SKIRT STEAK, fugly and fantastic!-Thursday's recipe

Scuse me while I wipe the saliva from my chin...

Ok.

Huz and I are COO-COO Crazy Go Nuts for skirt steak!!! Lately I have had unrelenting cravings for for it and I'm vying for making it our weekly Sunday night meal. Because the girls don't really care for beef we save this treat for nights when Dea is at a sleepover. We'll throw a burrito Lo's way and commence to devouring this much revered piece of flesh.

Skirt steak is ugly, thin, and cantankerous to cook!

Traditionally, skirt steak, which is cut from the ribcage, was/is used in Mexican dishes. Namely fajitas-just easier to deal with that way. Overcook it by seconds and you have shoe leather. Grilled or pan seared to perfection and you have the most glorious, the most fully flavorful and still the most ugly piece of manna on earth.

It's not always easy to find in Alaska. In fact we usually go halvesies on a case with our best friends when Huz orders one from our buddy at Nino's Italian Eatery(HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!) Those of you in the lower forty eight might have an easier time finding it. Best bet for a stellar cut of peeled outside skirt steak is the butcher shop. Make sure it is already peeled or you will be wrestling with a piece of meat encased in a funky thick skin.

So!

2 12oz peeled outside or inside(most flavorful, more $) skirt steaks

1. Sprinkle both sides with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic.

That's it! The rest of the flavor is from the steak itself. IF it is not over cooked. That's the hard part.

2. Grill or pan sear on VERY HOT-there should be lotsa smoke! About a minute and a half on each side.

3. Serve with roughage and starch!

A Cabernet Sauvignon is a beautiful thing with this meal. May I recommend Sagelands 2005 Cab. Bold! Cherry, berry, and dark chocolate flavors layered with spices.

I'm an addict.

What the Massage Therapist Knows

Just a slight departure. I came across this poem on another Massage Therapist's blog and felt compelled to share. She must have a direct Psychic Network hotline to my mind because this is the embodiment of my ongoing experience as an LMT.

jasmine added to oil will disguise the smell of stinky feet

but it has changed the way she feels about jasmine.

mascara stains the cradle covers

not even bleach and borax take it out

next time she'll order navy blue

breasts don't stay perky after forty

they droop and slide to the side, except

store bought ones

you'll apologize for not shaving your legs

no need

you should see hers

standing on the edge of the futon

helps her gain leverage, the weight of her body

against yours

men tell jokes to break the silence

as opposed to women,

who tell secrets

they love it when she reaches under the sheet

all the way down the spine, and lifts

she knows that

sometimes she'll do it twice

just to hear them sigh, even though it exacerbates

her tendonitis

you put on heavy perfume to cover the fact

you didn't take a shower

the perfume is worse

you like looking at her bare feet through the face cradle

something about it makes you relax

feel safe

there are times you'd rather not listen

to new age music, sometimes

you just need quiet

when she leans into your sacrum it almost feels

like you grow two inches

doesn't it

flannel sheets are better

warm and cozy

like her room

her hug

you'll know right away if she's good or not

seventeen seconds, they say

that's all it takes

you talk a lot, laugh loudly, tell jokes

hoping she won't notice

that pesky erection

(*Thank GOD this is the only one I haven't experienced!!!*)

you hold your legs tightly together

she almost has to pry them apart to massage your thighs

it has nothing to do with modesty

you may have forgotten the past but

your body hasn't

she wishes she had a big spatula

so she didn't have to wake you up

to turn over

when she rubs your crooked old feet sometimes she cries, thinking of all those miles

