Just Like The Crows Do It

We went on a watermelon tour at a farm recently, and they taught us that it's okay to eat corn raw! Straight off the cob! No butter, no salt. Just sweet corn goodness.

And Mookie is all about eating the corn "felf" (by herself).

Uh oh, I think she is ready for some more. :-)

We're Baking Cookies!

(although it sounds more like "yooo baking a tookie!") (It's a very exciting endeavor). :-)

They're my favorite - Oatmeal Scotchies. Yummity yum yum yum. :-)

Maybe I Should Just Teach Her To Lick The Spatula

I tried something new today.

Something wild and a little bit crazy.

I offered Mookie some peanut butter with her apples.

I know, I went way out on a limb there, didn't I? :o)

I know I'm very fortunate to have a total fruit lover for a child. I don't often have to tell her to eat her apple/cantelope/berries/pear/etc.

Until today. Mookie LOVED the "dip-dip" with her apples. In fact, after a few bites, she just skipped eating the apple altogether, and licked the peanut butter off the apple wedge directly.

look at those curls :o)

I'm not sure my couch was the best place to take this adventure...

just give me the spatula, Mommy!

yucky fingers, Mommy! 

(yucky everything, Baby!)

oh, the concentration...

dip-dip, lick, dip-dip, lick, more?

In the end, I am confident that most of the peanut butter got into her tummy (YAY!!), and a good bit got on her face and hands, and only a teeny smidge or two got onto the couch. 

Pretty successful snack-time, if you ask me!

I Guess She Was Still Hungry??

For Mookie's afternoon snack today, I peeled and cubed a pear and she thoroughly enjoyed it. The girl would be a fruitarian if I would only let her! Canteloupe? Snarfs it down. Honeydew? She resembles a chipmunk filling her little cheeks. Watermelon? Shoves so much in her gob that she nearly chokes! Today's pear was so scrumptious that she had juice running down her little chin. Now, I'll be honest here, I love it when I'm eating a pear so good the juice runs down my chin, too, so I guess she gets that from me. :o)

(Side note: I LOVE that my child loves fruit as much as she does. I just wish it had more protein, and good fat, and good calories.)

But today? Apparently one large d'anjou pear was not enough for her. She was playing after she devoured her snack, and, as you all know, silence from a toddler is never a good thing. I knew she was in or near the kitchen (I was at my laptop on the other side of the breakfast bar reading Megan's blog), so I peeked around the corner (thinking "I should get my camera ready" but not actually doing it!), and I found my child with the lid of the trash can open, and a handful of pear peelings in one hand and the other hand holding the core of the pear in her mouth! Gobble gobble gobbling around the parts I didn't cut off! She looked up at me so innocently that I could only laugh.

Laugh and vow to finally make a purchase that I've been wanting to make for some time, but couldn't really justify.  Until today. I've been wanting a stainless steel trash can for the kitchen. Mostly because I think they look nice, but also because I think hope they are more secure than the little white plastic one we're using now. Plus, our kitchen is sooo stinkin tiny that I cannot justify sacrificing precious cabinet space for rubbish. So I wanted a bin that was (a) attractive, and (b) secure.

And the one we've been using met both of those criteria.
Until today.

Until my admittedly scrawny child went rummaging through the trash in search of the sweet-smelling, mushy-gushy pear-peelings I had cast off thinking the "meat" of the pear was enough for her. :o)

But I guess she was still hungry. :o)

It's Fruity and Jacky and Flappy and Fun!

Today was my day to bring snack to Moms' Group, again. And, again, I dusted off one of my British cookbooks to find a fun, and different, recipe

I've been craving (British) flapjacks for QUITE some time, now, so I thought today was a great day to get my fix. (British flapjacks are also a type of pancake...as in pan cake...as in cake made in a pan, and are a chewy, granola type bar cookie. I didn't take anything made with flour or Bisquick, thankyouverymuch.)

Sadly, I think it only increased, rather than satiated, my desire for that oatey, chewy, fruity goodness. I'd love to show you a picture, but as you can see, we didn't leave much behind. I freely admit to you that the ladies in the Bible study did leave some behind, but I'm a pig, and I snarfed up the rest once I got home.

