Obligatory Posting Title Goes Here

Sorry, couldn't think of a clever title. My brain is all used up! Things are super, super busy at work, which is a good thing, I guess! And I am busy in my spare time doing work for my Reserve job. It just never ends! In what few moments I do have that aren't taken up by work or children, Hubs and I are enjoying Top Chef Masters. I just absolutely love watching these famous, award winning chefs being put through the ringer, and watching some of them has made me add a few more restaurants to my must visit list! I am also enjoying the current season of So You Think You Can Dance. I so prefer this show to American Idol. It is the only show I watch where I consistently have at least one moment per episode where I am moved to either cry or laugh out loud because the art is just so beautiful.

It is looking like this week and next are going to continue to be incredibly busy at work. My parents are arriving Thursday night and staying through the weekend, then the bonus kiddos come for the summer, and next week I leave again for Colorado and Virginia. So...the radio silence may be happening a bit more often than I would wish at least for the near future. But, before I go, here's another quickie recipe that is a great fit for just about everyone (unless you ahppen to hate eggplant, that is). When my in-laws were here we purchased some gorgeous eggplants at the farmer's market because my FIL mentioned he absolutely loved eggplant. It wasn't until I got home and started preparing it that I realized he (of the Italian descent) meant he liked it fried. lol! Anyway, here's the way I like to make it:

Pu's Garlic Eggplant

2 regular or Chinese eggplants
3-4 tbsp vegetable or peanut oil
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 scallion, diced
4 Tbsp soy sauce
1 TB rice vinegar
1 TB Shaoxing wine
1/2 tsp sugar
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4lb ground pork (optional)
1/4 tsp Black pepper
1 TB chili garlic sauce
1 tsp. cornstarch mixed with 1 TB water (to thicken the sauce)

Peel & chop the eggplants into 1 inch pieces. Heat 2-3 tbsp oil in a wok or pan over medium-high heat and stir-fry the eggplant for about 5-7 minutes or until the eggplant softens and begins to carmelize. Remove the eggplant from the pan and add the last tbsp of oil to the pan. Add the garlic, ginger and scallion and cook very briefly before the adding the ground pork (if you are using meat--otherwise make sure your sauce is already made and skip to the next step right away). While the pork it cooking, make your garlic sauce by combining the soy sauce, rice vinegar, Shaoxing wine, sugar, pepper, garlic chili sauce and chicken broth. Stir-fry until the pork turns white and is nearly cooked, then return the eggplant to the pan and stir-fry for an additional minute for a minute to mix everything together. Quickly stir the garlic sauce in. Turn down the heat to low-medium cover and simmer for about 5-7 minutes, or until the eggplant is very tender. Mix the cornstarch and water together and add the mixture to the middle of the pan, stirring quickly to thicken. Serve over rice.

Still Here

Quick post to say I've been out of town on business for the last couple of weeks. I was in the Springs for 7 days then to Atlanta for 5. I got back last night a little after my in-laws arrived to spend the weekend. We went out to a great seafood dinner last night at Billy's in Tierra Verde, hit the market this morning for loads of delicious produce (speaking of which, I picked up some beautiful pink-eyed peas but I've never made them before, anyone have any suggestions?) and lots of samples!, and spent the whole afternoon in the pool with the kids. Then Grandpa J took everyone out for ice cream and pizza, and tonight we're going back out for dinner and live music at a venue in Clearwater. Tomorrow we plan to spend Father's Day grilling our asses off and eating strawberry pie, yum!

Vina and the Talosians'

"First an emotional protectiveness, now one of sympathy...excellent".

BTW- I am a dork, I enjoy rocking out to Rilo Kiley's moneymaker song while doing cardio, and the SABRES RULE!!!

I also enjoy listening to Tim's heart because it plays my favorite song...

Ha Ha Ha

Lively it up!!!

