Make me over...

In other news, I'm getting restless.

I might either try to redesign the look of the site, or move it to my professional site so I only have to update one of them.

And I need a Web cam. Sigh.

I'll keep you posted.

Cooking Challenge 2010

I'm getting some help from some friends of mine to accomplish my goal of cooking more new things this year. A bunch of us have gotten together and decided that we'll do an e-mail chain with a new recipe each week. We'll post the recipe one day and the rest of us have a week to prepare the dish. Then, we weigh in with our thoughts on the dish, suggestions for preparation, etc.

Well, lucky readers, I'm going to share that wonderful bounty with you.

I can't guarantee the dishes will necessarily be healthy. I can't guarantee you'll like them. But I can guarantee they will provide different dishes than you've currently been preparing at your home. For my contributions, I'm going to turn to the bounty of cookbooks I received for Christmas for inspiration.

I invite you to cook along with us if the recipe strikes your fancy, and weigh in with your thoughts!

First recipe comes Wednesday!!

In 2010 I will:

Happy New Year, everyone!

A couple of resolutions you guys can help keep me honest about:

1. Try at least one new recipe a month. I tried this before last year with the Healthy Recipe (and slacked off, quite honestly) and I liked doing it. Plus, I got like, no lie -- a million (okay, like 7) cookbooks for Christmas this year and I'm dying to try some new recipes from them. They won't all be healthy, but they will be tasty, I'm sure. Just for Christmas alone, I made baked macaroni and cheese and candied yams with pecans that I pretty much love. They have like a whole stick of butter in each of them, but they are SOOO good. So I can't commit to only cooking healthfully, but I can commit to cooking food that seems interesting and looks like it will be tasty to me. And I'll share the successful recipes with you, dear readers.
2. Take pictures to document life and stretch my creative muscles. I took some pics for my photography class last year, and honestly, I can say that I miss doing that since my class ended. I am going to give myself some assignments and post some of the results on this blog (and/or my professional blog) to keep me honest and give me a creative outlet. I may also just include more snapshots that I take on a general basis.
3. Find an organization to volunteer with and do so, regularly. Can either be one organization with a long term commitment, or various organizations with one time commitments.
   
4. Eat out at new restaurants. Use this time to try different cuisines and experiment. Setta B. said she would help me with this when I come visit her in NYC. YAY! I don't want to put a time restriction on this one because it is a recession and I'm saving up for grad school, so I can't afford to just eat out all the time.
   
5. Exercise! I'd like to restart running so that I can run in the summer. And I should also look into taking a class at a gym to combat my boredom and general dislike of routine workout equipment.
6. Sit up straight. This is a recurring problem for me. I've started today thinking of myself as a descendant of a tree. So whenever I catch myself slouching, I imagine that I'm a tree to remind me to sit up straight. You don't see slouched trees too often. Not a perfect system, but it's at least getting me thinking about it. So if you see me in real life, and you notice me slouching, "tell me to be the tree" -- or just tell me to stop slouching.
   

Here's to a better me in 2010!

Goals of 2009: A Report Card

Still reeling from the holidays and slightly sluggish at work, it's time to check in on the progress I made on the goals I set about this time last year. Let's see how I did:

1. Forgive my father and deal with the issues I've developed with relationships in general because of my relationship with him so that I can stop hurting. F. Honestly, I haven't tried to work on this so I guess it's a failure.
2. Begin yoga/Pilates/stretching 2-3 times a week to alleviate back pain and increase flexibility, strength. D. Spotty success. I was better about doing it once or so a week while I was training, or if I had back pain, but nothing on a consistent basis. I need to do this to alleviate my back pain.
3. Do 15 -30 minutes of cardio at least once a week; work up to two (or three) times a week by July. B-. Spotty success. I did two 5 K road races this year, so while I was training, I was on top of my cardio. But afterwards, I dropped off significantly. And when the weather turned cold, I gave up entirely. I got on a kick a few times and hit the gym for a week or two straight, but then my interest wained again. I plan to restart running before the new year (consistency is the key to avoiding knee injuries from running) because I'd like to be able to run in the summer. And I'm going to look into taking a class at a gym to combat my boredom with routine workout equipment.
4. Sit up straight. C. Eh. Better at it, but my sister still threatened that I would have a slouch back when I got older if I didn't sit up straight while I was at her house over Christmas.
   
