Re-Inventing Ramen

I'm not sure why the flood of cooking posts lately, but I'm going with it.  Last night I was in the mood for Asian cuisine.  However, I was not in the mood to spend money at a restaurant or the grocery.  So, I had to work with what I had. I found a recipe online and just tweaked it like I usually do, to more of my style.

1. Saute edamame beans, frozen peas, frozen sliced carrots, and any other vegetables you'd like with a tablespoon of butter until tender.

2. Then add 2 cups of water and the ramen noodles.  Cook noodles until fully cooked.

3. Drain some, not all, of the water out of the pan and return to stovetop.

4. Add the ramen flavor packet and a little bit of either soy or teriyaki sauce.  Simmer for a few minutes.

5. Serve and enjoy!  I eat with chopsticks when I am at home so I can practice in the comfort of my own home instead of looking foolish at my local hibachi. 

This dish was so easy and scrumptious that I made it two nights in a row.  Serve with eggrolls, sushi or eat it by itself.  And with the bad economy, a meal that it's main ingredient only costs 20 cents a package, not too bad. 

Warning: I am a nerd

The day has finally arrived.  Sorry folks, but I started reading these books when I was 13 years old.  My mother took me to see the first movie when I was in high school (because I didn't want any of my friends to know that I was into the Harry Potter series).  Now that I am older I am much more open with my love for the series.  And, I even got the husband into them.  The movies anyway, because they are just really good films.  I am unable to go to the midnight showings because I have a job to go in the mornings so I have to wait until this evening.  Is it 7:30 yet???  

Alas, I don't dress up in the costumes nor do I make t-shirts.  My mother and I get there early to make sure we snag a good seat and have popcorn, candy and soda for dinner.  Super healthy I know, but these movies only premiere so many times and now it's the end.

I know I will be crying, I am a cryer.  But I am very much looking forward to it.  I am also looking forward to hanging out with one of my besties at the pool all day tomorrow, ah I love the pool!  Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Bomb Diggity Grown Up Grilled Cheese

Now that I have your attention with the most clever post title ever.....

Every now and then the husband and I don't really feel like cooking a full course representing all the basic food groups, we just want something delicious and fast.  And for those nights we don't want our "eat like a kindergartener" food (which consists of peanut butter jelly sandwiches and mac-n-cheese) and our palette is feeling more adult, we came up with an alternative.  Using the recipe I found here at the Pioneer Woman's tasty kitchen blog, the husband and I found a delicious way to make Grown-Up Grilled Cheese.  These take no time to make, in this post I will show you my adjustments to the recipe.  Enjoy!

Round 'em up.  No I didn't pick that red paint color, ew.

The recipe calls for fontina cheese, but I most likely have either cheddar or mozzarella on hand.  I chose mozzarella for this sandwich of course and began to shred away (you could also just use the already bagged shredded mozzarella, but I did not have that in my refrigerator).  

This is the second time using cheese grater.

Another adjustment was my bread, since I am not prone to having ciabatta bread around I just used my good 'ol wheat bread.  Although I bet the thick sliced ciabatta bread would give this sandwich a delicious crunch, texture and flavor.  Please try it with ciabatta if you haven't to have it or pick it up at your bakery.  So just spread each slice with pesto on one side.  

Thank goodness pesto is legal, yum.

Spread olives over one slice.  I prefer green and kalamata olives, so I put them on my sandwich.  The husband likes black olives, so we like to customize according to our needs.

olive you.

Then sprinkle cheese over the olives.

Oh cheese.

This is where I get crazy, in lieu of a tomato slice we put pepperoni's on our sandwich.  What you say?  It really brings out the Italian in us though.  But our main reason, my husband was unsure of the sogginess factor from the tomato.  I bet it would be fine, he is just paranoid.  Do what makes you happy on your Grown-Up Grilled Cheese.

nom nom

Another difference, I do not have a panini maker so I used a frying pan.  I warmed a small amount of olive oil and fresh ground black pepper in the pan.  Placed the other slice of pesto covered bread on the pepperoni's and placed in pan. I basically cook like a grilled cheese from this point out, making sure all the cheese is oh so gooey and the bread is grilled and crunchy.  Once this is done, remove from pan and serve!

my mouth is watering.

 We serve our Grown-Up Grilled Cheeses with a fresh salad and that tomato we didn't use, we just put on the side of our salad!  So I apologize for taking a recipe and tearing it to shreds, but that's what makes cooking so much fun.  Experimentation is wonderful, especially when your husband is a willing guinea pig.

