To bake or not to bake....

Every Christmas since I am a young girl.....I can remember the women in my life baking. My Grandma spent days baking pies, cookies and other items. She would give me left over pie crust dough for me to roll out and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on it. My aunt and my mom spent a couple days every year after Thanksgiving baking hundreds of cookies for the holidays. At some point I took over the Christmas cookie baking. I can spend days making the doughs and a few more days doing the baking. A few cookies have remained on my " to bake " list and a few have been added or removed. This holiday season since I am not currently working, I decided to take my time. I made double batches of cookie doughs and froze half of them. This way, I could spend a little time baking a few times during the holiday season. The cookies would be baked fresh as needed. Last week I baked. Next week I bake. Should I bake this week too? To bake or not to bake? that is my question. I have a couple new recipes that I found and wanted to try, so I made one last week and I will make the next one this week. They are my trial bakings. Last week I made a Christmas Biscotti. Mini biscottis with pistachio nuts and dried cranberries in them. A drizzle of sugar glaze over them and WOW are they delicious. With a cup of hot tea, apple cider or a glass of milk...it doesnt get much better than this. They are easy to make and great for gift giving. I will be packing some in Christmas Decorated chinese food to go containers as gifts....here is the recipe. I hope you try it and love them as much as I do.

Christmas Biscotti

1/3 cup butter (softened)
2/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg ( I only use fresh grated but ground is fine)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp rum flavoring ( I used Rum ) lol
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp finely grated orange zest (peel)
1/3 cup pistacho nuts chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries chopped
Powdered sugar icing

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, salt, and cinnamon. Beat until combined. Beat in eggs, vanilla, and rum until combined. Add flour and beat until well mixed, scraping bowl occasionally. Add orange zest, cranberries and nuts just until combined. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface. Divide dough into 3 portions. Shape each portion into an 8in long loaf using floured hands. Place loaves on parchment lined cookie sheet about 4-6 inches apart. Flatten each loaf to approximately 1 in high and 2 inches wide.
Bake in oven for approx 20-25 min until golden or tops are cracked. Cool on wire rack for 30 min. Lower oven to 325 degrees. Using a serrated knife, cut loaves into 1/2" slices. Place slices back on parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake 8 minutes then turn slices over and bake another 8-10 minutes until dry and crisp. Let cool then drizzle with Powdered Sugar Icing.

Powdered SUgar Icing...
1 cup powdered sugar and enough milk ( 1-2 tbs) to make an icing of drizzling consistency.
Store in an airtight container or freeze for up to 3 months.
Hope you enjoy them...and remember....Bite Me!!

Traditions and twists

Thanksgiving has come and gone. Too quickly if you ask me. We spend hours shopping, cooking for if we are lucky an hour at the most eating. Is it worth it? Probably not, but its tradition and memories. It has always been important to me to keep the traditions I grew up with. Certain things are meant to be kept the way they are. Holiday Dinners are one of them for me. Food is an important memory in most of our pasts. Taste, smells and visuals bring back exact moments in time. I celebrated Thanksgiving in Texas a week early with my brother and his family, as I blogged about in my two earlier posts. He requested a few dishes from our past that I was happy to whip up. He doesnt like change, and finds traditions as important as I do. The past few years I have been scheduled to work on Thanksgiving, such is the life of a chef. This year I am not yet working. Married cousins, children with partners and working relatives seem to change on a yearly basis as to where we celebrate our holidays. This year I stayed home with my mom and her husband. She decided she wanted a big Thanksgiving dinner and since she wasnt feeling well, I tried to do most of the cooking. Several years ago I started cooking dinner for my mom and tried to keep it traditional with that twist of a professional chef. My menu this year is as follows:
Roast Turkey / moms homemade gravy
Papa John's Stuffing
Bourbon Sweet Potatoes
Cranberry Sauce
Green Bean Casserole
Roasted Beets and Carrots
Biscuits
and for dessert I tried something new....A Pumpkin Banana Mousse Pie.....Everything was traditional for our family except the dessert. It was delicious and very easy to make.

