work, work, work

So, between work and some personal matters, I'm once again meeting myself coming and going. Or however that is said.

Tonights Special Comment by Keith Olberman was wonderful. It should be posted here soon. Right now it's just an excerpt.


I really have nothing else to say though. Work was work, busy, but not as long as my 17hr one the other day. At least I wasn't my friend. He logged 23.5 hours that day. came in at 3am and clocked out at 2:35 am.

Now I'm going to bed. I stayed on the phone a long time last night, a little over 2 hours, with the sexiest man I know. Just like sitting face to face, lost all track of time.

sitting here watching

The State of the Union address. It's funny (weird funny, not haha funny) when you notice what gets a round of applause and what doesn't. Who joins in the applause and who continues sitting on their hands. Who continues reading their book and who doesn't. But it's really odd when you see them all, both sides of the aisle stand up and applaud together.

It will be so nice to see this country standing together again. That is probably fairly pollyannaish of me, but I would love to see it once again. We've been divided for so many years. Some of our children know nothing but this division. How neat it will be for them to see unification for the first time or again. I know, we won't all be on the exact same page, there will always be someone who is unhappy. But if we can get the majority of us together, how cool would that be.

Nancy Pelosi just looked like she would love to bitch slap the Pres. Of course, this was one of those moments when the Republicans and Lieberman stood and applauded.

No, I've not cooked anything. I'm living off PB&J and cereal right now. Such is life.

This is getting old

It's been cold and rainy for days. I might as well be in London or some shit. Cold for days, fine. Rainy for days, fine. Cold AND rainy for days, not fine. The humidity is fairly high so the cold just goes straight to your bones. It seems impossible to warm up, well, unless you take a hot shower. People freak out. Some rain falls and it's like they are all f'n chicken little, running around screaming the sky is falling. They do 30mph on the highway or 80mph. No happy medium. They are either putting along or running up your ass. Don't even get me started about the damned 18-wheelers. The spray from their trucks. Gawd. I got stuck between two yesterday. A car in front of me doing around 40, the same speed as the two semi-trucks. If that dumbass would have sped up by just 5 freaking mph, it would have been good. But no, instead, there I am, stuck between these two behemoths, getting sprayed from the left and right, damn windshield wipers could not keep up.

I still haven't cooked or baked a damn thing. Since Monday, I've put in almost 80 hours and there is still tomorrow. I've got to be there at 4am, which means I need to wake up at 2am, and I'll be there until 8 tomorrow night. Once I get there, I'm good. But I so do not like having to wake up to an alarm and lets face it, getting up at the unnatural time of 2am (when I am normally going to bed), well, an alarm is needed. Waking up by an alarm just starts my day off on a bad note. You are in a nice deep slumber and then out of nowhere comes this high-pitched annoying noise. I think I'd rather have Celine Dion suddenly warbling at my bedside. Ahhh, maybe not that bad.

Off to bed so I can awake at 2am.

PHUK

If I was smart

I would have been taking pictures of the stuff we've been making this week at work.

Alas, I've just been too damned busy. Maybe I'll do better tomorrow. It's been a busy, busy week. 4 jobs on Monday, 3 on Tuesday, had 3 today. We have 3 tomorrow, 1 huge one on Friday, and then 2 freakin enormous ones on Saturday. I'm enjoying helping my friend out, but I don't think I care much for the catering world. I prefer my food ala minute and that's how I prefer to serve it, well, except desserts.

Competitions

While I didn't compete at the Ben E. Keith show this year, I did attend.

There were some truly gorgeous cakes this year. Only a couple of centerpieces, which made we want to kick myself in the ass, as that is what category I would have entered. OH well. It was nice to go to a competition and enjoy it instead of stressing over setup, judging, critique, and announcements.



Sugar Centerpiece


Cake


Cake (my favorite, but then, I absolutely love purses)


Sugar Centerpiece


More of the previous Sugar Centerpiece


Chocolate sculpture



Cake


Cake


More of the previous cake. I was trying to get the detail on the baby's face, but that didn't work. It was gorgeous.

