The frustration continues. So, I totally meant to write last Thursday, but as you may know I didn't. I didn't because I was frustrated and confused and all aflutter. You see, I went to my interview Thursday afternoon and I was fine. I was calm, cool and confident. I got into the interview and they asked questions and I answered and all was going well. Then just as the interview was wrapping up, they said “And now we need a writing sample. We'll give you 30 minutes to write a one to two minute congratulatory speech on the opening of the new Kia plant in Georgia”. Wah?! To put this in perspective, a one minute speech is about a typed page worth of words. I also know absolutely nothing about Kia. If I had a couple hours, I could probably have whipped up a killer speech about whatever they wanted (clearly I like to write) but 30 minutes isn't even enough time to type out 2 pages worth of material let alone research something that you know nothing about. Well, I researched a little online and came up with some interesting facts about Kia and the new plant they built (they are the only plant in North America to put wood floors on the production line, which is apparently easier on the workers). I had just enough time to write about 2 paragraphs and they came and said time's up. The sentences were disjointed and not cohesive, there was no flow whatsoever, and I hadn't even put any sort of closing on the speech. I was sweating bullets. I know I can write (although it's been a long time since I've written any type of formal speech). I know I can research, and I know that measly handful of sentences was not my best work; it wasn't even mediocre. So, when I got home Thursday night I was in no mood to write or really do much of anything. I spent this whole weekend kicking myself. Ok, so I spent the whole weekend kicking myself minus the time that I partying hardy at a bachelorette party, and that was only because I was too drunk to do so. The kicking recommenced Sunday morning with the added bonus of also getting to kick myself for drinking so much the night before.
Fast forward to yesterday... I got a call. They want to see me again Wednesday because the Consul General wants to ask a few more questions. Arg! How much longer can they string this along? The job is supposed to start this coming Monday. I suppose at least it isn't a no, but I'm not entirely sure what this means. My sister thinks it's so they can offer me the job in person (best case scenario). I think it's because they are waffling between candidates and want to ask more questions (most likely scenario). Of course, they could have been bored and decided to make a game of torturing me (worst case scenario). Meh!
So, needless to say, all I have been able to think about for the past several days has been this job. Clearly I will be thinking about it for a few more days. But... in the meantime you can make my newest recipe: Ranch Chicken. The guys liked it so much that they ran out (over 12lbs of chicken for 24 people).
Ranch Chicken
Serves 6
6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
2 packets of Ranch Salad Dressing Mix
2 cups Milk
2 cups Low Fat or Fat Free Plain Yogurt
2 medium Tomatoes, sliced
12 slices of Bacon
1 cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Mix together the dressing mix, milk and yogurt. Flatten chicken breasts between two sheets of waxed paper until chicken breasts are an even thickness. Pour over the chicken and refrigerate for 1-3 hours.
Remove chicken and shake off any extra dressing. Broil for approximately 7 minutes per side or until chicken is cooked through. Top each breast with a couple slices of tomato, a couple slices of bacon and a small handful of cheese. Return to the broiler and broil until cheese melts, 2-3 minutes.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
All We Ever Get is Gruel
I hope you guys had a pleasant labor day weekend. Ours was alright. We decided to make a trip up to Helen, Georgia to “tube the 'hootch” (the Chattahoochee River). We went the very first weekend in June and had a ton of fun. We had fun when we went this time too, but the fun was slightly marred by the serious traffic jam on the way up there. The only way in to town is by a two lane highway that winds through the “mountains” (having seen the Alps, the Rocky Mountains and the Grand Tetons, I refuse to call the large hills in North Georgia mountains) and it was jam packed with tourists. I was afraid that the river would be bumper to bumper inner tubes, but for as much traffic as was heading into Helen, there were surprisingly few people on the river. I think it's because the temperature that day was under 90 degrees. In fact, it barely hit 80 in Helen, and people in the south do not get in the water unless it's above 90 otherwise it's “too cold”. The water level was a lot lower than it was in June and the river was almost unrecognizable. The June river was ice cold, fast and deep; the September river was warm, shallow and slow. We went around the rocks rather than over them (somewhat less terrifying). All in all it was a beautiful day and a lovely chilly night. Now I'm back at work and it's hot and muggy again with no reprieve in sight.
Because a week can't go by at the frat without some sort of drama, there's been some on-going drama at the frat. It all started at the end of my first week. Knowing how forget full and disorganized the guys are, I reminded them several times to get the paperwork in to the people that pay me so they would be sure to send a check this past Friday. Friday came and there was no check. Shocking! Needless to say, I was livid. Then, because apparently I wasn't angry enough, they said they had a new way they wanted to serve lunch. I guess they'd been having problems with people on half meal plans eating when they weren't supposed too and people taking more than they were supposed to; all of which led to some people not getting their meals and going hungry. Of course, who knew what meals the people on half meal plan were supposed to eat and weren't supposed to eat because they hadn't signed up for them yet and the steward hadn't gotten me the numbers. I had a number of problems with this. To begin with, it's more work for me (they told me this Friday right after they told me I was getting paid). Then, it is impossible to keep stuff warm once it's been portioned out. So unless people get there at 10:30am when I put the meals out, everyone will be getting cold food. Third, there are certain dishes that are impossible to portion out because it depends on the person's taste. For example, I'm going to have sub sandwiches for lunch tomorrow. I know that there are some people that don't like ham and there are some people that don't like turkey and some people that like both. I also don't know how each person likes their sandwich. Normally, I set out plates of meat and cheese and dishes with all the different condiments and veggies. The same goes for pizza or chips; do I put fruit and veggies on each plate. What if the person doesn't like fruit or veggies? I've considered getting a bunch of cheap dog dishes, writing each person's name on them and then just slopping food in. Perhaps I should just serve gruel. No one would steal that and it wouldn't matter if it was hot or cold because it's disgusting either way.