Here's the recipe if you're feeling oatey.

Pick-Your-Fruit Flapjacks

Ingredients

• vegetable oil, for oiling the pan
• 6 oz (3/4 cup) butter or margarine
• 3 oz (1/3 cup, or so) demerara sugar (found in bulk at Whole Foods, very similar to "sugar-in-the-raw" sugar)
• 2 oz (1/4 cup, or so) clear honey, or British golden syrup if you can find it.
• 5 oz (2/3 cup, or more) dried apricots, chopped; or Craisins, or dates, or raisins.
• 2 tsp sesame seeds (good Omega oils)
• 8 oz (3 cups) oats *Yes, 3 entire cups. It's about $0.40 worth in bulk at Whole Foods. Splurge, why doncha. You can use quick or regular rolled oats.
• handful of nuts (optional, of course) (I added sliced almonds)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. (no more if you want them good-n-chewy) (if your oven runs hot, turn it down!) Very lightly oil a 10 1/2" x 6 1/2" x 2 1/2" (or so) baking pan.
2. Put the butter/margarine, sugar and honey in a medium saucepan over low heat and heat until the ingredients have melted together -- do not boil. When the ingredients are warm and well combined, stir in the fruit, sesame seeds, optional nuts, and oats.
3. Once well combined, spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and lightly level with the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and a bit bubbly on the sides. (Yum!) Remove from the oven, cut into bars (nibbling as you go), and leave (most of it) to cool completely before removing from the baking pan. Store the remaining flapjacks (eh?) in an airtight container and consume within 2-3 days (didn't they mean hours?)

Mmmm....num yummy.

Apple Cinnamon Bundles

or is it Apple Bottom Cinnamon Bundles. or Apple Cinnamon Roll Drizzles.
or is it Apple Cinnamon Bundle Drizzle Blobs.

I don't know what they're called, but this is what they look like:

It's my turn to bring snack to my Mom's Group, again, and I wanted to use what I had on hand...but didn't have a recipe that met that criteria. So I improvised. I haven't tried them, yet, but I must admit my mouth is watering! :o)

They were pretty easy, but I would caution you to wait to clean your kitchen till after you make them. I have the distinct pleasure of cleaning my kitchen again. Bright.

To make them, I used my absolute favorite kitchen tool, the Pampered Chef Apple/Peeler/Corer/Slicer. If you don't have one, and you cook with apples, YOU NEED TO GET ONE!

Step 1: Open a 17.5 oz can of Grands Cinnamon Rolls, set icing aside and cut the rolls in half, to make 10 semi-circles.

Step 2: Peel/core/slice two Granny Smith apples, slice in half to make semi-circles.

Step 3: Take one cinnamon roll half and flatten it lengthwise by (sorta) unrolling it, then pressing it down with your fingertips.

Step 4: Place 3-4 apple slice halves in the middle of the cinnamon roll half, pull up the sides and mush together.

Step 5: Put apple half cinnamon roll halves upside down (a.k.a. seam-side down) in a deep pie dish. I used my Pampered Chef Deep Dish Baker.

Step 6: Bake at 375* for 18-20 minutes. Remove and benevolently distribute the icing.

Honestly. I'm not one to enjoy spending time in the kitchen, experimenting with foods...but this was EASY and fun. I hope they taste good!

It should also be noted that, in certain circles, I am affectionately known as The Benevolent Distributor of Icing.  I wear that banner proudly, and I try to fulfill my benevolent distributing duties as often as possible. :o)

Hope you have a great, icing-filled day!

Bonbons (Dec 18)

I decided to make my mostest favoritest Christmas-time cookies and give to some of Dave's colleagues at work...the White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal makes-me-squeal-with Delight.

Mmmmmmhhhhmmmmmm.

I made a double batch, because, well, I knew I'd be eating half of them! I know I'm not alone in this. You do it, too...

When it came to the presentation, I thought of the cello goodie bags (from the dolla-bins at Target), and snipped the sealed end off to make a little tube. I put three cookies in each (oh, how I wanted to only put two in so I could eat the third...), and tied each end with a curling ribbon.

