tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73495445199158322372024-02-18T22:17:47.666-05:00The Book of DeliciosityFood, life and other things...but mostly the food!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.comBlogger124125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-33628628915890234772013-12-02T18:21:00.003-05:002013-12-04T14:05:54.163-05:00Public Service AnnouncementDear Internet,<br />
<br />
I would be doing you all a great disservice if I did not tell you to drop what you are doing and make this immediately...IMMEDIATELY!!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/recipe/16102_Grandpa_s_Braised_Beef/index.html">Rachel Ray's Braised Beef</a><br />
<br />
It. Is. Amazing.<br />
<br />
You're welcome.<br />
<br />
-KristyKristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-81389729299826136542013-11-09T15:22:00.000-05:002013-11-09T15:41:42.387-05:00How to...Make Personalized Rustic Chalkboard Programs or Seating Charts!Hello!<br />
<br />
** Warning - I'm about to talk about our wedding! If that's not your thing you might just want to skip right over this post and come back next time!<br />
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I haven't really told you much about our wedding other than that it happened! It was very much a DIY affair, which I loved and which saved us quite a few pennies! One of the projects I got the most questions about were our chalkboard signs:<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNgQ3wcBmX7siErLTCVJ6dji9_TXooKUadid_66wWDadCZ9JeIYSQIUx7kQqf0Jmj2xxd95A_5P7reHpHVLibDEO-oSZDO95oUb5ifzF_GkuasTUN3gggCEbBpAFFnOUgBCuHDarnE64/s1600/107.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNgQ3wcBmX7siErLTCVJ6dji9_TXooKUadid_66wWDadCZ9JeIYSQIUx7kQqf0Jmj2xxd95A_5P7reHpHVLibDEO-oSZDO95oUb5ifzF_GkuasTUN3gggCEbBpAFFnOUgBCuHDarnE64/s320/107.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: KJP Photography</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiblw3QMdLFfAsU7Iq_R98v0pRFcZD7JIJGg8d7XSfyGb2mjhrLecCKCAoXoLhhruOiMHVxjjw3IwZSGbn7XnwoLLhBvqO0BTfNLNC9bG3MMlul0e4CNY4PI5Upugh1HP5zfplIMILXfOo/s1600/108.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiblw3QMdLFfAsU7Iq_R98v0pRFcZD7JIJGg8d7XSfyGb2mjhrLecCKCAoXoLhhruOiMHVxjjw3IwZSGbn7XnwoLLhBvqO0BTfNLNC9bG3MMlul0e4CNY4PI5Upugh1HP5zfplIMILXfOo/s320/108.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: KJP Photography</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I knew I wanted chalkboards, but I also knew I lacked any real artistic skill to free hand that kind of thing. I was also terrified they would get all smudged in transport. No one needs that kind of stress when setting up their wedding day! Taking all that into consideration I decided to see if I could make a digital version that would <i>look</i> like a chalkboard but without all the trouble of being an actual chalkboard! Here's what I came up with (these instructions assume you know some computer basics...if you don't...ummm youtube?):<br />
<br />
First, gather your materials:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://foolishfire.com/2012/09/11/free-downloadable-chalkboard-backgrounds/">Download</a> a chalkboard background<br />
Get yourself a collection of fun chalk-y fonts. Some of my favourites:<br />
<a href="http://kevinandamanda.com/fonts/fontsforpeas/pea-ellie-bellie/">Pea Ellie Bellie</a><br />
<a href="http://www.dafont.com/eraser.font">Eraser Dust</a><br />
<a href="http://www.dafont.com/return-to-sender.font">Return to Sender</a><br />
<a href="http://www.dafont.com/chalk-hand-lettering-shaded.font">Chalk Hand Lettering Shaded</a><br />
<a href="http://www.dafont.com/blackboard.font">Blackboard</a><br />
Download <a href="http://www.brusheezy.com/brushes/30162-i-heart-doodles-brushes">this</a> photoshop brush set to get the little hearts (optional)<br />
Spray adhesive<br />
A thin board from the hardware store cut to whatever size your print out is going to be<br />
<br />
1) Open some type of photo editing software. I used Photoshop but you could probably do something similar with Paint or even PowerPoint. Open the chalkboard background.<br />
2) Use your fancy new fonts to type out your words. You can make the design as simple or complex as you like!<br />
3) If you're using Photoshop, use the brush tool to stamp on your hearts with the brush you downloaded.<br />
4) Save. Very Important!<br />
5) Send to any printing company. You just want it on matte, regular,old cheapy paper but big - like 24x36-ish.<br />
6) Spray your board with the adhesive, wait 1 minute then carefully place the print out onto the board. Smooth out any bubbles with a rolling pin and that's it! You now have a faux chalkboard!! No smudgies!<br />
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<br />
Have fun!<br />
Kristy<br />
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<br />Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-62500364320447226412013-11-03T11:21:00.001-05:002013-11-03T11:48:52.811-05:00Pinterest Challenge Day 7 - Pumpkin Curry with Chicken MeatballsAnd here we are at the end of the challenge! I've made a good dent in my untried Pinterest recipes and had some awesome (and some not-so-awesome) meals! Yay!<br />
<br />
The last recipe on the list is Pumpkin curry with chicken meatballs! I've had this one pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769541776251/">here</a> forever and just ever got around to trying it out! I figured the pumpkin flavour would make it a perfect end to cold Fall week! Here's how we did:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-MA4swx9x1NAMvfO646lJG3IqKejI_MsrVADaFfGd6x4pzh9qwBDxfx-wTNxbgKy55hqBx9Qs6Pq-tbliMUlGWvJurYfupv7AwlbyyXNmx4qOmL_4Pl7uajJhdQ5CMEduKZPBPVLCzg4/s1600/IMG_20131103_114740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-MA4swx9x1NAMvfO646lJG3IqKejI_MsrVADaFfGd6x4pzh9qwBDxfx-wTNxbgKy55hqBx9Qs6Pq-tbliMUlGWvJurYfupv7AwlbyyXNmx4qOmL_4Pl7uajJhdQ5CMEduKZPBPVLCzg4/s320/IMG_20131103_114740.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
Substitutions/Additions:<br />
1) 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon in place of the stick<br />
2) Regular coconut milk instead of low-fat<br />
3) Added 1 tbsp of soy sauce<br />
4) 1/2 cup chicken broth in place of bouillon and to thin out the curry a little (it was super thick!)<br />
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<br />
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And now for the ratings:<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Taste: A. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We both really liked this one! This was warm, spicy and hearty and I can't wait to eat the leftovers for lunch today! I think if I were to do this one again, though, I'd use strips of chicken in place of the meatballs or I would add some breadcrumbs to the balls -they were a little dry. </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Cost: A-. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Using ground chicken makes this very budget friendly! If you already have a decent spice cabinet at home, you probably don't need to buy any of the seasonings!</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Nutrition: A. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Between the spices and the veggies, there's t</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">ons of anti-oxidant goodness in here! Between the carrots and the pumpkin you'll get a good dose of beta carotene! Also, the chicken is nice and lean. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Simplicity: </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> B. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Using some strips of chicken would save the time and mess of the meatballs, but they were kind of unique and cool so I'm torn...</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall: A.</b><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">And that's that! Will you be trying out any of these recipes yourselves? Which ones? </span></span><br />
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-77115516047420028112013-11-02T11:42:00.001-04:002013-11-02T11:42:38.927-04:00Pinterest Challenge Day 6 - Double Feature!Helllooooo!<br />
<br />
How was everyone's Halloween? Ours was busy! We got close to 500 trick or treaters! Insane! In any case, on to the food! I didn't get any good pictures of these recipes because the lighting in our house sucks. You'll have to use your imagination! Let's start with the chicken:<br />
<br />
This recipe is pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769543049251/">here.</a> Here are our substitutions/changes:<br />
1) We used chicken thighs instead of breasts<br />
2) We added about 1 tsp of dijon mustard to the topping mix.<br />
