Sherri's Favorite Things

So, I had a bit of nostalgia today and was looking at my old posts from my first year of marriage in 2008. Oh my gosh life has changed. Have I changed? Hmmmmmm, difficult question.. Probably. I'm still slightly cynical, even tempered, working full-time, witty, and sometimes sarcastic. Otherwise I guess I am different. Marriage and motherhood does that to you.

Anyways, I found an old blog post about some of my favorite things in 2008.. and now I want to update my list. It was mostly kitchen stuff back then. So, here we go 10 years later...

Favorite Food Items:

Crystal Lite Pure Energy
Stevia-sweetened drink with caffeine. Delicious.

Kirkland brand protein bars.
It took a while to get used to the taste, but they have actual chunks of chocolate and are a good source of fiber.

Favorite Kitchen Items:

KitchenAid mixer..
You'll be my baby for always and forever.

Swissmar peeler.
This thing is CHEAP but freaking amazing.

Favorite Electronic Items:

Orbi wi-fi router
We got this for our new bigger house, but started using it already. It is wayyyy better than a wi-fi extender.

Qustodio app
It helps with internet safety on mobile devices and gives me peace of mind.

Favorite Home Items:

Ecobee Smart Thermostat
I'm so excited to use this in the new house for energy efficiency and the programmable/smart options!

Frigidaire upright deep freezer
We had to replace our old one in October, and this freezer has a ton of storage and keeps food super cold without frostbite. FYI, not my freezer. I mostly freeze my own meals and food I make, and of course the giant bags of vegetables from Costco.

Favorite Clothing Items:

Athleta hybrid tights
This are beyond comfortable and have a lot of support for my post-baby belly. I got the ankle-length tights, and guess what, they're exactly the right length for my stumpy legs.

Bandolino velvet flat wedges with bow
Again, super comfy, pointy-toe shoes with a little bit of a heel. Totally my kind of shoe.

Favorite TV Shows:

Black Mirror by Netflix/BBC
Dark, astute, relevant, creepy.. We love this show (although Season 4 was really lacking).

The Great British Baking Show by BBC
So relaxing--I love the things they bake and I love that it's not the typical ridiculous competition shows that are on Food Network.

Makeup Items:

MAC Matchmaster foundation
Nothing else compares on my face, and I mean it. I've been around, and now I've found that it's the only one for me. I've been wearing it for almost five years now.

CoverFX Highlighting palette
I couldn't pick just one eyeshadow palette, so I decided on one for my face. This thing is amazing and gives me all kind of glow.

Anyways, I thought this was kind of fun. Maybe I won't wait 10 years next time to update.

Cook's Country Flavored Popcorn

So, I've taken some time off blogging, and now I'm randomly coming back with a popcorn recipe.. Yep, that is my life. I have hardly logged on to the computer at home over the past month, so that is my excuse. I even had a whole week to myself last week, where Carter was with Graham and his family in Portland.. and I still didn't even blog. I was feeling pretty lazy, I guess.

Anyways, I receive the Cook's Country magazines at home, because they have the recipes produced by America's Test Kitchen that I'd be most likely to use. In October, I received the issue that had the recipes and techniques for perfect stove-top popcorn. I stopped making microwaved popcorn a while ago, because I kept thinking about the chemicals in the bags. The old method I was using was kind of annoying, where I had to shake a large Dutch Oven over a burner until the popcorn was popped. This didn't guarantee that all of the kernels were popped, and some of them did burn at the bottom of the pan. So, I'd been looking for a better method to cook fresh popcorn with better results. This recipe performed amazingly, and the taste of the cinnamon one was enough to make us fight for popcorn out of the bowl. I just had to post the recipe because I'd feel ungrateful if I didn't.

Buttered Popcorn 

(Otherwise known as perfect stovetop popcorn)

Makes 14 cups

3 TB vegetable oil

½ cup popcorn kernels

2 TB unsalted butter, melted

½ tsp salt

1.       Heat oil and 3 kernels in large saucepan over medium-high heat until kernels pop. Remove pan from heat, add remaining kernels, cover, and let sit for 30 seconds.

2.      Return pan to medium-high heat. Continue to cook with lid slightly ajar until popping slows to about 2 seconds between pops. Transfer popcorn to large bowl. Add melted butter and toss to coat popcorn. Add salt and toss to combine. Serve.

Buttermilk Ranch Popcorn

Add 1 TB buttermilk powder, 1 TB chopped fresh cilantro, 2 tsp dried dill,1/4 tsp garlic powder, and ¼ tsp onion powder to salt.

Cinnamon-Malt Popcorn

Add 2 TB malted milk powder, 2 TB packed brown sugar, and 1 tsp ground cinnamon to salt.

Parmesan-Pepper Popcorn

Add ½ cup grated Parmesan and 2 tsp pepper to salt.

So far, our favorite was the cinnamon popcorn. Don't worry if you don't have the malted milk powder. We still ate it like candy.

Here's the pictures:

 Here are the 3 kernels starting out in the oil.

Here's the perfectly cooked popcorn.

Evidence that no kernels were left unpopped or burned.

                                                 

 The buttermilk ranch popcorn pre-chowdown. I used buttermilk powder and a dried ranch seasoning mix I made myself.

The end of an era

So, remember how Carter was sick a little over a week ago, and I stayed home 3.5 days from work to be with him?