I love how they look like gigantic bonbons. :o)

Almost (Dec 12)

Almost done...

They're not Joe's, but they are oatmeal cranberry cookies. :o) (they look like scones, though, don't they? Guess that's what I get for using oil instead of butter!)

Mmm...oatmeal cranberry cookies taste like Christmas to me. :o) Love love love.

Melted (Dec 10)

While the end result is very pretty and festive (and, may I say, tasty), I don't know that I'll be melting any white chocolate chips again any time soon.  There is more to melting chocolate than I thought!

But if you find yourself about to dip strawberries, go, quickly, and find your corn-cob-knobs. They will be your new best friend.

What's the Story, Morning Glory?

In all my 36 years, I've never been too adventurous around food. I guess I'm just conservative. (Some might say picky. Whatever.) But right here, right now I want to share with you a new food I've been loving, and it's probably because I plan to introduce it to Mookie that I've been venturing towards this tuber.

Back in June, we had lunch at the Rocky Cola Cafe with Dave's dad, who, I might add, is a wonderful cook and likes to eat good food. The RCC is a typical diner-type place, with Coca-cola on tap and little jukeboxes on each table...so, it's not the kind of place you would expect a person to have a new food experience.  But experience a new food, I did.

To be fair, I've probably eaten this food before, but since I don't remember it, I must not have liked it. This new food experience most likely involves eating the old food in a new way.

You know what I'm talking about, don't you?  Yes, the skinny tuber. The non-potato potato.

The Sweet Potato.

Did you know that the sweet potato is more closely related to the morning glory than the baking potato? Funny, that.

Anywho, back to the old food in a new way. Bob ordered Sweet Potato Fries. Which, okay. Sounds fine. Whatever. I'll try one.

Except. Bob, the great gourmet, ordered them dressed with honey and cinnamon. Honey and cinnamon!!  Now, I knew heaven would be sweet, but I didn't know it could be julienned and fried. Yu-Um.

I know, I know. I'm very late coming to the party, but don't knock the goodness, folks!

So, the next time I was at Trader Joe's, I got a bag of frozen sweet potato fries and served them (with honey and cinnamon) a few weeks later with paninis for dinner. I probably should have baked the whole bag because I was pretty aggressive in stealing them from Dave's plate. It's okay, though, because I had a newborn baby at the time, and I could get away with pretty much anything. Including eating food off my husband's plate. :o)

I've had a few bags of the fries since then (and even shared one fry or two), and I still love love love them. But now that Mookie is eating solids (sorta), I decided I need to figure out what foods other than rice that she'll eat. :o)  And one of the foods I'll try is mashed sweet potatoes.  So last week, I went to the grocery store and purchased one ugly little non-potato. I brought it home, and scrubbed the dirt off, revealing the meat of a tuber that is different than what I expected. I expected it to be a lot more orange in the middle...but it wasn't! It was more like the color of a peach. Next I stabbed it a few times, and put it in the microwave with the intention of baking it, and then mashing it with copious amounts of butter, cinnamon, and sugar. Mmmmm good goodness. Mmmm.

I had put Mookie in the Exersaucer, and, when it was done, I sat down in front of her to eat my sweet sweet potato. And even though I had recently nursed her, she was quite interested in my lunch. Quite. She pulled out the big guns. She cried. Even got tears out! She obviously wanted some of Mama's lunch! So I mashed a bit up extra smooth, and gave her a few little bites. This wasn't how I intended to introduce her to the sweet potato, but she seemed to enjoy it. I bought a few more at the store yesterday, and I plan to start feeding sweet potato to her "officially" next week.

Hopefully, by introducing these foods to her, we will raise a little girl who is less like her picky mama, and more like her eats-just-about-anything papa.

The Raspberry Bars

So it seems that the raspberry bars I blogged about on Tuesday have drummed up some attention here on the blob!

