Wow, we're already halfway through August and I haven't posted yet. Life has suddenly become busy! Outside of working forty hours and six days a week I have been:
-- watching Sanctuary and Moonlight with a friend
-- watching Buffy from the beginning on my own
-- reading different books, most notably a fabulous book by the hilarious David Sedaris
-- writing, a lot, and searching different literary magazines for submitting
-- swimming, dancing and doing yoga.
Expect some reviews soon!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
Mantra for Murder
One of my guilty pleasures is a good cozy mystery. I love the themed series’ that combine an interest of the reader, romance and a good murder mystery. One of my favorite cozy mystery series’ is one that I discovered with the first book about a year ago, the Mantra for Murder mystery series by Diana Killian. This series takes place inside of a yoga studio.
It begins with Corpse Pose, which brings the main character AJ to the yoga studio where aunt was found murdered. Soon, she finds herself investigating the murder alongside her mother.
In the second book Dial Om for Murder, AJ is pulled into a new investigation when she finds the body of one of her yoga students and high-profile clients.
The third and most recent book, Murder on the Eightfold Path, follows AJ’s investigation of the murder of her mother’s boyfriend, whom she found murdered in her mother’s garden.
The Mantra for Murder series is one of the best cozy mystery series’ that I’ve read. Killian focuses on the mystery, but gives each of the quirky characters storylines and traits that makes them jump off the page and into the readers’ hearts.
So, prepare a cup of tea, pick up the first book and read. Just make sure you have your yoga mat handy for the yoga breaks you bound are to take!
It begins with Corpse Pose, which brings the main character AJ to the yoga studio where aunt was found murdered. Soon, she finds herself investigating the murder alongside her mother.
In the second book Dial Om for Murder, AJ is pulled into a new investigation when she finds the body of one of her yoga students and high-profile clients.
The third and most recent book, Murder on the Eightfold Path, follows AJ’s investigation of the murder of her mother’s boyfriend, whom she found murdered in her mother’s garden.
The Mantra for Murder series is one of the best cozy mystery series’ that I’ve read. Killian focuses on the mystery, but gives each of the quirky characters storylines and traits that makes them jump off the page and into the readers’ hearts.
So, prepare a cup of tea, pick up the first book and read. Just make sure you have your yoga mat handy for the yoga breaks you bound are to take!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Fix You
Song: Fix You, by Coldplay
Dancers: Robert and Allison
Choreographer: Travis Wall
Seen on: So You Think You Can Dance 07/14/2010
This, to me, is what dance is all about:
Dancers: Robert and Allison
Choreographer: Travis Wall
Seen on: So You Think You Can Dance 07/14/2010
This, to me, is what dance is all about:
Monday, July 5, 2010
Crêpes
I've always enjoyed crêpes but it wasn't until I started learning the French language that I decided I wanted to make them. This is my favorite breakfast to prepare. When I have the time it's nice to start the day drinking coffee and listening to French music while making crêpes. I prefer to make them without the use of a crêpe maker. Yes, flipping them by hand can create a few tears from time to time and yes, flipping them by hand means that a few don't turn out, but I think that flipping them by hand is part of the fun of crêpe making.
My sister and her husband are nearing the end of their visit so I decided that I wanted to make them crêpes. This morning I woke up with the sun (all right, all right, a few hours after sunrise), started a CD of French music and prepared crêpes for breakfast.
You can find any number of crêpe recipes online. I chose one from the website Famous French Desserts. This recipe will make about 15 crêpes.
French Crêpes
You will need:
2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups whole milk
4 eggs
2 tbsp. butter (melted)
Pinch of salt
1/2 vanilla stalk or few drops vanilla extract (optional)
Vegetable oil (for pan)
To make the batter:
1. Sift flour and mix with salt in a bowl.
2. Make a well and pour in eggs. Stir well.
3. Slowly pour in milk while stirring. Keep stirring batter until small bubbles form on the surface.
4. Stir in butter.
To make the crêpes:
1. Pour a little vegetable oil on a folded paper towel, and wipe the pan evenly. Keep paper towel at hand while preparing crepes, in case you want to give it another wipe.
2. Pour in 2 - 3 tbsp. of batter and quickly move pan around, so that batter spreads evenly, covering the whole surface with a thin layer.
3. Let cook for about 1 minute. Then, flip with a metal spatula, and cook other side for about 30 seconds.
Fillings for crêpes can include, but are not limited to, fresh fruit, Nutella, powdered sugar and whipped cream.
