2012

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Its 3:00 a.m........

• Up at all hours of the night so what else can I do?  I have guests in the house so I decide to make the coffee cake that has been in the pantry for just such emergencies. It is an emergency, right? My mom and Ellen and David and Chloe will all need something o eat when they wake up. Of course, Mike needs his eggs and since I was just reminded of Fabio's delicious egg dish I make I had better throw that together also. I am beginning to drag a bit but I wanted to get this salad recipe out before I forget. It came to me from my friend Corinne because it made so much and her family wouldn't eat it. She figured the Vetas eat anything, which is pretty much true.  It s actually a WW ( Weight Watchers for those who dont know the WW abreviation) recipe which is even better. At least it was when it started.  Ths incarnation may not be, but it is fairly close. This makes a large amount. May be enough for a whole college apartment to share.   

Cumin-Lime Confetti Salad- WW Points Plus = 5  10 servings

Ingredients:

30 oz canned black beans

2 cups edemame, shelled and cooked- about 12 oz.

10 oz frozen cornthawed and drained

1 each sweet peppers- red, orange, and yellow

1 average serrano chile, seeded and minced (optional)

1 medium red onion, minced  (save a bit to put in dressing)

1/2 cup cilantro, fresh, minced

Dressing:

3 Tbs. (or more) fresh lime juice3

3 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. lime zest

1 Tbs. Kosher salt

1tsp. cumin seeds

Instructions:

• In a lg bowl combine beans, edemame, corn, peppers, onion, and cilantro
• whisk to gether dressing, if you want you can blend it in a blender with a couple pieces of the onion
• Drizzle over mixture and toss. Serve chilled or room temperature. 
• Yields about 1 cup per person

Now, for my personal notes because we all know I never follow a recipe exactly.

First, I couldn't find the edemame and substituted white beans. It was a hit.  Secondly,

the onion in the dressing is completely my idea because of the healthy goodness that comes from pureed onion supposedly, and it is good. Finally, I toasted the cumin seeds slightly. It just seemed lke a good idea. 

Yummy, Enjoy

p.s. I began this several days ago and my guests are gone now and I have gotten some sleep. 

HBN Ranch August 2012

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I have been waiting and listening for tidbits from Ellen to see what she got out of the EAP;  Emerging Athletes Program by the USHJA, for those who don't know what EAP is.

Today I got a huge piece. "I almost wish I took care of my own horse." Unfortunately, for us that isn't an option. Ellen does her own grooming and after lesson care but the nitty gritty stuff- stall cleaning and feeding- is left up to the grooms/stable workers. At 16 I think she has matured and realizes that there are certain responsibilities that come with riding but didn't understand the benefits of really caring for a horse.

Her comment, after only four days of being 100% responsible for all  care necessary, up at 4:30 a.m. to feed and leaving the barn at 7.30 p.m. after feeding and barn duties she said she feels closer to this horse, Benjamin, than she has any other horse. This is a horse she had never even seen or heard of until the day before EAP began. And Benjamin isn't a perfect horse. He has his issues as they all do. She discovered during EAP exactly what those were and was patient trying to work through them. She didn't have the stellar ending that she had hoped for and that just gave her the motivation to keep him and become the best team they can be.

Ellen understands now that when you are there with the horses, in their stalls and riding and grooming, you reach a level of knowing and understanding like none other. And how much more in tune with them you are, which makes it easier to see when they are having a good day or are maybe not having a good day. Oh, that leg looks puffy. Or he's looking a little tired maybe I won't work him as hard today, just take him on the trail for something different. Bonding, as she put it. The horse and rider need that bond of trust and love to become the best they can be.

That HUGE nugget ( is that an oxymoron?) is worth more than any lesson she has learned EVER in her riding career.

More will be revealed as she processes everything they had crammed down their throats in four amazing days. Thank you to Anne, Anne and Kathy for the EAP.