Side note: My big interview is tomorrow. So, I would request that if you could pray/ keep your fingers crossed/ do a “get Kristy a job at the consulate” rain dance; I would appreciate it. I would really like a job that actually pays me and doesn't force me to serve gruel in dog dishes. Thanks!
P.S. I'll be posting a recipe tomorrow. I made it for the guys tonight and want to make sure they ate it and I didn't kill them or anything ;-)
Because a week can't go by at the frat without some sort of drama, there's been some on-going drama at the frat. It all started at the end of my first week. Knowing how forget full and disorganized the guys are, I reminded them several times to get the paperwork in to the people that pay me so they would be sure to send a check this past Friday. Friday came and there was no check. Shocking! Needless to say, I was livid. Then, because apparently I wasn't angry enough, they said they had a new way they wanted to serve lunch. I guess they'd been having problems with people on half meal plans eating when they weren't supposed too and people taking more than they were supposed to; all of which led to some people not getting their meals and going hungry. Of course, who knew what meals the people on half meal plan were supposed to eat and weren't supposed to eat because they hadn't signed up for them yet and the steward hadn't gotten me the numbers. I had a number of problems with this. To begin with, it's more work for me (they told me this Friday right after they told me I was getting paid). Then, it is impossible to keep stuff warm once it's been portioned out. So unless people get there at 10:30am when I put the meals out, everyone will be getting cold food. Third, there are certain dishes that are impossible to portion out because it depends on the person's taste. For example, I'm going to have sub sandwiches for lunch tomorrow. I know that there are some people that don't like ham and there are some people that don't like turkey and some people that like both. I also don't know how each person likes their sandwich. Normally, I set out plates of meat and cheese and dishes with all the different condiments and veggies. The same goes for pizza or chips; do I put fruit and veggies on each plate. What if the person doesn't like fruit or veggies? I've considered getting a bunch of cheap dog dishes, writing each person's name on them and then just slopping food in. Perhaps I should just serve gruel. No one would steal that and it wouldn't matter if it was hot or cold because it's disgusting either way.
Side note: My big interview is tomorrow. So, I would request that if you could pray/ keep your fingers crossed/ do a “get Kristy a job at the consulate” rain dance; I would appreciate it. I would really like a job that actually pays me and doesn't force me to serve gruel in dog dishes. Thanks!
P.S. I'll be posting a recipe tomorrow. I made it for the guys tonight and want to make sure they ate it and I didn't kill them or anything ;-)
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
She's Baaaack!
So I'm back at the frat. I don't want to be back at the frat. I really dislike that I'm back at the frat. It isn't better. It's actually worse. There's no internet. What am I supposed to do with my time if I can't look up mindless drivel and play Wordworm? Of course, there's already been drama. They couldn't decide when I started, and then they couldn't decide how often I was working. And of course they didn't know how many people were eating when (and they still don't), and they weren't terribly sure what the budget was. Oy... welcome back to work, right? The good news is, it might not be forever. I have an interview next week. Woot! But, I don't have the job in the bag yet. I'm only hoping... praying... wishing... crossing fingers, toes, eyes, the beams from my nuclear ghost-catching backpacks, etc. I would totally ask all of you to put in a good word for me at my (hopefully) future place of employment, but then I realized that you read my blog and probably think I'm insane. So, that might not be a good idea.
I did find something out about the boys; there are guys at the frat that like vegetables. They will actually take large helpings of all things green. I knew they existed! I'm even fairly sure they aren't just figments of my imagination. While hiding in the lounge (the kitchen gets to be over 100 in the summer, requiring me to find someplace cool) a couple guys came in and they actually requested that I cook more veggies like broccoli. Of course one of them also requested that I cook less pork. Eh, less pork is not a very viable option as the guys won't eat fish and there's only so much you can do with just chicken and beef on my budget. The new steward also informed me that the guys requested that I make mac and cheese once a week. They are going to get really sick of it really fast. Or maybe they won't, but I'm pretty sure I'll get sick of making it. Homemade mac and cheese is somewhat labor intensive; it requires a lot of steps. I also tend to burn myself on the cheese sauce pot every time I make it.
I've decided to make a change to the way I do the blog. It simply isn't feasible to put up a new recipe every day. So, I'll probably put up a recipe once or twice a week. I haven't decided if I'll still put up thoughts every day. I'm not sure you want to hear me babel that often. I'll have to think about it.
Torture: (v) 1. To inflict pain 2. To cause anguish 3. To sit in a room with a fresh out of the oven apple cobbler and vanilla ice cream in the freezer but not be allowed to eat it.
I made apple crisp today. If it tastes half as good as it smells than it turned out divine. I didn't really have a recipe for it (as per usual) so when I got groceries I just kinda grabbed what I thought I might need. I used to make apple crisp back in the long long ago when I worked at a grocery store deli in high school. I remembered making large trays of it using apple pie filling and making a sort of crumb crust on top. Well, I haven't been able to find any industrial-sized cans of apple pie filling and the little ones are expensive. So I decided to go ahead and make it from scratch. Yeah, I've lost my marbles, I know. It really didn't end up being all that hard to make. Sure, peeling 8-10 lbs of apples wasn't particularly fun, but I used a one of those little utensils that cores and slices the apple which cut the steps down considerable. The end result was a gooey apple filling with a lovely cinnamon-y crunchy top. (Ok... Ok, so I stole a bite...) Lucky for you I wrote down the ingredients I used and the amounts, so you can make it too.
