• I've been wanting to make a proper English Trifle for quite some time, but two days ago I finally decided to give it a try. But me being me, I thought it would be even better if I challenge myself by using this as an opportunity to photo-document the recpie just like in  a cookbook.

(Actually, when I was a kid I liked to play "cooking-show")

So I'll quit yapping and just show it to ya.

Pudding1

Part 1 - The Puddin'

• 2 T cornstarch
• 1/2 C sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 C milk
• 2 T butter
• 1 t vanilla

In a 2-quart saucepan, stir together the cornstarch and sugar completely.

Next, stir in the egg and butter and blend until the mixture is smooth and creamy. If you do this right, your pudding ought not be lumpy.

Pudding2

Next, begin adding the milk and continue stirring.

Once you have added all the mlik, begin cooking over low heat and cook, stirring almost constantly. This is important, because you do not want your milk to scauld or worse yet, stick to your pan. On my gas range it only took about 10 minutes.

(For those who are wondering, the variant for chocolate pudding is simple. Just put in 2 or 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder when you are mixing your sugar and cornstarch)

Pudding3

Bring the pudding to a very slow boil. It will thicken in an instant if you are not watching and then scauld and stick if it thinks it can get away with it behind your back, so be ready.

Add the vanilla last. I prefer the clear artificial stuff, but any ol' 'nilla will do.

Remove from heat and quickly turn the pudding out into a mixing bowl. I recommend using a large rubber spatula because those are the most fun to lick.

(Maybe that is why I don't really have my own cooking show and have to pretend, ya think?)

Lastly, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, making sure the wrap actually touches the surface of the pudding. This keeps it from growing "skin" 

Part 2 - The Razz

After your pudding has had time to chill (about 2 hours), it is ready to join the other ingredients and be part of a trifle.

Trifle1

You will need..

• Angel food cake (or any light cake will do)
• raspberries (though I used raspberry preserves)
• 2 -3 cups whipped creme (nondairy works fine too)
• finely chopped nuts (optional--I recommend walnuts or almonds)

Break up the angel food cake into fingertip-sized bites.

Next, take the juice of your berries (or water down a few spoonfuls of the preserves) and add to your cake bites.

Then, mix together the pudding and about 2 cups of the whipped creme. This will make your pudding light and fluffy and somewhat mousse-esque.

Trifle2

Now comes the fun part.

Start by putting a layer of cake into the bottom of whatever you plan to serve the trifle in. My recipe yields 3 12 oz. drinking glasses because I am still too uncouth to own any parfait glasses.

Next, layer in a spoonful of pure raspberries or preserves. Ice cream scoop is excellent for that job.  Try not to overdo it with the preserves, becaue they are very sweet.

Then, scoop in about 3 good spoonfuls of the pudding, being careful always not to smear up the inside of the glass. You want the layers to be distinct and as even as possible.

(If you opt for nuts, put them on top of the berries before the pudding.

Keep layering as necessary right up to the rim.

FINALLY comes the whipped creme. You can just spoon it on, but if you want to be fancy-schmancy, you

can use a forcing bag and a star-tip. (If you don't have a fancy bag and tip, use a sandwich baggie with a tiny hole cut in one corner to swirl the creme onto your trifle.

Well..below is the finished product...and would you believe it matches my wallpaper perfectly? Yes, it tastes pretty good too, though a bit sweet. Next time I will pick up berries and nuts and do it up all the way.

Trifle

One last thing, adding up the cost of the preserves ($1) and the whipped topping ($1) and the cake ($.60 because the bakery overbaked), the sugar, butter, vanilla eggs and cornstarch ($.50) and milk ($.90), the total cost per dessert is somewhere around  $1.35 apiece...which isn't bad at all by dessert-cafe standards.

Now that I've done trifle, I feel confident I can make a reasonably decent tiramisu for around the same price.

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If I was one to title my blog entries this post might would be called-

'A Sister, a Man in Make-up and a Recipe'

or

'My Stand Against Rock-n-Roll, Tam and a Refreshing Summer Treat'

or

'Tam-a-lam-a-ding-dong, 80's Music, and a Bonus Recipe'

(anyone want to guess why I don't title my blog entries?)

I recently read someone's blog and she talked about getting a box from her parents home and dreading going through it.

That's so not me.

I love a visit to Memory Lane.

I mean, I love now more, but then was great.

