November 4th Will You Be Voting?

It's really important to vote, I actually never have before in the past because I never felt like I had a good choice of candidates. This is the first time in many years that we have a great man that can lead this country in a positive way. I know I'm ready for Bush to leave the President seat, I've been ready since he set foot in office. Early voting has already taken place. I want to be apart of it don't you? Tomorrow is the deadline to mail in your voter registration forms, you can walk it in to the Secretary's Office thereafter.

Date: Tuesday, November 4, 2008, 7:00AM – 8:00PM

What's Your Favorites?

My pictures to my recipes are still stuck on my camera so I decided to make a post on my favorites until I can get the pictures uploaded and get myself back into posting recipes. I have some fun Holiday recipes to post....

I made this up out of boredom and fun, I"m keeping myself entertained ;)

What are my favorite places to eat at?
Roy's Hawaiian BBQ
La Provencal
Kings Fish
La Finestra
La Super Rica Taqueria
Sushi Mac
Carneys
Exotic Thai
Saladang Song
La Cabana
King Taco
Rockin Baja Lobster
Woodlands (south Indian food)


What would I eat every week if it wouldn't make me gain weight?
Gnocchi and Flautas

Dessert of Choice?
Creme Brulee....following very closely behind that are cheesecake and Shrikhand

What will I not eat unless starving and it was my only choice?
Brains, Liver, snails, Cow's Tongue ect.....

Favorite Ice Cream:
Mint Chocolate Chip.....peanut butter cup is a close 2nd

Favorite Fruit:
Mango....strawberries are a close 2nd

Favorite Vegetable:
Zucchini.....spinach is a close 2nd

Favorite Alcoholic drink: Dirty Martini
Favorite beer- Pale Ale
Favorite Wine- Red Bicyclette at the moment (all of them are good)

Most Common drink with my meals?
Water Or Ice Tea

Favorite ethnic food?
Thai or French

What is always kept in stock in my frig?
Milk, Cheese, Vegies, Garlic, Onions, Fruit, Beer, yogurt, Butter, Soy Sauce, Cilantro, Chai Mix

Choice of Fish?
Halibut

I'm Standing at the check out and feel a sudden sugar rush, what do I pick up?
Twix

Am I a freezer junkie or believe in keeping it fresh?
I keep it fresh.

What's in my freezer?
Ice Cream, sugar snaps, Vodka, batteries, strawberries, Okra, Spinach, puff pastry sheets

What do I rarely eat but do like...
I rarely eat Pizza, maybe once a year tops.

To Cook or To bake...
To bake..

Favorite thing to bake...
Cookies and Cheesecake

Restaurants of major disappointment: El Torito, Alcapulco, Outback Steak House, Mimi's Cafe and Crown & Anchor in Thousand Oaks.

You notice how hard it is to have ONE favorite thing without adding in a very close 2nd on all of these....

Tostadas

I grew up on this one. Tostadas for those of you that don't know it is a Mexican dish using a deep fried corn tortilla which can be purchased in the grocery store already done and you add toppings of your choice. There are so many ways to make this using pork, beef, chicken or veggie style. Here's what I do...
I purchase a rotisserie chicken in the deli and shred it, I like to add some more flavor to it by adding 2 TB chili garlic sauce and about 4 TB of BBQ Sauce it gives it a nice sweet and spiciness and bake that up until it gets dark tips on the BBQ Sauce.
Re fry some beans (don't buy store bought, the taste does matter if you make your own)
boil the pinto beans for a couple of hours or until soft than heat some EVO in a pan and add the boiled beans using a spoon that will release the liquid from the boiled beans. Add very little of that liquid. Fry and mash, toss in about 1/4 cup of salsa and cilantro if it is not in your salsa already and you have some tasty re fried beans. After that's done you spread the beans on the Tostada than add some shredded chicken, lettuce, radish, some Cotija cheese and top with salsa. Quick and easy if you already have beans made from another dish and you want to finish off your left over beans the next day.

