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Labels:
sports
Photo Credits: www.nba.com
I am ecstatic that the Orlando Magic team is on its way to the Eastern Conference finals again! After beating the Atlanta Hawks by a sweep, they are gonna face the Boston Celtics for a Best of 7 series starting this Sunday, May16, 2010 at 3:30pm. I wouldn't miss it for the world!
The Boston Celtics are not an easy team to beat, though. Their resilience and perseverance to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers (who has the 2010 NBA MVP - his royal highness Lebron James) shone through the semifinals. They have a lot of big names too - Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to name a few. In my opinion, they are a worthy opponent to the Orlando Magic.
Not to sound like I am patronizing the Celtics, I am proud to say that I am a 100% Magic Fan. I love the players - Dwight Howard, J.J. Redick, Vince Carter, Rashard Lewis, Jameer Nelson, Mickael Pietrus, and the rest of the Magic team. (Sorry, Hedo Turkoglu. I stopped being a fan when you ditched us for the Raptors).
Funny that I should be blogging about the team, as the President and CEO of the Magic (Bob Vander Wiede) just walked in this coffee shop a few minutes ago, and some of the people here milled around him telling him how big a fan they are. Now, why didn't I go with my gut feeling and wear my Orlando Magic 2009 Conference Champion shirt?!? That would have caught his attention and maybe a ticket or two for the finals hahaha (wishful thinking).
Back to the topic, though. Watching the team play on TV is great, but being there in the arena is phenomenal! The crowd goes wild, there are prizes to be won, and just the intensity of the fans would be enough to keep you on your feet. By the way, this is my favorite Magic fan:
His name is Dennis Salvaggio, and he is in every Magic game, usually riling up the crowd in a frenzy of chants and cheers. I took this pic of him during one of the games, cause I like his costume very much.
Goodluck on the finals, and Go Magic!!!
Labels:
pork
I love bacon, but it's always a pain to cook. There's always the problem of the meat swimming in grease, the oil spattering everywhere, and the perpetual question - how do you get these strips not to be curly and cook evenly?
I found the answer on Food Network's show "Good Eats." Regular readers of this blog would know that I am a big fan of Alton Brown, and I love how he simplifies terms to make the common housewife understand scientific concepts and how it relates to cooking (save for the turkey frying episode). Although there is nothing very scientific about this way of preparing bacon, I am delighted that it is a healthier option from the usual skillet frying method.
What you need:- bacon
- cooling rack
- sheet pan or baking tray
What to do:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
Put the cooling rack on top of the baking sheet. Gently place the bacon in a row on top of the cooling rack, making sure not to overlap.
Slide in the oven and bake for about 15 to 18 minutes for thin cut bacon, and 18 to 22 minutes for thick cut. You can always leave it in for a bit longer depending on the crispiness you like.
Tips, Tricks and Tweaks:
1. You can line the sheet pan with aluminum foil for easier cleanup.
2. Keep an eye on your oven as they don't always show the correct temperature.
3. Don't rush. The longer it is in the oven, the more grease is stripped off the meat.
4. Dab the top part with a paper towel before eating to maximize "healthy" effects.
5. Have a separate cooling rack that you use for meat, and another for pastry.
6. Clean your cooling rack thoroughly as some of the bacon meat will stick on it.
Labels:
soup,
vegetables
Lentils are one of the most underrated food. Probably because too much of them (as with all legumes) can cause flatulence (funny, but very uncomfortable), arthritis or gout. What we fail to remember is that these beans are very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. They are also good sources of Iron, Protein, Phosphorus, Copper, and an excellent source of dietary fiber, Folate and Manganese.
I grabbed a package of lentils and thought I'd follow the recipe written at the back, but decided to give it a little twist. Surprisingly, it tasted like Carabba's Spicy Sausage Lentil Soup. Only, theirs is spicier and the sausage that they use is different than what I used.
What you need:
- 1 package (14 oz) lentils, rinsed
- 1 (14 oz) Polska Kielbasa sausage, sliced into pieces
- 1/2 of a large Vidalia onion, chopped
- half a head of garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium-sized carrots, peeled and shredded
- 6 cups beef broth
- 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 tablespoon salt
What to do:
Make sure you sort and rinse the lentils. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high. Stir in sausage, garlic and onion, saute until translucent. Add in all the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are tender and soup gets thick, about 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Add more broth if necessary. Serve hot!
