Aloetini

Ok since the weather is very weird and slightly warm I am craving a cold cocktail. So I was looking in Trader Joes for a can of Lychees, no Lychees to be found. Really not happy about that because how am I supposed to make Bethany Frankel's Lychee Martinis if I don't have canned Lychees. So instead the Joe has canned Aloe Vera, hhmmm..... So I buy the can and a bag of limes and I am off. 

What you need:

1 can of Aloe Vera chunks with Juice

Vodka

limes

a zestier

a glass

some ice

and a spoon

To make the Aloetini

grab a Martini glass

cut a lime in half and zest the lime into the Martini glass, cut into two wedges 

squeeze the two lime wedges into a martini shaker

fill with four or five table spoons of Aloe Vera juice

poor about three counts of Vodka, not gin

add some ice and shake and strain into the Martini glass

add some aloe Vera chunks and enjoy

Now when I make my Martinis I am way to lazy to use a Martini shaker. So what I do is make my Martinis on the rocks and directly in the rocks glass. I like to add a lot of Aloe Vera chunks in my drink and eat them with a spoon after I finish my drink. Also when you have drinks on the rocks they get watered down which is not a bad thing. It makes the drink last longer and you don't get drunk and fall down the stairs like I do when I have too many Margaritas on a Saturday night, ahhhhhahha:) I use this trick at parties where I have to be on for conversation, and it saves money because you don't buy as many drinks and I can actually drive myself home at the end of the night. 

Product Alert and Something funny:)

Ok so I am a big believer in s Sedaris Family Tradition. The Sedaris Family produced Amy and David Sedaris two excellent talents in the writing and entertianment world. In both Amy's and David's books there are mentions there Mother having a "Funk it Bucket", I know a bad word, eewwww. If you knew me well you would know that word is not that bad, ahahahh:) O well that is what they call it, so that is it. Now Amy says to take a bucket decorate it, fill it with candy and when things are getting bad you just go "Fuck it" and go the "bucket". I love this idea and I have one in my room and one at work. Now at work I had to curve digging into the bucket because of my waist line. I am not in my room that much so I figured that is the best place for it to be. Pictured above is my antique candy dish that is classified as my "Fuck it, Bucket". At work it is a plush Hello Kitty Halloween candy bucket my dear friend Emily gave me. When I grow up and get married one day I plan on having a "Fuck it, Bucket" in the bedroom and the kitchen for sure.
Now I am trying to find candy that has no preservatives or weird colors and over processed sugars for my "Fuck it, Bucket". I make candy from scratch on my own, but really I have no time to do it unless it is for someone else. So as you would think there is not a lot of candy like that in the market place. So I love gummy and sour. Also I love chocolate covered almonds and Reese's Pieces. So I found a really good gummy candy at Trader Joes. They are called Gummy Tummy Penguins with Soft Tummies. Yum!!! A must try. So I think we should all make "Fuck it, Buckets" and photograph them and post them. Also I think if anybody knows of some kinda natural candy they need to share the wealth of info, PLEASE:)

Velveeta Free Con Queso Dip/Gluten Free

So I was on the hunt for a Velveeta Free Con Queso dip. I lived in Texas for a long time and love good Con Queso dip. Trader Joes had a great jarred Con Queso. I lived off the stuff in college. But it vanished off the shelves. I was so upset. So one of my friends at work brings great Con Queso dip, but the Velveeta is just killing me. I know it is made of horrible things. It is a oil by product, yuck! So I was messing around with the help of my Mom ,and figured out a recipe that is pretty close.

What you will need

1 cup of finely shredded extra sharp Cheddar

1 cup of finely shredded monetary jack cheese or some kind of white Mexican cheese

or you could get the bag of pre-shredded lite Mexican blend cheese from Trader Joes use two cups

1 tbsp of butter

1 cup of whole or low fat milk

1/2 brick of low fat cream cheese (cut into cubes and let it become close to room temp)

half can of Rotel tomatoes and chilies( you can use the whole can if you like)

1 cup of cooked or canned Pinto Beans

2 tbsp of pickled jalapeno peppers chopped and 2 tablespoons of juice from the peppers

2 tbsp of brown rice flour
2 tsp of tapioca starch

1/4 tesp of cayenne pepper

2 chopped garlic cloves or 2 tesp of garlic powder

Sea Salt to taste

a few cranks of a pepper mill

a few drops of chilly oil

optional half of a chopped yellow onion (if you do add I would cook in a separate skillet until translucent and then add to the cheese sauce)

Optional but do add for sure is two links of chicken or some kind of hot sausage. I take the cases off the sausage before I cook it and then break them up with my fingers into small pieces and cook in a separate skillet. You could cook the sausage with the onion and some olive oil as well.

You can also use one cup of already prepared Pico De Gallo instead of the Rotel and chopped onion to make things easier.

So making Con Queso is like making Mac and cheese from scratch. You make a cheese sauce first combining butter, milk, cream cheese, flour and the cheese on medium heat in a large non-stick skillet. Stir constantly, but not quickly. Make sure the sauce does not burn or get to hot. If you see it starting to boil take off the burner. A little bubbling and steam is ok. After the mixture has thickened and the cheese has combined into the liquid. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until incorporated completely. Let cook for about five more minutes so the mixture combines and heats up together. Then the mixture will darken in color a bit and give it a couple more good stirs and your done. Then transfer to a Pyrex and you can re warm it up in the Microwave when you want more later. I like to dip with Organic Blue Corn chips from Trader Joes.

