Usually, I'm a champion sleeper. World class. I get into bed, I fall asleep and I sleep straight through the night. Rarely do I dream (or that I remember anyhow). It's nice. Lately, though, sleep has been a bit tricky for me and I'm not really enjoying it. I woke up at 2:30 last night. Tossed. Turned. Listened to a book on tape (Girl of the Limberlost, in case you're curious) for over an hour. Nothing worked. So I found myself playing my new favorite video game, Lost in Blue around 4 AM this morning. I think Loki thought I was insane. He would open one eye, look over at me, kind of exasparated and go back to sleep. Lucky dog. Finally, around 5:30, I drifted off to sleep. Gues what time my alarm was set for? Yep. 6 Continue reading “Who Needs Sleep?”
Protected: Preggers Update
Arrrrr … It Be a Fine Weekend
Friday we had my company picnic which is always a good time. Beer and brats, you know. Saturday, went to our neighborhood garage sale with friends who have babies or are about to have babies … my neighborhood is FULL of rugrats, so practically every sale has a ton of kids stuff. Didn't buy anything for me, but the kiddos got good stuff. Followed that up with lunch with Matt's bro, errands, and loads of housework.
Sun morning, we snuck in a trip to the theatre and saw Pirates, which I found to be immensely enjoyable. Johnny Depp is superb in his role and the rest of the cast was great too. We didn't anticipate that being so long, so we had to rush to get up to my aunt and uncle's house to celebrate my cousin's 13th b'day. After that, back home and s'more laundry and housework and to bed.
Busy Busy Busy
I was just looking at my calendar for the rest of the month. It is jam-packed. And it seems like every time I turn around, there's something to add to it. And of course, once we get into August, we've got my b'day, my dad's b'day, our anniversary, and our anniversary trip. Is it any wonder I need toothpicks to prop open my eyes?
Beef Wellington
We had a lovely birthday dinner for my lil sis at Briarwood last night. It's a very interesting restaurant … seems to be sort of stuck in time, but in a good way. I had beef wellington for dinner, which, coincidentally is the latest thing they screwed up attempted on Control-Alt-Chicken. I think that they probably need a consultant to clue them in on a few things … for example … do not substitute pie crust for puff pastry. Ditto sausage for liver. They aren't even close to equivalent.
Best Mac & Cheese Ever?
Last night I decided to try out the Best Mac and Cheese Ever from Words to Eat By. It was pretty easy to make … my one complaint is that it used a lot of kitchen accoutraments (2 pans, a blender, and a casserole dish), but what's that in light of a tasty dish. Now I don't know that I would give it the title of Best Mac and Cheese Ever, but it certainly ranks up there … there's something very simple and good about it. And as mac & cheese recipes go, it's not even all that heart-stoppingly bad for you. In the future, I might use some sharper cheddar instead of the mild I had lying around. But that's it … another great mac & cheese recipe.
Broken Camera
Well I thought mom might save me on the photo front … she took almost 60 photos this weekend, but alas, after viewing them I have come to the conclusion that her digital camera is broken. Everyone is blurry (even ones taken in full light that have no business being blurry!) … This one, displayed here was one of the only ones that looked decent, unfortunately. It also makes it look like we were on the set of A Perfect Storm all weekend, which really isn't the case. Oh well. It's a cool photo anyhow! : )
Coconut Rice with Beef Stir-Fry
from: Cooking Light January 2005
Ingredients
Rice:
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
Dash of ground red pepper
1 (14-ounce) can light coconut milk
1 cup uncooked jasmine rice
Stir-fry:
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil, divided
1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed and thinly sliced across the grain
1 cup vertically sliced onion
1 cup red bell pepper strips
3 cups sliced bok choy
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce (such as Lee Kum Kee)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 lime wedges
Directions
To prepare rice, bring first 4 ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan; stir in rice. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. It will be soft and creamy.
To prepare stir-fry, heat 1/2 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of beef; stir-fry 4 minutes or until done. Remove from pan; cover and keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining oil and beef.
Add onion and bell pepper to pan; stir-fry 5 minutes. Add bok choy; stir-fry 3 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add beef, cilantro, chili garlic sauce, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and black pepper; cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with rice and lime wedges.
Nutritional Info (1 1/4 cups stir-fry, about 3/4 cup rice, and 1 lime wedge(
CALORIES 416(28% from fat); FAT 13.1g (sat 7.5g,mono 3.2g,poly 0.9g); PROTEIN 28.3g; CHOLESTEROL 45mg; CALCIUM 90mg; SODIUM 561mg; FIBER 1.7g; IRON 4.7mg; CARBOHYDRATE 46.5g
BBQ Shrimp
from: Cooking Light April 2000
Ingredients
1/2 cup fat-free Caesar dressing
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
5 bay leaves
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds large shrimp with peels on
1/3 cup dry white wine
10 (1-ounce) slices French bread baguette
10 lemon wedges
Directions
Combine the first 11 ingredients in a large nonstick skillet; bring to a boil. Add shrimp, and cook 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add wine, and cook 1 minute or until shrimp are done. Serve with bread and lemon wedges.
Nutritional Info (5 oz shrimp, with sauce, 2 slices bread(
CALORIES 403(20% from fat); FAT 9.1g (sat 3.8g,mono 2.4g,poly 1.7g); PROTEIN 34.4g; CHOLESTEROL 219mg; CALCIUM 211mg; SODIUM 1021mg; FIBER 2.8g; IRON 7mg; CARBOHYDRATE 41.7g
Best Mac & Cheese Ever
from: Words to Eat By
Ingredients
2 T soft butter or margarine, plus more for topping
2 T flour
½ t salt
1/8 t pepper
½ t mustard powder (optional, this gives it a little bite)
2 cups hot milk (take it off the heat just before it boils)
1 ½ cups diced cheddar cheese
12 oz elbow macaroni, cooked al dente
½ cup fresh bread crumbs
Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
Put butter or marg, flour, salt, pepper, and hot milk into blender container. Press low button, then high for 40 seconds. After 20 seconds, gradually add cheese. Mix with macaroni, and empty all into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and dot with additional butter or margarine. Bake for 30 minutes, until bread crumbs are nicely browned and cheese sauce is bubbling.