So, after the competition, M (my best female friend) and I went to see another friend (the sexiest man alive). Visited with him a bit, then headed out to the open house a friends company had going on. They were short handed. Since she and I were in uniform, we couldn't let a friend go up in flames (or down in flames), so we pitched in to help. That was fun. I hadn't been in a kitchen in some time (outside of home anyway) since I've made the transition to management. I'm going to start helping them with some of their catering gigs. Keep my kitchen skills up and network some more.

After we left there, we went and had a few drinks with the sexiest man alive. Ended up being one helluva long day, getting up at 4am and not getting back into the bed until 1am, but that's cool. I much prefer a day like that to a stagnant day.

All in all, it was fun. My friends company already called me and I'm going to work 3 gigs with them next week. WooHoo!!

I know, I'm not consistent

I'm doing a lot of back and forth between my home and my daughter's home. It would be so much easier if she stayed here, she doesn't want to. Typical 20 year old I suppose. I don't care that I'm putting everyone else out, making them sleep on an uncomfortable couch. I don't want to come there where I can sleep in a bed and you can be comfortable in your bed. I don't care that this is throwing yours and everyone else's schedules out of whack. I seriously think I'm going to have to tell her, sorry but this is how it is going to be. It will make life easier on us all.

Anyway, I did manage to make a Spinach and Tangerine Salad and take photos of it at some point. Spinach and citrus fruits pair nicely together. I didn't use a dressing, just some of the juice from the tangerine. That's me though. You may not like that. I've also had this with vidalia onion vinaigrette and just a vinaigrette made with a little canola oil, citrus juice, salt, pepper, and vinegar. I wouldn't suggest a heavy overpowering dressing like ranch or thousand island, a French might work fine.

Spinach of course is packed with nutrients as are tangerines. I had this for lunch one day. I really did not believe that a few handfuls of spinach and a couple of little tangerines would fill me up, but it did.






2 cups spinach leaves, whole, baby
2 whole tangerine, whole, sectioned

Combine and eat.

Nutritional Analysis
Calories: 87 kcal
% Calories from Fat: 4
% Calories from Carbs: 85
% Calories from Protein: 11
Total Fat (g): trace
Saturated Fat (g): trace
Monounsaturated Fat (g): trace
Polyunsaturated Fat (g): trace
Cholesterol (mg): 0
Sodium (mg): 49
Potassium (mg): 599
Total Carbohydrates (g): 21
Dietary Fiber (g): 5
Protein (g): 3
Calcium (mg): 83
Iron (mg): 2
Zinc (mg): 1
Vitamin C (mg): 69
Vitamin A (IU): 5579
Vitamin B6 (mg): 0.2
Vitamin B12 (mcg): 0
Thiamin (mg): 0.2
Riboflavin (mg): 0.1
Folacin (mcg): 151
Niacin (mg): 1

Food Exchanges
Starch/Bread: 0
Lean Meat: 0
Vegetable: 0.5
Fruit: 1
Non-Fat Milk: 0
Fat: 0
Other Carbs: 0

Now, if you want to add a vinaigrette, here is a tangerine vinaigrette. This is for one. Double it to 1/8 cup each oil and vinegar, and a 1/4 cup tangerine juice for two. Substitute any citrus juice of your choice.

1/16 cup canola oil
1/16 cup rice wine vinegar
1/8 cup tangerine juice

Whisk together ingredients, add a little kosher salt to taste, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Nutritional Analysis
Calories: 136 kcal
% Calories from Fat: 88
% Calories from Carbs: 11
% Calories from Protein: 0
Total Fat (g): 14
Saturated Fat (g): 1
Monounsaturated Fat (g): 8
Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 4
Cholesterol (mg): 0
Sodium (mg): trace
Potassium (mg): 70
Total Carbohydrates (g): 4
Dietary Fiber (g): trace
Protein (g): trace
Calcium (mg): 6
Iron (mg): trace
Zinc (mg): trace
Vitamin C (mg): 10
Vitamin A (IU): 130
Vitamin B6 (mg): trace
Vitamin B12 (mcg): 0
Thiamin (mg): trace
Riboflavin (mg): trace
Folacin (mcg): 1
Niacin (mg): trace