So I cleaned out my closet recently and came across the only two albums I chose to save.

These two-

No joke.

I loved me some Boy George back in the day... if he had ever met me in person, I'm sure he would have asked me out, totally. 

And I loved (and love) 80's music. I had a 'boom box' and I spent my fair share on new albums as they came out.

But when I was 18, I suddenly had nothing to do with the music playing at the time. I had had it with what was on the radio and I was taking a stand.

So instead I listened to my Mary Poppins. Over and over. 

My sister, with whom I shared a room, would crank her Duran Duran up and I would counteract it with some Spoonful of Sugar.

I had this boyfriend that would call the popular radio station at night to dedicate a song to me and I wondered WHY?? I'll never hear it! And he knew that. I was not impressed.

Do any of my kin folk who visit my blog remember this?

Anyways, a year or so after I was married I had a visit with Tamara and she was pleased to find out that I was back to normal and turned the radio on in the car.

~~~ 

Around the same time that I was un-hooking from the radio I was hooked on my Mother's Orange Julius.

The youth group in my church had a fund raiser and sold cook books and so here I bring to you, the recipe, from one of the cook books from back in the day-

Arecipe

I made this today but used pineapple juice. Both are great.

A-pj

Look at the frothy goodness.

A-pineapplejulius

A cool refreshing drink for a hot day.

Julius, Boy George and Tamara.... oh, and Naomi. 

What a combo.

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Deconstructed Fruit Pie A la Mode

You know... I am a foodie. I think I've made that clear. I'm very serious about food and creativity in the kitchen.

So I had this extra cookie dough and some fruit in my fridge and a Family Home Evening dessert to make.

That may sound like a daunting task to some but for me, well, psht.... I had this one at "extra cookie dough".

So it's as simple as this. With my creativity I cut my dough into strips and baked them.

(And because I am so stinkin' creative, when I didn't have the right tools, I looked in the kids play dough bucket. Scoured a tool clean and made it work. Genius, I know.)  

With my food expertise I decided to cook in a pan about 6 nectarines in 1/3 cup of butter.

Then I plated the fruit.

(fyi- plating is a food expert term for putting the food creative-ly on the plate) 

Then I took about 1/2 cup of berry nectar and 1/4 cup brown sugar and cooked that in the same pan until the sugar dissolved.

I scooped some madagascar vanilla ice cream and slapped it on the nectarines (like it was nuthin'), poured some sauce over that, added some fresh raspberries and topped with some of the cookie strips.

The presentation was fabulous if I say so myself. It tasted like a delicious fruit pie that was al a mode (Gary's fave).

I served, I accepted all the expected praise.....

It was beautiful.

And that's what I do.

 Beautiful food.

Bhg2

I create beautiful food.

Bhg3

It's just what I do.

Bhg

I understand that we can't all have this talent of creating dishes.

I'm sure you are good at something....

Bhg1

I rock.

.

.

.

Beg your pardon?

What?!

You've seen this dish before?

You just saw it on Better Homes and Garden's August's edition cover page?

6872_2

Oh.... ha..... haha..... I uh.... I was about to say that......seriously.

Some people say that they "adapted" a recipe from another recipe..... if I used my left over Sugar Cookie dough instead of pie crust.... does that count as me 'adapting' this new recipe from someone elses?

No?

And you think my 'crust' looks like french fries?

Yeah... that's what my kids said too.

And BH&G called this dish Skillet Peaches a la Mode, I changed the name, isn't it way more cool??

Oh.

But it tastes good.

Just sayin'.

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It's that time of year again! Well, actually, it's been "that time" for over a month now, but I was late in finding organic lemons.

For pure summertime alcoholic enjoyment, you'll need:

6-7 lemons, preferably organic, as it's only the peels you'll be using

1 liter of good vodka

4 cups of water (about 1 liter)

4 cups of sugar

Limoncello soaking

Peel the lemons, but only get the yellow part. Put the peels into a glass jar, and add the vodka. Let it stand for 3 weeks. Yes, that's right - patience, grasshopper!

On the Day, strain the lovely lemony yellow vodka into a large bowl. Make a simple syrup by heating together the water and sugar till they're clear. Allow it to cool to the touch. Mix the syrup with the vodka. Put into wide-mouth containers of some type, and freeze.

You end up with sweet, slushy, refreshing, knock-you-off-your-feet goodness!

Frosty limoncello

