And she's hoping for her own blog one day, but is currently without the high-speed Internet.
Anyway, we're working out some formatting issues, so bear with us.
In other news, pictures of a Chewy bed forthcoming soon! My dress is on hold.
Without further ado, here's her first installment of Try This!
Try This!
March 2007
RECIPES:
Pan-Seared Tilapia with Sautéed Green Beans and Grape Tomatoes
1/4 lb green beans, trimmed
4 tilapia fillets (5-6 oz each)
Wegmans Pan Searing Flour
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp butter
2 tsp chopped shallots
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 pkg. (10 oz) grape tomatoes, halved
1. Blanch green beans 1-2 min in large pot of boiling, salted water. Drain; set aside.
2. Dust tilapia with pan-searing flour. Pat off excess.
3. Heat oil in skillet on MEDIUM-HIGH, until oil faintly smokes; add fish.
4. Turn over when fish changes color one-quarter of the way up and seared side has turned paper bag-brown, 2-3 min. Reduce heat to MEDIUM. Cook 3-5 min, until internal temp reaches 120 degrees; check by inserting thermometer halfway into thickest part of fish.
5. Add butter, shallots and thyme to pan. Swirl. Baste with spoon, 1-3 min, until internal temp reaches 130 degrees. Transfer to clean platter; let rest at least 2 min.
6. Add green beans and tomatoes to pan; cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Serve over tilapia.
This Tilapia dish is super simple, quick to make, and so good!
-Melisza Campos
Easiest & Tastiest Nacho Dip Ever
8 oz. softened cream cheese (nonfat works fine)
2 "good" cups shredded cheddar cheese
½ jar of pineapple salsa (or regular salsa with pineapple chunks added)
2-3 chopped scallions
1 small jar sliced black olives (optional)
Put all together in a casserole dish of some kind and heat at 350 degrees for 15-20 min. Stir up and serve with corn chips. YUM!
-Kary Fronk
Easy Baked Ziti
1 pkg. (16 oz.) ziti pasta
1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 container (15 oz.) POLLY-O Original Ricotta Cheese
1 pkg. (8 oz.) POLLY-O Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/4 cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese
PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Cook pasta as directed on package. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water. MIX spaghetti sauce, ricotta cheese and reserved 1/2 cup pasta cooking water in large bowl. Add pasta and 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese; mix lightly. Spoon into 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and the Parmesan cheese. Cover. BAKE 30 min.; uncover. Bake an additional 10 min. or until heated through.
This baked ziti is a perfect low cost dinner and a great dish to pass at a pot luck.
-Melisza Campos
CHICKEN CURRY STIR FRY
2T Chicken bouillon
3/4 C water
1/4 tsp Garlic powder
1-1/2 tsp Curry powder
2T Cornstarch
1/4-1/2lb Chicken, cut into thin strips
1 Pkg Frozen Stir Fry Vegetables
2T water
1C grape tomatoes, sliced in half
Dissolve bouillon in water.
Add garlic powder, curry powder, and cornstarch. Mix well and set aside.
Stir fry chicken to cooked through.
Add vegetables and water. Cover and cook over medium heat 7-10 minutes.
Add sauce, cover, and cook until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally.
Add tomato, and heat through.
Serve over brown rice.
This recipe was successful in getting my husband to eat vegetables – a rare thing!
-Sommer Pearson
Cracked Chocolate Earth with Whipped Cream (Flourless Chocolate Cake):
1 pound bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
(I used 1/2 bittersweet, 1/2 semisweet)
1 stick unsalted butter
9 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
1 cup heavy cream, cold
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter/spray a 9-inch spring form pan.
Put the chocolate and butter into the top of a double boiler (or in a heatproof bowl) and heat over (but not touching) about 1 inch of simmering water until melted. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar in a mixing bowl until light yellow in color. Whisk a little of the chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture to temper the eggs - this will keep the eggs from scrambling from the heat of the chocolate; then whisk in the rest of the chocolate mixture.
Beat the egg whites in a mixing bowl until stiff peaks form and fold into the chocolate mixture. Pour into the prepared pan (spray the bottom with nonstick spray) and bake until the cake is set, the top starts to crack, and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out with moist crumbs clinging to it, 20 to 25 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, then unmold.
While the cake is cooking, make the whipped cream. Whip the cream until it becomes light and fluffy. Dust the cake with confectioners' sugar. Serve at room temperature with the whipped cream.
I made this cake last weekend and it was still completely delicious. I cut shapes out of index cards (hearts/snowflakes) and put the shapes on top of the cake and then sifted confectioner's sugar on it - then I took the cards off. It was pretty. I also think that REAL whipped cream is a must. The textures were wonderful together.
-Leslie Drescher
DRINKS
Pomegranate Martini
1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
2 oz. Absolute Citron vodka OR white tequila
1 oz. Cointreau liquor
Cup of ice
Optional: Splash of sparkling water
Optional: Squeeze of lemon
This drink seems to be all the rage right now and I made them for my New Year’s Eve party. I got the recipe from Oprah and they’re super yummy!
