Oriental slaw, Mmm mmm good

****continued**** i promised an updated recipe using my home resources so here it is! and it's even got... options... OoooOOoo!


Oriental Slaw
(original recipe, x4)

Ingredients:
1 large bag of chopped cabbage or coleslaw mix for more color
8 green onions, chopped
1 stick unsalted butter
2 packages of chicken flavored ramen noodles, crushed in bags, disregard flavor packets
1/2c slivered almonds or chopped peanuts
1/2c sunflower seeds, optional
1/4c sesame seeds
1c vegetable oil
3/4c sugar
2 T soy sauce
1/2c cider vinegar

Directions:
Combine chopped cabbage and onions in your serving bowl. Set aside.
Melt butter in skillet. Pour in noodles. Brown noodles. Add nuts, brown. Add seeds, brown. Toss until everything is browned/toasted. Remove mixture and set aside to cool.

Dressing: combine oil. Soy sauce, sugar, cider vinegar. Wisk well. Refrigerate to set or serve immediately.

Toss cooled noodle mixture with cabbage mixture. Pour dressing over just before serving and toss.
*noodle mixture holds up well when made the night before

Certain Girls

HELLO Jennifer Weiner and thank you for writing another book!

If you're as big a fan as I am of Jennifer, I am sure this has made your month! It's a sequal to her last book, Good In Bed. I remember reading this book at the beach and I think that it really confused my dad...hahaha.

Mother's Day is on it's way

So I know that Mother's Day is coming up and I always LOATH the signs, the cards, and all the hoopla for it because my Mother is gone. So I am very proud to say that I celebrated her this week with my office's monthly fundraising event - Casual for the Cause. We get to pay $5 a day to dress down. This is a week long event. So in celebration of Mother's day, my way, I wanted to share the e-mail that I sent to my office asking them to participate in this fundraising event in my mom's name.

**
Hi Everyone!

Casual for the Cause is next week, April 27th - May 1st. The charity selected is the Love Line at High Point Regional Hospital. This, coincidentally, is my chosen charity and it is very close to my heart. You see, life was going well in the Conrad family in 2006, mom had just retired from almost 40 years of teaching, she and dad went to Italy for the summer, and they built a home in High Point to retire in - things were looking up. But out of the blue my mom started feeling sick and nothing she’d take would make her feel any better. She was diagnosed with lung cancer in October of 2006 and lost her battle just after the Christmas holiday in January of 2007. This woman meant the world to me because she was not only my mom but my best friend and my life line. I called her every hour of every day – to tell her gossip or complain or just because – what moms and daughters do I suppose. I went to see she and my dad almost every weekend. And she was there every step of my everything because I was her only one. I miss her every day but as you can see from her picture on the following link, I am her and she lives on in me. http://mem.com/Story.aspx?ID=1668011

I have learned far more than I ever wanted to know about Cancer. For instance, did you know that each chemo therapy treatment costs TEN THOUSAND dollars???? And you get six of these, SIX every two weeks! It’s astounding. And what if your insurance doesn’t cover the treatments or even worse, what if you don’t have insurance at all?

That is why my charity, the Love Line, helps people who aren’t financially able to get these treatments. Everyone deserves a chance to fight. During the last Love Line meeting I attended, a mother of 2, both under the age of 3, spoke. She was diagnosed with cancer at age 32 and was unable to afford treatments. Oh yea, and she was pregnant. She and her husband could not afford the treatments and through the Love Line the doctors saved her baby and her children got a mother. She had been in remission for over a year.

Let’s help someone else fight the fight.


Thank you for taking the time to read this. I would really appreciate your participation in next week’s Casual for the Cause.


High Point Regional Hospital’s Cancer Center Site:
http://www.highpointregional.org/ourservices/cancer-center/index.asp

Love Line Donation Site:
http://www.ask.com/bar?q=loveline+high+point+regional+hospital&page=1&qsrc=0&ab=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.highpointregional.com%2Fgiving%2Findex.asp
**

Take THIS Sandra Lee!

Love, Love, LOVE Trader Joe's flower selection right now! I was thrilled when I had to run in there last minute on Friday to get ready for my out of town guests! I was very proud of my last minute apps and the lay out of my kitchen table for their arrival! Take this Sandra Lee with all your "tablescapes"! haha.