3)We used Hellmen's half the fat olive oil mayo<br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Taste: B. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Dawson liked this one more than I did. He devoured his. I just thought it was "ok". I'd eat it again, but it wasn't my favourite.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Cost: A-. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Not expensive fora main dish at all. Most of this stuff you probably have in your kitchen already.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Nutrition: B. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Not bad. Not great, but not bad either. The mayo is calorie-dense but heart healthy and the chicken has good lean protein. </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Simplicity: </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> A+. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Super easy! No complaints here.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall: B.</b><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></b>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Now for the cauliflower! This one is pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769543258129/">here</a> and is coincidentally from the same blog as the risotto I made earlier this week. So far the author is 2 for 2, because this was actually even more awesome than the risotto! Wee!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">No subs or additions made to this one.</span></span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Taste: A+. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">If there was anything above A+, I'd give this recipe that! We loved it! This one is definitely going to find itself in heavy rotation at our house!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Cost: A. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">This one is cheapy cheapy. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Nutrition: A. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">This is a super tasty way to get your veggies in! We liked this so much we ate an entire head of cauliflower between the two of us. I generally don't even <i>like</i> cauliflower!</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Simplicity: </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> A+. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Doesn't get much easier than this, internet!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.545454025268555px; line-height: 18.18181800842285px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall: A+</b><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Only one more day left in the challenge! Exciting! </span></span>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-52131807557985963442013-10-30T19:16:00.001-04:002013-10-30T19:16:13.246-04:00Pinterest Challenge Day 4 - Mushroom RisottoHello Internet!<br />
<br />
Tonight we made mushroom risotto, which I have pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769541603127/">here.</a> Of everything we've made so far, this was by far my favourite! It was rich, creamy and tasty! Mmmm, risotto... I believe this kind of thing is really supposed to be eaten as a side dish or appetizer, but we made this as our main dish because I love risotto that much and I was in the mood for some good comfort food after yesterday's fiery inferno. I doubled the recipe and was shocked at how much food it made - we both have leftovers for lunch tomorrow!<br />
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Here's how it turned out:<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Uyq3wbh5554LFsWlkMEbb9KZOmuYDwKDuGbDwycvEDlpw3UTgsfJF3ZoBN9YT_rvCXMEN42KJJD4dk75X2IGWn1kubU7DZS-ivWq5c300-6eJgqJE4u2SFHR0rnqN04or-Yy-ALpvzo/s1600/IMG_20131030_191304.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Uyq3wbh5554LFsWlkMEbb9KZOmuYDwKDuGbDwycvEDlpw3UTgsfJF3ZoBN9YT_rvCXMEN42KJJD4dk75X2IGWn1kubU7DZS-ivWq5c300-6eJgqJE4u2SFHR0rnqN04or-Yy-ALpvzo/s320/IMG_20131030_191304.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yummy, yummy, yummy!</td></tr>
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Substitutions/Omissions:<br />
1) We used low sodium chicken broth in place of regular<br />
2) We omitted the butter at the end, it didn't really need it.<br />
3) We cut the cheese down by ~25%, again, it didn't really need that much<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Here's how we rank this one:</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Taste: A. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I love risotto and this one was really tasty! I just finished eating and I'm already looking forward to eating the leftovers tomorrow!</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Cost: A-. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">This is relatively inexpensive, other than the cheese. </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Nutrition: B-. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">As a side dish, this is actually not too bad - there are some good veggies in there, but as a main dish this isn't really balanced. When I make this next time I think I will substitute some olive oil for the butter just to decrease the saturated fat a little. </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Simplicity: </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> B-. </b><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Realistically, this is a risotto and risotto is labour intensive. All that stirring takes time, but it's oh, so worth it. My only other complaint is the way the ingredients list was written. I was confused by the </span><span style="font-size: 15.454545021057129px; line-height: 20px;">ingredients</span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> that were listed twice. I think they should have been listed once but marked "divided" instead. </span></span></span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall: A-.</b><br />
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-48321920724949509772013-10-29T19:02:00.000-04:002013-10-29T22:01:31.320-04:00Pinterest Challenge Day 3 - Pigs in Ponchos...or a series of small failures.<br />
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So...if you cross-reference this post with my original "intro to the challenge" post you will see that this is not what we originally intended to make today. We <i>intended</i> to make mushroom risotto, but that plan was quickly derailed when we discovered that I forgot to buy the Parmesan cheese...oops.<br />
This was failure # 1. <br />
Failure #2 came when we decided to try tomorrow's recipe today (Pigs in Ponchos pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769542752195/" target="_blank">here</a>), got started and then realized that Dawson had already eaten the cheddar cheese I had intended to use for this recipe. Again...oops. Apparently today is not our day when it comes to cheese. <br />
Failure #3 came after a trip to the grocery store when we actually tried to make this recipe and it was a complete mess...a fiery mess.<br />
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I chose this recipe because it wasn't something I wouldn't normally make. I figured it would be something different and fun...not so much. Here's how we made out. <br />
Brace yourselves, I didn't even bother trying to make this one look attractive...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2pcAH6PiHlqdjYcKy48Y3soCSXqse9-cfnaC1ecWCp5AG4Wyn7mowhfrTI8v56U6kEqPN8K4s4Ff50w7x4fZRKae7O-TUo6cLuIvulI2Nhhp1HdVre8DAmN5sxD9TzynVWYcLfhS3N2o/s1600/20131029_182936.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2pcAH6PiHlqdjYcKy48Y3soCSXqse9-cfnaC1ecWCp5AG4Wyn7mowhfrTI8v56U6kEqPN8K4s4Ff50w7x4fZRKae7O-TUo6cLuIvulI2Nhhp1HdVre8DAmN5sxD9TzynVWYcLfhS3N2o/s320/20131029_182936.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yuck. </td></tr>
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Substitutions:<br />
1) Regular salsa because I couldn't find salsa verde<br />
2) Whole wheat tortillas in place of regular<br />
3) Of the mustard options presented, we went with the honey mustard<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Here's how we rank this one:</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Taste: C+. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Meh. It was a hot dog wrapped in kind of a weird combination of stuff and I wasn't really all that excited about it. Dawson thought it was "okay" but did think the honey mustard was a little weird.</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Cost: A-. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">This is relatively inexpensive, other than the cheese. </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Nutrition: D. </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> It's no secret that hot dogs are not exactly a health food. Combine that with 2 non-whole wheat wraps, a bunch of cheese and almost no veggies and this is really pretty junky. If it were tastier it might be worth it...</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Simplicity: </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> D</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">. These were messy, way too big, and a lot more work than I feel like hot dogs should be...plus they caught on fire, yes,...on fire, when we attempted to grill them. Not so awesome. I have no desire to make these again.</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall: D.</b><br />
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-32817271320913608262013-10-28T22:37:00.003-04:002013-10-28T22:37:55.866-04:00Pinterest Challenge Day 2 - Brazilian Shrimp Soup<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Hello! Tonight we're cooking Brazilian Shrimp Soup, which I have pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769543898453/" target="_blank">here</a>. It appears to be from Food and Wine Magazine and is promised to be "tested until perfect". It also gives a suggested wine paring that we did not try...because it's Monday and we have jobs to go to tomorrow. Here's how we did:</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6GKeVDnVxVSwDHETIXIcAWss13xANeK0cXj36yktGN6gOBurSO6My2LWcxgJopI0KNu_PAYcUOvU66tKVAiUXpQP2M2uJhLRZZggRUBQtgJ_KRUGAE_bMmyWBiptUKC2asN7sjHUIOBM/s1600/IMG_20131028_223451.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6GKeVDnVxVSwDHETIXIcAWss13xANeK0cXj36yktGN6gOBurSO6My2LWcxgJopI0KNu_PAYcUOvU66tKVAiUXpQP2M2uJhLRZZggRUBQtgJ_KRUGAE_bMmyWBiptUKC2asN7sjHUIOBM/s320/IMG_20131028_223451.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soup is so unphotogenic...</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15.454545021057129px; line-height: 20px;">Our substitutions for tonight:</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15.454545021057129px; line-height: 20px;">1) We used red lentils in place of rice because we only had brown rice in the house and it was late and we didn't want to wait the 45 mins for it to cook.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15.454545021057129px; line-height: 20px;">2) Red and Orange peppers in place of green because that's what we had and I was too cheap (are you sensing A trend here?) to buy more.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Here's how we rank this one:</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Taste:</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> B-. This was good but kinda boring. It needed some jazzing up - I doused mine in siracha and Dawson dipped pepperoni sticks in his. I think next time I'd use chicken broth in place of water to add more flavour. </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Cost: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">A-. Soups go a long way! We usually get at least 4 or 5 servings out of a pot. This one loses the tiniest of points because shrimp can get expensive.</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Nutrition: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">A. I love soups because it's so easy to throw a ton of veggies in there. The soup is also kind of awesome since it has 3 food groups all included (assuming you use the rice like you're supposed to) which makes it nicely balanced! The only downfall is all of the saturated fat from the coconut milk, but really, overall this is pretty good. </span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Simplicity: </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">A. This is just about as easy as they come. Chop some stuff, throw it in a pot and voila!</span><br />