Recipe Onslaught

Posting two days in a row, what will that crazy Pu do next? She'll continue to inundate you with Asian recipes, that's what (hey, blame MR, she actually asked for them)! To start, if you really get serious about experimenting with Asian food, there are a few things you should have on hand that will help you with your recipe creations. In my pantry/fridge I almost always have:
- Soy sauce
- Lime juice
- Hot chile sauce (usually Sriracha since I eat it on just about everything)
- Thai fish sauce
- Mirin
- Chinese cooking wine (also called Shaoxing)
- Rice wine
- Rice wine vinegar
- Tonkatsu sauce
- Sesame oil
- Peanut oil
- Canned coconut milk
- Green and red curry pastes
- Sichuan spice mix
- Chinese five spice powder
- Turmeric
- Garam masala
- Sesame seeds
- Sake
- fresh ginger
- fresh garlic
- Lemongrass paste (fresh lemongrass goes bad pretty quickly, this is not quite as tastey but much more economically sound!)
- Fermented black beans (black bean paste)

I could keep going on this list of essential ingredients, but these are some of the easiest to get your hands on. If you live in a large city or in an area with a large Asian community, you can probably find a specialty market where you can get the right produce (trust me, using galangal instead of ginger - the poor American's substitute - makes all the difference!) Even if you just have a few of these items, you should be able to make lots of yummy dishes you never thought could come out of your kitchen!

Here's the ultimate what's in the fridge, super fast and easy dinner. I make this (or variations of this) all the time (As I said before, I cook a lot of Asian food, so I have all of these condiments on hand, and I always have cabbage). You may know this dish as Chow Mien, but the correct pinyin transliteration is actually Chaomian, which literally means fried noodles. Enjoy!

Pu's Chao Mian:

1lb Chinese egg noodles
1/2 cabbage, shredded
8-12 shiitake or dried ear mushrooms, soaked, softened and chopped into strips
2 Tbsp peanut oil
1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
1 Tbsp Shaoxing or rice wine
1 tsp Thai fish sauce
1 tsp sugar
about 1/2lb leftover meat sliced into strips (optional)

Cook noodles as directed on package.* Meanwhile heat oils on med-high heat, in a wok if you've got one. Add the cabbage and mushrooms and stir fry for 1-2 minutes or just until the cabbage starts to wilt a little. Remove the veggies and add a little more oil to the wok if it looks dry. Then add in the cooked noodles and the rest of your ingredients, except the meant, and cook for about 1 min. Then add in the reserved veggies and meat (if you wish) and stir fry for another min or so, and voila! The perfect 10 mintue meal.

And please remember, I cook for a family of 5, so adjust the recipe as needed! :)

*Hint - give them a cold water bath after you've taken them out of the boiling water. This will stop the cooking process and it will also prevent the noodles from sticking together and make it easier for you to stir fry them.

Long Time No Post

Sorry I've not had a chance to blog in so long. Things have been quite busy at the work place. Hubs was gone the weekend before last taking a bit of a vacation in Buffalo with his Dad before he has to start his 6(!) class odyssey next week. This last weekend we were mostly busy with family stuff. We hit the St Petersburg aquarium (which sucks, there's a reason it only costs $5 to get in!), went to a barbecue birthday bash for Hubs' cousin, and, of course, hit the beach. Hubs and I also spent a night out on the town. We had dinner at the Melting Pot and then caught a show where the bassist was one of Hubs' old friend's sister. They were actually quite good, and we enjoyed the music immensely.

Food:

I realize I haven't blogged a recipe in a while, so here's one of my absolute favorite comfort foods: Mapo Doufu. I know that sounds a little odd, but this spicy pork and tofu dish is one I crave constantly. Most of my comfort foods are Asian, and I'm not exactly sure why that is. Maybe its that I've studied Chinese for so long or the copious amounts of time I've spent in the Pacific region, but I love all types of Asian food. Since I live in an area where there aren't really any Asian markets (I've heard a rumor that there may be one in Tampa, but I've yet to venture out to find it), I've had to learn to adapt my cooking to try and mirror the flavors I remember without the actual ingredients. In some cases this can be done quite easily (fried rice, yakisoba, bulgogi) in others it is not even worth trying (Tom Ka Gai, my all time favorite soup, just does not have the right flavor no matter what I try to substitute :( In the case of Mapo Doufu, I think this recipe is pretty darn close, and it certainly satisfies my craving. Be forewarned, this is not really a kid friendly recipe. C will eat it, but remember this is a kid who counts sushi and brussel sprouts among her favorite foods, i.e. not your typical eater.

