Poach This

This is one of my most favorite breakfasts.  It's not normal that I make breakfast.  I usually wake up craving lunch, because I normally wake up at 11.  But the older I get, the less I sleep.  It's not cool at all.  So you youngsters better enjoy every Z you get. 

My step-mom inspired this dish.  She is another awesome cook in my life.  She makes the best, juiciest Thanksgiving turkey in the world.  And Chicken and Broccoli Casserole.  And Cream Puff Dessert.  She's an awesome cook.  It's therapeutic for her too.  I'm grateful to be surrounded by so many great cooks. 

Every time I'm in Pittsburgh we have poached eggs on toast and bacon.  I had no bacon and was going for a healthy start to my day, so I went with Arugula Salad with lemon vinaigrette and polenta with Parmesan.

Poached Eggs:
Poached eggs aren't hard.  I don't know why people get the impression that you have to have some kitchen gadget to poach an egg.  You don't.  All you need in a deep skillet, filled with water.  Put your skillet with water on the stove, bring it JUST to a boil (don't have a major boil going, the definition of poaching is to cook eggs or fish in hot liquid just below the boiling point) and then swirl your water around with a spoon.  As the water is swirling, break your egg into it.  The swirling will keep the egg from sticking to the bottom of the pan.  Now, cook your egg until your yolk is how you like it.  The best way to know is to stick your finger in it.  Ok, be careful.  Don't stick your finger INTO it, but feel the top of your yolk.  I like mine just slightly runny.  So that the yolk oozes out onto my toast.  So when it feels like it's starting to get hard, but not totally hard, it's done to my liking.  Usually takes about 3 minutes.  Take the egg out with a slotted spoon to drain the water from it and then give it a little pat down with a paper towel to get any excess water off it.  Who wants a wet egg?  The thought makes me ill.   

Polenta:
I didn't have the patience to make my own (though it's not hard, just time consuming), so I bought some, cut it into slices and pan fried it in olive oil with some salt and pepper.  When it's warmed and slightly browned, grate some Parmesan cheese over it.

Get some delicious wheat bread.  Slice it, toast it, butter it GENEROUSLY.  Nothing better than butter puddles in your bread holes.  Come on, I had to make up for my lack of bacon.  And if you know me, you know I'm not a health freak.  Top it with your salt and peppered poached egg.  Add your polenta to your plate.  Plop some arugula onto your plate dressed with lemon vinaigrette and you're set. 

Thanks Sue for the inspiration.  I miss your cooking more than you know!   
 

The Unexpected Seaweed Salad Cleanse

I wish I could take credit for this salad...but I can't. Can't even remember the restaurant name. 

I'm not a cleanse kinda gal.  I hate depriving myself of food.  And if you've ever seen me starved, you know I can become an evil bitch.  I will bite your head off for making any stupid moves.  So steer clear of me when I'm hungry.  But the cleanse I'm about to speak of, was one I was not expecting.  So I dare you to read on...
 
The first time I tried seaweed salad, I didn't like it.  I wasn't a fan of the texture.  It reminded me of eating rubber bands.  Slightly slimy rubber bands.  Just weird.  So when I went to California, I decided to give it another try.  You know what?  I liked it this time.  I told you, keep trying things you think you hate, you might find that you eventually appreciate it for what it's worth.  I used to hate scallops, now I love them.  I used to love shrimp, now I can take or leave them.  Your taste buds change.  Don't be a pussy.  Try new things.

Anyways, back to this seaweed salad.  I normally go for the salad with the ginger dressing, because I really just want to lick all the ginger dressing off the lettuce.  But my dear old friend Cassie insisted that I revisit the seaweed salad, so in non-pussy-like fashion, I did.  And I am happy I did, because I ate the whole thing.  I could have ordered two in fact.  It was that good. 

But afterward there was a rumble.  A rumble deep within my soul that could have been mistaken for a large monster living inside of me.  Cassie lives about 1.5 hours from San Fran.  In a lovely little place called Monte Rio.  So about 5 minutes into our trip to her lovely cabin nestled in the beautiful redwoods, I asked Cassie, "Is your stomach doing what my stomach is doing??"  But no, she seemed fine.  Then came the cold sweats and the paleness.  I was going to die (die being a more pleasant term for crap my pants - I know...hot, right?).  "Um Cass, can we stop at a bathroom??"  That's when I looked over at her...and noticed her cold sweats and paleness.  We then started making plans on what we were going to do next.  "There's two gas stations at this next exit...You take the first one and then we'll go across the street and I'll go in the second one," Cassie plotted!

I think I saw about 4 bathrooms in that 1.5 hour time span.  Lovely bathrooms in California, by the way.  So if you're looking for a way to lose a quicky 5 pounds...I suggest seaweed salad.  And if you're on a hot date...I suggest avoiding the seaweed salad at all costs! 

Roll 'Em Up, Then Eat 'Em Up

Anytime I'm feeling under the weather, I think comfort food.  My body feels like crap.  I wish I was dead.  And the only thing that will make me feel better is diving into a plate of some good old fashioned poor food.  Yesterday, my craving was Polish stuffed cabbage rolls, or Golabki (pronounced ga-WUMP-kee).  I can't remember the first time I ate stuffed cabbage rolls.  I want to say it was somewhere in Pittsburgh.  That place is crawling with Pollacks...and THANK GOD!!!  Ya'll know how to make a meal that makes a girl feel MUCH better.  Here's how I made mine:

What You Need:
1 head of green cabbage
1 1/2 cups of cooked rice (read the directions on the back of your rice to get 1 1/2 cups cooked.  I used Minute Rice because I was sick and had no time to make 25 minute rice...don't judge)
1 lb. of ground beef (use the fattening stuff....ok fine...you don't HAVE to, but I did...fat makes me feel better)
1/2 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 good tablespoon of sriracha (if you've never had it, you're missing out on life)
1 can of tomato sauce (I use Hunt's...it's salty and delicious.  I could drink it...I actually did)
Salt & Pepper
2 tablespoons of butter (You can substitute olive oil,  if you wanna be healthy, but I wanted BUTTAH) and when I'm sick...I get what I want.