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Mediterranean Muffin

This recipe is from Michelle Trute's recipe book Cooking with Conscience.

Mediterranean Muffins (great hot or cold)

1 cup self raising flour

1 cup of rolled oats

1 tbsp baking powder

50g sundried tomato

! cup of Tomato juice

1/2 cup of medium capsicum

6 blck olives

2/3 cup skim milk

60g simple salsa

2 egg whites

2 tbs parmesan cheese, grated

1 tbs basil leaves

Soak tomatoes in 1/2cup tomato juice for 30 minutes

Chop tomatoes in a bowl with capsicum, cheese, basil, sliced olives, flour and oats

Mix remaining ingredients well, then add to dry mix

Spray muffin tin with oil, pour in batter and bake at 180C for 20 minutes

Nice with soup, or more salsa and sour cream!

This is a very flexible recipe I often don't use the tomato juice and sun dried tomatoes but just add a 425 g tin of tomato, onion and capsicum mix. I also add the whole eggs not just the whites.

Nutrition Profile per serve

GI   Moderate

Energy 435 kj

Total fat 1.4g

Sat fat   0.4g

Carbs 17g

Fibre 1.9g

Sodium 243mg.

Great for office lunches!

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White Bean Salad

Fabulous! A perfect balance of Mediterranean flavors. The beans are lemony without being tart and the garlic and herbs add subtle but unmistakable undertones. Excellent with any kind of grilled or broiled red meat, poultry or shrimp. I'm afraid it's one of those dishes that won't last very long, especially once my husband gets to the leftovers tomorrow!

Dinner!

• 3 cups cooked and drained white beans (canned okay). If made from dried beans, save about 1/3 cup of cooking liquid.


• 2 tbs fruity extra-virgin olive oil.


• 2 garlic cloves, minced


• 1/2 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary


• 1/2 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme


• Scant 1/3 cup bean cooking liquid, water or chicken broth


• 1/2 cup black olives, pitted and chopped (can also use whole)


• 3 tbs chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley


• 4 large fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces or chopped


• 2 - 3 tbs fresh lemon juice


• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste


• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Place the beans in a medium non-stick skillet and set aside.


2. Prepare herb mixture. Combine olive oil and garlic in a small skillet and cook on low heat until garlic is soft, about 3 minutes.


3. Increase heat slightly and add rosemary and thyme. Cook until the herbs begin to sizzle and little bubbles dance around them - do not let garlic burn.


4. Add the bean cooking liquid (or other stock) and olives, increase heat and boil for two minutes. Remove from heat.


5. Scatter the parsley and basil over the beans in the other skillet. Pour the dressing over them and cook over medium-high heat until the liquid is almost all absorbed by the beans.


6. Remove from heat and add the lemon juice, salt and pepper.


7. Serve warm or at room temperature.


8. Recipe from "A New Way To Cook," by Sally Schneider

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peppers

I'm swimming in peppers, and have to do something with them!

This evening I made some hot sauce, an inspiration from www.PepperFool.com.

• 1 pound jalapeno or other hot pepper (i used serrano, plus two sweet peppers)
• 5 2" sprigs oregano -- remove stems
• 1 cup cilantro
• 1 large onion -- quartered
• 6 large garlic clove
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 lemon -- juiced (add lemon zest if desired)
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups white wine vinegar

Puree peppers, oregano, cilantro, onion and garlic in a food processor. Pour puree into pot, add remaining ingredients and bring to boil. Simmer for 15 minutes*. Strain solids, cool liquid, and place in a sterilized jar.

*The hot sauce will be more of a liquid at this point. For a slightly thicker sauce, place strained liquid back into a pot and simmer for another 15 minutes to reduce the water. Cool and place in a sterilized jar.

-Save the solids in a food storage container and use for cooking. It will make a great addition to taco meat, chili, etc. 

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Here is my homemade awesome salsa recipe, over the last few months the ingredients have changed a bit, but perfection is the goal and I think this is pretty close.

Ingredients:

My Salsa

What to do with all this stuff:
Tomatoes:
I chop the tomatoes up by hand; it seems the only way to get them just right.
Black Beans:
I wash the black beans until the water runs clear.
Bell pepper, yellow onion, cilantro, scallions and jalapenos:
I take all of these ingredients and throw them in to the food processor to be chopped up.
Lemon & lime:
I squeeze the lemon and lime, making sure the seeds don’t go in to the salsa.