5. Set up a monthly budget cutting out unnecessary expenses and stick to it. A-. I didn't set up a budget, but I did cut out a lot of spending. I still eat lunch out too much, but I tried to keep it at a minimum.
   
6. Set up and begin a payment plan to pay off all credit cards and other debt by July 2010. A+. DONE! I've dipped into it a few times (like for my trip to Spain) but I immediately reimbursed the funds or set up a payment plan to do so.
   
7. Set up another savings account so that I can have three: emergency (3-6 months salary); a life happens fund (for unexpected expenses) and a vacation fund. A. DONE! Instead of it being a vacation fund, I turned my third savings account into my graduate school account and set up weekly deductions from my bank account. It has grown well, but as a result of the additional drain on my paycheck, my other two savings account are pretty much empty. Trying to rectify that.
8. Increase savings contributions to E-trade to finance trip to Spain in fall. Devote tax returns to building up savings reserves and contributing to vacation fund. A+. I did end up using the E-trade (and my checking) to finance Spain, but I've made arrangements to re-up that money. Should be done by the middle of January. Unsure what to do with my tax returns for this year -- grad school or general savings? But definitely it's going in the bank.
9. Do something every month to pamper myself. Get a mani/pedi. Get my hair done. Get a massage. Take a long bath. Buy myself something nice. B-. Failing more at this. I've done some things and it was much easier in the summer to do these types of things. But some of the things I did were: mani/pedis, hair appointments (it's pretty healthy now!), the trip to Spain, visits to my sister in NYC, bubble baths.
   
10. Try out a new healthy recipe at least once a month. Build up my repetoire to include more than fried foods and fatty sauces. C-. Alas, a failure. I started off strong, but fell off at some point. I think I'm up to 9 now and there are only a few more days left in the year. I think my other problem was that I tried some recipies, but they weren't necessarily healthy. Seeking to rectify that in 2010.
    
11. Eat out at a new restaurant at least once a month. Use this time to try different cuisines and experiment. D+. Marginal success. I've tried some new things, mostly at the begining of the year, but in the second half, I reverted back to my old standbys (P.F. Chang's anyone?). I'd like to change this in 2010 as well.
    
12. Read. Whatever I want. Magazines. Books. Whatever. Just read. A-. SUCCESS! I got subscriptions to two magazines -- Women's Health and In Style, and I read a boatload of books, including: The Namesake, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Drown, The Time Traveler's Wife, Olive Kitteridge,
13. Go see "Raisin in the Sun" at Trinity Jan. 30 - March 30. Go see a show on Broadway with Setta B. A+. DONE and DONE. Setta B. and I went to go see Phantom of the Opera and it was fantastic. We plan to see another play in the next two months as well.
14. Keep clips up and network; send update mailings to potential employees two times a year (March and September, maybe?) C+. Marginal fail. I didn't do updated mailings, but I networked well at the NABJ conference in August. I plan on sending out updated packets this spring/summer before I begin graduate school so people can be on the lookout for me.
15. Write something that makes me proud, whether it wins any award or not. A. SUCCESS. I can't point to a particular story, but I think my court coverage has been pretty solid this year. I definitely see areas where I'd like to improve, but overall, I think I've done pretty well for myself as a reporter this year. I may not win an award (I didn't have any sexy stories) but I'm proud of my work.
16. Find an organization to volunteer with and do so, regularly. Can either be one organization with a long term commitment, or various organizations with one time commitments F-. EPIC FAIL. I tried volunteering with a sorority, but got the brush off. Then I lost motivation to find another place. I want to change that in 2010.
    
