Calendar - March 2011

March. In like a lion, out like a lamb. Is this weather lionish? I suppose it depends upon where you are on this planet, or possibly in the universe. Wherever you may be, March doesn't conjure up a special image, at least not for me. I mean in December you have all manner of Christmas and Chanuka (and etc) type of holidays images. In April, the image that comes to mind would be tulips. Really April would be any type of tubal/tubar/tubular (hehe) flower - daffodils, crocus, hyacinth, tulip, you name it. But, March.... I come up blank well, except for, I suppose, the whole shamrock holiday there in the middle of the month. My point being, the pink flowers below may not seem very March-ish to you, but, to me, they fit the bill.

The first photo below was my initial attempt at March's calendar photo. It was, to me, not the obvious choice. It seems less, in your face with its intention. Does that make sense to you?

Anyway, after I created it, I realized that the second photo below would be the one that maybe most people would like or lean towards given a choice. That might be because it is the obvious choice. Being the "obvious choice" isn't a bad thing. I mean, if you have two brownies to choose from, one of which has a boot print on the top, you would probably be smarter for choosing the obvious (non booted) brownie. Anyway, having a choice is a good thing. Just imagine if we didn't have any choices in life.

"You may not have a ding-dong, you may only have a twinkie."

"You may not wear stretchy jeans, you may only wear Levi's 501's."

"You may not commute by bicycle, you may only commute by bus."

You get the gist, I know you do. You're smart that way. That's why I like you. (insert smile and happy little personal moment here)

You had no idea I thought this much about calendars did you. Notice the rhetorical-ness of that question/statement.

Ok, you've had enough of me, for now. Here are the links for the March calendar.

TOP photo of the less obvious choice of flowers

BOTTOM photo of the more obvious choice of flowers

Have a Super Friday

A flower from a bouquet Mister's mom brought over for his birthday. She's good like that with the flowers.

Ciao bellas!

Juevos Rancheros

Disclaimer: (You know how/who I am.) The first photo of the finished dish, not all that pretty as far as food photos go, but I don't care. So there! When this was prepared for us in Mexico, by a professional, the two tortillas were stacked exactly on top of each other, the finished,cooked eggs were exactly the same diameter as the tortillas and the ranchero sauce was exactly poured on top of the entire thing. It was so pretty. At home, its pretty much, you are lucky you are even getting this food, so eat up and don't worry about it being pretty. Its tasty, and that is what counts. There you go, my disclaimer.
Ok, read on. Enjoy ;)

Have I told you how much I love juevos rancheros?

When we were in Mexico last November, we had the opportunity to have authentic juevos rancheros and boy-howdy, we went back for more nearly every day after.
I had never ordered them for breakfast before. I'd seen them on the menu, watched other people order it and though that it just wasn't my thing to have eggs on corn tortillas with some salsa and cheese melted on top.
Much to my jubilation, the authentic version is nothing like that. It is a delicious treat you'll want to eat every week. Here's the idea and the recipe for the ranchero sauce.

HUEVOS RANCHEROS

• 2 eggs per person
• 2 corn tortillas per person
• 1.5 tomatoes per person
• ½ onion quartered
• 2 green chiles (serranos, but you can use whatever you want, jalapenos??) Cut off the tops, seed if you want them less spicy, but mainly, leave them as intact as possible.
• 1-2-3 cloves garlic, leave these whole
• 1/8 bunch of cilantro - don't over do this. You can always add more later for flavor, but you can't take it out that easily.
• pinch (+) Knorr powdered chicken broth (this is the salty part, and you want that, so don't go low-sodium here)

Find a skillet that you don't mind being blackened - in a good way. Spread a tablespoon, or so, of olive oil over the bottom of the skillet. Turn up the heat to medium to medium-high. You'll just need to watch and adjust if things get to smoking. Place in the skillet the tomatoes, peppers, onion and whole garlic cloves.
Keep a watch and turn these ingredients as they blacken. You want the blackening to happen. That's the roasting and its delicious. Once all the veggies are roasted with a decent blackening of their skins, transfer them to a blender or food processor. Add the cilantro and chicken broth and puree the heck out of it. Taste. You may want salt and pepper. You may want more cilantro. You may want it to have more heat. Just adjust the flavor to your personal tastes, but the basics of it are there and your kitchen should smell amazing. Pour this pureed and tasty ranchero sauce into a saucepan and keep it warmed over low heat. Taste occasionally, just so your mouth will keep watering. Seriously, delicious!