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">B.</span><br />
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-69619571031927468672013-10-27T20:23:00.001-04:002013-10-27T20:23:29.086-04:00Pinterest Challenge Day 1 - Chicken Enchilada PastaHello Internet! <br />
Here we are at the first day of the Pinterest Challenge! Wee! Today we made Chicken Enchilada Pasta, which I have pinned <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/141159769543978261/">here</a>. The link I have pinned takes me to some site with the ingredients listed but not the original source of the recipe, which is <a href="http://www.budgetbytes.com/2012/11/chicken-enchilada-pasta/">here</a> (on what looks to be an awesome blog with a ton of amazing looking food btw).<br />
Here's how it turned out!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL32lRKaHOuwJmWz5H_9GAYfRnvBrTOv16BoVH8lcfeari5oXFJW1fRnBNGTLDDaiAiFLqWSkopyMNSOe582ksVrlGtuisVMOk29tl5lnNSXbMmkGrKkxrWkHUaSTc65Vmtelgp5aYHPg/s1600/IMG_20131027_202003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL32lRKaHOuwJmWz5H_9GAYfRnvBrTOv16BoVH8lcfeari5oXFJW1fRnBNGTLDDaiAiFLqWSkopyMNSOe582ksVrlGtuisVMOk29tl5lnNSXbMmkGrKkxrWkHUaSTc65Vmtelgp5aYHPg/s320/IMG_20131027_202003.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spicy cheesy goodness!</td></tr>
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We made a few substitutions/additions because I can never just do what I'm told:<br />
1) We used a tsp of chili powder in the sauce in place of the tbsp (ours is crazy spicy)<br />
2) Used whole wheat penne in place of regular for added fibre<br />
3) Used chicken thighs in place of breasts because we generally like them better and I'm cheap.<br />
4) Added a small yellow and orange pepper for added veggie deliciousness<br />
5) Used cheddar cheese in place of monterey jack because we already had it in the house and I was too cheap to buy more cheese.<br />
6) We stuck the whole skillet in the oven at 350 for 5 mins to melt the cheese.<br />
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Here's how we rank this bad boy:<br />
<b>Taste:</b> A-. It was pretty good! We both enjoyed it and are having the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I do think it would have been lacking without the veggies though. In fact, if I were to make it again I would add even more veggies and maybe some black beans and probably reduce or completely eliminate the of chicken.<br />
<b>Cost: </b>A-. This was decently budget friendly. The chicken and cheese are the only expensive ingredients here.<br />
<b>Nutrition: </b>B. As it's written, this recipe was severely lacking in veggie goodness and using regular pasta is just a missed opportunity for fibre! <br />
<b>Simplicity: </b>B. The recipe is pretty simple and was relatively quick. My only complaint is that the order the steps are written in makes the timing of this recipe a little wonky. In my opinions step 1 should have been to make the sauce, step 2 to boil you pasta and step 3 to cook everything else. As it's written, the chicken is cooked well before anything else is ready to go and there's a lot of down time.<br />
<b>Overall: B+</b><br />
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-41552539276702480542013-10-25T19:53:00.001-04:002013-10-25T19:53:41.422-04:00The Pinterest Challenge!Hello Internet!<br />
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Are you on Pinterest? I'm on Pinterest. I've sunk many an hour into curating my perfect pin boards. Pretty much every aspect of my life is Pinterest-ified in some way -my house is full of DIY pinterest decor and furniture, I shop for clothes based on outfits I've pinned and I planned almost our entire wedding via creative Pinterest inspiration! It's about time I try out some of my pinned recipes. While I'm at it, I figured I would make it interesting and challenge myself to make Pinterest recipes for a week straight! Wee! Challenge!<br />
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Here's what I will be making this week:<br />
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Sunday - Chicken Enchilada Pasta<br />
Monday- Brazilian Shrimp Soup<br />
Tuesday - Mushroom Risotto<br />
Wednesday - Pigs in Ponchos<br />
Thursday - Day Off for Halloween<br />
Friday- Double feature! Melt in Your Mouth Chicken and Buffalo Cauliflower<br />
Saturday - Pumpkin Curry with Chicken Meatballs<br />
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I have to take Halloween off, but I'll make up for it the next day with the double feature. My plan is to have a post for each day where I will link to the recipes on my pin board and post my review/pictures. Sounds like fun, right? Wish me luck!<br />
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Kristy<br />
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pssst. Wanna follow me on Pinterest? Click <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/kristy_lalonde/boards/" target="_blank">here</a>!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-76743056990055362242013-10-19T15:34:00.001-04:002013-10-19T15:35:53.859-04:00Warm and Cheesy.If nothing else, this recipe is proof that I am NOT the food police - dietitian or not...<br />
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<b>Individual Italian Poutine - serves 2</b><br />
<i>Spicy Tomato Sauce</i><br />
1 tsp olive oil<br />
1/2 onion, diced<br />
2 cloves garlic, minced<br />
1 14 oz can of crushed tomatoes<br />
2 tbsp tomato paste<br />
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (adjust as suits your taste...we like it spicy!)<br />
1 tsp mixed Italian herbs (oregano, basil, tarragon etc)<br />
salt and pepper, to taste<br />
1 package gnocchi<br />
1/2 cup fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed<br />
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated<br />
Start by mixing up the spicy tomato sauce! Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat and saute the onion and garlic until it starts to smell delicious and look sort of wimpy (5 mins). Add the rest of the ingredients and stir. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 5-10 minutes to let the deliciousness evenly distribute.<br />
While the sauce is simmering, cook the gnocchi according to the package directions. When everything is ready to go evenly divide the gnocchi, sauce and cheese into 2 small oven-safe baking dishes and toss everything together. Top with the grated Parmesan. Switch on the broiler and stick the baking dishes in the oven for about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, let the dishes cool for as long as you can stand it, then devour! Aaaamazing!<br />
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-59456974339559321742013-10-13T11:54:00.002-04:002013-10-13T11:56:12.937-04:00A Year (almost) in ReviewOh haaiiii! Remember me? I'm still alive! I didn't actually tear out my hair after that last post...I do plan to get back to writing recipes and posting them along with silly stories about my life, and this place will soon be getting a bit of a face lift. In the meantime, let us catch up on the past year, shall we?<br />
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First there was some of this:<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge873s-zTwV7kkO8Ay-dun1aEEgW1kSrxLREsxqVagxESDkJfy_gkmO1qAoL5YRPjuiytu2aKlVblWybf9V3zfF2Dw6Aqe_oqNIY56ZA7sjQhMA1L2ulDzt9-p7eRkZR1FzyGzQObFIMs/s1600/Holidays+2012+027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge873s-zTwV7kkO8Ay-dun1aEEgW1kSrxLREsxqVagxESDkJfy_gkmO1qAoL5YRPjuiytu2aKlVblWybf9V3zfF2Dw6Aqe_oqNIY56ZA7sjQhMA1L2ulDzt9-p7eRkZR1FzyGzQObFIMs/s320/Holidays+2012+027.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh Christmas tree!<br /></td></tr>
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And I was pretty bored, so there was a lot of this:<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMfrcFk4jPUe0rv-LOS0lct1ndPe6TX6GhF0sKHSgiHXCWDSBf__CrWXbjqfGiLyOuhs4BRqzOVJfVkAdtbhuW8lldEi2re3_uoTwIY6ZdaTi9SZLhQuBAZ8B8B0sZniYe4xnjoba6GYs/s1600/Nailpolish+138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMfrcFk4jPUe0rv-LOS0lct1ndPe6TX6GhF0sKHSgiHXCWDSBf__CrWXbjqfGiLyOuhs4BRqzOVJfVkAdtbhuW8lldEi2re3_uoTwIY6ZdaTi9SZLhQuBAZ8B8B0sZniYe4xnjoba6GYs/s320/Nailpolish+138.JPG" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So many polishes!</td></tr>
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And then we did some of this:<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzU8DX_ebs8x7a5a2BTGnBq9zfFipCcSpZZh4rUjGmM1Tnf8XRo02K_ioXhOyZ3iLt2-gZb9byJSS22KLQpyW7IX6odZ4V1nxxOxrGIEOEljGZP0YPWAUjBCeo_tyLmJJF_5TOrF_mA_A/s1600/Cuba+2013+024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzU8DX_ebs8x7a5a2BTGnBq9zfFipCcSpZZh4rUjGmM1Tnf8XRo02K_ioXhOyZ3iLt2-gZb9byJSS22KLQpyW7IX6odZ4V1nxxOxrGIEOEljGZP0YPWAUjBCeo_tyLmJJF_5TOrF_mA_A/s320/Cuba+2013+024.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In Cuba!</td></tr>