Here's What To Do:
Cook your rice, season it with salt and pepper and add in some butter for a little love.  Cook your cabbage in boiling water for about 10 minutes, until the leaves easily pull off, you will have to cut off the core to do this, so keep that in mind.  Saute your onion and garlic in a tablespoon of butter until soft and season with salt and pepper.  Get out a large bowl.  Add in your ground beef, uncooked, to the bowl.  Add in your rice and onion and garlic.  Salt and pepper AGAIN.  Yes, I realize this seems like a lot of salt and peppering, but when you eat it, you will understand why you take this step with every layer you cook.  Add in the sriracha.  Now unpeel the first few layers of your cabbage off and throw it away.  These pieces are usually pretty dirty and disheveled.  Now take off the next 8 or 10 leaves.  There will be a thick vein in each piece.  Cut this out in a v-shape, because this will make them easier to roll up.

Next, stuff those babies full of your delicious meat mixture:

Roll up both sides, then roll it up like a baby burrito and place into a baking dish that has a few splashes of tomato sauce on the bottom so they don't stick.  Do all of your cabbage rolls like this and them pour the rest of your tomato sauce on top.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for about 2 hours.

I didn't eat my cabbage rolls just yet.  I let them cool and them put them in the fridge, because food like this ALWAYS tastes better the next day.  But my roommate came home and couldn't keep her grubby hands outta them (I kid, I kid, she very nicely asked me if she could try them because she couldn't get over how good they smelled).  So I graciously gave her the first taste and she told me they were one of the best things she's eaten in a LONG, LONG time.  Made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  And they will do the same to you.  So make 'em, bitches!

If I offended any Pollacks in the writing of this blog, I sincerely apologize.  And will make it up to you by feeding you delicious stuffed cabbage rolls.

Shout out to Dad

This post goes out to my dear ol' Daddy!  The man who taught me to try everything once.  The man who subjected us as small children to the movie JAWS the day before taking us to the ocean for the first time.  The man who pushed us, kicking and screaming, because he knew there was nothing to really fear, into the ocean that next day, while my sister and I feared being eaten by a 10 foot shark with a hunger for human blood.

The man who scoffed at us while we shivered when presented with our first roller coaster, promising we would love it once we tried it.  The man who has always been right about these things.  I do love roller coasters.  I play in the ocean like a girl who grew up in California.  (Don't read any further mom) I will jump off a 50 foot cliff without even batting an eye.  I have swung off of 60 foot bridges that drunk guys have tied me to (it was college, mom...I know you're still reading).  I have little fear when it comes to trying new things.  And yes, that may be a bad thing.  But, knock on wood, I haven't gotten hurt yet.  And every time I scream, "I wanna do THAT again!"

He's also the man who taught me to try all food once.  I have eaten the craziest of foods just because I have to, for my own peace of mind.  And yes, I have gagged, thrown up, wanted to die after doing so, but I tried.  I mean what have you got to lose??  You don't like it???  Who can't handle that??  I've tried many things I'm not thrilled about.  And the more I try them, the more I appreciate them.  You wanna know one of the tastiest things on Earth???  Deep fried shrimp eyes.  They taste like bacon.  Don't believe me??  TRY IT!

I guess my reason for this post is to a.) thank my dad for giving me the confidence to try new things, no matter how afraid or unwilling I may be, because who knows, that might just be the thing that you were made to do, and b.) to tell all you wussy people to JUST DO IT.  More than likely you aren't going to die.  You only live once people.  You know what I have learned from being afraid to try new things???  I have learned how disappointed in myself I become when I let an opportunity pass without giving it a try.  Believe it or not, life is short.  And when I'm 70, I don't want to say, "Man, I really wish I had done that."  I'd rather say, "Man, I did that once and I kicked its ass."

So when opportunity knocks...for crying out loud, answer the freakin' door.  And if someone tells you to taste something new...for Christ's sake, open your freakin' mouth. 

Don't be a Sauce-ist

Gotta feed the kids before soccer practice?  Poker:30 at the casino?  Feeding a friend before their work shift?  Need some quick grub before a night out of drinking?  I got your gourmet back.  Angel Hair with red clam sauce.  Basically, Linguine with clam sauce ORRRRR...with whatever you have in your cabinet, but I regularly have Angel Hair pasta.  Not a big fan of tubed pasta.  Call me a tube-ist, I don't care.

Some people treat Linguine with clam sauce like they treat clam chowder.  They will eat only one, NOT the other.  I like to call these people sauce-ists.  You got your red chowder and your white chowder.  Manhattan Clam Chowder is the tomato based Chowder and then you got your New England Clam Chowder, the creamy one.  I personally like both.  I would snuggle up with either on a cold day.  And then there's tomato-y Linguine with clam sauce and there's non-tomato-y (yes that's a word) Linguine with clam sauce.  Which I again, personally like both.  If you present either dish to me, I will kiss you on the mouth.  You rock for simply feeding me something yummy.

So I had a particular night where I had to make food in a jam, and I frantically opened my pantry, my cabinets and my fridge and decided upon Angel Hair with Clam Sauce.  Ok, now here's me being a hypocrite. Because I'm a HUGE fan of fresh food.  And I think fresh food is THE tastiest of foods.  But here's me being a realist.  Sometimes we just don't have the freshest ingredients and we don't have the time to go grab some.  And sometimes you're broke and canned clams are cheaper for you than fresh clams.  I PREFER fresh clams.  Who doesn't?  But sometimes, you have to sacrifice fresh, for cheap.  As long as most of your other ingredients are fresh, you will be much happier with the outcome...so don't sweat the pricey stuff.  Here's my recipe for quicky Angel Hair with RED Clam Sauce.  If you are a sauce-ist, you can stop reading now. 

Here's What You Need:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper (or more if you like.  Or less if you're a heat wuss)
1 cup chicken stock (You could use seafood stock or vegetable stock, but I had chicken on hand b/c I make my own)
2 cups diced tomatoes
1 can of chopped clams
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound linguine, cooked to al dente
2 tablespoons of chopped flat leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
Parmesan Cheese
Crusty Bread (just plan to eat crusty bread with everything...I do.)

Here's What You Do:
Cook your pasta.  Heat the oil in a medium stockpot over high heat. Add garlic and cook for a minute. Add crushed red pepper and cook for a few seconds.  Add the tomatoes and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Simmer until it reduces by half, about 3-5 minutes.  Add the clams, just until heated through. 

If you are using fresh clams, add them in, cover them for about 3 minutes, until they all crack open their lovely little shells, as if to say, "EAT ME".  If they don't open, toss 'em, or plan to spend the rest of the night hugging your toilet.  Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the cooked pasta, parsley and basil until combined.

