Lift the Fog

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My grandma loved eggplant.

When I say “loved eggplant” I mean that she loved to eat it, cook it, collect tchotchkes that either were or featured eggplants. In fact, I have one of her eggplants, a beautiful covered dish

Anyone who claimed to not like eggplant would get one line, and one line only: You THINK you don’t like eggplant. But, have you tried MY eggplant? Many times, people who thought they didn’t like eggplant, did indeed like hers. She had this amazing recipe for chopped eggplant that I still need to get, or try to recreate.

What’s my point? Well, I think I’ve inherited her love for eggplant. I like it curried. I like it baked, broiled, grilled, chopped and stir-fried, or roasted on a sandwich. I’m really grateful for this love of eggplant because it enabled me to create tonight’s amazing dish.

Something else you should know: I don’t think I knew what a casserole was until I was about 12 and my mom made (for the first time that I vividly remember) the Neapolitan Casserole that I love. I don’t know that I had a tuna casserole until I made it, and I hadn’t even thought to make one until I really started cooking a few years ago. Now though, I adore casseroles. I love using ONE pan and having a delicious meal come out of the oven about an hour later. They don’t photograph well, but most of the time they taste absolutely amazing.

This whole not eating flour thing has made me really miss pasta, and my love for eggplant (and a couple of friends suggestions) reminded me that I could make a lasagna with sliced eggplant instead of noodles. Originally I was going to do a roll-up kind of thing, but I was too hungry and impatient for all that prep. This prep was simple.

I sliced 3/4 of a medium eggplant into thin-ish slices. They were then quickly baked in a 400* oven (about 10 minutes) until softer and lightly browned, and more importantly, I could see the seeds.

In a bowl, while this was baking, I mixed a 15 oz. container of 2% ricotta cheese with 1 egg and 1/4 c. of mozzarella cheese. A sprinkle of garlic powder (about a tsp) and a sprinkle of oregano (about 1/2 tsp) went in and I stirred it well. Then I started with the layering.

The order was this: eggplant, cheese, leftover sauce from the other night, eggplant, cheese, sauce, plain shredded mozzarella. It baked for about 30 minutes at 400 until it was bubbly, the cheese was melted, and the house smelled good. The final result?

Ok, that doesn’t look all that appetizing. To be honest I couldn’t get a decent picture of one piece of it because it was kind of monochromatic, but I assure you, the flavors of the eggplant, the peppers in the sauce, the garlic in the cheese, and the salty mozzarella melded together for a lasagna-type party!

I was in a lovely mood this afternoon even though my school day was exhausting because it was almost 60 degrees and sunny, and the grass is green, and the sun has that warmth to it that only happens in the spring…

Little remnants of winter still remain, the mounds of snow will likely cause fog in the morning, but the fog in my head seems to be lifting. I’m happier more than I’m sad, and wide awake more than I’m tired which is a sure sign of good things to come!

Technorati Tags: cheese, dinner, eggplant, food, Italian, sauce, simple recipe, vegetarian

13 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, March 10th 2010 | Tags: cheese, dinner, eggplant, food, Italian, sauce, simple recipe, vegetarian
Posted in Italian, simple recipe, vegetarian

Cumulonimbus

Click here for the special EnviTote GroupShop!

**This is the THIRD time I’m typing out this post after stupid Ecto ate it twice before. Anyone know how to fix this?**

Why am I referring to clouds again? Well, there are a multitude of reasons…but before I get to that, a definition:

[source]

In ordinary, normal, everyday English though, cumulonimbus clouds are those tall pouffy clouds that look like they’re sitting on something in the sky.

[source]

So much of today, I felt like I was above the clouds for, as I said, a multitude of reasons.

Reason #1: All of your kind and genuine comments on my post from last night truly uplifted my spirits! I checked my comments a few times today, and each and every time, my mood would get better with your amazing comments! Thank you SO much, and as my mom used to say, “poop on you!” to the negative commenters!

Reason #2: I made a fan-freaking-tastic dinner! I started out with something I’ve been thinking about since I made it last: Gina’s raw sushi rolls with cauliflower “rice”. They were just as good as last time, and I filled them with cucumber, avocado, and some shredded crabmeat.