Food Exchanges
Starch/Bread: 0
Lean Meat: 0
Vegetable: 0
Fruit: 0
Non-Fat Milk: 0
Fat: 2.5
Other Carbs: 0

Today was go, go, go

I really don't remember eating all day, well, until about 7 tonight. Needless to say, I didn't cook. I had a sandwich. I had it with mayo too. I'd been trying to avoid mayo. I'm a Hellmanns kinda gal. It becomes Best Foods mayo west of the Rockies. Anyway, I had gone shopping the other day and decided, I'm sick of light mayo, it doesn't taste the same. Yeah, sure, I know how to make it, but that's kind of like knowing how to make a hot dog. Who the hell wants to eat it then. So, the other day, I decided to try out the Hellmanns Canola Oil Mayonnaise. First off, I swear, it tastes the SAME. Not only does it taste the same, but it contains no saturated fat or trans fat and has half the fat of mayonnaise, it is rich in Omega 3, and contains 6% of your RDA for Vitamin E and 20% of your RDA for Vitamin K.



All this of course means for me, no more dry sandwiches. I'm not a mustard kinda gal for the most part. Not on a sandwich.

This is like having my cake and getting to eat it to.

I'm a bum

I didn't take any photos of anything I made today.

One thing I made today was a Bittersweet Chocolate Sorbet. It's yummy, rich, and decadent as can be and about half the fat of ice cream. It can be a dessert or a palate cleanser and it's very simple to make.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon sugar
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces

Procedure:

1. Combine the water and sugar in a saucepan and stir once. Bring to a boil and remove from the heat. (this is simple syrup)

2. Add the chocolate pieces to the syrup, without stirring.

3. Cover and let cool for 10 minutes.

4. Stir gently until smooth.

5. Refrigerate for 1 hour, until completely chilled.

6. Pour into a container and freeze.

7. Serve in a chilled wine glass.

Nutritional Analysis
Calories: 295 kcal
% Calories from Fat: 60
% Calories from Carbs: 35
% Calories from Protein: 5
Total Fat (g): 24
Saturated Fat (g): 14
Monounsaturated Fat (g): 8
Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 1
Cholesterol (mg): 0
Sodium (mg): 8
Potassium (mg): 355
Total Carbohydrates (g): 31
Dietary Fiber (g): 7
Protein (g): 4
Calcium (mg): 33
Iron (mg): 3
Zinc (mg): 2
Vitamin C (mg): 0
Vitamin A (IU): 42
Vitamin B6 (mg): trace
Vitamin B12 (mcg): 0
Thiamin (mg): trace
Riboflavin (mg): 0.1
Folacin (mcg): 3
Niacin (mg): trace

Food Exchanges
Starch/Bread: 1
Lean Meat: 0.5
Vegetable: 0
Fruit: 0
Non-Fat Milk: 0
Fat: 4.5
Other Carbs: 1.5

Spinach Stuffed Roulade

Ok, while this serves 8, you can really get about 10-12 servings out of it. I had to cut each slice in half. If it was the only thing on the table, I could see 8, but when you have a salad, veggies, fruit, pasta, and bread, well, you just won't be able to eat a whole slice. I say you won't, I imagine there are some that could eat 1 or 2 slices, but, we don't wish for our ass to arrive 5 minutes after the rest of our body. If you go with 12 servings, the calories drop to 338 and fat drops to 22grams.

Served with a couple spoonfuls of fresh tomato sauce, a little bit of angel hair pasta, and that's some good eating. Unfortunately on this one, things got haywire right at dinner time and I didn't end up getting a picture of the final product, but you can look at the last picture and imagine it browned a bit, and there you have it.



Ingredients:
2 pounds lean ground beef
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
1 large shallot, chopped
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
20 ounces frozen spinach, squeezed dry
8 ounces italian cheese blend
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil

Procedure:
1. Combine ground beef, bread crumbs, eggs, parsley, half of the shallots, garlic, seasonings, salt and pepper in large bowl; mix well.




2. Place on 12X12-inch sheet of foil moistened with water. Cover with 12X14-inch sheet of waxed paper moistened with water.