Plate in bowls.  Sprinkle the top of each serving of pasta with Parmesan.  Some people don't like to mix seafood and cheese.  I call these people cheesists.  I would cut off my right arm before turning down a piece of cheese.  I am a tube-ist...remember.  Serve with crusty bread, because you are NOT going to want to let the juices go to waste.  One of the easiest, most gourmet-ish dishes you can make in 20 minutes or less.  Don't be a sauce-ist.  Try it.   

Sleeper Soup

Sometimes you fall in love with a dish that not everyone likes.  It's hard to convince others around you to eat something that makes you feel all warm and cozy, but may not have very enticing ingredients.  My warm and cozy, I'm-gonna-make-this-because-I'm-all-alone dish is Lentil Soup.  I know.  Sounds boring as hell, huh?  I mean, what in the world is a lentil?  Well, basically it's a seed.  And who the hell wants seed soup?  Well....me, that's who.  And this soup, and I use that term lightly, because it's not very brothy.  It's more packed full of goodness than most soups.  But this soup is amazing.  And I can't remember where I got the recipe, believe me, I've searched high and low to find it so that it's not all off the top of my head, but I can't find it anywhere.  Because no one wants it.  But you know what?  All those people are idiots, because it's freakin' good.  Trust me.  I wouldn't waste my time writing to you about this for no reason.  I like you.  I really do.  So eat this.  And I hope my measurements are right.  Let me know if I'm WAY off and I'll adjust (do that any time, actually).

Here's What You Need: (this recipe is for one....one with a VERY BIG appetite)
3 slices of bacon, diced into small cubes
2 carrots, diced into small cubes
1 stalk of celery, diced into small cubes (do you see a trend forming??)
1/2 of a small onion, yep, you guessed it, diced into small cubes
1 cup of brown lentils
2-3 cups of chicken stock (yes, I am going to refer you to my chicken stock recipe, because it effin rocks)
1 teaspoon of freshly chopped thyme
1 teaspoon of freshly chopped parsley
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Parmesan Cheese
Salt & Pepper

Here's What You Do:
Cook your bacon in a medium pot until crisp.  Reserve on paper towels, but save about 1 tablespoon of bacon grease in your pot, it adds more flavor to this dish.  Add your olive oil to the pot and cook the onion, celery and carrots until they are just tender.  Add salt and pepper to your veggies.  Season EVERY layer of the food you cook, a sprinkle of salt and a few cracks of pepper is what I do.  Once your veggies are starting to become tender, add in your lentils.  Stir them all around to coat everyone in their delicious oil bath.  Add in the chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Once it reaches boiling point, lower your heat to a simmer and cover for about 25-30 minutes. 

To be quite honest, I remember the recipe I got this from had a MUCH shorter cooking time and it was BULLCRAP.  Because I remember testing my lentils and they tasted like the button off a shirt.  You will know when they are done because they will have a slight pop to them, but they will be creamy on the inside.  Mine usually take about 25-30 minutes to get this way.  Once they taste delicious and creamy to you, uncover the pot and add in your thyme and add back in 1/2 of your bacon.  Cook for another 15 minutes, to reduce the amount of liquid you have.

Now you're ready to put that sloppy mess of delicious into a bowl.  Top it with the rest of your bacon, parsley and Parmesan, and indulge.  No one will really come swarming because it's lentil soup for Christ's sake.  Only YOU will know that you are eating an amazing soup with layer after layer of flavor.  Hey, PS....I KNOW it's Summer time.  So what.  I never claimed to be the most topical or reasonable person in the kitchen.  There's a little tag at the top of your screen called a BOOKMARK.  Bookmark it if you can't do soup in the Summer.  But do try it.  You will be surprisingly pleased with the results.  I am every time I make it. 

Girl with a Grill

Something about this picture makes me wanna scratch my balls and hock a loogey across the yard.  Obviously I don't have balls to scratch, but I can hock a loogey like the best of them.

I love grilling food. Grilled food is the greatest tasting food.  And not to offend you gas grillers, but charcoal is the only way to go.  It's just got so much more flavor.  People were always surprised when they'd come to my house and see that I was in charge of the grill.  As if women can't man a grill.  If you tell me I can't do something because I'm a girl, I will prove you wrong in a heartbeat.  And grilling I can do.  And I can do it well.  You need 10 steaks, each cooked differently?  Well, why didn't you just say so??  I gotchu!  Don't let grilling scare you girls, it's not just for the boys and it's kinda hot to see a woman behind a grill.  At least I think so!   

Here's What You Need:
Leg of lamb, trimmed of fat and cubed
10 cloves of garlic, minced (or more...the more the merrier)
2 tablespoons of chopped rosemary
2 tablespoons of chopped thyme
1/8 cup of olive oil
1/8 cup of red wine
salt & pepper
kebab skewers, soaked for 20 minutes in water if they are wooden so that they don't burn on the grill (or if you're schmancy pantsy, use rosemary sprigs as your skewers...adds more flavor and flavor is GOOD)
Pita bread, warmed
Tzatziki sauce


Here's What You Do:
In a ziplock back, combine lamb, garlic, rosemary, thyme, olive oil and red wine.  Marinate overnight.  If you don't have time to marinate that long, at least give it 5 hours.  When you are ready to eat, light your grill.  I use a charcoal chimney starter so that I don't have to use lighter fluid anymore.  It makes your food taste like chemicals, and who the hell wants that?  Once your charcoal is ready, salt and pepper your lamb kebabs and thread them onto your skewers.  Cook over medium high heat for about 4 minutes per side. Take them off when they are cooked to about medium or medium rare.  Here's a great way to determine the done-ness without cutting into the meat and draining it of all its juices.  Serve with warmed pita and tzatziki sauce.

You can use this marinade with chicken kebabs and veggie kebabs too.  It's good on just about anything.  I made these kebabs at a house party once and there were literally 10 people crammed into my small kitchen, ripping meat off of skewers with their teeth like cavemen, grunting and moaning about how great it was.  So try it at your next party.  It's nice to see your friends turn into animals.  It's even nicer to hear them rave about how awesome your food tastes!   