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Which is where this happened:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg32ZW4ukOw68Xre6arf3VbzsGuXOxqJZRkt0ELU_pf62y6U07cdYfYJtwuf92P5UUB6gcEBAee-TYfnhwnz2yHvFypiUoM5zU7yUO3l67W90gXv_s-mGK7qTYgZDoMSts9TZkczzFVVcE/s1600/Cuba+2013+108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg32ZW4ukOw68Xre6arf3VbzsGuXOxqJZRkt0ELU_pf62y6U07cdYfYJtwuf92P5UUB6gcEBAee-TYfnhwnz2yHvFypiUoM5zU7yUO3l67W90gXv_s-mGK7qTYgZDoMSts9TZkczzFVVcE/s320/Cuba+2013+108.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I said yes!</td></tr>
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Once we got home, we sent out this:</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmQ-9AQg2MCdh4LIQcMM8Xl38H6mALkxPONx4ckKrgqA_rURR1gWkfpKcKFsMbr9vIjZrFlWVybZIkbF4b2jB6ML4OlRLclgQDDVFlVbq9yxRI7BNjsv3HhcKKssVbouRA6j-4la0Ejk/s1600/savethedate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmQ-9AQg2MCdh4LIQcMM8Xl38H6mALkxPONx4ckKrgqA_rURR1gWkfpKcKFsMbr9vIjZrFlWVybZIkbF4b2jB6ML4OlRLclgQDDVFlVbq9yxRI7BNjsv3HhcKKssVbouRA6j-4la0Ejk/s320/savethedate.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Why wait? Let's do this!</td></tr>
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Which led to parties like this:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg47ixBQtBurkVSh9sFS8zrknGGXnno8O1H2QXzH5EG6A14QlvmsQSoews67E-l-d6VLbztJKB5JFaUfDbV-bi8011gc6JiZx-KQV6AZZhpkFUWTTPMhW_bLsm03nm5i6mfXVZ49e3r9Wo/s1600/hqmgpdtifd7w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg47ixBQtBurkVSh9sFS8zrknGGXnno8O1H2QXzH5EG6A14QlvmsQSoews67E-l-d6VLbztJKB5JFaUfDbV-bi8011gc6JiZx-KQV6AZZhpkFUWTTPMhW_bLsm03nm5i6mfXVZ49e3r9Wo/s320/hqmgpdtifd7w.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meet Franko!</td></tr>
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And then eventually this:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYbs9l71iEHmrgevm6anoLEXKHBlw8DXEeBaRQApbHx5XbGqPT3mXpQ3Av21EKIsacrt6KKD1F6dAV1EPYZntTuXoubhCqHDebq4-aCvPpLSw0hEqiEYvWxpnweTMAM-WtncMRT_IQQcQ/s1600/1375638_730006763692199_1016194459_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYbs9l71iEHmrgevm6anoLEXKHBlw8DXEeBaRQApbHx5XbGqPT3mXpQ3Av21EKIsacrt6KKD1F6dAV1EPYZntTuXoubhCqHDebq4-aCvPpLSw0hEqiEYvWxpnweTMAM-WtncMRT_IQQcQ/s320/1375638_730006763692199_1016194459_n.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh, look at the happy!</td></tr>
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Not a bad year, right? See you soon with some more regular updates :)</div>
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-Kristy</div>
Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-80261845282924530722012-11-29T21:34:00.001-05:002012-11-29T21:34:45.937-05:00Episode 110- Some days...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBJ3srOm9NjBV-8SI2UFVQq2czSuBRTs1nlfpkuiNtPjNI2b_CopJxe4WaCinsiAHIm5NmaBTEwoVNyfwe7LyycRDU3kkNsr-eyvW7npY3Od57dxOhjh8YLAgtAHnlo2rsZO5plstK29M/s1600/204731.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBJ3srOm9NjBV-8SI2UFVQq2czSuBRTs1nlfpkuiNtPjNI2b_CopJxe4WaCinsiAHIm5NmaBTEwoVNyfwe7LyycRDU3kkNsr-eyvW7npY3Od57dxOhjh8YLAgtAHnlo2rsZO5plstK29M/s400/204731.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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...make me want to tear my hair out. Well, tear my hair out and drink wine...and maybe eat some cheese. Why don't I have cheese? Ugh.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-19968147905947688502012-11-21T19:42:00.002-05:002012-11-22T10:41:05.500-05:00Episode 109 - Punctually Festive I am a big giant Christmas keener. I had originally intended to save the holiday decorating until after American Thanksgiving, but I had a few days off last week and I just couldn't wait anymore! Dawson came home from work to a fully Christma-fied house! Everything is red, gold and sparkly! Yes!<br />
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In any case, today's recipe is almost completely unrelated to Christmas, although when I asked Dawson how I could relate the two in some sort of quirky segue his response was "Well, the sauce was red and the crust was golden!". Good one Daws! Let's go with that!<br />
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Red and Gold Pizza Calzones<br />
(serves 2)<br />
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2 personal-sized pizza doughs (we used <a href="http://bookofdeliciosity.blogspot.ca/2011/07/episode-38-pizzabut-summer-y.html" target="_blank">this recipe</a>)<br />
1/2 cup of your favourite pizza sauce (we used<a href="http://bookofdeliciosity.blogspot.ca/2010/07/episode-10-pizza-is-like-medicineright.html" target="_blank"> this recipe</a>)<br />
12 thin slices of spicy salami<br />
1/2 cup spicy marinated eggplant<br />
3/4 cup shredded mozarella cheese<br />
1 tbsp olive oil<br />
salt and pepper, to taste<br />
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Preheat the oven to 400 F. Roll out your pizza dough as if you were just making 2 mini pizzas. Top the dough with sauce, salami, eggplant and cheese leaving about 1/2 inch ring of crust naked around the outside of each one. Next, carefully stretch and fold your topped dough into a half moon shape. Press the edges together, trying to keep as much of the filling inside the moon as possible. Seal your edges together by squishing them down with a fork. Don't skip this step - Dawson did and his calzone was more like a taco...a calzaco! Ok, now transfer the half moons onto a greased baking sheet, brush the tops with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, or until they're nice a golden. Now eat!<br />
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While you eat your delicious pizza-like creation, check out this picture of my Christmas-y home!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4xkFQ1DrRwViff4hz0_ifPBa6FXtInC7c93r9b17Poa53zl83mMw_ahlkL2n2QBxx9Sn030l0y0tkcigJv5rdRgdlMot5gRadTFQsLFMldFcbJW37_ltP-5pJOOt84fyvfMn_FgN6cxM/s1600/Holidays+2012+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4xkFQ1DrRwViff4hz0_ifPBa6FXtInC7c93r9b17Poa53zl83mMw_ahlkL2n2QBxx9Sn030l0y0tkcigJv5rdRgdlMot5gRadTFQsLFMldFcbJW37_ltP-5pJOOt84fyvfMn_FgN6cxM/s320/Holidays+2012+014.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ooo glittery reindeer!</td></tr>
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More Christmas-y photos to come...you know, in December when they're actually appropriate!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-92215896907027212572012-11-13T18:14:00.002-05:002012-11-13T22:12:53.674-05:00Episode 108 - Lonely FoodI've decided I suck at being alone. I find the house too quiet, the bed too big and everything too...empty! How I ever lived alone years ago I don't know. I guess Dawson has spoiled me... *sigh*<br />
So, today is my last night alone in the house and I decided it was the perfect opportunity to curl up in some sweats around a delicious bowl of comfort food and, oh, boy, was this ever good!<br />
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Gnocchi Carbonara for 1<br />
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1-2 slices of bacon (depending on how indulgent you feel like being)<br />
1/2 package Gnocchi (about 1.5 cups or so)<br />
1 egg, separated<br />
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese<br />
pepper, to taste<br />
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First, slice up your bacon and cook it up in a frying pan. While the bacon cooks, prepare your gnocchi according to the package directions. When the bacon and gnocchi are cooked, drain most of the bacon fat out of the pan and toss in your gnocchi and cheese. Now, add the egg white and quickly toss everything around while it cooks. It's gonna look really weird and kinda lumpy, but I promise it's going to work. Finally, put everything in a bowl, top with the egg yolk and stir to coat everything in yolk-y goodness. Season with pepper and you're ready to go! Be prepared - you may never want to eat anything else ever again!<br />
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Ohmigod, so good! Not even sort of healthy, but worth it. Also, I had Brussels sprouts with this, so I feel like that kinda balances everything out... plus...check out my sad, lonely face:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdZLAthfyytJv5_Q3O82biyFY2sB0dLJUxZZG3r_IhoOyDt4zuUIXvGsdE15Huq5rFluDiE5ICN7v7LNIQT7Sv5GcXKIgY9TbEAJbVB7n6HtBpna1SmltovtnA6dMhN1zH_1VDKwoL8t4/s1600/184226.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdZLAthfyytJv5_Q3O82biyFY2sB0dLJUxZZG3r_IhoOyDt4zuUIXvGsdE15Huq5rFluDiE5ICN7v7LNIQT7Sv5GcXKIgY9TbEAJbVB7n6HtBpna1SmltovtnA6dMhN1zH_1VDKwoL8t4/s320/184226.jpg" width="276" /></a></div>
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Don't I just look like I need a bowl of egg-y, bacon-y goodness? I think so. <br />
<br />Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-76384806507457634402012-11-11T13:23:00.000-05:002012-11-11T13:24:23.864-05:00Episode 107 - The Incredible Disappearing Blogger!Oh hi! Just thought I'd let you know I'm still alive! It seems that at this time every year I fall off the face of the internet for a few weeks. Maybe I should start making it a scheduled thing... in any case, I'm back! I've been busying myself with the usual things - work, Zumba, and nail polish (oh, so much nail polish! I should really start another blog just to tell you about all of the wonderful nail polish!). I've been cooking, but mostly just remaking a few of my favourite recipes that I've already posted on here (mostly soups) and then a few from some other really great places! The recipe I'm suggesting today actually comes from Food Network Magazine. If you like fall comfort foods you NEED to make this. Need. We've made it twice this fall already and I'd probably still make it again today.<br />
