Songs from the Crypt

One of the things I love about Thatboy is that he loves going to the theater almost as much as I do. In fact, he picks out the shows we see half the time. In 2008 we went to see a little show called Spring Awakening. The music was by Duncan Sheik, famed 90s singer. I wasn't as impressed as the critics were. To me, it felt like an unfinished workshop piece. I'd read the original in one of my classes in college and felt that the music not only didn't add to Wedekind's script, but actually made it worse. I'm a firm believer that music in a musical does one of two things, it either furthers the plot (traditional) or comments on the scene (Brechtian). And while I read a review in which the critic felt that the songs in Spring Awakening were Brechtian in nature, I would bet the critic never actually read anything by Brecht. To me, every song sounded as though it was written for the radio and then thrown into the show without much thought.

But Thatboy felt completely differently about the show. He felt it was a groundbreaking, world changing piece and we must have discussed it to death. So when I saw that Duncan Sheik had a new musical coming out, I asked Thatboy if he wanted to go. The answer was an immediate YES! I explained to him a little about the "Little Theater" system and how shows start out in certain theaters around the country before ending up on Broadway. We're lucky enough to have a couple of those theaters in San Diego, including the Old Globe. So off I went to purchase our $20 tickets, only to find out I could get them for $10! $10 orchestra tickets for a world premiere at the Old Globe - I knew that would be a good sign.

It's always hard for us to work out dinner when we go see a show. There's not really enough time for a sit down meal, but neither of us really wanted some kind of fast food - so we went for my favorite kind of on to go meal. Sandwiches. But not just any sandwich, some of the best in San Diego! I picked up Thatboy from work and we headed to Mona Lisa's in Little Italy. I LOVE Mona Lisa's. I could live there. The walls of olive oil, wine, fresh pasta, spumoni, sauces. And don't even get me started on the deli with their hand-stuffed sausages, fresh mozzarella, ricotta, and burrata. OH HEAVEN.

I got the caprese sandwhich with some of that fresh mozzarella, tomatos, basil......

Thatboy went with the delux sub, filled with salami, mortadella, ham, and provolone. While I'm not normally a meat lover girl, he definitely won with this one.


We took our subs and headed over to Balboa Park. Which is just as gorgeous at night as it is during the day.

The Old Globe is modeled after the REAL Globe. You know, the one in London? (And yes, I have seen the reconstructed original)

Whisper House is the story of a young boy who goes to live with his Aunt after his father is killed during World War II. His Aunt runs/lives in a lighthouse that is haunted by a couple of ghosts. The ghosts both befriend the boy and seem to egg him on. "We are here to tell you/ghosts are here for good/if this doesn't terrify you/it should." The set was very minimal - which I love, consisting for a series of raised platforms connected by a winding staircase. The top, with a lamp represents the top of the light house. Level 2 is Christopher's room. The first floor is the kitchen. A sliding flat becomes Mr. Yasujiro's room in the bell house. A screen comes down between the front and back stage which is used to project images, and separate the ghostly band from the rest of the action.

This time, Thatboy and I had reverse emotions. I thought the show was wonderful. I loved the music and the story. It reminded me of those old school ghost stories - like The Woman in White and Turn of the Screw. I love stories like that. I also loved the humor infused in the music - like the first song which introduces each character, and the final song which brings each on for their curtain call. "Lieutentant Brando/Brave Commando/We hardly know you/Rolling in one scene."

Thatboy, however, thought this show had the potential to be better than Spring Awakening, but it wasn't quite there yet. He felt like they need to be more rehearsed, and have more fluidity between the actors and the technicians. Some of the things he had issues with, like the mics cutting in and out, were things I overlooked. And other things, like actors singing the wrong verses, well, it IS a World Premiere.

As much as I enjoyed the production, I don't know how well it will do. I could see it becoming a cult classic, but it doesn't have the large production value of many of the currently popular shows like Wicked, or the Disney shows (Little Mermaid/Mary Poppins/Beauty and the Beast/Lion King......). And it also doesn't have the sexual content of Spring Awakening (which is why I personally believe it got the reviews - because if you don't like it, you're obviously a prude. Sex sells.) But I do hope people give it a chance and see it for what it is. Much more than a ghost story, it's a story about tolerance, difference, and strangers in a time of fear. And how sometimes strangers aren't as scary as you may think. Just like ghosts.

