Hi I'm Aimee, this blog is about a gypsy girl trying to live the city life and all my adventures in between from reporting my latest encounter with domesticity, reviewing the newest pop song, or just life in the moment. One day it struck me that I was constantly planning for tomorrow or what was coming next instead of living for today. Here is where I record the adventures of today.
Across the road from work is the most lovely little sandwich shop, Sacks Sandwicherie. I am a usual lunch customer (except not very much lately... dang budgets!!) and to expedite my service I almost always call my order in ahead of time. The manager Mike works the cash register during the lunch rush and when I pay with my card he always remarks that they spelled my name wrong. I never give them the actual spelling of my name over the phone mostly because it in no way affects the outcome of my sandwich or that I will be the one receiving it.
Today when I went in to pick up my usual (the cajun chicken salad with romaine lettuce only and one feta yogurt) I was given this.
I couldn't help but give the biggest smile. They really are trying and I appreciate that someone who doesn't even know me is attempting to get the spelling right. (Perhaps this will help justify the amount of money spent at this establishment...)
Let me start this post by telling you about my obsession for the wonderful dairy product cheese. If you have ever read any post of mine you already know I have a food obsession, but today I would like to focus on items that include actual cheese, a cheese flavoring, and foods that taste delicious with cheese.
After our wedding was over we found we had about 378 glass jars of shapes and sizes from hand picked center pieces and drinking cups that were left behind. I gave a couple cases of the smaller Kerr jars away to our friends to be used for canning. Karma did me right! The the reward was a jar of sweet and slightly spicy green tomato chutney!
They recommended we serve the chutney over lamb chops, but since I've only ever eaten lamb inside of a gyro we decided to try it on something a little more basic...
Yes, we decided to add it to our grilled cheese sandwiches.
We sliced sourdough and melted provolone, pepper jack, and colby (I think, it was a yellow cheese anyway) with a generous amount of butter slathered on both sides of each slice of bread.
I could only serve this caliber of sandwich with a superb soup (have I mentioned I also have a passion for awesome alliterations?), sundried tomato basil from the Safeway Select brand. Yum!
p.s. all those empties were not from the same night this dinner was concocted...
Due to my fashion sense and tendencies only an old soul possesses, I have earned the nickname "Diane Keaton" among my family and closest friends. I apologize, this post is about to scream "overprotective religious teenage mother"...
I have never been a fan of music that is graphically explicit (i.e. Rhianna's "S&M") and I would never be caught dead listening to it in my car, especially when my three little sisters are in tow.
(Note to readers: my sisters are 21, 16, and VERY recently 15. Ridiculous, I know)
I am however a huge fan of catchy music, even when the lyrics don't make sense or are not offering up the best advice. The most recent example, amazingly famous (as in, it's amazing that she became famous with what little talent she actually possesses) Ke$ha and her new hit single "Die Young". Let's have a quick listen, shall we?
I am the first to admit, I cannot get enough of this song. When I hear it I want to turn my speakers up as loud as they will go and promptly dance around my living room like a crazy banshee.
AND I WANT TO DO IT FIVE TIMES IN A ROW.
I do not, however think it is a good idea to literally tell yourself "let's live tonight like we're gonna die young" while holding Valentino in your arms and simultaneously consuming copious amounts of alcohol (because honestly, no one is really taking advice from Ke$ha unless they have been drinking). Let's review why this would be a bad idea:
1. What if you don't actually die young? That's right ladies, say you wake up the next morning. Now you have to withstand the walk of shame, buy some plan B, and get tested for every STI (we're calling it that now, right?) on the planet. You were under the impression you were not going to live to see the dawn of a new day. Lord knows what Valentino talked you into doing or not wearing.
2. Speaking of "wearing" items, have you seen the outfit pictured above? Enough said.
3. I know what you're thinking, "YOLO". You Only Live Once. Yeah, I get it but now you may be saying YOLOS. You Only Live Once (and now you got) Syphilis.
4. Ke$ha sings: "Looking for some trouble tonight - Take my hand, I'll show you the wild, side - Like it's the last night of our lives - We'll keep dancing till we die" While I have already stated my position on the "dancing until we die" I do believe that if you go looking for trouble you will find it.
5. If it really was the last night of your life would you be worried about "Young hunks, taking shots - Stripping down to dirty socks - Music up, gettin' hot - Kiss me, give me all you've got"?!?!? No ma'am! I would much rather snuggle up on a blanket underneath the stars, or slow dance in the moonlight until I couldn't feel my toes.
While I will bump this jam to dance around our teeny tiny home for the next three weeks in my dirty socks I would like to make it clear that I do not endorse the actual message the song puts out there. Instead of actually living life every night like it is the last one and doing god-knows-what with only-god-knows, find a Valentino worthy of your time and fabulous dance moves. And then hold on to them tight, like it's the last night of your life.
