i had no arms.
Fin.
Here we are as Lord Voldemort and Bellatrix LaStrange. If you don't know those names, we can no longer be friends. Of course, considering what dorks we are, you probably don't want to be our friends anyways.
Here is our front door in all it's Halloween glory! The moths seem to revel in the fake spiderweb... I hope we didn't lull them into a false sense of spiderweb security...oh well. c'est la vie (or death in the moths' case)!
This is Cinderella...I mean Grace. She is the daughter of my college roommate/ sorority sister/ friend/ neighbor Jennifer. As my sister Anna would say, "I just LOOVVVEEE Cinderella!!!"
Ok, this is when we had had some beer and were being silly. Don't the red eyes just make the pic though?
This was supposed to be my 'Sassy Deatheater' pose, but Voldemort cut my arms off. Not in real life, silly, just in the picture. It would be hard to blog if i had no arms.
Fin.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Happy Halloween!
Daniel and I have been slowly prepping for Halloween over the last few weeks, but really kicked things into high gear last night with our pumpkin carving. We both went a non-traditional route with our pumpkins. Daniel's too freaking creative...I shouldn't try and compete with him. I also made Giada's chocolate orange cupcakes with lemoncello icing for us to enjoy while we await our trick or treators! Enjoy the photos below! More pics to come tomorrow with costumes! Oh, we tried to watch 'It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown'...why do i not remember it being so freaking long? I must have slept through most of it as a kid. Good memories regardless.
Using Daniel's tools from a ceramics class he took to carve layers of pumpkin skin away.
The finished products! A scary Tiki(daniel's) and a wimpy cat (mine)
My 'work witch' costume. I had Rotary this morning, so couldn't go to work in the whole sha-bang. Why doesn't photoshop have a 'remove 10 lbs' option? Notice how festive my desk is with purple lights, a pumpkin, and a cauldron of candy. The view out the window's not bad either.
Using Daniel's tools from a ceramics class he took to carve layers of pumpkin skin away.
The finished products! A scary Tiki(daniel's) and a wimpy cat (mine)
My 'work witch' costume. I had Rotary this morning, so couldn't go to work in the whole sha-bang. Why doesn't photoshop have a 'remove 10 lbs' option? Notice how festive my desk is with purple lights, a pumpkin, and a cauldron of candy. The view out the window's not bad either.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Rest in Peace Mo Mo
You were a wonderfully sweet dog Molly. Actually, we always called you a sister didn't we? You were certainly part of the family and you will be greatly missed.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Fat Free Carbonara
Made you look! You should know that the title of this blog is an oxymoron. I made chicken carbonara bow tie pasta last night. OHHHH MYYYYY GAWDDDDD!!! It was unbelievably good. I didn't take pics throughout the process, but I'll try and take a pic of the leftovers today if it's pretty enough. Although I've been trying to lose a few pounds and get in shape, this dish was well worth the million calories!
Here's the basics:
-Cook some boneless skinless chicken breasts in a skilled with a little evoo. I only salted and peppered the breasts. Cut into bite size pieces when they are cooked through.
-Cook some chopped bacon in a skillet (i bought the thick, expensive bacon)
-When bacon is done, remove from skillet
-Add sliced onion, a little garlic, a little white wine to the skillet and saute until translucent
-Add mushrooms to skillet and continue to cook for a few more minutes. Remove veggies to a plate
-melt 1 stick of butter, 1 stick of cream cheese, a little half and half, and some fresh grated parmesan cheese
- Toss all of the above with cooked bow tie pasta, add some frozen green peas
- Give peas a few minutes to warm up and then DEVOUR!
**I will have to walk an extra hour tonight, but this dish is worth it!**
Here's the basics:
-Cook some boneless skinless chicken breasts in a skilled with a little evoo. I only salted and peppered the breasts. Cut into bite size pieces when they are cooked through.
-Cook some chopped bacon in a skillet (i bought the thick, expensive bacon)
-When bacon is done, remove from skillet
-Add sliced onion, a little garlic, a little white wine to the skillet and saute until translucent
-Add mushrooms to skillet and continue to cook for a few more minutes. Remove veggies to a plate
-melt 1 stick of butter, 1 stick of cream cheese, a little half and half, and some fresh grated parmesan cheese
- Toss all of the above with cooked bow tie pasta, add some frozen green peas
- Give peas a few minutes to warm up and then DEVOUR!
**I will have to walk an extra hour tonight, but this dish is worth it!**
Monday, October 08, 2007
Lost Sister?
A girl I work with sent me this photo from yahoo. She had asked if I had ever done any modeling (ha) and mentioned this photo a few weeks ago. When she saw it pop up again on yahoo she took a screen shot for me. We do both have a cow lick and a similar forehead region, but that's about all I see. The pic of me is the only one i could find with my hair in a similar style.
Oh, in case you didn't notice, I didn't post on Sunday this weekend. Now don't go getting all excited that I didn't have to work this weekend. I just worked Saturday instead of Sunday. Oh yeah, and next weekend is a prod push, so, that's right folks, I'll be working ANOTHER saturday. Man I need a vacation.
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Congratulations Meg and Ben!