A girl cannot live on soup alone.*

I had this friend in high school who insisted that women needed to eat red meat during....a certain time of the month...because we lose so much iron. I'm not sure this has ever been scientifically proven, or even studied, but it was one of those conversations you just don't forget.

I will say that there are definitely times where the thought of something all meaty and bloody just makes my heart sing. And I'm not talking about my sociopathic tendencies. Although those I try to suppress more than my desire for steak. (because for some reason talking about the many ways you can dismember a body is socially unacceptable)

I do think my desire for a nice piece of steak stems from the amount of white meat we consume in Thathouse - chicken, turkey, and of course don't forget pork! Sometimes my body just rebels. Cholesterol? Fat? Yes please!

And while I am a purist who is happy with just some salt and pepper on a nice cut of meat, Thatboy grew up in a steak sauce household. Although, I have to say, I would much rather keep steak sauce in the house than have him use the alternative of ketchup...which he is equally happy with. (This is where I should mention that I don't take Thatboy in public often - at least not to nice steak houses, because really between the waiter and I there would be so much eyerolling people would probably think we were having seizures en masse.)

But as my faithful readers know, I will often make dishes that cater to Thatboy's tastes (as long as it's not fish or asparagus). And new readers (Hi new readers!), you will quickly learn that I will often make dishes that cater to Thatboy's tastes (as long as it's not fish or asparagus).

Steak Sauce Steak

1 lb sirloin steak

1/2 cup your favorite steak sauce

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 Tsp fresh ground pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

1. Combine sirloin, 1/4 cup steak sauce, worcestershire sauce, ground pepper, salt, and crushed red pepper in a ziplock baggie and shake it up to coat.
2. Refrigerate steak for 30 minutes. Remove steak from refrigerator and bag and let come to room temperature.
3. While steak is coming to room temperature, heat your grill pan over a medium high heat. Grill the steak for 7 minute, then baste with the remaining steak sauce and flip. Cook until the steak's inside is just the right color and temperature for you! (we do 7 minutes per side depending on the thickness of the steak for a nice rare/medium rare)

*Shamelessly stolen from my friend M and reworded.

Double Double Toil and Trouble

When I posted the recipe for cream of almond soup, Laura mentioned that making soup makes her feel like a witch throwing things into a cauldron. Me too! Especially the part of making soup that requires moonlight and holding a live frog over the pot so you get just the right amount of frog tears.

And I thought witches would be a good tie-in here because this soup is the perfect way to use up some of your leftover Halloween goodies. I don't mean the "raisinettes" that have been sitting in your kid's trick or treat bag for months because no one eats raisenettes and what kind of a nutjob hands those out? I'm talking about all those decorative gourds you had strewn about your tables, front doorsteps, sidewalks......Just because they're pretty, doesn't mean they're not good eats. Especially if you get the weird looking ones like I did - white pumpkins, blue pumpkins, green pumpkins - Oh my!

Squash soups are some of my favorite kinds of soups because of their versatility and creaminess. They can be sweet, they can be spicy, and they can be very very boring if you're not careful. The thing I love about this recipe is the grated onion. I think it really helps to add to the flavor of the soup and keeps it from being boring. I'm a fan of doing my grating right over the pot, so you get some onion juice as well. This means my measurement isn't too exact, but really you're not going to go crying over some onions, are you? There's no raw meat in here - you can taste as you go! The only thing I don't like is the same problem I had with the AVM pumpkin soup - squash can be very stringy. So even though this recipe doesn't call for it, I would start by running the mashed squash, milk, onion, and ginger through a food processor or blender before beginning. This will make it nice, thick, creamy, and not at all stringy.

Winter Squash Soup (from the Fannie Farmer Cookbook)

1 cup mashed cooked winter squash

1 qt milk

2 Tbsp grated onion

1/2 tsp powdered ginger

2 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp flour

salt

1. Mix the squash, milk, onion, and ginger in a pot and cook over moderate heat about 10 minutes.
2. Melt the butter in a small pan, stir in the flour and cook several minutes until smooth and thick.
3. Pour a little of the soup into the butter-flour mixture, stirring until blended, then slowly pour into the soup. Add salt to taste.
4. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until very hot.