I digress. Wrap the tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds, or so. Test for flexibility/tenderness, but don't overheat and dry them out. You can also do the whole 1/2 inch of oil in a pan and fry the tortillas. That is a super tasty alternative, but, I usually opt for less oil. Whatever your heart desires!!

In a bowl place 2 eggs at a time, season with salt and pepper. Heat a non-stick skillet with a drop of oil and a tablespoon of water. Once the pan is ready place the eggs in it and and cover with a lid, cooking until the yolk is done to your liking. I like mine over easy. Just so you know.

Ok, I think we have all the components.

To serve, place two tortillas on a plate, top with eggs then the ranchero sauce. We usually serve with warmed up pinto beans on the side and steaming hot coffee.

You can also put cheese on top, we don't, but you know that.

Here's K being an amazing chef. Do you see how blackened the bottom of that skillet is? That is naught but flavor my friends.

I hope this all makes sense. Our bestest's, K&H, went to Mexico with us. K and I drooled all over the woman who made this for us. We pestered her until she gave us the recipe. I've made this recipe once since then (not counting last weekend when K and I got together and made it) but apparently K has made it 5 or 6 times and has perfected it.

Week 5 - Up

Yep.

This is the week I knew / feared would arrive. The "UP" week. I debated and pondered and thought way too much about weighing this week and then again about posting about being "UP". Let me tell you it sucks! Its irritating and frustrating and well, I guess I did it. I posted the truth. The very reason I am annoying you with the gory details of this ridiculousness.

The big question, Why? I have to hope that a large portion of the "up" is my girl cycle. I truly hope its at least 75% water weight and that it will slip away without much more distress. I also believe, now that I've been brutally honest with myself, that, I was riding the high of 4 weeks of weight loss and thought I was a bit invincible. That I had finally figured out exactly how to do this weight loss thing and that it really was pretty easy and that I could do it without -- wait for it -- tracking. Well, the last two weeks have seen me slacking, nay, almost not tracking at all. The result, "UP".

I got on the scale this morning, much to my inner angel/devils telling me to just skip it this week and see what happened next week. I am happy with myself that I did it. I think the spiral could easily have gone on for at least another week had I not. So, on the scale, damage utterly visible and now, tracking (again) with a vengeance.

Next Tuesday will be monumentous. I hope to survive it.

Morning: President's Day 2011

Just Read: The Bridge of San Luis Rey

Author: Thornton Wilder

Yeah, yeah, its a classic and a Pulitzer Prize winner. I have to say that as a teenager, I had an easier time with the classics. Maybe I just need to practice reading them more. Maybe I'm complacent with my novels of today. But, this wasn't an easy read. I actually appreciate it more now that I've read the Wiki summary. I wish I'd read that before I picked up this book.

The book notes the collapse of a bridge which kills some people. It then goes on to explore the lives of three of those people and why maybe the bridge falling wasn't an accident, but possibly something with its own intention.

What I take from that posed question is this: So what? If these people had known they were to die on this bridge at that specific time and day, would they have chosen different lives? There's really no way to know the answer to that question. People would have to be able to live their lives, then die in some specific way because of their choices, then be given a second chance to live their lives again knowing if they didn't change things, they'd die on that day in that way. In the end, we all die, in some way, on some day. If we don't figure that out before hand, well, there's not much that can be done about that.