Hot sauce and vinegar:
Add to the mix.
Seasoning salt and cumin:
I add both to my taste, no real measurement.

I hope you enjoy my salsa recipe; it is a really big hit around my house and circle of friends.

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I always ask Aram if he likes my cooking. He'd always say, "It's okay.", but I do look forward for the day that without a blink of an eye - he'd say that he liked what I cooked. It has always been a challenge for me, because I honestly, honestly love to cook. And having your boyfriend say "It's okay." every damn time - is not a good sign. =(

I can actually relate to what Phoebe of Friends commented about Monica's cooking that her cooking always tasted garlic. Aram said nothing tastes bad about my cooking but the use of the same spices over and over again is what he hates. Ouch. I love garlic, oregano and most of all basil (fresh or dry - I love basil!).

Even though I love these spices, I guess I need to stay away from them for a while. So I've been slowly adding more spices in my spice rack. I bought ginger, sage, cumin and I tried using those I seldom use like the rosemary and thyme.

And for the first time yesterday, he liked what I cooked! I got so excited that I had to blog about it. =)

We had Thai Chicken and Basil for lunch - yes, I know I said I had to stay away from basil, but it was my last stash of fresh basil and I hate throwing away food. I went looking for a recipe, aside from pesto and bruschetta (like he will kill me if he sees those on the table), which I can make use of what I have in the ref, and I remember that Thai in a Box Chicken and Basil rice topping. I went looking online for the recipe and there goes our lunch!

Then it's good that I have checked one of my Rachel Ray "Everyday" magazines before I went out for grocery. I found a beef kebab recipe. Aram loves kebab, maybe him being half-Iranian is the reason why. So for dinner I have prepared the beef kebab (with a pinch of cumin) and a salad (with balsamic vinegar, olive oil and fresh grapes). I have asked him to prepare the garlic-yogurt dressing earlier (whatever they call that... He said they don't serve that in Iran.)

After dinner I asked him if he liked dinner. He said "Yes... and also the chicken and basil lunch earlier." Yay! Finally the day I've been waiting for. =) The kebab isn't far from the King's Kebab taste, a Persian Grill we frequent for dinner in Shaw Boulevard for kebab cravings. Now, I can save us couple hundred bucks and gas, too.

Aside from these, I was able to cook bread pudding too and shared it with our pad mates. Our ref is full of old breads, our bread + their bread + eggs + milk + raisins + apples (that I've been wanting to get rid of) + crushed pineapple = home made bread pudding.

I realized I spent my whole day yesterday in the kitchen and grocery. Oh well. At least finally Aram loved my cooking. =)

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Nigella Lawson's Instant Chocolate Mousse

The Recipe:
150g mini marshmallows
50g soft butter
250g good dark chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa), chopped
60ml hot water from a recently boiled kettle
284ml double cream/heavy cream (48%)
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Put the marshmallows, butter, chocolate and water in a saucepan.
2. Put the saucepan on very low heat to melt the contents, stirring occasionally. When melted, remove from the heat.
3. Whip the cream with the vanilla extract until thick, and then fold into the cooling chocolate mixture until you have a smooth mixture. Be sure the chocolate is approaching room temperature, or your whipped cream will collapse.
4. Pour into your containers and chill until you're ready to eat.  Makes 4 175ml servings.

Results: I made this a little differently though.  I didn't have any butter on hand, and I wasn't sure what the point of it was so I left it out. It worked anyway, but it's clearly not exactly the way it ought to have been.  I also made a half-batch, because I only had 200ml of double cream. Additionally, my chocolate cooled less quickly than it did in whatever test kitchen the recipe was perfected in (probably because said kitchen wasn't 38C), and I didn't think to test the temp of my chocolate -- so my whipped cream collapsed. Luckily, I'd only put in about half of it. I tossed the chocolate in the freezer, and the remaining still-firm whipped cream into the fridge and waited 5 minutes. Brought it out, tried it again, and it all worked out. It clearly isn't as fluffy as it ought to have been, what with half the whipped cream dewhipping, but it was delicious either way.

レシピ：
マシュマロ    　　　　　　　150グラム
柔らかいバター 　　　　　　　　50グラム
チョコレート(70%のココア) 250グラム
温水　　　　　　　　　　　　　　60mL
生クリーム 　　　　　　　　　　284mL
バニラ・エッセンス 　　　　　　1 ティースプーン

１．　マシュマロ、バター、チョコレート、および水をソースパンに置いてください。