Apple Crisp
Serves... probably about 8
For the Filling:
8 medium Granny Smith Apples, about 2 lbs
1/8 cup Lemon Juice
2 TBS Flour
½ cup Brown Sugar
½ tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Allspice
¼ tsp Ginger
¼ tsp Nutmeg
¼ tsp Salt
½ cup Butter
For the Topping:
½ cup Flour
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 cup Rolled Oats
1 tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Nutmeg
½ cup Butter
Preheat the oven to 375. Grease a 9x13 pan. Peel, core and slice apples. Do not slice the apples too thin or they will disintegrate; slice the apples into 12ths or 16ths. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Mix lemon juice and sugar mix with apples until they are well coated. Spread the apples evenly over the pan. Cut the butter into small pieces and dot the apples with it.
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cut the butter into small chunks and add to the oat mixture. Using your hands (or a pastry cutter), cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles small crumbs. Sprinkle crumbs evenly over apples. Bake for 15 minutes then turn the temperature down to 350 and back for another 30 minutes. Crust should be golden brown and the apples should be soft. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
I did find something out about the boys; there are guys at the frat that like vegetables. They will actually take large helpings of all things green. I knew they existed! I'm even fairly sure they aren't just figments of my imagination. While hiding in the lounge (the kitchen gets to be over 100 in the summer, requiring me to find someplace cool) a couple guys came in and they actually requested that I cook more veggies like broccoli. Of course one of them also requested that I cook less pork. Eh, less pork is not a very viable option as the guys won't eat fish and there's only so much you can do with just chicken and beef on my budget. The new steward also informed me that the guys requested that I make mac and cheese once a week. They are going to get really sick of it really fast. Or maybe they won't, but I'm pretty sure I'll get sick of making it. Homemade mac and cheese is somewhat labor intensive; it requires a lot of steps. I also tend to burn myself on the cheese sauce pot every time I make it.
I've decided to make a change to the way I do the blog. It simply isn't feasible to put up a new recipe every day. So, I'll probably put up a recipe once or twice a week. I haven't decided if I'll still put up thoughts every day. I'm not sure you want to hear me babel that often. I'll have to think about it.
Torture: (v) 1. To inflict pain 2. To cause anguish 3. To sit in a room with a fresh out of the oven apple cobbler and vanilla ice cream in the freezer but not be allowed to eat it.
I made apple crisp today. If it tastes half as good as it smells than it turned out divine. I didn't really have a recipe for it (as per usual) so when I got groceries I just kinda grabbed what I thought I might need. I used to make apple crisp back in the long long ago when I worked at a grocery store deli in high school. I remembered making large trays of it using apple pie filling and making a sort of crumb crust on top. Well, I haven't been able to find any industrial-sized cans of apple pie filling and the little ones are expensive. So I decided to go ahead and make it from scratch. Yeah, I've lost my marbles, I know. It really didn't end up being all that hard to make. Sure, peeling 8-10 lbs of apples wasn't particularly fun, but I used a one of those little utensils that cores and slices the apple which cut the steps down considerable. The end result was a gooey apple filling with a lovely cinnamon-y crunchy top. (Ok... Ok, so I stole a bite...) Lucky for you I wrote down the ingredients I used and the amounts, so you can make it too.
Apple Crisp
Serves... probably about 8
For the Filling:
8 medium Granny Smith Apples, about 2 lbs
1/8 cup Lemon Juice
2 TBS Flour
½ cup Brown Sugar
½ tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Allspice
¼ tsp Ginger
¼ tsp Nutmeg
¼ tsp Salt
½ cup Butter
For the Topping:
½ cup Flour
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 cup Rolled Oats
1 tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Nutmeg
½ cup Butter
Preheat the oven to 375. Grease a 9x13 pan. Peel, core and slice apples. Do not slice the apples too thin or they will disintegrate; slice the apples into 12ths or 16ths. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Mix lemon juice and sugar mix with apples until they are well coated. Spread the apples evenly over the pan. Cut the butter into small pieces and dot the apples with it.
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cut the butter into small chunks and add to the oat mixture. Using your hands (or a pastry cutter), cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles small crumbs. Sprinkle crumbs evenly over apples. Bake for 15 minutes then turn the temperature down to 350 and back for another 30 minutes. Crust should be golden brown and the apples should be soft. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Life Happens
Ok, so I know I promised you an oven baked fish recipe and a lower calorie mac and cheese recipe. Here’s what happened, it didn’t happen. Friday, the day I had planned to make these delicacies, was A. much to hot for extended oven baking and B. Tyler was supposed to be home at 6pm and he was, but then there was catastrophic failure at work and he had to go back in. So, we had pigs in a blanket because they were fast and didn’t require extended oven usage. Then this weekend was super busy, and it really didn’t happen. What can I say, life happens.
Oh by the way, a shout out to all mothers… Happy Mother’s Day! I would especially like to thank my mother. If you want to know where my love for cooking and creativity in the kitchen comes from, it is most definitely from my mother.
Speaking of life happens, I’m still out of work. Bah humbug. My parents are redoing their kitchen and wanted to repaint… basically the whole house. The problem, dad decided he really didn’t want to paint it himself. So, he asked me if I wanted to paint for a little extra cash. Ok… I’m not sure if I ever mentioned that I do not paint for a living and have never painted for a living. As a matter of fact, I’ve only ever had a few major home décor painting projects and I’ve never painted crown molding (eek, a ladder!). Perhaps I should also mention that my dad is a paint perfectionist. (Perhaps being a second generation in the paint industry has something to do with it). So to say that I was a little nervous getting started today is an understatement. While I don’t mind painting, I think I’d like a real job. Preferably not one an hour an a half away (the commute to my parent’s). Not that I'm not grateful to my excellent parents for enabling me to pay the rent... I'm just fairly sure that I want a real job at a desk not on top of a tall ladder painting crown molding.