Tips, Tricks and Tweaks:
1. Add one or two stalks of celery (chopped) if desired.
2. You can also add pasta in it (such as pastina) for more texture. However, use 8 cups instead of 6 cups of broth. Put in the pasta about 15 to 20 minutes before removing the soup from heat.
3. Serve with Romano cheese sprinkled on top of each bowl. Mmmmm... yummy!
4. Eat with chips, such as this:
Labels:
gardening
I recently tried my hand at gardening. It was very tiring and frustrating, yet there is a feeling of satisfaction and hope that something good will come out of your hard work. I have also been seeing a lot of my "friends" lately, these are the little critters that you really don't pay much attention to, but will pop out every once in a while to scare the bejeebers out of you. Such as this weird-looking spider...
I am inclined to believe that this is the Asian Lady Beetle (Harmonia Axyridis) due to the number of spots it has on its back, but I could be wrong...
An unidentified baby caterpillar (or worm... I thought it was a Cabbage Looper, though)
And the most menacing of all (ominous sound effect playing)... the Florida Woods Cockroach (Eurycotis Floridana).
Luckily, it couldn't fly so I was able to spray it with poison. However, it was enough to give me nightmares and scar me for life. It wasn't really bad, but they look so scary cause they have ridges (uggghhh... *cringing*) If you want to see a clearer picture of this roach, click here. There is also a Black Racer Snake lurking in our garden, but the first time I saw it, I was petrified and wasn't able to take a picture. I now know that I shouldn't be scared of it, as it is non-venomous, and it eats the roaches (see pic above) around. Yay, snake!!!
I thought that the "gardening" category of my blog be called "Real Life Farmville" because of this creature...
The Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly (Eurytides marcellus). For those of you who play Farmville, this insect would be familiar to you. This beautiful butterfly just flitted happily from flower to flower. Although I must say, after a few snapshots, it probably thought that I was a papparazzi cause it flew to our neighbor's yard haha.
The Blue Skimmer dragonfly (Orthetrum caledonicum) is beautiful and huge!
Seaside dragonlet (Erythrodiplax berenice)
Feel free to correct me if I got the names of the insects wrong. And please help me identify the unknown ones. More pics to follow!
Labels:
chicken
They served Chicken Ala King in the school cafeteria last week, and it was delicious! So delicious, that I craved for more and inspired me to cook the same dish at home.
What you need:
- 1 pound chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 6 oz portobello mushrooms, sliced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 egg yolk, slightly beaten
- 1/4 cup light cream
- 1 tablespoon Sherry
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 of a small onion, sliced thinly
What to do:
In a small pot, boil the chicken in lightly salted water. Put the chicken on a cooling rack, and set the stock aside. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, pull the meat and dice it.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in saucepan over medium heat. Saute the garlic and onions until translucent, then stir in the flour with a whisk. Add the stock gradually stirring continuously. Add salt, pepper, mushrooms, sherry, and diced bell pepper. Cook stirring over low heat for 5 minutes.
Add diced chicken and light cream. Continue simmering for another 5 minutes while stirring. Place the egg yolk in a small bowl and lightly beat. Take about 4 tablespoons of the sauce (from the pot) and put it in the bowl to stir in with the egg yolk. Return to the simmering chicken mixture. Give it a final stir. Serve hot over biscuits or rice.
Tips, Tricks and Tweaks:
1. Traditional Chicken ala King recipe calls for sherry. However, you can omit it if its not available.
2. You can also use grilled or fried chicken in this dish. Basically, any cooked chicken. Just be sure to remove the skins.
3. Try different vegetables like celery, carrots, or peas.
4. For a quicker version, use the same ingredients and measurements above but omit flour, egg yolk, light cream, salt and pepper. Instead, use 1 can (10 oz) condensed Cream of Mushroom soup.
Labels:
natural beauty recipe
Grapes as "wrinkle buster?" I wouldn't doubt. Not only are grapes very healthy for you, it is also (as I recently found out) an effective anti-aging agent (excuse the unintentional alliteration). In fact, Resveratrol (calling Dr. Oz!) is found in grape skins. Resveratrol is a potent anti-oxidant that destroys free radicals and are responsible for many ill effects in the body, including cardiovascular disease and aging.