Pumpkin Banana Mousse Pie/Tart
Ingredients For the crust:
• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (14 crackers) » 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
For the filling:
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1 (15-ouhce) can pumpkin puree
• 1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon » 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3 extra-large egg yolks
• 1 package (2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin
• 1 ripe banana, finely mashed
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 1/2 cup cold heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons sugar For the decoration:
» 1 cup (1/2 pint) cold heavy cream
» 1/4 cup sugar
» 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
» Orange zest, optional
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter in a bowl and mix well. Pour into an 11-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press evenly into the sides and then the bottom. Bake for 10 minutes and then cool to room temperature.
For the filling, heat the half-and-half, pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until hot, about 5 minutes. Whisk the egg yolks in another bowl, stir some of the hot pumpkin into the egg yolks to heat them, then pour the egg-pumpkin mixture back into the double boiler and stir well. Heat the mixture over the simmering water for another 4 to 5 minutes, until it begins to thicken, stirring constantly. You don't want the eggs to scramble. Remove from the heat.
Dissolve the gelatin in 1/4 cup cold water. Add the dissolved gelatin, banana, and orange zest to the pumpkin mixture and mix well. Set aside to cool.
Whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture and pour it into the cooled tart shell. Chill for 2 hours or overnight.
For the decoration, whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks. Pipe or spoon the whipped cream decoratively on the tart and sprinkle, if desired, with orange zest. Serve chilled. PS- If you dont feel like making the pie crust - use a ready made graham cracker crust.
Bite Me!

These are a few of my favorite things...Part 2

I love food! I love cooking! I love eating the food I cook! Most of all I love cooking for people I love and love them loving my food! These are definitely my favorite things. I decided to make this blog post in 2 parts. Hopefully as to not bore you.
My fathers crepes are probably the most favorite thing that I cook, not only because it brings back all the best memories of my childhood but because it really is my most favorite breakfast food. Crepe nite was usually after the beach in the summer, but sometimes for special occasion breakfasts. My dad never measured anything, never looked at a recipe and made too many to count. I have tried countless numbers of crepe recipes over the years and think this is the one that seems closest to my memory of them. My brothers both agree. My dad past away 35 years ago this week, But through his crepes among many other things he will live on! Thank you Daddy!!I love you and miss you. This one's for you. I would like to think he is proud of me for carrying on the tradition!

Daddy's ( Armand Lessard's ) Crepes

2 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 cup flour
3 Tbs melted butter
2 1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla or 2 Tbs favorite liquor ( I use this when I am making dessert crepes )

Whisk eggs, add milk, water, vanilla, and melted butter. Add sugar and mix until sugar is dissolved. Combine flour until batter is lump free. I do this all by hand. Batter will be thin. It is NOT like pancake batter.
Heat your crepe or omelette pan on medium heat. For some reason even if I use a nonstick crepe pan I still brush the pan with Crisco. I use a paper towel to remove excess crisco. Using a ladle I pour about half a ladle into the pan and immediately swirl the batter to cover the bottom of the pan. Dont worry if at first you dont succeed. You will eventually get the hang of it. Flip the crepe over when it seems to be a light golden brown. You want just a touch of color on the crepe. You can put them in a warm oven until you are ready to serve. I make the entire batter before serving. I also triple the batter for 4 adults. I forgot to count the amount of servings I made ( sorry guys ). I had 4 crepes, my brother, neice and nephew had more than that.
To serve I usually roll up the crepe and pour 100% maple syrup on top. Thats how my dad served them. My brother stuffed his with cinnamon buns then rolled them and topped with maple syrup. You can use powdered sugar, whipped cream or any favorite topping. Most of all Enjoy!!

I also made Fiesta Salad. This was always a dessert when I was growing up. Easy to make and delicious. My brother asked for it, so I had to email our aunt to get the recipe. Funny, all these years I dont know if I had ever made it before.

Fiesta Salad

1 8oz cream cheese
1 large can fruit cocktail
1 package mini marshmallows
1 pint heavy cream - whipped

Drain the can of fruit cocktail and add liquid to the cream cheese to blend. I used the LIGHT fruit cocktail so the juice was less syrupy and less calories. Add the fruit and mini marshmallows. Fold in the whipped cream and mix well. I used a disposable aluminum lasagna pan. Cover and freeze. Remove from freezer and allow to almost completely thaw. Serve with slightly frozen texture. Thanks Ama and Aca!

If I ever opened my own restaurant, it would most likely only serve comfort food. Food I grew up with, food I always come home for and food that never seems to change!
May all your bites be tasty...or as my brother Scott suggested....." Bite Me" !!!