Defeatist attitude? I just think its realistic. Nothing more.

Week 4 - Down

Down is down. I just have to keep telling myself that. Even a little bit is better than up. I was down to a really nice looking number last Friday. But, had a 40th birthday party for my Mister and a house full of people starting on Friday night. Much, much fun, but much, much eating good stuff. I did my best not to over indulge and I think I actually did well as the scale indicated down from one week ago - but up from Friday morning. Its ok, not beating myself up over it.

Recap: Friday night, sushi at Saburo. Saturday morning, juevos rancheros made from scratch. I have had the recipe since November, just no photos. My amazing friend Karl made the ranchero sauce this weekend and I finally got a chance to take pics. Hopefully soon, a recipe for you. Hmmmm, oh, amazing braised pork and ground beef tacos with all the imaginable fixings for Mister's birthday bash, which also included home made frosted sugar cookies and vegan german chocolate cake which I didn't make, but ordered. I had to draw the line somewhere with the preparations. Not enough hours in the day/week. My brother brought six of the most amazing dungeness crab all cleaned and cooked and on ice with him this weekend. We set it out for the party. People ate all they wanted. I shelled what was left and had two pounds of the most delicious crabmeat. I made crabcakes on Sunday for brunch. I've never made them before. I started out with this Paula Deen recipe that I modified (red peppers instead of green, lime juice instead of lemon, more crackers crumbled by hand in the recipe and also with the flour coating, olive oil instead of peanut oil - that might have been it). Best crabcakes I've ever eaten. Oh, my!!

So, that was the weekend encapsulated. With all that amazing food that I ate, although trying not to overindulge (ok, maybe I did with the sugar cookies, they are my serious weakness). I feel ok that I am down, albeit only a bit.

Just Watched: The Young Victoria

I just love a good period piece. This one didn't have wars or swords or bloody battles like so many seem to have. It is the story of Queen Victoria as she comes to reign and her beloved Prince Albert. Its about how their relationship begins and their ideals and goals and mostly their respect and love for each other. Mister gave it a thumbs down, a bit too girly for him. I give it a thumbs up, just girly enough.

Week 3 - Down

Yay me! I don't have a specific goal for losing this weight, other than the obvious, feeling better, being healthier and not wanting to hide in my house in my sweats. But, I don't necessarily have a weekly-weight-to-lose goal. I just want to be 'down' each week. A lower number each week translates into success overall.

I am less than overwhelmed with the slow, very slow, progress I'm making, but am trying to see it in a positive light. Down is down. There's no two ways about it. Maybe you're thinking that I shouldn't have had pasta carbonara for dinner last night and then my 'down' would have been 'downer' (hehe, cracked myself up with that). Yes, you are probably correct. But, I'm trying to change a lifestyle while losing this weight. Starving myself and/or depriving myself of tasty foods (I am a foodie, can't help it) only makes my craving for those types of foods stronger. So, my theory is, and I think it a sound one, that I can have pasta with bacon on it, I just need to moderate the amount of it that I eat. That seems like a win-win to me. It also feels like a lifestyle I can keep up with for the rest of my life, not just during this time when I'm trying to reduce my size.

Thanks for listening.

Recipe: Pasta Carbonara (my way)

I am working on my photos of food. They kind of suck. Its harder than you think to take those amazing photos you see of delicious food. This bowl was actually, in real life, so pretty and tasty looking. You'll just have to trust me.

So, I am sure if anyone Italian ever saw this version of pasta carbonara, they'd have a heart attack and say it really wasn't worthy of the moniker. Too bad. My blog, my bad food photos and my version of this classic Italian dish.

Here goes.

1 lb pasta (whatever you have, I used partial egg noodles and partial brown rice pasta - its all delicious in the end). Start the water for these noodles and keep it hot. Throw your pasta in the water to cook, timing it as best you can to be done to your liking at about the same time your saucy topping will be done.

