Weekly Recipe: Sweet Potato Souffle

I LOVE sweet potatoes.  I recently saw this recipe and was intrigued.  If you are feeling adventurous, making a souffle is not really that difficult.  Just follow the directions and hey, even if it doesn't look pretty, it will still taste good.

Sweet Potato Soufflé

Cooking spray
1/4  cup granulated sugar, divided
2  medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound, 12 ounces)
2  tablespoons butter, softened
1/4  cup all-purpose flour (about 1 ounce)
1/2  cup half-and-half
1  tablespoon grated orange rind
1/3  cup fresh orange juice
1/4  cup packed dark brown sugar
1  teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4  teaspoon salt
2  large egg yolks
5  large egg whites

Position oven rack to lowest setting, and remove the middle rack. Preheat oven to 425°.

Coat a 1 1/2-quart soufflé dish with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar. Set aside.

Pierce potatoes with a fork; arrange on paper towels in microwave oven. Microwave at high 10 minutes or until tender, rearranging potatoes after 5 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes. Peel potatoes. Combine potatoes and butter, and mash with a potato masher until smooth.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, potato mixture, half-and-half, and next 6 ingredients (through egg yolks) in a food processor; process until smooth. Transfer potato mixture to a large bowl.

Place egg whites in a large mixing bowl; beat at high speed with a mixer until soft peaks form. Add remaining 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form (do not overbeat). Gently fold one-fourth of egg white mixture into potato mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Gently spoon mixture into prepared dish. Sharply tap dish 2 or 3 times on the counter to level. Place dish on a baking sheet; place baking sheet in a 425° oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 375° (do not remove soufflé from oven). Bake 1 hour or until soufflé is puffy, golden, and set. Serve immediately.

Yield: 6 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 259(26% from fat); FAT 7.5g (sat 4.3g,mono 2.3g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 6.9g; CHOLESTEROL 88mg; CALCIUM 84mg; SODIUM 414mg; FIBER 3.1g; IRON 1.3mg; CARBOHYDRATE 41g

Poor Jud is Dead, Poor Jud Fry is Dead

My ipod (almost 4 years old) kicked the bucket yesterday.  I guess the battery just finally died, but rather than pay for it to be replaced, I'm going to upgrade.

RIP my first ipod.  You served me well.

And just in case you are wondering, no my ipod is not named Jud Fry.  It's a song from Oklahoma (a musical for you cultural illiterates out there).  And no dad, Oklahoma is not sung to the tune of the Hallelujah Chorus.  ;)

Weather

"Blech.  I hope the weather cools down slightly before May."
- me, in a blog post earlier in March

Slightly!  I said SLIGHTLY, damn it!  It was snowing here today!!!  Fortunately it did not stick, but it has been freezing.  I suppose it is better than the 85 degrees and no AC like the week I was complaining about, but c'mon - it is almost April and I don't live in Syracuse any more!!!

Weekly Recipe: BBQ chicken pizza

OK, so this is not exactly a gourmet recipe, but it is good and fast.  I have been cooking a lot of chicken recently and I have gotten pretty bored of the standard chicken dishes I make, but I don't have a lot of time to go looking for new things.  I stopped at Trader Joe's on my way home (I love that store!  I can buy all kinds of yummy, unique food, and I always manage to leave with a bag full of stuff for under $30) and bought some of their pre-made pizza dough (whole wheat, though they have regular too) which retails for a whopping $.75.  This stuff is awesome.  I make sure to always keep some around.  The whole wheat dough is some of the best I have had - on par with the honey wheat dough at CPK, though not as sweet which is fine with me.

But to get back to the recipe...

So I bought some whole wheat pizza dough and some 3 cheese blend (colby, monterey jack, and mozz) and headed home.  I carmelized half of a sweet onion left over in the fridge from last night's dinner and then added the chicken I took out of the freezer this morning cut up into small pieces and cooked it til it was done.  I spread out the dough on a cookie sheet (using Pam with flour on the sheet first - this is very important, otherwise you will have a pizza stuck to the sheet!), topped it with my favorite sweet BBQ sauce, the cheese, and the chicken and onions.  Baked it at 425 for 10 minutes and voila.