The world's best banana bread... no really!

So about a year ago I googled "Super Moist Banana Bread" and I was directed to Great Grub's website where I found the perfect banana bread recipe, literally. You can't mess it up. It's perfect!

Tonight I broke out my mini silicon baking cups that Miss Bailey sent me for my Birthday. I thought since I was having guests this weekend, mini banana bread muffins would be the perfect bite before our very busy day on Saturday! :)

Super Moist Banana Bread

Ready

• ¼ pound (1 stick) butter, unsalted and at room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 ½ cups organic unbleached flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup mashed banana, super ripe
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup sour cream (SECRET INGREDIENT)

Set

• Preheat oven to 350°F

Go

1. Sieve together the flour, salt and baking soda then set aside.
2. Cream the butter in the mixer.
3. Once the butter is fluffy, add the sugar and blend the mixture well.
4. Then, add each egg, blending in between.
5. Mix in one third of the dry ingredients and then one third of the banana.
6. Repeat twice.
7. Add the vanilla extract.
8. Blend in the sour cream.
9. Turn the batter into the loaf pan lined with parchment paper. Let batter stand for 15 minutes.
10. Bake for 1 hour. To test if it is done, insert a knife and if it comes out clean, its ready.
11. Turn the finished loaf on to a cooling rack.
12. Serve when you can’t stand to wait any longer.

What you should know

Remember to never over work your batter. It makes a cakey, tougher finish.

More mini 48 mini banana bread muffins, bake for 11 minutes at 350.

Benjamin Button House

While in New Orleans we drove by the Benjamin Button house where the movie was filmed (obviously). It was right around the corner from Commander's Palace, on Coliseum Street.

So guess who hopped online to look it up because word on the street is - it's for sale!!! Apparently Hollywood came in, paid to move the owners out, put the house back together as it was, and then the owners sold it. But I mean, who wouldn't! This house is famous and they could make a killin' once sold! The owners didn't move far - they bought the house next door! If you want to buy the Benjamin Button house, which in person, could very possibly be a Bed and Breakfast because of its enormous size, you can pay $2,850,000. If you can't afford it, you can atleast look at the pictures :)

G-Dub-Ya Finz

For my Birthday dinner, Dave took me to GW Fins and it was DELICIOUS. This is the only picture I could find of us from the night because after a full day of boozing at the FQ Fest - we were completely tuckered out during dinner - and passed out shortly after. We had the lobster appetizer, which we split. I was famished at that point so it went down QUICK! Ha! They also bring your cheese biscuits and boy were they good! I had the yellow beet salad with blue cheese (thought I would try something different!) and the Sea Bass for my main course. The chilean sea bass was delish and was surrounded by a yummy sauce that had a little spice and some bok choy. For dessert, they gave us the molten chocolate cake with a chocolate written "Happy Birthday"! Yum! They even had Kris wine which is a family favorite and you really do need to have Pinot Grigio with fish. Also, with a birthday the restaurant puts confetti on the table and your very own customized menu with your name, the date and a happy birthday message to take home with you. It was a great experience and not too too heavy on the belly!

Commander's Palace - HOLY MOLY

We had my Birthday Brunch at Commander's Palace which is this incredibly LARGE restaurant with incredibly great staff and views! I was really excited because I do love some brunch! From the menu you picked an entree which included an appetizer and dessert - wowza! So Beth and I split their Crisp Romaine salad with "pressed egg" which I was a little concerned about, not being an egg fan, but it turned out A-ok! Then I got the trio of soups which was great because you can try out all of their soups. I'd never had turtle soup and I just LOVED IT. Out of all three, it was the best! Must be the sherry! Also included were gumbo and a crawfish bisque. There was plenty to share with Dave too! For my entree I had the BBQ Shrimp over whipped brie grits, yum. Then for dessert I had ordered the strawberry short cake however it changed during the time I ordered to when it came to the table to a very rich but delicious cheese cake! I'm not a huuuuge cheese cake fan but I must say, I do love the crust and the carmel topping! This also came with a candle! :)

It was really need because on Sundays for brunch Commanders fills thier place with balloons and being the B-day girl I got my very own set of balloons and the chef's hat seen above! With the jazz brunch comes a band and they go around playing for each table and take requests along the way. Of course they played the Happy Birthday song to me and then they played Wonderful World for us all!