They turned out okay, in my opinion. And it's all my fault -- I didn't use enough butter. Crime of great proportions, I know. (The only greater crime is not having enough cheese, am I right?)  They were good, but a bit too dry and crumbly. To compensate on Wednesday for the Moms group, I took along some vanilla yogurt, and that seemed to make up for the lack of dairy in the bars. :o)  I sent the leftovers to work with Dave the next day. His colleagues seemed to like the taste (and the gesture), but not appreciate the crumbliness in the conference room. Oops!  And I gave a few to the neighbors. They were excited because they genuinely seemed to like them. :o)

And, thus, I have decided a few things.

(1) I will post the recipe here.
(2) I will make them again, as is.
(3) I will make them again, altering the recipe.

(1) The Recipe:

      (from Good Food Magazine, BBC Books -- 101 Cakes & Bakes, Tried and Tested Recipes)
      *This is adapted from a British recipe, so I had to modify some things.*
      **I doubled the recipe. This one, as is, fills a 9" pan.**
8 oz plain flour
8 oz quick oats
2 1/2 sticks of butter, cut into small pieces and softened
6 oz "light muscovado" (I used demerera, from Wild Oats/Henry's)
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
4 oz blanched almonds (the recipe actually called for pine nuts)
9 oz raspberries

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Butter a shallow 9in square pan. Tip the flour, oats and butter into a mixing bowl and work together with your fingers to make coarse crumbs. Mix in the sugar, lemon zest and three quarters of the almonds using your hands, then presss the mixture together well so it forms large, sticky clumps.
2. Drop about two thirds of the oat mixture into the pan, spread it out and press down very lightly -- don't pack it too firmly. Scatter the raspberries on top, sprinkle the rest of the oat mixture over, then the rest of the nuts and press everything down lightly.
3. Bake for 35-40 minutes until pale golden on top. Cut into 12 bars with a sharp knife while still warm, then leave to cool in the pan before removing.

(2) Yes, I will make them again. But I will use more butter next time. Here's the problem: since I doubled the recipe, I was supposed to double the butter. However, since the cookbook is actually in British, it has things like "grams" and "packs" and stuff, and when I converted the grams to ounces, I somehow miscalculated the amount of butter, and used 3 1/2sticks, instead of 5. SO...if you make this recipe as is, use 2 1/2 (or more?) sticks of butter. If you double, I would have 6 sticks of butter available.

(3) Alterations (instead of raspberries):

• Use Ghirardelli milk chocolate chunks. (You could use dark chocolate, if you like that sort of bitterness)
• Raspberries, and Ghirardelli chocolate chunks. (whew, that sounds really good!)
• Small chunks of apple, and small chunks of caramels
• Butterscotch chips

Now it's your turn...how would you alter the recipe? Pecans? Walnuts? Prunes? (ew)  Leave a note in the comments, and maybe I'll give it a try next time it's my turn to take snack to the Moms group!

Party Like A Guac Star!

"Going green" is quite en vogue these days. Recycle this, reuse that. Cut down here. Use less there. Today, though? Going green is all about the guac.

September 16th is National Guacamole Day!

Woot woot!

According to Wholly Guacamole (and Reuters), here are some great reasons to eat more guac (like you need more, right?)

• It's rich in history. Originally reserved only for the wealthy and kings, guacamole was invented by the Aztecs as a nutritious snack.
• Skinny Jeans. The "good fats" in avocados effectively reduce cholesterol levels. Three tablespoons of all-natural guacamole with a handful of carrots has 94 calories -- that's less than a cup of low-fat milk!
• It fights cancer. Researchers at Ohio State University's Comprehensive Cancer Center say that avocados have cancer fighting power against oral, prostate and possibly other types of cancer.
• Avocados have more natural protein than cow's milk or a steak. ("Natural" = not denatured)
• Avocados are nicknamed alligator pears.
• Avocado trees produce up to 400 fruits a year.
• Shop early! Cinco de Mayo, Fourth of July, Super Bowl Sunday and Easter each account for approx. five percent of annual avocado sales. (Easter? Really? 'Splain that to me, please!)
• Guacamole's so popular it celebrates two Food Holidays --today, and Spicy Guacamole Day, November 14!

