#especially when you put the bacon crumbles and cheese on top and it gets all crunchy!!!!

[brotherlysuggestion]

Hey, for any of my little sibs trying to learn to eat salads/vegetables but running into a lot of unhappiness/failure/sensory issues, I recently started learning to eat veggies after a lifetime of struggling due to autism and sensory issues, and I have some tips that I’ve collected along the way!

Forget all about the “healthiest varieties” or “most nutritional salads” elitism.

A lot of that talk is based on bogus science or half-truths to begin with, but even for anything that’s true, you’re trying to eat in a way that is sustainable for you. You don’t need to be like anybody else. If you like iceberg lettuce, screw the people who say “well that doesn’t have any nutritional value”. It’s fiber and roughage if nothing else! You like a lot of dressing or add ins and people tell you that isn’t a real salad/isn’t a healthy salad? It’s more vegetables than no vegetables! It gets the greens in your body! Do your thing, you don’t deserve guilt (external or internal) for figuring out your own path.

This is about habit forming and breaking bad associations to form better ones.

Think of this as practice! I eat salads nearly daily when available because I genuinely look forward to them now, but I used to want to retch at just the thought of salad. When I used to think of salads, I always thought of being a kid and trying not to gag while forcing sensory hell so that adults wouldn’t get mad at me. It was punishing for me, and it took a lot of gentle work to change that association! So if you hate salads, really try to identify why. Are they bland and tasteless to you? Conversely, are the bitter flavors too strong? Is it a textural thing? Do you have some highly negative experiences with them in the past?

Don’t force yourself to keep trying something you know you hate.

I personally can’t stand a lot of “ultra healthy” salads that have a lot of different textures/flavors mixed in, and years of trying to suffer through salads like that never made me like them more. Back to the first point again, forget about what you’re “supposed” to be eating and eat what you find the least repulsive tbh.

The greens you choose can make a massive difference, so try a lot of different things!

This is especially important if texture or flavor is an issue for you. Personally I find iceberg lettuce the “easiest” because it has a very mild taste. I started out my adventures in learning to eat salad eating EXCLUSIVELY iceberg lettuce. Butter lettuce or romaine (especially romaine hearts) are others that are popular for being pretty palatable, and I’ve come to love them! And you don’t even HAVE to have lettuce! You can have cabbage, beets, carrots, whatever! Pick a vegetable you like and search for salad recipes using it!

Find a dressing you really like and drench that bad boy if you need to!

Some people really like ranch, or poppyseed dressing, or vinaigrettes, or even sweet dressings with honey and fruit! You can use mustard or honey in dressings! Look up different types of salad dressings and try them all out if you want. Personally, I really like zingy dressings like Italian vinaigrettes or blue cheese, but everyone’s different. You can make a lot of dressings at home, too, and if you have the stuff already it can be a cheap way to find what you like. I know dressing freaks some people out, but referencing my very first point again; some salad is way better than no salad. You may even eventually find yourself able to use less and less once you’re more accustomed to eating salad! So use as much as you need, whether it’s just for now or forever.

Toppings! Salads are allowed to be goodies with obstacles!

Use a protein like chicken or fish (I like tuna a lot) or crumbled bacon, use croutons, hummus, little cubes of cheese or shredded cheese, sliced hard boiled eggs, whatever! If there’s vegetables that you know you like, put those in! I love some sliced cucumber or shredded carrots in my salads. Some people do nuts like almonds or cashews in their salads, some people use chickpeas and corn from a can, and if you’re feeling super adventurous you can try some fruit to sweeten things up! If you like variety then mix warm foods and cold foods, creamy textures and crunchy textures! Make it totally your own. Personally, I’ll sometimes eat around my croutons so that once I’ve eaten all of my greens I have a big, crunchy reward. There’s no rules for how you have to eat something!

Conversely, be as simple as you need to be.

If you need to get used to salads by eating just iceberg lettuce and ranch for a while, you don’t need to be embarrassed! You don’t have to throw the kitchen sink at your salad, even if that’s what helps some others! This is about what works for you.

Don’t be afraid to have salad ingredients… not as a salad!

You can make a green smoothie by blending ingredients if texture is your big issue! Or make a fruit smoothie with some spinach or lettuce thrown in to help you ease into it. Or try dicing up some lettuce, cabbage, and a preferred vegetable or two (avocado, bell pepper, tomato, or cucumber would all work!). Drizzle that with a generous amount of dressing or sauce, and you can use it as a chip dip! Tortilla chips work especially well for this. Or maybe make a vegetable wrap in an actual tortilla? Or throw some chopped up vegetables in your next soup. Even if it’s as simple as putting some lettuce, carrots, or tomatoes into a sandwich, that’s awesome too!

Even outside of salads, experiment with texture for vegetables!

You can roast most vegetables on a sheet pan in the oven (or in an air fryer) for a crispy and crunchy experience! Or you can boil or steam them on a stovetop (or in the microwave) to different levels of softness; you can get most vegetables pretty mushy with enough time, if crunchy textures are hard for you! Looking up vegetarian versions of your favorite meat-including dishes can sometimes also offer great ideas for getting different textures out of vegetables! Try everything that you think you might like: grilling, griddling, roasting, steaming, boiling, sautéing, braising, stir frying, and blanching (which also helps reduce bitterness!) are all different methods to look into, and different methods have different results with different vegetables!

Big takeaway…

Be patient and kind with yourself. Working through food aversions is hard. The goal is gently pushing/testing your boundaries and expanding your comfort zone, NOT forcing yourself. Forcing yourself into extreme discomfort, distress, or pain typically only makes aversions worse! So it’s in your best interest to be patient and go as slowly as you need to. Be proud of yourself for trying, and don’t let anyone (including yourself) make you feel shame for doing what you can.

And obligatory disclaimer:

Please don’t get discouraged if none of these tips work for you! This isn’t an exhaustive list, and I’m not any kind of professional. This is just a mix of tips I’ve seen online, and what worked for myself and my own sensory issues, and I’m still learning more about myself all the time! If you’re struggling, there’s still more out there! You can achieve your goals, I believe in you. 💖

[powerfulkicks]

one of my favorite low effort/low ingredient recipes is making potato rounds, here's how i do it

what you need:

- cookie sheet (helpful if you have one with like raised edges not one that's all flat)

- aluminum foil or parchment paper

- knife

- vegetable oil (i use olive oil)

- russet potato

- spices: minimum salt, pepper, and garlic powder, but you can always add other stuff also

optional:

- sour cream or ketchup (for dipping potato rounds in)

- shredded cheese (any kind works really but i use mexican cheese since i usually have a lot of it anyway)

- whatever other toppings you wanna add. some suggestions: crumbled up bacon, green onions, parmesan cheese. anything that's good on a baked potato really.

Steps:

- preheat the oven to 400 F (abt 200 C)

- line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper

- cut up the potato in about 1/4 inch thick rounds (if you want crispier ones you can make them thinner, you just might have to cook for less time)

- spread them out evenly on a cookie sheet in one layer

- get like 2 TBs vegetable oil and dump them on the potato rounds (i usually eyeball it)

- get your spices and add them to the potato rounds (to taste, again i just eyeball it)

- mix it all up so that the potato rounds are coated with the spice-oil mixture (i just use my hands for this part and mix it on the cookie sheet, but if you want you can grab a bowl and mix it in there with a spoon/spatula. less messy)

- put it in the oven for 20-30 mins (you can leave it longer depending on how crispy you want them/how hungry you are lol. also it helps to flip them halfway through if you want them more even but tbh i dont usually do this because im lazy and just end up with one side crispier than the other)

- once it's done, you can top with cheese and other toppings while potatoes are still hot (so the cheese gets all melty)

- you might need a fork/spatula to pry up the potato rounds especially if you used aluminum foil since they end up sticking a bit

- if you wanna dip in sour cream/ketchup go wild

- enjoy :)

tbh the hardest part of this for me is usually cutting up the potatoes but what you could do is cut up a few potatoes beforehand and keep em in the fridge for when you're hungry

and i like this cuz you can add whatever you want to them and it usually adds enough variety for me to not get sick of them. but also you really only need like one or two ingredients + a few spices.

good for a snack or for a low effort meal that you can usually scrounge up enough ingredients for :)

[tastesoftamriel]

what are the best/most popular cheese-dominated dishes for each race? this one loves all kinds of cheeses.

I answered a similar question in the past, but since it's cheese we're talking about here, I'm going to make another list because I can!

Altmer

Aside from rare and expensive indrik cheese, the High Elves also adore sheep milk cheeses, which are especially creamy and rich in grassy flavour. A type of fresh cheese known as burrata is famed for its mozzarella-like exterior and rich, creamy liquid centre. It's eaten with sundried and heirloom tomatoes and fresh herbs, and pairs perfectly with white wine. Be sure to ask for a napkin though, burrata can get messy!

Argonians

As mentioned previously, Argonians aren't really cheese eaters, but this doesn't apply to many city-dwellers. Enterprising natives of Leyawiin, for example, have teamed up with Argonian chefs to develop classic Cyrodiilic cheeses with Black Marsh flair. I personally adore a type of hard, crumbly cheese called Wamasu Wallop, which is made with fresh peppercorns and wrapped in wild garlic leaves.

Bosmer

Valenwood cheeses are severely underrated, and I plan to change that! My favourite this month is a fantastic semi-hard timber mammoth cheese that is great in a simple grubs-and-cheese grilled sandwich. Yes, baked witchetty grubs are excellent, and you don't even need to think about them as grubs when they're hidden under a glorious blanket of melted, stretchy cheese and sandwiched between cured sausage "bread", with crispy bacon and a tasty fried egg. Doesn't sound good? More for me!

Bretons

I say with utmost certainty that the Bretons are masters of the omelette, specifically of the cheese variety. My favourite is a Shornhelm tavern special: fluffy omelette with chives, smoked brie, gorgonzola, and topped with crispy pancetta. It's a melt-in-your-mouth, Aetherial experience.

Dunmer

A Dark Elf cheese specialty that isn't scuttle is rare, but many Dunmer enjoy paneer, a type of chewy, mild cheese that's cut into blocks and cooked with rich curries or baked in a lava-stone oven with spices. My favourite way to enjoy paneer is in a mild, creamy bittergreen and hackle-lo leaf curry, and served with wickwheat flatbread.

Imperials

It would take me years to chronicle all the cheeses of Cyrodiil and how they're eaten, but I'm going to go with a classic cheese and caramelised onion tart today, made with fresh chevre, mature cheddar, and a dollop of creamy gorgonzola for some oomph. It's perfect for any meal at any time of day!

Khajiit

Fried cheese. On sticks. Dipped in moon sugar syrup. I could elaborate more on this delightful street snack, but I won't. You'll just have to visit Elsweyr. Consider this my unofficial tourism promotion for the Province: just think of all the fried cheese on sticks, dipped in moon sugar syrup.

Nords

Cheese is a staple part of the Nord diet, and while I do love a good Elsweyr Fondue, nothing quite bests the traditional Skyrim fondue. Eidar cheese is just one of four to six cheeses (generally a blend of mozzarella, soft and hard goat cheese, gruyere, and provolone). They're melted until smooth in a cauldron with brandy, and served with cured meats and sausages, sourdough, and roasted leeks to dip.

Orcs

Coming back to the topic of echatere cheese, it is also amazing when baked into a jacket potato with horker bacon, horseradish, and radish chips! The creamy consistency is ideal for baking, especially as it also crisps well under a grill. Simple, filling, and the best way to consume a whole wheel of cheese in one sitting.

Redguards

Hammerfell is home to one of my favourite desserts in the entire world: kanafeh. Made from delicate layers of crisp filo pastry and loads of salty cheese and mild ricotta, kanafeh is usually drizzled with nuts and dried fruit, and soaked in a rosewater and lemon syrup. The end result is a religious experience, to put it mildly. Did I mention I like cheese?

[whenisitenoughtrees]

still taking prompts? got rlly excited for a bit when u said u were bc i enjoy ur style a lot. anyway, lamp/calm for prompt #29? the prompt sounds like smth chaotic they would do lol

this is less chaotic and more tooth-rottingly fluffy, but uh here you go

for #29. Be quiet! You’ll get us caught!

Title: overthinking (darling we’re just fine)

Word Count: 1,963

Content Warnings: gratuitous discussion of breakfast foods

(fic masterpost w/ ao3 links)

“Be quiet! You’ll get us caught!”

He hisses the words out entirely too loudly in the silence of the corridor, and Virgil winces as the sound dies down. In his defense, it is six in the morning, and he is hardly thinking straight. Or rather, coherently. And Roman knows it, too, is smirking at him with that stupid handsome smirk of his, and Virgil would seriously consider kissing him if it weren’t for the fact that he is running on roughly three hours of sleep, and his irritation is spiking.

“Now, storm cloud,” he says, voice just below a normal speaking volume, “we all know that Patton’s going to be dead to the world until at least seven thirty. You don’t need to worry so much.”

And, alright, maybe that’s true. But Virgil glares at him, too tired to deal with the slightly patronizing tone of voice. “Yeah?” he challenges. “I’m sorry, have you met me?”

Roman lifts an eyebrow. “Darling, I think I’ve done a bit more than meet you, at this point—”

“If you two are done making unnecessary noise?” It’s Logan, coming back around the corner, and he does not look impressed. Though, that may be because it’s six in the morning, and Logan never looks impressed about anything until his second cup of coffee. “By my estimates, we have one hour and seventeen minutes before we enter the window of time in which Patton is most likely to wake up. That should be enough time to complete all of our tasks, if we begin now and don’t commit any egregious errors.”

Virgil exchanges a look with Roman.

“Right, lead the way, Lo,” Roman says, and Virgil trails after the two of them, his brain fixing itself on the phrase egregious errors, because of course it does, because it’s him, because he can’t make it through one morning without his mind insisting that something is going to go terribly wrong and also that the world is ending.