behind you

the pregnant ones are hardest to work on

but then the baby talks to her

through her hands

god

you want her to press harder, there

under the scapula, so tight

like a frozen wing

your nose may stuff up from lying face down

or from of the sadness you feel

untouched for so long

it's best to rub toes from pinky to biggest or that song gets in her head,

we we we

all the way home

you're wondering if she heard you fart

no, but she smelled it

there is a difference between hurts

and hurts good

a big one

she rests her hands on your head, shoulders, hips, feet

to make you feel like one piece

connected again

you wish you didn't have to get up

could just sleep there a while, not knowing

she would've let you

you left that extra twenty on purpose

knowing the kid's tuition is due next week

thank you

there are days when she can't wait for you

to arrive so she can touch someone

anyone

Memeday

What kind of soap is in your shower right now? Healing Garden lavender and fig body wash.
Do you have any watermelon in your refrigerator? No. Wish I did on this lovely day…
What would you change about your living room? We plan to rip up the carpets and linoleum floor and replace with wood flooring.
Are the dishes in your dishwasher clean or dirty? Clean! That’s what the 12 year old is for!
What is in your fridge? You really want the whole list? The healthy basics +
White or wheat bread? Wheat, not nasty white.
What color or design is on your shower curtain? A rendition of Michaelangelo’s Creation of Adam.

How many plants are in your home? 37!
Comet or Soft Scrub? Babo? Yuk! HOME THYMES Mandarin Coriander all purpose cleaner.
Is your closet organized? Ha, ha! We will be putting in an organized walk in closet when the new addition is complete! Yahoo!
Can you describe your flashlight? LED head lamps
Do you have iced tea made in a pitcher right now? No, but it’s a good day for making sun tea!
If you have a garage, is it cluttered? Well, we can still fit the cars in it!
How many pillows do you sleep with? One…and my stuffed black panther.
Do you sleep with any lights on at night? Nope! Already too much light coming in in the summer.
How often do you vacuum? Hey look! A moose!
Standard toothbrush or electric? Sonicare! A Party in your mouth!
Do you have a welcome mat on your front porch? No, go away.
What is in your oven right now? A pizza stone
Is there anything under your bed? Movies, outdoor gear, LO’s birthday presents, games, super 8 movie reels, bag of M&Ms, sometimes a cat, and dust bunnies.
Chore you hate doing the most? CAT CRAPPER
What retro items are in your home?
Do you have a separate room that you use as an office? Ah! The multi-purpose room! Office, laundry, playroom, art studio, sea kayak storage, and catch-all!
What color are your walls? Ugh-gly off-whitish. All of them. Can not wait to do our remodel!!!
What does your home smell like right now? Our homemade pizza!
Ever been on your roof? Yup! Chimney sweepin!
How many TVs do you have? 2
Do you have a housekeeper? Yup. ME.

I WISH I had one! When LO starts 1st grade I WILL HAVE ONE!!!!
What style do you decorate in? Spiritual colorful(to make up for the walls) eclecticism with a dash of toy store chic, culturally diverse hippy contemporary with a hint of ZEN?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!
Do you like solid colors or prints in furniture? Solids. Please.
Is there a smoke detector in your home? Many! We’re safety people
In case of fire, what are the items in your house which you’d grab if you only could make one quick trip? Kids/Huz, cats(chances are dog is already outside), CPU, photo albums, camera, all in one load.

SHROOMS! I love 'em!!!!!- Thursday's Recipe

Better late than never!


If you are a mushroom lover you have to try this sandwich! This is SOOOO good. The mushroom stem was cut even with the cap and it cooked up fine. So you don't have to remove the whole stem.



Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh garlic
2 medium (about 4 inches in diameter) portabella mushrooms
2 onion slices
2 whole wheat hamburger buns, split
2 romaine lettuce leaves
2 slices tomato
1 slice Havarti cheese

Directions:Heat gas grill to medium or charcoal grill until coals are ash white.
Combine butter, basil and garlic in small bowl.
Brush butter mixture over mushrooms, onion and cut-sides of buns.
Place mushrooms and onions on grill.
Grill, turning once and brushing with remaining butter mixture, until mushrooms are tender (6 to 8 minutes).
Place buns on grill, cut-side down.
Grill until toasted (1 to 2 minutes).
To serve, place lettuce on grilled bun; add grilled mushroom, tomato, cheese and onion slice.