Please join me in welcoming the arrival of William James Harris! William was born October 5th at 12:39 pm. He weighed 7 lbs, 10 oz and is 20.5 inches long. Besides being incredibly beautiful, he is also an Ole Miss Rebel!
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Cranberry Walnut Bread
Just a quick post for you bread lovers! Daniel did make more bread on Sunday! I apologize for the poor quality of the photos. I took them with my cell phone camera. For the record, this bread was beautiful and delicious! I have some in my freezer, so come hit me up for some anytime! I swear, one day, we are moving to some fabulous locale (italy, france, telluride, etc) and opening a bakery. Daniel will do bread, I will do cakes and pastries...and we will live happily ever after.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Another Sunday Post
That's right folks! It's Sunday morning, and I'm at work. This post will be quick and random since I have tons of work to do. I really just wanted to share another wonderful bread baking session with Daniel. We are going to try baking bread every Sunday, but we'll see how long it really lasts. Last Sunday was wheat baguettes. I can't begin to give you ingredients or how he does it, but here are a few pics from the process.
Just rolled baguettes:
Daniel scores them with a razor blade:
And the finished product:
I sure do love that man of mine! It's so wonderful to pull a loaf from the freezer to heat up with dinner!
I also wanted to share this photo we took last weekend. Doesn't it look sort of like an A bomb going off?
Just rolled baguettes:
Daniel scores them with a razor blade:
And the finished product:
I sure do love that man of mine! It's so wonderful to pull a loaf from the freezer to heat up with dinner!
I also wanted to share this photo we took last weekend. Doesn't it look sort of like an A bomb going off?
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Parties, Gardens, and me
Why is it that every blog of mine begins with an apology? I'm going to break from tradition and not apologize for the fact that I haven't blogged in a while. I'm a busy woman. It is, in fact, 8:30 am on Sunday morning and I am at work. Does a woman with all the free time in the world to blog go to work on Sunday morning? NO!! So, be happy with what you get! Love you guys :).
I begin today's post with some lovely photos from Audrey's birthday party/girls night/Mary Kay party. Although I didn't photograph all of the food, let me share with you some of the goodies we enjoyed (ie inhaled). Cream cheese/hot sausage rotel, guacamole, salsa, spicy pistachios, olives, cream cheese with pepper relish, and carrots with ranch (boring and way to healthy..what was i thinking?). And to drink...vodka and apple cider (a French concoction and very yummy), Milagro Margaritas (yes please), Cosmopolitans (a girls night regular), and, last but not least, Makers Mark and sprite (is there anything better really Corinne?). Yes, we actually had a different drink for almost every girl there. And I do believe we all tried just about all of them. Thankfully, majority of the party attendees live in my neighborhood. The other two, well, they were relatively tame. And for dessert...Corinne bestowed upon us individual chocolate cakes with chocolate drizzled over them and topped with homemade whipped cream. Heavenly!
Besides eating and drinking, we also were treated to several Mary Kay spa treatments. The pictures below are during our lip exfoliation treatment- hence the white lips. Sure had fun with you gals!
On to another topic that has me extremely frustrated. Some of you may recall one of my first blogs about cooking with deer meat and what an aversion I had to it. Well, no longer. Since Fall has begun to make an appearance, so have the deer. In one night, they took my beautiful, full, on the verge of blooming again roses, and stripped them bare. See below...
I'm not sure if you can tell from above, but those evil deer left me one lousy bloom, which really makes it that much worse. See below.
Spiteful deer. You are now off the protected species list in my kitchen. Daniel has been trying all sorts of 'home remedies' for getting rid of deer. 1. clean out my hair brushes and spread my hair around the yard 2. moved his large (read obnoxiously loud) wind chimes closer to my plants 3. 'marking his territory' whenever possible 4. stands guard with a b b gun at night. We could easily solve the deer problem if we get Bailey trained on her invisible fence outside, but then we would have to deal with the digging in the flower beds. Does my landscaping stand a chance against either of such odds?
I was going to show you some of the flowers and things doing wonderfully in the yard (at least until the deer come back for their second course), but I've decided instead to close with an amazing cooking tip. I am sacrificing any attempts at pride I may have had by showing you this picture. But I whole heartedly swear by wearing swim goggles when chopping pungent onions. Daniel taught me this trick and gets much joy out of how ridiculous I look. Regardless, it's a wonderful trick and these goggles now have a place in my utensil drawer in the kitchen. I hope you all have a wonderful week and if you need to reach me, I'll be at work 24/7 this week. Woo Hoo!
I begin today's post with some lovely photos from Audrey's birthday party/girls night/Mary Kay party. Although I didn't photograph all of the food, let me share with you some of the goodies we enjoyed (ie inhaled). Cream cheese/hot sausage rotel, guacamole, salsa, spicy pistachios, olives, cream cheese with pepper relish, and carrots with ranch (boring and way to healthy..what was i thinking?). And to drink...vodka and apple cider (a French concoction and very yummy), Milagro Margaritas (yes please), Cosmopolitans (a girls night regular), and, last but not least, Makers Mark and sprite (is there anything better really Corinne?). Yes, we actually had a different drink for almost every girl there. And I do believe we all tried just about all of them. Thankfully, majority of the party attendees live in my neighborhood. The other two, well, they were relatively tame. And for dessert...Corinne bestowed upon us individual chocolate cakes with chocolate drizzled over them and topped with homemade whipped cream. Heavenly!