He breathes in and out, slowly and deliberately. It’s just breakfast. They’re just making breakfast for Patton, because Patton has been sad and distant lately and nobody is quite sure how to help him, but doing something like this for him might cheer him up a bit.

So many things could go wrong, of course. They could burn the food. They could burn themselves. They could make such a mess that the prospect of cleaning it all up will put more stress on Patton than cooking the meal for him will alleviate, and then he’ll be even more sad and distant, and also, the world will end.

He’s trying not to think about any of that. Trying and failing. This sucks.

“Do you both remember your parts?” Logan asks. He’s tying an apron around his middle, black and utilitarian, but it suits him, somehow. Roman answers in the affirmative, already rattling around in the cupboards for the pans he needs, and Virgil gives a short nod.

Logan is making an omelet, one with all the fixings that Patton likes, ham and cheese and onion. Roman has insisted on making blueberry muffins from scratch, because he’s Roman and he has to be one hundred percent extra one hundred percent of the time. So, that’s left Virgil in charge of protein, and he’s chosen bacon. He knows how to make bacon. Theoretically, bacon is easy; you put it on the frying pan and flip it at the right time, and viola. Bacon.

So he stands there, watching it sizzle. Logan is next to him, keeping a close watch over his omelet on the stove top, and he serves as a steadying presence, reminding Virgil that he’s fine and that he can do this, and that bacon doesn’t take a very long time anyway, so even if he messes up, he can do it again. On Logan’s other side, Roman has commandeered the entire counter for his ingredients. He’s mixing them together and humming to himself, a jovial tune, and it’s still too loud but Virgil feels better about it than he did a few minutes ago.

He finishes the first batch, and frowns at the strips. They’re definitely cooked through all the way, but they’re a bit floppy, and a realization strikes him: he doesn’t know how Patton likes his bacon. Chewy or crispy? Or somewhere in between, with some crispy bits at the edges and the rest softer?

Oh god, the world is ending.

He must make a noise, or a noticeable motion, because Logan glances over at him.

“Is everything alright?” he asks.

“Chewy or crispy?” he manages to say, though his throat has clenched up like a vice. He is well aware that he’s making too big of a deal about this, that it’s just bacon, for crying out loud, but he’s running on so little sleep and it’s so important to him that he gets this right, that they succeed in making Patton feel a little better, and in the face of that, imperfect bacon might as well be the worst catastrophe he’s ever faced.

Logan’s brow furrows. “Are you talking about the bacon?” he asks. “You know, I’m not actually sure.”

He groans, staring at what he’s already made. It might be fine, but then again, it might not be, and if it’s not—

“Virgil,” Logan says, a bit of amusement creeping into his voice. “Please, breathe. Overly processed meat products are not worthy of your distress.”

“But—”

“No,” Logan says, “none of that. Even if we don’t know which he prefers, I find it unlikely that he will reject it out of hand if it’s crispier or chewier than he likes. And besides, if it would ease your mind, there is still plenty of time to make more, and that can be crispier than this first batch, so he can choose what he wants.”

He closes his eyes, nodding, turning over the words in his mind. As always, Logan knows exactly what to say to bring him out of a spiral.

“Right,” he says, and then again, because it’s reassuring to hear it out loud. “Right.”

Logan smiles at him, and then, almost too quickly to process, presses a soft kiss to the corner of Virgil’s mouth. He feels himself heating up, especially when he hears Roman laugh a bit.

“There we are,” Logan says fondly, and Virgil doesn’t see so much as sense Roman sneaking around to his other side. He anticipates the kiss, smacked against his cheek, wet and sloppy. He turns to glare, but Roman grins back at him unabashedly.

“I hear it’s loving Virgil hours?” he asks, and Virgil resists the urge to groan.

“It’s ten ‘til seven,” Logan says, but dashes Virgil’s hopes by following that up with, “though I’m not sure why the time matters. Every time is a good time to love Virgil.”

“Oh my god,” he says, and prays that his blush isn’t as obvious as he thinks it is. He may not have much dignity left to speak of, but he has a little bit, if he can hang on to it. “Isn’t it supposed to be loving Patton hours? Can we focus on that, please?”

“We can multitask,” Roman singsongs. “Muffins going in.”

Wordlessly, Virgil steps aside to allow him access to the oven.

“Actually,” Logan says, leaning against the counter with a self-satisfied expression, “the human brain is not designed for true multitasking. This is what makes speaking on the phone while driving so dangerous; if one attempts to accomplish multiple tasks at once, the ability to do all of them is severely compromised.” He pauses. “Though I believe Roman’s point does stand.”

“Of course it does,” Roman says airily. “We have so much love to go around.”

Logan concedes the point with a tilt of his head, but any attempt at stoicism is ruined by the grin twitching at the edges of his lips. Virgil rolls his eyes and dumps more bacon into his pan, but he has to admit, he does feel a lot more relaxed.

Which was probably their goal all along.

They finish up breakfast. Logan makes several omelets that are up to his standards, and Roman’s muffins come out of the oven perfectly baked, soft and crumbly on the top. And Virgil makes another batch of bacon, crispy this time, and then one more for good measure, just to make sure there’s enough of both kinds. Roman goes about setting the table for four, back to humming quietly to himself.

Virgil tunes into the sound on instinct, letting the ebb and flow of Roman’s voice ground him.

Logan surveys the spread of food with satisfaction. “Some fruit, perhaps?” he suggests, and Virgil veers over toward the fridge, digging through to find some strawberries. He’s washing them up when there is a sound of footsteps coming down the stairs, and everyone else quiets.

Virgil turns to see Patton standing in the doorway to the kitchen, and his first thought is that he looks like crap. His hair is still mussed from sleep, and he has a thick blanket draped across his shoulders, but that’s not what catches Virgil’s attention; it’s the bloodshot look in his eyes and the bags underneath them, pointing to at least one restless night, if not more. It’s a look that Virgil is used to seeing in his own mirror; he doesn’t like seeing it on Patton.

“Good morning, Patton,” Logan says softly. “We made breakfast for you.”

Patton blinks owlishly, and for a moment, his face is completely blank, as if the words haven’t registered with him at all. Then, his eyes flicker to the table, and then to the mess in the kitchen, and go wide.

“You did all this for me?” he asks, his voice small.

Roman drapes his arms over him from behind, kissing his cheek just in front of his ear.

“Of course,” he says.

“We’ve noticed that you haven’t been feeling well lately,” Logan adds. “We hoped that this might help you feel better.”

A smile breaks out on Patton’s face, then, thin and watery and wavering but there all the same, and it is such a relief to see that Virgil feels as though a physical weight has been lifted from his shoulders. Patton gestures toward Logan, who steps forward obligingly into the hug, and then Patton looks to Virgil, who is still hovering awkwardly around the sink, hands full of strawberries, and, well. He can never deny Patton anything, and a group hug sounds nice, so he sets the strawberries down on the counter and moves to join them. It’s a big, warm embrace with Patton in the middle, and Virgil sighs as the last of his tension drips out of him, leaving him uncommonly relaxed.

“I love you guys so much,” Patton says. “Thank you.”

“Love you too, Pat,” Virgil murmurs, and though his voice gets a little bit lost in between the other two saying much the same thing, he knows that Patton hears him, because he turns to him for just a second and smiles, brighter and more genuine, and really, that makes all the stress of the morning completely worth it.

So, they have breakfast, and it’s good, and Virgil notices that Patton doesn’t seem to have much a preference between the two types of bacon, but that’s more than alright, because the point is to make Patton a bit happier, and the small smile on his face says that they’ve succeeded at that. So maybe the world isn’t ending at all.

Because Virgil would rather die than say something so cheesy out loud, but he’s got his entire world right here, sitting around the table in the early morning light, food and company and love to spare.

General Taglist: @just-perhaps @the-real-comically-insane @jerrysicle-tree @glitchybina @psodtqueer @mrbubbajones @snek-boii @severelylackinginquality @aceawkwardunicorn @gayerplease @elizabutgayer @dwbh888 @thatoneloudowl @sanderssides-angst @gayboopnoodle @wildfire5157 @ldavmp4 @a-ghostlight-for-roman @sammy-is-obsessed @imlovethomassanders @a-yeet-bop-bop-boom @halfordshysteria @random-fander @addykatb @i-cant-find-a-good-username @intruxiety @maybedefinitely404 @arya-skywalker @thefivecalls @nerdy-emo-royal-dad

[fattywrites]

Cheap, Simple Recipes

So I’ve put together 10 of my cheapest recipes. Each one - according to my grocery costs - runs about ~$5 to feed ~6 people (or one very, very hungry fatty). 

1. cabbage and sausage >>put like half a stick of butter in a pan (this is necessary). Get in melting. Go in with a sliced onion and one of those rul cheap smoked sausage links cut into slices (I cut mine super thin so that I get more bites of sausage). When the sausage is looking brown and the onions are soft, hit it with an entire head of cabbage. You can cut the cabbage how you want to. Sometimes I slice it thin like slaw, and this only takes like 40 minutes. Other times I cut it in bite-size squares, and this takes an hour and a half. It’s up to you. Anyway throw a whole head of cabbage sans core in there. If you can barely stir the pan, you’re doing it right. Season with seasoned salt or creole seasoning (or regular salt, I guess) and let it cook covered low and slow, stirring it like every 10-15 minutes until the cabbage is all softened and buttery and your mouth is watering. I honestly make this like every two weeks cuz it’s life, so be warned, it’s addictive.

2. haluski >>Shred an entire head of cabbage and start melting some butter in a rul big sautee pan. When the butter’s melted throw in the cabbage. You can also throw in a sliced onion if you want. Don’t forget to salt and pepper (I use creole seasoning, keep in interesting). Get that going. Heat a pot of salted water (I use creole seasoning to salt the water, too. No chill) to a boil while the cabbage is going. Add in a bag of egg noodles to the water, cook & drain them. The cabbage should be ready. Add in the egg noodles. Carefully fry them up with the cabbage, adding more butter if you need to. Once it’s getting a little crispy, take it off the heat and serve.

3. congris >>I’m going to be honest, I have about 7 different recipes for congris and I don’t remember which one is my favorite so I’m going to give you 2 options Option one: drain a can of black beans over a measuring cup. Get a sauce pot hot with some coconut oil, fry up a lil garlic, a small onion, and like half of a green bell pepper. Add in 2 cups rice and fry it in the oil for 3 mins (I actually set a timer cuz I’m bad at noticing when the rice is toasted). Hit it with the beans, then take your measuring cup to your water supply and fill it to the 3 cup mark (move fast don’t burn your rice). Add the water in (stand back it’s gone bubble up). Mix it. Season it with EITHER adobo seasoning OR a chicken bouillon cube (Maggi is the best ijs). Add a touch of oregano. Bring it to the boil, boil it until the water’s looking kind of evaporated and you can see the rice, then cover it, drop it to low, and let it steam for 30 minutes. You actually want the rice to be dry not sticky, and for there to be a crust on the bottom of the pan. Option two: drain a can of black beans over a measuring cup. Get a sauce pot hot with some coconut oil and fry up like a 1/4 or a 1/3 cup of sofrito (the green one. It has a different name in the grocery store but literally everyone I know whose latinx calls them both sofrito lmao). This is not going to take long. Add in your 2 cups rice, toast it 3 minutes. Add the black beans in. Fill your bean-juice filled cup up to 3 cups, add it in. Use EITHER adobo seasoning to taste OR add a chicken cube (Maggi is best). Boil it until the extra water has evaporated off, drop it to low-low and cover it, let it cook 30 minutes until the rice is cooked by dry and there’s a crust on the bottom of the pan.

4. split pea soup >>Heat your oil of choice in the bottom of a pot, then add in some onion, garlic, a carrot cut into pieces, and if you have any, some sweet pepper. Let it cook a little. Wash and drain 2 cups (or a 1lb bag) of split peas. Add them in. Cover in water, add in chicken bouillon for your salt, then throw in a leftover steak bone. Cook for 2-3 hours or until the peas have turned to mush. Can be eaten on its own but I like to crumble a piece of corn bread in the bottom of my bowl and then ladle the soup over it, oh ma god.

5. bacon beans >>Cut up like half a package to a full package of bacon and fry them in your soup pot. When the fat is rendered out, add in 1-2 jalepenos diced finely with their membranes and seeds removed (you can put the seeds if you want but that’ll make this rul spicy). Wash and sort 2 cups or a 1 lb bag of dry pinto beans (no soaking required). Add them into the pot when the bacon’s looking incredible, then add enough water to cover the beans by like an inch. Add a chicken bouillon cube and about 1/3 cup of red salsa (whatever’s in your fridge is fine). Mix it up, and cook it covered (or uncovered if it looks soupy) for a few hours. It’s done when the beans are soft and tender and when your entire house smells so good you don’t even know what to do about it. Like the split pea soup, I usually serve this over a crumbled up slice of corn bread.

6. ham and peas >>Dice up a package of fully cooked ham (you can use those precut ham chunks, you can use a ham slice, you can use ham slices for sandwiches if that’s all you have, you can also use smoked sausage cut in quarters and diced or hot dogs diced up, I won’t tell on you lol). Add a good amount of butter to a sauce pan, add some sliced garlic, put it on medium heat, go in with your ham and sautee it. When it’s starting to get brown, add in a bag of frozen peas. Let it heat through and mix around until the peas are that gorgeous bright green color they get. Then take it off the heat. This literally takes like 10 minutes.

7. pasta e ceci >>fun fact, I got this recipe from my Italian Renaissance history professor. This dish predates the use of tomatoes in Italy and it was a staple dish among the peasants. Put some olive oil in a pan. Slice up a few garlic cloves, put them in the cold oil, then turn the heat on. Once that’s sizzling dump in a can of chickpeas with their juices. Add a little bit more water to make sure they’re covered, change the heat to high. Add adobo seasoning (or salt, I guess) and like a half tablespoon of dried rosemary depending on how old your rosemary is. Let it boil for like 5 minutes, then mash 1/2-3/4 of the chickpeas. Add in 2 cups of a small pasta shape - elbows, shells, bowties, etc - then add enough water to cover the pasta by like an inch. Still on high heat, cook it, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is done and the chickpea sauce is thicc. This takes about 15 minutes but it also depends on how much water you add and I am a lawless hellion who doesn’t measure things so I can’t help you there. This tastes amazing asf though.