２．　弱火の上では、成分を溶かしてください。その後、バーナーから取り外してください、そして、それを冷やさせてください。
３．　生クリームにバニラ・エッセンスを注いでください。　それが厚くなるまで、生クリームをホイップしてください。次に、そっとチョコレートの混合物の中にホイップされた生クリームを作ってください。
４．　カップにムースを注ぎ込んでください。 食べる準備ができるまで冷蔵します。

Nigella Lawson's Instant Chocolate Mousse

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This is NOT an original recipe but one I stumbled on on the internet. I have made them twice. Once to test and see if they were truly the ultimate brownie and a second time for company to see if they thought that they were the ultimate brownie. The verdict? They truly are the Ultimate Brownie! So I thought I would post the recipe here for you all try.

The Ultimate Brownie is my absolute favorite brownie. It is tall like a cakey-brownie, but is dense like a fudgy-brownie. I'm sure it will be one of your favorite brownie recipes too.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• 8- 1 ounce squares of unsweetened chocolate
• 1 cup butter
• 5 eggs
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1-1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2-1/2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts, toasted

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13 pan.

Melt chocolate and butter in a saucepan over low heat; set aside. In a mixer, beat eggs, sugar and vanilla at high speed for 10 minutes**. Blend in chocolate mixture, flour and salt until just mixed. Stir in the nuts. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake for 35-40 minutes. (Don't overbake.) Cool and frost if desired, but that is not necessary.

** It's not required, but this is when it's very nice to own a stand mixer.

Recipe found here

*********

My notes: You truely need to beat the eggs 10 mins! I baked mine at 35 min. I didn't want to risk overbaking. I didn't frost them. Also, I don't like nuts soooooo I used a cup of semi sweet chocolate chips. These brownies are really really good. So good that I've had dreams about them :) Really :) 

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peppers

Yesterday I picked my first batch of peppers from our garden. The small green ones are serrano chiles, the large ones are gypsy peppers.

Since none of our 'maters are ready to make salsa, I had to come up with another use for these peppers. I did a quick scan of what we had in the pantry and garden, and came up with all the fixings for stuffed peppers.

10-14 sweet peppers (i used gypsy)
1 lb ground beef, browned & drained
1 cup corn
seasonings (as desired) garlic, oregano, cumin, cilantro
2-3 cups shredded cheese, half for stuffing
1 can enchilada sauce (homemade is better)
3 serrano chiles, if desired

Cut a slit down each pepper lengthwise, remove seeds and stem. Mix ground beef, corn, and seasonings. Add 1-2 chopped serrano chile to beef mixture to increase heat (remove seeds to lower heat).
Begin stuffing each pepper with a pinch of cheese, ground beef mix, and a spooful of enchilada sauce. Place in a glass baking dish that has a few spoonfuls of enchilada sauce in the bottom. Once all peppers are stuffed, top the peppers with a few sprinkles of cheese. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the peppers and top liberally with cheese.
Bake in a 300 degree oven for 30 minutes.
Serve with rice as a side dish.

Stuffed peppers

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Directly lifted from Alton Brown, published on Foodtv.com.

Cocoa Syrup Recipe courtesy Alton Brown Show:  Good Eats Episode:  Art of Darkness II: Cocoa

1 1/2 cups water 3 cups sugar 1 1/2 cups Dutch-processed cocoa 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 2 tablespoons light corn syrupIn a small pot, bring water and sugar to a boil and whisk in cocoa, vanilla, salt, and corn syrup. Whisk until all of the solids have dissolved. Reduce sauce until slightly thickened. Strain and cool to room temperature. Pour into squeeze bottles. Squeeze into cold milk and stir for delicious chocolate milk or serve on your favorite ice cream. And, hey, it's fat free! I made some yesterday and it's a hit. It thickens quite a bit upon standing and even a little more upon cooling so it's thicker than the stuff in the brown bottle. We've had it on ice cream (yum) and yogurt (not so yum) and later I'll make chocoberry shakes with lots of strawberries. You need to make sure you really like the cocoa you're using because its taste will become more pronounced in the syrup.

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So, tonight was one of my first times using a gas stove top, and the pan caught on fire! Seriously! The flame was so high, it was scary! Luckily I was totally okay, except sort of scared and embarrassed.

But then once the fire alarm shut off and I was feeling less shaky about the whole thing, I went at it again and here's what I made:

Stir fry Tofu and Veggies with Avocado