Talk Turkish To Me

Ever since I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe I have wanted to try Turkish delight.  When Edmund was asked to choose one item to eat, he chose Turkish delight.  In my mind I am wondering how good it must taste if that is the first thing to pop up in his mind.  My second thought, I want to try some and evaluate this for myself.  Alas, many years have passed and I have had yet to try it.  And my dream was almost forgotten until I was checking out a favorite blog of mine entitled Sprinkle Bakes.  The writer, Heather Baird, loves desserts and makes wonderful and beautiful desserts.  Check out her site a.s.a.p. it just makes you want to bake, or at least enjoy yummy sweets!

On June 6 of this year she did a Narnia post (link here) and made a beautiful white witch cake along with......you guessed it....Turkish Delight.  As I was reading the post, the directions and ingredients weren't so complicated that it scared me away.  Hallelujah! So of course I ran out and snagged the ingredients I was lacking to get started.  

Raring to go.

And what makes it even better, it is made in the microwave!

No oven needed here.

It was relatively easy to make, although I don't think my consistency was as thick as it needed to be before pouring into the pan. But it was my first time.  I used pink food coloring, but of course you could make it any color.

Does this remind anyone about Ghostbusters II?

I let mine set-up overnight which worked fine, but I wasn't actually able to cut them into servings and toss them in cornstarch and powdered sugar until I got home from work.

So the verdict.......

They turned out beautiful that's for sure.  The recipe called to roll the cubes into powdered sugar and cornstarch, I think next time I would just stick to powdered sugar.  They are very sweet, I could see how Edmund a sugar loving pre-teen would request this dish.  My husband enjoyed them and as for me, I think I am still on the fence.  Because it is so sweet I could only stand one or two bites and I have a major sweet tooth.  Turkish Delight was fun to make and pretty to look at and I am prepared to make it if I am going to serve it.  It would be fun to have the Turkish Delight colored for your favorite college hoops team or wedding colors for a bridal shower.  Make it if you get a wild hare like me and just has to find out what something tastes like.

Peachy Keen

 Last Saturday the husband, pup and I went over to join my aunt, uncle and cousin at my parent's house for dinner.  Although the heat was stifling, it cooled down enough by dinner time to enjoy our meal patio side.  Marinated chicken, fresh farmer's market green beans, cornbread  (this cornbread recipe of my mom's is wonderful and I will have to post this separately!), coleslaw and corn-on-the-cob was served.  We were all so stuffed!  Everything was absolutely delicious, included our impromptu appetizer: my aunt had made pasta salad with pasta from the farmer's market, tons of veggies, Italian dressing, basil oil and herbs. She threw all the ingredients in a bowl, tossed and the result was scrumptious! 

Everything was so wonderful I wasn't sure how dessert could compare, but oh how surprised I was!  My aunt had purchased fresh peaches from the farmer's market that morning and cut each one in half and removed the pit.  My father lit up the grill and placed each half face down on the grill until grill marks were made, this took about 6 minutes on high heat.  He continued to turn them over the check on how they were looking.  Then my aunt mixed Marscapone, cinnamon, honey and some powdered sugar in a bowl.  Adding each ingredient as necessary for taste.  Then placing the peaches face up so the grill marked were exposed, she dolloped a helping of the Marscapone  mixture on each peach and served immediately.  

My aunt and uncle just returned from Germany and brought a delicious summer sweet wine called Sommer Zeit, it went wonderfully with the peaches.  I hope to make this at my own house very soon!

Fauxbulous

I have been introduced to a wonderful blog and I want to share the love.  It is called You Are Not A Photographer and is fantastic.  The blog description is:

"Have you noticed how 50 girls you went to school with have set up shop as a "professional" photographer? Having a DSLR does not make you a professional photographer. We're outing these no talents with daily pictures from the worst of the web. We only post pictures that were from a photography "business," and we use that term lightly. Maybe you are one of those photographers. Have a good laugh at yourself. You submit the photos, and we provide the snark."

From a June 20, 2011 post.

Below each photo is a clever line:

"A close up of my kid’s slobber, I’ll treasure it forever.   Yes, this is seriously from a professional photographer.  I think this one will be tough, but how could the fauxtog improved this?"

These folks worthy of making it to this blog are deemed as fauxtographers. If you know a fauxtographer, are in need of a laugh, or you yourself are guilty of committing these acts please visit this site.  They are there to educate and help, not just to mock.  Although its hard not to think about the people that actually pay for some of these photos to be taken.  Enjoy!