Pu's Mapo Doufu:

1lb ground or diced pork
1 block soft tofu, drained and diced
2-3 tbsp peanut oil (you can use other oil if you don't have peanut oil)
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp fermented black beans (you can usually find this with garlic in your grocer's Asian food aisle)
1-2 tbsp hot chile sauce (I use Sriracha)
1/2 tbsp soy sauce
2-3 tbsp Sichuan spice mix (McCormick's sells bottles of this)
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp sugar
1 cup chicken broth
3tbsp corn starch mixed in 6 tbsp water

Heat the oils over medium-high heat, add the onion and garlic and saute until softened. Add the pork and cook thoroughly. Add the hot chile sauce, black bean sauce, soy sauce, sichuan spice, red pepper flakes, and sugar and cook for another minute or so. Add in the chicken broth and mix well. Stir the corn starch into the water and add to the sauce to thicken it. Then add the diced tofu. Cook mixture on low to medium heat for about another 5 min so that the tofu can absorb all the flavor from the sauce. Serve over rice. And remember, you can always adjust the amounts of chili sauce and red pepper flakes to make the dish as spicy or mild as you like.

Things:

- Is there really anything more awesome than a toddler dancing? I love watching their little brows furrow in concentration as they run determinedly in a circle to the strains of the Go, Diego, Go theme song.
- Pre-schoolers are amazing creatures. J is basically teaching herself to swim. She enjoys spending time with his big sis in the pool, so we bought her a life jacket-type floaty vest and now she uses that to paddle and kick her way around the pool unassisted. She'll get actual swim lessons this summer when the step-kids are here
- Not sure if I have mentioned this before or not, but my company is paying for me to take more Chinese lessons (or at least reimbursing me for them anyway). I have a tutor who comes to my office once a week from the Longmen Chinese Center, and I can't tell you how much I have missed studying the language!

Totally Geeking Out...or My Trekkie Mother's Day

I cannot tell you about my fabulous moms day weekend without outing myself as the total nerd I am, but since I'm sure you're all aware of my nerdtastic tendancies anyway it probably won't come as much of a surprise. Considering I come from a family who has more members that have attended Star Trek conventions than not (yours truly being one of them), it will come as no surprise that I was both eagerly and warily anticipating the release of the new Star Trek movie. Just to put this in context, this is the first non-PG movie I have gone to see in a theater since Hubs and I went to see the 300 and I went to see it on the IMAX on opening day weekend. So, you can see that my Trekkie fandom knows no bounds. I won't spoil the movie for you all except to say that I truly, truly enjoyed it. I have a soft spot for JJ Abrams (hello, Lost anyone?) and I thought if anyone could handle the Trek franchise and breathe new life into it, it would be someone with his creative touch. The movie itself has just right amount of action, sci fi gobblydegook (space-time continuem, eeee!), and an extended cameo by the venerable Leonard Nimoy (double eeeee!). But the true bit of genius is in the casting, something I think Abrams is well known for. All of his work is marked by the excellent casting, and this movie is no exception. The movie mostly plays around the Kirk/Spock dynamic and both actors are really phenomenal at capturing the spirit of their characters. Of course, some purists will not be happy at how Abrams has messed with the timeline of their beloved Trek, but I think he has managed to put the Trek franchise back into orbit, so to speak. I can foresee additional movies and possibly even a new series spun off of this new equation, and I am all for anything that brings a little Trek back into our lives. Even more impressive was that Hubs, someone who knows so little about Star Trek that he actually leaned over to me at one point and whispered loudly, "who is Jim Kirk?", also enjoyed the movie greatly. Plus, he managed to enjoy it whilst dealing with my total geek out moments (me: OMG, that's how he got his nickname 'Bones' squeeee!; OMG, the captain is Christopher Pike, squeeee!; etc..)

In other Mommy news, we spent all weekend sunning at the pool (we did attempt to go to the beach, but it was record breakingly hot this weekend so we only lasted about 10 minutes in the blazing sun). I received many cards and flowers, as well as Tracy Anderson's Dance Cardio Workout, which has been on my wishlist for a long time but has been sold out, so I was very excited to get it. I also had a chance to speak/skype with most of the moms in my life, including my dear big sis MR, who is preggers with #2. Seems like pregnancies come in droves because, I swear, just about everyone I know is pregnant right now. I swore I wouldn't have any more babies, but I can't help feeling a twinge of sadness that I'll never have another newborn...maybe when Hubs graduates, tee hee. Much love to all the moms out there, I hope you all had as wonderful a weekend as I did!