Holiday Movie Review

Thatboy and I go through movie phases. We watch movies at home at an alarming rate, but we'll go for months without setting foot in a theater. And then all of a sudden, it's like we're always at the theater.

Recently it started with Thanksgiving. We had a family tradition where Thatdad, Thatbrother and I would go see a movie on Thanksgiving day, leaving my mom to cook in peace. Thatboy got in on the act just as soon as we were married and he started spending Thanksgiving with us. This year I didn't really want to go to the movies without Thatdad - maybe it's something that will re-emerge when we have kids, but for now it's a tradition that's going dormant.

Instead, the day after Thanksgiving Toxicesq, Thatmom, Thatboy and I went to see a movie. And I think we've been going for every week since!

It started with "The Blindside." We all went into this movie with pretty low expectations - but there was a severe dearth of movies playing during Thanksgiving weekend. Surprising, no? (Thatboy was pushing for New Moon - but he was outvoted, more on that later) Anyway we all loved this movie. It's the perfect family film because it has a happy ending. Even though none of us are sports fans (Thatboy couldn't identify what city the Seahawks played for when I asked him last night) we all enjoyed the movie way more than we thought we would.

Next came "Up in the Air." The movie was okay, another circumstance of "there's nothing else really out there" although I think we all wanted to see this movie. Don't get me wrong, the movie was definitely okay, but I would classify it as a renter, and not necessarily worthy of all the hype it's getting. It was definitely a change from all the Judd Apatow style comedies we've been seeing lately.



Christmas Day we went to see "Nine." If you want a REALLY fun experience, you should go see a movie loaded with sex sitting next to your 80 year old ex-priest father in law. I spent the whole movie telling Thatboy how uncomfortable I was. BUT I still managed to enjoy the movie. Enough where I'm looking forward to renting it and watching it at home in a more suitable environment. I loved the musical productions which were big, bold, and colorful.


Shortly after Christmas we saw "New Moon." A couple years back, Prez got me "Twilight" for a birthday present. She thought I would like it given my love for vampire stories. It went to the bottom of my bedside "to read" pile, but Thatboy got to it before I did and fell in love. He was already into the second book, New Moon when I started reading it. I can remember the exact moment I turned to Thatboy with exasperation and asked WTF was up with this book. I was angry. He laughed. As I read I got angrier and angrier. Thatboy and L both told me not to keep reading. The main character can't walk two steps without falling down, so much so that the author has her being carried the entire second half of the book (Jasper carried her up the stairs, Edward carried her down the stairs, Alice carried her to the car.........). And when the guy she's been making goo goo eyes at? the one she's been doodling Mrs. Hislastname all over her books? The moment he acknowledges her presence she gets ANGRY at him for getting to go to school and not having to go to the hospital with her. It only gets more and more ridiculous as the series goes on. I know. I read over Thatboy's shoulder every now and again. Mostly to annoy him. Unfortunately, the producers of the movie are in cahoots with Thatboy because the movies all come out his birthday weekend. Which means I get to go to the theater with Thatboy and about 300 fifteen year old girls and lonely single women. (I know this because there were pretty much people fainting in the aisles when one character took off his shirt during the movie). I stalled for as long as possible, even planning a trip to Las Vegas the weekend of his birthday, but there is only so long you can stall the inevitable.


I had to wait a while to see our last movie because UDubb and I had made plans to see it together. Neither Thatbrother or Thatboy were interested in "The Princess and the Frog", so we were going to do a girls date. And then the boys jumped in. Thatboy didn't want to be left out, and Thatbrother got guilted into it. I believe UDubb's direct quote was "I see so many of your crappy movies, at least this one is only 90 minutes." It was so much fun to see an old school Disney movie again - with a princess, and talking animals, and most importantly - music! I bet it'll only be 20 minutes before you'll be seeing it on Broadway.


And you know what goes great with movies? Popcorn. Well, I believe popcorn goes great with everything, but especially movies. I love love love making my own popcorn too. Everytime I expect it to be greasy and oily because, well you dump all this oil in a pot. And I never cease to be amazed when it comes out light, fluffy, with nary a trace of oil. Which helps when you want to cover it with spices. This is my take on kettle corn. The sugar makes it sweet like kettle corn, but the 5 spice powder gives it a kick of cinnamon and other yummy flavors which is even better than kettle corn.