Summer Sandwich (Nothing like Summer Teeth)

There's nothing like fresh produce. For me, eating a fresh tomato might be one of the most sensual moments in time. First, there's that beautiful color.  A red so vibrant it will turn your head and stop you dead in your tracks.  Next, there's the smell, which I'm finding very hard to describe.  If your tomato doesn't smell like a tomato, it's not going to taste like a tomato either.  Then there's the way it feels in your hand.  It's soft, it fits like it was made to be held and loved.  It begs you to rub it against your cheek.  It's ever so slightly tender, and heavy, from the secret it's keeping on the inside.  And then you cut into it and its juices go oozing out everywhere...over the sides of the cutting board and onto the counter.  Then, THEN....you pop a slice into your mouth.  And that's when it's all over.  It tastes REAL.  It tastes RIPE.  It's juicy.  It's got more flavor that you know what to do with.  It's instant mouth party. You probably need to sit down at this point because the taste is so wonderful, you are getting a little light-headed.

Here's a delicious sandwich I make when I have a really fresh, ripe tomato:

Here's What You Need: 
Crusty bread
Drizzle of Olive Oil
1 Clove of Garlic, halved
Hummus - Enough to smear on your bread
Ripe Tomato, sliced
Cucumber, sliced
Salt & Pepper

Here's What You Do:
Drizzle your sliced bread with olive oil.  Place it in the oven or toaster oven at 400 degrees for 8 minutes.  When it's toasty, rub it with the fresh clove of garlic.  The heat from the bread will melt the garlic and leave it's delicious goodness behind.  Next, smear both slices of bread with hummus.  Top hummus with tomato and cucumber and salt and pepper your veggies.  Top that with your other slice of bread.

Take a bite.  You have just arrived in sandwich heaven.  Take off your shoes and stay awhile.  

Tuna & Arugula Pasta - Quick & Healthy

I am obsessed with tuna.  I could eat it every day.  I know, I know, there are health risks.  Mercury levels. Blah, Blah, Blah.  But you can't do anything in the world anymore without health risks, so I'm not going to get my panties in a bunch over it.  I love tuna.  I love it raw.  I love it slightly seared.  I love it in tuna salad (if I am the maker of said tuna salad, or know the maker of said tuna salad), I love it in pasta, casseroles, on rice, etc.

I love it in Nicoise salad (which I will have to post sometime...mmmm). Nicoise salad. That's French.  Don't go into a restaurant ordering the Nee-coy-say salad.  You will get laughed at.  I promise.  I've seen it happen.  Not to your face.  But behind your back.  Waiters will go in the back and repeat your ignorant request for a Nee-coy-say salad and the chefs will all giggle and call you an idiot behind your back.  It's quite humorous.  But seriously...it's nee-SWAHZ.  Just for future reference.

You get my point though.  Tuna.  It's good.  It's excellent fresh.  But I am newly addicted to canned tuna in oil.  This kind:

It's good stuff.  Not that cat food look-a-like tuna I used to buy.  This is real tuna.  And it's delicious.  Here's a quick, cheap, easy, healthy and filling dinner for you.

Here's What You Need:
1 can of Bumblebee Tonno in Olive Oil (you can use the cat food stuff if you want, it just won't taste as good)
1 heaping handful (yes, this is a legit measurement) of arugula
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp crushed red pepper
3 tablespoons of olive oil
Salt & Pepper
Parmesan

Here's What You Do: 
Cook your pasta according to the box.  I like angel hair.  In a medium pan, saute olive oil, crushed red pepper and garlic.  Don't burn the garlic.  Throw in your drained tuna (you don't HAVE to drain it if it's in olive oil, because it will just add more flavor).  Get everything stirred around and heated up, should take about 3 minutes, add salt and pepper if you like.  Once your pasta is cooked, add it to the pan with the tuna.  Throw in your arugula and stir until it wilts.  Mix it all together and eat it.

Add Parmesan if you want.  Or black olives.  Or whatever you think would go well.  Red onion would be good.  It's not rocket science.  It's cooking.  It's fun.  Don't forget it.  And don't say Nee-coy-say salad anymore.  You have been officially warned.

Plate-Licking Piccata

It's rare that I lick my plate after eating.  Yes we all say, "Wow, that was so good I wanna lick the plate," but most of us don't really do that.  But you will, if you make this. And it's quick.  And it doesn't have to be fattening.

Here's What You Need:
Chicken Breasts (pounded very thin)
Flour (for dredging)
Salt & Pepper
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1/2 cup of chicken stock (use homemade...it's what really makes you wanna lick the plate)
2 tablespoons of olive oil (that's a guess, I just coat the bottom of my pan with it)
1 tablespoon of butter (that's not a guess.  I really only use 1 tbsp. of butter)
2 tablespoons of capers (again, if you love em, use more)
2 tablespoons of parsley

Here's What You Do:
Pound out your chicken breast, so that it's very thin.  Or you can butterfly it, if you have a really sweet knife and a desire to lose a finger.  But I've already been to the ER for a sliced finger.  It's no fun and it's not cheap.  Plus, pounding the crap out of something is a great stress reliever.

Once you have thin pieces of chicken (I had 4 thin pieces) salt and pepper both sides of your chicken.  Place a saute pan on the stove and add in olive oil at medium heat.  Let the oil heat up while you dredge your chicken lightly in the flour, shaking off any excess.  Once your oil is hot enough (I like to splash a little bit of water in my pan.  If it sizzles like crazy, you're ready to go) add in your chicken and cook about 3 minutes per side until both sides are nice and crunchy looking brown.  That should be the color of a Crayola crayon.  Crunchy Brown.  Crayola - if you're looking to rename crayons, I'm your girl.

Once your chicken is browned and cooked, set it aside on a paper towel, to drain off any excess oil.  Now, what you have is a pan with yummy browned bits in the bottom of it.  Add lemon juice and chicken broth and bring to a boil, scraping your pan with a wooden utensil to incorporate all the flavor from your pan.  Once the liquid begins to boil, bring it down to a simmer for about 5-8 minutes, to reduce and thicken your sauce.  Add in your capers and parsley.  Taste it.  Add in salt or pepper if you need to, but your capers will add a good salty flavor, so be sure to taste it before just seasoning all willy nilly-like.  And right before you serve it, add in a tablespoon of butter and stir it until melted.

