Cave Food . . .

This is the busiest I've ever been; maybe ever.  All exciting, fantastic, good stuff; yet busy just the same.  It's pretty easy for me to have laser focus. To keep my eye on my prize. My Mom says I've naturally been this way ever since the day I came out of her womb; and my Dad encouraged this behavior my entire childhood. He would often whisper in my ear, "...while others are out partying and getting into trouble, Stacefly, you could be steadily studying your craft, and taking your skill set to the next level...".

I do enjoy working hard at what I love. There is no greater thrill than hitting the "zone".  Most days I can write from 8am - 10pm, sitting in one spot, and have no idea where the time went. None. Sometimes I am even bummed that I have to go bed.  

So when a girl's in self-induced "cave", she needs power cave food. 

Like broccoli. My most faaaaaaavorite vegetable of all.

This was lunch:  a bowl of broccoli, shrimp, white onion, and green bell peppers, with salt & pepper. All steamed together in one pot. So fresh and delish.

A girl in a cave also needs her husband to make her power meals from time to time when she's eating too much popcorn and too many brown rice cakes with peanut butter instead of "real" food. (read yesterday's post about that little problem).

Hubby is a pro in the kitchen.  For dinner he made us salmon croquettes. 

And he baked them, instead of pan frying. 

He also made us oven grilled asparagus. Aww yeah! Aww yeah!  I love asparagus.

Power to the power foods.

~SS

Flatbread . . .

Homemade Flatbread, anyone?

Okay, so, here's a little confession.

I like snacks. Chip'n dips. Appetizers. Cheese plates. More so, than a full meal.  I learned many moons ago that I am what dieticians call a "grazer".  I eat small meals all day long, instead of 3 hearty meals per day. 

But the grazing though, can get me into trouble.  BIG TROUBLE with my weight if I am not careful.

If I don't thoughtfully prepare foods ahead of time to graze on, when my hunger pangs hit, I will reach for anything. And I do mean anything. Chips. Pretzels. Popcorn. A leather wallet. My elbow. Anything. Especially if it is on a shelf at the local 7-11, or is smiling at me from a vending machine.

Sooo... in my quest to be more thoughtful, I made an improv flatbread. Well, I'm not even sure if this is technically "flatbread", but it sure is my soulful version!

Stacefly's Flatbread

INGREDIENTS: I used Indian Naan (got it from Trader Joe's for something like $2.99), shrimp, tomatoes, Monterey Jack, mild cheddar cheese, fresh cilantro, olive oil, and salt & pepper.

I cooked it on 300 for about 15 minutes.

It was so yummy, and hearty, and satisfying, I munched on it all day. I even made a repeat the next day with different ingedients!  

This one had cheddar cheese, fresh cilantro and fresh oregano, shrimp, tomatoes, white onions and jalapeños. So good!

Put it on a cookie sheet for 15mins or so, and you're good to go!

The Indian Naan worked great, but I'm sure you could use large (and colorful) tortillas if you wanted.

Obviously, this is a great solo meal for yourself, but you could also cut it into squares for guests when they come to your home for a visit.

So yummy.  Put whatever ingredients and spices you have on hand in your fridge, and it will work. I promise! 

Here was flat bread #3 (planning ahead!  I'm planning ahead!)

I lost track of time and this one got a little crispy around the edges, but it was still yummy!

Enjoy!
~SS

Catering For Friends . . .

My friends make indie movies all the time.  "Teamwork Makes the Dream Work" is my favorite motto.  A close second is, "To Whom Much is Given, Much Is Required" so any chance I get, I help others with their movie projects because people are always tripping over themselves to help me with mine.

This week, a friend called me in a pinch.  She needed help on her latest romantic comedy set in a bridal shop in Culver City, CA.  I offered to cook lunch for her cast & crew (40 people!) to help keep her budget down.  

I knew the meal needed to be cheap, but when her producers told me all they could afford was $6/pp, my jaw dropped. 

Next, I discovered all of the dietary restrictions: 4 gluten free, 3 vegans, 7 pescatarians, 3 vegetarians, 6 who eat meat, but no pork, and the rest eat anything as long as it's tasty.  Oh, boy!   

After some quick thinking, I decided to do an elaborate "All-you-can-eat Salad Bar and Baked Potato Bar" to satisfy everyone.

Fresh salad and vegetables.  Hubby helped me load up the car.

Grilled chicken, smoked ham, tuna fish, vegan/meatless sausage...

Baked Russet potatoes.

Every trimming you can think of for the salads and baked potatoes. Corn, garbanzo beans, beets, peas, green beans, croutons, red onion, broccoli, tomato, mushrooms... and on and on and on.

The entire crafty table was lined with fresh options!  There was even soy cheese and non-dairy sour cream for the non-dairy and/or vegan folks.

This meal was a huge hit!

It was a lot of work to complete this catering job for my friend. I endured  a full day grocery shopping and prepping all of the tin containers; almost 1 hour to pack up the car; 1 hour of traffic... but seeing how grateful everyone was to have fresh food for lunch made it all worth my efforts. And, I came in under budget!!

Yep, "Teamwork Makes the Dream Work."  

~SS

Mexican Fiesta . . .

Sooo... I'm back on Mexican food. 

My Mom & me at El Cholo Spanish Cafe.

I blame El Cholo, my most faaaaaaaavorite restaurant in Los Angeles.  I went there twice and now, bam - Mexican food is all I want. And by default, that means my husband "wants" it too.  Smile.

