Much more interesting than a recipe...

From the Bowling Green police blotter, Saturday night:

3:14 a.m.

Subject reported his vehicle was stolen from North Prospect Street. The caller was intoxicated and after 30 minutes, police found it parked in Lot 2 where he had left it. Once the vehicle was secured, the subject called 911 again. He was told not to call unless it was an emergency. Later, he called 911 again and stated his vehicle was "moving" as he could see it on "low jack." He was told his vehicle was not moving and was still parked in Lot 2. The dispatcher told him to go to sleep and check the vehicle in the morning.

My holiday wish list

I'm going to skip over peace on earth and goodwill toward men, and get straight to the good stuff. This post will change every so often because I don't want a big (BIG) string of post linkages. Most of my items have to do directly with cooking, because apparently some creepy little obscure lobe in my brain decided over the past year that I need to fatten up for the winter (and all the other seasons). As a result -- of the lobe and also having a boyfriend who is keen on eating dinner, something I didn't do in the past -- I have become more interested in cooking healthier foods, and with more flair. The fact that I don't have any place in my kitchen to store all this stuff is completely irrelevant.

1. Spatulas that don't melt and that cost more than a dollar for three of them.
2. A nice set of non-toxic cooking pans and a ceiling pot hanger-thingy.
3. Knives, knives, and more knives. Knives that cost more than a dollar for three, and aren't the type that "never need sharpening." I can't imagine anything more fulfilling than sitting around on a winter afternoon just scraping knives against a rock.
4. Oh, speaking of rocks, I almost forgot: a mortar and pestle.
5. An iPod. Maybe. I kind of like the anticipation of waiting until I get home to listen to my favorite CD (I have a cassette player in my car...can you believe that? And the car is only 5 years old! Ghetto.)
6. Potholders. I have one and it's one of those mitt kinds that suck.
7. To win the lottery or inherit millions from a long-lost relative (never hurts to ask).
8. A screwdriver set.
9. Total home organization -- which entails a week alone -- which I will never get -- but miracles happen.

Done for now. Updates to follow, as I mentioned...

Bad Dream

So, last night I had another one of my "bad mom" dreams in which I do something awful to Spencer and wake up in a panic. Last night, it went like this:

Spencer was being bratty and I was chasing him around the room, getting angrier and angrier. I reached out to grab him or smack him, I don't know which, and my hand was sort of cupped and it smashed onto his face when he jumped to run away again. He ran screaming upstairs and I went to bed and didn't think about it again. During the night, Will was muttering in his sleep about what a horrid bitch I was for hurting my child that way. When I woke up (this is still in my dream, FYI -- I often sleep in my dreams), I thought it had been a dream but then I saw Spencer and his nose appeared to be broken or bruised. Troy was there and he started crying, and Spencer was crying, and I wasn't. The whole time I didn't cry. It was decided that Spencer would go live with his dad. The worst part was when I tried to hug Spencer goodbye and he pulled away and said, "I don't love you any more," and I understood. I concocted a plan to buy us matching necklaces with the Chinese symbol for "respect," as if that would solve the problem.

There are more intricate details. of course, since I have very vivid dreams, but that was the jist of it. Once again, I was physically abusive and, once again, Spencer hated me. I think I'm having flashbacks from slapping him out of sheer frustration when he was about 2 -4 and we were living on our own. He was so stubborn, and I was so exhausted, that sometimes I couldn't help it. Well, I could have helped it but at the time I didn't have the energy to solve the problem ina rational manner, I suppose. When I think about it now it makes me want to die.

I love this

A bumper sticker I saw on a car with a "Vietnam Veteran" license plate: "IRAQ is Arabic for VIETNAM"
*****
Key Republicans Dissent

Sen. John Warner, R-Va., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, seemed to open the floodgates to GOP criticism this month when he warned after a trip to Iraq that the war was "drifting sideways" and a course correction might soon be warranted.

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, said she would not have supported the invasion had she known there were no weapons of mass destruction, and she has proposed splitting Iraq into three parts.

Sen. George Allen, R-Va., in a difficult re-election battle with Democratic challenger James Webb, dropped his stay-the-course mantra to assert, "We cannot continue doing the same things and expect different results. We have to adapt our operations, adapt our tactics."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in an interview with The Associated Press that both U.S. and Iraqi officials should be held accountable for the lack of progress: "We're on the verge of chaos and the current plan is not working."

Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., said in a debate last week with Democratic challenger Jon Tester that he agreed with Warner's call for a change in strategy, and believed Bush already had a plan to win the war but for now was keeping it quiet. That remark drew ridicule from Democrats who likened it to Richard Nixon's "secret plan" to end the war in Vietnam.

Also challenging Bush's Iraq policy have been former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Republican Sens. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe of Maine, and several House Republicans.

Desserts from eDiets

Mocha Almond Pie
And what’s dessert without chocolate? Mocha Almond Pie from Keebler Ready Crust is found on Wal-Mart Organics’ website. I’ve adapted it so it’s lower in fat and calories by changing whole milk to 1-percent milk, using nonfat whipped topping, and reducing the amount of nuts.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups cold low-fat, 1-percent milk
1 package (4-serving size) chocolate flavor instant pudding & pie filling
1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 Tbsp. instant coffee crystals
2 cups thawed nonfat, nondairy whipped topping
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted*
1 Keebler Ready Crust Chocolate Pie Crust (6 oz)
Toast almonds in a 350-degree oven on ungreased baking sheet for just 5 to 10 minutes, stirring once or twice, until golden. Meanwhile, in large bowl beat milk, pudding mix, cocoa powder and coffee crystals with wire whisk for 1 minute. Refrigerate about 5 minutes or until thick. Whisk in whipped topping. Spread in crust.

Freeze at least three hours or until firm. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before cutting. Sprinkle with reserved almonds. Store in freezer.

____________________________

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Ingredients:
2 8-ounce packages fat-free cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/3 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup thawed nonfat nondairy whipped topping
Whip cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until blended. Blend in eggs but don’t beat. Remove 1 cup of batter and stir in canned pumpkin and spice. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray, and sprinkle in graham crumbs. Pour remaining batter into pan, top with pumpkin batter. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes, or until center is set. Refrigerate for three hours or overnight.

Serve with a tablespoon of whipped topping, and a sprinkle of graham cracker crumbs.

Makes eight servings. Nutritional values per serving: 150 calories, 2.5g fat (1g sat.), 340mg sodium and 18g sugar.

TGIF

Today, aside from a freaky weird little storm thingy that turned the skies from blue and sunny to white-out and raining, was a lovely autumn 65-degree Colorado day. It is now midnight and snowing...go figure. Here's a cool picture that I took out the front door just now; the snow is coming down too hard for the camera to grasp anything other than what is right in front of it, I guess.

Funny dream

I had the funniest dream last night. I was at a fair of some sort and was handed a little flier to a party. The flier was very colorful and looked like a bookmark. On the front it said something about a party, and on the back it listed three fetishes, two of which I can't recall and the third was "butt sniffing." [I woke up from this dream laughing.] So, of COURSE I went to the party and it was all very stupid and there was some old lady who was organzing the whole thing and she was trying to sell me an really ugly sofa throw. I will skip the details (which are very NOT sexual) and get to the last sentence that I spoke in the dream, which is what made me wake up...I announced to everyone in the vicinity "If I take off all my clothes and let someone smell my butt, no one will ever talk to me again." How awesome is that?! Too funny. Oh, and I can't forget to mention that I used the word "squiddly-poof." Why, I don't remember, but it was somehow related to a blanket that had to be blown up.

Spooky Treats

I hate the word "treat." And "snack", too. Regardless, here is a fun link

And a photo to boot!!

Dedicated to Mister Fichter

Here is something that's pretty funny to me. This old man was my friend Laura's neighbor. His eyes were like Milhouse's behind those coke-bottle glasses, and he was very cute. i assume that he died a long time ago, but I found this picture in the Oxford Press and I want to share it.
_______________________________________

If I want to squeeze into a size 6 again, I can't ever eat this. I don't think I can even smell it. But it sounds really good. Actually, CLAY sounds good at this point, but I'm determined. I walked home from work the long way and then played catch with Spencer for a while (we had to do it yesterday and today, because tomorrow it's going to snow....yuck), and I even dove for the ball a couple of times!!