You can always substitute olive oil for any other kind (unless you need it by the cup fulls) and I always do. If you'd like to use olive oil to cover the pan, go right ahead!
I'm not a fan of using whole milk (or heavy creams) in my cooking; to cut down on the fat content I usually use skim milk. However, my brother-in-law is lactose intolerant so this morning I used rice milk instead of dairy and margarine instead of butter. These substitutions didn't change the crêpe in any way. My nephew has a dairy sensitivity and one thing I've learned is that when cooking for someone with a dairy sensitivity or allergy rice milk is a good substitute, soy milk is not.
Sorry for the poor quality of the photos. It was early and I was wearing my glasses. It's not the best formula for picture-taking!
Preparing the batter.
I think this is some of the greatest stuff in the world! My dad doesn't like Nutella but said he'd like to try peanut butter on crêpes sometime. A lot of people will also put bananas with the Nutella on their crêpes but the bananas in my house weren't ripe enough today.
For a drink, I served a San Pellegrino and orange juice mixture.
I always eat two; one with fresh berries and one with Nutella.
My sister and her husband are nearing the end of their visit so I decided that I wanted to make them crêpes. This morning I woke up with the sun (all right, all right, a few hours after sunrise), started a CD of French music and prepared crêpes for breakfast.
You can find any number of crêpe recipes online. I chose one from the website Famous French Desserts. This recipe will make about 15 crêpes.
You will need:
2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups whole milk
4 eggs
2 tbsp. butter (melted)
Pinch of salt
1/2 vanilla stalk or few drops vanilla extract (optional)
Vegetable oil (for pan)
To make the batter:
1. Sift flour and mix with salt in a bowl.
2. Make a well and pour in eggs. Stir well.
3. Slowly pour in milk while stirring. Keep stirring batter until small bubbles form on the surface.
4. Stir in butter.
To make the crêpes:
1. Pour a little vegetable oil on a folded paper towel, and wipe the pan evenly. Keep paper towel at hand while preparing crepes, in case you want to give it another wipe.
2. Pour in 2 - 3 tbsp. of batter and quickly move pan around, so that batter spreads evenly, covering the whole surface with a thin layer.
3. Let cook for about 1 minute. Then, flip with a metal spatula, and cook other side for about 30 seconds.
Fillings for crêpes can include, but are not limited to, fresh fruit, Nutella, powdered sugar and whipped cream.
You can always substitute olive oil for any other kind (unless you need it by the cup fulls) and I always do. If you'd like to use olive oil to cover the pan, go right ahead!
I'm not a fan of using whole milk (or heavy creams) in my cooking; to cut down on the fat content I usually use skim milk. However, my brother-in-law is lactose intolerant so this morning I used rice milk instead of dairy and margarine instead of butter. These substitutions didn't change the crêpe in any way. My nephew has a dairy sensitivity and one thing I've learned is that when cooking for someone with a dairy sensitivity or allergy rice milk is a good substitute, soy milk is not.
Sorry for the poor quality of the photos. It was early and I was wearing my glasses. It's not the best formula for picture-taking!
Preparing the batter.
I think this is some of the greatest stuff in the world! My dad doesn't like Nutella but said he'd like to try peanut butter on crêpes sometime. A lot of people will also put bananas with the Nutella on their crêpes but the bananas in my house weren't ripe enough today.
For a drink, I served a San Pellegrino and orange juice mixture.
I always eat two; one with fresh berries and one with Nutella.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Chicken Salad With Grapes and Pecans
Here's another goodie from Master Your Metabolism by Jillian Michaels. Chicken Salad with Halved Grapes and Toasted Pecans.
When thinking about making this recipe I was really looking forward to toasting the pecans myself but alas, I sent my mother to the grocery store to buy the ingredients and she came back with roasted pecans. That just means I'll have to make this again so that I can do it the right way!
The picture isn't the greatest for this recipe; I was trying to take it in a hurry. But what you see in it is a mayo-less chicken salad. A mixture of Greek yogurt and spices provides a substitute for mayo that feels much lighter. The grapes provide a nice, sweet taste that reminded me of the apple walnut tuna I used to make when I worked at a café. I served this on bread but it would also be wonderful on a bed of lettuce. If you're looking for a healthy meal remember that the darker the lettuce the better! Iceberg lettuce is just there to look pretty, you'll get the most nutrients from the darkest greens.
This one sandwich was filling but it didn't leave me feeling stuffed and my family loved the Greek yogurt mixture so much that they're using it as a substitute for mayo on other things and as a dip for veggies.