SO...enjoy the celebrations! I'll be celebrating with a chip in both hands. :o)

Put your hand upon my chip. When I dip, you dip, we dip.

In Appreciation of Cows

(because we are all about the cows here, be they galloping or waddling or cooing or whatever)

Friday, July 11 is officially "Cow Appreciation Day" at Chick-Fil-A.

Mookie and I discovered this the other day (when we were getting our book about shapes). If you dress up like a cow, you get free food! How cool is that? You should go! Really! On the Cow Appreciation site, they even have hints for how to dress like a cow from head to hoof. GO! Eat Mor Chikin!

Welp, unbeknownst to us, on the very day we learned about Cow Appreciation Day, Uncle Rob was sending Mookie a little cow outfit!

SO...here's the Mooing Mookie, all dressed up for her free chicken! (which, she'll have to enjoy via the Mama Latte transfer method...)

And the sneezing Mookie...


...everywhere a moo moo...

(I just love this one!)

*Disclaimer: I have not received any free chicken for posting this advertisement*

Hundred's Night

Where Dave went to college, 100 days before graduation, before their "commencement ceremony", all the members of the senior class (and their significant others) celebrate. And the shin-dig is called "Hundred's Night."

I got to thinkin...

(nope, didn't hurt too much)

...why can't WE celebrate Hundred's Night? Why can't we celebrate 100 days till the biggest "commencement" of our lives?

So, Saturday night, we got all dolled up, in our celebrating finest (well, not really finest, but we would have been way too fancy in our fancy fancies) (plus, my fanciest fancy wouldn't fit right now!) Before we got in the car to drive north to Pasadena, we took this little picture for your viewing pleasure:

Our first destination of our celebration was an absolute favorite of mine: The Melting Pot. Yummmmmmm. Me loves the fonduzle.

Dipping perfectly healthy fruits and vegetables into hot, melty, swirly cheeeeeeeese. Mmmm. Hot diggity dog. Or, as they used to say "Good stuff, Maynard." (see the melty, swirly cheese below? It was SO yummy-yummy-yummsters!) (What a great way to add some calories to this Mama's belly!)


After I scraped every last molecule of cheese out of the pot with my fingernails ate the last bit of the cheese appetizer, they brought out the broth for us to fry our selection of meats. (too bad you can't cook the meat in the cheese, eh?) Holy cow, that place is amazingly good.

Then, after two hours of pure gluttony, we went down the street to the movie theater, and watched 27 Dresses (finally, right?) (which, by the way, was very good. I might have even shed a wee tear.)

Late that night, we got back on the highway, and drove home. I think I slept most of the way. (a perfect ending to a perfect night, right?)

Thanks, Honey, for a great Hundred's Night!

I Got Lost On The Way To My Hot Dog

I'm sure I'm not the only one.

You other moms and moms-to-be out there must be able to commiserate. I admit that I've always been clumsy, and forgetful, and naïve, and scatter-brained (basically, A Blonde)...but never like this! Honestly. It's been a really long time since I've felt this stupid, in general. And by stupid, I mean completely lacking in brain cells. Not even two to rub together. And today isn't the first time.

It all started, well, okay...it all got worse about 4 months ago when the little stick turned blue. It was at that exact moment that all rational thought and comprehensible thinking went out the window. I used to consider myself a fairly intelligent human being with the capacity to learn just about anything. And remember lots of things.

Like that I was in the middle of making lunch.

When I decided to clean out my purse.

And update my calendar with appointments.

And file the coupons I clipped from yesterday's paper.

And take out the recycling.

And clean the kitchen....

....when I found a pot of boiling water on the stove...

and then I remembered that I was making lunch! (which is the story of how I got lost on the way to my hot dog).

Now that I'm pregnant I spend most of my time feeling so stupid!

I know you well-seasoned moms out there are saying "Pshaw. Get used to it, child. Once that stick turned blue, you not only lost all your brain cells, but you lost all your credibility, too! You will be 'stupid' until your child has a child...and then you will become the smartest person on Earth, an overnight guru on everything from crock-pot dinners to kool-aid stains. It is the cycle of life, dear."