Walnut pastries in honey syrup

Servings: Makes 14 pastries

Note: From "Arabesque" by Claudia Roden. Use a supermarket brand of filo where the sheets are about 12 inches by 7 inches. Orange blossom water is available at Middle Eastern markets and gourmet shops.

3/4 cup clear honey

1 1/2 tablespoons orange blossom water

2 cups walnuts, coarsely ground

1/3 cup sugar

Zest of 1 orange

14 sheets of filo

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1. In a saucepan, make the syrup by bringing the honey, one-half cup water and the orange blossom water to a boil and simmer for 30 seconds. Then let it cool.

2. Mix the walnuts with the sugar and orange zest.

3. Heat the oven to 300 degrees. Open the package of filo only when you are ready to make the pastries. Keep them in a pile so that they do not dry out. Lightly brush the top one with melted butter. Put a line of about 2 to 2 1/2 tablespoons of the walnut mixture at one of the short ends of the rectangle, into a line about three-fourths inch from the short and long edges. Roll it up loosely into a fat cigar shape. Turn the ends in about one-third of the way along to trap the filling, then continue to roll. Continue with the remaining sheets of filo.

4. Place the pastries on a baking sheet, brush them with melted butter and bake them for 40 minutes, or until lightly golden and crisp. Turn each pastry, while still warm, very quickly in the syrup and arrange on a dish. Serve cold with the remaining syrup poured all over.

Each serving: 273 calories; 3 grams protein; 27 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 18 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 17 mg. cholesterol; 48 mg. sodium.

Funny Spencerisms...

1. La Isla Bonita - instead of "last night I dreamt of San Pedro", he honestly thought the words are "last night I dreamt of some bagels" and he asked me why on earth anyone would ever write a song about that.

2. At the King Soopers Deli -- "I thought it was bad enough that you eat tofu, but now this?? Feta cheese is DISGUSTING! You get grosser all the time!" What's even worse is that the deli was packed with customers, who all thought that this was a scream, and the counter guy agreed with Spencer that his mother does indeed eat awful foods.

3. Tossing a Football -- "Wow, you're really surprising me with how you throw! Given your age and the fact that you're a girl and all, I wouldn't have guessed that you can throw so far!"

Very funny

THIS is very very funny!!

WHEEEEE....

It's FRIDAY the THIRTEENTH, which I think means Leave Work Early And Go Drink On A Patio Day in ancient Chinese. I'm outta here. No recipe posting, no nuthin, because I don't feel like it and I just want to go have me some gol-darned fun. I found the car title and go tthat all taken care of today, so my weekend mission is to find that camera download cord so I can get back to being a festive picture-posting blog person. Or whatever.

Muff Diving (heehee)

This recipe thing is so much easier than trying to come up with something interesting to write about my life. i have a very uninteresting life. Except for the fact that Will threw me off of the couch last night and I landed on the floor with my skirt over my head and my underwear up my butt. It was VERY interesting. Bottoms up!!

Blueberry vodka & Blackberry IZZE, might have to try that some time soon.

Pumpkin Cornmeal Muffins

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
4 eggs
1 15-ounce can solid pumpkin
1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Heat oven to 350° F. If not using silicone pans, lightly coat two 6-cup muffin tins with vegetable cooking spray.
In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to slow, add the remaining ingredients, and beat for 3 minutes or just until smooth.
Spoon the batter into the muffin pans. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Yield: 12 muffins

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 255(0% from fat); FAT 10g (sat 6g); PROTEIN 6mg; CHOLESTEROL 92mg; CALCIUM 97mg; SODIUM 320mg; FIBER 4g; CARBOHYDRATE 37g; IRON 2mg

Amazingly Yummy Stuff!

BUTTERNUT SQUASH, SAGE, AND GOAT CHEESE RAVIOLI WITH HAZELNUT BROWN-BUTTER SAUCE

For filling
a 2-pound butternut squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground sage
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, minced
3 ounces aged goat cheese, grated (about 2/3)
60 won ton wrappers, thawed if frozen
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted lightly and skinned and chopped coarse

Preheat oven to 425°F. and lightly grease a baking sheet.

Make filling:
Put squash halves, flesh sides down, an baking sheet and roast in middle of oven 30 minutes, or until flesh is very tender. When squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out flesh into a bowl and discard skin. Mash squash with a fork until smooth.