The good news is I did come up with a new recipe this weekend. I made some Chicken Fajita Quesadillas. They turned out fabulous. I made them in the oven, which I think is an ingenious way to make quesadillas especially when you want to make several. They crisp up nicely and you only have to turn them once so there’s no worry about everything falling out. There’s also no need to get a silly quesadilla machine. Serve these with a little sour cream, guacamole and a margarita.
Chicken Fajita Quesadillas
Serves 4
1 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, cut into thin strips
3 cups Shredded Mexican Blend Cheese, divided
8-10 6-inch Tortillas
1 cup Bell Pepper (any color or a mix of colors) cut into strips
1 cup Onion, cut into thin strips
1 medium Tomato, cut into thin wedges
Fajita Mix (use store bought or you can make your own with the recipe below)
Vegetable Oil
Cooking Spray
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbs of oil over medium-high heat. Add the peppers and onions and sauté until onion is tender. Remove the vegetables from skillet and add a little extra oil. Brown chicken until cooked through. Add vegetables back into the pan along with the fajita mix and 3 tbs of water. Add in tomato wedges and simmer, uncovered for 3-5 minutes or until water is mostly evaporated. Spray the one side of each of the tortillas with cooking spray and arrange half of them, sprayed side down, on a greased cookie sheet. Using half of the cheese, spread equal amounts of cheese on each of the tortillas. Arrange a layer of chicken and vegetables on each tortilla (try to keep the layers as flat as possible to make for easier handling). Sprinkle the remaining cheese on the top of the chicken and vegetables and top with the remaining tortillas, sprayed side up. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, turning once halfway through.
Fajita Seasoning Mix
Note: I never seem to have a packet of taco or fajita seasoning on hand when I want it. But with the help of a little internet research, I found that I usually have all the ingredients I need for a good seasoning mix already in my cupboard, plus then I can control how spicy or salty the mix is.
This mix is the equivalent of one spice packet… seasons one pound of meat
1 ½ tsp Chili Powder (I used Chipotle Chili Powder for a smoky kick)
1 tsp Salt
½ tsp Ground Cumin
¼ tsp Onion Powder
½ tsp Garlic Powder
¼ tsp Black Pepper
A pinch of Ground Cayenne Pepper (Optional)
1 tbs Cornstarch
Mix ingredients together and use as you would a packet of fajita seasoning
Oh by the way, a shout out to all mothers… Happy Mother’s Day! I would especially like to thank my mother. If you want to know where my love for cooking and creativity in the kitchen comes from, it is most definitely from my mother.
Speaking of life happens, I’m still out of work. Bah humbug. My parents are redoing their kitchen and wanted to repaint… basically the whole house. The problem, dad decided he really didn’t want to paint it himself. So, he asked me if I wanted to paint for a little extra cash. Ok… I’m not sure if I ever mentioned that I do not paint for a living and have never painted for a living. As a matter of fact, I’ve only ever had a few major home décor painting projects and I’ve never painted crown molding (eek, a ladder!). Perhaps I should also mention that my dad is a paint perfectionist. (Perhaps being a second generation in the paint industry has something to do with it). So to say that I was a little nervous getting started today is an understatement. While I don’t mind painting, I think I’d like a real job. Preferably not one an hour an a half away (the commute to my parent’s). Not that I'm not grateful to my excellent parents for enabling me to pay the rent... I'm just fairly sure that I want a real job at a desk not on top of a tall ladder painting crown molding.
The good news is I did come up with a new recipe this weekend. I made some Chicken Fajita Quesadillas. They turned out fabulous. I made them in the oven, which I think is an ingenious way to make quesadillas especially when you want to make several. They crisp up nicely and you only have to turn them once so there’s no worry about everything falling out. There’s also no need to get a silly quesadilla machine. Serve these with a little sour cream, guacamole and a margarita.
Chicken Fajita Quesadillas
Serves 4
1 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, cut into thin strips
3 cups Shredded Mexican Blend Cheese, divided
8-10 6-inch Tortillas
1 cup Bell Pepper (any color or a mix of colors) cut into strips
1 cup Onion, cut into thin strips
1 medium Tomato, cut into thin wedges
Fajita Mix (use store bought or you can make your own with the recipe below)
Vegetable Oil
Cooking Spray
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbs of oil over medium-high heat. Add the peppers and onions and sauté until onion is tender. Remove the vegetables from skillet and add a little extra oil. Brown chicken until cooked through. Add vegetables back into the pan along with the fajita mix and 3 tbs of water. Add in tomato wedges and simmer, uncovered for 3-5 minutes or until water is mostly evaporated. Spray the one side of each of the tortillas with cooking spray and arrange half of them, sprayed side down, on a greased cookie sheet. Using half of the cheese, spread equal amounts of cheese on each of the tortillas. Arrange a layer of chicken and vegetables on each tortilla (try to keep the layers as flat as possible to make for easier handling). Sprinkle the remaining cheese on the top of the chicken and vegetables and top with the remaining tortillas, sprayed side up. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, turning once halfway through.
Fajita Seasoning Mix
Note: I never seem to have a packet of taco or fajita seasoning on hand when I want it. But with the help of a little internet research, I found that I usually have all the ingredients I need for a good seasoning mix already in my cupboard, plus then I can control how spicy or salty the mix is.
