(One of My Own) Traditional Egg Nog

Today is the day after Thanksgiving. It’s referred to as “Black” Friday. I prefer to call it “Pink” Friday. Not because I’m becoming a flake, but because pink happens to be the color of Pepto- Bismal! (Aka- the “pink stuff”)

Aside from today being one of the biggest (perhaps the second biggest after Christmas) shopping day in the entire year, it's also a day we're families look forward to the upcoming days filled with a wide variety of leftovers! The endless possibilities of left-over combinations, not to mention the millions of things you can do with turkey, make the next few lunches and dinners easy to make. Nevertheless, T-day leftovers help people figure out what they won't be having for Christmas dinner.

With that in mind, I decided to try my hand at egg nog. This was probably the most fun recipe I have ever followed. It all began with 12 eggs. For those who didn't know, egg nog does actually have eggs in it! A lot of them! I separated the yolks from the whites, placing each in separate bowls. I beat the yolks firm while slowly adding 1.5 cups of sugar. Once the yolks were the same color as butter, I slowly added 2 cups of bourbon and 3/4 cups of brandy. I thought that much alcohol would make it strong, but I trusted the recipe regardless. After, I added 6 cups of non-fat milk (as though non-fat would make any difference.) The 2 teaspoons of nutmeg was the last ingredient for the yolk mixture. I then whipped 2 cups of cream until its peaks were firm. I took out the same frustration on the egg whites that I used against the cream. Once the whites had submitted to my authority (and were firm, as well), I gently folded them and the whipped cream into the entire mixture.

I was worried it wouldn't taste like nog, but it did- better! The mixture settles quickly, but that’s not a problem. And the milk balanced out the strength of the booze nicely. Good thing I trusted the recipe. It made a lot of nog. Atleast enough to serve 10-12 people!

I really intended to make it for the family who invited me to join them for Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. I was hesitant to bring some to them as their daughter, who actually did the inviting, doesn't care for egg nog. At least she was kind enough to have a sip. Perhaps it was better she didn't have any as she would have never been able to get up at 4am to call "dibs" on those first come-first serve "black Friday" deals at the department stores. I could embarrass her more but I value my life! :)

Something I Wasn't Supposed to Shoot- 11/20/09

Friday's lunch! I remembered I was supposed to shoot something Asian. I knew it had meat. And when I got to Derby and saw a whole Asian looking set-up, I figured, "this is it." I got the girl servers (who were also Asian, by the way) to slop it on a plate so I could make it look good! But I was all wrong- except for the Asian part. What I was assigned to shoot was Asian Orange beef with dipping sauce. I got the dipping sauce, as is obvious. They had loads of dipping sauce. That's another thing that threw me off. But the wrap and beef part- that's what I missed. This is chicken. Clearly not wrapped in anything! Tofu lies in the center of the plate. I call it "white jell-o." I arranged the peppers myself! The yellow stuff is mandarins and pineapples.
Despite the mix-up, it still looks good!

Flint Hills Thanksgiving- 11/19/09

What is there to say about Thanksgiving that hasn't been said already. Families get together! They eat! They have some pie and coffee! Then they go home. In the competitive world of corporate gain, it's the precursor to the "money days" ahead. That's why black Friday falls right after Thanksgiving. The corporations want some of that dough that hard working families shelled out for last night's dinner, and they want it NOW!
Regardless, the pictures should arouse all those "happy memories" from Thanksgivings gone by. What else is there to say?

Whether it's on Thanksgiving or Christmas morning, Easter, or in a Chinese restaurant that ran out of fortune cookies, oranges are...well, always there. They have always been the "second option" in America's choice of fruit flavor. My mom used to stick one in our stocking every Christmas. The big bulge that dangled at the bottom of our Christmas stockings often stayed there until the decorations came down after New Years. If the oranges hadn't spoiled by that time, they would go right back into the fruit bowl from whence they came.

Almost everyone likes oranges! Strangely enough, not as many people like orange popsicles- go figure! How red popsicles won over all the popularity and left orange popsicles to get lost in the frozen wastelands of the back of freezers is a sad and depressing mystery. But, that's off the topic! (I still prefer the red ones, though).

*Pictures include: Cran-ginger punch, prailine cheesecake, apple pie, Van Gough and blue cheeses.

*Click on link

http://www.youtube.com/user/MuppetsStudio#p/c/C9E4DEEA577A3A79/8/2Qj8PhxSnhg

(One of My Own) Chicken a' l' Orange

I found this recipe in a collection of recipes by various writers in the country. This particular one comes from Barbara Yost who is a feature writer for the Phoenix Gazette.
I realised that I'm stuck on a chicken and rice nitch. Most of what I've made in the past 2 months has been chicken or rice or both. No matter what I make, I seem to fall right back into a habit of chicken and rice. Sometimes getting creative takes too much effort- and money!
The only thing I added was the red pepper. I still have some left from the sausages and peppers I cooked last week.
This one is rather basic. I took three boneless, skinless chicken breasts and browned them on all sides in a skillet- the same routine as all the other chicken plates I've made. I added 3 1/2 cups of orange juice, 1/2 tsp of ground mustard, garlic, and 1 1/2 cup of rice. I let it boil before I turned it low and let it simmer for 30 minutes. I forgot to buy an orange to garnish the chicken so I used the pepper. It was from my neighbor's garden so it had a much sweeter taste than store bought peppers. I sprinkled the chicken with paprika since its red. Might as well. Red seemed to fit.
The juice really made the rice tangy. It was good but I couldn't eat too much of it at one time. Next time, I'll water down the juice by maybe 1/2 cup. Since its Sunday and I discovered this morning that I had lost some weight, I decided to celebrate. I had a Chimay Ale with my food and some Ben & Jerry's for desert. There's nothing like celebrating the loss of a little weight than by eating ice cream and gaining it back!

Etiquette- Don't Enjoy Your Food... Just Pretend that You Do! -11/06/09

I wanted to take more pictures, such as people actually eating all the dishes served, but I was only able to take some during the preparations. One of the other photographers took over for the second half. After all, it was her shift to begin with. I was just there as "filler."

(One of My Own) Stuffed Bell Peppers with Sausage

Last Saturday, I cooked stuffed pasta shells and sausage with peppers and onions....for a family of 8 (plus a few other guests). It came out really well, but sadly I did not take any pictures. It was another Jacques Pepin recipe too! Darn it! This Italian "stuff" called for ricotta cheese but I got cheap and used cottage cheese instead. Despite my being such a tight-wad, I got 3 check marks for it! One check for cooking so someone else didn't have to, another check for taste, and the third check because no one had it come back up during the night!
After that night, I was left with more peppers than I could shake a stick at- if that's your idea of a good time. I solved that problem fast! Like a hunter who has a dead animal carcass he doesn't know what to do with, I stuffed them!
The stuffing was basically simple. I used turkey sausage instead of ground beef. I think it added a perfect compliment to the taste of the peppers. It also smelled appetizing. I sautéed half an onion and 5 cloves of garlic for about 4 minutes in a saucepan with olive oil. I added them to the sausage along with 1/2 cup of oatmeal (instead of rice which is normally used), salt, and sliced cherry tomatoes. I blanched the peppers for 5 minutes to keep the color as well as keep a little of their crispness. Before I baked the peppers at 350' for 50 minutes, I sprinkled the tops with ground pepper. Whoever came up with the concept of "stuffing", whether it be vegetables, turkey, donuts, or twinkies, was certainly a genius!