I'm still alive!!!

[eurydicebound]

...but computerless, alas. No word yet. I grow weary of waiting.

Let's see.... this weekend went pretty well, all things considered. I didn't get out to a friend's handfasting due to being only slightly under the weather, but enough so that I felt giving the newlyweds illness as a wedding gift was a definite faux pas. Instead I stayed home, cleaned my house, hung out with my kids, was exposed to the pitiful animated feature "Doogal," and cooked so that I'd have lunch for the next week. The recipes are included below the cut (as inspired by iamnikchick.

High points of the weekend:

1) I took Rosie for a walk using the "gentle leader" head harness, and it worked! She wasn't pleased with it, but accepted her fate after a) I figured out how to actually tighten the muzzle part and b) we put it back on for the 5th time. She can't pull with her shoulders and neck muscles and set the pace with this harness, so it's easier on me (if less enjoyable for her). It works, though, and I don't have to worry about her choking herself. I'm very happy. I gave her many dog biscuits.

2) I started to be able to tell I'm losing weight! Yay me!

3) I cooked! I cooked rather a lot, actually. And I could still stand at the end of Sunday, though my back was really sore. That's far better shape than I would have been in for similar activities this time last year -- usually a day of extended cooking is enough to send me straight to the chiropractor. Yesterday it was just sore muscles. Great progress.

4) I have hobbies! I have survived not having a computer at home, in no small part to having my stained glass area set up and my knitting to fall back on. My couch is full of folded clothes (I'll put them away tonight, really), I've cut glass for two Christmas presents, I've only got a night or two left on Alisdair's scarf, and I have a surprising amount of good food waiting for me.

5) I really am a writer. I've gotten so desperate to write that I'm... *gasp*... writing by hand. In a notebook. With a pencil. I'm so out of practice at it that I don't get very much done at one go, but I'm doing it anyway because the book in my head Will Not Shut Up. I want my computer back. *whimper*

Only a week and a half left until unemployment. Good vibes are appreciated, starting now. Thanks.




Beef and Broccoli with Oyster Sauce



3 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 pound lean flank steak
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil, divided
1/3 cup (1/2-inch) diagonally sliced green onions
1 tablespoon minced peeled gingerroot
6 cups broccoli florets (about 1 pound)
1/4 cup water
6 cups hot cooked rice

Combine first 6 ingredients; stir until well-blended, and set aside.

Trim fat from steak. Cut steak diagonally across the grain into 1-inch-thickslices. Cut slices into thin strips. Combine steak, 1 tablespooncornstarch, 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 2teaspoons sugar in a medium bowl; stir until well-blended. Cover andmarinate in refrigerator 15 minutes.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in awok or large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add steak mixture; stir-fry 2 minutes. Remove steak from pan; set aside. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil, green onions, and gingerroot; stir-fry over medium-high heat 30 seconds. Stir in broccoli and 1/4 cup water; cover and cook 3 minutes. Return steak to pan, and stir in oyster sauce mixture; stir-fry 2 minutes or until thick and bubbly. Serve over rice.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 cup beef mixture and 1 cup rice)

CALORIES 424(21% from fat); FAT 9.9g (sat3.5g,mono 3.5g,poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 22.2g; CHOLESTEROL 38mg; CALCIUM73mg; SODIUM 505mg; FIBER 3.9g; IRON 4.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 60.4g
Cooking Light, MAY 1996



Brown Sugar Bread Pudding with Crème Anglaise



1 cup dried mixed fruit, chopped
1 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
4 large egg whites
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
3/4 cup evaporated fat-free milk
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
12 (1-ounce) slices diagonally cut French bread (about 1 inch thick)
Cooking spray
4 teaspoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons butter, cut into small pieces
1 3/4 cups Crème Anglaise, chilled

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, and cook until reduced to 1 cup (about 8 minutes). Remove from heat.