This mix is the equivalent of one spice packet… seasons one pound of meat
1 ½ tsp Chili Powder (I used Chipotle Chili Powder for a smoky kick)
1 tsp Salt
½ tsp Ground Cumin
¼ tsp Onion Powder
½ tsp Garlic Powder
¼ tsp Black Pepper
A pinch of Ground Cayenne Pepper (Optional)
1 tbs Cornstarch
Mix ingredients together and use as you would a packet of fajita seasoning
Thursday, May 6, 2010
This Is The Blog That Doesn't End...
So, things are going to change a little here at Adventures in Gourmand Cooking. Yesterday was my last day working at the fraternity for the semester, and I’m not due back until late August (if I choose to go back). So, for the summer, it’ll be just you and me, and possibly all of Newton County, Georgia. My darling hubby, the web guy at The Covington News and offered me up to be the “food blogger” for their website. His department recently doubled (as in there was one and now there are two), and this new lady has worked for several larger publications and wanted to put into practice at The Covington News what had worked for some of the larger publications. Namely, several different blogs that would appeal to different ages and interest groups. Sadly, the position wouldn’t be paid… exactly. The food would be paid for, so we have the potential of getting one to two meals for free a week. I’m perfectly alright with that. The part that makes me nervous is they want to go high tech with it. Tyler’s boss wanted to have video of me cooking. Ummm, that might be the worst idea ever. First, we have a small, rather ugly kitchen. The countertops are probably as old as my grandparents and the washer and dryer are right next to the stove. Plus I have no desire to be on video. I would have to dress nicely and wear make up. At home I usually cook in oversized pajama pants, one of Tyler’s t-shirts and puppy slippers. Also, I’m a messy cook, and there could be no do-overs. I wouldn’t mind photos, you can crop and edit things out of photos. You can stage photos so you can’t see the laundry basket full of underpants and socks. I don’t have to be in the photos. I can still wear puppy slippers. I would also have to scour the local Goodwill and Salvation army to find some interesting dishes to use in the photographs. Well, the idea has me nervous, but it has potential.
For final frat boys news until next fall:
I made homemade cinnamon rolls for the guys Wednesday. I used the recipe from ThePioneerWoman.com. Mmmm… these cinnamon rolls really are the best. They take a little time to make, but are well worth the wait. The minute I walked in the door on Wednesday, I was accosted by a frat boy, “Cinnamon rolls!?”. That was all he could say. I think he was worried he wouldn’t be able to get one before he had to take some evil GA Tech final. He started talking about analyzing cinnamon rolls in some sort of unheard of mathematic way. I think he may have lost his mind somewhere between over studying for his final and anticipation of cinnamon rolls. Shortly thereafter another frat boy came in and demanded to know when they would be done. I was up to my elbows in dough and flour and threatened to throw wads of dough at him. When I did start putting out the pans, the boys came trickling down. I saw two boys take a couple of forks and one whole pan of cinnamon rolls and head back upstairs. The poor sausage patties I put out were sadly ignored. There’s something about pan after pan of warm fragrant cinnamon rolls that just makes a tray of sausage patties seem a little pathetic. I had brought some of my own ingredients and had made some dough specifically for Tyler and I. Last time I made cinnamon rolls for the guys, Tyler was upset that I didn’t make any for us, so this time I wasn’t going to make that mistake.
An update on the landlord situation: Our old landlord finally got us our check. In the end, Tyler had to go and get it. I wasn’t able to do it because I had to take the bus to work and wouldn’t be able to get back (as we’re down to one car for the moment). He (Tyler) wasn’t particularly happy about this arrangement; he hates confrontation of any sort and has some sort of phobia of landlords. I would imagine if I had gone, I would have said something nasty as a parting thought because, while I don’t like conflict, if you get me riled up enough it takes me a while to settle down. So, perhaps it’s all for the best that Tyler went.
I am making Spicy Breaded Baked Fish for tomorrow and Lower Fat Mac and Cheese tomorrow, so I will give you those recipes (and possibly pictures) tomorrow.
I'm going to go have a cinnamon roll and some milk.
P.S. Can you guess what song I referenced in this post's title?
For final frat boys news until next fall:
I made homemade cinnamon rolls for the guys Wednesday. I used the recipe from ThePioneerWoman.com. Mmmm… these cinnamon rolls really are the best. They take a little time to make, but are well worth the wait. The minute I walked in the door on Wednesday, I was accosted by a frat boy, “Cinnamon rolls!?”. That was all he could say. I think he was worried he wouldn’t be able to get one before he had to take some evil GA Tech final. He started talking about analyzing cinnamon rolls in some sort of unheard of mathematic way. I think he may have lost his mind somewhere between over studying for his final and anticipation of cinnamon rolls. Shortly thereafter another frat boy came in and demanded to know when they would be done. I was up to my elbows in dough and flour and threatened to throw wads of dough at him. When I did start putting out the pans, the boys came trickling down. I saw two boys take a couple of forks and one whole pan of cinnamon rolls and head back upstairs. The poor sausage patties I put out were sadly ignored. There’s something about pan after pan of warm fragrant cinnamon rolls that just makes a tray of sausage patties seem a little pathetic. I had brought some of my own ingredients and had made some dough specifically for Tyler and I. Last time I made cinnamon rolls for the guys, Tyler was upset that I didn’t make any for us, so this time I wasn’t going to make that mistake.
An update on the landlord situation: Our old landlord finally got us our check. In the end, Tyler had to go and get it. I wasn’t able to do it because I had to take the bus to work and wouldn’t be able to get back (as we’re down to one car for the moment). He (Tyler) wasn’t particularly happy about this arrangement; he hates confrontation of any sort and has some sort of phobia of landlords. I would imagine if I had gone, I would have said something nasty as a parting thought because, while I don’t like conflict, if you get me riled up enough it takes me a while to settle down. So, perhaps it’s all for the best that Tyler went.