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<a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/baked-beans-with-bacon-recipe2/index.html" target="_blank">Baked Beans with Bacon</a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZOeLMjWxqCuAlM8O4iYelIZIygOVlbywa3xRuBYXZEDLvVzQVtTIqZxrK408qi7RGQftucpLZza6bdAMsng7Pk1TAhnLlzh3JTLm7rM1Jzmm8n0aLcJ_LbM1k8eVh7s3WBNB3GNCdxU8/s1600/baked+beans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZOeLMjWxqCuAlM8O4iYelIZIygOVlbywa3xRuBYXZEDLvVzQVtTIqZxrK408qi7RGQftucpLZza6bdAMsng7Pk1TAhnLlzh3JTLm7rM1Jzmm8n0aLcJ_LbM1k8eVh7s3WBNB3GNCdxU8/s320/baked+beans.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo stolen from Food Network Magazine. Ours was less pretty...but every bit as delicious!<br />Click the title above for the recipe!</td></tr>
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The only change we made was skipping the pancetta, just because we figured 5 slices of bacon was plenty or cured, fatty meat for us. It works out fine this way. </div>
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In other news, Dawson left today to go hunting (with his barber.?!..for reals!) until Wednesday so, it's just me and the animals until then. Hopefully nothing goes horribly wrong while he's gone. Have you ever noticed that there are just a few things around the house that are definite "man jobs"? These are the reasons women need men around...or sorry, not "need", but enjoy having men around. Don't send me any feminist hate mail, mmkay? Some good examples are cleaning the hair clogs out of the shower drain (I gag just thinking about this), taking out the garbage, killing spiders and anything having to do with plumbing. Because I'm spoiled vacuuming and scraping the frost off of car windows have also been designated "man jobs" in our house. Here's hoping the pets stop shedding until he gets home...and that my car will fit in the garage. I don't think "Sorry I can't come to work because my windows are frosty and there's no one here to scrape them" will fly as an excuse at work...</div>
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Now finally, this is completely unrelated but I'm putting it here anyway because it's just so darn pretty - my nails with some petty new polishes I got this week - A England's Tristam and St. George. Do you own these? You need to own these. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNbe1_1GdjOlIl_bvE7cyx87omaKswvLjqC6pll0dtO8HBG5rihk42h4llp7Ga_IOMcdSRmfk8S7Rs-f8UAguVe9UKGSOiRC6O92fHZ-1ISuY_y_LDg_AZpKGtkUH8ihkZhvgk1sbQYBE/s1600/Nailpolish+063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNbe1_1GdjOlIl_bvE7cyx87omaKswvLjqC6pll0dtO8HBG5rihk42h4llp7Ga_IOMcdSRmfk8S7Rs-f8UAguVe9UKGSOiRC6O92fHZ-1ISuY_y_LDg_AZpKGtkUH8ihkZhvgk1sbQYBE/s320/Nailpolish+063.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm a sucker for a gradient manicure!</td></tr>
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So that's all folks! Hopefully I'll be around more frequently from now on! </div>
Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-35863347187778962402012-10-04T20:46:00.001-04:002012-11-12T19:28:11.927-05:00Episode 106 - The Internet is WeirdOne of the stats that gets collected about my blog is the key words people typed into their search engine to find me. Most of the results are pretty tame, like people searching for my name, or the word deliciosity or even for a specific recipe. Others though, are just plain weird. 'Fess up internet! Which one of you is the one that found my blog by searching for - '"kristy lalonde" police'? Why were you searching for such a thing?! Also, why on earth did Google then direct you here?! WTF?!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgymdifclTmjuWbS0GGvvYUYXgq5eTYqkczcQaxzSnnxHEHXwMdhqRx_8WbSKfZQ9huCxxTVH7lZXnmca28duEtplm66Y7RCZoJoyW9rV6WixBjLq049P0YPnyj5a4D-yWKirYmFjIjmGk/s1600/Ottawa+Fall+069.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgymdifclTmjuWbS0GGvvYUYXgq5eTYqkczcQaxzSnnxHEHXwMdhqRx_8WbSKfZQ9huCxxTVH7lZXnmca28duEtplm66Y7RCZoJoyW9rV6WixBjLq049P0YPnyj5a4D-yWKirYmFjIjmGk/s400/Ottawa+Fall+069.JPG" width="182" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is this what you were looking for?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
For the person who searched for "what is the plural of apocalypse", I'm sorry I wasn't more helpful. I hope you at least found me mildly entertaining.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-61490608412145627012012-09-23T21:14:00.000-04:002012-09-24T15:45:30.339-04:00Episode 105 - Pumpkin Lasagna V.2.0Just a little under a year ago I wrote about <a href="http://bookofdeliciosity.blogspot.ca/2011/10/episode-68-fall-lasagna-of-dreams.html" target="_blank">this</a> Fall-style pumpkin lasagna. It was rich. It was creamy. It was not waist-line friendly. Nope, not even a little bit. This version is lighter but equally delicious. Don't skip the sage; it makes the whole recipe!<br />
<br />
<b>Pumpkin Lasagna - minus a few pounds of saturated fat. </b><br />
<br />
1 lb lean ground beef<br />
3 cups of your favourite tomato sauce<br />
12-15 oven -ready lasagna noodles<br />
1.5 cups smooth ricotta cheese<br />
1 cup canned pumpkin ( NOT pumpkin pie filling!)<br />
1 egg<br />
2 sprigs fresh sage<br />
1 tsp oil<br />
pinch of nutmeg<br />
smaller pinch of cloves<br />
salt and pepper to taste<br />
3 cups mozzarella, shredded<br />
1/2 cup Parmesan, shredded<br />
<br />
Preheat the oven to 375 F.<br />
First you need to put your fillings together! Brown up your ground beef in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Drain off most of the fat and then mix in your tomato sauce. If your sauce came from a can (shame on you!) I'd recommend adding some herbs and spices at this point - maybe some oregano or basil. Voila - tomato sauce done.<br />
Next do the pumpkin layer. Start by cooking your sage in a small frying pan with the oil over medium heat. This should only take a few minutes - you want it to get wilt-y and to start smelling delicious. Toss the cooked sage into a medium bowl and add the ricotta, pumpkin, nutmeg, cloves and salt and pepper. Mix everything until it's smooth then add in your egg. Stir until the egg is well incorporated and you're done!<br />
Now for the fun part - construction! Start by adding a few ladles of tomato sauce into the bottom of your lasagna pan. Place a single layer of noodles on top. Top this with about half of the pumpkin/ricotta mixture, 1/3 of the remaining tomato sauce and 1 cup of the mozzarella. Add another layer of noodles and repeat all of the layers a second time - pumpkin/ricotta, tomato, cheese. Finish with a final layer of noodles topped with the last of the tomato sauce, the last cup of mozzarella and the Parmesan. Stand back and admire your work - looks delicious already! Now cover that baby with some tinfoil and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. Remove the tinfoil and bake for another 15 minutes. Last, but not least, remove the lasagna from the oven and let it sit to cool for at least 15 more minutes. This will help it set up and to not be a complete goopy mess when you cut into it. Enjoy!<br />
<br />
This mass of cheesy perfection was a perfect way to end a perfectly relaxing weekend. That's a lot of perfection! It started with a last minute massage (where I was told I need to attend "posture rehab"), a glass of wine and some comfy pyjamas, was filled with a low-key board game party and is now ending with some cheese and more pyjamas. Yep, my weekend was a pyjama sandwich. How was yours?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhufPrh7v7uHLxZEQIQ-GHxt-w3mHT58EPz2kTPPngS8lcqSDqgCMXSKTaSJT4G9hJhYOpKpbiVfz9MN7hPOULfWnE5Rdyj5C08sXdktps-DDFC_3fnF8sqnd3pJGr7CHwEeSgyQPHJ3VM/s1600/205833.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhufPrh7v7uHLxZEQIQ-GHxt-w3mHT58EPz2kTPPngS8lcqSDqgCMXSKTaSJT4G9hJhYOpKpbiVfz9MN7hPOULfWnE5Rdyj5C08sXdktps-DDFC_3fnF8sqnd3pJGr7CHwEeSgyQPHJ3VM/s320/205833.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pj party!</td></tr>
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<br />Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-71910814798104310162012-09-14T20:12:00.003-04:002012-09-14T20:13:27.698-04:00Episode 104 - Dawson strikes again...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHzM7wk-5WnbqT0Wm_Ct86JMqTNm-Q6CRKUr1kVj4tocXbA6UR-khQ51uYhXa6i-VeTMjOkGNKN3jX_MW_rCfJd8LfhOmOc-bSzdhOTFXuLLxoe79Yo5jwlVdKpSutKQAaO3QpdHED1xA/s1600/House+Stuff+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHzM7wk-5WnbqT0Wm_Ct86JMqTNm-Q6CRKUr1kVj4tocXbA6UR-khQ51uYhXa6i-VeTMjOkGNKN3jX_MW_rCfJd8LfhOmOc-bSzdhOTFXuLLxoe79Yo5jwlVdKpSutKQAaO3QpdHED1xA/s400/House+Stuff+002.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He ate the whole thing.</td></tr>
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<br />
Chili Cheese Fries<br />
<br />
Oven fries (sliced potatoes coated in canola oil and baked at 425 for 20 mins)<br />
Homemade chili (try <a href="http://bookofdeliciosity.blogspot.ca/2011/09/episode-56-pantry-chili.html" target="_blank">this</a> one!)<br />
A pile o' grated cheddar cheese.<br />
<br />
Slap it in a bowl and enjoy!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-38345557501344505382012-09-03T18:54:00.002-04:002012-09-03T18:55:12.807-04:00Episode 103 - 2 Reasons To Be Sad1) Summer dies tonight at midnight.<br />
2) Dawson made these amazing shrimp tacos but doesn't remember what he put in them, so I can't give you the recipe. All together now "bad Dawson".<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWkovMTiSzAjTz4KnUQtQmdILu6z1qcrH7-laZbiw1Nm_DuhI5xc6EANjKg-DGLIcbZD9qEbfNp9SnFJGnNaM_ylDFSrMnxo0bOuyyQMQaskRyX0F_0e4DZyfD-R3Ee3GvqqigP9F6lak/s1600/Food+Stuff+359.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWkovMTiSzAjTz4KnUQtQmdILu6z1qcrH7-laZbiw1Nm_DuhI5xc6EANjKg-DGLIcbZD9qEbfNp9SnFJGnNaM_ylDFSrMnxo0bOuyyQMQaskRyX0F_0e4DZyfD-R3Ee3GvqqigP9F6lak/s320/Food+Stuff+359.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They were delicious, I promise. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-7622778893489809712012-08-31T12:38:00.000-04:002012-08-31T21:47:16.184-04:00Episode 102 - What the heck is the plural of Apocalypse? Seriously?! What is it? Apocalypses? Apocalypti? In any case, this is the story of the flea apocalypse. Brace yourselves, it's a real page turner...or scroll-er? Make yourself some dinner then join me back here.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibJ3gWu94quDRs8lnTtzhIjuOi_bobcUBRvjAzWCB47CyntP6tLC3aRBCi3Bioh-_OGpI9vSU1rwL0hrxCmev2gpVKK28s4w89ob_v-Xoud3qVvyhIJkyL0RaE_nDn8ispzMkv2mAG20s/s1600/Food+Stuff+367.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibJ3gWu94quDRs8lnTtzhIjuOi_bobcUBRvjAzWCB47CyntP6tLC3aRBCi3Bioh-_OGpI9vSU1rwL0hrxCmev2gpVKK28s4w89ob_v-Xoud3qVvyhIJkyL0RaE_nDn8ispzMkv2mAG20s/s320/Food+Stuff+367.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Get in my belly!</td></tr>