I continued with a delicious spinach salad with a pan-roasted Ahi tuna filet. I bought the most amazing-looking tuna filets at Trader Joe’s yesterday, and I’d been thinking about them all day, so I knew they had to be on the menu. I whipped up a quick salad dressing with:

1 Tbsp. dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. oregano

I shook them together and then set the dressing aside while I pan-roasted the tuna filet in a super-hot skillet with some olive and sesame oil. I over-cooked it slightly, but it was still delicious! While it cooked, I cut up my cucumbers, dressed the salad, and then sliced the tuna. The whole darn thing got sprinkled with sesame seeds.

Reason #3: Lemon Vanilla Cloud Cookies

After last night’s coconut clouds, I knew I had to perfect the recipe. I hesitate to call these meringues because they’re lacking the sugar that standard meringues have, but I’m good with calling them clouds. They sound so happy!

Lemon Vanilla Clouds

Ingredients

5 egg whites, brought to room temperature

2 packets Splenda (or 1/4 c. sugar)

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. lemon zest

1 vanilla bean, halved and scraped

Directions

Heat the oven to 200*. Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add the lemon juice, zest, Splenda, and vanilla, and whip until stiff peaks form. Pipe or spoon onto a clean and dry cookie sheet, then place in the oven until lightly browned and dry (about 2 hours).

Reason #4: There’s a great thing happening on my OpenSky shop tomorrow! OpenSky has been hosting cooperative shopping deals called GroupShops and I’m going to be apart of one from 9 a.m. tomorrow until midnight on Friday. All the details will be revealed tomorrow morning, but what I can tell you is that it involves EnviTotes and will be under $25!

Click here for the special EnviTote GroupShop!

So after a day of feeling above the clouds, and then eating some clouds, it’s time for me to land and go to bed shortly…

Technorati Tags: Baking, dessert, dinner, EnviTote, OpenSky, seafood, simple, simple recipe, sushi, tuna

8 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, March 9th 2010 | Tags: Baking, dessert, dinner, EnviTote, OpenSky, seafood, simple, simple recipe, sushi, tuna
Posted in fish or seafood, simple recipe

Chicago Style

What a random food day I had today… I mean, I ate weird stuff at weird times and then topped it off with a somewhat weird dinner. Breakfast was leftover roast chicken, then a couple hours later a lovely green monster with spinach, milk, nut butter, flax, mango, blueberries, and chia seeds. I went and spent my Valentine’s Day gift certificate from Adam today on a glorious manicure and pedicure…the toes are red and the fingers are purple!

Lunch was late (like 3 p.m.) when Adam and I decided to go to a local hot dog stand for some Chicago-style dogs. We had hot dogs from this place as a “midnight snack” at our wedding, and haven’t had them since, so we thought “what the heck” and went for it.

Now, do any of you know what goes on a standard Chicago hot dog? And, more importantly, what doesn’t?

These ingredients are what are traditionally included on a Chicago dog, and can be added or eliminated to the diner’s taste. HOWEVER, there is NEVER ketchup on a Chicago hot dog. Ever. Why are Chicago hot dogs so “doctored up”? Well, back in the depression era, hot dogs were a convenient and inexpensive way for people to have a complete meal in a time where fresh produce was limited. Because of the variety of vegetables on the dog, it’s said to be “dragged through the garden.” There, your Chicago history lesson for the day.

My hot dog this afternoon had onions, relish, mustard, and sport peppers on it, and it was FAN FREAKING TASTIC. I could’ve eaten a few more, but limited myself to one. What it did do though, was leave me wanting more vegetables. We hit up the produce market and stocked up, and a few hours later, I was chopping and roasting and spiralizing! I won a spiralizer from Sophia’s giveaway, and let’s just say, I’m quite obsessed. I forgot to take a picture of my spiralized zucchini, but I got a picture of the carrot I shredded the other day

Tonight, I sauteed together some mushrooms, an orange bell pepper, some garlic, and spinach, roasted a spaghetti squash, spiralized some zucchini and started assembling. I wanted to use some of this sauce from Bertolli and FoodBuzz’s Tastemaker Program

The bottom of my large bowl was filled with spiralized zucchini and spaghetti squash, then topped with my mushroom/pepper/spinach mixture, then the whole thing was topped with some of this creamy sauce. While it wasn’t something I’d normally buy, the flavor was very nostalgically tomato. Adam likened it to a gourmet and creamy version of the sauce on Spaghetti-Os. My bowl, while not pretty, was delicious. Thanks Bertolli and FoodBuzz!