I am making Spicy Breaded Baked Fish for tomorrow and Lower Fat Mac and Cheese tomorrow, so I will give you those recipes (and possibly pictures) tomorrow.
I'm going to go have a cinnamon roll and some milk.
P.S. Can you guess what song I referenced in this post's title?
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
UPDATE
Lunch: Chicken Quesadillas, Chips and Salsa
Dinner: Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti and Salad
UPDATE: So, when I arrived at my old landlord’s office yesterday just before 3:30pm, he wasn’t there. Apparently he goes home every day between 2 and 3. Urgh! He said he would call us and let us know when he was available. Well, there’s no way I could leave work early today (I have cinnamon rolls to prep), and I certainly wouldn’t be able to make it from downtown Atlanta all the way out to Conyers (where his office is located) at the drop of a hat. So, poor Tyler had to wake up early and take me to the bus. I must admit, I really don’t feel that bad for Tyler. He completely balked at the idea of having to wake up early, and I had to kindly point out that not only was this a one time deal, but that I have to get up that early every morning (and he’s always poking fun at me because I want to go to bed before 11pm). I hate only having one car.
In other news, the frat boys have run amuck. Apparently the stress of finals and the upcoming, relative freedom of summer has made them take leave of what little brains and civility they had. They completely cleaned out the fridge over the weekend, and by cleaned I mean ate everything they could find like a bunch of Hoover vacuums. So, if they’re short on chicken quesadillas today because those buttheads ate the tortillas and cheese (again with the cheese!), then I really don’t care. I’m feeling a bit of the end of semester lassez-faire as well. They want to eat the cheese and tortillas? Ok, I’ll put out a big bowl of canned chicken with taco seasoning and call it lunch. They also took an entire gallon of whole milk that was needed for cinnamon rolls. I sent the steward a quick e-mail letting him know I would be unable to make cinnamon rolls because we had no milk. Unsurprisingly, he went out and bought a gallon of milk right away. Ahh the power of cinnamon rolls! In order to discourage any further thieving, I left a note on the whiteboard: “Dear Lodge Inhabitants, If you remove or “borrow” any of the following ingredients, it will result in my being unable to make cinnamon rolls for tomorrow: sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, flour, butter, milk, maple and vanilla” Hopefully, that will deter them. I’m serious about not making cinnamon rolls if any of it’s missing, even if they only wanted a glass of milk.
Today’s recipe is oven-baked chicken parmesan. Tyler’s favorite “Italian” dish is chicken parmesan. I would bet anyone any amount of money that, no matter what Italian restaurant we go to, so long as they have chicken parmesan on the menu, that’s what he’s ordering. I wanted to make it for the guys, sautéing it in oil on the stove would take waaay to long. So I came up with this version. I adapted the coating from my chicken cordon bleu recipe. Dipping the chicken in butter and then in the breading makes the bread crumbs turn crispy (rather than soggy) in the oven. As a plus, because this recipe is done in the oven (rather than on the stove, dripping with oil) it’s also a little healthier. (Note: I said healthier, not calorie free, it still has butter and parmesan cheese). I used chicken tenders, but you can use chicken breasts. If you are using chicken breasts, I would pound them a little to make them thinner so the breading doesn’t burn while you’re waiting for the chicken to get done. This is also an excellent breading recipe for fish (you’ll have to adjust the time though).
Oven Baked Parmesan Cheese
Serves 6
1 ½ lbs Chicken Tenders
1 1/4 cups Bread Crumbs
1 ¼ cups Parmesan
2 ½ tbs Italian Seasoning
2 tsp Garlic Powder
1 cup Butter or Margarine, melted
Salt and Pepper to taste (you’ll only need a little salt because the cheese is salty)
Preheat oven to 350; lightly spray a shallow baking pan (or cookie sheet with sides) with cooking spray. Combine bread crumbs, parmesan, italian seasoning, garlic powder and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Dip chicken in butter and shake off excess. Roll chicken in bread crumb mixture being sure to thoroughly coat with bread crumbs and place on pan in a single layer. Bake for approx 20 minutes turning midway through. Serve with spaghetti and marinara sauce.
Dinner: Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti and Salad
UPDATE: So, when I arrived at my old landlord’s office yesterday just before 3:30pm, he wasn’t there. Apparently he goes home every day between 2 and 3. Urgh! He said he would call us and let us know when he was available. Well, there’s no way I could leave work early today (I have cinnamon rolls to prep), and I certainly wouldn’t be able to make it from downtown Atlanta all the way out to Conyers (where his office is located) at the drop of a hat. So, poor Tyler had to wake up early and take me to the bus. I must admit, I really don’t feel that bad for Tyler. He completely balked at the idea of having to wake up early, and I had to kindly point out that not only was this a one time deal, but that I have to get up that early every morning (and he’s always poking fun at me because I want to go to bed before 11pm). I hate only having one car.
In other news, the frat boys have run amuck. Apparently the stress of finals and the upcoming, relative freedom of summer has made them take leave of what little brains and civility they had. They completely cleaned out the fridge over the weekend, and by cleaned I mean ate everything they could find like a bunch of Hoover vacuums. So, if they’re short on chicken quesadillas today because those buttheads ate the tortillas and cheese (again with the cheese!), then I really don’t care. I’m feeling a bit of the end of semester lassez-faire as well. They want to eat the cheese and tortillas? Ok, I’ll put out a big bowl of canned chicken with taco seasoning and call it lunch. They also took an entire gallon of whole milk that was needed for cinnamon rolls. I sent the steward a quick e-mail letting him know I would be unable to make cinnamon rolls because we had no milk. Unsurprisingly, he went out and bought a gallon of milk right away. Ahh the power of cinnamon rolls! In order to discourage any further thieving, I left a note on the whiteboard: “Dear Lodge Inhabitants, If you remove or “borrow” any of the following ingredients, it will result in my being unable to make cinnamon rolls for tomorrow: sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, flour, butter, milk, maple and vanilla” Hopefully, that will deter them. I’m serious about not making cinnamon rolls if any of it’s missing, even if they only wanted a glass of milk.