1lb brocoli florets. Steam these. When done to your personal taste, immediately rinse them with very cold tap water. Just a quick shower to stop the cooking process. We'll warm them back up again later. Set them aside.

• 1 lb bacon, chopped
• 1/3 lb ground burger
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
• 4 eggs
• large handful fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 cup white wine, whatever you have around and open (oh, is that just me?) I used prosecco this last time, just because
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 - 3 scallions, sliced
• olive oil
• pepper
• salt

Crack the eggs into a large bowl. Add S/P and parsley and beat it to a nice froth. Let it sit until we need it in a few minutes.

In a large skillet, brown the bacon and burger until crisp and crumbly. Careful not to burn it. Remove this to a papertowel lined bowl, disgard any remaining grease left in the skillet. Leave those brown, stuck bits in the bottom of the skillet though. Pour in a couple Tbsp good quality olive oil and let that warm up a bit. Toss in the onions with S/P. Once those have started to soften, put in the garlic and saute this until the onions are completely translucent. Pour the onion mixture over the meat and set aside. Leave that browned skillet on the stove with the temp on.

Next, we need to deglaze the skillet of its deliciousness. Take the white wine (you could also easily substitute chicken broth here) and pour into the hot pan, wisk, scraping the bottom to get those browned bits up. (As an aside, I believe those browned bits actually have a name, its "fond".) So, once the browned bits are up and the wine is bubbly, pour in the chicken broth. Once that is up and bubbly, pour back in the browned meat/onions and the brocoli. Heat this up and let the fluids reduce. I actually like when nearly, but not all the fluids have evaporated leaving mostly only flavor.

Ok, we're ready. Take that steaming hot pasta (it must be very hot to cook the eggs) and put it into the beaten eggs. Mix, mix, mix until the eggs are no longer runny. They'll turn, oh, let's say saucy. Then pour in the meat/veggies and toss. Taste, add S&P if needed. I sprinkle on the scallions after its plated up. Not only tasty, but pretty too.

Last night, when I made this, my pasta wasn't quite hot enough, or I had too many eggs to pasta ratio, not exactly sure. I didn't quite have 1 lb of pasta so I should have reduced the number of eggs, but didn't. Or, I didn't reduce the liquids enough so when I poured them into the pasta it got a bit, juicier than I wanted. Anyway... I didn't feel like (or know if) the eggs were quite done. So, I took the entire bowl and dumped it back into the skillet and warmed it all up until I felt the eggs were definitely done cooking. My point, its all good.

Mister and I usually have plenty of freshly ground pepper at the table, but, we're just like that.

Options: If I don't have brocoli around, I will throw in 2 - 3 - 4 large handfuls of fresh spinach (or chopped kale or swiss chard, any greens that you like and/or have on hand, which only makes sense, why would you have something on hand that you didn't like... I digress) at the end. Just toss until it wilts, which won't be long.

Oh, parmesan cheese, if you want. 1/2 cup, or more, mixed in with the beaten eggs before the pasta goes in. Then some for sprinkling on top.

The Classic version obviously doesn't have 'burger' in it. I've made it without and find that its just not quite.... enough. I need a little more protein than just the bacon.

There you go. Dinner.

Enlisting your help

Did your superbowl team win? Mine did. I've not followed football for years, but made a choice to be a Packers fan yesterday. I'm so glad I got lucky with that guess. Its fun when you don't know much about a team and you randomly pick the winner. Well, I think so anyway.

Next, I received a very flattering email this weekend. Its from a friend who lives in California. He is working on a publication and asked if I wanted to submit photos. Overwhelmed! Very cool. I am excited about this tiny acknowledgement. Anyway. Being very true to myself, I have no idea what photo(s) would be good enough to submit. I know what I like, most of the time. But often, its not what Mister chooses as interesting or good. In that light, I'm really asking for your help. Of the photos in my 365 project, which, if any, did you like best? In your opinion, are they 'submittal' worthy?