A Delightful Distraction

Having one curious young pup named Hudson can lead to all sorts of ways to entertain the youngster.  On this particular afternoon, our little fur child was rambunctious and wanted to chew on everything in his sight.  The husband and I led him to the backyard for some physical exertion which immediately backfired.  Hudson began finding items he wasn't allowed to have and running around the yard with them in his mouth.  My husband brought him an ice cube to play with and eat, then my husband went back inside.  Hudson happily chewed on the cube then perked his ears up once my husband opened the back door to join us back outside.  My husband had the ice cube tray over his shoulder and walked into the middle of the yard and dumped our entire stock of ice cubes into the yard.

See.

 

 

 

 

 

 Hudson was in dog heaven! He didn't know where to start, so he just started circling the pile and licking all of them.

If you can't tell he is smiling.

The ice cubes kept sticking to his warm furry paws and he tried to kick them off all the while still licking every single ice cube.

Have at it furchild.

After touching at least every ice cube, the husband dispersed them throughout the yard using a Frisbee.  This made is look like it was raining ice cubes and Hudson happily jumped up and down trying to catch them as they fell.  It was very entertaining for both us and the pup, I recommend this to all puppy owners looking for a moment of sanity and laughter.  Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Hudson lending a paw to me at my office.

Green with Envy

Green is my favorite color so of course it was a color in my wedding.  I combined it with charcoal, ivory (versus white due to my dress color) and a deep purple (to add tones using flowers and accessories).  A co-worker of mine is planning her wedding for next year and she also shares a love of green, so therefore it will play an integral role in her wedding color wise.  She will be using black to pair with the green, I wanted to show some inspiring photos for others who share our love of green.  When using such a bright color you need to be careful not to drench the place, making it look like the wicked witch had been there.  But rather subtle touches, beautiful centerpieces, table runners & chair sashes are wonderful ways of brightening up a reception hall without being too overbearing.  This is where your secondary colors take their part and support your scheme.  Here's to happy planning!  I just love weddings! Le sigh.

I love this cake and the white chocolate covered apples, beautiful.

I am a sucker for paper lanterns and pops of green on chair sashes work wonders.

All about simplicity.  Centerpieces house the beautiful color here.

Green apple prop with bride and groom, super cute and colorful.

The Best Giveaway

I am a daily ready of Shasta Anne's blog, link here.  She gives great skincare, makeup and fashion tips practically daily.  Check out her blog and like me, become a dedicated follower.  Also, she has great giveaways!  July is for a Clarisonic Pro Brush!  If you are an avid reader, tweeter, or a fellow blogger you have many opportunities to win any of her giveaways.  Hopefully I can start giveaways one day!  Giving gifts to improve people's lives gives you such a great feeling. So check her out today and enjoy reading!  Have a great week everyone!

Such a great skincare tool.

Independence & Sweet Daisies

I hope everyone's Independence Day was wonderful.  Saturday we attended a cousin's wedding here in Lexington, which was a blast.  We wish nothing but the best for the new couple who are off to live in Germany.  The husband and I enjoyed having our friends over on Sunday for a cookout and to also enjoy our new deck patio complete with a fireworks show we can see from our backyard. Our actual Fourth was spent relaxing and lazing about, and we haven't done that in a long time.  It was wonderful! 

As I have mentioned before my BFF is tying the knot and we are pulling ideas for her big day for next year.  Her favorite flower are daisies.  Sweet, Simple and Symmetrical.  I have pulled some beautiful arrangements and bouquet ideas.  Since we know that is a flower she will and must be using, I thought it would be a great starting point for color combinations for her other decorations, invitations and etc. 

My favorite. Black, white and green.

What an simple fast centerpiece.  Brings in black to the scheme.

Combined with sunflowers and red.  Beautiful for a fall wedding.

Most appropriate with daisies, yellow and green accents.  Of course lots of white as well.

Great way to mark table with metal bucket and jelly beans add color accents.

Gorgeous Bouquet.  Hints of purple and small white tea roses.

Happy Hour

 This afternoon I am meeting my mom at the Jean Farris Winery here in Lexington off of Old Richmond Road.  The winery and bistro has been dubbed Best Dining in Kentucky, and I agree.  The atmosphere, cuisine and wine is to the highest standard.  I enjoy every experience I have there.  My mother and I are just partaking in their "happy hour" from 3-6 to enjoy some wine, appetizers, cheese and maybe a dessert.  My husband treated me to a lovely dinner here for my birthday last year and it was very romantic and lovely.  We just talked on the patio for hours enjoying everything.  Including the live entertainment!  The winery provides live musicians, elevating the atmosphere and providing musicians an artistic outlet. If you get an opportunity to visit, please do, it does not disappoint.  But at least, taste the wine!  My palette at this point is not very developed (I am working on it), but every wine was delicious (and my parents palette, which is advanced, love the wine offerings from Jean Farris).  Happy Friday to everyone!