Besides eating and drinking, we also were treated to several Mary Kay spa treatments. The pictures below are during our lip exfoliation treatment- hence the white lips. Sure had fun with you gals!
On to another topic that has me extremely frustrated. Some of you may recall one of my first blogs about cooking with deer meat and what an aversion I had to it. Well, no longer. Since Fall has begun to make an appearance, so have the deer. In one night, they took my beautiful, full, on the verge of blooming again roses, and stripped them bare. See below...
I'm not sure if you can tell from above, but those evil deer left me one lousy bloom, which really makes it that much worse. See below.
Spiteful deer. You are now off the protected species list in my kitchen. Daniel has been trying all sorts of 'home remedies' for getting rid of deer. 1. clean out my hair brushes and spread my hair around the yard 2. moved his large (read obnoxiously loud) wind chimes closer to my plants 3. 'marking his territory' whenever possible 4. stands guard with a b b gun at night. We could easily solve the deer problem if we get Bailey trained on her invisible fence outside, but then we would have to deal with the digging in the flower beds. Does my landscaping stand a chance against either of such odds?
I was going to show you some of the flowers and things doing wonderfully in the yard (at least until the deer come back for their second course), but I've decided instead to close with an amazing cooking tip. I am sacrificing any attempts at pride I may have had by showing you this picture. But I whole heartedly swear by wearing swim goggles when chopping pungent onions. Daniel taught me this trick and gets much joy out of how ridiculous I look. Regardless, it's a wonderful trick and these goggles now have a place in my utensil drawer in the kitchen. I hope you all have a wonderful week and if you need to reach me, I'll be at work 24/7 this week. Woo Hoo!
Friday, September 14, 2007
 | My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Honourable Lady Susan the Mellifluous of Happy Bottomshire Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title |
Saturday, September 08, 2007
My Favorite Nieces
Ok, my only nieces, but I sure do love them! It was wonderful to get to see them again. Madeline is getting so grown up and Avery is pulling up on furniture! We had a great time in Mobile last weekend. All the girls did lots of shopping while the men watched football. Sherri and Chris cooked us Penne Rustica for dinner Friday night, then Chris smoked ribs all day on Saturday! YUM! Girls, shopping, and food...what more could anyone ask for?
My older sister and me. People say we look alike. Actually, people used to ask me how medical school was going. Instead of endlessly correcting people, I'd just say, "It's good." I think there are still people in Cleveland who think there are just two Sullivan girls...one brunette and one blond. See my middle child syndrome making an appearance? Seriously though, I love being the middle child. :) P.S. I will remember to wear powder the next time I get my photo taken. Geez, can my face be any shinier? Actually, as a Southerner, I guess I should say I'm glistening.
Silly Daniel with Avery. I love that Avery's hand is on Daniels' in this picture. It reminds me of a posed Senior picture or something. I'll admit it, this makes the clock tick pretty loud.
Sunday we had breakfast at a great place in downtown mobile called Spot of Tea with Daniel's friend Greg. I highly recommend it if you are ever in the area. We drove to Ocean Springs shortly after breakfast and enjoyed a lazy day at the MIL's house. She also fed the heck out of us! These trips are never good for the waistline, but they sure are fun!
And now, we are back to the grind. Work is about to kill me, but it is nice being home. My living room is almost done with it's makeover, so hopefully, I'll have some pics of that soon. On a more serious note, please keep my cousin's family in your prayers as her husband undergoes chemo.
Friday, August 31, 2007
I know, I know
I've been working like a mad woman, so you will have to forgive my lack of blogging. Daniel, Mom and I are heading down to Mobile today and then over to Ocean Springs on Sunday to see Daniel's family. I can't wait to see everyone!
My brain is apparently not working yet, cause I can't think of anything interesting to share with you. I'll hopefully have something fun to blog about after this weekend.
Sorry.
My brain is apparently not working yet, cause I can't think of anything interesting to share with you. I'll hopefully have something fun to blog about after this weekend.
Sorry.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
What My Name Means
Lazy, but interesting post for today. Try it out: http://www.paulsadowski.com/Numbers.asp
You entered: Susan Sullivan Martin
There are 19 letters in your name.
Those 19 letters total to 70
There are 7 vowels and 12 consonants in your name.
What your first name means:Hebrew Female Variant of Susannah: Graceful lily.
Your number is: 7
The characteristics of #7 are: Analysis, understanding, knowledge, awareness, studious, meditating.
The expression or destiny for #7:
Thought, analysis, introspection, and seclusiveness are all characteristics of the expression number 7. The hallmark of the number 7 is a good mind, and especially good at searching out and finding the truth. You are so very capable of analyzing, judging and discriminating, that very little ever escapes your observation and deep understanding. You are the type of person that can really get involved in a search for wisdom or hidden truths, often becoming an authority on whatever it is your are focusing on. This can easily be of a technical or scientific nature, or it may be religious or occult, it matters very little, you pursue knowledge with the same sort of vigor. You can make a very fine teacher, or because of a natural inclination toward the spiritual, you may become deeply emerged in religious affairs or even psychic explorations. You tend to operate on a rather different wavelength, and many of your friends may not really know you very well. The positive aspects of the 7 expression are that you can be a true perfectionist in a very positive sense of the word. You are very logical, and usually employ a quite rational approach to most things you do. You can be so rational at times that you almost seem to lack emotion, and when you are faced with an emotional situation, you may have a bit of a problem coping with it. You have excellent capabilities to study and learn really deep and difficult subjects, and to search for hidden fundamentals. At full maturity you are likely to be a very peaceful and poised individual.