We had three hours of fun there and Beth's Birthday gift for me to open that morning had been a signed Commander's cookbook! Really neat to look back and see what all we ate and perhaps Iw ill challenge myself in the future! Ha! As seen above, John and Hannah went home with left overs wrapped in a swan and crab! Really cute!

Sadly, I could not bring my chef's hat home with me but I think I will meet up with it later in the summer when we see Dave's parents!

Something else I have GOT to have! *CONTINUED*

*************Remember THIS post???? WELL! I got the cute Gap Peasant top with Polka Dots from Beth (Dave's Mom) for my Birthday! It is SO CUTE and if you want to get yourself one, we recommend going a size smaller than you actually are!*********************

Wow Gap, way to step it up for Spring! I am putting these on my wish list for sure! The pink dress would definitely work for a Spring wedding or get together. The grey stripe skirt would be adorable paired up with some funky open toed shoes and a yellow cotton tee. And lastly, the hippie blouse, it just looks really comfy especially imagining it with some straight leg denim and sandals!

Zapps Chips and Abita Beer

ZAPPS: If you haven't tried these... you need to! They come in a variety of flavors. Our favorite is Jalepeno. However, Dave was eating the "Crawtater" flavor and loved it just the same where as I just liked the name! I told Dave that would be his new nickname!

ABITA BEER: While in New Orleans, Dave and I drank some Abita beer - which he LOVES. I tend to go for the Strawberry or Abita Light. They sponsored the main stage at the French Quarter Fest, so their stands were everywhere! I think Abita would be a good name for a dog - don't you? Dave prefers the Abita Amber out of all their beers.

Me Oh My I Love Pie

So at this wedding in New Orleans I was at ... they had Pies instead of a Wedding cake! Yup... Berry, Strawberry Rhubarb, Peach, Apple... and I thought that to be a bit unusual however, here I come to find on The Knot that it has been done before! The wedding above was in Idaho and is themed "outdoor country". What will they come up with next!

Back home!

What a fantastic weekend! I miss NOLA already! Dave and I had a really great time and it was so nice to have a 4 day weekend away from Charlotte. But I must tell you - we got in so late last night that now I am sooooo tired! ha! It was worth it though - definitely! So this on this week's blog plate... everything Nola! And a special thanks to the lady above, she made my birthday weekend so spectacular! I think this picture is really nice of us because we "color-compliment" eachother so well! I felt like a princess because Beth had presents for me each day to open - and each one was "so Emily" and so thoughtful! It made my b-day last... all weekend long! :) We took pictures each day... here's one from the first night there. The gift was cupcake themed ;) Wonder why? hehe. Thank you again Beth (and Nick, Oliver and Kobe too!)!

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

This is a terrific and light summer salad. I made it for my friend Lauren awhile ago and she liked it so much that she asked for the recipe! I like to make it because most of the items I can just pull from my kitchen cabinet without making a run to the grocery store! And that always puts a smile on my face :)

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad (from Cooking Light)

The creamy dressing mellows the heat from the chiles—and best of all, it can be prepared in less than 30 minutes.

Dressing:


1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2/3 cup light sour cream
1 tablespoon minced chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
4 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Salad:
4 cups shredded romaine lettuce
2 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 breasts)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup diced peeled avocado
1/3 cup thinly vertically sliced red onion
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (8 3/4-ounce) can no-salt-added whole-kernel corn, rinsed and drained

To prepare dressing, combine first 7 ingredients, stirring well.

To prepare salad, combine lettuce and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over salad; toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.

Tip: Add a spoonful of adobo sauce for a spicier salad. Kidney or pinto beans also taste great in this dish.

4 servings (serving size: 2 1/2 cups) CALORIES 249 FAT 8.2g

I heart Cardigans

I love love love cardigans and I feel like I wear my black Anne Taylor cardi all the time!

I was on Old Navy's site this morning and they are great for some of the Spring Basics! They have both the basic cardigan and some other cute styles too! You won't have a problem picking a color either! :)

Sewwwwww ... not me BUT wish it were!