Plate your chicken.  I served mine over arugula dressed with a little olive oil and salt and pepper.  Add the sauce over the top.  Eat your chicken.  And I dare you to let that juice go to waste.  So lick your plate.  Don't be ashamed.  No one's watching.  You worked hard (not really) on that sauce.  Enjoy it.  Bottle it.  Use it as cologne, or lip gloss.

Chef Crush

Anthony Bourdain might be one of the sexiest men alive.  He's a kitchen God.  He's my ultimate chef crush.  He's 6'4" (I like 'em tall).  He's got a mouth like a sailor.  He allowed himself to go naturally gray...no Just For Men Gel for this dude.  He CAN believe it's not butter.  He's a realist.  He writes how he talks.  Gives it to ya straight.  He'll try anything once.  He knows a good knife is probably the only utensil you truly need in a kitchen.  He hates garlic presses.  He won't eat mussels in a restaurant, unless he knows the chef personally.  I can't confirm this, but I bet you won't find a plastic lemon in his kitchen.  And I guarantee he'd love my Food Faux Pas blog.  Hell, he might have already read it (ok, so maybe I'm not a realist ALL the time)! 

I say "I love you" and "I'm sorry" with food...I bet he does too.  We both like a good party.  He's a Cancer, I'm a Scorpio, we're a match made in astrological heaven.  He can't stand Rachel Ray or Sandra Lee, I smell what he's steppin' in.  We both love peasant food, though I might have some difficulty diving into a bowl full of bull balls or pig brains, but hell...I'll try anything once.  He's got that "bad boy" thing about him.  You know...the type of guy you flock to and then run screaming from?  He's smart, mysterious, cocky, pierced, tattooed, has done drugs, and wears leather and cowboy boots! 

I just finished his Kitchen Confidential book.  I loved it.  If you haven't read it, you should check it out.

When Doody Calls

 Google Images Picture

This is an article I wrote for a local newspaper.  They wouldn't print it.  Their loss.

They’re family members, our best friends.  They eat as well as we do, are pampered more than we pamper ourselves and are often dressed better.  They’re our pets, and with each pet comes responsibility.  However, no matter how loving the owner, it seems that one very important pet priority gets overlooked.

We’ve all experienced it at one time or another.  It starts as a familiar, but offensive odor that leads to a mad search to quickly find, and remedy the situation.  And it almost always turns out to be our biggest nightmare.  A shoe, carpet, floorboard, a bare foot, suddenly covered in your neighbors’ dog Fluffy’s metabolized dinner of lamb and rice.

Before having the inevitable fight with your friendly neighbor about cleaning up after their pets, arm yourself with some reasons why it’s necessary to clean up after our animals and offer some helpful tips on eliminating waste.

The Environmental Factor:

When it rains, pet waste and the bacteria that inhabit it, are transported to our storm drains that lead to our lakes and rivers, making swimming and other recreational activities unsafe.  A common mistake that people make with pet waste is that they think it’s a good fertilizer.  “This is not true and the reason is that almost all dog food is meat based and is not the same thing as cow manure or some other type of fertilizers which are vegetative,” said Lee Bowling of On Doody, a local pet waste removal service.

The Health Concerns:

Harmful parasites are transmitted through dog feces, including hookworms and roundworms, which can lead to serious illness in your pet, as well as in humans.  Additionally, pet waste attracts other unwanted pests, including rats, which are a whole different nuisance.  If dogs could pick up after themselves, they probably would.  But since they can’t, it’s your responsibility to keep their living space clean so they can live happy, healthy lives.

The Community Aspect:

There’s nothing worse than sitting down to an outside summer meal of grilled burgers and fresh corn, only to lose your appetite when an eastern wind, wafting the all-too-familiar smell of an unkempt  yard two doors down, blows through.  Try to be considerate of the people in your neighborhood who spend a lot of time making their homes a place where they can kick back and relax.  Also, take into consideration how hard our community works to keep up the appearance of the Cooper Young historical district.

It’s the Law:

According to the Memphis City Code of Ordinance, section 5-63, it is unlawful for cat (yes, this pertains to you too) and dog owners to “fail to promptly remove and dispose of, in a sanitary manner, feces left by a dog or cat being handled by that person on property, public or private, other than the premises of the owner or handler of such dog or cat.”  You could face charges up to $50 for not being a responsible pet owner.

Solutions:

There are many devices on the market today designed for easy clean up.  You need only to take a trip to the local Petco for an array of disposal choices.

For the environmentally conscious dog walker, they offer biodegradable plastic bags that allow you to safely and sanitarily pick up Fido’s no-no’s and dispose of them in the trash.

If you’re the squeamish pet owner that shudders at the thought of feeling the warmth of Spot’s whatnot’s through a plastic bag, there is a jaw-like device with a long handle that grasps onto waste for quick removal.  Petco supplies the device for both grass and hard surfaces.

If you’re a pet owner on a budget, use an old-fashioned garbage bag or supermarket bag, stick your hand in it, grab the waste, invert the bag, tie it up and throw it away in the trash.

And for you busy pet owners, spend a few extra bucks each week to have someone else clean up after your pets.  Memphis’ own On Doody, a pet waste removal service in Memphis, TN, is happy to come clean up Lucky’s yuckies at a reasonable price.  They currently service many customers in the Cooper-Young district, and are pros at freeing your backyard of waste in an environmentally friendly manner.

And finally, don’t be embarrassed to pick up poop; it’s a crappy job, butt somebody has to do it, and since your pets can’t, that somebody is you.  Your neighbors and other passerby’s will appreciate your responsibility as a pet owner and the stance you have taken to keep the community beautiful.

Nothing Beatsa Grilled Pizza

Grilled Pizza is not only one of the most delicious things to make, it also makes you look like a bad ass in front of anyone who's around to witness the hecticness that it takes to make a grilled pizza.  And don't let that discourage you.  It's not hectic in a bad, scary, gonna-set-yourself-on-fire kind of way.  It's that, "oh my gawwwwd, I don't have enough hands to do all of this at once, and I don't want to burn the pizza crust ...ahhhhhhh!" kind of scary.  It's fun/scary, like walking through a haunted house.

Here's What You Do:   
Make your pizza dough.  I use this recipe. 

Get your grill ready.  You want your grill hot.  As in brick oven hot.  Like 500+ degrees hot.  So pile on the charcoal.  And be sure to take a paper towel doused in oil and grease your grill grates first, so you don't have stickage issues.  Now obviously you don't want flames, just a really hot ass grill.