Now that I'm writing this. I am realizing that even though I have a store of photos that noone but me has seen, I pretty much posted the best (I thought at the time) as my 365 photos. So, I'm digressing in my own head here. If you would, pretty please, let me know which pics you liked best, I would truly be appreciative. You can easily (I hope) look through them by clicking the 'categories' tab at the top of the page then looking for the "365 project" link.

Happy Monday folks!

On being grateful

Last weekend, Mister and I spent the weekend at the beach. I love the beach. The sound. The smell. The water. The peaceful feeling I get when there. I lamented, a bit, about not being able to walk on the beach whenever I wanted, you know, due to living inland. I used to spend time at the beach every week when I lived in the coastal town where I grew up.

Then, yesterday, on my way home from work, I looked up and saw, as if for the first time, the mountain. Mt. Hood to be exact. I get to see it, albeit from a distance, each and every day. Right now, its blanketed in snow and beautiful.

Its not a bad thing, realizing that life is a series of trade-offs, one thing exchanged for another on a daily basis. Choice. Most of us have it and take it for granted, me included. I hope to be more cognizant of the daily choices I make and what I'm actually trading when making those choices.

Calendar - February

Only a day(ish) late. Click HERE for the downloadable link.

Beach Weekend

Spent the weekend at the beach with my brother, his wife, and a gaggle of friends for a surprise 40th birthday party. For one of them, not me. That was a while ago for me (ahem). It was supposed to rain most of the weekend. Imagine my surprise and joy when I woke up early (all things considered) Saturday morning and the sun was shining, there was no wind and I had a couple hours with no responsibilities. My brother's wife and I took off to the beach with the two dogs and spent a lovely, lovely morning walking around, snapping photos, chatting and just generally enjoying a beautiful day at the coast.

I truly miss living at the coast. Could I move back there? I don't know that I could or would. Mister and I have actually talked about it. Crazee huh?! I have always dreamed of living at the beach, only somewhere warm, humid and tropical (please ignore the redundancy). My skin just loves tropical humidity. My dream would be to live on an island where I can go barefoot for weeks at a time, sit with a beer in hand (and I'm not even a beer person) and soak up the equatorial sunshine. That is my goal people. That is my retirement plan. Getting Mister there is the hard part.

Wonderful days to you all.

Ciao!

Week 2 - Down

I know its only been two weeks, but just exactly how tired are you of hearing about me and my 'journey'? I'm a bit tired of thinking about it and writing about it, but, here I go again. I'll try to keep it to a once a week thing.

Last week, I was so pumped about being down (on the scale). I immediately followed that success with spaghetti and garlic bread and spent the rest of the week trying to get rid of the lbs I gained that one evening. I paid attention to just about everything I ate the rest of the week, but each day, the scale pretty much stayed the same. I was very bummed and disillusioned. We then spent the weekend out of town attending a birthday party which makes making healthy, low-calorie choices difficult. At least for me. I also didn't get the exercise I would have loved to have either. I was sad and unhappy with the way I'd spent the prior week so yesterday, I kicked my own booty into gear and got back on track doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing. Eating right, staying away from white carbs and tiny bites of sweet things and exercising. I felt great when I went to bed last night, still knowing that the morning weigh in might not show me what I wanted to see. Lo and behold, I am down from the prior week. Not a lot, but still, a lower number than before.

I don't know if its the way I was raised or just some emotional baggage I've not yet dealt with, but for me, rewards and comfort come in the form of food. Before I even got on the scale, all my mind could think of was "I'm going to be up and that will depress me.... I see a coffee cake in my near future". When the number was down, I was reinvigorated and ready to lose more weight. Why do I do that to myself? (rhetorical - btw).

So begins week three. My plan... stick to the plan, exercise, eat right, work on not being discouraged when I think I'm going to be 'up'. Make sure I'm not 'up'.

Food is not a reward nor a comfort. That will be my motto this week.