Tonight, Adam and I are two of probably 10 people not watching the Oscars, so we’re enjoying cartoon reruns and dark chocolate. Tomorrow’s a busy day, as its the beginning of a new term, so I get to meet 120 new kids tomorrow throughout the day.

Have a great Monday!

Technorati Tags: Chicago dining, dinner, food, fun, vegetables, vegetarian

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Mara @ What's For Dinner?, March 7th 2010 | Tags: Chicago dining, dinner, food, fun, vegetables, vegetarian
Posted in vegetarian

A Gin(a)ious

Sometimes, I’ll be reading a food blog (you know, one of the hundreds I subscribe to) and I’ll see some random food combination or recipe and think “Really? What the heck was she thinking?” And it’s always the girls, right Matt? The guys always do “normal” combos, and us girls? Sometimes, I just don’t know…

Then sometimes, there’s something I think is weird the first time I see it, and then it sticks in my brain. It’s like a peanut butter smear that just won’t go away. I ponder, and think, and revisit posts dozens of times… and then I ask the author for specifics about that recipe or combo. And then I think on it some more. And then I find myself in the aisle of the grocery store that happens to have 90% of the ingredients I need, and I decide to go for it.

And you’re thinking now “Whattheheckisshetalkingaboutnow?” Yeah, I can read your mind from here OOOOoooooOOOOHhhhhhhhh….

I’m talking about Gina’s raw cauliflower sushi rice. I saw it months ago when she was in culinary school at 108 Degrees, and it stuck in my head. I know it’s not her recipe per se, but she’s the one I associate with it. I asked her today if there was a recipe or to just go with the ingredients til they taste right, she said to go by taste, and so I went. Mostly because well, with this whole “not eating grains or many carbs” Paleo diet thing, the thing I miss the most is definitely sushi.

In my food processor went a small head of raw cauliflower, which I pulsed until it vaguely resembled rice. Then I transferred it to a bowl and seasoned it with about 1/4 c. rice vinegar, one packet of Splenda (SHAMEFUL ha right), salt, pepper, and a little garlic powder. Then I tried my hand for the first time at rolling my own sushi rolls.

Not bad for my first time, eh? Adam and I got all these sushi sets as engagement presents (seriously, 3 of them) and they’ve just been sitting there, so I figured I’d break them out. These lovely raw rolls are filled with avocado, organic Persian cucumber sticks, and some (definitely not raw) canned crabmeat.

Gina my dear, you are a freaking genius. Absolutely GENIUS! Do you all get the title now??

I ate 2 rolls like the one pictured, then stirred the leftover ingredients together into a salad of sorts with a bit of sesame oil and sesame seeds. I have this feeling that I’ll be buying a lot more cauliflower now, and Adam, I apologize… you do have to sleep in the same room as me…

I purchased something new to eat with my sushi, and since I don’t have very many “this is my hand holding something I ate today” photos, I figured I’d start with my lovely Japanese wasabi paste. It was $2 and the hottest wasabi I’ve ever had!

And I’m finishing my meal off with a piece of this remarkable $1 Polish dark chocolate I get from our ethnic market. It’s better than any non-gourmet dark chocolate I’ve ever had, and better than most gourmet ones too!

I’m making some turkey burgers for Adam and for lunch tomorrow, so my cooking isn’t over yet… and I’m taking the first step of tackling Mount Clothesmore in our second bedroom tomorrow. I’ve been putting it off for 3 years and I just have to DO it. Please reassure me I don’t need the stuff I haven’t worn since I moved??

A couple of reminders for you:

Don’t forget to vote in the Cuteiversary Contest! Check out the entries on the last Cute Food Saturday post, then vote in the poll on the right hand side of the blog.
Go shopping! The 50% off sale on the oil and vinegar set only lasts until next Wednesday!
Enter Ashley’s Blogiversary contest!

Have a great Thursday all!

Technorati Tags: Asian, dinner, friends, fun, sushi, vegetarian

32 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, March 3rd 2010 | Tags: Asian, dinner, friends, fun, sushi, vegetarian
Posted in Asian, friends, vegetarian

Steak House? No! Our House!

Today was one of those days that made me realize how lucky I am to be a part of this wonderful blogging community. Who else can say that they have friends from LITERALLY all over the country, many of whom they’ve never met in person??