When thinking about making this recipe I was really looking forward to toasting the pecans myself but alas, I sent my mother to the grocery store to buy the ingredients and she came back with roasted pecans. That just means I'll have to make this again so that I can do it the right way!
The picture isn't the greatest for this recipe; I was trying to take it in a hurry. But what you see in it is a mayo-less chicken salad. A mixture of Greek yogurt and spices provides a substitute for mayo that feels much lighter. The grapes provide a nice, sweet taste that reminded me of the apple walnut tuna I used to make when I worked at a café. I served this on bread but it would also be wonderful on a bed of lettuce. If you're looking for a healthy meal remember that the darker the lettuce the better! Iceberg lettuce is just there to look pretty, you'll get the most nutrients from the darkest greens.
This one sandwich was filling but it didn't leave me feeling stuffed and my family loved the Greek yogurt mixture so much that they're using it as a substitute for mayo on other things and as a dip for veggies.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Lebanese Lunch
I'm taking a break from my schedule of Jillian Michaels recipes to share with you the lunch that my parents, sister, brother-in-law and I shared today. It was a filling meal with plenty of veggies, protein and healthy fats.
This meal of veggies, hummus and tabouleh is a traditional Lebanese meal. Veggies used vary with the season. Today we had cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes and red peppers. Hummus was used as a veggie dip (my favorite kind of dip), as well as a dip for the American part of our meal, the pita chips. Lettuce (or, possibly, grape leaves in the Middle East) is used to scoop up the tabouleh and is a wonderful addition to that part of the meal! This is definitely a lunch that I'll be eating more often and taking with me to work and school. The only part of the meal with a high level of fat is the hummus, however since it's made from chickpeas it's a source of good fats and as long as you're not downing an entire tub of hummus in one sitting the fat content shouldn't hurt you.
This meal of veggies, hummus and tabouleh is a traditional Lebanese meal. Veggies used vary with the season. Today we had cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes and red peppers. Hummus was used as a veggie dip (my favorite kind of dip), as well as a dip for the American part of our meal, the pita chips. Lettuce (or, possibly, grape leaves in the Middle East) is used to scoop up the tabouleh and is a wonderful addition to that part of the meal! This is definitely a lunch that I'll be eating more often and taking with me to work and school. The only part of the meal with a high level of fat is the hummus, however since it's made from chickpeas it's a source of good fats and as long as you're not downing an entire tub of hummus in one sitting the fat content shouldn't hurt you.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Tomato, Avocado and Cheddar Burritos
It's been a long time since I've posted! Over a month. But I have been cooking so I have lots to catch up on. Luckily, my sister is in town and is planning to cook so over the next few days I can post the last few kitchen adventures before any new ones come up.
I don't think it's fair of me to post recipes from recipe books online so instead I'll be posting pictures with comments, as well as what book to find it in. You should be able to find all books in your local library--that's where I'm getting them!
The next few recipes will be from a book that I bought, Master Your Metabolism, by Jillian Michaels. And this one was a hit! Tomato, Avocado and Cheddar Burritos. This is an anti-cancer, metabolism boosting, heart healthy and skin healthy recipe. Sounds good in terms of what this recipe can do for you, right? The good news is that this recipe tastes yummy too!
I'm an avocado-lover but I don't think that's a pre-req for liking these burritos. My dad, who isn't as fond of avocado's as I am, still loved them. Combining the avocados with the super food veggie (or is it a fruit?) tomatoes and low-fat cheddar inside of a crispy tortilla creates a pleasant, healthy and filling meal.
And now, for the making-of feature (just a few, I took this quickly so the pictures weren't the best):
I don't think it's fair of me to post recipes from recipe books online so instead I'll be posting pictures with comments, as well as what book to find it in. You should be able to find all books in your local library--that's where I'm getting them!
The next few recipes will be from a book that I bought, Master Your Metabolism, by Jillian Michaels. And this one was a hit! Tomato, Avocado and Cheddar Burritos. This is an anti-cancer, metabolism boosting, heart healthy and skin healthy recipe. Sounds good in terms of what this recipe can do for you, right? The good news is that this recipe tastes yummy too!
I'm an avocado-lover but I don't think that's a pre-req for liking these burritos. My dad, who isn't as fond of avocado's as I am, still loved them. Combining the avocados with the super food veggie (or is it a fruit?) tomatoes and low-fat cheddar inside of a crispy tortilla creates a pleasant, healthy and filling meal.
And now, for the making-of feature (just a few, I took this quickly so the pictures weren't the best):
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