Considering I just made it up on the fly, it was really good.  It would have been better with some fresh cilantro, but alas, I didn't have any.

To recap:
whole wheat pizza dough
Pam with flour (or just regular flour)
2 chicken breast halves, diced
1/2 large sweet onion
BBQ sauce
shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 425.  Carmelize the onion.  Add the chicken and cook til done.  Spray a cookie sheet with Pam with flour (or a pizza pan if you have one - I always just use a rimmed cookie sheet).  Spread the dough out on the sheet.  Top with BBQ sauce, cheese, and chicken/onions.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Cut into 8 pieces.

I haven't disappeared

I haven't posted in awhile and that's because I've been super busy studying for my MA comprehensive exam.  I have basically put a moratorium on my social life until after 4/8. 

The one exciting thing that has happened recently:  I finally bought a new phone.  My old one was seriously like 4 years old.  It had a green screen and no txt capabilities.  Sad, I know, but I don't like to spend a lot of money on my phone.

So after being prompted by various things in the past week, I decided not only was it time to get a new phone, but time to leave Sprint behind (I'd been with them since 1999).  I got a great deal on a RAZR phone through Verizon and since Jeff and Sarah are on Verizon too I get free in network txting. Oh and now I have a camera in my phone so I am armed and dangerous.  Muhahahahahahahahaha!

Same number btw - just a different phone.

Weekly Recipe: Hummus

i got this recipe from my mom.  It is yummy and a nice thing to have on hand to use as a veggie dip or sandwich spread.  Whenever I make some it never stays in the fridge for long.  This recipe makes a pretty large amount, but it's a good amount for a party.

3 cups canned garbanzo beans, reserve drained juice
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
3/4 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Pinch of paprika

Puree the garbanzo beans in a food processer or blender (I prefer to use our blender.  It seems like it can better handle the beans).  Stir/pulse in the crushed garlic, lemon juice, salt, and tahini.  The hummus should have a consistency similar to that of mayonnaise.  If it is too thick add reserved juice (I usually add slightly less than the juice from one can).  Pour into a bowl and top with the olive oil.   Sprinkle with paprika. 

Summer Vacation - Change in Plans

Jeff's family is having a family reunion in LA this summer, so in an attempt to save money and vacation time, we figured we would combine our vacation with the reunion.  Our roadtrip to Yellowstone will have to wait.  Instead we plan to fly into LA, rent a car and drive to Las Vegas, and then head back to LA for the reunion.  I'm also hoping we can spend a day or two bumming around LA.

The best news - we had so many miles in our frequent flyer accounts we were able to trade them in for 2 first class tickets...and we still have a bunch of miles left.  I'm still pricing it out, but we are hoping to rent a convertible for our drive to Vegas.  We also found a great online deal at the Luxor in the pyramid. 

Neither of us have been to Vegas before, so if you have any suggestions on what to see and do, they are welcomed. 

Spring Has Sprung

Spring seems to have sprung here in DC.  People are driving around with their convertible tops down.  Women in desperate need of a tan are wearing tank tops.  Uncle Jed's Roadhouse, one of our favorite after-work happy hour spots, has opened up their patio.

And once again I am reminded of why I hate apartment living.  Our apartment doesn't turn on the air conditioning til May.  We seem to be surrounded by other people who feel the need to have their heat blasting  24/7 (Evidence of this fact: We literally never turn our heat on in the winter.  Ever.  Ambient heat from other people's apartments is more than enough to keep us warm.)

Blech.  I hope the weather cools down slightly before May.

This was good for a laugh...

I am signed up with mypoints so that I get points for reading emails they send me and online shopping which I can then redeem for gift cards.  I usually get gift cards for Tower records to fund my music habit.

Yesterday I got a really funny e-mail in my inbox entitled: "Join the William Shatner DVD Club and earn 500 Points!"  After a good laugh about what the heck the William Shatner DVD Club would be like, I opened the email.  As it turns out, it is a sci-fi dvd club.  This begs the question: could William Shatner be any more of a whore than he already is?  Apparently so.