Today’s recipe is oven-baked chicken parmesan. Tyler’s favorite “Italian” dish is chicken parmesan. I would bet anyone any amount of money that, no matter what Italian restaurant we go to, so long as they have chicken parmesan on the menu, that’s what he’s ordering. I wanted to make it for the guys, sautéing it in oil on the stove would take waaay to long. So I came up with this version. I adapted the coating from my chicken cordon bleu recipe. Dipping the chicken in butter and then in the breading makes the bread crumbs turn crispy (rather than soggy) in the oven. As a plus, because this recipe is done in the oven (rather than on the stove, dripping with oil) it’s also a little healthier. (Note: I said healthier, not calorie free, it still has butter and parmesan cheese). I used chicken tenders, but you can use chicken breasts. If you are using chicken breasts, I would pound them a little to make them thinner so the breading doesn’t burn while you’re waiting for the chicken to get done. This is also an excellent breading recipe for fish (you’ll have to adjust the time though).
Oven Baked Parmesan Cheese
Serves 6
1 ½ lbs Chicken Tenders
1 1/4 cups Bread Crumbs
1 ¼ cups Parmesan
2 ½ tbs Italian Seasoning
2 tsp Garlic Powder
1 cup Butter or Margarine, melted
Salt and Pepper to taste (you’ll only need a little salt because the cheese is salty)
Preheat oven to 350; lightly spray a shallow baking pan (or cookie sheet with sides) with cooking spray. Combine bread crumbs, parmesan, italian seasoning, garlic powder and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Dip chicken in butter and shake off excess. Roll chicken in bread crumb mixture being sure to thoroughly coat with bread crumbs and place on pan in a single layer. Bake for approx 20 minutes turning midway through. Serve with spaghetti and marinara sauce.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Lessons Learned
Lunch: Cheesy Pigs In A Blanket and Chips
Dinner: Brunswick Stew and Garlic Cheddar Biscuits
I hate getting duped, and I really hate that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when someone you believed to be a generally nice person turns out to be a complete scumbag. And boy did both happen in abundance this weekend. I may have mentioned that we moved… right? Well, I’m not sure if I mentioned that our lease was not up on the old house. It is not technically up until the end of this month. We were alright with that. We figured we would give the landlord plenty of time (60 days notice) to find someone else, and that we would have plenty of time to move our stuff (and save money by not renting a moving van). Well, he had a few people go through the house and a relative of our neighbors decided to rent the house. The landlord called us Thursday afternoon and asked if we could get the rest of our stuff out by the 1st of May. Ok… no problem. Friday night while loading up our stuff at the old house, the new tenants stopped over to look at some things around the house. While they were looking at things we chatted, and they mentioned that they had already signed the lease and it went into effect on the first. Well, Tyler and I thought that was excellent because it should have meant that we would not owe any rent for May and that we should be getting back our deposit. We called the landlord Saturday morning… he informed us we would not be getting back anything because we broke the lease…
What?!
I tried to argue that we didn’t break the lease, that I’d never told him we had any intention of breaking the lease, and that I had specifically said that we would see the lease through until the end of this month. I even pointed out that he had the place rented already (and had a lease signed that went into effect before our lease was up). He started to talk in circles about how I hadn’t given him any notice and whether or not he had a new tenant was none of my concern, but that I broke the lease and would not be receiving any of our $800. I was completely flabbergasted. The man went from what I thought was a nice old man to a completely sketchy jerk. He was actually laughing! I hung up on him and called my dad. I love my dad; he’s a great guy. He always seems to know what to do when I get into a situation where I’m in over my head (or if I can’t get the weed eater started). In true protective father style, dad wanted to get on the phone with this guy. I gave him the number and a little while later, I got a call back. “Kid, I think you’re hosed. This guy is a real jerk” (although I think dad might have used a moniker a little stronger than jerk). After much conversation and much enraged pacing, we decided that this was most likely going to have to go to small claims court and that it would be a toss-up as to whether or not I would win. The problem, this guy wanted to fight dirty. He accused us of not keeping up the yard, of not telling him about our pets, of giving him no notice before moving etc etc. All of which were not true, but hard to prove. It would have been an enormous case of he-said/she-said. Though, in my mind, the cold hard facts were he broke the lease by signing a new lease that started a month before ours ended and he had not given us the required (by law) 30 days notice nor did he have anything from us stating an intention to leave early.
Well, just about the time that Tyler and I were getting all fired up to take this guy’s butt to court (ok, maybe more me than Tyler), the guy called my dad back. I guess he realized that this could end very badly for him. While Tyler and I stood to lose a possible $800, he could lose much more. He’s a real estate agent. His career could be hurt by losing a case in court like this not to mention the potential of having his name dragged in the mud. Hey, there are advantages to having a husband who works at the local newspaper. He said he would be willing to offer us $400 in exchange for a letter stating that we forfeited the rest of the deposit because we “broke the lease”. Well, here’s the classic double or nothing scenario, or as Tyler called it, the Cash Cab choice. We could either walk with $400 or we could go to court and get either $800 or nothing. I really didn’t want to have to deal with the anger and the pain in the butt it would be to taking this jerk to court, and Tyler decided some money in hand was better than none and a uncontrollably angry wife (a potential outcome). Here’s the catch, I have to hand deliver the letter. Which means that this afternoon, I’m going to have to be face to face with this (insert expletive here). I’m terrified he’s going to bully me or go back on his word and say there was no such arrangement or what have you. I couldn’t sleep last night and my stomach has been all in knots today. I can deal with confrontation, but I don’t like it. I’m not a nasty person and I don’t like dealing with nasty people, and I most certainly don’t like the way nasty people make me want to act.