I started my day bright and early by meeting up with two of my favorite bloggers, and girls who have been loyal readers and commenters pretty much since day one of this little blog of mine: Jenn and Caroline! We met up with each other at a childhood favorite restaurant of mine, Walker Brothers Pancake House, and as usual, the line was out the door. Luckily, they got us in and seated quickly!

I got a mushroom omelet, fruit, and a side of bacon. I only ate the strawberries out of the fruit cup…

Walker Bros. was the first place I ever remember going that had amazingly fluffy baked omelets, instead of the flat and folded over ones of so many greasy spoon places. The bacon was, well, bacon…so it was awesome! The best part though was the company and conversation. Thanks so much for a great morning!

From left: Me, Jenn, Caroline, and Caroline’s cousin

I’ve made an executive decision: all the bloggers I’ve met need to move to Chicago so that we can hang out on a regular basis.

Since I was so close, I stopped off at my mom’s house to show off the new camera, and of course, the lovely Stella was thrilled to be the subject of an impromptu photo shoot!

She’s been watching Top Model!

I came home and vegged out for a while, because its Sunday…and then set out to the grocery store with my EnviTote for a few days worth of produce and ingredients for dinners. Much to my surprise and delight, 3 lb. bags of baby spinach were on sale, buy one get one free for $3.99! Needless to say, I then needed to stock up on Green Monster ingredients too… I had a very specific dinner in mind, hence the trip to the grocery store.

Last weekend for Valentine’s Day, I bought a bunch of ingredients for broth/bouillon fondue after we ate our cheese, and found that we were too full after the first course. The ingredients went into the freezer, and I wanted to use them today. What were these ingredients? Jumbo shrimp and filet mignon!

The steaks needed a simple preparation: just a sprinkle of salt and fresh ground pepper, then a quick sear in a pan and then a few minutes under the broiler.

The shrimp though, got the royal treatment… they got Scampi-fied!

Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients

1 lb. peeled raw shrimp

2 Tbsp. butter

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 c. dry white wine

juice of 1 lemon

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

Directions

Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Add the butter and olive oil, then the garlic. Cook a few minutes, then add the white wine. Reduce by half. Add lemon juice and shrimp and cook until shrimp are done, about 6 minutes. Add parsley, stir and serve immediately.

In addition, I made a batch of the same creamed spinach I made recently. In all, this was, as Adam said, like Wildfire at home. Remember Wildfire? We went there at the end of my first week of camp this summer, and it’s one of our very favorite steakhouses! To hear that I successfully recreated at home a similar meal as we enjoy out was one of the best food-related compliments I’ve gotten!

All together now:

So, with a full belly and a sleepy head, and thoughts of snow days lingering in the back of my brain… I bid you good night!

Technorati Tags: bacon, beef, breakfast, Chicago dining, dinner, EnviTote, food, friends, fun, out, seafood, simple recipe

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Mara @ What's For Dinner?, February 21st 2010 | Tags: bacon, beef, breakfast, Chicago dining, dinner, EnviTote, food, friends, fun, out, seafood, simple recipe
Posted in beef, fish or seafood, friends, simple recipe

Simple Genius

I’m a skeptic when it comes to super simple recipes.

Wait, what do you mean I don’t have to open 5 spice jars and chiffonade a bundle of basil? You mean I don’t have to chop a dozen onions, grate a pound of carrots, and roast something for two hours? The resounding answer is YES.

Sometimes a good recipe takes 3 ingredients and a little bit of time, like what I made tonight. I saw this on HEAB’s blog today, and immediately clicked the link and discovered I only needed one thing to make this for dinner. What is this glorious thing? A simple tomato sauce as posted by Smitten Kitchen and adapted from Marcela Hazan. When I saw Marcela’s name attached to this recipe, I knew it had to be good. She’s never let me down!

The recipe:

Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onions
Adapted from Marcela Hazan’s Essentials of Italian Cooking

28 ounces (800 grams) whole peeled tomatoes from a can
5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter
1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
Salt to taste

Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a heavy saucepan (it fit just right in a 3-quart) over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste and keep warm while you prepare your pasta.

That’s it. I served mine atop half a roasted spaghetti squash, scooped out, and some sauteed mushrooms with a link of leftover sausage from last night. Please excuse the multitude of photos, as I was having fun with the new camera!