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Baked Eggplant Parmesan<br />
<br />
1 eggplant, sliced into rounds<br />
2 eggs, scrambled<br />
1 cup panko breadcrumbs<br />
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded<br />
salt and pepper, to taste<br />
1 cup tomato sauce (we used <a href="http://bookofdeliciosity.blogspot.ca/2010/07/episode-10-pizza-is-like-medicineright.html" target="_blank">Dawson's homemade sauce</a>)<br />
1 ball fresh mozzarella, sliced into rounds<br />
2 panini buns<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
First, preheat the oven to 375 F and make yourself a breading station - 1 bowl with the eggs, and 1 bowl with the panko, Parmesan and salt and pepper. Dip the eggplant rounds into the egg, then coat well with the panko and cheese. Put the breaded eggplant pieces onto a baking sheet and bake for ~20 minutes or until they start to brown. If you find they're browning unevenly you can turn the pieces halfway through. <br />
When your eggplants are nice and golden, take them out of the oven and turn on your broiler. Build your sammiches - 1 bun, 3-4 eggplant rounds, a few slices of mozzarella and a big scoop of sauce. Put the constructed sammiches back on the baking sheet and stick 'em under the broiler for ~3 minutes. You want the cheese to get nice and melty. Now serve and enjoy! Yummy!<br />
<br />
Ok, so, the flea apocalypse. It all started when we moved into our new house and found the backyard looking like this:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsR4f-3pnFdPYVOmHjCnXB6uqO2e7J7xiYVVff51VIwWktUFR8r4kBMzLdLngWBYyPZRRN6ebS6A4vMsd3sYVzU0b0r6U5OTM6w4TulEzWKfFO9KnQmtMr_6QrcRJ8aXCsZfBkIESKNZg/s1600/05312012132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsR4f-3pnFdPYVOmHjCnXB6uqO2e7J7xiYVVff51VIwWktUFR8r4kBMzLdLngWBYyPZRRN6ebS6A4vMsd3sYVzU0b0r6U5OTM6w4TulEzWKfFO9KnQmtMr_6QrcRJ8aXCsZfBkIESKNZg/s320/05312012132.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holy Crap!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Basically, a complete, overgrown jungle. As if that weren't annoying enough, this particular overgrown jungle was home to this little thing and 13 of it's nearest and dearest! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPgf615w4Rw_jDklsk00RZ6-zDPoEivkb1SnowNgXkF9sZ8czJPZAxH051dK4zGFLC-zyLuY1IDLyKwVj9iJ2okELLx9zoXPQQkx6oZbrxa4KjmLmnn_VJH7mpBm4vBZqTGvgjPrqt4MY/s1600/06112012150.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPgf615w4Rw_jDklsk00RZ6-zDPoEivkb1SnowNgXkF9sZ8czJPZAxH051dK4zGFLC-zyLuY1IDLyKwVj9iJ2okELLx9zoXPQQkx6oZbrxa4KjmLmnn_VJH7mpBm4vBZqTGvgjPrqt4MY/s320/06112012150.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What a cutie!</td></tr>
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14 cats! 14! F.O.U.R.T.E.E.N. Wow. <br />
So, being the bleeding-heart animal lover that I am, I couldn't just leave these cats in my backyard to starve (or get shot with Dawson's pellet gun, which he threatened to do after a group of them decided to attack our dog) so I decided to capture them one-by-one and ship them off to our local "no kill" shelter where they would get new homes. <br />
<br />
So, for the next 3 weeks we had a pretty steady stream of kitties temporarily living in our basement while they awaited their trip to the shelter. We fed them, gave them clean litter and were generally pretty darn good to the little fur balls. It gave me the warm fuzzies...until the fleas happened.<br />
About 3 weeks after the last of the strays left, our own cats started acting even more strangely than normal - making weird noises and grooming themselves like they had kitty-OCD. A quick google search ("why is my cat acting crazy") lead us to the conclusion that my good deed of kitty-catching resulted in my entire house becoming the birth place of the flea apocalypse. Ugh.<br />
<br />
To make an even longer story somewhat shorter, the flea apocalypse cost me two unhappy cats, $400 dollars for some prescription flea repellent and a can of insecticide furniture and carpet spray and my sense of security. Moral of the story - never do anything nice. It will make your bank account cry.<br />
<br />
In other apocalypse news, I've heard word that the zombie apocalypse in coming. This is serious, internet! I want you to know that if this event comes to pass the the official meeting place is our living room. It's flea-free now and it turns out I have a knack for zombie killing.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGomJj_5RCvttcj9W1anBgaBG42mujCr0CifA3HFazlh6pLJpeGbCRp55ZQOrJWltjbQvu3SLuOpyneP0qcu7-t09h0scHJVInLzrL1xweD_8laOpq_sij2RWW1HgDkIgqbhVcsrTQvRQ/s1600/gun+stuff+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGomJj_5RCvttcj9W1anBgaBG42mujCr0CifA3HFazlh6pLJpeGbCRp55ZQOrJWltjbQvu3SLuOpyneP0qcu7-t09h0scHJVInLzrL1xweD_8laOpq_sij2RWW1HgDkIgqbhVcsrTQvRQ/s320/gun+stuff+005.JPG" width="269" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That is one dead zombie. Not bad from 100 yards away!</td></tr>
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Also, Dawson has been secretly stockpiling food essentials in our basement. What a crazy.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-88133224848600102522012-08-18T14:34:00.002-04:002012-08-18T22:13:36.079-04:00Episode 101 - Mug ShotOk internet, we need to discuss something I recently discovered - MUG CAKES! Yes, mini single-serving cakes you make in 3 minutes from stuff you probably have lying around your kitchen! Amazing. Dawson is eating one riiiight now and it's awesome. I don't really invent recipes for baking (since they require...you know, precision) but if you google "mug cake" you should come up with a plethora of options. Here is the one we (Dawson) made:<br />
<br />
Peanut Butter Mug Cake<br />
<br />
<br />
<center style="background-color: white; color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://kirbiecravings.com/" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;">recipe from//Kirbie's Cravings</a></center>
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</center>
<center style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">
<center style="text-align: left;">
4 tablespoons all purpose flour</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
4 tablespoons white granulated sugar</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
1/4 tsp baking powder</center>
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1 egg</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
3 tablespoons peanut butter</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
3 tablespoons milk</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
3 tablespoons vegetable oil</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
Combine all ingredients in an oversized coffee mug. Whisk well with a small whisk until smooth. Microwave on high for 1 1/2 minutes and then take it out to check to see if it is done. If not, continue to microwave in thirty second intervals. You don’t want to overcook it or it will become rubbery. You can also make this into two smaller-sized mugs. You can mix the batter all in one mug and then pour half into another mug. Make sure you cook each one individually.</center>
<center style="text-align: left;">
Delicious.</center>
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Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-2021993060438979592012-08-07T23:12:00.000-04:002012-08-08T10:18:06.946-04:00Episode 100 - DIYSo...long time no post, eh? To be honest, I haven't been experimenting in the kitchen all that much lately. Instead, I've been making a lot of oldies-but-goodies while Dawson and I have been busy home-ifying our house! I'm so impressed with our work so far! Check out a few of our projects:<br />
<br />
<strong>DIY Faux-Canvas Prints</strong><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9GikJLeog8T8PJjNU56iA1dswhWpc6sFMLNqm0jgpzVQCTqboCz8-PjHsQPHNUJfVoIgFazKBesUHVrnYFKAjK9Ygf5A0T-3NFlmR5xJ_LqwiqsAnauvLq-XbwLVhyqnWt_3YHLoOCo/s1600/canvas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" eda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9GikJLeog8T8PJjNU56iA1dswhWpc6sFMLNqm0jgpzVQCTqboCz8-PjHsQPHNUJfVoIgFazKBesUHVrnYFKAjK9Ygf5A0T-3NFlmR5xJ_LqwiqsAnauvLq-XbwLVhyqnWt_3YHLoOCo/s320/canvas.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Next step - a taller, upholstered headboard and refishing that old bedside table!</td></tr>
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<br />
<strong>Step-by-Step</strong><br />
<br />
Materials:<br />
Poster sized photo<br />
MDF<br />
Paint<br />
Spray adhesive<br />
Picture hanging hardware<br />
<br />
1) Get your photo printed and enlarged on some good quality paper. These are 20 x 30 but choose any size you like (we got ours done at Walmart thanks to a generous housewarming gift from some friends - thanks guys!).<br />
2) Go over to Home Depot and get a piece of MDF cut to the same size as your photos - if you're friendly they'll do the cutting and measuring for you!<br />
3) Attach your picture hanging hardware to the back of your MDF - usually the kit comes with some little nails to do this. <br />
4) Now, flip the board over and paint the edges of your MDF and let it dry - these will show when it's up on the wall. We painted ours to match the wall, but you can use any color you like.<br />
5) Spray the entire board with spray adhesive, concentrating on the edges.<br />