If there is an over supply of the number 7 in your makeup, the negative aspects of the number may be apparent. The chief negative of 7 relates to the limited degree of trust that you may have in people. A tendency to be highly introverted can make you a bit on the self-centered side, certainly very much self-contained . Because of this, you are not very adaptable, and you may tend to be overly critical and intolerant. You really like to work alone, at your own pace and in your own way. You neither show or understand emotions very well.
Your Soul Urge number is: 9
A Soul Urge number of 9 means:
With a 9 Soul Urge, you want to give to others, usually in a humanitarian or philanthropic manner. You are highly motivated to give friendship, affection and love. And you are generous in giving of your knowledge and experience. You have very sharing urges, and you are likely to have a great deal to share. Your concern for others makes you a very sympathetic and generous person with a sensitive and compassionate nature.
You are able to view life in very broad and intuitive terms. You often express high ideals and an inspirational approach to life. If you are able to fully realize the potential of your motivation, you will be a very self-sacrificing person who is able to give freely without being concerned about any return or reward.
As with all human beings, you are prone to sometimes express the negative attitudes inherent to your Soul Urges. You may become too sensitive and tend to express emotions strongly at times. There can be significant conflict between higher aims and personal ambitions. You may resent the idea of giving all of the time and, in fact, if there is too much 9 energy in your nature you may reject the idea. You may often be disappointed in the lack of perfection in yourself and others.
Your Inner Dream number is: 7
An Inner Dream number of 7 means:
You dream of having the opportunity to read, study, and shut yourself off from worldly distractions. You can see yourself as a teacher, mystic, or ecclesiastic, spending your life in the pursuit of knowledge and learning.
You entered: Susan Sullivan Martin
There are 19 letters in your name.
Those 19 letters total to 70
There are 7 vowels and 12 consonants in your name.
What your first name means:Hebrew Female Variant of Susannah: Graceful lily.
Your number is: 7
The characteristics of #7 are: Analysis, understanding, knowledge, awareness, studious, meditating.
The expression or destiny for #7:
Thought, analysis, introspection, and seclusiveness are all characteristics of the expression number 7. The hallmark of the number 7 is a good mind, and especially good at searching out and finding the truth. You are so very capable of analyzing, judging and discriminating, that very little ever escapes your observation and deep understanding. You are the type of person that can really get involved in a search for wisdom or hidden truths, often becoming an authority on whatever it is your are focusing on. This can easily be of a technical or scientific nature, or it may be religious or occult, it matters very little, you pursue knowledge with the same sort of vigor. You can make a very fine teacher, or because of a natural inclination toward the spiritual, you may become deeply emerged in religious affairs or even psychic explorations. You tend to operate on a rather different wavelength, and many of your friends may not really know you very well. The positive aspects of the 7 expression are that you can be a true perfectionist in a very positive sense of the word. You are very logical, and usually employ a quite rational approach to most things you do. You can be so rational at times that you almost seem to lack emotion, and when you are faced with an emotional situation, you may have a bit of a problem coping with it. You have excellent capabilities to study and learn really deep and difficult subjects, and to search for hidden fundamentals. At full maturity you are likely to be a very peaceful and poised individual.
If there is an over supply of the number 7 in your makeup, the negative aspects of the number may be apparent. The chief negative of 7 relates to the limited degree of trust that you may have in people. A tendency to be highly introverted can make you a bit on the self-centered side, certainly very much self-contained . Because of this, you are not very adaptable, and you may tend to be overly critical and intolerant. You really like to work alone, at your own pace and in your own way. You neither show or understand emotions very well.
Your Soul Urge number is: 9
A Soul Urge number of 9 means:
With a 9 Soul Urge, you want to give to others, usually in a humanitarian or philanthropic manner. You are highly motivated to give friendship, affection and love. And you are generous in giving of your knowledge and experience. You have very sharing urges, and you are likely to have a great deal to share. Your concern for others makes you a very sympathetic and generous person with a sensitive and compassionate nature.
You are able to view life in very broad and intuitive terms. You often express high ideals and an inspirational approach to life. If you are able to fully realize the potential of your motivation, you will be a very self-sacrificing person who is able to give freely without being concerned about any return or reward.
As with all human beings, you are prone to sometimes express the negative attitudes inherent to your Soul Urges. You may become too sensitive and tend to express emotions strongly at times. There can be significant conflict between higher aims and personal ambitions. You may resent the idea of giving all of the time and, in fact, if there is too much 9 energy in your nature you may reject the idea. You may often be disappointed in the lack of perfection in yourself and others.
Your Inner Dream number is: 7
An Inner Dream number of 7 means:
You dream of having the opportunity to read, study, and shut yourself off from worldly distractions. You can see yourself as a teacher, mystic, or ecclesiastic, spending your life in the pursuit of knowledge and learning.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Coast Cooking!
