Give it a try...

I made a great dinner, if I do say so myself, Tuesday night :) I even shared it with my friends Nate & Abigail. The main event on the menu tonight was Turkey meatloaf, a recipe I discovered thanks to my friend Tangee. I also made fresh green beans and mashed "potatoes"... They were actually mashed cauliflower. I absolutely could not believe how it turned out! They had a spice flavor to it, maybe I added too much pepper, but I could have eaten the whole bowl! I think Nate & Abigail were surprised as well. I highly recommend trying this recipe out!

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Cauliflower mashed "potatoes"

1 head cauliflower
1/8 skim milk
1-2 Tablespoons butter
Salt & WHITE pepper

Chop up and cook cauliflower until fork tender, I put in microwave safe dish with a little bit of water at the bottom and cooked in microwave for about 6-8 minutes. Place cauliflower, skim milk, butter, salt and pepper in food processor. Whip until smooth. Pour cauliflower into small baking dish and serve!

2 weeks.... grrr

For those who have been following, I am trying to buy a house. No wonder they have to entice people with an $8000 first time home buyers tax credit, b/c the stuff I have had to do is ridiculous and there has been more than 1 time that I have thought about backing out. The house I am purchasing is in a flood zone, therefore I have to get flood insurance. I have been trying for weeks to understand home insurance and flood insurance, and just when I think I have it figured out and know who I am going with... They tell me FEMA is closed for 2 WEEKS!! Seriously? So they can not quote any flood policies or write any new ones in that time.. I am nearly ready to throw in the towel. Say a prayer I don't lose it...

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Update: It is not FEMA that is closed, our Senators are on Easter Break that is 2 weeks long... Apparently they did not get to all of the budgeting before break b/c they were wrapped up in the awful health care bill... good job guys.

Easter Treats

For those who read my blog, I am sure you think all I do is bake/cook, eat & vacation... I do much more than that on a daily basis. I work hard (so I can play hard) and I workout regularly, and STILL do not eat any of my treats. I find licking the bowl is much more rewarding than eating the actual treat. But none-the-less, here is my latest creation for the work crew, just in time for Easter.

RECIPE: Easter Nests (also called Haystacks without the eggs)

Ingredients:

- 1 cup butterscotch chips

- 1/2 cup peanut butter, I used natural peanut butter and used slightly less

- 1/2 cup peanuts, you could use crunchy peanut butter and forget this

- 2 cups chow mein noodles

- Reese's peanut butter cup eggs, only available at Easter. You could also use jelly beans or the other egg shaped candy.

Preparation:

- Microwave the butterscotch chips & peanut butter on 50% power for 3-5 minutes.

- Add remaining ingredients and blend to coat noodles.

- Drop by teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper and add your choice of candy

Tasty Tuesday

Here is the Bolognese Meat Sauce recipe I promised a week ago. It makes 2 heaping cups, which is about 6 servings. I actually doubled the recipe.

Ingredients

1 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons butter plus 1 tablespoon for tossing with the pasta
1/2 cup chopped onion
2/3 cup chopped celery
2/3 cup chopped carrot
3/4 pound ground beef chuck, not too lean (I used ground turkey)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup whole milk
Whole nutmeg for grating
1 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, cut up, with their juice
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds pasta
Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano at the table

Directions

1. Put the oil, butter, and chopped onion in a heavy-bottomed pot and turn the heat to medium. Cook and stir until the onion is translucent. Add the celery and carrot and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring to coat the vegetables with fat.

2. Add the meat, a large pinch of salt, and some freshly ground pepper. Break the meat up with a fork, stir well, and cook until the meat has lost its raw color.

3. Add the milk and let it simmer gently, stirring frequently, until it bubbles away completely (this took quite a while). Stir in about 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg.

4. Add the wine and let it simmer away (this took a while, too, but I did not want to raise the heat and boil the meat hard). When the wine has evaporated, stir in the tomatoes. (Cooking the meat in milk before adding the wine and tomatoes protects it from the acidic bite of the latter.) When they begin to bubble, turn the heat down so that the sauce cooks at the laziest of simmers, with just an intermittent bubble breaking through to the surface. Cook, uncovered, for 3 hours (or more—she says more is better), stirring from time to time. If the sauce begins to dry out, add 1/2 cup of water whenever necessary to keep it from sticking. At the end, there should be no water left, and the fat must separate from the sauce. Taste for salt.

5. Toss with cooked, drained pasta and the remaining tablespoon of butter. Serve freshly grated cheese at the table.

Go STATE!

If anyone knows me, they know that my blood runs purple through and through. I love my Alma Mater, Kansas State University. It is somewhat of a family tradition. My dad graduated from KSU, my big brother, me, my little sister is a Sophomore/Junior, and my little brother plans on attending as well. I feel very lucky that I was able to move back to the town that I went to college at and participate in watching my KSU Wildcats.

This year the Wildcats had an amazing basketball season. They made it to the Elite 8 but lost in that round. I was sad when we lost but then again, WE MADE IT TO THE ELITE 8!!! What an accomplishment. One of the greatest things about KSU are the fans. We are loyal, win or lose. Here is a video of our basketball boys coming home from Salt Lake last night. Is it sad it brought me to tears?



EMAW!!!!

Stressed? Try these foods.

I found this article online talking about what foods to eat if you are stressed. Not sure if it will completely rid you of stress, but could take the edge off.

Dark Chocolate - High in flavonoids, which are lauded for their relaxing properties (chamomile tea is another great source), chocolate also contains phenethylamine, a chemical that enhances your mood. The darker the chocolate, the more healthy substances you're getting in your diet, so look for bars that are 70 percent cacao or higher.

Skim Milk - Turns out that a glass of warm milk really is calming. One study found that women who drank four or more servings of lowfat or skim milk every day were about half as likely to experience stress-related PMS symptoms than those who drank less than one serving a week.

Oatmeal - Carbs help you produce serotonin, a calming hormone that helps fight anxiety's negative effects-which is probably why many of us crave them when we're stressed. Go with the craving and choose healthy sources. Oatmeal is high in fiber, which means that your body will absorb it slowly. In one fell swoop, you'll prolong the serotonin boost, keeping yourself feeling full for longer (and on less) and making sure your blood sugar's in check.

Salmon - Research shows that omega-3 fatty acids-abundant in fish like salmon-can help reverse stress symptoms by boosting serotonin levels, and that an omega-3-rich diet can also help suppress the production of the anxiety hormones cortisol and adrenaline.

Walnuts - They've been shown to help lower blood pressure, which is critical for those whose hearts are already working overtime thanks to high adrenaline levels. In fact, research so strongly backs their health benefits that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration goes so far as to recommend 1 1/2 oz per day.

Sunflower Seeds - A good source of folate, which helps your body produce a pleasure-inducing brain chemical called dopamine.

Spinach - Studies show that magnesium, which you'll find in leafy greens like spinach, improves your body's response to stress.

Blueberries - Their antioxidants counteract the effects of stress hormones like cortisol on your body.

Meeting Caroline

I got to meet my newest niece (her momma is my best friend). Please meet Caroline Reid. She is a cutie! When I got there her big sister Lydia was there too, and she wasn't so sure about this new little baby. I am sure it will only be a matter of time before Lydia is helping her mom with Caroline. And listening to Lydia say Caroline is the cutest!
I wish I would have taken a picture of her hair... Lots of DARK hair!

And the baby is...

A GIRL!!

Caroline Reid
8 lbs 2 oz
20.5 inches

I will post pictures after I go visit momma, daddy, big sister & her Tuesday.