This was comfort food at its finest, and would’ve been great eaten with a spoon rather than on anything. There’s something delicate and yet still rich about this sauce, and I really can’t put my finger on it, but Julia Child was right: there’s something about butter!

Don’t forget to enter to win the amazing Organic Coconut Peanut Butter with a comment on yesterday’s post! Winner will be announced tomorrow night.

I wanted, also, to thank you all for your compliments on my openness and honesty with my “Ask Me Anything” questions. While there may be times I’ll post something cheery when I’m feeling anything but, 99% of the time, what you get on here is all me. I’m lucky enough to have truly supportive readers, and I’m grateful every day that I don’t have to field cruel comments… but if that day ever comes, you can rest assured that those commenters will be taken care of. Years of teaching have helped me grow a much thicker skin than I ever thought I’d have! So thank you all for reading, commenting, and supporting this little blog of mine.

Technorati Tags: dinner, giveaway, Italian, pasta, sauce, simple recipe, thank you, vegetarian

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Mara @ What's For Dinner?, February 18th 2010 | Tags: dinner, giveaway, Italian, pasta, sauce, simple recipe, thank you, vegetarian
Posted in Italian, giveaway, simple recipe, vegetarian

Small and Stuffed (Giveaway Post)

Today, or rather, this afternoon, has been one of those that just needs to end. If I drop one more thing in the kitchen, I swear… ok, no more of that.

DINNER!

I got the idea for dinner tonight while looking over my post from the other day. I remembered that I had these micro-kabochas to cook up, and wanted to do something fun with them. Normally, kabochas are about the size of a small pumpkin. Mine are just larger than an apple

I cut the tops off of them and scooped out the seeds. There was a huge ratio of seeds to edible squash in them, but whatever…I had tiny kabocha bowls at this point. I made a filling of 3 de-cased Italian sausages, 1 egg, 5 chopped mushrooms, and 1/2 c. sharp white cheddar cheese. This isn’t really a recipe, I guess, but a process. I filled the kabocha bowls to the top with the sausage mixture, and baked them at 325 for about an hour, until the squash was soft and the meat was done. The result? See for yourself:

The squash was soft and sweet, the filling rich and spicy, and the combo together was downright dreamy. Just what I needed after an afternoon like today. Well, that and a super hot shower.

A question for today:

Do you buy organic anything? Have you seen the movie Food Inc.? I always feel like questions like these are so loaded. Yes, I saw Food, Inc. In all honesty, and call me heartless, it didn’t teach me anything I didn’t already know, nor did it change the way I look at food or what I buy. I knew about factory farms, and I know about GMOs, but I did think that how some of the companies treat their farmers was atrocious. I do buy organic when I can, but usually just beef when it’s available, and I plan on buying organic milk once Adam and I start thinking about having a family. And, even more honestly, I don’t have a problem not buying organic. Sure, if we had unlimited funds and a nearby Whole Foods, I’d probably buy organic a lot more. Right now though, it’s just not in our budget to buy organic most of the time. I buy what’s cheap. I buy what I like. I know a lot of people may judge me for this, but at least we’re living within our means.

ANNNNND the giveaway! The lovely folks at Tropical Traditions (who are dead set on making sure I never go without coconut anything) sent me a jar of their organic coconut peanut butter to try. Something about coconut peanut butter seemed a bit odd, yet a bit intriguing, so I agreed… man was I surprised! This stuff is absolutely to DIE FOR! It’s creamy and dense, with a light coconut flavor that’s just screaming to be used in oatmeal. I would recommend it to any of you… but only ONE of you can win a jar!

It’s simple to enter!

First and foremost, leave a comment on this post. Any comment at all, and you’ll be entered!

For additional entries:

Subscribe to the Tropical Traditions Newsletter and leave another comment letting me know you did.
Become a fan of What’s For Dinner? on Facebook and leave another comment that you did.
Tweet the giveaway! “I entered to win @troptraditions coconut peanut butter with @imadedinner and you can too! http://bit.ly/9Fqg8l” and leave a comment that you did

Easy as pie peanut butter!

Good luck, and winners will be announced on Friday, February 19.

Have a wonderful night. I’ll leave you with another cute Ozzy picture

Technorati Tags: ask me, beef, cheese, dinner, food, giveaway, Italian, pork, Tropical Traditions

91 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, February 17th 2010 | Tags: ask me, beef, cheese, dinner, food, giveaway, Italian, pork, Tropical Traditions
Posted in Italian, beef, contest/giveaway, giveaway, pork

Skirting the Issue

¡Buenas noches!