These are a few of my favorite things...Part 1

I have just gotten back from my 2 week stay in Texas. My brother Scott calls it a working vacation for me, since I babysit the kids and cook for him. I call it Awesome! I get to spend time with the kids without "The Parents" around, which basically means Aunt Michele can spoil them,......AND...I get to cook for my brother. I have always loved cooking, especially people who like to eat and enjoy food. Both of my brothers seem to have those qualities, and for some reason seem to overly enjoy my cooking. I like being able to cater to my baby brothers and since Scott is over 1300 miles away, its a treat for me when I am in Texas. Now he usually requests a few of his favorite things. He likes comfort food. Dont we all? He asks for things usually from our childhood or even a few things that seem to be a NY thing. So while I was in Texas, aside from cooking some wild game, I was able to make some of my brothers favorite things. Even his family makes a few requests. Here is the menu I cooked and who requested it.
Meal 1.- Spaghetti and Meatballs requested by Marissa ( I added Italian sausage for my brother), my Papa Johns Salad requested by Scott , and garlic bread
Meal 2 - Orange glazed wild Goose, wild rice, steamed green beans ( Scott supplied the wild goose I chose the preparation and sides )
Meal 3 - Chicken Parmesan, pasta and garlic bread ( requested by Scott )
Meal 4 - Daddys Crepes ( requested by Dylan and Marissa ) served with breakfast sausage
Meal 5 - Side items and desserts for our Early Thanksgiving. all requested by my brother Scott.
Cranberry Sauce, Papa Johns Stuffing ( in Texas they dont make or eat stuffing, they use dressing made with cornbread ), and Fiesta Salad. The latter 2 are oldies but goodies. Scott made such a fuss over how delicious everything was and how it was exactly as he remembered it. That is one of my favorite things, making someone happy with my cooking. Funny though, he has already started making a list of things he wants me to cook next time I come down. Cant wait!!

My goose is cooked!

I am on my 2 week working vacation in Rowlett, Texas. My brother is going on a hunting trip so I get to babysit the kids while he and the wife are away. He arrived back from a duck hunt in Utah the same day I flew in to Dallas. He came home with some wild duck breasts from his hunt and some wild goose breast that his host gave to him. Tonite I am cooking the Goose! My first time cooking goose of any kind wild or farm raised. I googled recipes for goose and found a couple with flavor profiles that I liked.
The flavorful roast goose is brined then roasted with an orange basting sauce. Before you get started, be sure you have a container the right size for the goose so the brine will cover it thoroughly. I also did alot of reading before starting my wild game and fowl cooking. I made a salt water mixture to soak the wild goose in overnite. This draws out the blood which removes alot of the " gamey " taste. I used about a gallon of water and 1 cup of kosher salt. In the morning I rinsed the breasts thoroughly and made the brine.
Wild Roast Goose with brine and Orange Glaze
Brine:
1 to 1 1/2 gallons cold water
1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
dash allspice
Adjust the amount of brine to the quantity of goose. I had 4 large breasts (2 birds)
The recipe that I found has been altered. I adjusted some ingredients and added a few of my own.
The Glaze:
1 cup orange juice
1 cup orange marmalade
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 Tbs honey
1 pinch of ground ginger ( if you have fresh ginger use 1/4 tsp)
Preparation:
Wash goose and trim excess fat. Place in a large container with a cover. Add the brine mixture so goose meat is completely covered. Cover and let sit overnite or at least 8 hours.
In a saucepan, heat 1 cup of the water with salt, sugar, and spices until salt and sugar are dissolved. Cool slightly and add to 1 gallon of cold water. Pour over the goose and add more ice cold water to cover the goose if needed. Let brine for at least 8 hours. Remove from liquid and pat dry. Heat oven to 350°. Combine the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan and cook down about 1/3. Mixture should be syrupy. I decided to pan sear the breasts in a very hot saute pan with a little olive oil. I seasoned the breasts with salt and pepper. Sear each side of the breasts and place in a roasting pan. Place goose, breast side down, on a rack in a large roasting pan, if you have a rack. The directions told me to cook for 20 min per lb..or to an internal temperature of 160 degrees. I cooked the fairly large breasts for about an hour until the juices ran clear. I think this may have been a bit too long. I think cooking the wild goose to 140-150 degrees would have been better. Baste the breasts with the orange glaze several times during roasting. I removed the breasts from the oven and immediately sliced the breasts. I served it with Wild and brown rice and steamed green beans. As I was slicing it, I of course had to taste it. My first bite was a nice suprise. The meat was tasty, not gamey and I bit into my first shotgun pellet. OWW!! lol. There were several found while I was slicing and a few others as we were eating. My neice Cassie ( a true Texan ) tried a small bite and ate about 1 breast by herself. She didnt care for the orange glaze but ate as much as I did anyway. My brother Scott loved it! The rest of the Texas family loved it too, although the Orange glaze didnt go over well with all of the Texans, the New Yorkers loved it. I have to send a big thanks to Jeremy for sending my brother home with the wild goose for us to enjoy. My brother is now planning a goose hunt for next year, and I am looking forward to more wild game cooking!