8. beans and greens >>Soake a 1lb bag of washed/sorted white beans the night before.Day of, add garlic to a good amount of butter or olive oil in a soup pot, then heat it. Water your outdoor plants with the bean water, then add the beans to the pot and add fresh water to cover the beans by an inch or two. Add in some chicken bouillon as salt, a can of diced tomatoes, some herbs (I like italian seasoning here), a little red pepper flake, and lots of black pepper. If you have any old hard cheese rinds, add it in here, too. Cook it for like 2 hours until the white beans get rul thicc and break down. Then add some finely sliced dark, leafy greens and let them break down (if you’re using collards just add them when you add the beans, btw. But I typically use a bag of frozen kale cuz it’s already cut small asf). Also this might take a lot longer than 2 hours to cook if you have old beans, fair warning. After the greens are tender, the soup is done. As a Next Level flavoring, if you have miso paste on hand and you mix a little in at the end it takes this soup to the next level. This is definitely optional, though.

9. john bisseti >>This is another old family recipe from my great-grandmother during the Great Depression. One time her sister published the recipe and she didn’t talk to her for a few years. My great-grandmother passed away like 40 years ago but I don’t want to be haunted so I’ve adapted this from her original a little, it is not the recipe I use. Brown a package of ground sausage with green pepper, onion, and celery, and cook a bag of egg noodles. Mix up a can of condensed tomato soup. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Add half the noodles, then add half the sausage mix. Add the rest of the noodles, then add the rest of the meat. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top, then pour the soup mix over everything. Bake at 375 for 1 hour. You want the noodles at the top to be crisp and crunchy.

10. kimchi soup >>This isn’t authentic at all but it’s friggin delicious and I highly recommend it. Heat oil in the bottom of a soup pot. Sautee a sliced smoke sausage link and the white parts from a full bunch of green onions. If you want to splurge for mushrooms, dice some up and add those as well. Once it’s a bit brown, go in with a jar of kimchi that’s already cut up. If you don’t want this to clear your sinuses I recommend draining the brine off* first. Saute it a little bit, then add an entire head of cabbage cut in bite-size pieces (shredded, square, your choice). If it’s hard to mix, you’re doing it right. Season with adobo or creole seasoning or salt--kimchi is salty so don’t use too much, and especially if you put the brine it, you may not need to add salt at all. Let it go on low like 20 minutes, then go mix it up so your sausage doesn’t burn. Then cook the shit out of it. Low and slow for like 2-3 hours. You shouldn’t need to add any liquid beyond what cooks out of the cabbage. Just before serving add in all the green parts from your green onion bundle. This soup is the best.

PROTIP: you can reserve the kimchi brine (or the brine of any pickles you like) in a jar, add in freshly cut vegetables, put it back in the fridge, and in a few days you can enjoy refrigerator pickles.

[uphamshousema-blog]

https://giordanos.com/tips-for-making-pizza-healthier/

For many people, pizza is likely at or near the top of the list of their favorite foods. Unfortunately for those who are watching their waistlines or want to eat a bit healthier, pizza isn’t always the ideal option. The average slice of plain, cheese pizza has nearly 300 calories, almost 10 grams of fat, 551 milligrams of sodium and nearly 34 grams of carbohydrates.

Fortunately, there are ways to make pizza healthier, whether you’re making a pie from scratch at home or are enjoying a slice or two — or three! — out at a restaurant.

Make Pizza Healthier at Home

If pizza night is a regular event at your house, but you’re starting to get concerned about the fat, carbs or sodium content of your homemade pizza, a few small tweaks can help to make it healthier. Start from the bottom of the pie and work your way up to the toppings with these healthy pizza options.

The Crust

For plenty of people, the crust of a pizza can make or break the entire pie. A crust that’s soggy or chewy or that doesn’t have that much flavor can really destroy what would otherwise be a delicious meal.

The crust of the pizza can also be a significant source of its calories and carbs. If you make your own crust from scratch, there are a few things you can do to improve its nutritional value.

Option one is to switch from all-purpose, refined flour to whole wheat flour. Whole wheat flour has more fiber and protein than white flour. It also has a stronger, nuttier taste, which can take some getting used to.

If you’re concerned that swapping out a standard pizza dough recipe for an entirely whole grain recipe will make your family less inclined to the pizza, you can start small. Instead of replacing all of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour, replace half of it. You’ll be boosting the fiber and the nutritional value of the crust, but the change in taste won’t be as dramatic.

Another way to make your homemade pizza crust healthier is to think beyond dough. That’s right. You don’t have to use a wheat-based dough as the base of your pizza. You can try to make a crust out of finely diced cauliflower, eggs and cheese for a low-carb alternative.

Another option is to make mini mushroom pizzas. Instead of rolling out dough for the crust, simply top a cleaned and trimmed portobello mushroom cap with sauce, cheese and other toppings.

Adjusting the size and thickness of your homemade pizza crust is another way to cut calories. For example, you can roll out the dough thinner than usual and enjoy a thin-crust pizza rather than a hand-tossed or pan pizza at home. Making pizza rounds that are slightly smaller will also reduce calories. For example, instead of rolling out a 14 or 16-inch circle, use enough dough to create a 12-inch crust.

Other healthy pizza crust options include:

Pita pizza: Use half of a whole wheat pita pocket for the crust.

Tortilla pizza: Use a whole grain tortilla as the crust.

Rice pizza crust: Use leftover brown rice to make a crust

Waffle pizza crust: Use whole grain frozen waffles to make individually sized pizzas

French bread pizza: Use a whole grain baguette as the crust

The Sauce

Jarred or bottled tomato sauces usually have a considerable amount of added sugar, not to mention high levels of sodium.

One way to make pizza healthier at home is to choose your sauce carefully. Read the ingredients list and the nutritional information on the label. Keep an eye out for added sugar — from sources such as corn syrup or sucrose — and look at the number of grams of added sugar listed on the nutrition label. If you’re concerned about sodium content, look for a bottled sauce that doesn’t have added salt.

Another way to improve the nutritional content of your pizza’s sauce is to make your own at home. Making your own sauce, from canned tomatoes or fresh, reduces the amount of sugar or salt in it, and it also puts you in full control over what goes into the sauce. That means if you want to sneak extra vegetables into the sauce, you can. A few vegetables worth considering include:

Onion

Carrot

Spinach

Bell peppers

Zucchini

If you’re worried about the additional vegetables affecting the texture of the sauce, you can always puree it after cooking. The additional vegetables will add to the complexity of the taste of the sauce, but their individual flavors won’t be so prominent that someone who dislikes spinach or peppers will be put off eating your pizza.

The Cheese

Next to the crust, it’s the cheese that can make or break a pizza, especially when it comes to nutritional content. Load up your pizza with cheese, and you’re essentially loading it up with fat and calories.

Luckily, there are many ways you can adjust the cheese on your pizza to cut calories and improve the pie’s nutrition, without sacrificing flavor. First things first, not all cheeses are created equally when it comes to calorie content. An ounce of cheddar cheese contains 114 calories, for example, while an ounce of part-skim mozzarella contains 72.

The flavor of cheese can also influence how much of it you end up using on a pie. If you believe in using multiple kinds of cheese on your pizza, look for varieties that have intense flavors, so that you can use less overall and cut calories without sacrificing taste. Flavorful cheeses that work well on pizza include:

Provolone

Parmesan

Blue cheese

Feta

If you are concerned about sodium content, it might be worth using fresh mozzarella on your pie rather than part-skim. Fresh mozzarella has 17 milligrams of sodium per one ounce serving. Meanwhile, part-skim mozzarella has 223 milligrams of sodium.

The Toppings

Ah, the toppings. What you put on your pizza not only gives you a chance to change its nutritional content. Pizza toppings also let you express your personality and preferences. Let’s start by talking about vegetables, as putting more vegetables on your pizza is one sure-fire way to make it a healthier meal.

What vegetables should you put on your pizza? A better question might be, what vegetables don’t belong on a pizza?

Adding leafy greens such as spinach, chard or kale will increase the calcium and iron content of your pizza. You can chop up the greens and toss them with a small amount of olive oil before you cook the pizza or you can steam the greens and pile them on the pie before cooking.

Some greens, such as arugula, are better off added to the pie after cooking it. Toss a bowlful of fresh baby arugula leaves with olive oil and some salt and pepper, then sprinkle it over the pizza after it’s come out of the oven.

If you’re making pizza at home, you can use pizza night as an excuse to clear out your refrigerator and use up any leftover vegetables — raw or already cooked. If you’re stumped about what types of vegetables belong on your pizza, here’s a list to get you started:

Artichokes — frozen or canned. You can use fresh artichokes, too, if you don’t mind preparing them

Broccoli

Sliced tomatoes

Mushrooms — all types

Zucchini and summer squash

Cooked sweet potato

Cooked winter squash

Onions

Eggplant

Asparagus

Hot peppers

Sweet peppers

Olives

Beets

Radishes

Garlic

Pepperoni, sausage and bacon — if you’re the type to enjoy meat on your pizza, you don’t have to give it up to get a healthier slice. It just helps to rethink the type of meat you use to top your pie.

For starters, it helps to trade meats that are high in fat for leaner sources of protein. Instead of pepperoni, pork sausage or bacon, try chicken sausage, salami or turkey bacon. Choosing meats that have a strong flavor, such as prosciutto, mean you can use less without giving up the taste.

It’s also fun and a bit more healthy to think outside of the box when it comes to pizza toppings. Instead of meats, consider lean sources of plant-based protein. For example, you can top your pizza with black or pinto beans to add fiber and protein to it. Or, crumble up drained, firm tofu to increase protein. You can also use tofu as a dairy-free cheese replacement on your pie.

Eggs are also a protein-packed, creative pizza topping. You can crack an egg on to the center of the pie a few minutes before it comes out of the oven or slice up hard boiled eggs and scatter them across the pizza after it’s finished cooking.

Healthy Pizza Hacks at Home

In some ways, making pizza healthier at home doesn’t have to do with what you put on the pizza, but rather with how you serve it. When it’s time to eat, try cutting the pizza into smaller slices. Divide the pie into eight pieces, then cut each of those slices in half. You’ll be able to trick yourself into eating less without feeling deprived.

Another trick is to put your pizza on smaller plates. Use a dessert or salad plate instead of a dinner plate. The pizza will take up more space on the plate, making it look as if you’re eating more.

Healthy Pizza Options When Dining Out

Even if homemade pizza night is a regular event at your home, the odds are you still go out for pizza from time to time or order a pie for take-out or delivery. While you don’t get to control what goes into the crust or sauce when you buy pizza from a restaurant, there are ways to order it to help make it healthier.

Essential Ordering Hacks for a Healthier Pizza

Wondering what you should ask for or say when ordering pizza to make it healthier? Try these hacks:

Ask for Half of the Cheese. Instead of ordering extra cheese on your pie, ask the server or cashier if your pizza can be made with half as much cheese as usual. You probably won’t miss the additional cheese, but your waistline will miss the extra calories.

Ask for Fresh Mozzarella. Many pizza restaurants offer fresh mozzarella and will prepare certain pies with it automatically, such as the classic Margherita pizza. You can also often ask for fresh mozzarella instead of the traditional shredded cheese. Fresh mozzarella has about the same number of calories as shredded, but a lot less salt.

Order a Salad, Too. If you’re in the habit of shoveling pizza into your mouth the second you get near a pie, filling up on salad first can help you cut back.

Get the Thin Crust. Remember, the less crust there is, the fewer calories you’ll be consuming. Choose thin or even an extra-thin crust pizza to cut back on carbs.

Get the Personal Size Deep Dish Pie. If you can’t say no to a deep dish or stuffed pizza, go for the smallest size available, make sure you load it up with veggies and order a salad so that you don’t over-indulge.

Get Meat Toppings on Half of the Pie. If you want pepperoni or pork sausage on your pizza, go for it. But ordering meat toppings on just one half of the pizza will help you cut calories and fat content, making your pie just a bit healthier.

Load up on Veggies. Get as many vegetables as you can stand on your pizza when you order at a restaurant or for delivery. Many pizza restaurants will let you customize your pizza with whatever toppings you want — from a list of choices.

Ask the pizza restaurant not to cut your pie. There are a few reasons to ask the restaurant not to cut your pizza when ordering. If you’re taking the pizza to-go or getting delivery, it often travels better when it hasn’t been sliced first. Once you get the pizza home or at your table, you’re able to cut it down to the appropriate sizes, which can help you avoid overeating.

To Blot or Not to Blot: That Is the Question

You’ve probably seen people take a paper towel or paper napkin and gently blot the surface of their pizza before eating it, to remove excess oil. Does blotting your pizza do anything to help make it healthier?

As it turns out, yes. When you blot a slice of pizza before eating it, you can remove an average of about 35 calories per slice. That’s about 10 percent of the average number of calories in a slice of plain pizza.

[jeepsister72-blog]

The Best Spinach Artichoke Dip

This from-scratch, delicious appetizer is the best spinach artichoke dip EVER! Totally restaurant-quality, this simple recipe is so easy to make at home!

Oh, little dish of spinach artichoke dip. I can’t resist you. Especially slathered on warm, toasty bread. Am I alone here? Any other spinach artichoke dip lovers out there?? 

I love this dip so, so much, and usually if I’m at any restaurant anywhere and this appetizer is on the menu, there is a 97.5% chance I’m going to order it. Well, either me or Brian. We are both huge fans and have been known to lovingly fight over the honor of who gets to order the spinach artichoke dip (after 16 years of marriage, we should just bite the bullet and each order our own). 