3. With hands or rolling pin, press meat mixture into 12X12-inch square. Refrigerate 2 hours or until well chilled.




4. Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove waxed paper from ground beef mixture.

5. Spread spinach, remaining shallots and cheese over ground beef mixture, leaving 1-inch border.




6. Starting at one end, roll up jelly-roll style, using foil as a guide and removing foil while rolling. Seal edges tightly.

7. Place roulade seam side down in foil-lined 13X9-inch baking pan. Bake, uncovered, about 1 hour. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting into 1-inch slices.



Nutritional Analysis
Calories: 506 kcal
% Calories from Fat: 59
% Calories from Carbs: 15
% Calories from Protein: 26
Total Fat (g): 33
Saturated Fat (g): 14
Monounsaturated Fat (g): 11
Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 1
Cholesterol (mg): 152
Sodium (mg): 751
Potassium (mg): 773
Total Carbohydrates (g): 19
Dietary Fiber (g): 3
Protein (g): 33
Calcium (mg): 344
Iron (mg): 6
Zinc (mg): 5
Vitamin C (mg): 22
Vitamin A (IU): 5267
Vitamin B6 (mg): 0.4
Vitamin B12 (mcg): 2.8
Thiamin (mg): 0.3
Riboflavin (mg): 0.5
Folacin (mcg): 177
Niacin (mg): 7

Food Exchanges
Starch/Bread: 1
Lean Meat: 3
Vegetable: 0.5
Fruit: 0
Non-Fat Milk: 0
Fat: 3.5
Other Carbs: 0

Pork Chops or The Best Dang Poke Chops

This is one of my family's favorite ways to have pork chops. I've been making them this way for a couple of years and is a recipe a YaYa posted some time ago on that board. You can use any cut of pork chop, actually, the cheaper cuts are better in this, as the extended cooking time really gets them tender, not to mention makes a very flavorful broth. Adding other seasonings, while it might work for some, just isn't needed for this particular recipe. If you wanted to turn the broth into a gravy, I guess you could by adding some flour and all, but I save the broth and freeze it. Then, the next time I want this, all I have to do is pull the frozen broth out and use it. There is no need to add salt the next time, although I do add pepper, but just a pinch. Each time, it is more flavorful.

While I wouldn't exactly say it is 'diet food', it isn't bad either. Someone on Atkins or maybe South Beach would find this fits nicely. Truly, when I use the 6 oz size chops, I get two meals out of it, because we usually only each eat a half of a chop, when you add veggies, etc that you are having for dinner. I'll use a leftover half the next day on a salad, slicing it thin and going wild with the cruciferous stuff.

While I have not tried this with anything other than pork, a nice tough cut of beef would also be nice in it.

Ingredients:
24 ounces pork center loin chops
1 large onion, sliced thin
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
water

Procedure:
1. Season pork chops. Preheat saute pan. Once hot, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add seasoned pork chops.



2. Just brown the pork chops. Once brown, add the sliced onions and enough water to cover.





3. Cover and simmer on low for a couple of hours or until the onions have turned to mush, making a gravy with the water.



Nutritional Analysis
Calories: 325 kcal
% Calories from Fat: 64
% Calories from Carbs: 4
% Calories from Protein: 32
Total Fat (g): 23
Saturated Fat (g): 6
Monounsaturated Fat (g): 12
Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 2
Cholesterol (mg): 84
Sodium (mg): 1017
Potassium (mg): 475
Total Carbohydrates (g): 3
Dietary Fiber (g): 1
Protein (g): 26
Calcium (mg): 40
Iron (mg): 1
Zinc (mg): 2
Vitamin C (mg): 3
Vitamin A (IU): 11
Vitamin B6 (mg): 0.6
Vitamin B12 (mcg): 0.7
Thiamin (mg): 1.4
Riboflavin (mg): 0.3
Folacin (mcg): 12
Niacin (mg): 6

Food Exchanges
Starch/Bread: 0
Lean Meat: 3.5
Vegetable: 0.5
Fruit: 0
Non-Fat Milk: 0
Fat: 2.5
Other Carbs: 0

trying to find a routine

I just cannot seem to get into a routine. sexybeast

Today I helped my bestest out. He's not so hot at typing and since I type 75wpm, it's not a big deal for me. What would take him literally hours takes me maybe 20 minutes. After that, he wanted to check out some computers, so we did that. Then go to eat at this nice little Mexican place. Nice, decent food. For some reason, it's never crowded. I don't know if they get crowded at night when they do karaoke or what, but I do really like the place. Friendly staff, service not so hot, but that's ok. What's great is the outdoor patio. Being able to have a smoke while drinking (cause their margaritas are outta this world) is always a plus.