Crisp Autumn Days

Today was a crisp autumn day, in many ways...I figured I would help mom cook dinner tonite since I knew she wasnt feeling well. I whipped up some sausage and peppers ( I can prep alot faster than she can ) and decided since she had bought some nice apples to make an Apple Cranberry Crisp. I have made this dessert numerous times and change it up to suit my mood. Sometimes I use pears, sometimes pears and apples sometimes just apples. I had some fresh cranberries in the freezer and decided to add the tart cranberries to the sweet apples. They just came out of the oven with a few minutes to rest and cool enough to eat...topped with whipped cream and mmmmmm what a yummy fall dessert.

Michele's Apple Cranberry Crisp

5 cups peeled and sliced apples
1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup sugar
2 Tbs flour
2 tsp orange zest
1 tsp cinnamon

Crisp topping-
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 brown sugar (firmly packed)
1/4 cup softened butter
1/3 cup flour

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Combine apples, cranberries, sugar, flour, cinnamon and orange zest.
Put into greased ( use canola spray or butter ) individual ramekins or 9x9 baking dish, and make sure to overfill the ramekins as the apples will cook down. To make crisp topping mix remaining ingredients ( brown sugar, rolled oats, butter, and flour ) using your hands until its nice and crumbly. Sprinkle over apple cranberry mixture and bake for 45-55 minutes. Topping should be crispy and golden brown and cranberries should burst inside the mix. Let cool for a few minutes, it should still be warm to serve,and top with your favorite topping. Vanilla Icecream is good as is fresh whipped cream. Its one of my favorite fall desserts for a few years now and can be prepped ahead of time and cooking while you are eating dinner. Just make sure if you prepare it ahead, to take out of refrigerator and letting it get to room temperature before baking it. Hope you try it...I know you will like it.
Remember...May all your bites be tasty!

Fully baked

I haven't posted in a while because I haven't been cooking anything worth writing about. I have been trying to get things together in the house before I go to Texas for 2 weeks. Tonite though, I made Turkey burgers with Homemade Oven Baked Steak Fries and a really big garden salad. Although I would have preferred an Angus burger, the turkey burger was pretty satisfying and definitely tasty. Turkey is a pretty bland and flavorless ground meat...so seasoning is key. I season everything that goes on the grill with a Tri-Mix. Kosher or Sea salt, Ground Black Pepper and Granulated Garlic. Lots of flavor there. I used my stove top grill pan to sear the burgers and get some nice grill marks on them. Then I put them on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and finish cooking them in the oven. Since all poultry needs to be cooked to an internal temperature, it makes cooking the turkey burger pretty easy. I made a nice salad with everything from carrots to radishes for a side dish. The big decision was what starch to serve with the healthy turkey burger and salad. I wanted something with lots of flavor so I decided on my oven potatoes. Better than any french fry you can find. Easy, full of flavor and healthier than fried food.
My mom loves them and everytime I make them asks how I make them...LOL I used Yukon Gold potatoes but have used new red, baby blue, and baking potatoes. Any kind will do.

Michele's Homemade Baked Steak fries

6 medium sized Yukon Gold potatoes Sliced in wedges...6 wedges per potato
Olive oil
Salt
Black Pepper
Granulated Garlic
Chili powder

Put sliced potatoes in large bowl, drizzle with Olive oil..abou 1 tablespoon ( just to coat potato ). Add salt, pepper, and garlic ( I used maybe a 1/4 of a tsp of each....If you like spicy use the same amount of chili powder. I do! LOL Toss in bowl until all seasonings are coating the potatoes. Lay potatoes on parchment lined sheet pan. Bake for 30 min. at 350 degrees and then turn potato. Bake another 30 min or longer until potato is crisp on the outside and completely cooked inside. Serve...and Enjoy! This makes about 4 nice size servings..but they are really good so we never have left overs.
Hope you like them if you try them...sorry I forgot to take a picture!
and remember...May all your bites be tasty!