17. Go on dates with the BF that (sometimes) require more than just driving to Boston and cooking food. C-. Not sure how I document this. We've done some stuff -- Maxwell concert, comedy show -- that were cool. And we go to the movies a lot. But nothing necessarily off of the beaten path. I'll try to work on that more.
18. Take pictures to document life and stretch my creative muscles. B+. Marginal success, again. I took a photography class this fall at the Rhode Island School of Design which I loved. I was able to take portrait, landscape, indepth and self-portrait shots and I think I did pretty well. I also took a ton of pictures in Spain. I'm a little dismayed at my lack of a camera, but it's not a priority for me at this juncture. I have graduate school to pay for. I just need to start using my point and shoot more often.
19. Start doing crosswords to exercise my mind. B+. DONE. Not on a regular basis, but I bought a NY Times Crossword puzzle book and I do it periodically. The BF and I also do crosswords together on Yahoo every so often.
20. Be present at all times. Start each day as if it were on purpose, not an accident. A-. I feel like I've done a pretty decent job with this. I've tried to be more cheerful and appreciative of the things I'm doing, but I'll admit I still like to zone out once in a while. Again, something I plan to work on this year.
    

So, based on my crude math, I got a C+. Funny, I don't feel like I had a C+ year. Maybe the things that I thought were important to me at the beginning of the year, turned out to not be so important. Guess that goes to show you what the critics always knew: grades don't mean much.

Scattered Shots before the Holiday

Tonight, I'm heading to visit my sister for the Holy Day. A couple of observations about this Christmasy season:

• I've got to learn to travel better. It always stresses me out. Mostly because I make umpteen unnecessary lists and check them 3 million times before packing. And then I always pack a little extra. I gotta learn to be like my photographer friend, who travelled in China for two weeks with a single carryon. I'm going to be gone for 4 days and I feel like I brought 1/2 my closet with me.
  
• Personal inventory post coming again soon. I have to check and see how I've been doing with those resolutions I made oh, about this time last year.
  
• I'm going to be a student again in -- count 'em -- 8 months. Whew. I'm so not ready.
• I am however, ready to be surrounded by my friends again -- Veronica, Soraya, Darby, Jarrod, and everyone else in the DMV -- I'm looking at you.
  
• Though I'll have friends a plenty, I have a feeling this won't be like undergrad. At all.
  
• I'm glad I got my Christmas shopping early. But Oyin, tell me why did I order from you on December 3 and JUST GOT MY ORDER TODAY? Everyone else I ordered from was able to give me my purchases within days. Failure to you, Oyin. Failure. (Amendment: Setta B pointed out that everything Oyin makes is handmade, so it results in a little bit of a delay in shipping. So I guess I'll give them a pass.)
  
• I think I'm going to spend the first quarter of 2010 selling things that I'm purging from my house. Where do you guys sell? Ebay? Etsy? I could use some money for school and I need to simplify my life so it's easier to pack come fall.
  
• I think that's it. Merry Christmas!
  

Healthy Recipe #9 - Pasta with Chicken and Mushrooms, Risotto style

I'm just a little behind on the whole healthy recipes and blogging thing... but we're going to ignore that for now and go on to what I came here for: a Healthy Recipe!

I found this on the New York Times Web site while I was looking for something to eat tonight. Mark Bittman never steers me wrong...

Pasta with Chicken and Mushrooms, Risotto style (Adapted)

2 tablespoons olive oil, more as needed

1 shallot or 1/3 of a small onion, chopped

2 tablespoon minced garlic

1/2 cups crimini, shiitake or button mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed and sliced

1 cup pasta like gemelli or penne, or long pasta broken into bits

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 can chicken broth

1 boneless chicken breast, diced

Chopped fresh parsley, optional

Freshly grated Parmesan, optional.

1. Put 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. When hot, add shallot, garlic and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms soften and begin to brown on edges, about 10 minutes. Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is glossy and coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes. Add a little salt and pepper, then 1/2 cup of the broth. Stir and let liquid bubble away.