Pickity Pickity Pick Pick Pick

I'm going to reveal something about my character to you. Open and honest with Bloggie World, here. Something that might surprise some of you. (most of you probably won't even care!)

Here goes: I am not a good eater. I never have been. I'm one that "eats to live" vs those that "live to eat."

Don't worry...I don't have any eating disorders, I don't have body image issues, I don't think I need to lose any weight. I yam whateye yam. And I've felt this way as long as I can remember.

I also have long-standing memories of being a seriously, award-winning picky eater. I'm sure my mom can attest to this. Like, I wasn't the kid who would only eat hot dogs and Jeno's Pizza Rolls - I like a variety (sorta) of food. And I prefer to eat healthy food to the alternative. In fact, before being pregnant, if I had to eat out more than 3 times in a row, I would actually get sick.

While pregnancy has changed a few of my eating habits, the pickiness is one thing that has not changed. I'm probably pickier now than ever before, if that's even possible!

I don't even especially like to cook. I know for some it is therapy, but for me, it is a means to an end. Poor Dave. He loves food. Thankfully for me, though, he's not a picky eater and will eat just about whatever I make for him - even if we had it just last week. :o) And I'm not especially brave in the kitchen. My brother got all the cooking genes when he was born, and there were just none left when I came along!

I'm telling you all this because I think I'm going to need some help. All the mommy books say that I need to have a stockpile of food in the freezer for when we bring the baby home. And while I'm hoping that between the neighbors and the church, we'll have enough food to last till 2009...I need to have some "sure-fire winners" on hand just in case.

SO...Bloggie World. Can you share with me good, easy, freezable recipes that are fairly idiot-proof and don't require many brain cells to prepare? You can either email them to me (my email address is in my profile), or you can post a link to it in the comments section.

I'm asking now because I'll need the time to try out the recipe and see if I like it. :o) (The baby is due in late May) It's also quite possible that I will be so tired-n-hungry-n-tired-n-overwhelmed-n-otherwise-occupied-n-tired when I come home from the hospital that I will be willing to eat cardboard covered with salsa! :o)

Anyways, thanks for the inputs! I'm looking forward to giving it the old college try!

Back from Dial-Up

Whew! I had forgotten what 45kbps really feels like! It feels like chocolate chips melting over a tealight candle. It feels like "shaving" your legs with a pair of tweezers. It feels like making tea with no hot water. It feels good to be home, and back to wireless broadband.

All week I wondered if Kelly had her baby (She did. Go see!)

And how Megan was feeling after the discovery of a Peanut growing within (better, it sounds like)

And how Katie was adjusting to life with a newborn (very well, with additional hugs and kisses)

And how Mike was enjoying New Zealand (tremendously, of course!)

And what new creations Tink was making out of yummy fabric (have sewing machine, will travel...she's still on vacation, so we'll have to wait some more)

We had a fantabulous time in Northern Michigan. Although it didn't snow very much, I still got to put my big long "sleeping bag" coat to good use. It hovered around freezing most of the week.

We got to celebrate Grandma's 97th birthday. Yup. 97 years young. She's a spitfire if I've ever seen one! That woman is A-Mazing! She keeps up with the 4-year old, plays dominos with whoever wants to get wooped, and enjoys life more than most 35-year olds that I know!

And we celebrated Christmas in fine fashion. I have to say that I'm glad I'm into maternity pants now because, well, you know that critical point after everyone has gotten seconds where they sneakily unbutton their pants? Well, good thing for me, I don't need to unbutton anything...so I could just eat, and eat, and eat and my waistband would just grow and grow and grow! :o) Hee hee! I'm SO glad that both Thanksgiving and Christmas fall in the critical "must gain weight" period of my pregnancy! Yay Me! :o) Dave's family is just great. We both have such an incredible time with all of them. It was just one awesome thing after another! Dial-up internet connection aside, I would gladly have stayed for more.

And with that, I bid you all a nice, relaxing weekend.

Flashback to Tuesday Night...

We're back in Rhodes, now, for the final 3 days of our vacation...except it's down to 2 now. :-(

Before I stray to where we are, I want to tell you about something the other night in Kos that I forgot to blog about.