Here's how I made both me and him, happy.

I made him a pan of homemade beef nachos, my famous guac, and my secret salsa before the main attraction was ready to come out the oven.

Okay,  so let's talk salsa.   I can make 3 types from scratch: 
     1) call the fire department.  
     2) spicy, but bearable.
     3) kid friendly.  

My husband likes to call the fire department.

Always use fresh ingredients: tomato, cilantro, white onion, green onion, garlic, lemon juice, jalapeños, cumin, salt & pepper. 

I like to make my guac very chunky and just a lil' bit spicy.

Oh, and, my bad... I generally make enough food to feed the entire Brady Bunch, the James Evan's family, and everyone on the ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK prison set, too.  Yet I only live with my husband and our dog, who's now on a strict no-human-food diet.

Two pans of enchiladas.  One beef; one cheese.

I also whipped up cilantro rice.

And a pan of refried beans with with cheese.

Here's the hubs and and his best friend after dinner. 

Just sign me,

"I get it from my Mama."

~SS

Homemade energy bars . . .

Any time spent with my beautiful Mother means dining with her in high and low brow restaurants, and her declaring, “Hmph!  I think I can make that.”  And after about 2 attempts, she can. 

I guess the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree.

Today I tried homemade energy bars.  Because why not?  I like mid-day snacks and I don't like any of the energy bars of the grocery store shelves.

Start with any crunchy cereal of your choice. I used a flax cereal.  1 1/2 cups.  You also need 1 cup of cashews, almonds, and/or peanuts.  As a last minute decision, I added in a very small handful of cranberries.  You could also add in marshmallows, if you like.

                                                               

You will also need 1 cup of chocolate chips.  Line a baking tin or cookie sheet with parchment paper.                                       

Melt the chocolate chips.  I don't have a double boiler, so I melted them in the microwave.

Stir until you get a nice paste.

Add in the cereal and the nuts. Mix really well.

Spoon the mixture onto the cookie sheet.  Then pop it in the freezer or refrigerator for one hour.

Once done, break it apart.

Soooo yummy!  But I don't think all of this chocolate makes it "healthy".  Oh well.

~SS

Beach Party . . .

My best friend's birthday is coming!  To celebrate, she and her fiancé planned a party on the beach.  Her request?  My seven layer dip.

That's also code for: "Can you please make your famous salsas and your homemade tortilla chips, too?"

The answer is always, "YES!" for her.  I quickly got busy in the kitchen with fresh ingredients.

My seven layer dip for the birthday girl.

My homemade salsas: spicy on the left for those who like to blow their noses while eating.  And a mild on the right, for the wimps.

I like to cook.  It’s my favorite way to procrastinate when I have a big looming writing deadline; or when my characters aren’t talking to me; or when I can’t re-read the same scene yet again.  

Cooking feels like art and leisure to me.  And I like art and leisure, especially on my own terms.  And especially when I can get creative.

Also for her birthday, I wanted to make my Best Friend something sweet and unpredictable, so I tried my hand at peanut brittle!  Brown sugar, light corn syrup, coconut oil, peanuts & cashews, and fresh rosemary and cayenne pepper for the creative "twist".

The beach party was so much fun!  In fact, I had such good time, I forgot to take pictures of the food.

My hubs and our precious God Baby :-)

So many fun, beautiful people.

Everyone loved the seven layer dip, the salsas, the chips, AND the peanut brittle.  People happily took some home for later.

It was a great, relaxing day!

Happy Birthday, Best Friend!

~SS

Grilled Salad . . .

My dear friend Kim celebrated a birthday while I was in China.  A big one!!  So I invited her over for homemade food, girl chat, and lots of laughs.

FUN FACT:  Kim and I randomly met in Switzerland and we quickly discovered that back home in Los Angeles, we live 2 blocks apart.  She's been my ace ever since.  

First, I went to my local Farmer's Market to pick up fresh ingredients for us.  Arugula, spring mix salad, spicy mix salad, green beans, cherry tomatoes, corn on the cob, portobello/shitake/lobster mushrooms,  brussels sprouts, hummus, and a loaf of fresh rosemary olive bread. Yum!

I mixed all of the different greens: so pretty. The spring mix even has edible flowers.

I told the Birthday Girl to arrive at 5pm so I would have ample time to prepare.  Guests always offer to help me in the kitchen, but I don't like help.  I do enjoy company though.  Look who was with me as I prepped.

My dutiful dog.  Who's really hoping that I drop food on the floor for him.

Then I started making kebabs for our salad.  

Chicken and veggie on the left; fish and veggie on the right.

Vegetables used: green bell pepper, zucchini squash, cherry tomatoes, white onions, portobello mushrooms.

Seasoning: fresh dill and thyme from my BFF Tina's garden.  And a splash of fresh lemon juice.  I let everything marinate for 2 hours in the fridge.

My hubby wasn't home to man the BBQ grill (that's his lane), so I used our stove top grill pan instead.  

Just spray a little PAM and you are ready to go.

I grilled other veggies too for the salad.

Kim arrived at 5:05pm and the food was ready to be served. We had a cheese plate, a huge salad, and grilled kebabs.     

Happy Birthday, Friend!

WINE TIP:  I like to air out red wine.  Hubby and I received a wine aerator as a wedding gift, but we lost it a long time ago :-( so now I make good use of the decanters we were gifted.  It really makes a difference in the taste of the wine. 

Here's to a light, easy breezy and healthy girlfriend catchup.  Well, sort of, minus the cheese.

~SS