6) Quickly, but carefully lay the picture on top of the board while being sure to line up the edges.<br />
7) Squeeze out any bubbles and let the adhesive dry for about an hour. <br />
8) Trim any part of the photo that overhangs the edge of the wood with an exacto knife and, voila! <br />
<br />
<strong>Dawson's DIY Workbench</strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_mn9BjnpAGX0zx1z9gB_zhFg-ZCVxKs5XfWnu6ujnwdnz0TeZWf9bd5D8tWHqFd9PGemxORWih4-X_bEOlmOYDqSPjNJO9UyK-pa9swJGGC6GSvpJoj3Sw3m3-xV3u7CX2uFswVkyklA/s1600/bench.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" eda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_mn9BjnpAGX0zx1z9gB_zhFg-ZCVxKs5XfWnu6ujnwdnz0TeZWf9bd5D8tWHqFd9PGemxORWih4-X_bEOlmOYDqSPjNJO9UyK-pa9swJGGC6GSvpJoj3Sw3m3-xV3u7CX2uFswVkyklA/s320/bench.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's huge...6 feet long!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
If you're interested, plans for this can be found <a href="http://www.familyhandyman.com/DIY-Projects/Woodworking/Workbenches/how-to-build-a-workbench-super-simple-50-bench/View-All" target="_blank">here.</a> Every man needs his workspace! Isn't this great?! It's solid as a rock (and weighs about 1000 lbs) and was way cheaper than buying a crappy plastic one from Canadian Tire. Plus, now he'll have space to work on all the other projects I have planned for him, starting with...<br />
<br />
<strong>DIY Wooden Nail Polish Rack</strong><br />
<br />
Laugh if you want, but this was totally necessary. I used to have a spice rack with all of my polishes on it but I very quickly outgrew it and ended up wth polished randomly stashed all over the place. This is the perfect solution. It has room for my collection to grow, lets me keep them organized and even has little "anti-polish-suicide" barriers in the front to keep the bottles from taking a flying leap off of the ledge. You know you want one! Here's how we built it:<br />
<br />
Materials:<br />
3 pieces of 1x2x8 construction lumber - cut this into 8 24-inch pieces and 2 31.5-inch pieces<br />
16 feet of molding (any kind you like, I "liked" the cheapest one I could find) - cut this into 7 26-inch pieces<br />
Sandpaper<br />
Wood Glue<br />
32 small finishing nails, 1.5 inches long<br />
14 headless nails, 1 inch long<br />
paint (see note below)<br />
Mounting hardware<br />
<br />
Start by cutting all of your wood. Next, sand down all the edges to make them smooth and pretty, then attach the 1x2 pieces together like this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjClT2cEl43cl1xx1fqJsc4pSEBevvQujuQrkt0_nzgdQktRKz-q3ZZqgltd-QyfWJZoVzvJZGK33_z5OchjZ2THg19y7uOmq5HguFULNA3eDvxADrzvGIOPlnJqG2HB00dTA_gKrHdpTc/s1600/polishrack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjClT2cEl43cl1xx1fqJsc4pSEBevvQujuQrkt0_nzgdQktRKz-q3ZZqgltd-QyfWJZoVzvJZGK33_z5OchjZ2THg19y7uOmq5HguFULNA3eDvxADrzvGIOPlnJqG2HB00dTA_gKrHdpTc/s320/polishrack.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
It's easier if you nail all of the shelves onto one of the sides first and then attach the other side. Make sure your shelves are level before nailing them in!<br />
Now for the delicate part - attaching your molding. First spread some wood glue on the shelf where you want to mount your self.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHRZv8fmXDP-K0lg2d7Wj2U5t3-Yd-1Ishlt0ciikIDiVi5gH8Xz4_Dh5l6vXXeQy-_enJkscS2xrBpbfmvCeNKfXI51JObrNA3Fvt7-Mz2nUWd2rgOm8ITcJ9pz0AdOaeT0U6E_q4BO4/s1600/Camping+2012+070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHRZv8fmXDP-K0lg2d7Wj2U5t3-Yd-1Ishlt0ciikIDiVi5gH8Xz4_Dh5l6vXXeQy-_enJkscS2xrBpbfmvCeNKfXI51JObrNA3Fvt7-Mz2nUWd2rgOm8ITcJ9pz0AdOaeT0U6E_q4BO4/s320/Camping+2012+070.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Stick the molding on and while holding it steady, secure it with a headless nail on each end. Be very careful - the wood splits easily!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBtSC4vvL3o4blH0-t8vvOdNDIvsmLEr0DmIFwJj4avyGC1uZNlzhvJfonfVgsSLZg8a0EuGV_objdGv2V3o2kbKt-FIsxmnUhyphenhyphenvyKwMF2Ar_2kUrQkQVIn19-OYYH2f7nZWmAPNarkFg/s1600/Camping+2012+072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBtSC4vvL3o4blH0-t8vvOdNDIvsmLEr0DmIFwJj4avyGC1uZNlzhvJfonfVgsSLZg8a0EuGV_objdGv2V3o2kbKt-FIsxmnUhyphenhyphenvyKwMF2Ar_2kUrQkQVIn19-OYYH2f7nZWmAPNarkFg/s320/Camping+2012+072.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Now you get to do a dance with your almost completed rack!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2EJij1H-RHWQvBRCwTwbvMGmfJVSupgmE-JuiaC9q6juXlT5QFeZFeOq61brmp_obhGFWBpuBSeUYKyyaGkzPGOsx676l85h-RhN8r-13_JL8CCyKwRnKzTKFFiSVuGu31JjWPjrrN8k/s1600/Camping+2012+074.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2EJij1H-RHWQvBRCwTwbvMGmfJVSupgmE-JuiaC9q6juXlT5QFeZFeOq61brmp_obhGFWBpuBSeUYKyyaGkzPGOsx676l85h-RhN8r-13_JL8CCyKwRnKzTKFFiSVuGu31JjWPjrrN8k/s320/Camping+2012+074.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
Let your wood glue dry over night then paint with the color of choice. Get some mounting hardware and stick this baby up on the wall! Tada!!! Amazing polish shelf! You'll want you hardware to hold a significant amount of weight...like 75 pounds. Nail polish is heavy!<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXazghrxLKW4TlAFhnLl3uxATUZhBEGyxZYbjzRngr23HptGKV0e5DyIv5-hpQGUPYwW3OsONDl7_PqGwG4l2_lA1WGsdDa7z_8kE-CGkliB-kl77BxIadhnH_gggDjAAPtyb7ryEhwnI/s1600/Nailpolish+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXazghrxLKW4TlAFhnLl3uxATUZhBEGyxZYbjzRngr23HptGKV0e5DyIv5-hpQGUPYwW3OsONDl7_PqGwG4l2_lA1WGsdDa7z_8kE-CGkliB-kl77BxIadhnH_gggDjAAPtyb7ryEhwnI/s320/Nailpolish+002.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I swear the shelf is level, I just suck at taking pictures...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
** Note: I painted this thing with left over semi-gloss latex paint. It worked but was kind of a pain. If you're going to make one of these I recommend you spray paint that baby. Either way works though!<br />
<br />
In any case, I'm sure we'll be back to cooking soon enough! Until then I hope you try out some DIY home-ifying!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-42506275175324834912012-07-04T17:00:00.000-04:002012-07-04T17:00:02.081-04:00Episode 99 - Samba TimeOk internet, I <i>need</i> to tell you about our weekend getaway because:<br />
It. Was. Awesome. <br />
First of all, we checked into what was quite possibly the nicest hotel room I have ever stayed in. I'm pretty sure the square-footage rivaled the first floor of our house! There was a sitting room with double french doors leading to the bedroom with a huge king-sized bed with a leather headboard! The bathroom had a stone accent wall and a huge tub and there was a Keurig coffee machine! It was amazing. Really, props to you <a href="http://www.chateaucartier.com/en/" target="_blank">Chateau Cartier</a> - that hotel room rocked! After marveling at the incredible room for about an hour we set out for dinner.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9qVGmTJ3EHUI7yaLMtJdrvKMehn4HA8mJF9YAk6LC59jbOw13YB1IEErHbdNnmM5gYZmcZM0qZtkhE4r4p3JDzQZprV0RXSTicIDgTC-SQJlV4mCDWdLoxKKYieAGkMaFLk8B439miNI/s1600/hotel2.JPEG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9qVGmTJ3EHUI7yaLMtJdrvKMehn4HA8mJF9YAk6LC59jbOw13YB1IEErHbdNnmM5gYZmcZM0qZtkhE4r4p3JDzQZprV0RXSTicIDgTC-SQJlV4mCDWdLoxKKYieAGkMaFLk8B439miNI/s320/hotel2.JPEG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is this not insane?!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO4OziCGVNK0TQqQDccN5GMbK4e_55zvS-W4-lbXYZ_ix1xFmSkokJk4NmY2r36G9sKVn72AVwCdxG_hyNST-JKGeQCwVwBlJxwTOF98AghvisroV5NVPxcpzx4YE6Gm3g4Zw3eGRXwWM/s1600/hotel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO4OziCGVNK0TQqQDccN5GMbK4e_55zvS-W4-lbXYZ_ix1xFmSkokJk4NmY2r36G9sKVn72AVwCdxG_hyNST-JKGeQCwVwBlJxwTOF98AghvisroV5NVPxcpzx4YE6Gm3g4Zw3eGRXwWM/s320/hotel.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I wanted to steal the headboard for home...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
We took advantage of a really awesome <a href="http://www.groupon.com/ottawa" target="_blank">Groupon</a> to a restaurant called "<a href="http://www.ekkodebrasil.com/" target="_blank">Ekko de Brasil</a>", which included dinner, 2 Brazilian caipirinha cocktails, a bottle of wine and 2 Brazilian coffees all for the ridiculous price of $80! That deal would be awesome at any ol' restaurant but let me tell you, this isn't just any ol' restaurant! There are live samba dancers, music, a huge salad/side dish bar and gauchos serving you all-you-can-eat meat off of swords. Swords! We had steak, bacon wrapped-chicken, beer-basted chicken legs, Parmesan pork, and the most ridiculously awesome leg of lamb ever! Honestly, it was to die for! We made a very firm decision to go back with friends and family at the first available opportunity! If you're ever in the Ottawa-Gatineau region you should definitely check it out!<br />
<br />
Switching gears a little, I also want to tell you about the bacon roll-ups I made for the annual Canada Day BBQ we went to. This recipe is not my own creation, but is awesome and you should definitely make it. Comments from our friends about these little gems included:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
"These are the best food I have ever eaten"</div>
and<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
"Ever since I ate those bacon things, all I can think about is those bacon things"</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
...so you know they're kinda good!</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Bacon Roll-Ups </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2
lbs bacon<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1 loaf brown bread</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1
can sweetened condensed milk<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">¼ cup prepared mustard<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1
tsp Worcestershire sauce<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2