2. Ladle stock into skillet 1/2 cup or so at a time, stirring after each addition and every minute or so. When liquid is just about evaporated, add more. Mixture should be neither soupy nor dry. Keep heat at medium and stir frequently.

3. Begin tasting pasta 10 minutes after you add it; you want it to be tender but with a tiny bit of crunch. When pasta is about 3 to 4 minutes away from being done, add chicken and stir to combine. Continue to cook until chicken is done — it will be white on inside when cut — and pasta is how you like it. Taste, adjust seasoning, garnish with parsley and Parmesan if using, and serve.

Yield: 2 servings.

NOTE:

I used some Ms. Dash because I didn't have any parsley. As I'm eating it (and it is absolutely great) I wish I had some fresh parsley. I could also imagine it with some chopped scallions (the green parts) atop it. But overall, very tasty and VERY satisfying on a cold December night.

Healthy Recipe #8 Cheese Tortellini with ham and peas

Alright, full disclosure: I'm not sure how healthy this recipe really is. But it seemed interesting and something other than chicken alfredo, so I tried it anyway. There are plenty of versions of this recipe that use proscuitto and make the alfredo sauce from scratch. I didn't have prosciutto and it was late, so I used jar sauce, which helped make this a pretty quick meal. Flog me later.

Cheese Tortellini with ham and peas
1 package of refrigerated cheese tortellini (I used a 12oz package from Trader Joe's)
1 ham steak
1/4 can of peas
1/2 jar of alfredo sauce
salt and pepper
1/4 teaspoon rosemary, crushed

Bring about 6 cups of water to a rapid boil. Meanwhile, trim the skin from the ham, chop the ham steak into 1/4 inch slices, and then cut the slices in thirds. Add the tortellini to the boiling water and cook according to package directions, stirring occasionally. Once al dente, drain water from tortellini, putting pasta back into the pot. Add chopped ham, peas, alfredo and rosemary. Stir. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot. Makes about 3 servings.

Healthy Recipe #7 Stir Fried Shrimp with Snow Peas and Red Peppers

This seems like a simple, yet tasty recipe. I may try it this weekend -- I've got some shell on shrimp I can clean and cook up using this method.

From the NY Times:

3/4 pound snow peas or sugar snap peas, strings and stems removed

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice wine or dry sherry

2 teaspoons sesame oil

1 teaspoon sugar

1 pound medium shrimp, shelled and deveined

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock

2 tablespoons vegetable, peanut or canola oil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

3 large garlic cloves, green shoots removed, minced

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares

3 scallions, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths, dark green parts separated

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Fill a bowl with ice water. When the water comes to a boil, salt generously and add the snow peas or sugar snap peas. Boil 30 seconds, and transfer immediately to the ice water. Allow to cool for a few minutes, drain and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together 1 teaspoon of the corn starch, 1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of the rice wine or sherry, 1 teaspoon of the sesame oil, and 1/2 teaspoon of the sugar. Add the shrimp, and stir together to coat.

3. Place the remaining corn starch, soy sauce, rice wine or sherry, sesame oil and sugar in another bowl. Add the stock, and stir together well. Set aside.

4. Heat a large, heavy nonstick skillet or wok over high heat until a drop of water evaporates immediately upon contact. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil, and turn the heat to medium. Add the ginger and garlic, and stir together for about 20 seconds, then add the red pepper and the white and light green parts of the scallions. Stir-fry for two to three minutes, until the pepper begins to soften. Stir to the side of the pan. Add the remaining oil and the shrimp. Cook, stirring, for two minutes, stir in the snow peas or snap peas, and continue to stir-fry for another two or three minutes until the shrimp is pink and cooked through. Give the sauce a stir, and add it to the pan along with the dark green ends of the scallions. Stir everything together with the sauce until the shrimp and vegetables are lightly glazed. Serve hot, with rice.

Yield: Serves four.