I spent most of this weekend catching up on my cooking. Saturday I made a big pot of spaghetti sauce to freeze and use to use in lasagna. I also made Oriental Chicken casserole and froze it in 3 small pans for quick week night dinners. I saved two chicken breasts that I cooked for the casserole to use in fried rice this week. I used the broth from cooking the chicken to make chicken stock which I froze in 2 cup servings. Quite productive if I do say so myself!
Since we still had one container of shrimp from the coast (thanks Ms. Anna!), Daniel requested some Shrimp Etoufee. Daniel's aunt and uncle from Biloxi gave us two cookbooks for our wedding, so I used a recipe from Cooking on the Coast for the Etoufee. This cookbook was written by the O'Keefe family, so naturally has some wonderful coast recipes. Let's get started.
The ingredients (a few are missing from the pic, but I was too lazy to add them and take another pictures.
1/4 cup oil
1/3 cup flour
1 cup each; chopped onion, celery, bell pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound crawfish tails or peeled deveined shrimp
2 cups chicken bouillon (a rich chicken stock is better)--hello stock from Saturday!
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 bunch chopped green onions, reserve tops
2 tablespoons Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
Salt, pepper and Louisiana hot sauce to taste
Pour oil in black iron skillet, stir in flour. Cook on medium-low until roux is brown, stir often. (I let mine cook about 15 minutes whisking frequently. I let the roux get to a nice golden brown.)
Before:
After:
Add onions (except green onion tops), celery and bell pepper and garlic. Cook until tender.
Add seafood, stock, bay leaf, a little salt and pepper. I also adding the worchestershire and a little Louisiana hot sauce at this point. In the future, I would add a little more hot sauce at this point, but you can always add more later if some don't like heat. Simmer 15-20 minutes.
Serve over hot rice with french bread for 'soppin'!
Daniel and Jonathan seemed to enjoy this dish mightily if the 1 serving of leftovers is any indication. They did request more heat though which is why i added the note above about more hot sauce while cooking.
For dessert, I made a blueberry cobbler recipe complements of my MIL (thanks again Ms. Anna!).
The ingredients are:
1 cup of self rising flour
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of milk
1 stick of butter
1 (I used 2) cups blueberries
**Please note there is no need to use a mixer for this recipe, but mine is so beautifully pistachio that it deserves to be documented on the web.
Heat the oven to 350 and melt the stick of butter in a square baking dish. While this melts, mix the first three ingredients above. Add the blueberries to the dish with melted butter and pour flour mixture over the top. Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with Vanilla ice cream.
Yummy! Topping is more like cake than the usual biscuity topping. Ice cream makes it!
Since we still had one container of shrimp from the coast (thanks Ms. Anna!), Daniel requested some Shrimp Etoufee. Daniel's aunt and uncle from Biloxi gave us two cookbooks for our wedding, so I used a recipe from Cooking on the Coast for the Etoufee. This cookbook was written by the O'Keefe family, so naturally has some wonderful coast recipes. Let's get started.
The ingredients (a few are missing from the pic, but I was too lazy to add them and take another pictures.
1/4 cup oil
1/3 cup flour
1 cup each; chopped onion, celery, bell pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound crawfish tails or peeled deveined shrimp
2 cups chicken bouillon (a rich chicken stock is better)--hello stock from Saturday!
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 bunch chopped green onions, reserve tops
2 tablespoons Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
Salt, pepper and Louisiana hot sauce to taste
Pour oil in black iron skillet, stir in flour. Cook on medium-low until roux is brown, stir often. (I let mine cook about 15 minutes whisking frequently. I let the roux get to a nice golden brown.)
Before:
After:
Add onions (except green onion tops), celery and bell pepper and garlic. Cook until tender.
Add seafood, stock, bay leaf, a little salt and pepper. I also adding the worchestershire and a little Louisiana hot sauce at this point. In the future, I would add a little more hot sauce at this point, but you can always add more later if some don't like heat. Simmer 15-20 minutes.
Serve over hot rice with french bread for 'soppin'!
Daniel and Jonathan seemed to enjoy this dish mightily if the 1 serving of leftovers is any indication. They did request more heat though which is why i added the note above about more hot sauce while cooking.
For dessert, I made a blueberry cobbler recipe complements of my MIL (thanks again Ms. Anna!).
The ingredients are:
1 cup of self rising flour
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of milk
1 stick of butter
1 (I used 2) cups blueberries
**Please note there is no need to use a mixer for this recipe, but mine is so beautifully pistachio that it deserves to be documented on the web.
Heat the oven to 350 and melt the stick of butter in a square baking dish. While this melts, mix the first three ingredients above. Add the blueberries to the dish with melted butter and pour flour mixture over the top. Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with Vanilla ice cream.
Yummy! Topping is more like cake than the usual biscuity topping. Ice cream makes it!
Monday, August 06, 2007
Pesto and the best marinade ever!
I've been slammed at work, so my brain is too fried to come up with anything interesting today. Instead, I am passing on some recently requested recipes.
