I have drank pop for the longest time. I remember in college drinking my Dr. Pepper between classes in the basement of an almost-parking garage. I remember working and having my can of Diet Dr. Pepper to my side. I even remember pleading with my doctor while I was pregnant for information to "what was a safe consumption level." And now, I have been pop-free for 4 days.
I gave it up cold-turkey only because I have a clean-plate mentality; if it's in my fridge or on my table I will drink it. No self-control---I must have missed that gene (along with a few others).
I was drinking 2-3 8 oz glasses/day. For kicks I googled reasons why pop is atrocious for the human body, but came to the resolve that really....it's not good for me....it costs me money....it will cost me more money over the long-run if I continue drinking it....and ultimately it's not worth telling my kids why they can't have any and I can.
But, here's the kicker. I've tried to give up pop before. I know it's not good for me, but it kept finding it's way back into my life because I'd be at a restaurant and want my pop. McDonalds maybe horrible for you, but they are masters at marketing. Ever since they placed a drink, a fry, and a sandwhich together [with a discount], the world has never been the same. So this time (although I suffered from caffeine headaches still), my change to a pop-free existence has been relatively temptation free.
So, yippee for eating-in.
W
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Jan 28, 2011---Black Bean Soup....and other (inexpensive) Deliciousness!
So...I tagged this as "almost vegetarian" because I suppose you could take out the bacon. Seeing as everything is better with bacon, this meal made eating-in very easy (and uber-affordable).
One of my gal-pals over at Kitschen Feast suggested using this recipe from Dave Lieberman for Black Bean Soup.
For better or for worse, here is my altered version (as I'm coming to realize I alter 96% of my recipes).**
4 cups Black beans (do it cheapy version and use 2 cups dried and bagged version....just be sure to cook the beans before you add to the recipe) (reserve the cooking water)
10 strips of bacon ***
1 cup of fresh cilantro
1/2 onion
2 T ketchup
A few shakes or Worcestestersterieisties sauce
6 garlic cloves
1 1/2 cup tomatoes
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp cumin
Green onion (for garnish)
Sour Cream (just a dollop for garnish)
Shredded Cheese (just a sprinkling...for garnish)
Poached Egg (for added richness....if you don't think the bacon is enough)****
1. Cook beans (remove cooking water)
2. While bacon is cooking, you can do the following: Chop and shred remaining ingredients...AND cook in cook onion and garlic til clear, add rest of spices and ingredients (except garnishes)....let simmer for 7 mins
3. Marry 1 and 2
4. Add cooking water as necessary, mash beans a little with potato masher) and let simmer til you can't stand it anymore (Mine was for a whole 10 mins)
So overall, dinner took 30 mins...and the cost was soooooo little. With some deviation due to error, I estimated that our dinner cost 4.26....for our whole family (and then some).
**I altered this recipe primarily because, as a whole, my family has a very delicate palate. We enjoy seasoning, but not hot spice.
***Easiest way I've found to cook bacon (and not have to actually tend it and get your stove-top all greasy) is to find your broiler pan [place bacon on top slotted layer], crank your oven up to 400, and let it cook for 20 minutes. Result=degreased crispy bacon (without having to slave over your stove)
****We did not add a poached egg to the recipe tonight, however in other black bean recipes I've used, I've added this and appreciated the addition...and it wasn't included in my cost analysis (however seeing as eggs are at most .20 [for the type I buy]...this would add a whopping 1.20)
Enjoy!!!!
W
One of my gal-pals over at Kitschen Feast suggested using this recipe from Dave Lieberman for Black Bean Soup.