-Megan Fargione
GREAT PRODUCTS
Method Glass and Surface Cleaner - Mint Scented
Get it at Target for about $3 (I think). I like it because it smells so refreshing and it doesn't leave that awful ammonia smell all over the place. And it's all natural, so no harsh chemicals!
-Lori Strong
ECOver (Whole Foods)
Another great surface cleaner for about $4. Smells like citrus
and also made of all plant oils.
-Lori Strong
Scotch Delicate Surface Tape
If you are painting I highly recommend using the blue scotch "delicate surface tape" which has an orange stamp on it. It's the perfect thing to edge and accent with.
-Marissa Parisi
Annie's Homegrown Cheddar Bunnies
http://www.annies.com/products/healthy_kids_snack.html
-Sara Strong
BOOKS
The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
My all-time favorite book. – Sara Strong
Running with Scissors: A Memoir by Augusten Burroughs
This book is amazing. It goes to show you that truth really is stranger than fiction.
-Marilyn Anderson
The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
This book was on the Oprah Show about a week and a half ago along with a panel of people who practice its methods and helped put the book together. It is an easy read with examples that just about anyone can relate to. What it is about? Life! How you can make the most of your life, get the things you want, be where you want to be. It is all in your hands and you can find out why!
- Angela Bucci
TV SHOWS & MOVIES
Meerkat Manor on Animal Planet
-Sara Strong
Lost
If you like a show with twists and turns, I highly recommend LOST. It is an awesome show and you rarely know what's coming. The DVDs make it easy to catch up--it is one of those shows you can't miss an episode of...not that you'll want to....
- Kary Fronk
Drowning Mona
Hilarious! - Leslie Drescher
The Illusionist
-Leslie Drescher
WEBSITES
www.wholesomebabyfood.com & www.wholesometoddlerfood.com
Yummy info about food for babies and toddlers, along with simple recipes. I used the baby food website for quite some time and am now moving on over to the toddler site. -Lori Strong
If you are looking for a good site to buy any kind of herbal remedy or vitamins, this is a great site. The cost is a fraction of what you would pay at the health food store.
- Carol Berry
www.funkymart.com
Fun website with lots of great magnets and novelty stuff.
-Leslie Drescher
HOME IMPROVEMENT
How to Fix a Garbage Disposal:
If something went down it that made it not work anymore try these steps.
1. Underneath you sink on the disposal unit there should be a reset
switch.
2. If something is still stuck in it or it's making a loud noise there is a
place on the unit near the switch
where you can place a small L wrench.
3. Turn the wrench which turns the blades until the item it unstuck. Try
to reset it again.
My husband and I just learned how to fix our garbage disposal, it may be an odd recommendation, but it was a lifesaver for us!!
-Marissa Parisi
VACATION SPOTS / HOTELS
http://www.premiereonline.com.mx/
This is the hotel is Puerto Vallarta, Mexico my husband and I stayed at for our 1 year anniversary and LOVED!
-Melisza Campos
Grand Canyon Skywalk
The Grand Canyon Skywalk opens at the end of this month. This horseshoe-shaped walkway juts 70 feet into the canyon, is 4000 feet above the canyon floor, and has a glass bottom. The skywalk was built as part of the Hualapai Tribe’s Grand Canyon West destination-in-development, an effort to get visitors to the West Rim and increase economic livelihood. I obviously haven’t seen it yet because it isn’t open, but it looks amazing!
-Sarah Anderson
Meditation Gardens at the Self-Realization Center in Encinitas, CA
If you're ever in the San Diego, CA area a must-visit spot is the Meditation Gardens at the Self-Realization Center in Encinitas (located about mid-county). The gardens are so serene and peaceful. They are green and lush, full of beautiful foliage with the sound of running water trickling into little carp filled ponds. But, beyond that is the view, the magnificent view! The Gardens are located on a cliff overlooking the ocean and the view is truly breathtaking. You can see up and down the coast, and out for miles. If you're ever there, you can't miss seeing this. It is a hidden gem that most tourists (and many locals) would never know about otherwise. Plus, Encinitas is a great little surf town in itself. For lunch, I recommend Swami's Cafe for a smoothie or wrap. Named for the local beach and the local monks, it's located within walking distance from the Gardens. When you do visit the area, feel free to email me and I can give you lots of other great local places to go that you might otherwise miss! phreegirl01@hotmail.com
Self-Realization Center - http://www.yogananda-srf.org/temples/encinitas/index.html
Swami's Café - http://www.swamis.signonsandiego.com/
-Valerie Consiglio-Nickerson
ARTISTS
My new favorite artist. –Sara Strong
LIFE TIPS
Never, ever be afraid to be the only one laughing;
most of the time, people join in anyway!
-Kary Fronk
ANY recommendation you have, we want!!
Send in your tips for the next installment of Try This!
* Books * Movies * Websites * Recipes * Drinks * Craft Projects * TV Shows * Cleaning Products * Parenting Tips * Organizing Techniques * Snacks * Artists * Vacation Spots * Make-up Products * Great Ideas *
Send tips to: sanders492@yahoo.com
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