Pesto Bruschetta
Ingredients:
@ 2 cups fresh basil leaves (washed and somewhat dried)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/4 tsp minced garlic
Extra virgin olive oil
fresh graded Parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
I use a small food processor to do the following:
Grind pine nuts until they are almost a paste. Add basil leaves and grind until a lovely green paste. Add garlic and a TBSP or so of olive oil and keep on grinding. Continue to add olive oil until paste becomes looser (think stone ground mustard consistency). Add a little S & P and as much grated parm as you like (I think I usually do about 2-3 TBSP). Give it one last pulse to mix those in and you are done with the Pesto!
I typically buy the Kroger 99 cent long french bread loaves and use about half of that for my the amount of pesto made above. I slice the bread to about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch think and brush one side with olive oil and lightly S & P. Toast in the oven for about 5 minutes on 350 degrees. Spread each with about a tsp of the pesto and sprinkle more parm cheese on top. Put back in the oven for another 5 minutes. Voila! You are done! For anyone who has never had pesto...you are insane. EVERYONE loves this appetizer!
Now, on to the best pork tenderloin marinade ever!
Ingredients:
Pork tenderloins (2 usually come in a pack)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup bourbon (I use Makers Mark)
S & P
Put the above in a big ziploc bag and let it chill out all day in the fridge. Then throw the pork on the grill for about 20 minutes.
The first time I made this recipe, I left it at that, but this last time...I made a glaze to go over the meat before serving. Take the same ingredients above and let them simmer in a saucepan for about 10 minutes. Then add a TBSP of butter and mix it in until it melts. We poured that over the meat before serving. It rocks!
Pesto Bruschetta
Ingredients:
@ 2 cups fresh basil leaves (washed and somewhat dried)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/4 tsp minced garlic
Extra virgin olive oil
fresh graded Parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
I use a small food processor to do the following:
Grind pine nuts until they are almost a paste. Add basil leaves and grind until a lovely green paste. Add garlic and a TBSP or so of olive oil and keep on grinding. Continue to add olive oil until paste becomes looser (think stone ground mustard consistency). Add a little S & P and as much grated parm as you like (I think I usually do about 2-3 TBSP). Give it one last pulse to mix those in and you are done with the Pesto!
I typically buy the Kroger 99 cent long french bread loaves and use about half of that for my the amount of pesto made above. I slice the bread to about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch think and brush one side with olive oil and lightly S & P. Toast in the oven for about 5 minutes on 350 degrees. Spread each with about a tsp of the pesto and sprinkle more parm cheese on top. Put back in the oven for another 5 minutes. Voila! You are done! For anyone who has never had pesto...you are insane. EVERYONE loves this appetizer!
Now, on to the best pork tenderloin marinade ever!
Ingredients:
Pork tenderloins (2 usually come in a pack)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup bourbon (I use Makers Mark)
S & P
Put the above in a big ziploc bag and let it chill out all day in the fridge. Then throw the pork on the grill for about 20 minutes.
The first time I made this recipe, I left it at that, but this last time...I made a glaze to go over the meat before serving. Take the same ingredients above and let them simmer in a saucepan for about 10 minutes. Then add a TBSP of butter and mix it in until it melts. We poured that over the meat before serving. It rocks!
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Chicken Fried Rice
Based on how delicious my chicken fried rice looked in the picture in my last post, several of you, my faithful readers, have requested the recipe. Let me start off by telling you how I came about said recipe (and I use this term lightly)
1. I had chicken fried rice at P.F. Chang's in Seattle and it was so wonderful I've been craving it ever since.
2. I had leftover chicken and a wok I had never used.
3. I called Corinne (the only person I've ever known to make their own fried rice)to get some instruction. Her instructions were basically: saute whatever veggies you have in some olive oil, then add some cooked rice, then scoot that to the side and cook an egg in the same pan, then season with soy sauce. I modified this recipe slightly and provided it below. The main difference is I used veggie oil instead of olive oil. I have heard that olive oil will get too hot and burn in a wok, so I took that to heart and made the switch.
1. Heat wok on med-med/high heat
2. Crack two eggs into wok and scramble them. Remove from wok when cooked.
3. Add about 1 Tablespoon veggie oil to hot wok
4. Add chopped onions and carrots to oil (I chopped about a cup of each)
5. When onions and carrots are starting to soften (after about 3 minutes) I added some frozen, whole green beans that I chopped into bite size pieces. Saute until they turn bright green (just a few minutes)
6. Add cooked white rice (I did about 3 cups?)
7. Add another tablespoon or two of veggie oil
8. Mix the rice with the veggies and let it 'cook' a few minutes. I recommend using a very flexible plastic spatula to turn the mixture while it's cooking.
9. Add chopped cooked chicken and mix with rice and veggies
10. Cook until it looks warmed through and some of the rice is starting to turn a very light golden brown.
11. Add previously cooked chopped up scrambled egg to mixture and fold in.
12. Remove from heat, but while wok is still hot, add a few drops of toasted sesame oil and low sodium soy sauce.
13. Toss thoroughly to coat the mixture and then pig out!!!
As you can see, this is a very in-exact recipe. I just winged it and it was amazingly good. Daniel made me make it again the next day for lunch. There is no way you can screw this up! Next time I will add green onions and maybe snow peas, but the toasted sesame oil really makes this recipe.