This Picture Really Captions Itself

Traveler Alert - Magical Unicorn Pony God Stolen By Dutch Sister

So apparently the Pu family only gets one magical unicorn pony god of travel smile because my experience this last weekend was decidedly not magical or ponyish. It started off with my accustomed delay out of Tampa on the first leg of my trip, but nothing too out of the ordinary. It was the joy of the Dallas airport that really made this trip special. To begin, I had planned to fly out Friday night to get to the Springs so I could work Sat-Sun and fly back Monday morning. Well, I had a four, which turned into five, hour layover at the Dallas airport, so I amused myself by traveling from terminal to terminal as American arbitrarily changed my gate five or six times. At the Dallas airport, when you go from one terminal to another, you must exit the terminal and go back through security. There I discovered that my 5oz bottle of expensive conditioner was only considered secure enough to pass through Tampa screening. Apparently Dallas is worried that too many people with shiny hair might overwhelm their ability to respond to a security incident. So I was forced to pay American to take my extremely small and light baggage since the baggage fee was actually less than what the conditioner originally cost me. Then we were delayed for another hour and sent back to Terminal C to fly out (but you had to run to make it since I had only had five hours in the airport for them to make the decision to switch the gate...again). I finally made it on board the aircraft and we began to taxi...and taxi...and taxi...all the way back to our original gate...where we were informed that due to fog in the Springs our flight was officially canceled. Of course, I was seated in row 32F, which in case you're not familiar, is the very last seat on the aircraft. So you can imagine what place in line I got when I finally got off board. After much patience on my part, I finally got to speak to someone at the counter, where I was informed that since the cancellation was due to weather and thus not the airline's fault, I would have to pay for my own hotel room. They did, however, book me a room and put me on the very next flight in the morning. I could have chosen to fly into Denver that night, but then I would have had no luggage so it was a moot point. The lady at the counter then tells me that I need to go to baggage area 26 to get my luggage (which I'd just paid to have checked even though I didn't want to). I proceed to discover that the woman is an idiot because baggage area 26 does not actually exist. After much wandering aimlessly around the airport, I attach myself to another group from my original flight that is also wandering aimlessly, and we manage to bring force in numbers and, after several unsuccessful attempts, make one of the airport employees tell us where we can find our bags. Then we make our way to the unmarked pick up area (again, strength is in the numbers...I am convinced the only reason we were picked up is because we became an angry mob of people who were looking for the hotel shuttle and someone pitied us) and make it over to the hotel. Finally, a night's sleep.

I wake up at the crack of dawn the next morning because I don't know the Dallas airport well and don't want to miss my flight. Of course, I end up with two hours to spare but at least I make the flight...which is then delayed due to more fog. After about an hour the pilot comes on the loud speaker and tells us we are just going to take off anyway and hope the fog lifts like it is supposed to. We make it to the Springs and circle the airport once, twice, thrice, god knows how many times but long enough that the pilot finally comes up and tells us we will be landing at Denver because we're running out of fuel. At this point I no longer care and just want to get the fuck off the airplane, so I am not even upset. We land in Denver and begin to taxi down the runway. As we stop at the gate, the pilot comes back on the loud speaker and says we ere just cleared to land in Colorado Springs so we are going to take back off, but we still need to refuel so it is another 45min wait and then we finally get to fly back the the Springs. So after leaving Tampa at 3pm on Friday, I finally arrive in the Springs at 2pm on Saturday. Then, of course, I have to go into work, otherwise I won't get paid. So I work until about 7pm that night, all day on Sunday (0630-1700) and then fly back on Monday only to go back to work at my civilian job. Remind me again why I do this? ;)

Going All Political on Your Ass Part Deux

Hmmm, I didn't get too many responses to my last post, but I can't be sure if that's because the topic is too controversial or because no one gives a crap! Either way, here's your...

Next topic for discussion: Socialized Healthcare

I am not a fan of the idea of socialized healthcare. What I do support is universal healthcare (and there is a difference!). Single payer universal health care is a health care payment system, not a health care delivery system. Health care providers would be in fee for service practice and are not government employees, which would be socialized medicine. This is more a revision of the insurance system than it is the health care system as a whole. I feel this is the best compromise to make sure all of our citizens have access to health care, but we can maintain our competitive system which encourages innovation and research and development. I find it ridiculous that we live in the richest nation in the world but somehow cannot afford to protect our most vulnerable citizens.

Personally, I like the system Massachusetts has. There citizens are required to have health insurance, but the state government covers part of or all of the premium cost for low income families (under $32,000/year). This system might be a good compromise for the time being since it is unlikely Congress will ever be able to overcome its inertia/ineptitude and fight back against the insurance company lobbyists (and money) to push true health care reform.

