Two Weekends Ago!

It's been so long I honestly can't remember Friday. But last Saturday we had Mom P over for dinner, and I decided to whip up a new (to me) vegetarian dish in her honor. (Mr. P, born and [mostly] Texas raised, rarely eats a meal without meat. And I don't do much cooking to begin with...)



Mom P's visit merited a fun meal. I decided to go for stuffed portabella mushrooms! My original plan was to grill them, but in order to spend more time with Mom P we baked them instead.



RECIPE: Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms
(Ingredients below make enough filling for 8 mushrooms - we saved half to stuff chicken breasts for another meal)
1 red bell pepper (chopped)
1 yellow bell pepper (chopped)
1 orange bell pepper (chopped)
3 green onions, sliced
3 tsp. balsamic vinegar
4 tsp. olive oil
10 oz. blue cheese crumbles
16 oz. ricotta cheese
1 tsp. basil/parsley/italian seasoning (your pick)
garlic, salt, pepper (to taste)
bread crumbs

Saute peppers in a pan with oil for about 5 minutes. Add onion and balsamic. Cook just long enough for the peppers to remain slightly crunchy. Lower heat and add remaining ingredients (blue cheese, ricotta, spices) and stir until smooth.

Spoon mixture into mushroom caps, sprinkle the top with bread crumbs, and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. (((YUM)))

Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of the cooked product. I just don't have enough willpower to stop the ravenous feeling and actually take decent photos before inhaling...at least I'm honest, though! We paired the mushrooms with a white wine (pinot grigio, I think?), a salad, and a dark honey-wheat baguette.

Things I'd change: I'd add a little more onion, and leave some of the bell peppers out to sprinkle on top. I love food with a little extra color, though these were absolutely divine, if I do say so myself :)

Wow. I've been MIA. I think I need to welcome myself back to the world of blogging, eh? Lots of days are starting to blend into each other, which makes it the closest thing to summer I've experienced in at least four years, and I'm loving it :) I'm going to attempt some real updates in the next couple of days.

Life

With the prospect of Mr. P's internship ending when summer's over (rather than continuing into fall, which was a possibility), I've spent my day on an emotional roller coaster.

You'll probably have to click on the image to get a better view, but it's a nice representation of the lovely ride I'm on...


I admit to being scared, and not knowing what our future holds. We don't have the stability I always thought would just naturally be there, and I work in a nonprofit organization - I'm certainly not rolling in the lifestyle I assumed would just happen! But you know what? We're still young. We're still fabulous. And EFF IT. Life's not supposed to be easy when you're starting out :)

I'm spending the afternoon having faith that things will work out for the best. Somehow, they always do, and we've certainly been through some doozies.

Hubby Rocks!

So Mr. P made a fabulous birthday dinner on Tuesday night: grilled steak and vegetables (mushrooms, bell peppers, squash & zucchini), duchess potatoes, and a sweet honey-wheat baguette! Then I found out he'd been trying for nearly a week to get my present...which finally arrived on the 9th, one day late :)


Bissinger's Dark Chocolate Raspberries


Heaven. Simply heaven.

I'm somewhat lucky that my birthday falls in July, since it's the only month Bissinger's does raspberries. And Mr. P's somewhat lucky, too, since he knows there's always one sure-fire birthday present :)

Weekend Rundown

Mr. P and I spent the weekend at the lake house with my family, setting off fireworks, eating a little too well, drinking a little too much, and relaxing just the right amount. Miss Bailey joined us, and to my relief, no more urka-gurkas. She has yet to decide how she feels about being in the lake, though. I'm not sure she digs swimming as much as I do :)

Unfortunately, I didn't take the time to grab my camera this weekend, so there's a shortage of photos. Hopefully that will change, since I received my birthday present a couple days early!

Canon PowerShot S5IS






Basic Features
8.0-megapixel CCD
12x optical zoom lens (equivalent to a 36-432mm lens on a 35mm camera)
4x digital zoom.
2.5-inch articulated color LCD monitor
Electronic Viewfinder
Program Automatic Exposure
Aperture- and shutter-priority modes
Full Manual exposure mode
Built-in pop-up flash with red-eye reduction
SD/SDHC card compatibility
USB high speed connection
Four AA alkaline batteries included
32MB SD card included
Software for Mac and PC


Special Features
Optical Image Stabilization: Shooting, Continuous, Panning
Automatic Face Detection AE/AF
Multiple continuous shooting modes, including Continuous Shooting AF
ISO from 100-1600 and High ISO mode
ISO Shift
Safety FE and MF options
Hotshoe
On-board red-eye correction (in Playback)
High resolution movies with stereo sound
Wind filter, audio capture adjustment settings
Shutter Speeds from 15 sec to 1/3,200 sec
Multiple creative options, i.e., My Colors
Contrast/Sharpness/Saturation/Red/Green/Blue and skin tone adjustments
Multiple White Balance settings, including Manual
Exposure Bracketing and AF Bracketing
Adjustable Flash Intensity
Multiple Metering and AF modes
Continuous AF
Selectable AF points
Live Histogram and Pattern/Grid Overlay
Wide angle and telephoto accessory lenses and filters available

This is above and beyond what I'd been using for the past few years, and I can't wait to really get a feel for everything. It's definitely more camera that I'm used to, but I'm hoping to take this as a sign to get back into the swing of things.

Mom knew I needed a new camera, and Pop was in charge of picking it out. I'd say that, combined, they did quite a good job with a surprise birthday gift ;) Thanks, folks, and enjoy the rest of your vacation!

Some people really blow me away...

Just a quickie before the holiday weekend :) Possible TMI to follow:

Miss Bailey's had a couple of weird nights lately, waking up and doing the infamous urka-gurka in the middle of the night/early EARLY morning. One ended in an urka-gurka-SPLAT (oh, sleep-induced fuzziness, thank you for masking my gag reflex!) and another was just "going through the motions" of getting sick, without it happening.

She seems completely fine - happy, playful - except for these events at 3 or 4AM. After her accident in March, Bailey's vet provided me with her email address where I can send questions, etc., which is AWESOME. So I shot off an email yesterday just to be sure. The vet responded promptly, letting me know what to look out for, and also offered a phone number where we can reach her if we have questions - and it's her cell - not the main vet number.

Seriously, people. I'm HUGE on customer service, and it just doesn't get better than this. She and I both know I'm probably not going to call, but having the option is above and beyond. Especially when we're leaving town this afternoon and don't have a regular vet by the lake house.

Anyway, I'm just completely stoked right now. Have a wonderful long weekend for the 4th!