Belle and Sebastian and more...

I haven't posted in awhile because I've been pretty busy.  Instead of making a bunch of posts, I figured I would roll everything into one.  ;-)

Monday night Jeff and I went to see Belle and Sebastian and the concert was great (preceeded by an equally great dinner at Busboys and Poets with Aaron).  I was disappointed by the New Pornographer's opening, but what could you expect when 2/3 of the main vocalists weren't there, and one of the replacement vocalists had lost her voice.  It was actually pretty painful. The (male) drummer was singing falsetto on some of the female backings, then the main singer bust his thuimb open and started to bleed.  I think they spent most of their time on stage talking or tuning their guitars (I'm assuming a nervous tick).  Then they went off early.

But B+S rocked!  And they played one of my favorite B sides: "Your Cover's Blown".  NPR recorded the show I was at and you can listen to it here if you are so inclined. 

Tuesday was fairly uneventful and Wednesday afternoon I took off for Minneapolis for work.  Let me just say that the roads in Minneapolis are tres confusing.  But I am confident that if I ever get on Amazing Race and we end up in MN, I now will have the jump on the other teams.  ;-)  For example:  there is a I-35E and a I-35W.  One would (naturally) assume that this was the same road, runing E-W, right?  But no!  In MN they like to be tricky!  Instead, they are two different roads running parallel to each other and they both run N-S (wtf?).  It took me awhile to figure out that I wanted I-35E North.  Fortunately I picked up a free map from the car rental place.

So yesterday I was on my way back hanging out at the MSP airport and eating a really good burger (and enjoying a very good local brew), I caught the very exciting end of the Syracuse-UConn game.  Then I tried calling my dad to heckle him, but he wasn't home.  Neither was my sister.  Oh well. 

And unfortunately, GW lost yesterday.  (Pops, hurry back!)  At Alexis' birthday last night this seemed to be the hot topic of conversation.

Today in D.C. it is almost 80 degrees.  Good thing I have one (yes, only one) Summer work-appropriate shirt that fits me.  In addition to comps studying I sense shopping in my immediate future.

All Time Favorite Song?

I got asked this by someone last week and I didn't have an answer.  There are *so many* songs I really like.  After thinking about it some more though, I think I might have to go with a very simple song by the Beatles: "In My Life" from Rubber Soul.  This and a hand full of other songs (like Find the River and Nightswimming by R.E.M.) are nostalgic favorites from high school.  They just conjure up all kinds of good memories.

A friend and I campaigned for "In My Life" as our senior prom song (and it won), our group performed it at music camp before we were really a group, I quoted it in my senior yearbook entry, and if the stupid dj hadn't fucked up (don't get me started about our wedding dj) it would have been played at our wedding.  It's not a very complicated song and there are probably other songs that move me more on a musical level, but it just makes me think back to good times.

There are places I remember all my life,

Though some have changed,

Some forever, not for better,

Some have gone and some remain.

All these places had their moments

With lovers and friends I still can recall.

Some are dead and some are living.

In my life I've loved them all.

But of all these friends and lovers,

There is no one compares with you,

And these memories lose their meaning

When I think of love as something new.

Though I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before,

I know I'll often stop and think about them,

In my life I'll love you more.

Though I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before,

I know I'll often stop and think about them,

In my life I'll love you more.

In my life I'll love you more.

Oscar Night America - AFI Silver

Last night we went to the Oscar party at AFI Silver, and we had a pretty good time.  The food was decent (good Cuban food from Cubanos among other places).  I was a little disappointed with the drinks (wine and one type of cocktail), but hey it was open bar so I guess I can't complain too much.  It was fun to get dressed up and go out even if some of the other atendees got a little rowdy towards the end (I guess that is another problem with oen bar, LOL).  Here's a picture I made Jeff take. 