On the main strip in Kos, there is a Mexican restaurant with a girl in a red/white/green "traditional" dress, a sombrero, and pink Crocs waving at passers-by and saying "Hola, come, eat" (in a Greek accent, of course). So Tuesday, the night I was going to meet Dave at the late reception, I decided to stop at El Paso Authentic Mexican Restaurant just for kicks. As I entered, I saw that most of the patrons were wearing straw sombreros. The decor was fairly authentic -- if you use movies and TV shows as your benchmark (as we all do)! I was seated, and I ordered una coca-cola, por favor, and I heard one of the waiters yell "Arriba! Ole! Ole!" at the top of his lungs, and I just had to laugh! They had an old 1800s wagon filled with hay, Corona boxes, and wagon wheels as accent pieces. They brought me a little box with what looked (and tasted) like Doritos, and a little bowl of Velveeta. Mmmmm. Tasty. Authentic. I decided to order light because I knew there would be food at the reception, so I just got a chicken quesadilla with rice and guacamole. Now if you've ever eaten Mexican food with me, you know I'm a bit of a guacamole snob. I cut my teeth on the best guac out there, and have yet to taste anything that even scratches the surface! Not surprisingly, this "guacamole" had a whole lot more sour cream in it than it had avocado (if it had any!). So, no points there. I'm also a bit of a cheese snob. Everything is better with cheese. Real cheese. Not imitation cheese. Not cheese that's not fit to call itself cheese. I prefer the kind of cheese that comes from a four-legged animal...not a powder. Double negative points for El Paso because the quesadillas had absolutely no real cheese in it. Not even one little shred. :-( I was very disappointed. :-( The waiters were very entertaining, though...so I guess that made up for it! They kept yelling Arriba! Oh, and whenever anyone had steak, they would set fire to it and yell really loudly! Hee hee! They were goofy. They also offered to dance to the Macarena with anyone willing, but, sadly, no one volunteered.

The best was when the sound system started to play a song about Speedy Gonzales that I've never heard before, but apparently it hit the top 10 in the 60s, and was written by Pat Boone! The waiters really got into that song, though. I'm not hi-tech enough to attach the song for you to listen to here, but if you click on this link, then it will either open up in a new window or go directly to the link, and there will be a skinny grey bar, and the old guitar will start to play. Hopefully I've done it right, and you'll be able to hear it. It's really hilarious!! Laugh-out-loud funny!! I can't believe I've never heard it before!! (Well, okay, yes, I can.) Honestly, what I can't believe is that it somehow made it to the Top 10! And just when I thought the fun was over, the waiters played it a second time! Hee hee! I think you'll be humming it all day long!

As I was leaving, I saw a statue of an old gringo, and knew I had to take that picture!

How 'bout them peepers?

I am in vegetable heaven! That's another glorious thing about summer...the veggies! And these were only 39p!! Super duper!

The grill is on...

Shish-free Kabobs

Wednesday nights Dave cooks. This week, the plan was beef kabobs. We had the beef in the freezer, so we just had to get the veg! Tesco (our local grocery store) supplied some yummy and sweet red peppers, fresh mushrooms, and some nice baby toms. I went home satisfied that we would be eating some grilled yummies.
The beef cubes were marinating, the vegetables were chunked, and we started the search for the bamboo skewars we own. They weren't in the pantry. Or the utensil drawer. Or the other utensil drawer. Or the cupboards. Or the junk drawer. Not even the top of the fridge! How can we have shish-kabobs without the skewars? Dejected, I got into the car and drove back to Tesco. I went to the aisle with rice and other kabob-like supplies, but no skewars. I decided to brave the inevitable Look and ask for help. I got The Look (like I'm crazy!), and found out that they don't carry skewars. Like, ever??? How do you not have skewars? How am I supposed to make shish-kabobs? Meat is marinated. Veggies are chopped. How?
Well, we went shish-free and just put the kabob stuff on the grill-pan in the oven, and baked them all.
In the end you just take the stuff off the skewer anyways, so why not start them off ... off? It worked for us! We got our dinner, and it tasted pretty good!