Oh… and if all that weren’t enough for one weekend, our car decided to overheat. So now we have to get it fixed. All I have to say is, I better win the lottery next weekend (or at the very least land a really good job this week). That’s about the only thing that can make up for the horrible weekend I had. So to recap, lessons learned for this weekend: 1. always always get everything in writing, even if it seems silly and trivial. 2. people that seem nice, even if they give you cookies for Christmas, might be really nasty jerks. and 3. my dad is great (and plays a mean saxaphone)
P.S. I promise I’ll post a recipe tomorrow, I’m just a little to keyed up to do it today.
Dinner: Brunswick Stew and Garlic Cheddar Biscuits
I hate getting duped, and I really hate that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when someone you believed to be a generally nice person turns out to be a complete scumbag. And boy did both happen in abundance this weekend. I may have mentioned that we moved… right? Well, I’m not sure if I mentioned that our lease was not up on the old house. It is not technically up until the end of this month. We were alright with that. We figured we would give the landlord plenty of time (60 days notice) to find someone else, and that we would have plenty of time to move our stuff (and save money by not renting a moving van). Well, he had a few people go through the house and a relative of our neighbors decided to rent the house. The landlord called us Thursday afternoon and asked if we could get the rest of our stuff out by the 1st of May. Ok… no problem. Friday night while loading up our stuff at the old house, the new tenants stopped over to look at some things around the house. While they were looking at things we chatted, and they mentioned that they had already signed the lease and it went into effect on the first. Well, Tyler and I thought that was excellent because it should have meant that we would not owe any rent for May and that we should be getting back our deposit. We called the landlord Saturday morning… he informed us we would not be getting back anything because we broke the lease…
What?!
I tried to argue that we didn’t break the lease, that I’d never told him we had any intention of breaking the lease, and that I had specifically said that we would see the lease through until the end of this month. I even pointed out that he had the place rented already (and had a lease signed that went into effect before our lease was up). He started to talk in circles about how I hadn’t given him any notice and whether or not he had a new tenant was none of my concern, but that I broke the lease and would not be receiving any of our $800. I was completely flabbergasted. The man went from what I thought was a nice old man to a completely sketchy jerk. He was actually laughing! I hung up on him and called my dad. I love my dad; he’s a great guy. He always seems to know what to do when I get into a situation where I’m in over my head (or if I can’t get the weed eater started). In true protective father style, dad wanted to get on the phone with this guy. I gave him the number and a little while later, I got a call back. “Kid, I think you’re hosed. This guy is a real jerk” (although I think dad might have used a moniker a little stronger than jerk). After much conversation and much enraged pacing, we decided that this was most likely going to have to go to small claims court and that it would be a toss-up as to whether or not I would win. The problem, this guy wanted to fight dirty. He accused us of not keeping up the yard, of not telling him about our pets, of giving him no notice before moving etc etc. All of which were not true, but hard to prove. It would have been an enormous case of he-said/she-said. Though, in my mind, the cold hard facts were he broke the lease by signing a new lease that started a month before ours ended and he had not given us the required (by law) 30 days notice nor did he have anything from us stating an intention to leave early.
Well, just about the time that Tyler and I were getting all fired up to take this guy’s butt to court (ok, maybe more me than Tyler), the guy called my dad back. I guess he realized that this could end very badly for him. While Tyler and I stood to lose a possible $800, he could lose much more. He’s a real estate agent. His career could be hurt by losing a case in court like this not to mention the potential of having his name dragged in the mud. Hey, there are advantages to having a husband who works at the local newspaper. He said he would be willing to offer us $400 in exchange for a letter stating that we forfeited the rest of the deposit because we “broke the lease”. Well, here’s the classic double or nothing scenario, or as Tyler called it, the Cash Cab choice. We could either walk with $400 or we could go to court and get either $800 or nothing. I really didn’t want to have to deal with the anger and the pain in the butt it would be to taking this jerk to court, and Tyler decided some money in hand was better than none and a uncontrollably angry wife (a potential outcome). Here’s the catch, I have to hand deliver the letter. Which means that this afternoon, I’m going to have to be face to face with this (insert expletive here). I’m terrified he’s going to bully me or go back on his word and say there was no such arrangement or what have you. I couldn’t sleep last night and my stomach has been all in knots today. I can deal with confrontation, but I don’t like it. I’m not a nasty person and I don’t like dealing with nasty people, and I most certainly don’t like the way nasty people make me want to act.
Oh… and if all that weren’t enough for one weekend, our car decided to overheat. So now we have to get it fixed. All I have to say is, I better win the lottery next weekend (or at the very least land a really good job this week). That’s about the only thing that can make up for the horrible weekend I had. So to recap, lessons learned for this weekend: 1. always always get everything in writing, even if it seems silly and trivial. 2. people that seem nice, even if they give you cookies for Christmas, might be really nasty jerks. and 3. my dad is great (and plays a mean saxaphone)
P.S. I promise I’ll post a recipe tomorrow, I’m just a little to keyed up to do it today.
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