Apple Pie

So, after watching the return of Pushing Daisies I was itching to make a pie. I went with the classic Apple Pie, using the double crest dough version from Dorie Greenspan's "Baking From My Home To Yours, " and decided to use the apple pie filling from All Recipes since I didn't have any Tapioca that was called for in Dorie's version. Though I thought of this apple pie adventure to be a disaster, with leaky pie crust all over my burning stove, I did use the incorrect pie pan but I knew this going into it. The sappy dough turned into a soup, but I didn't give up there. I decided to just add the apple pie mixture to the dough and see what comes of it. As I let it cook for longer than I was suppose to, and when I pulled it out of the oven I was unsure if this one will survive, I tasted it and was "eh" about it. I considered just tossing it out at one point but through it in the refrigerator anyways. The next day, I really wanted a slice, so I took a peak at it, cut a slice, tossed it in the microwave and gave it a second chance and was so glad that I did. It came out so damn good! The crust was a bit buttery and flaky which turned out really good. I also added the sauce mixture to the apples instead of topping the crust with it as instructed in the recipe but after reading the reviews lots of people did the same thing. It just made sense to do it that way. So, goes to show, even if it looks like a disaster doesn't mean it will taste like one. ;)

Indian Chicken Curry

The greatest tragedy in mankind's entire history may be the hijacking of morality by religion. -Arthur C. Clarke, science fiction writer (1917-2008)



This recipe is adapted from my mother in law and for so long I just couldn't get it to work out not even half as good as hers. This last time I made it, I can't believe how great it came out, very similar to hers.

Saute a medium size yellow onion in 2 TB Canola or Veg oil, let it turn a golden brown color.
Add in ginger garlic paste 2 TB, allow it to get fragrant and change slightly in color
ADD in 1 diced Jalapeno
Add in 4 TB of Coriander/Cumin Powder mixture
ADD in 1 TB of Chili Powder or more depending on if you like heat.
ADD in 1 TB of Garam Masala
ADD in 1/4 TSP of Mustard powder (do not add more, you can seriously ruin the dish if you do) it is a very strong spice.
1 tsp cumin seeds
Stir fry the spices until it darkens just a tab (don't burn spices)
Add more oil if it looks dry, there should be some moisture in the spices so they don't burn.
Add in one diced tomato
add 1/2 cup of water
Add 2 Diced Potatoes
Let that slow cook and in the mean time you can cut up your chicken pieces, remove all fat. Dark meat is what my mother in law has always used so it is the only thing I use, chicken legs and thighs.
ADD chicken and cover, I let it cook for 1 hour. Toss in some Cilantro about 10 mins before serving.

Makes great left overs, if you have sauce left over when all the chicken has been eaten up, boil a few eggs and add them to the sauce and have that as a meal.

White Bean Turkey Chili

There are two things to aim at in life; first to get what you want, and after that to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second. -Logan Pearsall Smith, essayist (1865-1946)





Recipe adapted from a very old issue of Cooking Light. If you love southern food this is a must try dish and grab your favorite cornbread recipe I was craving my mom's cornbread with this. I made this recipe as is without any changes and loved it!

Thai Style Halibut With Coconut Curry Sauce

True remorse is never just a regret over consequences; it is a regret over motive. -Mignon McLaughlin, journalist and author (1913-1983)
















Recipe adapted from Ellie Krieger, this is tasty but I plan to make changes to it for next time. I was expecting a sweet taste for it being Thai style so in that aspect I was disappointed because it didn't taste sweet at all to me. I think the changes I will try next time is to use 1 tsp red curry paste, 1 cup of broth instead of 2, 1 can of coconut milk(regular and not light) instead of 1/4 cup and add in some heavy cream and cornstarch to thicken up the sauce a bit and pepper flakes for a kick. Definitely limes, they do bring out some taste in this recipe.

Another One Bites The Dust.

My husband is becoming infamous for destroying wine glasses. Though the glasses given to you at a wine tasting event are very fragile and cheaply made, I still like to keep them to remind myself that I've already been to that tasting vineyard. I thought this was a good photo shot of the destroyed glass and how it blends in with the background.


Just the other night I had an amazing wine. I recommend it if you are a red wine lover.




Nappa Valley Meritage 2005
with it having:
69% Merlot
29% Cabernet Sauvignon
2% Cabernet Franc