1. I had chicken fried rice at P.F. Chang's in Seattle and it was so wonderful I've been craving it ever since.
2. I had leftover chicken and a wok I had never used.
3. I called Corinne (the only person I've ever known to make their own fried rice)to get some instruction. Her instructions were basically: saute whatever veggies you have in some olive oil, then add some cooked rice, then scoot that to the side and cook an egg in the same pan, then season with soy sauce. I modified this recipe slightly and provided it below. The main difference is I used veggie oil instead of olive oil. I have heard that olive oil will get too hot and burn in a wok, so I took that to heart and made the switch.
1. Heat wok on med-med/high heat
2. Crack two eggs into wok and scramble them. Remove from wok when cooked.
3. Add about 1 Tablespoon veggie oil to hot wok
4. Add chopped onions and carrots to oil (I chopped about a cup of each)
5. When onions and carrots are starting to soften (after about 3 minutes) I added some frozen, whole green beans that I chopped into bite size pieces. Saute until they turn bright green (just a few minutes)
6. Add cooked white rice (I did about 3 cups?)
7. Add another tablespoon or two of veggie oil
8. Mix the rice with the veggies and let it 'cook' a few minutes. I recommend using a very flexible plastic spatula to turn the mixture while it's cooking.
9. Add chopped cooked chicken and mix with rice and veggies
10. Cook until it looks warmed through and some of the rice is starting to turn a very light golden brown.
11. Add previously cooked chopped up scrambled egg to mixture and fold in.
12. Remove from heat, but while wok is still hot, add a few drops of toasted sesame oil and low sodium soy sauce.
13. Toss thoroughly to coat the mixture and then pig out!!!
As you can see, this is a very in-exact recipe. I just winged it and it was amazingly good. Daniel made me make it again the next day for lunch. There is no way you can screw this up! Next time I will add green onions and maybe snow peas, but the toasted sesame oil really makes this recipe.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
The last of the 20's
To start, a big thanks to Meg for requesting a new post. It was just the kick I needed to take care of bidness. Since my last post, I have celebrated (heavily) my 29th birthday. I really don't get that stressed about getting older. I sort of get stressed about not being stressed about getting older. I can't stop thoughts like, "wow, by 29, I really should be doing this or that..". But, thankfully, I still feel about 23, so those thoughts are pretty easy to push aside.
My birthday started very early this year. At 6:30 am I was sitting at my laptop at home with a cup of coffee studying up on work stuff. I was in the office by 7:30 and spent until 3:00 pm with a client that was in town for a 'QA Summit'. Sounds really serious and important doesn't it? Well, it was serious and important I guess, but the names people give these meetings really cracks me up. It's like 'Ice Storm 94'. Dun dun dunnnnn....Sorry, I'm getting off the subject. My department surprised me with a carrot cake, a card, and a gift card. I love those guys...After work, I opened presents from my Mom, Jennifer, and Daniel. They all did splendidly on gifts and I shall be all the more stylish and sweet smelling for their generosity! Daniel gave me a bottle of perfume that I have been wanting for months, but was too cheap to buy for myself. If you have never smelled Bond No. 9 The Scent of Peace, you are missing out! Ahhhhh...Heaven....From here it was on to City Grocery for drinks with the Jacksons and another present! (I really racked up this year! I sure do have awesome friends and family!)
After a drink, Daniel and I went to the University Club for a wonderful dinner! I had a fried green tomatoes with crab meat and some kind of sauce on top appetizer that was to die for! After dinner, we went back to City Grocery to meet up with the Jacksons and Anna. I had a wonderful evening and quite a few white russians! Though I felt a little wobbly the next morning, it was a wonderful birthday!
Some random updates:
1. Bailey is about 12-13 weeks old and is up to 23.3 lbs. She can sit, lay down, drive us crazy, and be disgustingly cute. We have some issues with her taking advantage of Mommy, so I've got to work on that with her. I'm reading the Dog Whisperers book, so let's hope it imparts some useful knowledge.
2. I made chicken fried rice for the first time ever and it was awesome. I got this wok from my boss as a wedding gift and I am shocked at how well the fried rice turned out. YUMMY!
Sorry this blog is so scattered. While trying to write this post, I have attempted to help Mom with computer issues, had a brief meeting, worked on a work issue....hard to stay focused at work!
My birthday started very early this year. At 6:30 am I was sitting at my laptop at home with a cup of coffee studying up on work stuff. I was in the office by 7:30 and spent until 3:00 pm with a client that was in town for a 'QA Summit'. Sounds really serious and important doesn't it? Well, it was serious and important I guess, but the names people give these meetings really cracks me up. It's like 'Ice Storm 94'. Dun dun dunnnnn....Sorry, I'm getting off the subject. My department surprised me with a carrot cake, a card, and a gift card. I love those guys...After work, I opened presents from my Mom, Jennifer, and Daniel. They all did splendidly on gifts and I shall be all the more stylish and sweet smelling for their generosity! Daniel gave me a bottle of perfume that I have been wanting for months, but was too cheap to buy for myself. If you have never smelled Bond No. 9 The Scent of Peace, you are missing out! Ahhhhh...Heaven....From here it was on to City Grocery for drinks with the Jacksons and another present! (I really racked up this year! I sure do have awesome friends and family!)