For better or for worse, here is my altered version (as I'm coming to realize I alter 96% of my recipes).**
4 cups Black beans (do it cheapy version and use 2 cups dried and bagged version....just be sure to cook the beans before you add to the recipe) (reserve the cooking water)
10 strips of bacon ***
1 cup of fresh cilantro
1/2 onion
2 T ketchup
A few shakes or Worcestestersterieisties sauce
6 garlic cloves
1 1/2 cup tomatoes
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp cumin
Green onion (for garnish)
Sour Cream (just a dollop for garnish)
Shredded Cheese (just a sprinkling...for garnish)
Poached Egg (for added richness....if you don't think the bacon is enough)****
1. Cook beans (remove cooking water)
2. While bacon is cooking, you can do the following: Chop and shred remaining ingredients...AND cook in cook onion and garlic til clear, add rest of spices and ingredients (except garnishes)....let simmer for 7 mins
3. Marry 1 and 2
4. Add cooking water as necessary, mash beans a little with potato masher) and let simmer til you can't stand it anymore (Mine was for a whole 10 mins)
So overall, dinner took 30 mins...and the cost was soooooo little. With some deviation due to error, I estimated that our dinner cost 4.26....for our whole family (and then some).
**I altered this recipe primarily because, as a whole, my family has a very delicate palate. We enjoy seasoning, but not hot spice.
***Easiest way I've found to cook bacon (and not have to actually tend it and get your stove-top all greasy) is to find your broiler pan [place bacon on top slotted layer], crank your oven up to 400, and let it cook for 20 minutes. Result=degreased crispy bacon (without having to slave over your stove)
****We did not add a poached egg to the recipe tonight, however in other black bean recipes I've used, I've added this and appreciated the addition...and it wasn't included in my cost analysis (however seeing as eggs are at most .20 [for the type I buy]...this would add a whopping 1.20)
Enjoy!!!!
W
Jan 28, 2011---Ugly Cake
So, we celebrated chocolate cake day yesterday. But in the ugliest of fashions. Let's just say that this cake reflected my sentiments toward yesterday---it was unpleasant to look at no matter what angle you choose.
Here are some tips if you want to have an ugly cake experience too:
W
Here are some tips if you want to have an ugly cake experience too:
- have a crappy day, make sure you struggle to keep ankle-biters away from the hot oven while separating constant bickering from your older two children
- be hungry and cranky too
- don't properly grease your pans (or allow your 6 yr old to grease them)
- pull your cake out of the pan when it's too warm
- be sure to laugh maniacally if you start icing your cake and it falls apart
- continue laughing maniacally to prevent crying, but continue icing until either you need alcohol or a trip to the head shrinker
- get neither but indulge in super-chocolatey ugly cake
W
Jan 23, 2011--- Measure Your Feet Day (so you know whose not to step upon) and Rotisserie Pork
I messed up.
We are having pork again today. Not so ingenuous, however it is mostly because I messed up when freezing my pork 4 weeks ago. It is no secret that I love a good deal, but sometimes even I make mistakes. I bought a humongo pork loin for .99/lb and divvied it up to several pork roasts. Smarty me put two roasts in one freezer bag...and they froze together. My time would have been better spent banging my head against the wall.
So tip #1 for the day? Freeze things appropriately
Problema #2? Making things twice in a row makes my husband cranky. He can only stand leftovers so many times and he can only stand the same kind of protein so many days in a row. He gets burned out (understandably) like we all do (think Turkey day....and 24 days following when you make a 70 lb turkey).
So for day #1 (last night) I made Rotisserie Pork in the rotisserie (but you could use an oven). I painted on a bit o' olive oil (so my spices would stick a little better) and cheated for the spice part (used Cavender's Greek seasoning [salt-free]). Can I tell you that it makes a mama happy to see her babies eat the food she has labored on? (Ok, even though the labor was all of 4 minutes).
So for day #2 of pork pork (thank you Swedish Chef) I want to use the rotisserie again (as it's still on my counter) but I think I want to make this version and ramp it up with more garlic. I suppose I could chop the beast up and make pork chops, but I think this will be less effort.
That being said, time to go start!
Happy eating!
W
We are having pork again today. Not so ingenuous, however it is mostly because I messed up when freezing my pork 4 weeks ago. It is no secret that I love a good deal, but sometimes even I make mistakes. I bought a humongo pork loin for .99/lb and divvied it up to several pork roasts. Smarty me put two roasts in one freezer bag...and they froze together. My time would have been better spent banging my head against the wall.
So tip #1 for the day? Freeze things appropriately
Problema #2? Making things twice in a row makes my husband cranky. He can only stand leftovers so many times and he can only stand the same kind of protein so many days in a row. He gets burned out (understandably) like we all do (think Turkey day....and 24 days following when you make a 70 lb turkey).