I hope you all had a wonderful Monday, whether you worked today or not. I did not and had a thoroughly unproductive day off. I tend to do nothing on my days off and then feel guilty about it, but I have NO shame about being completely useless today. I did have a doctor’s appointment to meet my new doctor, then hit the grocery store. I found the CUTEST thing:

Pocket kabocha! I thought of HEAB and Coco when I found them! I can’t wait to roast this and FINALLY try it! It was also an exciting evening because our new dishwasher was installed! A huge thanks goes out to LIzz’s dad, who took time out of his busy day to come out and put it in for us. I can’t wait to see how it works! It certainly looks nice:

I insisted that Lizz’s dad stay for dinner, and I made a marinated skirt steak (now do you get the title?) and garlic steamed broccoli. I’d never made a skirt steak before, so I asked my mom for advice on what to do with it. Unfortunately, her suggestion included a bunch of stuff we didn’t have in the house, so I’m going to have to save it for another day. I went with a simple marinade:

1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1.5 Tbsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley flakes
Salt and pepper

I mixed up the marinade, set the steaks in, and let them sit for almost 2 hours. Then, I simply broiled them for a great result!

Tomorrow’s a big day over here… a certain 5 lb shipment from Amazon is coming that I just can’t wait for! Some of you know what it is, and the rest of you will just have to wait! There are big things this week, maybe a giveaway, and definitely some shopping opportunities!

I have gotten a few questions to answer in the last couple of days:

Have any tips on substitutions for those of use who keep kosher?? My answer here depends wholly on how strict of a kosher house you keep! For the very strictest, I’m low on ideas, as I’m not sure of all the intricacies. However, if you’re a “no pork, no milk and meat together” kind of kosher-keeper, I do have a couple of ideas. Many of my pork dishes are easily recreated using chicken or turkey. All of the marinades taste great on chicken, and cooking time will need to be adjusted slightly. If there’s a milk/meat dish, I’d recommend subbing in either rice cheese or casein free soy cheese instead. Casein is a milk protein often found in some soy cheeses, so avoid those. Usually the vegan ones will work. Also: most foods that are marked as kosher (either a circled K or a circled U) will also be organic, and vice versa.

If you could change places with anyone for one day who would it be and why? This feels like an essay question on a state achievement test… but I kind of like it! I would have to say that honestly, I wouldn’t change myself at all, I’d just change my circumstances. I’d love to be me, still be married to Adam, still be a blogger, etc, but I’d love to have the house of my dreams, no financial worries, no weight problem… so I guess I’d like to change places with my ideal me, just to know what I’m striving for.

What are your absolute favorite blogs? You know, the ones you can’t miss a day reading? Name your top 5 faves. I check in on a ton of blogs every day, so many that I can’t even keep track… but yeah, there are a few that I HAVE to read every day. Many of them are bloggers I’ve met in person, and a few with whom I have a great phone and email relationship with. So, in no particular order, and since I can’t just pick 5:

EatingBender (She’s been such a great friend)
On A Lobster Placemat (for her honesty, passion, and amazing artwork)
Fitnessista (She’s just fabizzle)
ColorHungry (She’s a fantastic writer with a great perspective)
MizFit (For her inherant Mizfitednessandpassion)
Gliding Calm (She’s just adorable)
How Sweet It Is (for her love of bacon and sweets)
The Daily Balance (Food, Fashion, Fun…what else do we need?)

I have over 200 blogs in my Google Reader that I read regularly, and most of them are on my Blogroll Page. Feel free to check that out!

What are you most looking forward to this summer? Warm weather, like I am? Haha Warmth for sure. Camp as always, especially since Skylar (Lizz’s daughter) will be attending for the first time! Maybe a small vacation, going to the pool, and sunshine until after 8 p.m.

And on that warm note, I bid you good night… I can’t believe I’m looking forward to doing dishes!

Technorati Tags: ask me, beef, dinner, friends, red meat, simple recipe, steak

12 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, February 15th 2010 | Tags: ask me, beef, dinner, friends, red meat, simple recipe, steak
Posted in beef, friends, simple recipe

Simply Random

I had a big event after school today. I got to do something I haven’t done in a very long time… I went to Trader Joe’s! I got a pretty decent haul for a small amount of money, and proceeded to make a simple and random TJ’s dinner. After, of course, I spent some time packing up my secret bloggie Valentine gift! I just hope it doesn’t snow so much tomorrow that I can’t get to the post office!