This week has been one of "those" weeks. It seems the world is falling apart and just as you are patting yourself on the back for being so calm and collected you realize you are the craziest one at the party. It was best described to me as an out of body experience. That is a great way to put it, suddenly becoming conscious of a situation in the middle of a screaming match with your 14 year old sister.
I guess it is in these trying times when we find our flaws that we have a decision to make. I can berate myself for the nasty words or irrational decisions made and try to make up for it with gifts, words, or affection. Or I can take a stern look at myself in the mirror and have a come-to-Jesus of sorts. I can grow from this, choose to alter my actions and my mindset. I can ask for help and loving reminders from my family, friends, and that of a higher power. I can continue to strive for who I want to be by surrounding myself with others who radiate the qualities I aspire to posses. I can make this about me, or about them.
Growing up the oldest of four girls has had both its advantages and trying times. I struggle on a daily basis to walk the line between sister and parent. My relationship with my mother and father are not conventional and with that I am in a constant state of tug of war between child and peer. I am going to take the lessons I have learned from this week of insanity with my family and use it to help myself grown instead of stint my relationships with them.
One of the best parts of my job is working with all different kinds of people from different cities and unique backgrounds. For some, therapy is getting back into the kitchen and doing what you love. It is my patient' s turn to teach me something when we are in the kitchen. I have learned to make some of our favorite dishes from watching and listening as these people heal.
Today I pieced together a recipe from an old shopping list I found in my binder at work, a hazy memory, and some (actual) recipes found on Google. The dish is pho (pronounced "fuh?') and I chose to make it with chicken like the original woman who showed it to me, but it can be made with beef or vegetables.
Clayton and I first tried pho at Rice Paper, a Vietnamese restaurant close to our house. It is especially delicious on a cold night! I was so excited to try and make something that we enjoy so much, and something that was never served in our family home growing up.
The ingredient list is fairly basic, I only needed a few things to throw it together. After a brief trip to the market I came up with the following:
Pho:
6 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons fish sauce
4 cloves freshly chopped garlic ( or to taste)
2 clove star anise
1 chicken breast
1 package rice noodles (I used udon noodles because it's what we had)
Toppings:
bean sprouts
cilantro
green onion
sweet chili paste
hoisin sauce
First I mixed the chicken stock, fish sauce, garlic, and star anise in a pot and brought it to a boil and then reduced heat and allowed it to simmer. Simultaneously, I boiled the chicken breast. Some recipes called for boiling the chicken in the pho, but I didn't want any weird stuff from the chicken coming off into the broth. Also, I am a total freak about undercooked chicken. My chicken turned out a little dry, but I am convinced I am going to get salmonella poisoning. If you have been doing this longer than me (anyone) you probably won't have this problem. After boiling the chicken I shredded it into generous chunks and added it to the pho.
Don't forget about the noodles! I nearly did! Mine took 13-14 minutes to simmer, so depending on how long you have to allow your pho to simmer on the stove you can start the noodles first for a quicker dinner or after for more flavor.
I chopped the cilantro and green onion and mixed the two together, however they can be served separate. I rinsed the beans and the toppings were done!
The best part about the dish is that everyone gets to dress their own to make it sweeter or spicy depending on preference. I added a handful of bean sprouts, about half a tablespoon of hoisin sauce, a heap of chili paste, and finished it off with cilantro and green onion. The bean sprouts give it a nice crunch, and the chili paste gives it a sweet and spicy flavor.
Recently I inherited a bundt cake pan. I will be honest, I have never baked a bundt in my life. I haven't even baked a 9x13 cake that turned out like it was supposed to. As I was rambling to my mother-in-law about what exactly I was going to do with said pan, she pulled out a cook book called "The Cake Doctor" and sent me home. The book is written by a woman who spent years testing recipes made by fixing up cake mixes. In the last two or three weeks I have already made three bundts, all of which turned out moist and delicious!
I have to give the credit to the recipes, for my reading/following instructions abilities have not vastly improved (if anything they are declining). I snapped some photos of the most recent cake, a breakfast cinnamon cake.
I started by putting the walnuts on the bottom of the pan so they would have a chance to toast while the batter baked.
Pictured is the fabulous book (I now must go and buy my own copy instead of holding this one hostage), some ingredients, the batter mixture, the cinnamon sugar mixture, and my amazing hand mixer!
Just out of the oven
On the cooling rack, you can see the toasted nuts and the two layers of the sugary filling. Also my MIL gave me the pictured owl towel for Valentine's day. We literally own four towels that do not have owls on them.
Final product with the glaze
(Clayton was not patient enough for me to take the picture before cutting out the first slice).
Despite being a "breakfast" cake, it is delicious at all times of day. The best part is, since I am adding additional ingredients like pudding or sour cream I feel slightly closer to making some thing from scratch.
After the cake was finished and the dishes were washed I was tapped out on the "good little wife" front.
we met in december of 2009 and were married last spring. he is patient when i whine and understanding when i am not. he loves to draw, wear green shoes, and ride the light rail.