So for day #1 (last night) I made Rotisserie Pork in the rotisserie (but you could use an oven). I painted on a bit o' olive oil (so my spices would stick a little better) and cheated for the spice part (used Cavender's Greek seasoning [salt-free]). Can I tell you that it makes a mama happy to see her babies eat the food she has labored on? (Ok, even though the labor was all of 4 minutes).
So for day #2 of pork pork (thank you Swedish Chef) I want to use the rotisserie again (as it's still on my counter) but I think I want to make this version and ramp it up with more garlic. I suppose I could chop the beast up and make pork chops, but I think this will be less effort.
That being said, time to go start!
Happy eating!
W
Jan 22,2011--- National Blonde Brownie Day (And Macaroons and how to gain 1000 lbs this winter)
How to gain 1000 lbs this winter, by me
When trying to put your body into hibernation, one should first love carbohydrates. Love your carbohydrates in any form you can get them...into your mouth. You should also love to bake, or know where you can acquire baked goods. If you know how to bake, bake a ton (under the premise that you'll share) and then just share with yourself...some more...and some more. And finally, if you are going to meet your 1/2 ton quota, please be sure to have reasons to indulge yourself everyday (it is great if you have some unresolved emotional issues that you need to address or it is also fabulous if you have raging hormones, even better if you have both).
All jesting aside (kinda), coconut macaroons are the bomb-diggity. I've always wanted to try my hand at making them, and last night was the night. Of course, they are only good for those people who actually like coconut, as they consist primarily of ...coconut.
I dug around the internet searching for a recipe (as I was too lazy to get off my couch to look through the 1700 recipe books I have) and found numerous recipes for coconut macaroons...with sweetened condensed milk. Alas, I didn't have nary a can of SCM, so....I hunted some more and found Alton Brown's recipe...and only slightly altered it (the tail-end). After you put the finished macaroons on a cooling rack, place the parchment paper underneath. Warm choco in the your-crowave, put it in a ziploc baggie, nip the tip, and drizzle over macaroons. All I could hear was Sinatra singing "Heaven, I'm in heaven.....blah de blah....cheek to cheek...."
They might not be beautiful, but my tongue thought they were a w e s o m e.
Just two few small tips:
W
When trying to put your body into hibernation, one should first love carbohydrates. Love your carbohydrates in any form you can get them...into your mouth. You should also love to bake, or know where you can acquire baked goods. If you know how to bake, bake a ton (under the premise that you'll share) and then just share with yourself...some more...and some more. And finally, if you are going to meet your 1/2 ton quota, please be sure to have reasons to indulge yourself everyday (it is great if you have some unresolved emotional issues that you need to address or it is also fabulous if you have raging hormones, even better if you have both).
All jesting aside (kinda), coconut macaroons are the bomb-diggity. I've always wanted to try my hand at making them, and last night was the night. Of course, they are only good for those people who actually like coconut, as they consist primarily of ...coconut.
I dug around the internet searching for a recipe (as I was too lazy to get off my couch to look through the 1700 recipe books I have) and found numerous recipes for coconut macaroons...with sweetened condensed milk. Alas, I didn't have nary a can of SCM, so....I hunted some more and found Alton Brown's recipe...and only slightly altered it (the tail-end). After you put the finished macaroons on a cooling rack, place the parchment paper underneath. Warm choco in the your-crowave, put it in a ziploc baggie, nip the tip, and drizzle over macaroons. All I could hear was Sinatra singing "Heaven, I'm in heaven.....blah de blah....cheek to cheek...."
They might not be beautiful, but my tongue thought they were a w e s o m e.
Just two few small tips:
- For the love of all that is holy, please don't scorch the chocolate. There is nothing worse in this life than wasted chocolate...and the smell that emanates from said scorched chocolate.
- Pay veddy careful attention to the coconut when toasting it. Very quickly it goes from a beautiful white to a not-so-pretty black (no joke, like 30 seconds). It will be in your oven, oh-so-innocent, and go to char in a blink of 70 eyes.