Back to the random dinner:

First, on the left, were some simply sauteed mushrooms and green peppers. Then, to the right of that were some TJ’s tomato basil chicken sausages (quite good I might add!) and above that, the star of the plate, some simple creamed spinach. My mom used to make this creamed spinach ALL the time, and it always surprised me because well, we didn’t eat creamed anything. When we went out for dinner on Saturday, she told me how to make it, and I had to try.

The process is simple: steam and drain a bunch of spinach. Stir in 1 Tbsp. cream cheese, 1 Tbsp. sour cream, and I added a sprinkle of garlic powder. You have to try it!!! It works with fat free dairy, or regular… I might have to make a second batch for when Adam gets home, as I might need to finish this batch!

I had a couple of questions over the weekend, some anonymous and some not… so I’ll get to it!

Lauren from Say What You Need To Say asked: IF you could have anyone in the world over to dinner, who would it be and what would you make? That’s a really tough question… it depends on the day, honestly! There are people I’d like to have over just so I could look at them, but somehow I doubt they’d eat much. If we’re talking living or dead, I’d say Julia Child and/or Eddie Izzard. I know, random! Julia Child would get a simple and standard Jewish meal of brisket, kugel, matzoh ball soup, and kishke. Eddie Izzard though, he’s a bit more difficult. I’d be tempted to cook something very “executive” (Eddie fans will get that) or something with Jam.

Annabel from Feed Me, I’m Cranky asked: I would like to know how you met your hubby! Adam and I actually met in college… but the story isn’t that simple! We met probably multiple times at multiple parties, but neither of us particularly remember, for various reasons. Then, in 2004, sick and tired of dating the “wrong” people, I signed up on JDate. I paid for 3 months, went on COUNTLESS bad dates (seriously, go read that guest post from Jessie’s blog, whose blogiversary is today!) and upon getting the “renew now!” email, I decided to cancel. I had 2 weeks left on my subscription when I got this message from this adorable guy saying “Hey, you went to Bradley and look really familiar. Here’s my IM, let’s chat sometime.” Turned out that this adorable guy was Adam, we had DOZENS of people and stories in common, and figured out quite a few times we’d met before.

Do you ever get scared that you’ll never get to where you want to be? I sometimes feel like I am on a hamster wheel and sometimes I feel like my life, my weight, everything is GREAT and then another week I feel like it is horrible. I wish sometimes I could just be….do you ever have those same fears? This is such a loaded question! There is part of me that wants to say “yes, I get terrified that I’m not really that good at my job, that I’ll be overweight forever, and really don’t want to stay ‘here’ for much longer.” Then, there’s another part of me saying that this, right now, is really the most wonderful things have ever been for me… While yes, sometimes things just suck, and sometimes I get scared, when I get that “hamster wheel” feeling, I make a conscious effort to just get off of it. Change something. Do something I’m scared of.

I’ve been on and off of Weight Watchers for years- and it works really well for me, when I’m that point-counting mode- which is hard to do every single day! How’s your new style of eating going? See any results yet? Can you tell us what you typically eat throughout the day? Thanks! UGH POINT COUNTING MODE!! I know that all too well! I get on the whole Point thing fairly easily, and fall off easily too! I just hate having to overanalyze everything that goes in my mouth. My new eating style is going very very well! According to my bathroom scale (which I get on maybe 2-3 times a week, but really only “take” my Saturday morning weight) I lost 4.5 lbs in my first week eating the way I do. A typical day for me on this plan is:

Breakfast: 2 eggs and 1 egg white scrambled with about 1 c. cooked spinach and 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms, 2 pieces bacon, coffee with half-and-half

Lunch: Usually leftovers from dinner, including additional vegetables. Today was about 2 sliced green peppers and some leftover Italian beef

Snack: Today was a handful of raw almonds. Some days its beef jerky (DYING to try those PrimeSnax that MizFit loves!), some days its avocado or vegetables.

Dinner: Most of you know my dinners already!

