Four Foods on… Friday? Monday? Tuesday?

I can never seem to get this meme straight. I look for it at Val’s site, but I can’t seem to find it on Friday. Then, when I visit Chatbug Karen’s blog and By the Sea blog, they have theirs posted. I feel left out. lol.

Well, even though FFFF #119 has been issued, I’m going to try to play catch up with the previous ones first. The questions are interesting. Sorry I am so inconsistent with this meme!

1. Do you prefer soft serve ice cream or hard ice cream?

Ice cream is ice cream! I’ll eat it either way.

2. What is the strangest sandwich you’ve ever made?

I’ve probably made a lot of weird stuff… recently, we make hummus wraps. They are very good, and very filling. But because hummus is a food that people either love or hate, our sandwich gets strong reactions. You can see our recipe with photo here.

3. What’s your favorite type (not flavor) of potato chip?

Anything but the ripped. I don’t like those. They are too heavy and crunchy.

4. What size spoon do you usually eat soup with at home?

I don’t eat soup. Yuk. OK OK, on those RARE occasions that I do eat soup, it’s with a regular spoon.

Here’s FFFF #119. I like the questions because they are “language” oriented. I like learning about how other cultures interpret words.

1. How do you pronounce manicotti? Men-e-got, man-i-cotti or some other way?

I don’t think I have ever said this word, just read it. And I live in an Italian area! I guess it’s man-i-cotti here.

2. What do you can the carbonated drink that comes in a bottle? Soda, tonic, pop, fizzy or something else?

Soda. I have never heard a northerner say “pop.” I always thought southerners said it that way. I have never heard any northerner say “tonic,” either. You suuuuure he wasn’t pulling your leg, Val?

3. What do you call a sandwich on a long roll? Sub, grinder, hoagie, hero, poor boy or something else?

A sub.

4. Do you call it broth, boullion or stock? How do you make chicken stock?

I have always thought the three were entirely different entities. Broth is the cooked juices of meat without the addition of vegetables, isn’t it? Stock is the cooked juices of meat with vegetables, isn’t it? (Or are they the other way around??). Boullion is flavored powder pressed into cubes, no? How do I make chicken stock? Well… most of the time I buy the cans. Sometimes when I am extremely motivated, I cook the carcass. Right now, I can’t cook because I don’t have a kitchen yet. Here’s hoping I can save up all my nickels and aj madison coupons and finish this kitchen by the end of August!

Only One More Month???

Egads. I knew renovating the kitchen would be tough. I remain in shock at just HOW tough it’s been. Still, we’ve waited SO LONG for this moment, so I am grateful it’s finally coming to pass.

Since we have completely gutted the room, the opportunities abound. Of course, there are limitations to some of my decisions. For example, I can only place the stove along one side of the wall, if I want a range hood ducted to the outside. I don’t like having the stove there, but I really have no choice, unless I want to do extensive framing and ductwork (which I do not).

And all the while I plan and prepare and order supplies and demolish and rebuild and plan some more, I have to run the household, pay the bills, work my jobs, and still find time to work in the miscellaneous stuff like researching life insurance quotes online and calling the power company to ensure we have enough gas pressure to add some space heaters…

It’s a LOT if work. A LOT!! I am amazed at how much work this is. Wow.

But I cannot wait to have a dishwasher. I can’t WAIT to have REAL ceiling lights, a big window, new cabinets and counters, new flooring! To have INSULATED and clean walls!!!! Oh I will be so happy. Here’s praying we get this all done in one more month. I don’t know if I can last much longer beyond that, lol….

Great Summer Salads

I love eating salad in the summer, when everything is so fresh. Doesn’t this look so good?

Salads are not just a quick weight loss tool– they are SO nutritious because they incorporate so many varieties of raw foods. Cooked food has enzymes in it, which your body sees as toxic. Your body must work hard to digest the cooked food, and break it down into suitable nutrition. And don’t even ASK about the processed food garbage and what it does to the body!

I’ve been eating a lot less meat and much more salad meals. I usually do in the summer, but I’ve been making a concerted effort to do so. I have found that I eat more salads when there is a lot of vegetable “stuff” hanging out in the fridge. Here are some ideas for making salads– and the possibilities are truly endless–

Collard greens
Swiss chard
Red cabbage, shredded
Kale
Tomatoes (Roma are nice because they slice well and aren’t pulpy)
Red pepper
Raw garlic cloves marinated in olive oil
Snow pea pods
Black olives

Here’s a tip: when you are looking for greens to add to the salad, skip the iceberg lettuce. It has virtually no nutrition. Grab the greens like kale and spinach– much better for you.

Also, if you must add meat or cheese to the salad, try some pre-cooked shrimp or leftover chicken. The shrimp is SO EASY to add- run the frozen bag under cool water, and toss the thawed shrimp on the salad. For cheese, try feta, which is SO yummy with the garlic cloves and olives.

Mmmmmmm.

Grilling is “OK”

We usually use the grill all summer long every summer, just because I don’t like the oven heating up the house…. but we are grilling more frequently now that I couldn’t use my oven even if I wanted to. I used to LOVE grilled food, but it has kinda lost it’s charm for me. The men love the grilled food, so I do mostly recipes they like. I dislike using the grill, because tiny grease droplets splatter all over me. My glasses are always splattered with the grill grease (YUK), not to mention my face, hair, and clothing. It’s disgusting and I’m practically in need of best acne treatments after a summer in front of the grill. Am I the only one who has grill grease splat problems? I’ve never heard anyone mention it before…

Well, anyway, I’m trying to come up with more ideas than the “hamburgers and hot dogs” stuff for the grill. I tried this teriyaki marinade on the chicken recently.

It was “OK.” I was surprised that it didn’t turn out better– it was Ken’s brand Teriyaki marinade. It was too sweet and not tangy enough. Still, very palatable.

Terrific Summer Smoothie

My daughter makes all the smoothies in the house, I cannot take credit for any of them (I only do credit for office furniture, yukyukyuk). I like her strawberry smoothies (yum!) but strawberries can be pretty expensive. Right now, it’s watermelon season! So she tried a watermelon smoothie, and OH MY WORD this is incredible. She never measures, but I asked her to give estimates as best she can. This is what it is:

Add enough chunks of watermelon and process int he blender until your blender is about halfway full.

Add about 3 cups of strawberries (fresh or frozen). Process.

Add one pack of Stevia sweetner (I like it without the sweetener)

If you want a very fresh treat, add crushed ice.

It is SO good. It’s way better than a milkshake, a Coolata, anything. The watermelon makes it very fresh, but it’s mild and just so yummy. Perfect for a hot summer day.

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