I Got a Nook, Now I Have to Feed the Family Better

My husband got me a Nook Tablet for Christmas!  I asked for the Color, he got me the Tablet, and it is the shiz-ite.  It comes with Hulu installed, and one morning when I couldn't sleep, I fired it up and watched "Supersize Me."  Yes, I am a little behind the crowd here, having never seen it, and I've got to tell you, I found the movie horrifying.

 

Like the majority of Americans, I like fast food.  I don't eat it every day, but I do eat it more than I should.  A refresher for those of you who haven't seen the movie in a while: Spurlock ate McDonald's for every meal for a month.  He had to have everything on the menu once.  If they asked him, "would you like to supersize that?" he had to answer yes.  In the process, he gained 24.5 lbs (11.1kg), his cholesterol went from a very healthy 168 to 240 (!), his liver profile showed signs of encroaching liver failure, he started spilling protein into his urine, and he experienced decreased energy, depression, lowered sex drive, and general ickiness.

Another disturbing part of the film was how fast food companies and lobbying groups grab our children's focus from the time they are wee ones so that fast food becomes a regular part of their lives and one they crave.  In one scene, none of the children could identify a picture of Jesus, but all of them knew who Ronald McDonald was.  Brand imprinting and loyalty lobbying is scary stuff and adversely affects the health of our families.

After watching "Supersize Me" I made a series of resolutions.  First, when I take William out to eat I will look for restaurants with healthier food choices.  The other day we went to Panera.  On my little town, the only healthy fast food we have is Chipotle.  Guess we'll be eating a lot of burritos.

Second, and I'm not sure how this is going to happen, meal toys have got to go.  Rewarding a child for eating chicken nuggets and french fries has always seemed all higgeldy piggeldy to me.  Instead, why don't we reward kids for trying new, healthy things?  I gave William a Hot Wheels car when he tried apples.  He didn't like them (it happened to be a REALLY sour apple), but he tried it.  Then again, I can't bribe my kid to try all of his food, so again, I'll have to think this one out.

Third, when I cook I've got to go old school and get away from prepackaging or at least cut down on it.  It's easier to cook with prepacked stuff, but it's not as healthy.

Fourth, "meat and two veg" is going to be my new mantra.  This isn't going to be the easiest because there is very little meat that this family likes (we love beef, you'd think we were cattle ranchers), so on a lot of days, this will turn into "legume, grain, and two veg."  To that end, when I do buy meat I will buy grain fed, antibiotic free, free range meat.  Have you noticed how horrifying chicken tastes these days?  I suppose if you live in  a cage that you couldn't move in eating your own excrement and were pumped full of antibiotics constantly you'd taste bad, too.  Fortunately, we live near a lot of Amish people so Amish free range chicken isn't hard to come buy, but it is a wee bit pricey.

 

Why is it that we have to spend more money to eat well?  Why is it that Panera is SO much more expensive than McDonald's?  It's not that eating healthier is really all that more difficult, but it does cost more.

So there you go.  I've got my subscription to Taste of Home on my Nook and I'm going to see if they have any other healthy cooking with normal food magazines available.  No braised baby sweetbreads with capers and cilantro (wouldn't that be terrible?!) for this family, this Bon Appetite is out.

 

And all of this because I got a Nook.

Something I Hate: 30 Days About Me

When I was young I was ridiculously picky. There was very little that I would eat. Nowadays I'll try just about anything, but there are a few food items that I simply despise.

Pimentos. Don't even get me started. They completely ruin the flavor of anything they are added to. I am so disappointed when I order something at a restaurant and they've jazzed it up with pimentos. Makes the dish entirely inedible.

Melon, any type. I've never liked it. I've really tried. People eating it seem to enjoy it so much. I really, really don't.

Cilantro. I actually read something about this in the Wall Street Journal. Cilantro hatred may actually be a genetic trait, and the theory goes that those that hate is cannot actually smell the pleasant citrus odors that those who like it detect. All I really know is that it is vile.

Root Beer. What I really hate is when I order my daughter root beer (because she loves it) and I order my diet soda and they don't mark the lids and I take a long draw of wretched root beer. I can't stand it! I know this is another one of those everyone-loves-it-so-why-don't-you things, but I just hate the stuff.

So there you go. If you really want to keep me away, make a melon pimento cilantro salad with root beer on the side (although, that might just keep Anyone away!).

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Chinese Chicken and Broccoli Nirvana

Last night I was craving Chinese food, but times are tight and we can't afford a trip to the local Chinese restaurant (where the food is mediocre at best). So I thought about it and realized that I had all of the ingredients for Chicken and Broccoli. It's not difficult to make but it does take some preparation. And it tastes like you got it from a Fabulous Chinese restaurant but it's not oily!

I'm going to break the recipe down into steps to make it a little more user friendly.

You need:

2 pounds chicken, get strips if you can
1 egg white
Corn starch
Water
2 TBSP Hoisin or oyster sauce
2 TBSP soy sauce
1 head of broccoli, chopped
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar

Step One: Velvet Chicken

2 pounds chicken cut into small pieces (fresh chicken strips make this easy)
1 egg white
1 TBSP corn starch
1 TBSP water

Add egg white, corn starch, and water to a medium size bowl and mix well. Add chicken and make sure it gets evenly coated with mixture. Let it rest for about a half hour.