Sometimes.... I wish I could sew. Well, maybe not just sew but have a sewing machine, and not just any average machine, the monogramming type!! I would be a monogramming MACHINE with those capabilities! Sigh, one can dream. But in the mean time, Betz White has got it goin on! She has taken on using second hand materials for her sewing creations. She's even been on Martha! She's got "how to books"! Here are some of her awesome sewn items...

Look how cute these bunnies and you can grab these cupcakes on Etsy (where else!)

Today's My Birthday!

Vacation countdown: TODAY! :)

Really?

Man Urinates on Woman During Flight

If this happens to me tomorrow, EMILY will be emotionally traumatized with a ruined vacation. Can you just imagine that? Ridiculous!

To Couscous or not to Couscous...

I'd never made couscous before this recipe. It's so simple and makes a lot for a great spring/summer dish!

Tomato, Basil And Couscous

2 1/4 c Canned chicken broth
1/2 c Olive oil
1 Box couscous; (10-ounce)
1/4 c Balsamic vinegar
1 c Chopped green onions
1/4 ts Dried crushed red pepper
1 c Diced seeded plum tomatoes;
Cherry tomatoes; halved
1/3 c Thinly sliced fresh basil

Bring broth to boil in medium saucepan. Add couscous. Remove from heat. Cover; let stand 5 minutes. Transfer to large bowl. Fluff with fork. Cool. Mix all ingredients except cherry tomatoes into couscous. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Chill.)

Garnish with cherry tomatoes.

Serves 6.

Per serving: 1645 Calories (kcal); 109g Total Fat; (59% calories from fat); 24g

Vacation Countdown: ONE DAY! WOOHOO!

Warning for All the Ladies!

Warning: when taking a wrap dress to be altered, make sure that they understand how the dress ties around your body or else they will sew up the hole where the sash goes and you won't be able to wear the dress! (thank goodness for coworkers who sew.)

Vacation countdown: 2 days

Cupcake Catastrophe.

So I'm still practicing with my cupcakes but selling them too. The business has been great - averaging about two orders a week. But it has been a little stressful. It's alot of trial and error and learning from mistakes as you make them. For instance, last night was the first time I'd cut the recipes down into a 1/4 of their original size. So that was experimental and I came up short one chocolate cupcake. My vanilla cupcake wrappers came lose... and I researched it... apparently they come lose if you leave the cupcakes in too long or not long enough; the mixture is off; or you remove them from the pan too soon. Why they got a steamed facial? My guess is that the baking powder was a bit off in measurement. It was just an off night all together :/ I had typed up all of my recipes and left out SUGAR from my chocolate cake batter. Who does that? Thank god I've got taste buds! I think I may be ADD. Please send help, or a massage therapist!

Vacation countdown: 3 days.

The Birthday Countdown...

My birthday is on Friday. It's not a big one but it is a Birthday - and I LOVE Birthdays haha. I am so lucky to say that Dave and I are going to New Orleans for the weekend, a 4-day weekend to be exact :)

First stop for the Birthday train was.. home!

We did the whole step-mom/dad dinner gig on Friday night. It was pouring down rain but fun all the while! I had a pear martini - delish! And for dessert they offered a chocolate cake with chocolate sorbet and a blood orange sauce... I coulda done without the dinner and gone straight to dessert!

I was so looking forward to getting to Jcrew on Saturday... I knew they had sale items and I was GOING TO take one home with me if it was the last thing I did!!! I was disappointed though, I only left with one thing but it's okay because I am going to hit up BOTH Charlotte stores! lol. Got these cute shorts... not too shaby, were $70 and I got them for $32

After shopping we went to see Monsters vs Aliens (it was really the only good movie option to see!). It was "ok", definitely not a Wall-e or a Shrek. It was, however in 3-D which made it pretty cool! :)

Then for Easter Sunday, which really, I wasn't into Easter at all this year - kinda sad but definitely a true statement - Dave and I went to Zada Janes for Brunch. It was DELISH and I had their special that day, a salmon cake over grits (which I am really picky about) with a yum-o sauce and black eyed pea relish. Their side salad and pepper vinaigarette were to die for too! The inside was really cool - they had a nice bar and on Wednesday nights their special is 1/2 off a bottle of wine! All in all, I am going to be going there a lot more often I think! :)