Turns out, it’s ridiculously simple to make spinach artichoke dip at home AND coming from basically a spinach artichoke dip expert, this from-scratch version is as delicious, if not more so, than any spinach artichoke dip I’ve ever had at a restaurant. 

This recipe surprisingly has been buried in my archives for almost a decade. I never officially posted the recipe, I just tossed it in the archives 8 1/2 years ago with a backdate so that I could have the recipe online. Over the years, a few of you have found it, made it, raved about it, and told me I needed to repost the dang thing!

So here we are. 

It really is the best spinach artichoke dip, and it is a cinch to make. Years ago when I set about perfecting the best recipe for this dip, I ditched the storebought alfredo sauce for a fresher, creamier flavor. The best news about going homemade on the white sauce is that it is made in the microwave.

Which may leave you wondering: WHY HAVE I NEVER MADE A HOMEMADE WHITE SAUCE IN THE MICROWAVE BEFORE? 

By doing so, this recipe naturally becomes a one bowl recipe for mixing everything together. And it comes together so fast. Honestly, I could eat the whole thing (even before it goes in the oven, don’t get me started on my spinach artichoke dip obsession).

More times than I can count over the years, I’ve actually just made this dip and served it for dinner. With bread for serving and a side of fruit, you’ve got yourself a complete meal according to Mel. 

And for those microwave skeptics, don’t worry! Of course you can always convert that white sauce method to the stovetop if you don’t have a microwave or don’t want to make your life easier (wink, wink). Watch the video below and see just how easy it is to make the sauce and put this dip together! 

Also, if you have time, read through some of the comments about ultimate creativity in using this dip (i.e. in quiche, on pizza, with chicken…yum!!). 

In the interest of continuing to make your life even easier, here are some of the questions I’ve gotten the most about this spinach artichoke dip over the years:

What kind of artichokes do I use for this spinach artichoke dip?

There are endless options in the artichoke aisle, and the verdict is…you really can’t go wrong. Marinated, grilled, canned in water. They’ll all work pretty well. I prefer using whole artichokes and chopping them myself because I’ve found that sometimes the already quartered artichokes have a mushy texture, but use what you can find, and I think you’ll have success!

Can I use fresh spinach instead of frozen? 

If you want to use fresh spinach, you’ll need to cook it down and squeeze out any extra water. I’ve never made this recipe with fresh spinach but you may need almost double the amount of fresh spinach to get the equivalent of the 16-ounces of frozen, chopped spinach. 

Can I use pre-shredded cheese? 

Cheese that you grate/shred yourself melts much better than pre-shredded cheese (pre-shredded cheese is coated with a powdery substance to keep it from clumping, but it also affects the consistency and texture when melted), so I definitely recommend using freshly grated cheese, however I won’t stop you from using pre-shredded! I actually have strong feelings on this matter if you can’t tell (especially if you read past posts where I talk – a lot – about cheese). Haha. I think I should have a t-shirt made that says: I shred my own cheese, dang it, and so should you. 

Can I make this spinach artichoke dip ahead of time? 

Yes, you absolutely can! This dip can be made and assembled 1-2 days in advance, covered, and refrigerated. Uncover and bake according to the recipe, adding 10-15 minutes to the baking time. 

See How to Make It Here!

One Year Ago: Easy Homemade Broccoli Cheese Soup New and Improved Two Years Ago: Peppermint Bark White Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake Three Years Ago: Soft Sour Cream Sugar Cookies Four Years Ago: Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites Main Dish or Appetizer! Five Years Ago: Licorice Caramels

Yield: 9X13-inch pan of dip

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups heavy cream, half-and-half or milk (see note)

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt (I use coarse, kosher salt)

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (I use coarsely ground black pepper)

8 ounces cream cheese, light or regular, softened

2 (15-ounce) cans artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped

1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot sauce (like Tapatio brand), optional (but adds great flavor)

1 cup (4 ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 to 1 1/2 cups (4 to 6 ounces) freshly grated mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese

16 ounces frozen, chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch or similar sized baking dish.

In a large microwave-safe bowl, whisk together the cream (or milk), flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Microwave the mixture in 1-minute intervals, whisking fully after each minute, until the mixture is thickened to the consistency of warm pudding, about 4-5 minutes.

Stir in the cream cheese and mix until well-combined (it's ok if there are a few lumps, but try to whisk it until as smooth as possible). Add the remaining ingredients; I like to add the spinach last, crumbling it in with my fingers to avoid large clumps. Mix well. Spread the dip into the prepared pan.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until bubbling and golden on top. Serve warm with bread or tortilla chips.

Notes

This dip is completely luxurious if you use cream for the white sauce, however, using half-and-half or milk is still super delicious (although not quite as rich and creamy). Also, you can make this dip creamier and cheesier by increasing those quantities (cream + flour and/or cheeses). It's very adaptable!

Recommended Products

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Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe

Recipe originally published January 2010; updated Dec 2018 with new pictures, recipe notes, etc. The video in this post was made in partnership with Inspo

Posted on December 12, 2018 by Mel

Source: https://www.melskitchencafe.com/the-best-spinach-artichoke-dip/

[marquetteranked]

turkey bacon avocado sandwich

the TBA, king of sandwiches. but where can you find the best one in mqt?

1. turkey bacon avocado - the marquette food co-op

was it really going to be anywhere else? every part of the co-op’s TBA is spectacular. i do not use the word succulent lightly (mostly because it sounds kind of gross, honestly, like using the word “moist”), but the co-op turkey earns the term. the succulent turkey is layered atop perfectly crisped bacon and creamy avocado, but the real star of the show is the spicy mayo sauce slathered all over. on top of that (and on the bottom of that), the fixings are served on a marquette baking company baguette, a pillowy, sumptuous vehicle that does not overpower the rest of the sandwich.

2. the scarecrow - donckers

the scarecrow is a symphony. it’s hard for me to break down this sandwich, because all the components work together so well. when you bite into the scarecrow, you get one perfect texture and flavor, built from turkey, bacon, avocado, roasted red peppers and gouda cheese. this sandwich is really the ideal version of a TBA. the only thing keeping it from the top spot is that the co-op’s spicy mayo gives a little extra oomph that the scarecrow lacks.

3. chicken bacon ranch - dominos

the chicken bacon ranch sandwich from dominos, while containing zero turkey or avocado, is the second best turkey bacon avocado in marquette michigan. do i understand it? no. but I can’t argue with the truth. a normal chicken bacon ranch sandwich will cower in the presence of even the most subpar turkey bacon avocado, but not dominos. The CBR’s tornado of grease, salt and tang elevates it from the masses and allows it to not only compete with, but almost defeat, the normally superior TBA.

4. cafe club - cafe bodega

cafe bodega’s cafe club is a perfectly good sandwich and a real contender, especially when you substitute thai garlic dressing for the garlic aioli. all of the sandwiches on this list are top tier sandwiches, so it’s hard to put them in order, but the cafe club has a few things keeping it lower on the list. one, the three seed bread, while delicious, falls apart a bit on the edges. the one job of a sandwich is to be able to be eaten with one’s hands, and the heavy lifting is done by the bread. if the bread starts crumbling, you are getting dangerously close to fork and knife territory. and two, the cafe club is not the best sandwich at cafe bodega. while i know i am supposed to only compare the cafe club to the other sandwiches on this list, the specter of the cranberry cheddar turkey looms over the cafe club experience, and i can’t help but let it color my opinion.

5. beach club - jimmy johns

while this is by far the best sandwich at jimmy johns, it is the least of the marquette TBAs. the sandwich suffers from what all jimmy johns sandwhiches suffer from, too much bread and too much lettuce. a TBA should be a flavor bonanza, but the beach club is a mouthful of bland.

note:

the 231 West tba is not on here because it is so good in it’s croissant form but not as great in it’s ciabatta form. i can’t judge it fairly knowing the croissant version existed at one point.

[iridulcentdays]

[RusAme] And Blood is Not Enough: Part 2/3

<<Read the Prologue Here>>

RusAme Superhero AU

Rated: T [Violence]

-A Vote Story-

Earlier that morning...

Ivan had already been awake for two hours by the time he walked quietly to his bed with two cups of coffee. A morning run through a still sleeping city and an hourstrength training left him just tired enough that a calm and pleasant feeling hummed through his bones. He paused to open the blackout curtains, letting a ray of warm orange sunlight peek through, and smiled at the lump coiled under the comforter in the center of the bed.  Ivan sat down on the edge of the mattress and knocked the lumps foot with his knee. “You’re going to be late if you don’t wake up, Alfred.”

Alfred groaned from under the goose down blanket and pulled it tighter to himself, hiding his face from the light. “’S too early,” he moaned.

Ivan knocked his foot again and barely stopped the coffee from toppling over when Alfred kicked back in retaliation. With a curse in Russian he gently put the coffee on the floor and peeled the blanket away from Alfred. “Up,” he ordered. Alfred blinked, curling further into himself at the loss of heat and vaguely flipped off his boyfriend of two years. Ivan smacked his foot gently as Alfred rolled over and shoved his face into the mattress. “I made coffee, though you nearly spilled it all,” Ivan offered and trailed his fingers over his Achilles and rested finally on the tanned swell of his calf.

Alfred finally turned to look up at Ivan, creases from the sheets pressed into his skin and weakly made a grabbing motion. “Bring it to me,” he mumbled.

“Bossy,” Ivan said, but grabbed the coffee anyway and perched next to Alfred, handing one mug over when he finally sat up.

“What time is it?” Alfred asked after taking a long sip of the strong coffee. A splash of cream and two sugars. Alfred squinted at the sunlight and Ivan passed him his glasses from the night stand.

“6:20.”

“No,” Alfred bemoaned, “I coulda slept another thirty minutes.”

“Not if you want to eat breakfast,” Ivan said and glanced at the smartwatch on his wrist as a text message came up. “Go take a shower and I’ll make eggs.”

“And bacon?” Alfred asked into the mug as he took another sip.

“If you get down there in twenty minutes, yes. Otherwise I will eat it all.”

Alfred scrunched up his nose at the thought and Ivan smiled. “Meany.”

“Your wit is legendary,” Ivan said as he stood, taking Alfred’s mug after he quickly downed the rest of the coffee and wiped at his mouth.

“Meany face,” Alfred said and rose up to peck Ivan’s cheek before rolling off the bed and bounding off to the bathroom with his usual untamable energy. Ivan made his way downstairs with the two mugs and listened to the water hum through the pipes of their home.

He put the dishes into the sink and tapped at his smart watch as he opened the fridge. “Orion, here,” he murmured quietly and pulled out four eggs.

“We need you back at the Watch Tower,” a smooth woman’s voice came out from the tinny speakers. “Cinder and American Shield are away and there are some reports that I need you to look at.”

“Understood, Helvera. I’ll be there in an hour,” Ivan said as he pulled out spinach, goat cheese, thyme, and the bacon he had promised Alfred.

Helvara shut off the link and Ivan turned his attention to breakfast, checking to make sure the coffee pot had stayed plugged in and that Alfred would have another cup of coffee for his way out the door. Cracking the eggs into a bowl, he whisked them vigorously with the back of a fork until the runny whites had incorporated flawlessly with golden yolks and then threaded the stalk of thyme between his fingers, letting the small leaves fall down into the eggs below.

Turning a pan onto medium, he let a plat of butter sail around the metal bottom as he thought over his duties. Hopefully the reports coming in were nothing, and he wold be home tonight. Otherwise he wasn’t sure what he was going to tell Alfred. As an original member of the Protectors Guild, he was well versed in the role he had to play and the sacrifices that came with it. Sometimes, to protect those he loved, he had to lie to them.

Alfred usually took his cover stories pretty well.

The butter was bubbling at this pint and Ivan tossed in the spinach, seasoning it and letting it wilt. He pushed it to a plate and then put in another small plat of butter until the pan was glossy from the fat and poured half the eggs in. They hissed from the heat and fell quiet as he stirred figure eights into the curdling eggs. It felt like he had to lie more and more to Alfred these days- especially since they had moved in together. Odd disappearances and strange cuts and bruises could only be explained away for so long and Ivan dreaded the day he would have to tell him about who he really was. Because Orion was no hero.

Well, maybe to everyone except the man upstairs rushing to get ready.

And wasn’t that the strange thing? That he had fallen to his lowest, lost the trust of the Guild and the people of the city- the country even- and he had found Alfred in the midst of the rubble of his former life crumbling. Ivan grabbed the goat cheese, tossing small chunks of the soft spread into the center of the eggy pan. He added half the spinach he had left on the plate and added the bacon to a second pan, putting the heat on medium high.

As the bacon sizzled and hung thick in the air with tempting fatty smokiness, Ivan took the eggs off the heat and gently tapped the handle against his wrist, letting the pale eggs curl down on top of itself and slowly roll into a perfectly almond shaped omelette. He slid it onto the plate and then flipped the bacon.

They had met at a bar, like so many do. Ivan poured in the rest of the eggs as he mused. Now dubbed A-day, the city had been in the midst of cleaning and rebuilding after their brief encounter with armageddon. The Guild didn’t completely trust him to be in full control of himself and the guilt he had felt had led him to the temporary comfort of alcohol.

Ivan had been sitting at the bar, unable to shoulder the mantle of Orion and in need of brief respite. He had been tricked, had been played by someone he had thought was close. Had had his mind fucked with and manipulated by another and had acted on emotions rather than reason. He had even nearly beaten American Shield to death with a pipe ripped from a building. If Helvana hadn’t figured out in time that he was being manipulated by another, he was sure he would have had to have been killed to be stopped. The episodes from A-day had mostly stopped, but until he could prove he was fully under his own control, the Guild wanted him to stay away, even though they placed no blame on the near end of the world on him.

Ivan found it very easy to put the blame on himself. It was deserved.

So sitting in the bar, listening to patrons grouse over how it was all Orion’s fault and they should have let him die seemed pretty fitting.