Weekly Recipe: Barbecue Meat Loaf

Meatloaf might be passe.  But passe things tend to come around again (like the unfortunate circa 1980s Madonna look, which seems to be making a comeback *shudder*), and besides, there are few better comfort foods than a good slice of meatloaf with a side of mashed potatoes. 

This month's Cooking Light did their cooking class section on meatloaf and offered up several interesting sounding recipes.  I made the first one, barbecue meatloaf, for dinner tonight and it was a big hit.  This is definitely making its way into my recipes file.  FYI - I used a spicy brown mustard, hot chili powder, and Famous Dave's Sweet and Sassy BBQ sauce (which has a bit of a kick).  I also drizzled some extra sauce on the pieces once they were plated.  I served it with veggies, and carmelized sweet onions.  Mmmmmmm-mmmmmmm good.

Oh and lest I forget to metion, the best part about this meatloaf is its nutritional info.  203 calories, 5.4 grams of fat, 1.1 grams of fiber for 2 slices.  For all you WW fans, that means it's only 4 points for 2 slices.  The same as a 3 oz chicken breast!  And it tastes infinitely better.  I have cut red meat almost completely out of my diet (opting for turkey, chicken, pork, and soy), but this recipe might convince me to eat it more. 

Barbecue Meatloaf
1 1/2  pounds ground beef, extra lean (raw)
1/2  cup dry breadcrumbs
1/2  cup chopped onion
1/3  cup barbecue sauce, divided
1  tablespoon prepared mustard
1 1/2  teaspoons chili powder
1  teaspoon garlic powder
1/2  teaspoon salt
1/2  teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2  large egg whites
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine
the beef, breadcrumbs, and onion, 1 tablespoon barbecue sauce, and
remaining ingredients except cooking spray in a large bowl.

Shape
meat mixture into a 9 x 5-inch loaf on a broiler pan coated with
cooking spray. Spread remaining barbecue sauce over top of meat loaf.
Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a thermometer registers 160°. Let
stand 10 minutes. Cut loaf into 12 slices.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2 slices)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES
203(24% from fat); FAT 5.4g (sat 2.2g,mono 2.2g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN
27.3g; CHOLESTEROL 61mg; CALCIUM 26mg; SODIUM 517mg; FIBER 1.1g; IRON
3.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 10.5g

Belle and Sebastian and Music Theory

I've been listening to a lot of B+S recently in anticipation of their DC show on Monday.  And I realized that B+S is one of the few bands (the only band I can think of off of the top of my head) that can end a song with a minor chord when the rest of the song (or most of it anyways) has been major.  Pretty much every song that ends like that sounds (to me anyways) like it is trying too hard.  And instead of making me feel angsty (what I guess bands are trying to do), it makes me feel like rolling my eyes and snorting.  It just sounds so cheesy!  But B+S can somehow pull it off.  Hmmmmmmmm...

KT Tunstall

When we were in London I kept seeing stuff about KT Tunstall (she had just won a Brit for best British female solo artist).  Then the other day when I was in Tower they had her album "Eye to the Telescope" on sale, so I bought it.  It's pretty good.  I mean, it's probably not something I would list as one of my favorites, but she has a really great voice.  The album is folky with an edge and wanders around in some parts to jazz.  She sort of sounds like Fiona Apple, but less angsty.  And it's a pretty solid album (unlike, for example, the Ellie Lawson disc I have which has 2-3 good songs and the rest is crap). 

Page France

I just discovered this band recently and I find myself continually taking out whatever I have in my car cd player and putting this in instead.  They are from MD.  And they are playing at Iota in April.  Good music and good lyrics.  Just the way I like it.

Check out their myspace page - you can listen to some of their songs there for free.

75 pounds = $$$$

I hit the 75 pounds lost mark about 3 weeks ago.  I've now officially gone down 4 sizes.  I was taking stock of my closet the other day and literally about 3/4 of the stuff in it didn't fit.  I have NO spring/summer clothes other than a few non-work appropriate t-shirts.  Looks like someone will be going shopping.  Of course, I can't spend too much because I still have about 30 more pounds to lose.  Only 30 pounds -- just typing it makes me happy.