Fluff:
- Truly encapsulating the American entrepreneurial spirit
- I love this site. Thanks to BIL John the Armenian Deal Hound for turning me on to it. It's also where I found Bacon Salt.
- The World Digital Library is just starting out, but I think once it becomes a little more populated it will be an invaluable resource for both researchers and lay history nerds alike ;)

Going All Political on Your Ass

So you may have guessed that the last two posts were actually written by my ghost blogger ;) I have been so busy with work (yay!) and going here that I haven't had much of a chance to write lately. So today I'm going to open up the floor for discussion. Topic: higher tax rates for the "rich." It is currently under debate in Washington as to whether or not families with combined incomes of over 250K per year should receive a tax hike of, I believe, about another 5%. I ask because #1 I hope to be one of those families some day and #2 because I currently make a pretty decent living (nowhere near $250K a year but a lot more than the median income in the US) and I already pay over 30% of my paycheck in various taxes. The tax hike is intended to affect those families who are considered to be in the top 5% of earners in the US, but, personally, I feel that $250K a year (of a combined family income) doesn't really make you rich. When I think of rich, I think of people making more like $25 million a year. I might make what seems to be a good deal of money, but I only take home 70% of what I make. I have five children to support with daycare, health insurance and college to save for. I also have ageing in-laws with health problems and no savings to speak of. I will likely have to begin supporting them some time in the near future. I've not fully formed an opinion on this matter myself yet because I am of two minds, and I am really curious to hear what the people I care for most have to say on the subject. Okay, I'm getting verklempt, discuss amongst yourselves...

Family Time

Unfortunately, we won't be going to this :(

However, everyone already knows that someone in our family and has seen Damian, Ziggy, and Stephen Marley seperately in concert at least 20 times, none of which, I would ever bring my children too ;) but their music is amazing!! At any rate, if your looking for great music that the family can enjoy (which is hard to find these days)..check this cd out. This is Ziggy Marley's third release and it was especially released for families with children. He has done a lot of work in the past and recently with the likes of Stevie Wonder, Common, Jack Johnson, Willie Nelson, Ben Harper and many others...it is produced by Tuff Gong and his brother, Stephen Marley.

http://www.ziggymarley.com/music-discography-familytime.php

I love football and popcorn.

Schedule Release...here are the predictions

1 Mon, Sept. 14 at New England Patriots ESPN 7 p.m. WIN
2 Sun, Sept. 20 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers FOX 4:05 p.m. WIN
3 Sun, Sept. 27 vs. New Orleans Saints FOX 4:05 p.m. WIN
4 Sun, Oct. 4 at Miami Dolphins CBS 4:05 p.m. WIN
5 Sun, Oct. 11 vs. Cleveland Browns CBS 1 p.m. WIN
6 Sun, Oct. 18 at New York Jets CBS 4:15 p.m. WIN
7 Sun, Oct. 25 at Carolina Panthers CBS 4:05 p.m. WIN
8 Sun, Nov. 1 vs. Houston Texans CBS 1 p.m. WIN
9 Bye
10 Sun, Nov. 15 at Tennessee Titans CBS 1 p.m. WIN
11 Sun, Nov. 22 at Jacksonville Jaguars CBS 1 p.m. WIN
12 Sun, Nov. 29 vs. Miami Dolphins CBS 1 p.m. WIN
13 Thu, Dec. 3 vs. New York Jets NFLN 8:20 p.m. (In Toronto): WIN
14 Sun, Dec. 13 at Kansas City Chiefs CBS 1 p.m. WIN
15 Sun, Dec. 20 vs. New England Patriots CBS 1 p.m. WIN
16 Sun, Dec. 27 at Atlanta Falcons CBS 1 p.m. WIN
17 Sun, Jan. 3 vs. Indianapolis Colts WIN

16-0...there you have it!!! GO BILLS!!!

BTW, October 4th in Miami looks like the game were locking in to attend this year.

Eggcellent*

*I cannot say that word (or its less eggy counterpart) without picturing Mr. Burns from the Simpsons.