You only need a couple of pieces of grapes for this recipe, so go ahead and eat the rest. The perfect excuse. Haha.
What you need:
- 5 to 6 pieces of red grapes
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
What to do:
Wash the grapes, but don't peel it. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and process until it is smooth.
Using a cotton ball or tissue, apply it on your face and leave on for at least 30 minutes to several hours. Rinse well with warm water.
What I liked:
- It is very easy to make.
- You can feel a bit of tightness in your skin after washing it off.
- It doesn't really sting if it gets to your pimple.
- I didn't feel any itchy feeling on my skin during (and even after) the time it was on my face.
- My face remained moisturized even hours after washing it off.
What I didn't like:
- It is hot and kinda' heavy on the face, due to the Olive Oil.
- The grape skins that didn't get processed looked like dirt clumps on my face (do this recipe when you are alone and not expecting visitors!)
- Extremely hard to wash off. I had to use my Cetaphil Cleanser to get the oil off my face. But even that took some effort!
- Not for oily skin.
- The fact that you need a food processor to do it!
The Verdict:
After weighing the pros and cons, I decided that I like this natural beauty recipe. The discomfort is a small price to pay to get moisturized skin and prevent premature aging. Sure, you can buy Resveratrol from drug stores, but again, it's better to get it from the natural source. Would I try this again? Definitely. Would I recommend it to friends? Absolutely!
Photo Credits: www.all-creatures.org
Labels:
sports
Disclaimer: This is not a minute-by-minute account of the game. Just some random ramblings of a fan.
So the Orlando Magic won Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals over Atlanta Hawks. And they didn't just win. It was an awesome, amazing WIN! The final score was Hawks 71 - Magic 114. The beat them by 43 points. AWESOME!!!
It wasn't as bad early on in the game, as the Hawks were just down by 2 at the end of the first quarter. But after that, they just blew them away. Hubby was ecstatic and was in a very festive mood during the game (hmmm... I wish I took advantage and made him buy me something while he was in this genial mood haha).
Dwight Howard scored 21 points and 12 rebounds despite being in foul trouble. But all the players contributed to this great win so kudos to all of them.
One main concern was that they kept Michael Pietrus in the game even though he was playing with a sore ankle. I wish this minor injury doesn't affect his brilliant performance for the rest of the series.
Time to don our Superman shirts! Next game will be on Thursday, May 6 at the Amway Arena. Wish I could be there (anyone have extra tickets? Will trade one of my Special Edition Dwight Howard Superman Shirts for tix - XL size only! haha). No, seriously.
Photo credits: www.oskaya.com
Labels:
eggs,
vegetables
Potatoes were on sale in our local grocery store, so we decided to buy a 5-pound bag. I was also inspired to make this cold dish to give the old standby (mashy taters) a break.
Time to roll out the picnic mats and eat some yummy salad! (Summer, yay!!!)
What you need:
- 3 large red potatoes, cut in bite-size pieces
- 5 hard boiled eggs, quartered (or smaller)
- 2 stalks green onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon red onion, chopped
- 1 medium-sized carrot, cubed
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 tablespoon dill relish
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1/2 tablespoon yellow mustard
What to do:
In a pot over medium-high heat, boil the potatoes in lightly salted water for around 5 - 8 minutes, or until tender. Using a colander, drain the potatoes and let them cool down for a few minutes.
Combine all the ingredients in a big bowl and mix well. Careful not to mash the potatoes, though. Put in the refrigerator for a few hours to cool. Enjoy!
Tips, Tricks and Tweaks:
1. Boiling time actually depends on how big or thick your cut of potatoes are. Poke it with a fork every few minutes. Avoid over-boiling as the potatoes will turn mushy.
2. You can boil the carrots, too. I didn't cause I like the crunch of it. I cut it in small pieces, though.
3. Traditional recipes add celery to this dish. I didn't cause I don't like celery that much. :-)
4. Another great tweak - add bacon bits to it. Mmmmmm!!!
5. You might want to adjust the ratio of potato to eggs. I happen to love eggs, hence the number. I also used very large red potatoes (almost as big as Russet potatoes).
Labels:
funnies
Sometimes, she just likes to dress up and play Princess.
Photo Credits: www.nba.com