He remembered Alfred sitting in the corner, talking to a shorter blond man and frowning at the louder patrons towards the center, finally piping up when one of them had mentioned the city should go after the Guild for all the damages. “Well what the fuck were you guys doing when the world was ending? I bet nothing, right? They were out there risking everything for this city!” The shorter man had tried to pull Alfred back, but Ivan had watched him glare and then stand up. ”They saved all our lives, even Orion. You heard what Shield said, he was under mind control.” Ivan had ducked his head at that, but Alfred pointed his fingers at the men in the center and added, “So when you fucking risk your lives for the city, you can complain all you want.”

Ivan added the goat cheese and spinach to the second omelette, remembering how afterwards, Ivan had gotten up just in time for him to stop one of the patrons from chucking their empty glass at Alfred’s face, but it was Alfred who had lunged over the bar and punched the man in the face. It had quickly become a brawl, with all of them being shoved out of the bar. The shorter blond had gotten a bloody nose and was grumbling angrily as he had hailed a taxi, and Alfred had checked over Ivan, looking at a split lip gained from stopping a chair from colliding into Alfred and the other man.

“Thanks for that,” Alfred had said when he deemed that Ivan was fine. “I just can’t stand the shit they say.”

“Orion did cause a lot of this,” Ivan had mumbled, gesturing to the still crumbled and cracked sidewalks. It had been some of the lightest damage in the city.

“Yeah, and Cinder took down a whole building when they were taking down those drones. Hey, my man American Shield said Orion couldn’t help it and he had helped them all out as soon as he was no longer under Zelto’s effects. Which can I say is the worst villain name I’ve ever heard. Sound’s like a discount seltzer brand.” Alfred had flashed a brilliant smile and Ivan had felt something bright bubble in his chest for the first time in a very long time.

“It is a very bad name,” he had agreed.

“Anyway, If Shield says he’s good, he’s good in my book. Orion’s done a lot’a good ‘round here. Alfred, by the way,” he had said while extending his hand.

“Ivan,” he had replied, shaking firmly. “You seem very defensive for Orion.”

“Someone ought to.” He had stood back and pointed at his own lip. “Make sure you clean that up, don’t want to get it infected, right? Wouldn’t want it to scar your pretty face.”

“Pretty?”

“Yep,” Alfred had smiled, and then stood back, following after the shorter blond man into the taxi. “I’ll be here next Friday same time. Bye!”

And that had been that.

“You are the fucking best” Alfred said while taking a seat at the kitchen table, pulling close his tablet and skimming over the news apps. He threaded a cornflower blue silk tie around his neck.

“So you say,” Ivan said and plated the bacon, bringing over the plate of food to him. Alfred leaned up, pressing a kiss to the corner of Ivan lips and dug in quickly.

“I do say, and I’m always right,” Alfred said with a sing song voice.

“Sometimes right,” Ivan countered, tapping the pan to form his own omelette.

“Sure,” Alfred said and then frowned down at his fork. “Is this spinach?”

“Yes.” Ivan came to the table, bringing the carafe of coffee. “You need to eat more vegetables. I know what the doctor told you.”

“Blood work came back fine,” Alfred mumbled and ate the spinach anyway, but not without a face that Ivan thought was both adorable and frustrating.

“Yes, well, I would like you to be around for some time,” Ivan said.

Alfred sighed and put his hand out, tapping the top of Ivan’s. “Okay, okay.” He then grinned and pointed to the wall in the living room. “Besides I’ve got to complete my collection! I’ve got everyone’s limited edition figures signed except American Shield’s and Orion’s”

Ivan glanced at the plastic figure of Helvera, her arms outstretched in flight and propped up by a clear plastic arm. Her signature stood proudly on the base. Cider stood next to her, their trench coast billowing out behind them, and then next to them stood Lucky Arrow and Blue Beacon, both newer members of the guild, flanking on the outer edges. The center was held by the two unsigned persons.  “Maybe you’ll meet American Shield this year,” Ivan said.

“Yeah, maybe. He’s pretty hard to meet though. Always got his fans swarming him when he does touch down. Or the media chases him for interviews.”

“You say this as though you are not a fan as well.”

“Hey,” Alfred said and pointed his fork at him, a glob of goat cheese falling off, “I respect him. There’s a difference.” He took a long sip of coffee and finished off the omelette, standing up and dropping it into the sink. “‘Sides, Orion’s the hardest to find. He rarely shows up in public unless it’s something really bad. But the forums are saying he might be in public again soon.”

“Why is that?” Ivan asked and took a bite of his bacon.

“Word is Dark Cyer is out and about again,” Alfred said as he rinsed the plate, missing the way Ivan’s shoulders tensed. “Last time he challenged Orion it ended up pretty bad.” There was a pause and Alfred sighed. “I saw Dark Cyer’s girlfriend dying on TV. It was pretty awful.”

“He put her in danger himself,” Ivan said. He gripped the coffee cup and focused on not shattering it.

“Yeah. Well, they usually do. Anyway,” Alfred stopped by his side and pat his head, threading his fingers through his hair gently. Ivan closed his eyes when Alfred’s nails gently scraped against his scalp. “I’m going to be late tonight. Chinese?”

“I think I may have to go away to a short conference. I’m not sure if I’ll be home tonight.”

“Oh, sure. Alright. Maybe I’ll meet up with Arthur or Kiku for late night dinner then. I know Kiku wants to see that new movie. You know the one with the robots?”

“I’m sure it’ll be great, but please take the car, don’t walk home tonight,” Ivan said. Alfred laughed and some of the tension leached out of his shoulders. Alfred leaned down, kissing him fully on the lips and Ivan felt his fingers flex involuntarily, reaching out to grab him and hold him close. Alfred chuckled, hot breath ghosting over his cheek as he pulled away.

“Worry wart.”

“Always,” Ivan said and watched Alfred walk away from the table, grabbing his wallet and jacket, before taking one last sip of his coffee, draining it in one gulp.

“I’ll text you when I get to work and when I get home, how’s that?” Alfred asked, threading one arm through a bright blue windbreaker.

“Thank you. I’ll let you know if I’ll be home or when I get to a hotel.”

“Thanks, babe. See you later,” And then Alfred was out the door with a wink and the sound of the door closing loudly.

Ivan sat in silence for a moment, thinking over what Alfred had said. Dark Cyer hadn’t been around for nearly five years. He had sworn vengeance for Abigail’s death, blaming for her slow and public ending on him. Ivan had done what he could to help, but Dark Cyer had lost his mind and wouldn’t let him go near her ‘body’ when she hadn’t even died yet. She had been a social worker and twenty seven years old. Ivan still had nightmares about her.

Ivan locked the door and armed the security system before trudging upstairs and going into the guest room. He moved the tall fern in the corner, glancing over his shoulder once before he removed a canvas painting on the wall, revealing a biometric scanner. Holding his hand up and then stepping forward for facial recognition, the panel opened to reveal a hidden closet. Ivan stared at the indigo and tyrian purple uniform.

Time for work, then.

---()()()---()()()---

The Watch Tower stood in gleaming steel high above the city. Ivan used the complex sewer system of the city to fly to an area that wouldn’t correlate him to  where he lived with Alfred, and then flew up to the high perch of the tower.

He landed in the bay, adjusting the bow and arrows on his shoulder before walking in further into the tower. Helvara stood against the console, looking down at the city and swept at her long brown. Her eyes were hidden by a mask. She smiled at him and gestured to the screen. “See for yourself.”

Ivan frowned and stared at the large curved screen, scanning over the text quickly. “Red Jester has been sighted in the warehouse district? I thought he was in jail?” Ivan asked. He felt his phone buzz and checked his smart watch, seeing Alfred had texted to say he got to work fine. Ivan looked back up at the screen. “When did that happen?”

“About six weeks ago,” Helvera muttered with a scowl. She tapped the screen and Red Jester’s face appeared, skeletal and disfigured from an acid accident years ago. News reports of missing chemicals appeared next to him and Ivan barely bit back an annoyed groan. “He got out by the usual way– aiding to the arrests of plenty of other crooks.”

“He should be arrested anyway. He is a menace to the city and the people.”

“What can I say? He’s got good lawyers.” Helvera shook her head. “I know American Shield normally handles him, but they’re a few states over looking into reports of blue lightning at night. Ever heard of anything like that?” she asked.

Ivan shook his head. “No,” he stopped and then questioned, “Have you heard of anything about Dark Cyer?”

With a frown, Helvera tapped the screen, quickly inputting the request. “No,” she said as she looked at the data. “Not that I can see, why?”

“Internet,” Ivan muttered gruffly. His accent was thicker as Orion, but it also came out more in agitation.

“Oh, well, don’t worry Orion. We’ll know if he shows his face again.”

Ivan nodded, making sure his cowl was snug, and took off to the skies in search for the Red Jester.

Ivan hadn’t really fought against him before. He’d aided American Shield a few years back, but he had mostly gone after the assortment of goons the villain employed while Shield punched his lights out and stopped him from poisoning the water supply. Ivan landed amongst broken apart cars near the back of the empty warehouses and began to quietly creep around.

Shadows grew long and fell into the deep purple of evening by the time Ivan found a warehouse with an odd table in the center. He drifted forward, allowing his powers to carry him to the center and stared down at the scuffed medical looking table. “Helvera?” he asked, touching the smartwatch to open the link with the Watch Tower.

“What’s up Purple Boy?” she teased.

Ivan ignored that. “I’m going to send you something, look at the screen.” Ivan held the watch high above and took the picture of the table below. He remained silent and heard her strangled hiss moments later.

“Christ,” she said. “Jester had a little fun.” Ivan stared down at the bloody restraints and the black tacky ace inside a heart which was finger painted onto the metal. He glanced around the room and moved closer to the door on the far side of the building. “I’m going to call American Shield back, I have a bad feeling about this.”

Ivan landed back on the cold concrete ground, and grabbed the door handle. Locked. He shoved into it with his shoulder, using his strength to bow the metal door in. He stared at a body, sallow orange and purple and long dead as hissing suddenly filled the air and Ivan covered his mouth and nose, flying back and out of danger.

“Orion?” Helvera called.

“Gas,” Ivan coughed and wrrinkled his nose. “Smells like–”

The warehouse exploded. Chunks of brick and rebar rained down and Ivan crashed through a wall from the force. The protective padding of his suit probably saved him from broken ribs, but he lay dazed and in pain, blinking into the evening sunlight. Ash danced and fluttered through the sky until he realized it was remnants of photographs. With a grunt, he rolled over and shakily got to his knees.

“Orion? Orion answer me!” Helvera was yelling over the watch. “Damn it Or–“

“I am okay,” Ivan answered and looked over the bow that had been slung over his back. It looked fine save for a few new scratches. He cleared his throat and ignored the painful ache from breathing in smoke. “It was a trap. There was a body.” Ivan bent down to pick up one of the fragments falling to the ground. Sirens wailed faintly in the distance.

“A body?”

“He was dead for at least two days.” Ivan brushed soot away from the glossy front. The back of a man’s head was visible. Ivan glanced towards the sound of the sirens. “I hope you let them know it was not my fault.”

“Of course I did.” Helvera’s sigh crackled over the link. “Did you recognize the person?”

“No,” Ivan said, grabbing another burned photo. “But he looked familiar. I don’t know why.”

“Maybe a minor celebrity or politician.”

“Maybe,” Ivan agreed, taking some more fragments. They were all of a person. People. Out of focus and grainy. Someone taking them from a great distance without them knowing.

“He was trailing after someone,” Ivan said.

“Jester?”

“He had surveillance photos. Most of them are too bad to tell what they are. Or who they are of.”

“Bring some back. I can see if we can image them.”

Ivan took as many pieces as he could, putting them into a compartment inside his quiver. Red and blue lights pealed away the shadows settling heavy and the sky was ablaze in hot pink light. Blue storm clouds lung low on the horizon. Ivan shot up into the air as the first police car stopped.

As he flew to the Watch Tower, he called Alfred. “I think I’m going to be at that conference,” he greeted.

“Seriously?” Alfred said and there was a dramatic sigh. “Guess I’ll just have to call up my best friend and have delicious take out and play amazing video games.”

“I feel like you are not going to miss me,” Ivan teased, landing in the bay of the Watch Tower.

“Babe! Untrue!” Alfred said. There was a low laugh that made Ivan’s chest feel tight. “I love you. Can’t wait for you to get back home, okay?”

“Okay.” Ivan agreed. “I love you, too,” he murmured.

“Hey, I have a meeting I have to get to. Call you later tonight okay?”

“Be safe driving home,” Ivan said and looked out over the city. Rain clouds were drifting low and it started to drizzle.

Alfred laughed again. “Cross my heart, bye Sweetheart.”

“Good Bye.” Ivan let Alfred hang up first and watched the rain a moment longer before walking into the control room of the tower. Helvera took the photos and Ivan went to clean up, splashing water on his face and wiping away soot from his uniform. An hour and a half later, he ate a light dinner of leftover pizza Cinder had left from last night and watched Helvera bring up the damaged photos on her screen.

The city twinkled in the distance, darker than usual from the rain. Ivan glanced at curved screen before him. “Were you unable to alter them?” he queried.

Helvera glanced at him. “Of course I did. This is for comparison.” She began to type away at the console, and the picture fragments were blown up, the program she had been using slowly altering the colors and bringing forward the subjects hidden. “It’s mostly the same person from what I can tell.” She gestured towards the screen as the back of a person’s head came into view, slightly distorted by heat. “They’re in pretty bad shape, but this one is the most complete.”

Ivan watched the image slowly unveil itself and felt his blood go cold.

No.

“I tried running the face against the database but I think the picture is too bad of a quality to get a positive match.”

It couldn’t be.

The image stopped changing and Ivan stared into familiar blue eyes. “Only half their face can be seen here,” Helvera continued. “I’m not sure why they’re focusing on this person. Any thoughts?”

Alfred.

“Alfred Jones,” Ivan said so calmly he frightened himself. “My boyfriend.”

Her head snapped to stare at him. “What?”