While squash is roasting, in a skillet cook onion and sage in butter with salt and pepper to taste over moderate heat, stirring, 5 minutes, or until onion is golden brown. Stir in garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Cool onion mixture slightly and add to squash. Add goat cheese and stir to combine well.

In a 6-quart kettle bring 5 quarts salted water to a gentle boil for ravioli.

Put 1 won ton wrapper on a lightly floured surface, keeping remaining wrappers in plastic wrap, and mound 1 tablespoon filling in center. Lightly brush edges of wrapper with water and put a second wrapper over first, pressing down around filling to force out air and seal edges well. If desired, trim excess dough with a round cutter or sharp knife. Transfer ravioli to a dry kitchen towel. Make more ravioli with remaining wrappers and filling in same manner, transferring as formed to towel and turning occasionally to dry slightly.

In skillet cook butter with hazelnuts over moderate heat until butter begins to brown, about 3 minutes, and immediately remove from heat (nuts will continue to cook). Season hazelnut butter with salt and pepper and keep warm, covered.

Cook ravioli in 3 batches in gently boiling eater 6 minutes, or until they rise to surface and are tender (do not let water boil vigorously once ravioli have been added). Carefully transfer ravioli as cooked with a slotted spoon to a large shallow baking pan and add enough cooking water to reach 1/2 inch up side of pan. Keep ravioli warm, covered.

Transfer ravioli with a slotted spoon ) letting excess cooking liquid drip off) to 6 plates and top with hazelnut brown-butter sauce.

Makes 30 ravioli, serving 6 generously.

My Food Blog

I have decided to post a recipe every day, as a long as I remember to do it. Once upon a time, I made good progress writing a cookbook called "See Cyndy Cook," which is most lovely and, unfortunately, is spread out over about 16 floppy disks. Since I can't access those disks anymore without digging around in a spooky computer graveyard, I'm going to start all over again. I'll quote sources unless I change the recipe significantly (something I am wont to do whether or not I actually attempt to cook the thing). Nothing is going to look fancy until I go back and re-study my HTML book. I might even get ambitious and start a whole new blog, in which I will include photos of myself cooking and Will choking on the food. Yum!

Here is my first recipe:

Croissants Stuffed With Scrambled Eggs, Apples And Brie

Serve these hearty sandwiches as a special treat for brunch or lunch this weekend. Garnish the plates with small bunches of juicy red grapes to add color and crunch and accompany with tall glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice.


8 stemmed spinach leaves
2 large croissants, halved horizontally

Filling

½ large apple, cored, peeled, and quartered
4 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup brie cheese (about 2 ounces) in ½-inch chunks (see Tip)
2 tablespoons snipped fresh chives
Dash of freshly grated nutmeg to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Arrange 4 spinach leaves on the bottom half of each croissant.

To make the filling: Cut each apple quarter crosswise into ¼-inch-thick slices. Beat the eggs lightly with a fork in a small bowl, then add the milk and beat lightly again; set aside.

Melt the butter in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the apple slices; cook, stirring occasionally, until the slices are nearly tender, about 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low; add the egg mixture. As it begins to set, use a spatula to move the cooked portion to the side, allowing the uncooked portions to spread over the bottom. (This will take about 1 minute.)

While the eggs are still very moist, reduce the heat to low; dot with the Brie and sprinkle with the chives, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Fold some of the cooked eggs over the brie so it will melt. Remove the pan from the heat before the eggs become either dry or browned on the edges. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Spoon half of the cooked egg mixture over the spinach on each croissant half. Top with the other half of the croissant. Serve hot, with forks.

I have a case of the Mondays

it was so bad that I left work early. I had every intention of coming home, putting on my Harley tee and yoga pants, and chilling out with my computer. My aim was to start a Flikr account so I can keep track of all my photos without using the ever-so-annoying Kodak Easy Share (hah!) Gallery site, which has managed to drop many many of my downloaded pictures.

Alas, I left the frick-frackin' camera cord in my desk. And it's sleeting AND I left a bottle of wine in the car, which Will drove to work. No wine, no phone cord, no happy. This has been my day in a nutshell.

Memorial service

Ben, Bailey and Sophie at the Emily Keyes memorial service on Saturday, Sept. 30. This picture was posted online internationally and in local papers.