Next, get your ingredients ready.  This is not the time to use a lot of ingredients, as the grill is too hot to cook things thoroughly without burning your crust.  I use simple ingredients.  First of all, make yourself an infused oil by adding 1/4 cup of olive oil to a pan.  On medium heat, add in 3-4 cloves of smashed garlic and a teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes.  Cook until the garlic starts to brown and soften, don't burn it.  Then I sliced mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and basil.   

Roll out your dough to your desired pizza size.  You can make small pizzas or large pizzas, but the larger the pizza, the more hectic the process.  Make sure all of your ingredients are ready and right next to your grill.  You won't have time to run inside for anything, so now is a good time to do an ingredient check.

Ok, so here you go.  You have your grill hot as hell.  You have your pizza dough rolled out and ready to slap onto your greased grill grates.  You have your toppings ready.  Now take a deep breath and slap your dough onto the grill.  And let it sit for about 2 minutes.  It will start to bubble up, you can pop these or not, your call.  At this point, you can keep lifting it with tongs and checking to see that it's not burning.  Once you have the desired brown on your crust, flip it over.  This is now the side you will top, as it's already cooked.  Here's where I brush the infused oil onto the crust and add my toppings and seasonings.  Now close your grill for about a minute to melt your cheese.  But keep your eye on it.  Now that you already have one side cooked, the other side won't take long at all.  I'm not kidding.  If you don't keep watching it, you will ruin it.  It will burn.  You will be eating a burnt cracker.  And no one likes a burnt cracker.  Not even me.  

If you want to use additional toppings, that's totally fine.  Just make sure they are cooked.  Cooked mushrooms, bacon, roasted garlic, sauteed onion...all these things will work great.  Things like spinach and fresh herbs can be thrown on during cooking, as they need only to wilt.  The only other uncooked item you might get away with on a grilled pizza is shrimp or scallops, just because they cook fast, but I'm too much of a wuss to try it just yet.  I like to mess up cheap stuff.  And experiment with cheese.  Goat cheese, feta cheese, and fontina cheese work really well.  Another tip: If you get scared you might burn your crust before your cheese melts, move the pizza to a part of the grill that isn't over direct heat and shut the lid.  This way your toppings/cheese will get the 500 degree blast without burning anything.  Then simply move it back to direct heat to finish the browning of the underside of the crust. 

Once your cheese is melted and your pizza is bubbly and your dough is brown and crispy, take it off and let it rest a minute before slicing into it or just folding it over like a sandwich and devouring the heck out of it.  You just made grilled pizza.  You need to pat yourself on the back.  Crack open a beer.  Pour a glass of champagne.  Do a shot of tequila.  Jump up and click your heels.  Do your touchdown dance.  Any or all of the above!  You can officially put the letters G-M after your name, because you are now a Grill Master.  Be proud, my friend.

  

If you fry it, they will come...

The Spread

You know what's good?  Pimento cheese spread.  I can't remember the first time I was introduced to this stuff.  It might have been one of those weird things my best friend always bought back in college that scared me.  Like canned chili or Vienna sausages.  Something that would sit in the refrigerator, with its obscene color and texture and give me nightmares at night.  And I can't seem to remember what would ever compel me to try such a thing.  Seeing as how it falls into the "salad" category that freaks me out.  But somehow, somewhere, I was fed pimento cheese.  I think it must have been at a wedding or a party where they had little pimento cheese and white bread triangles for an appetizer.  However it happened, I got a good one.  It was homemade.  It didn't come from the store where they put some strange orange coloring in it.  And so began my love of pimento cheese.  I tried the store bought stuff once.  I'll never do it again.  It's really easy to make and it's one of those things that you do to your taste.  If you like spice, add some.  If you don't like a certain cheese, don't use it.  But do try to make this recipe.  It's delicious as a sandwich, served on crackers or spread on celery sticks and it's damn good fried (see below).  And it proves again, that I was a Southerner in another life.

Here's What You Need:
1 package of cream cheese, softened (the kind in the cardboard, not the tub)
2 cups of your favorite cheese (Cracker Barrel cheddar and aged white cheddar is what we used)
3/4 cup of mayo (or less if you're watching your figure...I'm not... I could care less!)
1 jar of pimentos (drained)
1/2 of a small onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
cayenne (to taste)
Salt & Pepper (to taste)
Vodka (til you're tipsy...just kidding...just a glug...and if you don't know what a glug is, than you don't need any vodka)

Here's What You Do:
I'm hoping you have a food processor with a cheese grater attachment...otherwise you will have to grate everything by hand, which is not hard, just painful and grueling!  Good luck to you.

Grate your cheese and onions in the food processor.  In a separate mixing bowl, mix your cream cheese with a hand mixture until it's creamy.  Add the grated cheeses to the cream cheese and mix together.  Add in mayo, garlic, and any spices you want to use and mix.  Taste.  Decide if you need something else and add it in, or just enjoy it.  I liked it best with crackers.  

You know what's even better than pimento cheese spread??  Fried pimento cheese balls.  Yep.  You got that right.  Make some pimento cheese, ball it up and fry it.  You'll have people begging you to make them.  Me and my step-dad, aka Bob "the Hammer" Bray were watching this show on television about the best fried foods and pimento cheese balls was one of them.  How could we pass up the opportunity if we were going to make pimento cheese?  Well, we couldn't.  So here's what we did.

YUMMY!

We beat up a few eggs in one bowl, added some Panko breadcrumbs to another bowl.  Rolled the pimento cheese into balls.  Dipped the balls into the egg and then into the panko and then fried 'em up for about a minute in 350 degree oil.     
 

Salad For Dinner????

Growing up, I ate a lot of TV Dinners.  They gave me this weird obsession of having to have a big ol' piece of meat on my plate, with two large helpings of sides and a dessert.  A salad for dinner was unheard of in my house until just a few years ago. Once I started regularly cooking for myself, my dinners would consist of HUGE hunks of meat, usually covered in gravy or a sauce, baked, mashed or roasted potatos and some kind of veggie out of a can...usually corn or green beans, smothered in butter.  I can't believe I ever ate this way and didn't weigh 200 pounds.  It's not easy to eat healthy if you don't know how to cook.  Which is why I'm here trying to encourage you to get in your kitchen and try it.  It's really not that hard.  It's actually fun and you'll feel such a sense of accomplishment when you watch someone close their eyes and moan after a bite of your food...believe me!!  It's an awesome feeling! 

