(Originally posted on my old blog "The Domestication of a Punk Rock Foodie" on August 08, 2009.)
Sundays are a great day for brunch and a book. And after hectic Saturdays, I heart them.
I work Monday to Friday and I try to do all my errands and chores on Saturdays. Usually this means by 4:00 I'm a manic, exhausted, chain smoking hawt mess because I hate people who are out in public on Saturdays... most of the people... and really really really hate the ones that are out on Saturdays, murdering me one minute at a time in a line at a store. Ohhhh I know you know what I'm talking about. The dumbasses at the till, still shopping even though being in line at the till indicates you are finished doing what you need to do in the store, want to pay for your shit (so the bag boy doesn't body check you into the display at the front doors and have you arrested by mall security) and leave. Ya, those fuckers. I always end up in line behind them. Hate them. I hate them with a such a passionate rancor it makes me want to spew bile. It makes me a bad Buddhist, I know, I know. But surely even Buddha would get his robe in a knot if he had his life shaved off him while standing in line behind these assholes.
Another thing I can't stand about lines is people who ram their carts into me. Here's the thing about that... I have a fat ass. You can't miss it. Its flat but its fat and if you have eyes in your head, whoop, there it is. Therefore the "Sorry, didn't see you!" argument fails. Big. Epic. Fail. Pushing your cart into my fat ass will not get you and your groceries to the till, scanned, bagged, and out the door any faster. I do not possess a magic ass that, when a cart is inserted in it, unleashes the grocery store faeries who you imagine will poetically swoop down, check out your groceries and get you out the door, ahead of everyone else. No, its a very normal ass. Its an ass that functions in an exit-only manner so keep your dreams of anal grocery cart action and faeries to yourself. Please, just back up, chill out, and realize that we all have to stand here and wait our turn.
Now you know why I like to become one with the sofa or a chair on the deck on Sundays. The best way to get that started is a great breakfast.
MAKE
Menu:
Lower Fat Banana Muffins
Strawberry Lemonade
Gourmet Scrambled Eggs
LOWER FAT BANANA MUFFINS
Make these first so they are all lovely and warm when you are done making your lemonade and eggs. Feel free to add 2/3 cup dried fruit and/or a 1/2 of chopped nuts for added flavour and texture. And calories, but good calories. Not bad fast food death calories.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
2 1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 c. sugar (I like to use Splenda's brown sugar)
2 egg whites (or 1 whole egg), beaten
3 tbsp. canola oil (extra virgin olive oil will work too)
3 tbsp. soy milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. allspice (you can use cinnamon and/or nutmeg too)
2 bananas, mashed
paper muffin cups
Pam olive oil spray
Method:
-preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
-combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl
-make a well and add wet ingredients
-mix by folding the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients; make sure you don't over mix as this will overwork the batter and you won't have all those lovely pockets of air the baking soda and powder create
-very lightly spray muffin tin with Pam
-line muffin tin with paper cups
-fill the cups between 1/2 and 3/4 full
-bake for 20 minutes
-do the sexy toothpick trick (insert, pull out... clean = done, wet = cook more, in 5 minute increments)
STRAWBERRY LEMONADE
The night before you make this recipe, hull and halve one cup of strawberries and put them in a sealed container in the freezer. These will double as a garnish as well as a fruity ice cube when you are putting the finishing touches on this drink.
Ingredients:
1 c. sugar or Splenda
1/2 c. water
2 c. fresh strawberries, washed, stemmed, and sliced
1 c. fresh lemon juice, strained (You can use the bottled juice but may have to adjust your sugar to compensate for the acidity)
24 oz. sparkling water (I've been known to use any of the following: San Pelligrino, Perrier, Club Soda.)
1 c. frozen strawberries, hulled and halved
Method:
-combine the sugar (or Splenda) and water in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture becomes clear
-pour into a blender or food processor
-add the fresh strawberries and lemon juice and puree until evenly blended
-in a large pitcher, mix the puree with the sparkling water
-place frozen strawberries in glasses and pour the mixture over the frozen strawberries
GOURMET SCRAMBLED EGGS
There aren't any measurements to go with this recipe. The ingredient list is something that you can play with and adjust to your palate. Have all your ingredients ready because this recipe cooks fast.
Ingredients:
eggs
fresh spinach
fresh basil (you can use fresh oregano as well)
salt
pepper
shredded cheese or crumbled cheese (like feta)
salsa
low fat sour cream
Pam spray
silicon or rubber spatula
Method:
-chiffonade spinach and basil, set aside
-shred or crumble cheese, set aside
-beat eggs
-spray a non-stick pan with Pam to thinly coat the pan
-turn heat to medium
-add salt and pepper to eggs and beat well
-add eggs to heated pan and constantly folding and scrambling the eggs using the spatula; if you are using a rubber spatula, don't leave the spatula in the pan or it will melt
-add spinach and basil
-after about 30 - 45 seconds, turn off heat and continue to cook using residual heat
-add shredded cheese and fold into eggs
-plate and top with salsa and sour cream, if desired
THINK
Find out what you are afraid of and go live there. ~ Chuck Palahniuk (from Invisible Monsters
LISTEN
Jay-Z, Kanye, Rihanna - Run This Town (for Amy)
Lauryn Hill - Lose Yourself
Exploited - Maggie (BIG c-bomb warning... these guys hated Margaret Thatcher and what she did to the U.K. during her reign as the Iron Lady)
READ
Sun Tzu - The Art Of War
This book was written in the sixth century but contains tactics used in modern era warfare by the likes of Mao Zedong and General George Macarthur. That being said, this is not a manual on waging war. The Art Of War is less about war and more about outsmarting your opponents and adversaries, in an effort to avoid a physical and armed conflict via negotiation and strategy.
WATCH
The Story Of Stuff
This 22 minute video will open your eyes to how we consume.
VISIT
TWiT Live
Leo Laporte, the Tech Guy... he makes that technogoobledygock make sense to me.
GO GREEN
Use olive oil as furniture polish (this is for polished wood only):
-combine two parts olive oil with one part lemon juice in a bowl
-using a lint free cloth (micro fibre cloths work well), rub into the wood, following the direction of the grain of the wood