Pardon Mii

Okay, okay, no more job bitching..I mean talk ;) Things are already starting to pick up, and I'm excited about the future. I think they are going to keep me very busy once the kinks get worked out! Anyway, life goes on as usual. Today we went here. It was much, much bigger than our little local market, and there were lots of other foodstuffs that I wish I had brought enough cash to sample! Lots of spices, homemade spreads like hummus, and lots of artisanal breads and cheeses. Too bad I only brought like $15 in cash :( Well, we did come away with some gorgeous zucchini, cantelope,blueberries, mini portabellas (that J picked out over the really delicious looking brussel sprouts...she definately takes after her mama, we loooove our mushrooms!), and some other fruits. We also got a small tub of baba ganoush (a middle eastern eggplant spread), which is fantastic!

In other news, we got a Wii! Yay for Craigslist (I so love that site). Hubs managed to trade some PS3 games + $60 to someone in return for a Wii with two controllers and a bunch of games. The kids had a blast with Wii Ski last night. J&C played for almost 2 straight hours! I like the table tennis and running from the Olympics game. I look forward to spending a shit ton more money on this thing, as I am already coveting Wii Fit, Wii Gold's Gym, Wii Cheer, and Wii Disney DDR (none of which I will be buying for some time, mind you. I do have to try and maintain some kind of sanity in the face of Wi imadness!)

Kid Stuff:

Had to share some cute tidmits from the mind of J. Her vocabulary improves immensely day after day, but her grammatical errors are cause for much amusment on my part. Example:

J: Stop doing that, Mama! Stop doing that or I am annoying you!

What she meant to say was that my humming was annoying her, but I thought he comment was probably accurate even if it wasn't what she intended to say!

Things:

- Etsy - a dear friend clued me into this website. It's Ebay as it was truly meant to be!
- Joy of Baking - For some unknown reason I have had the baking itch since we arrived in St Pete. Not sure what is causing it since I am so not a baker, but I have been making cookies left and right for the last few weeks. Today we are making magic bars, yum!
- Memphis-style ribs - I don't have a link for this one, since I memorized the recipe out of my dad's copy of the Barbecue Bible, but I will post my version after Easter (since we are making it for our Easter dinner!)

Brief Update

Okay, so work...is going okay. My office recently was assigned a new mission; something that is pretty new to the DoD in general, so there's no book/checklist on how to do things. This is both good and bad. I'm really excited to get in at the ground floor and help build up capabilities that have never existed before. On the other hand, this is not an area I have any experience with and I am kind of being tossed into the ring with virtually no marching orders (not sure who the real end customers are, what their needs would be, what tools we have available, etc.) and asked to lead (although they haven't decided how they want to break up the office into teams yet). Oh yeah, and they haven't hired anyone else at my level yet either (there are supposed to be two others in the middle management chain), so even if they did decide how they want to organize everyone, there wouldn't be anyone else there to lead them! I know things will eventually fall into place, but I am feeling very antsy. I feel like the gov't is paying me a lot of $$ to basically sit on my ass and entertain myself all day (still no system access), and no one seems at all concerned. I also miss my coworkers a lot (don't tell them, though, as they are already a bunch of egomaniacs ;) One of the best things about my last job was the comraderie we had in the office. I get the feeling that no one in my new office quite knows what to do with me. All of the analysts seem rather wary of being too casual with me (probably because they're concerned that I might end up being their boss - depending on what team they're placed on), and I only rarely see my own boss (he's usually in the secure facility, but I don't have access to that yet since it's taking forever for my clearances to get passed on, grrr!). So I mostly just sit in my office (I have my own office!) and look at stuff on the shared drive to try and get an idea of what it is I might be doing in the near future. Kind of lonely right now :( But, at least they're paying me well! ;)

Things:
- Super Cook is an awesome resource for the frugal cook (especially when you are determined to use everything in your pantry before you go food shopping again!) Recently I have made the fried cabbage with bacon (just as yummy and un-clean as it sounds!) and Kathleen's Potatoes Pascal, which were also delicious and just as bad for you as the cabbage!

- Fried oysters! One of the best things about living near the beach is the abundance of fresh seafood, which is probably why I have developed an overwhelming craving for fried oysters! Hubs is not a seafood person in general (he doesn't even really like shrimp!), but he has taken comfort in the fact that Florida is mainly populated by people who have fled the cold of New York, so there is also an abundance of great Wing places. We have a small bar/restaurant just around the corner from our house which has excellent fried oysters and pretty darn good wings (the best he's had since he left NY, says Hubs, but they could use a bit more heat to be perfect!). Hopefully this new penchant I have for using Super Cook (it's like a new challange every day!) will keep me from trying to order oysters every night or I may not be seeing much of the beach (I refuse to buy a bigger bathing suit!)