Ingredients:
Favorite teriyaki or other stir fry sauce (I use Seven Paths Sesame Ginger Sir Fry Sauce, which I add ginger, cumin, and black pepper to)
Tofu (I used 1/3 of a firm tofu block)
Carrots thinly sliced
Green peppers chopped into pieces (I chopped them about an 1- 1 1/2 in wide)
1 avocado scooped out and sliced into bite-sized pieces

Drain the tofu for a half hour or more, while the tofu is draining chop the veggies and the avocado (is avocado a veggie or a fruit?). Put a pot with some water on the stove top and wait for it to start boiling, then put the veggies in the water till they soften. When the tofu is drained to satisfaction, chop it into semi-thin (just thick enough not to fall apart) rectangles, more like thin, small  slaps than cubes. Put the tofu in a bowl with the sauce, making sure that each block is coated, and let it sit and marinate for a half hour to an hour.

When the tofu is ready (the veggies should definitely be softened enough by now, by the way), heat oil in a pan on the stovetop (now if you're me and working with a gas oven, you should be extra-careful to not burn your face off at this juncture) and put the tofu in the pan, and cook till lightly browned. Then put the veggies (with either more marinade, or other spices) in with the tofu. Cook till tofu is as brown as you want it to be. Drain the oily-ness on paper towels, and add the avocado slices!

Delicious!

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This will make one sixteen-ounce travel mug of deliciousness.

You'll need:

14 oz water

4 heaping TB of ground coffee (I make VERY strong coffee; use less if you prefer)

1 oz milk (anything from skim to whole)

1/4-1/2 ts cinnamon

Two spoons of sugar or honey

Place the coffee in the basket of the coffee maker, and add the cinnamon on top.  Brew as usual.  While brewing, put the milk in the bottom of the cup, and add the sugar.  Pour the coffee into the milk/sugar mix, stir, and enjoy!

Oh, and I do realize that 14+1= 15, and not 16.  Even my math isn't that bad.  However, if you fill the cup to the brim you will not be able to put the lid on most travel mugs without splashing coffee about, as most travel mugs have lids that fit on the inside of the mug.

I am told that this also works well with soy milk and Splenda.  I don't mind soy milk in anything except coffee; in coffee, the flavor strikes me as grotesque.  Splenda I detest as well, but, of course, your mileage may vary.

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Time: 10 minutes, plus chilling

1. Put chopped avocado in a blender. Add half the milk, a large pinch of salt and a small pinch of cayenne; process to a purée. Add remaining milk and purée, then chill for up to 6 hours if you have time (press a piece of plastic wrap to surface of soup so it does not discolor).

2. Add lime juice, taste, then adjust seasoning, if necessary. Garnish with shrimp and parsley or cilantro, and serve.

Yield: 4 servings.

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Share a recipe for your favorite summer drink.

This is a recipe I just do by sight and taste...so I really don't know the amounts.  Basically, it's a bunch of frozen berries, some fresh fruit juice, and a banana or two.  :)  You can mix up the berries and juice flavors all you want.  :D

Fresh All Fruit Smoothie

In a ice chopping blender, add:

2 cups frozen strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries

fresh apple juice (enough to cover the berries)

chop with ice setting until strawberries are blended

add one banana (two if you like) to the mix and a little more juice if you need it.

blend on smoothie setting until smooth.

add a touch of honey if you need it.  Usually, if the berries are in season, they will be sweet enough. :)

Enjoy!

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Jess again.

I bought some cheezin' awesome fabric to make into goodie bags. I'll post photos later. I'm in the process of making little drawstring bags of awesomeness that can later be used as dice bags, etc. I can't wait to see how they turn out!!

The party is tomorrow!!

I'm going to Kroger and the liquor store tonight to purchase things for the party.

I plan to get stuff to make both red and white sangria. The red sangria will be labeled as grog/ blood for the pirates. The white sangria will be labeled as sake/ awesomeness for the ninjas to drink. Not that ninjas need more awesomeness... it is just what they prefer. I have a ton of little bottles of juice, so I'm going to put those to good use. Woohoo.

For the birthday boys, I need to make a fruit pizza and a pan of brownies in lieu of a traditional cake. Fruit pizza is delicious. It is not necessarily pirate-like in nature, but my pirate loves it. Since this blog is supposed to be informational, here is the recipe:

FRUIT PIZZA RECIPE