Identity be damned. Red Jester seemed to have found him anyway. “He’s my boyfriend. I–” he swallowed, the word caught in his throat “He...I don’t know how–”

“Go,” she said as Ivan darted away, moving before he realized what he was doing, “go find him. I’ll call everyone in.”

Ivan was out of the tower without another word. He sped through the skies, wind whipping by so hard it felt like it was burning his skin. God what had he done? How had Jester found him? How long had he been watching Alfred?  Those questions didn’t matter now. He had to make sure Alfred was okay.

He tried calling Alfred, but it went to voicemail. He tried his work. The house. He even called Kiku who hadn’t heard from him yet. With a curse Ivan landed in their backyard, entering the house in a frenzied panic.

“Alfred!” he cried out to the silent house. Ivan searched the pristine home.No one was here. There was no car. He wasn’t home yet. Ivan tried calling his cell again, and stopped in the foyer.

In the center of the carpet by the door was Alfred’s shattered glasses and a small blank piece of card stock, no larger than an post card. A red C stood in the center, enclosed inside a heart. Ivan didn’t need American Shield’s super senses to know it was drawn with blood. He turned the card over with trembling fingers.

So you may you know my suffering  

Ivan’s breath grew ragged as he stared at the note in his hands. He knew who this was. Dark Cyer had finally come after him for revenge. Alfred. Ivan put Alfred’s glasses down on the entryway table. The glass was shattered beyond use and the frames were twisted. Blood coated the left lens.

“I’ll find you,” he promised to the empty house.

And then he stepped out the front door, message clenched furiously in his fist.

“Orion,” American Shield’s deep voice crackled over the watches link. “They found a car.”

Ivan took a deep breath. Anger coursed through his veins like jagged ice floes. “Tell me where,” he demanded and soared into the skies.

<<Prologue>>  <<Part Two>>   <<Part Three>>

[pearcar93-blog]

A STUDY ON FRITTATAS

Brunch for a group. Inexpensive dinner. Cook once, reheat through the week breakfast. Put a slice in a tortilla or between toast and you’re off. Frittatas are just the best. Especially for some who always have leftover bits and hate waste.

*raises hand*

Too much zucchini? Trying to set yourself up to start your day with protein? Frittata! I saved a few videos in my story highlights if a visual helps. I believe a frittata is one of those meals that can go so many directions, that once you understand how they work, you can make them out of all sorts of things.

I am going to add some bullets here, because honestly, it’s just easier to shoot off opinions that way than try to craft sentences that go together. Once you have the basics down, you can make up your own creation. I would love you to chime in with your favorite combos or your tips below! If you’re one for a crust, I’m a big fan of this recipe.

Things I know about frittatas:

I like the vegetables inside to be cooked. The key to not having a water logged frittata, is cooking some of the water off of the vegetables first. You can roast or saute, and then cool. This includes greens, though they literally need about 30 seconds. Any meats need to be cooked in advance before adding too.

I’m going with a ratio of 2 eggs per person for one serving. You can do a 4 egg frittata for 2 in an 8” pan, 4-6 people in a 10” pan and upwards. The thicker you make the frittata, you’ll need to increase the baking time. Just keep giving the middle a little tap and pull it when it’s no longer liquidy. I keep a lower heat to try to keep the bottom from burning.

I strongly suggest using a nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron pan (I LOVE this pan - crisps, frittatas, casseroles, the best)…or the whole thing can be baked in a well greased, oven-proof dish. I suppose that would be called an “egg bake” but whatever, does it matter?

Cheese. I tend towards sheep or goats cheeses, and those both work well in frittatas. They are lower in fat, so can dry out, but with a short, low oven time, they do fine. You just don’t want a super dry cheese, in my opinion. Parmesan is ok, but it is so dry, you will not get any pockets of creaminess, it will mostly just taste like delicious salt, which is not a terrible thing by any means. If you choose a meltier cheese like cheddar, I def like most mixed in and a little on top.

Prep ahead

Let’s say you’re hosting the following morning or trying to get a leg up on Christmas morning (or just a Monday :)

Whisk all your eggs, dairy, seasoning in one bowl you can keep covered in the fridge. Have all your add-ins cooked and ready (zucchini sauteed, sausage cooked, tomatoes roasted, whatever). Pull them all out while preheating the oven, and then proceed with the recipe from there. Gently warm the pan with the fillings in it, add the egg mixture, pop it in the oven.

Favorites

sauteed mushroom, greens and goat cheese roasted tomatoes, greens, pesto, goat cheese roasted zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, little bit of minced red onion, feta just steamed asparagus, tons of herbs, goat cheese crowd pleaser: potatoes, bacon, greens, white cheddar

GREEN VEGETABLE FRITTATA

Serves 4

I am listing the vegetables I used here, inspired by what I had in the fridge. You really can put anything in a frittata…ok, most thing. Be sure that the vegetables have a similar cooking time, if you’re sauteing everything together. For example, potatoes take longer to become tender than zucchini, so while you can mix these two, you need to start the potatoes off first, and then add the zucchini after the potatoes have been going for 10 minutes, so you don’t burn the zucchini or turn it to moosh. Things like peppers and tomatoes cook the same, assorted greens are typically quick, etc.

Ingredients

1 small leek 1 small zucchini 1 small bundle of broccolini

extra virgin olive oil sea salt

8 eggs 1/3 cup heavy cream (canned coconut milk works as a non-dairy option) dollop of pesto or sour cream (or non-dairy alternative), optional fresh ground pepper 3-4 ounces soft goat cheese fresh green herbs, for garnish

Instructions

Clean the leek and trim the zucchini. Chop the vegetables small. Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium nonstick or seasoned cast iron pan. Add the vegetables, pinch of salt and saute until tender, and cooked down, about 6 minutes. Turn off the heat and let them cool down. Move them around occasionally to release any steam pockets.

Preheat the oven to 325’.

Whisk the eggs and cream (or non-dairy alternative) well. Lots of air in there, keep whisking. Whisk in a dollop of pesto or sour cream, if using, and a few grinds of fresh black pepper. If you like spice, a dash of red pepper flakes. Crumble half your cheese in here.

With the heat on low, distribute the vegetables around in your nonstick pan and pour the egg mixture on top. Let it sit for a couple minutes just to set the bottom. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top, and put the pan on the middle rack of the oven. Bake for 16-20 minutes until the center juuuuust stops jiggling. Better to pull it out on the side of underdone.

Let it cool down, garnish with tons of fresh herbs. Serve with toasty bread and fresh tomatoes if you have them.

Source: https://www.sproutedkitchen.com/home/2018/9/25/a-study-on-frittatas

[healthnotion]

Your New Grab ‘n Go Breakfast: Overnight Oats

In your efforts to streamline your mornings, one of the first and best places to optimize efficiency is with breakfast. You want something nutritious and filling (and tasty!) — a combination which can be hard to cook and consume in a speedy manner. In the past we’ve covered make-ahead breakfast burritos and sandwiches, which can be frozen and heated up in a microwave. Today, we’re going to add to those options with overnight oats. These are, remarkably, even faster in the mornings. Just grab a jar out of the fridge, pop the top, and chow. You can even take it on the go if needed for a quick and easy breakfast at your desk.

The gist of overnight oats is rather simple: combine oats with a liquid and let it sit and soften overnight for a no-cook version of oatmeal. It can be enjoyed cold, especially in the warmer months, or can be heated up for a minute or two in the microwave if that’s your preference. The fact that it’s not needed though is a major boon.

The liquid is generally some sort of milk — the kind you use being up to you. On top of that, any variety of sweeteners, additions, and toppings can be added; from fruits to nuts to spices, the options really are limitless. You can be as simple or as gourmet as you like, and you can make some truly delicious creations.

The oats are good for about 5 days in the fridge before the texture gets a little funky, which means you can make a handful ahead of time, even prepping an entire work/school week’s worth on Sunday evening if you’re feeling particularly ambitious. It’s also something that could be whipped up in the morning for an easy lunch; the oats only really need 2-3 hours to be ready for eating.

One final note before jumping into the how-to: these are best prepped in a mason jar. Any tupperware would work, of course, but mason jars are preferable for a few reasons: 1) the super tight seal prevents any liquid leakage (not all tupperware does that), 2) it’s glass, which is just better than plastic anyway, and is especially good for re-usability and microwaving, 3) mason jars are an excellent shape for eating out of with a spoon; hold the jar in one hand, the spoon in the other, and eat darn near anywhere, and finally, 4) most mason jars have cup/ounce markings on the sides, making for super easy measuring without getting a bunch of stuff out of the cupboards.

While a lot of folks make these in 8 oz jars, I’ve found pint jars to be a better size for piling on toppings and for stirring without spilling over the edge. (They usually have 12 oz marked out on the sides and are 16 oz filled to the top.)

Base Ingredients

Oats. These should be standard rolled oats (like the big Quaker tub). Steel-cut may not be softened enough overnight, and instant will be too much so.

Milk. Theoretically you could just use water, but that’s not very tasty. Any number of milks will do depending on your preferences, be it regular (including lactose-free versions), almond, coconut, oat, etc.

Chia seeds. While not necessary, many recipes for overnight oats include them. There are a couple reasons for that: 1) while not very calorie-heavy, they’re little nutrition-packed bombs containing fiber, protein, and good fats, and 2) when immersed in liquid they add a nice pudding-like texture to your concoction.

Sweetener. Again, not strictly necessary, but adds some extra interest and flavor. 1-2 Tbsp per serving is common in the form of honey, syrup, brown sugar, etc.

Greek yogurt. Adds some tangy protein and extra flavor too; if you use flavored Greek yogurt, you can use that as your sweetener.  

Base Recipe

Most overnight oats recipes utilize a 1:1 ratio of oats to liquid. All recipes can of course be scaled up and made in a big batch to then be portioned out into individual jars. Below is the base recipe I like to use, though even the variations on this are many, as we’ll see below:

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup milk

1 Tbsp chia seeds

1 Tbsp sweetener of choice

1/4 cup Greek yogurt (if flavored, you probably don’t need sweetener)

1 Tbsp protein powder (if you want to really amp up the protein factor)

Simply mix all the ingredients in the jar until there aren’t any big clumps and put it in the fridge. You can either add some things to this base mix, or just top your oats the next morning. See below for more on that . . .

Additional Fillings/Toppings

You can literally put almost anything you can dream up into your overnight oats. Things that are already sort of mushy or where texture isn’t a factor — fruit, nut butters, spices (cinnamon, nutmeg), etc. — can be put into the mixture the night before (but don’t have to be). Things that you want to retain the texture and shape of — nuts, chocolate chips, bacon crumbles, etc. — can be added and stirred in right before eating.

Below is but a sampling of ideas for fillings/toppings, followed by some specific recipes that have been proven to be delicious so that you don’t have to experiment too much before finding something you love:

Any fresh fruit

Any dried fruit (including raisins, dates, etc.)

Any nut (often crushed/chopped, but not always)

Any nut butter (or Nutella!)

Bacon (cooked and crumbled)

Jam/jelly

Coconut

Chocolate chips (or cinnamon chips, butterscotch chips, etc.)

Spices (cinnamon, ground ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, etc.)

Cream cheese

Cocoa powder   

Pumpkin puree

Vanilla extract

Anything else!

A Few Recipes

As a general note, you’ll notice that amounts and base ingredients vary a lot from recipe to recipe. Everyone has different preferences, so just make the recipe as is first, then experiment from there.

Brownie Batter

Recipe from Fit Foodie Finds

Makes 2 servings

1 cup rolled oats

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 tablespoon chia seeds

pinch of salt

1/4 cup greek yogurt

1 cup almond milk, unsweetened

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

First, mix dry ingredients in a bowl (through salt). Then add wet ingredients and mix again.

Place in the refrigerator, covered, for at least 2 hours or overnight. Serve cold.

Top with greek yogurt and fresh strawberries, if desired.

Maple Nut Bacon

Recipe from Just Eat Life

1/2 cup oats

1/2 cup low-fat milk

1/4 cup bacon, cooked and crumbled

3 tablespoons walnuts, chopped

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Pinch of ground cinnamon

Combine oats, milk, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, and cinnamon in a glass jar and leave in the fridge overnight.

In the morning, combine bacon crumbles, walnuts, and the rest of the maple syrup and top the cinnamon oats.

Peanut Butter & Jelly

Recipe from Ready Set Eat

Makes 2 servings

3/4 cup oats

3/4 cup almond milk

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1 tablespoon chia seeds

1/2 cup chopped fresh strawberries

1 tablespoon strawberry jam

Stir together oats, almond milk, peanut butter, and chia seeds in a bowl. In another small bowl, stir together jam and strawberries.

Fill 2 jars with half of the oat mixture. Top each evenly with strawberry mixture and remaining oat mixture. Cover and refrigerate. Top each with a small spoonful of peanut butter and strawberry jam just before serving, if desired.

Banana Nutella

Recipe from The Hungry Hutch

3/4 cup oats

3/4 cup almond milk

1 tablespoon flaxseed (or chia seed)

1/2 banana (sliced)

1 large spoonful Nutella

Stir to combine, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Top with more banana and Nutella if you’re feeling crazy.

Protein-Packed Peach Cobbler

Recipe from The Seasoned Mom

1/2 cup old-fashioned oats

1/4 cup plain Greek-style yogurt

1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk or other milk of choice

1 tablespoon sweetener (honey, stevia, sugar, or other sweetener of your choice)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

2 tablespoons vanilla protein powder

1 small peach diced

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

2 tablespoons crushed graham crackers

1 tablespoon chopped toasted pecans

In a small bowl, stir together first 7 ingredients (oats through protein powder).

In a separate bowl, toss together peaches, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Place half of the oat mixture in a small bowl or a large mason jar. Add half of the peach mixture. Add the remaining oat mixture and cover.

Refrigerate overnight (or for a few hours) so that the oats soften and absorb the liquid.

Just before serving, top with remaining peach mixture, graham cracker crumbs, and pecans.

The post Your New Grab ‘n Go Breakfast: Overnight Oats appeared first on The Art of Manliness.