W
Jan 15 on Jan 16, 2011---Rotisserie Chicken (and if it's smokin' it's cookin', if it's burnin' it's done!)
I made a list of restaurant foods I miss, and want to recreate, and put Boston Market haphazardly in the middle. Unfortunately/fortunately for me, our closest market is quite a bit of a jaunt down the road (like 25 mins), so I really had to want it to acquire it. But now, the jaunt is a few hundred days away.
We've had a rotisserie for years, a beast of a machine that was definitely required a few lessons in order to operate it, especially operate it without filling our house with smoke-alarm-induced squeals. I don't even know if they make Oster rotisseries anymore, but this one
is pretty similar (except ours is about 9 years older, not a Black and Decker and not digital, but besides that it's exactly the same---HA!).
I used a rosemary/sea salt rub on the skin (added great flavor to the birdy), but there are more recipes to be tried!
Wondermom
We've had a rotisserie for years, a beast of a machine that was definitely required a few lessons in order to operate it, especially operate it without filling our house with smoke-alarm-induced squeals. I don't even know if they make Oster rotisseries anymore, but this one
is pretty similar (except ours is about 9 years older, not a Black and Decker and not digital, but besides that it's exactly the same---HA!). I used a rosemary/sea salt rub on the skin (added great flavor to the birdy), but there are more recipes to be tried!
- Line the bottom tray with foil---it's a nasty mess that can just be tossed.
- Be sure to tie down your birdy's phelanges appropriately. If he flops around his little bits can scorch on the heating coils.
Wondermom
Jan 11, 2011---Breakfast Smoothie
So, what do you do when you find berries on sale? Or do you ever venture out to a patch and come back with oodles of berries? Or do you grow your own? I don't grow my own berries, but a few times of a year I find myself with a plethora of berries so I freeze them. I started out by just freezing blueberries. I had grandiose ideas every June to pick blueberries with my darling children and didn't know what to do with the extras after making everything blueberry, so I just froze them. No cookie sheet and no additional muss or fuss, I just threw them in the freezer (ok, they were still in a bag not loosey goosey traipsing around the freezer). Then I started freezing other berries and bananas (with the skin). And now, in the dead of winter, I can have smoothies with berries! My kids lap them up for the sweet (but healthy) treats they are!
Here's my Oh-So-Simple Smoothie Recipe. It takes 5 mins (or less) and uses one of my favorite love/hate appliances, the blender (the one in the pic is pretty sleek---maybe Santa will bring it to me next Christmas!)
1. Berries---anything ya got
2. Bananas
3. 1 container yogurt
4. Water
Prepare berries (wash 'em if you need to) and prepare banana (u n p e a l). Put berries in blender. Add water. Put on ice pulse function to chop 'em up a little. When smooth enough to blend and not kill your blender motor, add banana and yogurt. Insto presto breakfast o.
Add whole grain english muffin, toasted with peanut butter and banana slices for a yummy and quick, fast, and wholesome breakfast.
(ok, these have some leftover Cool Whip from the Heath Pie dolloped on top).
Here's my Oh-So-Simple Smoothie Recipe. It takes 5 mins (or less) and uses one of my favorite love/hate appliances, the blender (the one in the pic is pretty sleek---maybe Santa will bring it to me next Christmas!)
1. Berries---anything ya got
2. Bananas
3. 1 container yogurt
4. Water
Prepare berries (wash 'em if you need to) and prepare banana (u n p e a l). Put berries in blender. Add water. Put on ice pulse function to chop 'em up a little. When smooth enough to blend and not kill your blender motor, add banana and yogurt. Insto presto breakfast o.
Add whole grain english muffin, toasted with peanut butter and banana slices for a yummy and quick, fast, and wholesome breakfast.
Jan 11, 2011---Milk Day
of hot chocolate chip cookies, I am going to use milk to soak my shrimp tonight. As I don't live on the coast, I use this technique to make the shrimp taste fresher. Soak for an hour before cooking and ...voila! I'm finding that eating in isn't such a chore when I cook mah-velous food...and my family doesn't complain! I cook for a picky crowd sometimes and it's disheartening when I hear growns; it makes me growl! So enjoy it how you take it, because it does the body good---pass it on!
Wondermom
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