1 roll sugar cookie dough
1-8 oz. package of cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
Fruit, sliced (we like grapes, kiwi, mandarin oranges, and all kinds of berries)

Spread the cookie dough over a pizza pan (or baking sheet, whatever) and bake until pale brown. Meanwhile, use your mixer to blend the cream cheese and sugar. This is the "sauce". When the cookie dough "crust" has cooled, spread the cream cheese mixture over the dough. Top with your sliced fruit, cut, and enjoy! You will love it.

I'll probably also make some delicious cheese dip. Another easy recipe. Here it is:

EASY CHEESEY DIP RECIPE

1 block of Velveeta (the big one)
1 can of Rotel brand chopped tomatoes and green chilis (I get the mild, but I don't like very spicy food)
1 lb. (ish) ground beef

Brown and drain your ground beef. Then roughly slice the cheese into the hot pan with the beef. Open the can of Rotel and dump the contents into the pan. Cook it on low-ish for a few minutes, until the cheese melts all of the way and everything is nicely coated in cheese. Serve with some tortilla chips.

I will probably be inspired to cook other things once I get to Kroger. I'll post about them when I do.

I went to Goodwill and scored some hot black pants-- the only thing I still needed for my ninja costume. I need to do some sewing on Jeff's costume tonight, but we are pretty much done with our outfits. :)

I can't wait for the party!!!

Things I have accomplished today this week:

1.  Bought fabric for the goodie bags; started swearing sewing

Cost:  $15 and most of my patience

2. Completed my ninja costume

Cost:  $3.50 from Goodwill

3. Made grocery list; planned-ish menu

Cost: nothing yet; potentially ~$50

Total cost today:  $18.50

Estimated additional cost today: $50.00

Total cost to date (actual):   $96.00

Total cost to date (potential): $146.00 + sanity of two 20-something women

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i had an eggplant in the fridge that i needed to use ASAP. I found this easy recipe and it turned out amazing.

1	medium eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices
	Cooking spray
1/3	cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4	cup bread crumbs (any flavor)
2	teaspoons olive or vegetable oil
1	cup spaghetti sauce
1 1/2	cups shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

1.	Set oven control to broil. Generously spray both sides of each eggplant slice with cooking spray. Place on rack in broiler pan. Broil with tops 4 to 5 inches from heat about 10 minutes, turning once, until tender.
2.	While eggplant is broiling, mix Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs; toss with oil.
3.	Heat spaghetti sauce in 1-quart saucepan over medium heat about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Remove from heat; cover to keep warm.
4.	Sprinkle 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese over eggplant slices. Spoon bread crumb mixture over cheese. Broil about 1 minute or until cheese is melted and crumbs are brown. Top eggplant with spaghetti sauce and remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.

I served this with spaghetti on the side, and we ate all of it. The eggplant had great flavor, and the breading was so easy to do, that i thought i should share!

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Since I've been on this diet, I've had to get creative with my meals so I don't get bored (and start to eat bad things). This diet is low fat, and i just have to keep an eye on my caloric intake.

My favorite lunch so far is tostadas. The secret is to use soft corn tortillas instead of pre-fried tostada shells, and then prepare them at home:

4- soft corn tortillas
splash lime juice (optional)
salt (optional)

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Place 4 corn tortillas on a baking sheet, sprinkle with lime juice and salt to add flavor. Bake for 20 minutes, or until crispy.

To prepare the tostadas:

4- prepared corn tortillas (fresh from the oven)
1/2 cup fat-free refried beans
1 jalapeno, chopped (optional)
1/2 cup low-fat shredded cheese (cheddar, colby, monteray jack)
Optional toppings:
salsa
fat-free sour cream
shredded lettuce

Leave oven at 275 degrees. Spread an even layer of refried beans on each tortilla. Sprinkle chopped jalapeno pieces (if desired) ontop the beans, and cover with shredded cheese. Place the tostadas back in the oven for 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Top each tostada with salsa, fat-free sour cream, and shredded lettuce.

Since the tortillas are baked and not fried, they have no additional fat. The majority of the fat comes from the cheese, so use sparingly.

I would've taken a photo of this, but each time I make them they smell so good I eat them right away!

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