Your New Grab ‘n Go Breakfast: Overnight Oats published first on https://mensproblem.tumblr.com

[anachef]

Disneyland Food Review: All the Cheese at Disney California Adventure’s Award Wieners For “Get Your Ears On!”

It’s time to Get Your Ears On at Award Wieners in Disney California Adventure Park — and this time, it’s gonna get cheesy! As it should when we’re celebrating Mickey and Minnie Mouse, right? Award Wieners has two options: A Cheesy Celebration and More Cheese Please!

Award Wieners Get Your Ears On Goodies!

Yeah, we’re definitely into this! A Cheesy Celebration is a cheddar sausage link smothered in macaroni and cheese, salsa verde, crumbled cheese puffs, and cheese curds. Cheese on cheese on cheese on cheese!

A Cheesy Celebration

Check out all.that.cheese! This is great for cheese lovers, and the spicy salsa verde and (hidden Mickey!) jalapenos help to cut through the creaminess. But even with that contrast, it’s a heavy dog. You’ll want to consider sharing this one –especially if you’re pairing it with More Cheese Please!

A Cheesy Celebration

Of course, if you’re still saying More Cheese Please, maybe you can handle it!

More Cheese Please is Award Wieners awesome filmstrip fries topped with the same stuff that’s on the dog. So that’s three forms of cheese instead of four. But more fries, so still heavy. (We’re SO glad they’re finally putting the plastic cheese on the filmstrip fries! This has been a food hack that Heather and I have been doing forever!)

More Cheese Please

Again the salsa and the jalapenos cut through the cheese, and the crumbled puffs add some fun crunch. But grab a friend (and some napkins!) to even out the heft of these a little!

More Cheese Please

Woo! Another winner… er, Wiener! Get Your Ears On is proving to be a delicious celebration!

See ALL Our Reviews in One Place! Head over to our Get Your Ears On Disneyland Food Reviews page for all the goodness!

We previewed ALL the amazing Get Your Ears On treats at Disneyland! Click here to check them out!

Pick your (yummy) cheesy poison: dog, fries, or a little of both? Let us hear it in comments! 

Related posts:

Disneyland Food Review: Maple Bacon Churro in Disney California Adventure for Get Your Ears On!

Disneyland Review: Fiesta Cone at Disney California Adventure’s Cozey Cone Motel for Get Your Ears On

Review: Steamboat Willie Black and White Cookie at Trolley Treats in Disney California Adventure

from the disney food blog http://bit.ly/2FOpLQk via http://bit.ly/LNvO3e

[thecoroutfitters]

Written by R. Ann Parris on The Prepper Journal.

Are vices really and truly a must-have item? No. History is full of periods and survival situations, particularly during the exploration of the colder climates, when even people accustomed to “modern” conveniences went months and years without goodies.

//

Our vices aren’t necessary to our survival in many cases, but when you cut us off from them, hard times and adjustments just get harder.

The ramifications on families and partnerships in stressful but not life-threatening situations are out there to be viewed in rates of dissolution’s, divorce, separation, domestic violence, addiction-abuse, and suits and counter-suits. If you think a crisis will smooth those away, I have a bridge to sell ya.

We can add one more stress to those difficult times, or we can find alternatives (some of them long-term sustainable) and plan supplies and caches to make things as easy as possible.

Top Vices

Some of the top vices are going to be sugar and caffeine, with tobacco and alcohol right there with them. I can’t do anything to prepare a family to lose internet and TV besides make sure we have puzzles and games, but I can slow our transition away from some of our other vices.

Bad times are already stressful, and we’re already looking at making some hard adjustments. Things that we consume daily before we even feel human are worth stocking – in bulk and out of proportion to the rest of my supplies, really.

If I like coffee, I might also consider stockpiling tea. I can get gallons to the cup per dollar for tea, without taking up much if any more space than pre-ground or instant coffee.

If I’m in a warm enough climate, I might even go so far as to plan greenhouse or protected space for a yaupon holly for caffeine and tea camellia species. Herbal teas will lack the zing, but many tea herbs have the benefit of being perennials and hardy.

There are a wide range of trees that can be tapped for syrup, all of which (and honey) will boil down into candy or can be dried to crystals. Sugar beets and stevia are just two options for producing sweet syrups and flavor at home even outside sugarcane territory.

Everyday Cravings = Higher Priorities

While we tend to look at sugar, caffeine, alcohol and tobacco as the common vices and see them high on bartering lists, they’re not the only things we’re doing without. Pure sugar is a fantastic preparedness item with both vice and food-preservation value, but we don’t all have a sweet tooth.

Our vices are our feel-goods.

They’re our comfort foods – be they salty or sweet or savory – activities, and even exercise or hobbies. All of those may be crimped in an emergency, whether it’s widespread or personal.

Know your actions, and those of family.

Just because my priority leads me to crunchy-salty goodies and chicken broth, and I am willing to scoff off sweets, without sweets my lover is pretty miserable. He is also annoying, gets antsy, and breaks down and goes to the store.

When determining priorities (and budgets), snag and stash the store receipts for a couple of weeks or months. Snag them ahead of holidays and in-family events as well. Do it in all four seasons.

They will rock-solid determine what you’re getting, and even when.

Just going by the shopping list and menu plan isn’t enough. I recently realized that a full third of our Walmart-supermarket spending is not on the lists. They’re not even impulse. They’re actually the things my lover ends up going to the store for because they aren’t on my radar as much.

Those are the kinds of everyday priority to watch for.

My vices, my parents, the kids’ – they’re taken into account with small, compact puzzles to bring out, stashed books, a portable hard drive of movies, little games, baking mixes, inexpensive instant pudding, Hershey’s syrup, and the ability to add crunch to our lives on a regular basis through familiar cold cereals, chips, crackers and dry cookies.

It didn’t actually add all that much to the preparedness budgets to do it, and it allows “treats” and normalcy in unrest, even if I never harvest anything else.

Anticipated Cravings

We can look at history and the way modern North Americans and Western Europeans eat to anticipate some of the food cravings we’re likely to see and can account for with our storage.

Meat – For most of us, meat is going to become a treat, just as it has been for most of human history. It will go back to being more of a flavoring, especially if a crisis drags on.

Anticipating that, I stock it.

I have no lost love for t-rats and MREs. I dislike canned meats pretty much across the board. But they’re in my pantries and caches, because the men in my life will dive after them, and I might wind up desperate enough to eat my share.

Things like pouches of bacon bits, canned hash, the less-expensive freeze-dried meats like crumbled sausage, and the TVP-soy products we can buy for long storage can at least give me and my guys some flavor and the hint of our usual meats.

Things like Slim Jim’s and small beef sticks can be used as a snack, presented as a whole to bite into, or sliced into cold pasta and wheat salads.

Non-Spoon Foods – Maybe somebody eats oatmeal and farina, soup for lunch, and Hamburger Helper or shepherd’s pie pretty much daily. Most of us are probably accustomed to picking up, cutting or stabbing something somewhere through there.

For parts of the growing season, we can adapt how we prepare fresh foods to create a fork-and-knife meal. Some fruit trees will also allow us to present a crunchy for weeks or sometimes a couple of months after harvest.

One advantage to MRE entrees like the feta chicken is that it’s not as gag-worthy, but also, it’s a nice, whole breast portion. You can flake it with a spoon, but you can also stick it on a bun or a bed of couscous.

Planning for pancakes and omelets, to turn Bisquick into pseudo-tortillas, stashing dry cookies in canning jars with oxygen absorbers, and stashing bigger pastas and spaghetti for fork meals will help alleviate the boredom with spoon meals.

Dairy/Cheese – Without dairy animals and specific skills, a long-term crisis will affect us hard and fast in the cheese category. We love fresh cheese. I’m lucky enough that we also really like Bega, and I buy it on sale cycles.

Local stores sell tins of mild cheddar chip sauce at a fairly reasonable price, and it can readily top potatoes or be used as a cracker spread or pretzel dip, even if chips are painful to store due to the bulk they require. Velveeta and Cheez Whiz live on shelves as-is, too. Cheese soup can season rice, potatoes and macaroni.

Powdered parm from the pasta aisle can at least impart some flavors and toast up on top of zucchini, or be used in pasta salad.

There are shelf-stable cheese sticks and slices from companies like Northwoods and those awful combo packets put out by Jack Links and others, but they’re almost as expensive as freeze-dried cheese (and soooo much worse tasting).

I also keep most of the cheese packets that come in our processed foods. I dislike them, but as mentioned in the article about canning jars, being able to whip them up to top or season something makes them well worth a few oxygen absorbers.

Portion Control

The canning jar article also talked about portion control, and how I accomplish it on a regular basis. That goes for both the annual “events” and the weekly-monthly allowances we put back.

If we’re accustomed to free-grazing coffee and tea (I am), we may very well start our path to ratcheting back by only pulling out enough for a day at a time instead of buying things in a giant tub. Maybe we only buy instant packets for a week or a month, and keep it somewhere *else* in the house or kitchen to keep us and our families from snagging out of habit. As we adjust to our new levels, we might bring it out more often.

Cool drinks are another place where we might portion things out.

Instead of mixing up a pitcher and trusting all the kids (and adults) to pour the same amounts, which is bound to lead to arguments (adults, too), maybe we stash a rotating couple of short juice bottles with the wider mouths. We mix up the pitcher, everybody gets their (labeled) bottles. Once that’s gone, that’s it. No discussion of “I only poured half a glass earlier” or “everybody’s pouring extra and I only got half a cup” or “I’ve only had one cup of coffee, but the whole tub is empty, and now I want my second cup with my cookie”.

And I’m serious – anticipate that stress and aggravation or just personalities will pull that crap out of adults as well.

Once things settle into a new normal, no big deal. But I can drink an entire pot of coffee without realizing it until it’s empty, and I’ve seen people mow through a bag of chips or pack of cookies one or two at a time without realizing just how many they’re having.

Portioning things out can also help us truly plan for daily, weekly and monthly uses.

Not everything needs to be strictly regimented, but some things are really easy, and would be easy to lean on early, until they’re all gone. That big stack of canned meats looks like a lot, but can drop fast.

A case of canning jars (or three) and a couple of boxes or kitty litter buckets labelled 1-12, cold or warm, lets us really and truly portion things out.

Pudding fits 3, 5 or 6-8 in a jar, and might be a monthly or quarterly allowance. We might stick our Lorna Doone’s and Cheez-Its in baggies before we put them in a Mylar bag, and take out only this week’s or month’s to jazz up a plate or have as a snack. Instead of just calling it “good” with a few dollar-store boxes of Slim Jims and pepperoni, a test run and then busting in and separating will help them last, in an appropriate amount.

Vices in a Crisis

Not all disasters are equal. Some are very personal, and some are widespread – localized, regional, national, international. Some are short term, while some leave a question mark and some we can anticipate being truly devastating and taking years to recover from.

Or stored supplies and our resupply-production plans should reflect those varying possibilities.

Regardless of the crisis, it’s likely to be stressful. Change itself is stressful. Combining the two is already a recipe for hard times.

Adding the dynamic of spouses and family, any partners, and the potential of neighbors and coworkers to still be contending with creates additional stresses and variables.

Regularly our vices are not all that good for us. It’s still not a great idea to go cold turkey on all of them immediately or shortly after a life-altering job loss, spouse/partner death that affects funds, natural disaster, long-term outage or rolling brown-outs, or big-time disaster.

At no other time in our lives are we likely to be so grateful for whatever our vice is – a couple little cookies and a cup of tea, strawberry syrup for topping pancakes, campfire tin-can cakes topped with applesauce, something nice and salty and crunchy, popcorn with Molly McButter, a cracker-cheese-meat snack or meal after a week of beans and various grains, a new puzzle or game, the ability to put our feet up and watch a show, or delighting Grandpa and the kids with some little Lego vehicle kits to then race across the dining room table.

With a little forethought and planning, we can readily and affordably still have and give our loved ones those feel-goods, to enjoy with a candlelit game of Tsuro or clustered around a screen watching old cartoons. They’ll offer breaks from reality, just as they do now, and help destress our lives a little.

The post Prepper Must-Haves: Vices appeared first on The Prepper Journal.

from The Prepper Journal Don't forget to visit the store and pick up some gear at The COR Outfitters. How prepared are you for emergencies? #SurvivalFirestarter #SurvivalBugOutBackpack #PrepperSurvivalPack #SHTFGear #SHTFBag

[wineanddinosaur]

It’s All in the Prep: Steak, Seasonings, and Chilean Wine

Steak and red wine is a classic pairing, but with so many variables on both fronts — diverse cuts, spices, grape varieties and regions — how do you navigate what goes with what? Don’t stress: From robust Cabernet Sauvignon to demure Pinot Noir, there’s a just-right Chilean red for any cut of steak, no matter the seasoning. Of course, some rules do apply. Need some guidance? Read on to learn how to prep a wide range of steaks — and find the wines that elevate them.

Texas-style brisket

Texas-style brisket is a crowd-pleaser in any U.S. state, but it’s definitely a major undertaking. Done right, though, you’ll end up with smoky, peppery brisket with a fall-apart texture. Trim the fat on this hefty cut to a quarter-inch and rub the entire thing with a simple mixture of kosher salt and fresh-cracked black pepper. Then comes the hard part: You’ll need to smoke it on a grill for up to 12 hours, rotating every three hours and checking the grill every 45 minutes to ensure the heat remains constant.

Because brisket has a high fat content, it benefits from a red wine with plenty of balancing tannins. Pair it with a Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile’s Maipo Valley, where chilly mornings and hot days make for a Mediterranean climate that’s especially kind to this grape. With powerhouse black fruit flavors, a hit of spice, and a pleasantly bright acidity, these complex wines are an ample match for brisket.