Yesterday I was craving spinach salad for dinner.  I know, I know, *GASP*, a salad for dinner??  But this really is a hearty salad.  You won't feel like you didn't eat enough food.  You are getting 2 pieces of bacon and 2 eggs, so calm down.  Take a deep breath and eat this salad for dinner.  You will be satisfied, I promise.

Here's What You Need:
<*This recipe is for 1 large salad - I never said I was totally reformed.>
2 eggs, hard boiled
2 handfuls (I know...I'm very technical) of spinach, washed and dried
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 handful of white button mushrooms, dirt removed with a damp cloth or towel (Never rinse your shrooms).
2 slices of bacon
1 tbsp of Dijon
1 tbsp of Red Wine Vinegar
Bacon Grease (shut up...you'll be fine...it's not that much)
1 tsp honey
Salt & Pepper

Here's What You Do:
Hard boil your eggs.  To do this, put your eggs in a pot and cover with water.  Place the pot on high heat.  Bring water to a boil.  Boil for ten minutes.  After 10 minutes, turn off the water, but allow the eggs to sit in the hot water for 5 more minutes.  Take the eggs out and rinse with cold water.  At this point, I put my eggs in the freezer, because I like my eggs cold on my spinach salad.  Or you can put some ice over them in the pot.

Next, fry up your bacon in a skillet over medium heat, turning until crisped to your liking.  I like mine really crispy.  Once your bacon is cooked, set aside on paper towels to soak up the grease, then crumble bacon.  Pour the bacon grease from the skillet into a cup and set aside. (You should get about 2 tablespoons).

Add spinach, mushrooms, and shallots (you can use red onion, but I kinda prefer the sweetness of a shallot) into a large bowl and toss so everyone gets distributed.

For the dressing:  Add bacon grease to a skillet.  Add in honey, Dijon and red wine vinegar, whisking until everything is incorporated.  Add your dressing to your bowl of spinach, shallot and shrooms and toss so that everyone gets coated with that heavenly smokey, tangy, yet sweet, dressing (my salad was NOT dripping with dressing.  Everything was just slightly coated for flavor.)  Salt and pepper the salad.  Peel your eggs and slice them.  Top your salad with crumbled bacon and eggs.

By no means am I trying to say I'm a healthy cook.  Read past entries and you will see, I love me some hearty, heavy meals.  But I do prefer fresh food, changed from its original form only ever-so-slightly.  I really do like to taste what I'm eating and I really do prefer my food to be only lightly lemoned, salted, olive-oiled, etc.  I'd eat Mediterranean food every day of my life.  I'd rather eat a piece of fish with fresh herbs and roasted veggies over chicken fried steak any day. 

All Hopped up on Popcorn

Hello.  My name is Jessica Halliday...and I am addicted to popcorn.  I mean really addicted.  I make it just about every night around 8ish.  It's healthy.  It's easy.  It's cheap.  You can do so many things to it, add so many flavors, it's the perfect canvas for anything in your spice rack.  Cayenne, celery salt, cinnamon sugar, dried herbs, the list is endless.  But I, being the simple girl that I am, just like salt.  Not a ton of salt.  Just a little pinch.  And there's something calming about picking kernels out of your teeth for the next few hours after eating popcorn.

Here's how easy it is....this makes the perfect serving for 1 bowl of popcorn:
Get out a pot.  I use stainless steel, but nonstick should work too, dunno, I never tried it, but I assume it will.  Add in a tablespoon of vegetable oil and turn your burner to high.  Take a bag of popcorn (which is like $1 at the store, don't you dare buy that boxed crap...it's loaded with a bunch of stuff you don't need - trust me), grab a handful of kernels.  Drop your handful of kernels into the pot with the oil.  Keep your burner on high.  Put a lid on it and wait.  Usually takes about 2 minutes before the kernels start to pop. 

At this point, shake your pan a little bit, just to get everyone evenly heated up.  Now you're going to have a popping party.  It's gonna sound like the grand finale of a firework show in your kitchen for a few seconds.  Once you hear space between the pops, keep your eye on it or those suckers will burn like hell.  When the popping dies down, turn the heat off, tilt the lid so that some steam escapes, but don't take the lid off just yet.  There's always a sneaker popper that likes to explode all over your kitchen when you get all impatient like myself.  After about 30 seconds, when you are SURE no more kernels are gonna blow, add in your pinch of salt or seasoning of whatever kind (Parmesan cheese is amazing too).  Give it one last shake with the lid on to distribute your seasoning of choice. 

A couple of side notes: 1.) I personally like to underpop my corn a little bit because I love those kernels that are JUST about to pop, but have just cracked a little bit.  Those are my favorites.  I like gambling on whether or not I'm going to break a tooth.  I live life on the edge!  2.) I've never made this on an electric stove, so I have no idea if you will burn your house down if you try.  

Add your popped corn to a bowl for a delicious snack you can enjoy while yelling at your favorite sports team, watching a cheesy, make-you-sob-like-a-baby movie, stupid reality show, or whatever you are doing at the time.  But beware of lurkers, because one handful only makes one bowl and one bowl of popcorn can go QUICK!

Killa Vanilla

It's a cool 102 degrees in Memphis today.  I kid, I kid.  It's one of those heats where showering is just plain pointless, because you sweat the second you get out.  Memphis heat is unlike any heat I've ever known.  It's wet heat.  It causes swamp ass (for you that don't understand this term...it's when your butt crack gets so sweaty it feels like you've been trekking through the Bayou for a week....appetizing eh?).  Wearing pants in this weather is stupid.  Good luck pulling your pants back up after a bathroom break.  It's hot.  And hot begs for ice cream.  And I've been dying to work with vanilla beans, so here we are!  Vanilla Ice Cream.

Here's What You Need: 
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 pint of heavy cream (did I mention that this was not an ass friendly recipe?)
1 whole vanilla bean, split in half (don't cut all the way through), seeds scraped
1 tablespoon of agave nectar (optional)
1 tablespoon of good vanilla extract.  Not that $2 crap.  I got mine in Mexico.