Combine egg whites and egg in a medium bowl, beating with a whisk untilblended. Stir in milks, 1/3 cup brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Arrange half of bread slices, slightly overlapping, in the bottom of an 8-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Spoon fruit mixture evenly over bread. Arrange remaining bread over the fruit mixture. Pour egg mixture over bread. Sprinkle top with 4 teaspoons brown sugar and butter. Place pan in a 13 x 9-inch baking pan; add hot water to larger pan to a depth of 1 inch. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Remove 8-inch pan from water. Serve warm with Crème Anglaise.

Yield: 10 servings

CALORIES 319(15% from fat); FAT 5.4g (sat2.1g,mono 1.9g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 10.3g; CHOLESTEROL 116mg; CALCIUM206mg; SODIUM 311mg; FIBER 1.1g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 57.5g
Cooking Light, JUNE 1999


Crème Anglaise

You can substitute 2 tablespoons vanilla extract for the bean, but theflavor will suffer. You can find vanilla beans in your supermarket'sspice section.

This recipe goes with Plum-Buttermilk Ice Cream, Brown Sugar Bread Pudding with Crème Anglaise, Fruit Ambrosia with Crème Anglaise, Strawberry Bavarian Cream

1 3/4 cups 1% low-fat milk
1 (3-inch) piece vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1/3 cup sugar
4 large egg yolks

Pour milk into a medium saucepan. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean; addseeds and bean to milk. Cook over medium heat 6 minutes (do not boil);discard bean. Remove from heat.

Combine sugar and yolks in a bowl,stirring with a whisk until blended. Gradually add milk mixture tobowl, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return mixture to pan. Cookover medium heat 6 minutes or until mixture thinly coats the back of aspoon, stirring constantly with a whisk. Immediately pour mixture intoa bowl. Cover and chill (mixture will thicken as it cools).

Note: Crème Anglaise can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Yield: 1 3/4 cups (serving size: 1/4 cup)

CALORIES 97(33% from fat); FAT 3.6g (sat1.3g,mono 1.3g,poly 0.4g); PROTEIN 3.6g; CHOLESTEROL 127mg; CALCIUM88mg; SODIUM 35mg; FIBER 0.0g; IRON 0.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 12.6g
Cooking Light, JUNE 1999

I also made the following faux Mexican food as a thank you to David for assisting with gas money this week. I write this down here so I can find it again rather than making it up as I go along. It's not the least bit authentic and there are certainly improvements that could be made (like in cooking the chicken), but it requires very little skill and it tastes pretty darn good. Tweak this as you like -- good potential additions include beans, black olives, green chiles, diced tomato, jalapenos, actual Mexican spices and herbs, etc.:

Chicken Enchiladas

2 or 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1/2 diced onion
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp minced garlic
1 can Campbell's cream of chicken soup (low-fat, if possible)
1/2 can chicken broth (again, low-fat)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 package shredded mexican cheese blend cheese
1/2 cup milk
8 flour tortillas

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease an 11x9 baking dish. Boil a pot of water. Put the chicken in it and cook for roughly 8 minutes, or until it is no longer pink inside. Remove chicken from water and shred with a fork. Cover and set aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add in diced onion and garlic, and cook until the onions are transluscent. Add in the soup and the next 5 ingredients. Stir together while cooking until it is thickened, then add in 2/3 of the package of cheese and stir until melted. In a small bowl, reserve 1/3 of the sauce. Add shredded chicken to the remaining sauce and stir, cooking for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Take a tortilla and put 2 large spoonfuls of chicken mixture in the center. Roll it up and place it edges down in the greased pan. Continue doing this until you run out of filling/pan space. Take the bowl of reserved sauce and add the milk. Stir until mixed. Pour over the top of the tortillas. Take the rest of the shredded cheese and sprinkle over the top. Bake for 30-45 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Comments

[polyhex.livejournal.com]

I thought I was the only one who gets back strain from cooking. I had to stop after the appetizer phase in plans for a multi-course meal last week because my back was going out. The recipes look delicios -- I will have to try the bread pudding.

[metallian.livejournal.com]

Oh, man, that bread pudding and creme anglaise looks especially good...

On the job front, my good vibes are at your service.