cups Colby or medium cheese<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Preheat the oven to 375 F. Start the prep work by cutting the crust off
bread and then rolling each slice flat with a rolling pin. Next, cut your packages of bacon in half. Mix the remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside - don't be freaked out by the randomness of these ingredients, they will taste awesome together, I promise. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> To assemble the rolls, lay three pieces of the halved bacon on the counter overlapping slightly. Top this with one slice of the flattened bread and about a tbsp of the crazy mixture spread evenly over the top. Grab the edge of the bacon and roll the whole thing into a log. Secure the log with 3 evenly spaced toothpicks and then slice into 3 pieces. Repeat with more bacon bread and crazy mix until all your ingredients are used up. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes then switch on the broiler and broil for 5 minutes or until the bacon gets nice and crispy. Stick 'em on a platter, serve them to your friends and prepare yourself to receive at least one marriage proposal. Seriously - people like these <i>that</i> much. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
Overall, I'd say it was a pretty spectacular long weekend! How did you spend your holiday this year?</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">· </span></div>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-38800850937182118252012-06-29T22:34:00.000-04:002012-06-29T22:34:57.409-04:00Episode 98 - In the Lap of LuxurySometimes my life is so hard. I just got back from a 3 day conference in Toronto where I was forced to swim in the heated saltwater pool, soak in the hot tub and sleep alone in a huge king sized bed with 6 pillows. I was also forced to eat croissants, fancy cheeses, smoked salmon and omelets made to my exact specifications. Rough, eh? I haven't even told you about the wine! The <i>free</i> wine. Free! Wine! <span style="background-color: white;">Despite all these </span><span style="background-color: white;">luxuries I really couldn't wait to get home to my own bed, my own kitchen and my own man, because sometimes things don't have to be fancy to be perfect.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Grilled Salmon with Dill Sauce</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO3X8uV8bK3UQTcb3QpfKs9Huv94kHH8oPE7pAteB-A-XBsTCjNQ1cNKEBySvgMaJ2Ba1w3j-MB-taXSnIqTpX-OUHBm7eNj1NM54AgpKFdOLY33aDu4yCjwXkuUec3AE7cHXtAc47zXE/s1600/Food+Stuff+353.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO3X8uV8bK3UQTcb3QpfKs9Huv94kHH8oPE7pAteB-A-XBsTCjNQ1cNKEBySvgMaJ2Ba1w3j-MB-taXSnIqTpX-OUHBm7eNj1NM54AgpKFdOLY33aDu4yCjwXkuUec3AE7cHXtAc47zXE/s320/Food+Stuff+353.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This picture does not do this meal justice. Some day I promise to<br />get some kind of actual photography <i>skill</i>...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white;">1 large fillet of salmon</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">1 lemon, sliced into rounds</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">salt and pepper, to taste</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">1 cup couscous</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">1 cup chicken broth</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">2 tbsp capers plus about 1 tsp of the juice</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">2 tbsp olive oil</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">1 tsp dijon mustard</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">salt and pepper, to taste</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">2 tbsp mayo</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">1 tsp dijon</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">1 tbsp chopped dill</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">salt and pepper, to taste</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Start by building yourself a little fish boat (described <a href="http://bookofdeliciosity.blogspot.ca/2011/06/episode-35-fishy-fiesta.html" target="_blank">here</a>) and lay out a bed of lemon slices. Stick the fish up on top, season it with salt and pepper then grill away - about 15 minutes over medium heat (this can vary depending on how thick your fish is).</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">While the fish is cooking start the couscous. To do this you pretty much follow the directions on the box but substituting chicken broth for the water. When its all nice and fluffy add the capers and juice, oil, mustard, salt and pepper and mix until it's delicious.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Finally, the sauce - this is the easy part. Just stick everything in a ramekin and stir. Done!</span><br />
Serve the salmon over a bed of the couscous with a dollop or two of the dill sauce up on top! Simple, but delicious!<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Now that I'm home the luxury seems to be continuing. I took today off of work and spent the day shopping and getting a massage and tomorrow Dawson and I are going off to celebrate our anniversary (that we both forgot about this year!) by eating copious amounts of Brazilian food. We'll also be staying in yet another fancy-dancy hotel, mostly because the dinner comes with far more alcohol than we could possibly drink and still be able to legally drive home - be safe kids, don't drink and drive - stay in fancy hotel beds instead! Yeah, sometimes my life is so hard.</span>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7349544519915832237.post-32380585202997151632012-06-23T17:11:00.001-04:002012-06-23T17:16:26.429-04:00Episode 97 - The Mighty Canadian MooseIf you're ever visiting Carleton Place (which you should totally do now that I have an actual guest room you can stay in!), the visit would just not be complete without a trip to The Thirsty Moose. This is a bar, not a large animal greeting you from the ditch as you drive into town...you know, in case you were confused. It's pretty much the place to be on Saturday nights around here. Forget Ottawa bars with their flashy dance floors and fruity mixed drinks - we've got a juke box and a patio overlooking the backdoor of a pizza place! Sometimes there's even a band playing some (mostly recognizable) rendition of "Sweet Home Alabama"! Party time! <br />
One good thing I must say about the moose, though - what it lacks in ambiance, and well, <i>class</i> in general, it makes up for with this gem of an idea:<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBz2PoHob3_KcPf6aJmd9GaIXak5dgEoTkkVHExOPnJtTbPOclmIKh5cA8qz74Z0JvV4ED0h10k-h2F0A_0zr5eNjOZYKwiT7Fcn73MzfQoJgio-OFwP2P1ApY08P7s2stSoqpkf0HAB8/s1600/Food+Stuff+349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBz2PoHob3_KcPf6aJmd9GaIXak5dgEoTkkVHExOPnJtTbPOclmIKh5cA8qz74Z0JvV4ED0h10k-h2F0A_0zr5eNjOZYKwiT7Fcn73MzfQoJgio-OFwP2P1ApY08P7s2stSoqpkf0HAB8/s320/Food+Stuff+349.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No moose were harmed in the making of this sandwich.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The Mighty Canadian Sandwich. <br />
<br />
2 whole wheat buns<br />
1 tsp canola oil<br />
4 thick slices of peameal bacon<br />
2 slices tomato<br />
1/4 cup diced pepperonchini peppers<br />
2 slices cheddar cheese<br />
a few thinly sliced onions<br />
a few leaves of spinach<br />
1 tsp mayo<br />
1/2 tsp dijon mustard<br />
<br />
Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Toss in your nice thick peameal slices and cook for 5 minutes per side. Meanwhile, spread mayo on one side of your toasty bun and dijon on the other. When the peameal is done cooking slap it on the bun and then top with all the other stuff. So delicious! So simple! <br />
<br />
The Moose's version is slightly different, in that it comes with the peameal crusted in potato chip crumbs and with pickles instead of the hot peppers, but realistically, it tastes pretty similar to this. I had never thought of slicing peameal nice and thick and sticking it on a bun but it's pretty genius! Deliciously genius.<br />
<br />
Just in case you never make it out to see The Moose in all its glory and you desperately need to experience it vicariously through us, I will leave you with a few m<span style="background-color: white;">emories from The Moose:</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgM7Ppt13_8OGC1Tn2UCn4uz5CrEYhGvp7khe_Y8PWpJhjPCnHZxjjt59waMgewb84XKoYYAPyxUr9jQ5Krf4STsTYd03Uxc9j5bpI7H9e5PAGAj0BRXgS3H6dGJ3HRWhU8eV958wm_i8/s1600/Spring+2010+038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgM7Ppt13_8OGC1Tn2UCn4uz5CrEYhGvp7khe_Y8PWpJhjPCnHZxjjt59waMgewb84XKoYYAPyxUr9jQ5Krf4STsTYd03Uxc9j5bpI7H9e5PAGAj0BRXgS3H6dGJ3HRWhU8eV958wm_i8/s320/Spring+2010+038.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My, what long arms I have!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusqyPgI1cbrDk0_RKo7-3QyvuNdKsfRCf0SC6HcFhWjvwRjwkL_ufK76i1meDlyfJ3kzW6VJLQJNXUchza3TpybTXOW0KxSNChMLBPnDaW53rHdojTHU6Z5J_BYvr5dYAf5AIdIIt298/s1600/Spring+2010+015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusqyPgI1cbrDk0_RKo7-3QyvuNdKsfRCf0SC6HcFhWjvwRjwkL_ufK76i1meDlyfJ3kzW6VJLQJNXUchza3TpybTXOW0KxSNChMLBPnDaW53rHdojTHU6Z5J_BYvr5dYAf5AIdIIt298/s320/Spring+2010+015.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kisses!</td></tr>
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<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYxvYh-l73aTQbRXtZb4XsX_2RWFVMjMgxGENkbZ3SH3v3idJjyZFV8P69vJtu2HXZ1ecsWyx1379To-H9SRQbCrF3ROQkyulshgPFQ0tne76AO9tVxpT6LXVoGDEQAAQQkTJoLfAuPtU/s1600/Birthday+2011+032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYxvYh-l73aTQbRXtZb4XsX_2RWFVMjMgxGENkbZ3SH3v3idJjyZFV8P69vJtu2HXZ1ecsWyx1379To-H9SRQbCrF3ROQkyulshgPFQ0tne76AO9tVxpT6LXVoGDEQAAQQkTJoLfAuPtU/s320/Birthday+2011+032.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And just for good measure- the morning after!</td></tr>
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<br />Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15343984162164720274noreply@blogger.com2