Here's What You Do:
Combine milk, sugar, cream and vanilla seeds in a saucepan with a whisk.  Once you scrape the vanilla bean of the seeds, just go ahead and throw the entire bean into the mixture too...this adds more flavor!  Add agave and vanilla extract.  Whisk over medium heat until the mixture is totally combined.  You don't want any sugar granules in your ice cream.  Once everything is combined and the mixture feels creamy when rubbed between your fingers (that's right, play with your food) strain it into a bowl and place mixture into the refrigerator for at least an hour.  I left mine overnight.  When you're ready to make ice cream, just re-mix the contents in the bowl, add to your ice cream maker and follow the directions for your ice cream maker.  Mine is easy.  Hope yours is too.

 Look at all those yummy seeds!  

I left out the eggs in my recipe because something about adding 1/2 cup of sugar, a pint of heavy cream and 8 eggs freaked me out.  Plus then you have to cook it to a certain temperature and I just didn't have time.  But this ice cream is very creamy, VERY vanilla-y and JUST sweet enough (you know I'm not much for sweets). And you can bite down on the little vanilla seeds like you can with Breyer's Ice Cream. mmmmm! 

Enjoy!  And stay cool!   

How to Roast Chicken and Not Be an Idiot

I've had an uncontrollable urge to try beer can chicken for quite some time now.  I just like the idea of cracking a can of beer, taking a few gulps, plopping a bird ass-down on to said can of beer and grilling her up while the beer steams her from the inside out.  Sounds exciting.  Adventurous.  I've never done it.  And I want to.  But I live in Memphis, TN.  It's hotter than hell here (100 degrees the day I made this meal, to be exact).  And the thought of spending most of my day outside, babysitting a bird on a grill over indirect heat makes me want to stab myself in the eye with a spoon.  So what did I do instead?  I turned my oven on to 425, cranked my air on to a cool 65 degrees, turned every fan in the house on and I roasted myself a chicken in June in Memphis.  I wanted to give all you loving readers something to do while you're all pretending to be working hard at the office, since I will be, once again, slacking on my blog this week!

I went with the lovely Ina Garten's recipe with a few tweaks, because her husband loves chicken.  So if she can't roast a good chicken for the lovely Jeffrey, who the hell can??  Here's the recipe.  And here are the tweaks I made:

I only stuffed my bird with 1/2 a lemon and 1 whole bulb of garlic cut in half, because that's all I could fit inside my bird.  I also added only 1 1/2 lemons to the roasting pan and added in 1 whole onion, peeled and separated.  Additionally, I loosely topped my chicken with aluminum foil because all that bacon on top starts to spatter and there's no freakin' way I'm cleaning my oven tonight, or ever for that matter, if I can help it.  After the one hour is up and you remove the bacon, I also removed the aluminum foil so the chicken would brown up.  And I didn't use the wine in the gravy...I just doubled the amount of stock.  Simply because I'll be playing with alcohol all week, I am avoiding it until then. 

I am the bar manager/bartender of a bad ass music venue in town, Minglewood Hall.  I love my job.  I get paid to see live music, one of my favorite things to do in the world.  I clean up after people all night.  I deal with drunken idiots for 5, sometimes more, straight hours a night.  I have to explain to people that I am not the one who has been drinking all night long.  You, sir, are the one who just ordered a vodka and Grey Goose.  You, ma'am, are the dumbass that just asked me for an umbrella sour.  You do realize you are drinking Amaretto, right?  AM-A-RET-TO.  Not Um-ba-rell-a.  At least learn what you're drinking if you're going to let it make you act more stupid than you already are.  Yes, I promise I poured you the correct amount of liquor.  That's my job.  If you want more, you pay for more.  If you act like a jerk, you will get less.  I'm not going to risk my job for a $7 drink, you asshole.  I don't care if you say you're going to tip me "good".  Usually that means you aren't or you are going to give me a dollar.  A dollar isn't good.  Don't expect me to go out of my way for you.  Try to come up to the bar slurring and you get cut off.  Try to argue that you're not too drunk, and you get kicked out.  Simple rules people.  Simple.

I have just provided many simple recipes for you in this blog.  Recipes for great food and recipes for not acting like an idiot.  Please use them.  You will not be disappointed.   

Quick Fix

This pic is from whatwereeating.com.  Come on...I gave up my Natty Light days LONG, LONG ago!

I've been crazy busy since vacation, so the blog is suffering, I know.  I haven't had time to cook anything worth writing about.  But I wanted to share with you what I DO eat when I am crazy busy and have no time to cook.  And let me warn you.  It's a bunch of crap.  But it's stuff I love and it gets me through the night.

Ramen Noodles - At $0.39 cents a package, I used to live on these things in college.  And they take 5 minutes to make.  My dad bought me like a 100-pack my first year at Marshall University.  I did NOT gain the Freshman 15.  In fact, I lost about 25 pounds and I wore a size 0 back in those days.  There are an assortment of flavors: chicken, pork, beef, shrimp.  Chicken is what my dad bought me in college.  Chicken is the one I can never eat again.  Something about 100 straight days of Ramen, pretty much ruined me of chicken Ramen forever.  Go figure.  Beef Ramen is my favorite.  And do you know how many things you can do with Ramen noodles??  It's like a craze...making Ramen into delicious dishes.  Never underestimate the power of Ramen.

Canned tuna - I used to not care about what type of canned tuna I bought, until I discovered Bumblebee tuna.  It doesn't look like canned throw up.  It looks like tuna.  Now I will never buy any other type of canned tuna.  Solid White Albacore in water.  I used to live off it.  But I used to get really pissed if I cracked open a can of tuna and discovered that it was immersed in oil.  These days I'm totally addicted to the Bumblebee "Tonno in Olive Oil", which is Yellowfin tuna in olive oil.  It is delish.  I can eat it straight with nothing else.  But in a quick rush out the door, I usually add a little mayo and maybe some capers and top Triscuits with it.  It's delicious.  It would make a mean tuna casserole too!   

Pierogies - Mrs. T's.  Potato and cheese filled.  In your freezer section.  Saute them in a little butter and olive oil.  Salt and Pepper those babies.  Add more cheese if you like.  Dip 'em in sour cream.  They are pockets full of love!

Peanut butter crackers - They are filling and will keep you going for a good 4 hours.  But have a back up package after that.

Special K Protein Meal Bar - These are yummy and fill any chocolate craving you are having.  I like the double chocolate ones.

So there you have it.  What I grab when I'm in a mad rush and I can't cook anything.  This is what I've lived off of last week.  It may also be why after every day I work, I lose 1 pound.