Santa Maria-style tri-tip

Have some tri-tip laying around? Don’t overlook this lean but flavorful cut. We dig it prepared in central California’s Santa Maria style, a.k.a. rubbed with a zingy mix of granulated garlic, black and white pepper, spicy cayenne, dried onion, and celery seed before cooking over moderate-heat charcoal. (For best results, season the meat the night before to help it soak up as much flavor as possible.) Once the meat is on the grill, you won’t have to wait long before eating — a two-pound roast requires just 25 minutes of total cooking time, tops.

Pinot Noir is an excellent accompaniment. Go for bottles from Chile’s Limari, Leyda, San Antonio, Malleco, or Aconcagua Valleys, which benefit from cooling breezes from the Pacific Ocean. This, plus rocky soils rich in limestone and clay, helps to produce bottlings that are both elegant and fresh, with lower alcohol levels and more robust flavor.

Gorgonzola-topped filet mignon

Few cuts of meat take as well to a wide range of toppings and sauces than trusty filet mignon. We’re especially partial to dry-aged versions of this lean cut, topped with pungent crumbles of gorgonzola cheese and silky, sweet caramelized onions. Have your onions cooked off before putting the meat on the grill — you’ll want to cook them slowly. Beyond that, prepping these steaks is a cinch. Just pat dry with paper towels and let air-dry uncovered in a cold fridge. From there, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss them in a sizzling hot cast iron pan set on a stove top or grill. Three minutes on each side is all you need to get a dark, beautiful crust. Just before taking the steak off the heat, throw a fat chunk of butter in the pan with a sprig of rosemary and baste the meat until it’s a tender medium rare. After the steak’s rested for 10 minutes, top it with a hearty pile of gorgonzola and onions.

This filet necessitates a precise Cabernet Sauvignon from the Rapel Valley, which is named for the river that delivers fresh, mineral-laden water from the slopes of the Andes Mountains. The result is often restrained bottlings that convey notes of black fruit and minerality, perfect for lean-but-luxurious cuts like filet mignon.

Gochujang-marinated skirt steak

The fiery Korean hot pepper paste gochujang makes for a flavor-packed marinade that’s a perfect match for fat-marbled skirt steak. Simply whisk a few tablespoons of the paste with mild rice wine vinegar and neutral vegetable oil, then slather it all over the skirt steak. Let the whole thing marinate for at least 30 minutes and as long as 12 hours in the fridge; cuts that marinate longer will have a deeper, spicier flavor. When ready, wipe off any excess marinade and gently lay the steak on a hot grill. Keep your eyes on the prize: It’ll only take four to six minutes for a crusty char to develop.

This spicy, medium-rare steak is best matched with Syrah from Chile’s Limari Valley, where the hot and relatively dry climate and summertime morning fogs produce savory wines that can mellow the gochujang’s heat.

Top dollar cheeseburger

Forget fast food. The humble burger has a whole new personality when composed of thin patties of top-quality Wagyu ground beef, sizzled to crispy perfection on a charcoal grill. Salt and pepper are all you when forming the actual patty, but don’t sleep on the toppings. Refreshing butter lettuce, razor-thin slivers of red onion, crispy strips of thick-cut bacon, sweet medallions of butter pickles, and melty slices of American cheese are musts. But most important? A rich tangy “secret sauce” of mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard powder, paprika, cayenne, and a generous hit of truffle oil — liberally spread on a brioche bun, of course.

A structured Pinot Noir from Chile’s cloudy Casablanca region is just the thing to go with it. The cool Pacific breezes and mild winters here make for fresh, berry-rich wines that can cut through the cheeseburger’s rich cheese and char from the grill.

Two of these dishes call for a Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon, find your perfect Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon with our taste profile quiz here!

This article is sponsored by Wines of Chile.

The article It’s All in the Prep: Steak, Seasonings, and Chilean Wine appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/its-all-in-the-prep-steak-seasonings-and-chilean-wine/

[isaiahrippinus]

It’s All in the Prep: Steak, Seasonings, and Chilean Wine

Steak and red wine is a classic pairing, but with so many variables on both fronts — diverse cuts, spices, grape varieties and regions — how do you navigate what goes with what? Don’t stress: From robust Cabernet Sauvignon to demure Pinot Noir, there’s a just-right Chilean red for any cut of steak, no matter the seasoning. Of course, some rules do apply. Need some guidance? Read on to learn how to prep a wide range of steaks — and find the wines that elevate them.

Texas-style brisket

Texas-style brisket is a crowd-pleaser in any U.S. state, but it’s definitely a major undertaking. Done right, though, you’ll end up with smoky, peppery brisket with a fall-apart texture. Trim the fat on this hefty cut to a quarter-inch and rub the entire thing with a simple mixture of kosher salt and fresh-cracked black pepper. Then comes the hard part: You’ll need to smoke it on a grill for up to 12 hours, rotating every three hours and checking the grill every 45 minutes to ensure the heat remains constant.

Because brisket has a high fat content, it benefits from a red wine with plenty of balancing tannins. Pair it with a Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile’s Maipo Valley, where chilly mornings and hot days make for a Mediterranean climate that’s especially kind to this grape. With powerhouse black fruit flavors, a hit of spice, and a pleasantly bright acidity, these complex wines are an ample match for brisket.

Santa Maria-style tri-tip

Have some tri-tip laying around? Don’t overlook this lean but flavorful cut. We dig it prepared in central California’s Santa Maria style, a.k.a. rubbed with a zingy mix of granulated garlic, black and white pepper, spicy cayenne, dried onion, and celery seed before cooking over moderate-heat charcoal. (For best results, season the meat the night before to help it soak up as much flavor as possible.) Once the meat is on the grill, you won’t have to wait long before eating — a two-pound roast requires just 25 minutes of total cooking time, tops.

Pinot Noir is an excellent accompaniment. Go for bottles from Chile’s Limari, Leyda, San Antonio, Malleco, or Aconcagua Valleys, which benefit from cooling breezes from the Pacific Ocean. This, plus rocky soils rich in limestone and clay, helps to produce bottlings that are both elegant and fresh, with lower alcohol levels and more robust flavor.

Gorgonzola-topped filet mignon

Few cuts of meat take as well to a wide range of toppings and sauces than trusty filet mignon. We’re especially partial to dry-aged versions of this lean cut, topped with pungent crumbles of gorgonzola cheese and silky, sweet caramelized onions. Have your onions cooked off before putting the meat on the grill — you’ll want to cook them slowly. Beyond that, prepping these steaks is a cinch. Just pat dry with paper towels and let air-dry uncovered in a cold fridge. From there, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss them in a sizzling hot cast iron pan set on a stove top or grill. Three minutes on each side is all you need to get a dark, beautiful crust. Just before taking the steak off the heat, throw a fat chunk of butter in the pan with a sprig of rosemary and baste the meat until it’s a tender medium rare. After the steak’s rested for 10 minutes, top it with a hearty pile of gorgonzola and onions.

This filet necessitates a precise Cabernet Sauvignon from the Rapel Valley, which is named for the river that delivers fresh, mineral-laden water from the slopes of the Andes Mountains. The result is often restrained bottlings that convey notes of black fruit and minerality, perfect for lean-but-luxurious cuts like filet mignon.

Gochujang-marinated skirt steak

The fiery Korean hot pepper paste gochujang makes for a flavor-packed marinade that’s a perfect match for fat-marbled skirt steak. Simply whisk a few tablespoons of the paste with mild rice wine vinegar and neutral vegetable oil, then slather it all over the skirt steak. Let the whole thing marinate for at least 30 minutes and as long as 12 hours in the fridge; cuts that marinate longer will have a deeper, spicier flavor. When ready, wipe off any excess marinade and gently lay the steak on a hot grill. Keep your eyes on the prize: It’ll only take four to six minutes for a crusty char to develop.

This spicy, medium-rare steak is best matched with Syrah from Chile’s Limari Valley, where the hot and relatively dry climate and summertime morning fogs produce savory wines that can mellow the gochujang’s heat.

Top dollar cheeseburger

Forget fast food. The humble burger has a whole new personality when composed of thin patties of top-quality Wagyu ground beef, sizzled to crispy perfection on a charcoal grill. Salt and pepper are all you when forming the actual patty, but don’t sleep on the toppings. Refreshing butter lettuce, razor-thin slivers of red onion, crispy strips of thick-cut bacon, sweet medallions of butter pickles, and melty slices of American cheese are musts. But most important? A rich tangy “secret sauce” of mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard powder, paprika, cayenne, and a generous hit of truffle oil — liberally spread on a brioche bun, of course.

A structured Pinot Noir from Chile’s cloudy Casablanca region is just the thing to go with it. The cool Pacific breezes and mild winters here make for fresh, berry-rich wines that can cut through the cheeseburger’s rich cheese and char from the grill.

Two of these dishes call for a Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon, find your perfect Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon with our taste profile quiz here!

This article is sponsored by Wines of Chile.

The article It’s All in the Prep: Steak, Seasonings, and Chilean Wine appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/its-all-in-the-prep-steak-seasonings-and-chilean-wine/ source https://vinology1.tumblr.com/post/626428993078493184

[johnboothus]

Its All in the Prep: Steak Seasonings and Chilean Wine

Steak and red wine is a classic pairing, but with so many variables on both fronts — diverse cuts, spices, grape varieties and regions — how do you navigate what goes with what? Don’t stress: From robust Cabernet Sauvignon to demure Pinot Noir, there’s a just-right Chilean red for any cut of steak, no matter the seasoning. Of course, some rules do apply. Need some guidance? Read on to learn how to prep a wide range of steaks — and find the wines that elevate them.

Texas-style brisket

Texas-style brisket is a crowd-pleaser in any U.S. state, but it’s definitely a major undertaking. Done right, though, you’ll end up with smoky, peppery brisket with a fall-apart texture. Trim the fat on this hefty cut to a quarter-inch and rub the entire thing with a simple mixture of kosher salt and fresh-cracked black pepper. Then comes the hard part: You’ll need to smoke it on a grill for up to 12 hours, rotating every three hours and checking the grill every 45 minutes to ensure the heat remains constant.

Because brisket has a high fat content, it benefits from a red wine with plenty of balancing tannins. Pair it with a Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile’s Maipo Valley, where chilly mornings and hot days make for a Mediterranean climate that’s especially kind to this grape. With powerhouse black fruit flavors, a hit of spice, and a pleasantly bright acidity, these complex wines are an ample match for brisket.

Santa Maria-style tri-tip

Have some tri-tip laying around? Don’t overlook this lean but flavorful cut. We dig it prepared in central California’s Santa Maria style, a.k.a. rubbed with a zingy mix of granulated garlic, black and white pepper, spicy cayenne, dried onion, and celery seed before cooking over moderate-heat charcoal. (For best results, season the meat the night before to help it soak up as much flavor as possible.) Once the meat is on the grill, you won’t have to wait long before eating — a two-pound roast requires just 25 minutes of total cooking time, tops.

Pinot Noir is an excellent accompaniment. Go for bottles from Chile’s Limari, Leyda, San Antonio, Malleco, or Aconcagua Valleys, which benefit from cooling breezes from the Pacific Ocean. This, plus rocky soils rich in limestone and clay, helps to produce bottlings that are both elegant and fresh, with lower alcohol levels and more robust flavor.

Gorgonzola-topped filet mignon

Few cuts of meat take as well to a wide range of toppings and sauces than trusty filet mignon. We’re especially partial to dry-aged versions of this lean cut, topped with pungent crumbles of gorgonzola cheese and silky, sweet caramelized onions. Have your onions cooked off before putting the meat on the grill — you’ll want to cook them slowly. Beyond that, prepping these steaks is a cinch. Just pat dry with paper towels and let air-dry uncovered in a cold fridge. From there, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss them in a sizzling hot cast iron pan set on a stove top or grill. Three minutes on each side is all you need to get a dark, beautiful crust. Just before taking the steak off the heat, throw a fat chunk of butter in the pan with a sprig of rosemary and baste the meat until it’s a tender medium rare. After the steak’s rested for 10 minutes, top it with a hearty pile of gorgonzola and onions.

This filet necessitates a precise Cabernet Sauvignon from the Rapel Valley, which is named for the river that delivers fresh, mineral-laden water from the slopes of the Andes Mountains. The result is often restrained bottlings that convey notes of black fruit and minerality, perfect for lean-but-luxurious cuts like filet mignon.

Gochujang-marinated skirt steak

The fiery Korean hot pepper paste gochujang makes for a flavor-packed marinade that’s a perfect match for fat-marbled skirt steak. Simply whisk a few tablespoons of the paste with mild rice wine vinegar and neutral vegetable oil, then slather it all over the skirt steak. Let the whole thing marinate for at least 30 minutes and as long as 12 hours in the fridge; cuts that marinate longer will have a deeper, spicier flavor. When ready, wipe off any excess marinade and gently lay the steak on a hot grill. Keep your eyes on the prize: It’ll only take four to six minutes for a crusty char to develop.

This spicy, medium-rare steak is best matched with Syrah from Chile’s Limari Valley, where the hot and relatively dry climate and summertime morning fogs produce savory wines that can mellow the gochujang’s heat.

Top dollar cheeseburger

Forget fast food. The humble burger has a whole new personality when composed of thin patties of top-quality Wagyu ground beef, sizzled to crispy perfection on a charcoal grill. Salt and pepper are all you when forming the actual patty, but don’t sleep on the toppings. Refreshing butter lettuce, razor-thin slivers of red onion, crispy strips of thick-cut bacon, sweet medallions of butter pickles, and melty slices of American cheese are musts. But most important? A rich tangy “secret sauce” of mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard powder, paprika, cayenne, and a generous hit of truffle oil — liberally spread on a brioche bun, of course.

A structured Pinot Noir from Chile’s cloudy Casablanca region is just the thing to go with it. The cool Pacific breezes and mild winters here make for fresh, berry-rich wines that can cut through the cheeseburger’s rich cheese and char from the grill.

Two of these dishes call for a Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon, find your perfect Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon with our taste profile quiz here!

This article is sponsored by Wines of Chile.

The article It’s All in the Prep: Steak, Seasonings, and Chilean Wine appeared first on VinePair.

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