Other great Tex Mex recipes from http://www.texmex.net/Rotel/main.htm

and http://thepioneerwoman.com/

Books by the Bed

Ok so I have watched for the forth time the movie The Jane Austin Book Club. Great movie if you have not seen it yet. So after I watch it I always think what I have read over the years that has really shaped me as a person. I have read every Jane Austin Book, and can say who would really need to read anything else if you have read all the books, but of course I should and I do. 

I would not say I am disciplined reader. I read a lot, but reading and taking on a very complicated book takes a lot of time. So I end up not reading too many classics right now. More informative, political, special interest fun reading. So the only time I have is before I go to sleep.  As I lie down every night I call Ben to wish him good night then I go through the stack of books and magazines next to my bed. I relax have Golden Girl re-runs on in the back ground and go into a trance by whatever I decide to read for the night. I am usually up until 1am or 2 getting lost in the written word. So I thought it might be fun for everyone to maybe share what is in their stack of books next to their bed. If for anything a good laugh at the quirky things we read, but if anything to maybe discover a new title to add the pile. 

Now I have some guilty pleasures in my pile and some that I have read many many times that seem like old friends every time I open them so here it goes:

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

Twilight (yes Twilight I LOVE IT) by Stephenie Meyer

The Contemporary Torah. A Gender sensitive Adaption of JPS Translation

The Jane Austin Cookbook by Maggie Black & Deirdre Le Faye

The Green Bible NRSV

Country Living Magazine three or four months of the latest issues

Food and Wine Magazine three months of the latest issues

Fast Company whatever my Dad has finished reading

Harumi's Japanese Cooking by Harumi Kurihara

The Ultimate candy Book by Bruce Weinstein

Wildwood. Cooking from the Source in the Pacific Northwest by Cory Schreiber

I like you by Amy Sedaris

Aromatherapy for Dummies by Kathi Keville

Creative Face. Make your own Makeup by Maxine Nelson

Dwell Magazine after my parents are done with them

Ok so that is what is in my rotation right now. It changes every few months usually my reading changes with the seasons. How about you????

Pumpkin Soup from New Zealand with Love:)

Right now in California we are experiencing a preview of Spring, but we are told to prepare for Winter returning next week. I am missing Winter terribly. I love Northern California's Winters. No snow, but cold crisp days with a nice cleaning of rain showers. Most think I am nuts, but I know I was meant to live in Seattle. I love gray skies and days where coffee and soup are your main diet. Also a nice cold day with sunshine is great too. We are lucky to have that kind of winter living in the Bay. The picture above was taken in Napa right before Christmas. I love Napa especially in the winter it reminds me of some of the places I have traveled in New Zealand. New Zealand is beautiful in the Summer which is their Winter time, but Summer for us. 

When I was 18 I got the opportunity to travel to the South Pacific. I played in the Sydney Opera house and then traveled to New Zealand. One of the things that I most remember is a soup that I was served. It was a pumpkin soup. This was a very foreign recipe to me. I come from a family of very good cooks, but Pumpkin Soup is something I had never experienced. The family that I stayed with said it was a pretty common dish in New Zealand. So for years I have been trying to duplicate it. I have found recipes that are sweet soups, but it was hard to find one with a savory taste. So I found three different recipes and combined them together and I think I have nailed the recipe. 

This time a year I make my Pumpkin Soup and love every spoonful of it, but the weather has been so weird I have not made it once. So I decided this weekend I was going to make it in hopes to make the cold weather come back quickly. Enjoy:)

2 tablespoons butter

1 shallot chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 15oz cans of pumpkin pure or one large can, you can also roast your own pumpkins if you want
2 cups chicken stock or broth or vegetable broth, you may want to add one more cup of veggie stock for not such a thick soup, but you can add that after you puree to gage the thickness.
1 teaspoons sea salt, I like to use the Hawaiian red salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage, or 1 tablespoon dried if your not into sage then just use 1 teaspoon of fresh sage or a 1/2 tablespoon of dried
1 cup light cream or 1/2 cup of half and half and 1/2 cup of low fat milk
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

drizzle of extra virgin olive oil


DIRECTIONS
In a large pot, heat the butter over moderately low heat. Add the onion, garlic, shallot

and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Add the pumpkin, stock, salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, about 30 to 40 minutes. Stir in the sage and simmer 5  to 10 minutes longer.
Puree the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. You may have to do half of the soup at a time. Pour the puree back into the pot and add the cream. If you want a really silky smooth soup put through a stainer, but I like it a little chunky. Stir in the pepper. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. Top with some fresh sage, and I like to drizzle a little chilly oil as well for a kick. You could also grate some Gruyere cheese and sprinkle rather than the chilly oil. This recipe makes about 10 to 12 servings in a normal size bowl. I usually cut the recipe in half and add extra pumpkin for a really thick hearty soup.