A hunting I will go....

My brother Scott and his family live just outside of Dallas, Texas. I will be visiting them the beginning of November for a couple of weeks. My brother is an avid hunter and fisherman. Although we consider him still a New Yorker, he has most definitely acclimated to living in Texas. The last time I was there, we feasted upon most of his game. Venison, Wild Hog, and Halibut. He was out of stock of his dove and his last duck hunt he didnt bring any home. I have been advised to learn how to cook game meat. He has already aquired some dove, arrives home from his Utah duck hunt the same morning I arrive in Dallas, and I am babysitting for a few days while he goes on his birthday hunt for some deer and hog. I am praying that he succeeds, as the venison and wild hog were outrageous. I bought him a game cookbook last year for Christmas, but I have decided I am going to start researching some game recipes. It will be nice for him to have alternative ways to cook his game, and I love cooking for them when I am there. So, if anyone out there knows of some good ( and tested ) game recipes, let me know. My research begins today....I will let you know what I come up with.
Remember...May all your bites be tasty!

Papa Johns Soup?

The other day, my mother mentioned she felt like having my Beef or Mushroom Barley Soup. Whenever mom brings up soup, I always think about my Papa John ( my grandfather on my mothers side) as he always made the BEST soups. He was a great cook for an Irishman. I would like to think mine is as good as his. Not knowing what I felt like cooking this morning, I contemplated going to the market and purchasing the ingredients I did not have on hand. Wanting to please people is why we become chefs....so I made the soup. I decided to make both...Mushroom Beef Barley soup. It was quick and easy and really is delicious.Being a chef I rarely measure things when I am cooking at home. So I will try my best to create some sort of recipe for you. I started with carrots, celery and onion otherwise known as Mire Poix. Beef stock is best, but I hadnt made any so I used some beef base to make my broth. I used portabello, baby bello, and dried wild mushrooms that I reconstituted. I saved the water after the mushrooms were rehydrated and added that to the beef broth. I bought some bottom round cut beef (for pepper steak it said on the package...but pretty much any inexpensive beef is good). Salt, Pepper and dried thyme were the only other ingredients. I know my knife skills are better than most people not in the culinary field, so my prep time is short. It only took me about 30 min start to finish and a couple hours to cook. I bought some nice ciabatta sticks at the supermarket bakery and threw them in the oven with some shredded asiago cheese until it was melted. mmmmmmm yummy. Asiago is one of my favorite cheeses, its sharp but smooth and I love it on bread.
I served mom her soup, she mm mmm mmm'ed, told me it was delicious....and teasingly I said Yes I know! I did say thank you too. It was really good and I made so much I have 3 containers to freeze, but thats what I do. Prepare alot for future use!! Easy to pull out a container with 2 or 3 servings for a late nite quick supper!! I would hope that I would have made my Papa John proud.....there were a few things that he made that I couldnt live without and fortunately I believe I may have replicated them well. Thanks Papa John!!

Recipe for Papa Johns Beef/Mushroom Barley Soup

1 med onion small dice
2 stalks of celery small dice
3-4 carrots small diced
4 qts beef stock or broth
1 cup pearl barley
1 lb fresh mushrooms ( any kind you like) chopped
1 cup dried mushrooms
1/2 lb of small diced beef
Soak dried mushrooms in 2 cups of water for 15-30 while preparing the rest of the soup.
In large pot - saute onion carrots and celery in 1 TBS olive oil. Just to sweat them. Add your beef stock to the veggies.
In saute pan, brown diced beef that has been seasoned with salt and pepper. Do not drain and add to soup. Using the same saute pan- add 1 TBS butter and 1 tsp of olive oil to cook down the mushrooms. Cook until soft and browned. Add to soup. Drain rehydrated mushrooms, reserve liquid for soup. Do not use all of it...there will be some sand and dirt in the bottom of the bowl. Chop the rehydrated mushrooms and add to the soup. Salt and Pepper to taste. Add 1/4 tsp of dried Thyme. Bring soup to a boil and add the barley. Lower heat and simmer. Barley takes a long time to cook. A soft simmer is best.