I'm hoping that once the youngster starts back to school on Monday, I'll be able to get my routine back. Then there is the matter of my nieces (4 and 5) who are living with us temporarily as my family has it's own 'Britney'. Of course, work should start back later this week too, so I'll be adjusting in so many different ways, but that's a good thing I suppose. I cannot wait for us to start preparing to open our restaurant.

Anyway, since I did not cook anything today, I have nothing to post in regards to recipes. Sure, I could post something from my repetoire, but honestly, I didn't want to. I'm thinking tomorrow will be a better day in regards to cooking. Lunch time dates just really throw the day outta whack.

Mashed Baked Sweet Potatoes

I do so love sweet potatoes. Luckily the rest of my family does to. I typically slather these puppies with butter, cream, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Since I am on a quest to lose a bit of ass, I did away with the butter, cream, and brown sugar. That's right, all I added was fresh grated cinnamon and nutmeg. They are still just as yummy. I knew this, but I really didn't think the family would eat them. Surprise, surprise. They did. The funny thing, one member who claims to not like sweet potatoes, said these were pretty good and I should consider using this as my pie filling. All I could say was WTF?!?! Oh well, they liked them and all their beta-carotene goodness.

So, on with the recipe. It's easy peasy for sure.

Ingredients:

4 medium sweet potatoes, equals about 4 cups
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F.

2. Take a fork and poke a few holes in the sweet potatoes.

3. Place on sheet tray or aluminum foil, something to catch the juice, and put in oven.



4. Bake until tender, about 1 hour.

5. Cut off the ends of the potatoes and then slice the skin on top. Remove the potatos to a bowl. Add seasonings and then mash with fork or potato masher.






(ok, so, the color in the one above is much better. don't know what happened, but you get the picture)



Nutritional Analysis:

Calories: 148 kcal
% Calories from Fat: 5
% Calories from Carbs: 89
% Calories from Protein: 6
Total Fat (g): 1
Saturated Fat (g): trace
Monounsaturated Fat (g): trace
Polyunsaturated Fat (g): trace
Cholesterol (mg): 0
Sodium (mg): 253
Potassium (mg): 280
Total Carbohydrates (g): 34
Dietary Fiber (g): 5
Protein (g): 2
Calcium (mg): 45
Iron (mg): 1
Zinc (mg): trace
Vitamin C (mg): 30
Vitamin A (IU): 26618
Vitamin B6 (mg): 0.3
Vitamin B12 (mcg): 0
Thiamin (mg): 0.1
Riboflavin (mg): 0.2
Folacin (mcg): 20
Niacin (mg): 1

Food Exchanges
Starch/Bread: 2
Lean Meat: 0
Vegetable: 0
Fruit: 0
Non-Fat Milk: 0
Fat: 0
Other Carbs: 0

Life, or something like it anyway

I've been staying at my daughter's apartment, kitty sitting while she is in the hospital. I have her laptop, but none of the stuff I use for nutritional analysis or anything for cooking outside of basic pots and pans. She comes home tonight, so hopefully I can get back to blogging.

I'm hoping to post healthier alternatives as I have some excess ass I need to rid myself of. I won't be posting any pics of my excess baggage however, so no need to fret about that. I'm going to be looking at doing food that is good for you, not necessarily diet food. Sure, there will be salads, but I want them to be tasty salads. I'm not really a proponent of pre-packaged foods, but frozen veggies are ok by me. Truth be told, unless you get your veggies on the farm or at a farmer's market, the frozen are healthier as they are flash frozen within hours of being picked, instead of being trucked half-way across the country.

Here's to hoping I'm back up and running tomorrow.