As a kid, what was your favorite family meal ? Mine was spag with meat sauce That’s easy. My absolute favorite family meal that was a never-fail, smile on my face meal was when my mom roasted chicken, made garlic roasted potatoes, asparagus, and fillets. My grandma made a very similar meal too, and no matter who made it, I always loved it!

WOW I’m long-winded today… thanks for sticking with me, and don’t forget to Ask Me Anything! I’m LOVING answering all this stuff!

Have a fantastic evening! We’re supposed to get about 8 inches of snow… nothing like you East Coasters, but it still might be enough for a snow day. Keep your fingers crossed!

Technorati Tags: ask me, cheese, dinner, friends, fun, simple recipe, vegetables, weight loss

19 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, February 8th 2010 | Tags: ask me, cheese, dinner, friends, fun, simple recipe, vegetables, weight loss
Posted in chicken/turkey, friends, simple recipe, weight loss

A Classic, Deconstructed

Just going to be honest with you here… I have the Super Bowl on right now, but only to listen for commercial breaks! The commercials are all that my students will talk about tomorrow, and I have to be up on what was shown! Apparently, I already missed a couple…

Since we’re not having a Super Bowl party, or going to one, I wanted to use today to make something I can use throughout the week in lunches or various dinners, so I polled on Facebook and Twitter about what to make. I had it narrowed down to two possibilities: slow-cooker BBQ pork or slow-cooker Italian beef. The response was overwhelmingly in favor of the Italian beef, but my decision was made up for me by the recipes. The key to good BBQ flavor is a touch of sweetness…brought by brown sugar. This eating plan I’m following leaves little wiggle room for extra sugar, and since I’m doing so well so far, I didn’t want to risk it!

Italian Beef is a Chicago staple, slightly different from the more well-known French Dip sandwich. The beef has a very spiced broth it’s slow-cooked in, and the sandwiches are, to the purists, served “wet” with sweet green peppers and sometimes mozzarella cheese. It’s been a long time since I’ve had good Italian beef, even though we live down the street from one of the best: Portillo’s.

I perused AllRecipes.comand myrecipes.com for various Italian beef recipes, and they ranged from super simple to quite complicated. I went with a variation on one of the simpler ones. Now, first is a picture of Adam’s Italian Beef, served more classically with no peppers, but plenty of juice, a crusty roll, and some mozzarella:

And then, what I ate. I had a bed of cooked green peppers topped with the Italian beef, then a bit of cheese. Ok, more than a bit of cheese… I like cheese.

It had all the classic flavor of the sandwich I wanted without any of the bread… Italian beef was a good choice! The recipe is simple:

Italian Beef

Ingredients

5 lb. beef roast, I used top round

3 c. water

1 packet Italian dressing mix

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. ground mustard

1 tsp. red pepper

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper

Directions

Add the beef to a large crock pot. Add water and remaining ingredients to a pot and bring to a boil. Pour over the beef, then cook on low 8-10 hours or on high 4-6 hours. Shred with two forks and serve.

I thoroughly enjoyed my deconstructed non-sandwich, and Adam loved his actual sandwich. I’m thinking this recipe is a keeper. That is, unless I get so sick of eating shredded Italian beef this week that I never want to see it again.

Don’t forget to click the “Save It” button above to save this recipe on your SpringPad! (You all have accounts now, right?)

I got one more anonymous question, as well as an un-needed apology. The girl who asked me the question I answered Friday about the pressure to look a certain way for my wedding thought that SHE was the one I was referring to when I mentioned the fat bride question. That wasn’t the case at all! I got a SEPARATE question asking “What was it like to be a fat bride?” and not the thoughtful one you asked. So, whoever you are, I’m not mad!! Your apology was very sweet, and definitely made me smile.

Hi! Do you want to have kids some day? Any timeline?

My mom will be very happy to read that YES we want to have kids some day! We’re thinking about maybe starting to try in about 2 years when Adam is done with grad school and has a steady job, and (knock on wood) I’m tenured at my current job. It’s definitely in the cards, just not right now.

Feel free to ask me anything!

I’m off to watch The Who perform at half time… I love that these guys are still performing!

Technorati Tags: ask me, beef, cheese, Chicago dining, crockpot, dinner, sandwich, simple, simple recipe

11 Comments

Mara @ What's For Dinner?, February 7th 2010 | Tags: ask me, beef, cheese, Chicago dining, crockpot, dinner, sandwich, simple, simple recipe
Posted in beef, simple recipe

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