The longer you cook the soup, the more flavor there will be. I hope you try it and like it. May all your bites be tasty!

Back to the Beach....

Last nights dinner was reminiscent of my summer, cooking on Fire Island. The fun part of working on Fire Island this season was that I got to change up the menu. We are not a fine dining restaurant and needed to change some of the menu to better reflect our vision. I added lighter and healthier fare such as wraps and paninis, and a few vegetarian items for those more health conscious. One of my favorites was my Grilled Vegetable Wrap. Easy to make, delicious, and healthy it was a nice addition to the menu. One of our bartenders/waitress, Chelsea ordered it almost everyday....sometimes with a different variation. She loved it! She would stop by the kitchen door, look at me, and say....Micheley....and smile. I knew what she wanted, she rarely strayed from her favs. I decided last nite to make it for my mom and her husband for dinner. Its my moms late night at work and something light is always good. I grilled ( if you cant grill - roast them ) up some farm fresh eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, peppers, portabello mushrooms and red onions. Seasoned with salt, pepper and some olive oil. I added some pesto ( store bought is fine ) to a saute pan with the veggies until they were heated thru. I added some fresh spinach greens to a whole wheat wrap, placed the veggies in pesto on top, garnished with some shaved parmesan cheese and rolled up the wrap. Mom and her hubby, Sil, loved it. It was filling, healthy and full of flavor. As I used to do for Chelsea....you can add your own variations such as grilled chicken, fresh mozzarella, your favorite veggies, or anything you like. I didnt really know what I was putting in the wrap until I got to the farm stand....and saw what local produce was available. Local and fresh just made it better. Tonite I am not cooking, but I did buy some other produce for tommorow. Lets see what I can come up with.
PS- If anyone can come up with a really cute.....like me.....sign off.....suggestions are welcome!

Amuse-Bouche

The culinary definition of an Amuse Bouche...is a single, bite-sized hors d’œuvre. Amuse-bouche are different from appetizers in that they are not ordered from a menu by patrons, but, when served, are according to the chef's selection alone. These are served as an excitement of taste buds to both prepare the guest for the meal and to offer a glimpse into the chef's approach to cooking. That is the definition of this blog. The idea to start this blog was suggest by an old HS friend and supported by a favorite cousin of mine. I decided there was no time like the present. I hope to stimulate your taste buds, educate your culinary knowledge as well as my own, give you some insight as to why and what I love to cook and eat, and have some fun doing it. I look forward to writing and reading your comments and suggestions. As the great Julia Child said...." Bon Appetit". Of course I will hopefully come up with something witty and personal of my own to sign off with! LOL

Another day, another dollar?

To start off, I have to say, that working a 10 1/2 hour day 5 days a week, had definitely kept me from posting any new blogs. Thats over. I was recently let go from my job and now I spend a few hours each day, job searching, networking, and posting resumes online. The economy is, as we all know, bad. I will not be homeless, I will never be hungry, and I have anything I truly need. So I am grateful. Keep me in your prayers that I find something sooner rather than later. It is frustrating to be home and trying to keep busy. I have filed for unemployment, and I believe the claim has been approved. Thank you God. I immediately filed my taxes, and again, Thank you God, I have already received my Federal refund. Wooo who!! I keep saying God gives us what we need, when HE thinks we need it. I just have to put in the footwork. On a happier note, I decided several weeks ago to join Weight Watchers. I pay monthly and go to a meeting every wednesday morning. I wont miss the meeting since they are prepaid. I am truly accountable. I get frustrated on mondays and tuesdays and am usually pleasantly suprised on wednesday mornings. I have lost 16lbs to date. Not too shabby. I have gone to family for dinner, gone to the city for dinner drinks and a show, went to Starbucks with my brother Marc, and have survived a week of being unemployed....and still have lost weight. I am determined to keep losing and keep up the healthy eating. I was going to stop the monthly automatic payments and decided against it. I am worth it. I will cut corners elsewhere so I can still afford to go to WW even on unemployment. I am proud of myself and want to keep up the good work. My 30th HS reunion is this July and I think I may go. LOL. I am working out again, and feel sooo much better, physically and emotionally. If nothing else, thats worth the 40 bucks a month!!