Nutrition Facts (1 sandwich) Calories:270; Fat:13 g; Cholesterol:20 mg; Sodium:350 mg; Carbohydrates:30 g; Dietary Fiber:4 g; Protein:7 g;

Easter revisited

I first started dinking with this whole blog thing around Easter-I thought it would be an opportune time to start the blog and share our Easter/Springtime ideas. But, alas, busy life got in the way-as well as writing other posts. So now I have a chunk of time to go back and revisit Easter.
We have a spiritual family but do not adhere to any religion. I consider myself a seeker. There are bits and pieces of various spiritual practices that resonate with me and I incorporate them into my own path. We don’t celebrate Easter in the Christian sense-there is no mention of Jesus resurrected, etc. We also don’t bow down to the Corporate Easter Bunny and “his” big pre-packaged plastic baskets et al. (For a diatribe on Easter and commercialism click HERE!!!)
For my family, Easter is a celebration of Springtime, the re-awakening of life, anticipation of light and warmth and new exciting possibilities. It is such a wonderful time of year to celebrate with children, themselves the embodiment of new, young, fresh life. It is also a hard time of year in Alaska to realistically celebrate the re-birth of life when the snow outside is usually still up to my knees! I mentioned some of the ways that we bring spring inside our home for a more realistic experience in a previous post. I put a lot of emphasis on symbology –the egg, the rabbit, the new tight buds on branches, the sheep and it’s wool-hoping that the more etheric aspects of my children absorb the deeper meaning of these archetypes as well as giving them delight in the physical side of creating and artfully altering these symbols of renewal.
Most of our crafts revolve around the egg: The embodiment of fertility, creation and immortality. The womb from which we quicken and emerge. The catalyst for new life. We try to visit some baby chicks- another incarnation of new life and the warm light of the returning sun.

Every night we read a special story about the Spring Bunny, the barer of abundance. ( I plan to write a bunny story of our own and will share whenever that happens.) We collect long branches to force indoors and get a sense of spring that is not yet realized outside. We also start working with raw wool bought from a local farm in order to incorporate it into our crafts.
This year we used the wool that we dyed last spring to make felt eggs. After sealing the eggs closed with duct tape

we wrapped strips of wool that had been dipped in hot soapy water around a plastic easter egg-gently squeezing the egg and rolling it between our palms to coax the fibers to interweave and tighten. The girls enjoyed picking out their favorite colors, and adding layers to make a thick firm beautiful egg.

We then put each egg in an old nylon and popped them in the washing machine and dryer to make the wool extra tight.

I decided to make a cute chick puppet by cutting a slit at the bottom of a yellow egg and popping the plastic egg out of it. I then stuffed some plain wool up into it to give it shape. I followed this whole procedure again to make an egg shell for the chick. After cutting the slit in the bottom of the shell, I cut a zigzag around 3/4 of the shell to resemble a cracked egg. Inset finger and there is your puppet. The cats really like this chick. Since it was made they’ve practically pulled it apart. They are SO BAD.

We tried a new idea this year with dyeing our eggs. We wet some hard boiled eggs with water and stuck tiny pieces of colored tissue paper on them. When the eggs dried we peeled off the tissue paper. The color remained on the eggs. We also did our usual dyeing with natural dyes. We used turmeric, canned blue berries, and boiled spinach. I'm not really sure how they got that mottled effect but it was pretty cool!

Here's our buds and hanging eggs. We didn't make the eggs but it gives me ideas!

The kid's baskets from the Spring Bunny usually contain minimal candy-with the exception of the stupid "Parsnip Pete"(again, see above mentioned post!), a hand made gift, stuffed animal and craft or game. Iwanted to make our own natural looking baskets but they just LOVE the pretty baskets our friends gave us. Oh, Well!

Despite the delayed spring and continuing snow we've had a nice celebration of it. Next, we'll be going back to our bag of raw wool to study it's "lifecycle"-from sheep to sweater.