I love the Midwest

You know what the best thing about the midwest is? Its the only place in America where you can still get transfats. And let's be honest, transfats taste soooo much better than regular old fats. I just returned from a loverly little trip to the midwest and i had forgotten that everything comes fried with a side a fries. (And you can't buy booze on Sundays neither, damn Puritanical heritage). I consumed: 1 BLT with a side of fries 2. 1 gyro with a side of fries 3. sushi a la midwest (california rolls) with a side of fries 4. 16 cans of PBR which tastes delicious and so much better in cans. 5. 4 margaritas that may or may not have had any actual tecquila in it- (I should have pulled an EJ and asked for the tecquila on the side) 5. Italian meat pizza with a side of fried calamari. 6. two cups of Blue Moon ale, which i am not really a fan of, but between that and Bud Light, when both cost $1.50, I'm going for the "classier" Blue Moon. (These were consumed at the racetrack where i proceeded to win 15 dollars hitting the exacta box in the 5th race on Mr. Mink and Guccione (how could you not bet on a horse named after the publisher of Hustler????))
Which brings me to the point: the midwest is SO cheap its criminal. I think I paid 7 dollars for 30 cans of PBR. Therefore, here is my Recipe for Good Times in the Midwest:

1. 30 cans of PBR
2. Outdoor sporting event
3. Several fried items accompanied by a side of fries

Drink the PBR in the sun while savoring the awesome transfats in your favorite fried food item. yum.

Food for Crazy People

Last night I cooked a pasta meal that had curry, peanut butter, pumpkin and shrimp in it. I think the combination causes dementia and incoherence to the consumer of said meal. It caused me to drink a most of a bottle of wine, argue loudly on the phone like a crazy person and pass out on the couch in front of the TV with all the lights on. Its a Racheal Ray recipe and I can't say that I recommend it. If anyone really wants to confirm these results on their own, I'll gladly post the recipe.

This little piggy likes mushrooms and wine!

So I finally got my Le Creuset oval dutch oven in "Sonoma Green" and I put it to good use on Sunday. I laaauuuvvee it! I decided on the oval shape rather than round because I specifically wanted to make pork tenderloin. And let me just say, it was perfect!

I got this recipe from a girlfriend from law school - it was delish! I served it over quinoa instead of rice as it has more nutrients and I personally think it tastes better. We also had broiled zucchini - yum.

Ingredients:

1 pork tenderloin

2-3 cloves garlic

salt & pepper

1 can cream of mushroom soup (I used fat free - couldn't taste a difference)

1/2 cup or so of white wine

1 lb. mushrooms, sliced - I mixed different varieties

1/4 c. onions

fresh thyme

olive oil

(I'm not v. specific on this one as it doesn't really need to be, it all depends on your taste.)

Preheat oven to 400*. Marinate for one hour, t-loin in olive oil, crushed garlic, generouse amounts of thyme, salt, pepper, and chopped onions. If you have gone easy on the oil in the marinade, add a little to your pot in order to brown the t-loin. Place the t-loin over high heat in order to brown all sides - should take about 5 minutes. Transfer pot to oven and bake at 400* for 10 minutes. Remove and add 1/2 cup of white wine; place pot back in oven for 10 more minutes. Continue cooking until meat thermometer reaches 150* in the thickest part of the t-loin. Remove from pot, place on cutting board, cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes. In the meantime, add mushrooms to the bottom of pot you just took the t-loin out of. Saute for a few minutes until the mushrooms are soft. Add the mushroom soup and blend in extra wine if it needs to be thinned out a bit. If you are opposed to extra wine (shame on you) you can use water as well.

Slice pork and serve over rice (or quinoa) and drench in the delish mushroom gravy!

Seriously fabulous and it didn't take too long!

Is anybody out there?

I feel like I'm writing to myself. I think the only person who actually checks for recipes is my dear sweet husband...alas, I won't quit.

Last night a group of friends went to the Nat's game. Between the four of us we had three chili dogs, one hot dog, two fries, one large basket of chili cheese nachos, four beers, a bag of peanuts and a coke. Um, I feel super disgusting today. However, the hotdog was darn good - its called Ben's Halfsmoke - its kind of a spicy hotdog and it is DELISH. I wasn't the biggest fan of the nachos and I figured out why: there are no freaking beans in the chili and I think they used cinamon or something b/c it was kind of sweet tasting. Not my fave.

Our eating adventures at Nat's stadium will continue - we still have not tried Five Guys or Red, Hot and Blue...And there is some ice cream to be had on the lower level. However, it has not been warm enough to even consider a bowl of ice cream - a bowl of chili is more like it!

Happy Eating!

Burnt Popcorn

Seriously? I cannot beleive I burnt my popcorn - but it wasn't like your usual burn. The entire bag at second 17, began smoking - the paper was burnt on the outside! I could have taken the whole building down. Whooops! Alas, I'll settle for some yogurt.

I made a delish dish last night for the ladies (and J) in honor of Matt Grant (London Calling). The only thing British about it is that the recipe is from a British cookbook (I think). Anyhow, I will post it with a pic when I get home. V. v. good!

Don't burn your popcorn!!!

Nothing Shrimpy About It!

Okay, after a very very long hiatus, I am back and boy do I have TONS to post! J and I have been cooking up a storm - just not making the time to share our fab recipes. Oh yes, that's right, J has been cooking too!! In fact, the recipe I am about to share has become part of his repertoire!

This tasty little number comes from "Giada's Family Dinners" - my dear, sweet, almost-married-cousin JJ got me this book and we LAAAUUUVVVEE it!

Pepperoncini Shrimp

Serves 6

48 large shrimp (about 2 pounds), peeled and deveined*
4 tablespoons pepperoncini oil (recipe follows)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Toss the shrimp in a large bowl with the pepperocini oil. Sprinkle with slat and pepper. Saute the shrimp until just cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Add the cooked shrimp to the bowl with the pepperoncini oil and toss again to coat. Transfer the shrimp to a platter and serve.

*J and I just add the amt of shrimp we'll eat as we rarely share meals with others - something we are trying to change!

Pepperoncini Oil

Makes 1/2 cup

1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped pepperoncini
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a medium, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the pepperoncini and garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour the peperoncini and oil into a heat proof bowl and cool to room temperature.

According to Giada, this pepperoncini oil is great on any fish as well as on shrimp. She also recommends throwing the shrimp on the Barbie. I would try it, but the great county of Arlington has determined I might burn my condo down if I had a BBQ...or "grill" if you are from the East coast...