After a drink, Daniel and I went to the University Club for a wonderful dinner! I had a fried green tomatoes with crab meat and some kind of sauce on top appetizer that was to die for! After dinner, we went back to City Grocery to meet up with the Jacksons and Anna. I had a wonderful evening and quite a few white russians! Though I felt a little wobbly the next morning, it was a wonderful birthday!
Some random updates:
1. Bailey is about 12-13 weeks old and is up to 23.3 lbs. She can sit, lay down, drive us crazy, and be disgustingly cute. We have some issues with her taking advantage of Mommy, so I've got to work on that with her. I'm reading the Dog Whisperers book, so let's hope it imparts some useful knowledge.
2. I made chicken fried rice for the first time ever and it was awesome. I got this wok from my boss as a wedding gift and I am shocked at how well the fried rice turned out. YUMMY!
Sorry this blog is so scattered. While trying to write this post, I have attempted to help Mom with computer issues, had a brief meeting, worked on a work issue....hard to stay focused at work!
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Can we move to Seattle?
We made it back safely from our Seattle trip. I am suffering from a little jet lag and a small virus I think I picked up on the plane. Somehow I managed to sit by people that were coughing and sniffing on both flights. Oh well, it was worth it.
Daniel and I did stick to some of our plans, but modified some as well. I will say, the moment we crossed from the plane to the terminal and could feel the cool air coming through the cracks, we were sold on Seattle. I actually had chills at noon on a July day! We took a 'green cab' to downtown Seattle and, with the windows down, marveled at the trees, the water, the houses, the weather the entire way.
We reached the Crowne Plaza in short order and were happy to discover our room was already ready. Ok, now it's time for a brief rant. For the price, the Crowne Plaza was very disappointing. The hallway on our floor (and several other places throughout the hotel) had a disgusting, garbage-like odor. Thankfully, we couldn't continually smell it in our room (mainly because we kept the AC blowing the whole time). The room was ok...nothing fancy by any means. I understand this hotel is older, and I can accept that. They did provide ear plugs, an eye mask, and a relaxation cd in each room. I guess that was supposed to make our room luxurious? The bell men/concierge were the worst. Very rude- except of course when we were leaving and they wanted a tip.
Saturday we ate lunch and then took the monorail to Seattle Center where the Space Needle is located. Isn't it amazing they let Daniel drive the monorail?
We waiting about 30 minutes in line to get to the elevator to get to the top of the Space Needle. Felt very much like Disney World.
The views were amazing from the top (as you can see in photos below), but it was very crowded. You can see Mt. Renier in the background. Our plane flew right beside it on the way into Seattle.
Seattle Center also contains a small amusement park, a huge fountain surrounded by green grass and art work, the Music Experience and Sci-Fi Museum, and a few other attractions. Next trip, I will definitely spend more time in this area checking stuff out. As it was, we just walked around everything and relaxed in the park a little. 
Saturday night we went to Salty's on Alki Beach for dinner. We didn't take the limo because we decided to take the Water Taxi instead. Unfortunately, we just missed the water taxi, so we had to take a regular taxi over to Alki Beach. Although we ended up being almost an hour early for our reservation, they had an amazing table ready for us right in front of a huge window overlooking the water and the Seattle skyline.
The food was phenomenal (we both had salmon dishes) and their signature dessert is this white chocolate filled white cake that tasted so much like our wedding cake! We did catch the water taxi back to Seattle and got some of the amazing sunset pics below.
We considered acting out a scene from Grey's Anatomy on the ferry, but couldn't come up with anything that we could take while Daniel held the camera. Note to all- You have to walk down a big hill to get to the Piers from the Crowne Plaza area which means, you have to walk UP a big hill to get back. Flip Flops and being incredibly stuffed from dinner do not make this trek an easy one. At least we got lots of exercise though.
Sunday we ventured to Pike Place Market.
I had no idea how huge this market was going to be. There are two stories of vendors selling fresh seafood, veggies, fruits, breads, you name it. Next trip we will definitely get a place with a kitchen so we can hit up the market and cook with all the fresh ingredients available. Sunday's in the summer they also set up vendors in the road outside the market. Directly across from the market are several 'famous' businesses. One such place, the original Starbucks.
I had to take a pic to prove I had been there, but it was so packed inside, I didn't attempt to get coffee here. We had breakfast just a few doors down at Piroshky, Piroshky. This 'restaurant' was featured on Anthony Bourdain's 'No Reservations' tv show. Besides having seen it on his show, the smell coming out of this place drew us in immediately. Daniel had a spinach, egg, and cheese piroshky and I had a cinnamon/cardamon twist. YUMMY!!!
We moved on to Elliot's on the Bay for lunch. They had a huge selection of fresh oysters to choose from. Daniel ordered a blue cheese topped oyster dish and I got an order of the crab cakes. Both were ok, but didn't compare to Salty's. Pioneer Square was next on our list.
This is a picture of the Pergola (1905), designed to shelter passengers waiting for the cablecar that used to travel along Yesler Way. We decided against the Underground tour since we both had on flip flops and were pretty tired. We also got hit up for money here, so that sort of turned us off looking much further. There were great shops here and I would come back and check it out in more detail next trip. Just don't sit on any benches or you risk getting hit up for money. At least he sang to us for his $2. Ok, I will update you on the rest at a later date. I'm sure you are blogged out.
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