Bucket List

Last night I was able to check off the first of my "bucket list" items. Mike and the kids and I have attended a lot of concerts in the last couple of years and one performer in particular I have seen four times I think. The first time, was it the circumstamces that made the experience incredible? We were in New York's Town Hall and we were front row, center. Wouldn't anyone be good at that distance? Well, this was Fleetwood Mac songwriter and guitarist Lindsey Buckingham and he was phenominal to say the least. Those fingers of his just flew and the energy he put into EVERY song was astounding. I have never seen such a passionate performer. His new songs from  "Seeds We Sow" as well as the oldies we know from his  FM years and early on as a solo artist all sounded fresh and wonderful. So, after returning from New York Mike knew he was performing locally and he bought tickets to see him at UCLA for my birthday. Still jazzed from his previous show I was really looking forward it. Would it be the same? Perhaps he just likes NY a lot and would be more lackluster in LA. Or maybe because LA is home it would be different. Maybe Stevie would show up. She had played the night before in LA and it turned out many of the people at the second concert had seen Stevie the night before. Do you think the shows were planned that way? So many questions.Mike was unable to attend the second show  so I took my friend, Karol.  The seats weren't quite as good, second row, slightly stage right. I think they were awesome seats I'm just kidding. Would Karol be let down after all the hoopla I had been saying about the show? How could it possibly be THAT good? How could he play like that night after night? Well, it was and he did. They could have just played a video of New York because it was the same show with the same enthusiam from Lindsey as I had seen before. This man LOVES to play guitar and he LOVES to perform. And the crowds love him. I left that show in awe of Lindsey feeling like a kid. My good friend, Barbara, just happens to have taught Lindsey's young girls to ride horses. I first saw him at Elvenstar when Ellen was there for a horse show a couple years ago. I have also seen him at horse shows hanging out waiting for his girls to show. I'm too shy to ever approach people I don't know especially "stars" so I had never said hi even in passing. It is a family joke that we would see him somewhere when we were at a show either sitting in the shade under a tree or keeping slightly out of sight. Unbeknownst to Barbara I was going to see him in LA when she called me and had tickets from his wife for his show in Orange County actually ON my birthday. Would Mike and I like to go with Larry and her? DUH! The best birthday present ever. They hadn't seen him before but I think they thought I was nuts until the show was over and they were mesmerized. "When he comes to the barn I'll have you meet him", Barbara said. OMG. Really?  I was so enthralled I wasn't even nervous at the prospect because he deserved to be told by as many people as possible how good he is. As he was on the road so I didn't expect to see him soon and the thrill died down. 
A few months later Mike saw he was playing locally again in Thousand Oaks, just a few miles from our house. Barbara asked if we were going because she had tickets again but just for herself and Larry. Mike had gotten tickets and we were third row stage right in the small Fred Kavli Theater in the T.O. Civic center. David came this time but Ellen chose not to. I had the set list almost memorized and was very excited to go and have David see him.  He thought his mom was nuts I know. Well, this time was different but no less impressive. He was on stage solo, no backup band and played a different set. And those fingers were flying again. David realized his ol' mom wasn't so wrong after all.  End of Story......
.....Until Barbara sent me a text yesterday saying, "Lindsey's here".  Really? Oh shoot, I can't go up to him and say anything. I'm way to scared.  "Just come talk to me and when he comes by I'll call him over and introduce you", she said. I could do that I thought and raced off so I didn't miss the opportunity. 
What a nice man. I was a little giddy, but he was so nice and we talked  like two people having a regular conversation. I told him how much I like him and that we had seen him several times including Town Hall, NY. He talked about the venues and how different it is to be playing without his backup band. 
Barbara, thank you for the introduction and Lindsey, thank you for the time and the check off my bucket list.  Actually, you are the only thing on my bucket list so I need to do some thinking on that. 

"The widely heralded musical brilliance of Buckingham"

                                                                      Crystal Larsen

Here is a cheater muffin recipe to add some sparkle to "boxed" muffin mix. The box I had in the pantry was the Krusteaz Fat Free Cranberry Orange muffins. They are good on their own but I wanted to make them a bit more appealing to the kids. And I know the fat free baked goods seem to lack that crusty outside we all like. When I mixed the muffins I added 2 Tablespoons of Extra Light Olive Oil and some freshly grated orange peel. Olive oil is great to bake with and much better for us.

When the muffins came out of the oven I tried  a trick I learned when I  worked at a Scottsdale gourmet  market/restaurant called  C. Steele & Co.. Carol had the best muffins for breakfast. On top of the Lemon Poppy Seed the bakers would brush some fresh lemon juice and sprinkle a little sugar on top. Taking that lesson I squeezed some orange juice to brush on top and sprinkled  some sugar for a little muffin "bling". Very tasty. Now I just have to get the kids to wake up and eat them before I do:))  Bon Appetit. Or maybe as we are heading to Peru this week I should say  ¡Buen Apetito!

All - American Cheeseburger Soup by Lorraine Wallace

This was so good on a cold rainy afternoon. It is from a book Mike told me about titled "mr. sunday's soups". Mr Sunday being Chris Wallace,  the Fox News anchor and Mike Wallace's son. His wife, Lorraine, cooked these on Sunday afternoons waiting for Chris to come home from the studio. They live in Middleburg, VA where I went to school and she rides horses so she must be nice.

The soups have all been excellent and creative but this was not something I would have looked at twice except it was really icky outside and it sounded very comforting. Everyone LOVED it.  I'm going to cheat since I never took typing and it's kind of long. Thank you for your support:)

Yummy Passover Brownies

Okay, this took about an hour  to get started because I haven't been back since I first posted months ago and I couldn't remember the account information to log on. I really don't like having all the different e-mails and passwords necessary for all the different accounts to access online. I know the Internet is an amazing tool but it can also be one of the most frustrating. 


I'm hoping to be able to blog from our trip in a couple of weeks like I did from Ireland. It won't be as humorous, of course, but informative all the same. Or maybe it will. So stay tuned :)


The whole reason for today's blog is to share my Passover Brownie recipe. I haven't made them in a while but Brent's Deli would be jealous they are so good. I got it originally from a friend in Phoenix. I haven't seen her in a while. Maria, I hope you are well.

Passover Brownies

2 eggs well beaten

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 cup oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup cake meal

1 cup chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

(does any one know how to make a "degree" sign on the computer? I'm sure there's a way if I knew how to type)

Beat eggs and sugar until light and lemon colored. Add Vanilla. Blend in cocoa, oil, and salt. Gradually mix in cake meal, chocolate chips, and nuts. Pour into greased  9x9  pan and bake 20-25 minutes. Now here's the tricky part. Don't over- bake them. The top should look like regular brownies, kind of cracked. This recipe can be doubled and should be because they will go quickly!

ENJOY! 

And have a wonderful, not too long Seder! 

p.s. 1/2 cup chopped nuts are optional but it wouldn't let me add them  to the end of the recipe for some reason.