Yeah, so, Wednesday night, I decided to eat a brownie sundae before working out. Stupid, I know, but I made these amazing chewy brownies from Cook's Illustrated, a homemade caramel sauce from Our Best Bites, and I had some slow-churned Dreyer's vanilla ice cream just calling my name when I got home. But, I decided to work out that night anyways even though I'd eaten ice cream and I wasn't feeling that great.  However, when I got to the gym, I found out my workout class had been cancelled. I decided to run a couple of laps, but I wasn't feeling it (that's a different story anyways). I decided last minute to stop by McDonald's for dinner. Carter got his "chicken maggots" (his words, not mine) and I got a spicy McChicken. Let me tell you that I NEVER eat McDonald's lunch/dinner food. Every few months, I eat a breakfast sandwich from there, and I get cheap sodas, but that's it. Their hamburgers and sandwiches are generally disgusting to me.

Anyways, I woke up around midnight with a rock in my stomach.. I had complained earlier that evening about my stomach hurting, but I didn't think it'd turn into this. I couldn't sleep on my stomach because it hurt so bad. After tossing and turning and watching Seinfeld for an hour and a half, I finally got out of bed around 1:30 AM to get things started. I finally puked, for the first time since April 2006 (not counting the times during Carter's birth). Man, I got the McPukes and the McShakes. It was bad, but I finally felt a little better by 2 AM. But boy, it wiped me out. I dropped Carter off at daycare the next morning and laid in bed from 7:30 AM-4 PM. Ugh. Then, I had to call in sick AGAIN on Friday because I passed on the bug to my daycare lady (I honestly thought it was just the McDonald's food that caused it). So, yeah, I puked for the first time in almost a decade and I worked less than 40 hours over a 2-week period. Amazing.

On a lighter note, I baked something AMAZING on Saturday. I wanted to make something different, i.e. not pancakes, waffles, or muffins, and I remembered this recipe for quick cinnamon rolls from America's Test Kitchen. Normally, cinnamon rolls take FOREVER, so this was a good option. I don't know how many of you ate those Pillsbury's cinnamon rolls in a tube growing up, but our family did every Christmas, and they hold a strong nostalgic value to me. However, I would never buy those (yes, I'm that kind of person), but I have never have found a good homemade version. This recipe I found is the answer. It's more like a biscuit-like texture, and it reminded me of the tube cinnamon rolls so much, it brought me right back to Christmas morning. Let me warn you though, if you're tempted to make them, the dough is EXTREMELY sticky and I came close to losing it while trying to "knead" (ahem, more like stirring with my hands) the dough with my cute little "helper", Carter. So, if you're feeling a little adventurous, I'd highly recommend this recipe.

A Recipe Post

I don't know how many of you have read Amy Sedaris's book, I Like You, but it's this quirky hostess "advice" book. She also has recipes in it, and I tried this one a few months after we got married. It is honestly one of the most delicious and tender chicken recipes I've ever eaten. I highly recommend it, especially if you're into cooking with wine. The combination of red wine and tomatoes is AMAZING.

Chicken of the Taverns
Lightly adapted from I Like You
(serves 4-6)

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (or 3-4# of chicken pieces, skin on)
4 TB butter (I'm still experimenting with how much I can decrease this)
2 TB oil (I use olive oil)
juice of 1 lemon
salt & pepper

28 oz can of whole tomatoes
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried marjoram
1 tsp dried savory (this herb is hard to find--if you can't find it, I originally used "poultry seasoning" in its place and it was still delicious)
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup red wine

Noodles
Parmesan cheese

Instructions:
1) Heat butter and oil in small saucepan. Pour half of oil mixture into a shallow baking pan (I use a 9x13 pan), and rest the chicken pieces on it.
2) Mix lemon juice in remaining fat and baste chicken. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.
3) Bake chicken at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes.
4) While chicken is cooking, put tomatoes, onion, herbs, and red wine into a stockpot or Dutch oven. Cook for about 25 minutes and bring to a boil. If you don't like large chunks of tomatoes, break down the whole tomatoes with your spoon near the end of cooking when the tomatoes have softened.
5) Pour tomato sauce over chicken, reduce oven to 350 degrees F, and bake for 1 hour.
6) Serve over noodles and top with grated parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

New Ingredients

I may not get into cooking ruts, but I do tend to use the same ingredients over and over, like cilantro, parsley, chicken, lemon, etc..

So, I decided to be adventurous and try something new in my cooking. This month I tried tarragon and short ribs.

The Verdict

Tarragon: Beautiful herb, but not to my taste. It has that "black licorice" flavor, kind of like fennel. YUCK. I just don't like that flavor profile AT ALL. I used it in a creamy sauce for chicken.

Short Ribs: I freaking worked my butt off all day to get these puppies tender. The day before Valentine's Day, I roasted the ribs, braised them with aromatics in a red wine sauce, strained the cooking liquid, and refrigerated them overnight to be able to skim the congealed fat off the top of the liquid. On Valentine's Day, I sauteed some bacon, parsnips, and pearl onions and added the cooking liquid and the short ribs to re-heat. Was the cooking marathon worth it? Absolutely. When placed over a potato puree, it was heaven on a Waterford china plate. I can't say exactly what Graham said, but I'll have you know, these ribs were damn good. Simply said.

My next mission: Collard greens.