Step 2 Make the sauce

2 TBSP Hoisin or Oyster sauce
2 TBSP soy sauce
1 tsp water

Mix all this together in a small bowl
In another bowl, mix together

1 tsp corn starch
1 TBSP water

Step 3 Fry the Chicken

Into a hot wok or skillet on high place 2 tsp vegetable oil. Fry chicken in small batches until the outside is slightly brown. Place chicken on a towel to drain

Step 4 Prepare the Broccoli

1 head of broccoli, chopped
2 cloves of/garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup water

Add 2 tsp oil two wok over med high heat. Add broccoli, garlic, salt, and sugar and stir around for around 2 minutes, or until it starts to look shiny and bright green. Add water, cover pot, and let steam until tender crisp, about 3 min. Remove broccoli and dump out water

Step 5 Now the Magic Happens

Put wok back up on high, add 2 tsp oil, add chicken and broccoli together and toss until chicken is no longer pink in the middle. Add sauce mix and cornstarch/water mix to middle of wok and stir for a few seconds until sauce thickens. Stir the whole mixture together. Serve hot with rice.

Enjoy!

It looks like a lot, but it actually all cooks up pretty quickly. And it's super tasty and as far as chinese food goes pretty good for you. Try it tonight and let me know what you think!

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Magical Pulled Pork (aka, I Love: My Pressure Cooker)

When my grandparents died, I inherited a lot of their kitchen do-dads, pots, and pans, including their Presto Pressure Cooker from the 1950s. While they were alive, I helped them can with it many, many times. But after their death, it sat under my sink for about two year because, quite frankly, I was afraid of it.

If you look up "pressure cooker" on the net, you'll find all of these articles about how it is incredibly dangerous to use a vintage pressure cooker. They will split in two, they wont stay closed, they'll explode and shower you with shrapnel, give you a fatal concussion, and you'll bleed to death (okay, I made that last part up). The truth of the matter is that if the cooker has none to very minimal pitting, no cracks, a seal that isn't brittle with no cracks, and closes securely, you'll most likely be okay. OR, you could buy a new one, as it probably wouldn't cost much more than an old one. To compare different cookers, you can go here. My cooker is an 8 quart, and I can't imagine having anything smaller.

So I got brave. So far, I've made beef tips, Swiss steak, carnitas, chipotle beef, and my latest creation: Magical Pulled Pork (sorry Barbara, it's meat). I didn't really follow a particular recipe, instead, I combined ingredients from Carolina pulled pork and, of all things, Bourbon chicken.

Magical Pulled Pork

4 - 5 pounds pork butt
1 extremely large red onion (half minced and the other half cut in two)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
1-1/2 cup Coca-cola
2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flake
2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon cayanne seasoning
2 teaspoons cracked red pepper
1 cup ketchup

Heat the pressure cooker on high until it's lip is hot to the touch.

Add around 1/4 cup oil so that the food wont stick.

Add pork, brown on all sides.

Place the two quarters of red onion on the bottom of the pan. Arrange the pork on top.

Add everything else to the cooker.

Place lid, watch for a steady stream of steam to escape from the cooker. Then place the pressure indicator. Once the indicator has reached the cook position, turn the burner down as low as you can while maintaining the indicator at the cook position (this varies from stove to stove).

Cook the pork 15 minutes per pound.

Once cook time is complete, remove cooker from stove, wait for pressure indicator to drop, and remove it. BE CAREFUL. A JET OF STEAM WILL ESCAPE AND COULD SCALD YOU.

Once all steam is released, remove the lid (don't force it - if it doesn't come off easily, there is still too much pressure in the cooker.)

Stir up everything in the cooker - there will be a lot of juice.

Remove the pork butt and onions and chop up and tease apart with forks to shred it. Add in juice until the pork is as sloppy juicy as you want it.

You can add bbq sauce if you like, but it's pretty magical just like this!

Note: If you do this in a slow cooker, it should be cooked for approximately 11 hours at the medium setting. Before putting the lid on the cooker, place a sheet of aluminum foil over the opening to hold in all of the juices. The pork butt should measure 160 F when checked with a meat thermometer.

My picky 11 year old thought this was amazing. He told me all night long that he couldn't stop thinking about that pulled pork. I took some to a friend who had just gotten home from the hospital and got a facebook message that it was awesome. Hopefully, you'll think so, too!

I Love: Dessert

WARNING: The following blog post may cause uncontrollable cravings. Proceed with caution!



I am one of those people who believe that dessert is the best part of a meal. When I was growing up, we had dessert with every meal (which could explain my robust appearance). It wasn't until I met Tim that I learned (and this was at 32!) that not everyone eats dessert with dinner.

But I love dessert. I prefer things that are creamy and pudding like, but you'll see that there are many exceptions to this rule.

I Love:


creme brulee


ice cream


devil's food cake


banana pudding

Banana pudding was my favorite when I was a kid. I still feel like a little girl when I eat it.


Spotted Dick

Now I know what you are thinking and that giggling is going on. But spotted dick is really really good! If you ever get the chance to taste it, please do!


chocolate dipped strawberries


peach cobbler a la mode


cheesecake


pineapple upside down cake


chocolate mousse

These last two are my husband's favorite. Pineapple upside down cake is easy enough, but real chocolate mousse, since the 1970's, I've only had it in France.

MMMmmmmm. I've made you hungry, haven't I? I Love Dessert