I'm not getting older, I'm gettin better?

Its really quite amusing when you sit and think about it. When we were kids, we would listen to our parents ( and that generation ) speak about things, saying to us " wait until you're our age" and we would laugh. Guess what? I am that age now. I am 47 and quite proud of it. I dont think I look as old as I am, I definitely enjoy life more at this age, and I dont think of myself as 47. In my daily routine, certain things remind me how old I really am. Last month I received a notice about my 30 year HS reunion. 30 Years??? Last weekend we celebrated my son Paul and my cousin JP's birthdays. Paul just turned 27 and my cousin will be 39 in a week. 27??? How can that be? He was just Paul4 for those of you who remember that year. He liked HeMan cartoons, micromachines, and cheese macaroni. Of course he still likes the cheese mac, but he has outgrown Care Bears and Topsiders. I still think of him as my baby, although I wont say that to his face and fortunately he doesnt read my blog. At least I dont think he does. I look at my neices and nephews and my cousins kids who all call me Aunt Michele, and ask myself if its possible I am that old now. No it cant be true. I look at my brothers who as of this coming may, will all both be in their 40's now, and think to myself, we were just kids. Even my cute little cousin Jeanine, who adored me when I was a teenager, is all grown up with a family of her own. I was at her house yesterday, as she was coloring my hair ( taking the grey out ) , and I playing with her youngest. It blows me away since I feel like it was yesterday I was playing with her like that. I have to admit, some days I feel like I am 97 not 47, after a 10 hour work day sorting and putting away deliveries, but for the most part I still think of myself as young. Am I, Are WE, getting older not better? Or are we getting better as we get older? I would like to think the latter is true, and until I have to believe otherwise, thats how I will think of myself. Its a rhetorical question so please dont comment with an answer ....I prefer staying in dark for now. I am practing for when the dementia sets in.

Only 360 days til.....

Wow! All the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and in a blink of an eye its gone. Christmas has come and gone and I am sad to see it go, yet somewhat relieved. I attended a party at my cousin Karens, which was alot of fun. I got to see her brother Bruce, my son and his gf came and I drank a few Chocolate Martinis. Bruce and I slept over so we didnt have to drive home which was a blast!! A Christmas pajama party for the over 40 crowd.HAHA. Then it was work and get ready for Christmas. Although I was finished my shopping by early October, I still had many things to do. For me, this year at my new job, I was fortunate enough to have wednesdays and thursdays as my regular days off. That really only meant I had more time at home to shop, prep and cook for Christmas eve at my moms. All went smoothly and I actually got to leave the kitchen a few times. We decided last year to do a cocktail party of H'or dourves instead of a sit down dinner. Mom seems to think its actually more work, but I tend to disagree, plus I love the different appetizers going out at different times. Paul ( my son ) came out and spent the evening with his girlfriend and moms hubbys family and kids were all here. It was a nice nite had by all. The next morning I prepared a few things and headed off to Ama's house, after a Lessard Crepe breakfast. The Lessards were all there in full force at some point and Ama outdid herself this year. Traditions were kept and new ones were made. We decided to do a Secret Santa this year which was alot of fun. We all had fun giving our gifts and seeing who had us. We even picked our names for next Christmas, I am finished my shopping now LOL. Months of planning, days of decorating, baking and cooking, wrapping presents and decking the halls are over. On wednesday this week my day off I will be taking down the lights, undecorating the tree, repacking the boxes and putting away the Christmas dishes until next November. New Years now was another story. I had come down with a cold and wasnt feeling well by New Yrs eve. I did some running around in the morning, did all my laundry of work clothes, and was in bed by 630pm. Medicine and exhausted from work, I was sound asleep at 1210am when my son Paul called to wish me a Happy New Yr. He asked if I was sleeping and embarassed I said " No, I'm sick" 47 years old and I cant even stay up till midnite for 2009! How sad is that? My brother Marc came out for dinner on New Yrs day with my neice and my sister in law. I of course cooked up a storm and we played Banana-grams. I was happy to see them but glad to get to bed since I really wasnt feeling well. My holidays are officially over for this year and I will look foward to the next one. They mean alot to me, the memories of Christmas past and the anticipation of Christmas's to come. As Ama wrote in a book for me " Cherish the memories, Keep the traditions". I cant wait to make more to cherish!!