- Hautelook.com - check it out, stylistas!

What We're Doing Right Now*

*Okay, maybe right not this second, but this sight can be seen in my backyard almost every day :)

In other news, I was trying to find a way to use up my cherry tomatoes and came across this recipe (and with a whole new foodie blog to enjoy!). I changed it up a bit since I didn't have kalamata olives by omitting those & adding in about 10-15 cloves of garlic. It was absolutely delish!

I promise a big, long post with news about the new job sometime this weekend, but until then, console yourself with the fact that you didn't have to get 5 shots today, as poor C did when Hubs took her to the doctor for her school enrollment physical (required by FL law). She was very brave, though, not even one tear (a sharp contrast to the flu shot debacle a few months ago!).

Ode to a Sweet Potato

Oh, sweet potato, how I love thee*
You are so bright, so delicious, so yummy

I can make you in so many ways,
Baked, mashed, fried or stewed
I can't believe there once were days
I thought you only holiday food

I bought you at the farmers market
(hooray for fresh and local!)
I wish your skin wasn't like carpet
'Cause through my skin I pokeled(?)

Okay, so I'm not much for rhyming, but I do enjoy mah sweet potatoes! Seriously, these are one of the best superfoods out there, rich in fiber and vitamins C & A, among others (wiki it, haters). Plus, they're really not all that sweet (especially if you don't make them with marshmallows and brown sugar!). Here's a recipe I made for dinner tonight (along with some delicious NY Strip Steaks*** and fresh asparagus over the fire, also from our local farmers market****):


Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into pieces of relatively the same thickness**
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic power
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
salt & pepper to taste


Whisk oil & spices in a large bowl until well mixed. Add potato pieces and mix with your hands until each piece is coasted equally. Spread potatoes on a baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for about 20 minutes (turning them after ten minutes). You can also stick them under the broiler for a minute or two if you want them extra crispy.


In other news, here's some pics of the new house with our own personal touches:

*thou, thouest, thine...whatever

**I totally suck at this, but it actually doesn't turn out too bad b/c some fries are crispier than others, so there is a nice variety
***Which we got from the butcher, who is literally down the street from our house & teeming with resh, local seafood, too!

****I got a hankerin' for these after reading my dear cuzins blog post. Thanks, RM!

Finally Here!

Well, as you may have guessed, we are finally here in Florida and getting settled in. We arrived at the house on Saturday, and our household goods arrived on Tuesday..not too shabby! We've already put most everything away. The only things left are our bedroom and the garage, which promises to be a nightmare. We downsized quite a bit in square footage, so many things will have to be stored in the garage and we have yet to figure out where everything is going to go. The kids are already loving the pool, and C will have her first day of school tomorrow. I elected to put her into a small Montessori private school since the elementary school we are currently zoned for (considered one of the best in Florida) is due to be closed down this summer thanks to budget cuts. I didn't want to put her into yet another school only to have her switch again next year and be bussed into the city to what promises to be a school of much lesser quality. At her new school, C will only have six students in her entire class! Plus, this school goes from toddler to middle, so both A and J will attend with her next year. Nice to be able to keep them all in the same place! We've also visited our community center and gotten our rec center id cards so the kids can start using those resources. There is a year-round competetive swim team that meets at our local pool, so I've contacted the coach to see if we can get C signed up. The community center also offers a gym that Hubs can use and many childrens classes for a low fee. I'll probably hold off on those until I know what my new work schedule is going to look like. Speaking of which, I still have another 6 days before I start work. I don't think I've ever gone without working for so long, and I still feel like it's going to be a squeeze to get everything done that needs to get done! Sorry so short for now, I promise to write lots of updates as soon as I get more time!

Mexico II

First of Many Mexico Picture Posts

Okay, so you may have guessed by now that all the Bills postings are by a mysterious guest blogger ;0) But, I'm back now...back from Mexico! It was absolutely fabulous; we had an amazing time and it was very hard to come back to reality. Of course, now we're in the midst of packing everything up and getting ready to hit the road. My last day of work is tomorrow and then it's off to sunny Florida. We may be out of contact for a few days while we're in transit, so I'll leave you with some pictures of our long overdue vacation to tide you over:

Hotel Pics

El Cedral Mayan Ruins

Beach Pictures