Yummy Cat Fish Po' Boys

I absolutely love making this recipe that I found in Cooking Light Magazine and I serve it with a side of sweet potato fries! YUM. Try it out!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons fat-free milk
• 1 pound catfish fillets, cut into 2 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (such as McCormick)
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon fat-free sour cream
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• Dash of crushed red pepper
• 2 cups bagged broccoli coleslaw
• 4 (2 1/2-ounce) hoagie rolls with sesame seeds, toasted

Preparation

Combine milk and catfish in a large bowl, tossing gently to coat. Remove fish from bowl; shake off excess milk. Sprinkle fish with salt. Combine cornmeal and Cajun seasoning in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add fish to bag. Seal and shake to coat.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add fish; cook 3 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

While fish cooks, combine vinegar and next 4 ingredients (vinegar through pepper) in a medium bowl. Add broccoli coleslaw; toss well to coat. Spoon 1/2 cup slaw mixture onto bottom half of each roll. Arrange fish evenly over each serving, and top with top halves of rolls.

What are you doing for Easter?

Business Cards for Moms... and Kids?

There is a whole other world out there - who knew!? "Calling cards" for moms being moms.... cards for kids and ....their allergies.... haha. Makes sense though, right?

Need to set up a play date? Here's my card. Need to do set up a teacher conference? Here is my card, call me! You're babysitting my daughter? Here is my numbers, just in case.
Oh you want Carmella to come over and play? Carmellllaaaaaaaaaaaa! Give Mary's mom your calling card when you get there!!!!

Hahaha. Okay. It's cute.

If you are in need of one of these guys check out Sweet Mady's site.

Holy Croc

Have you heard the terrible news? Crocs.. going out of business... their stocks are down, their sales are down, how could this happen?? Well I know how I am gonna get even.... buy a pair! I used to have bubble gum pink ones. Wore them all the time. People laughed but you know what, kicking off your work shoes and puttin' those babies on - dream come true! I think these will be my next pair... LOVE navy.

By the way... look what I just found. Who doesn't love Peter and Jenny and their little Croc family? I mean it's Carlisle from Twlight! He likes the Crocs! Why are they going out of business?! This is great publicity!

Gettin slim for summer!

So I love my Health magazine that Shirley gave me. They have great recipes and in their April addition they have a 2 week diet planning out your meals for the week days. It's their lose 5 pounds in 2 weeks on a low calorie diet. The diet, unlike MOST, is inexpensive because fruits and veggies, aren't costly! I think it would be a plus to lose the 5 lbs., however, I like the recipes regardless! Not so "diety" and full of flavor.
Today for lunch I had a Veggie Sammy. It was quite delicious, you gotta love your veggies though! How to make?

Ingredients:

2 slices of whole wheat bread

1/2 avocado, mashed

1/4 cup white kidney beans, mashed

1/2 lemon

4 slices of tomato

1/2 cup arugula

Directions:

Combine the mashed beans and avocado. Squeeze lemon over top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Smear it onto the bread pieces. Add the slices tomato and arugula. Sprinkle with salt and pepper again and you are ready to rumble!

For Breakfast this morning....a PB&H?

Ingredients:

1 slice of whole wheat bread

1 TB organic peanut butter

1 TB organic honey

Directions:

smear the PB&H over the bread.

It was good and really really filling!

And for dinner last night....SALMON

How to make?

Ingredients:

4 oz Salmon

10 spears of asparagus

1/4c Quinoa

1/2 lemon

2T Parsley (optional)

1/4 cup water

Sea salt and pepper

Directions:
Put salmon and asparagus in separate baking dishes sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Asparagus will be done between 5-10 minutes. The salmon took longer and i used a meat thermometer. Salmon should reach the temperature of 145 degrees and be opaque to be done. As for the Quinoa (Keen-oh), Boil 1/4 cup water. Add quinoa once water is boiling. Simmer and cover for 12 minutes until quinoa develops a ring and water is gone. Top everything with parsley, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Easy Dressing

Mix:
dijon mustard (3 tbs), red wine vinegar (1.5 tbs), Sugar (1.5 tbs) and pepper to taste
And...
Voila! An easy dressing to put over a red tip lettuce with tomatoes!

I said I wouldn't......

..................but I couldn't resist looking!!!

Jcrew... spring sale... already.

love.love.love.