Better 'n Kettle Corn

1/2 cup popcorn kernels
1/4 cup canola oil
1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp 5 spice powder

1. Put kernels, oil, and salt in large bowl. Cover with lid and cook over medium heat.
2. When corn starts popping, shake the pot back and forth (like Jiffy pop!)
3. As soon as the popping slows, remove from heat.
4. Add sesame seeds and shake to distribute.
   
5. Sprinkle 5 spice powder and sugar over popcorn.

You don't have to be pregnant to have cravings

I've been dying for soup lately. DYING for it. Whenever Thatboy asks me "what sounds good" I always reply "soup." This has been happening since December. It started at his parents' house when we were trying to decide what to have for lunch. Of course, his parents don't keep soup in the house. (Who doesn't have a can of soup in their pantry?????) So on our drive home from Northern California we stopped for dinner so I could have a nice big bowl of, you guessed it, soup.

And the desire for something warm and cozy at the end of the night hasn't stopped. We've been having a nice bowl of soup for dinner for a week now, served with a hunk of nice warm toasty bread. What's especially nice is how easy soup is for dinner. Thatboy and I have started going back to the gym after work, so it's great to have a dinner that's quick when we come home exhausted in hungry. Sometimes the soup is so quick, I don't even remember to heat up our bread in the oven!

Cream of Almond Soup
1/2 cup blanched almonds, ground
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 tsp almond extract
2 cups cream

1. Put the almonds and chicken stock in a pot and bring to a boil. Simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes.
2. Mix the almond extract with 2 Tbsp cold water, and add to the pot, simmer 10 minutes.
3. Slowly stir in cream and salt to taste. Heat without boiling.

Sex, Games, and Pancakes

Phew what a weekend!

Let's start with Friday. A couple weeks back, H had asked if I wanted to go to a "Passion Party" with her. If you're not sure what that is, to quote my 11th grade English teacher when a student asked what a sodomite was - "go ask your parents." Let's just call it a "tupperwear party." I was hesitant at first because I wouldn't know anyone there, and I think "tupperwear" buying is a little bit more of a private thing than a group affair. But I do love H, and I am trying to be more social than last year's dark hole of solitude, so Friday night me and a bottle of wine found our way over to Officer Mel's.

I brought my camera, but once I was there, H and I decided it probably wasn't really a great venue for picture taking. Especially since most of the guests were in law enforcement or married to law enforcement and frankly, even with a blocked license I don't want to take my chances with pissing off people with tasers and guns as part of their work uniform.

I DO have to show you what I was most excited about all night. As soon as I saw it, I knew I would have to buy it immediately and of course, share it with all of you.

I would bet most of you are scratching your heads, trying to figure out what the heck this thing is. Don't worry, that's what I'M here for! This is the "amazing hot massager." It's got this little disc in it that you crack (like a glowstick) and it makes the whole thing heat up. And all you have to do to reset it is boil it in water. You can use it again and again and again and again. Frankly I'm not sure how you use it in a sexual manner, but I am SO excited to have warm hands again in the morning! They already make fun of me for wearing gloves in the office every morning and it makes it very difficult to type.

After all that excitement Friday night, it was difficult to get up bright and early Saturday morning. But get up I did. Because L had invited me to join her and her friends in the "Resolution Run 5k" - a run around Mission Bay. L had indicated that she was pretty out of shape and thought it would be a run/walk which would be perfect for me to get back into racing after my back injury.

The morning was perfect for a run. Clear and cool, with the sun breaking through.

The Resolution Run consisted of a 15k, a 10k, and a 5k, all with different start times, but on the same course.

Thatboy and I got there early enough to watch the 15kers and 10kers take off while I warmed up.

Eventually L found me.

And we found her group. I had asked her about bringing her cutie baby in his jogging stroller and she told me that would be crazy, because that stroller weighs like 20lbs in addition to the baby. Which made us feel even better when her friends and their stroller sailed past us early on in the run.

And we were off. It was a pretty disorganized start because there were way too many people for the narrow path. So people were on the grass, on the sand, on rocks.....sounds pretty safe, right?

The course was pretty as we ran along the bay, but it was difficult to pass people because there just wasn't enough room and it was a "double back" course which meant half of the course was taken up by 15kers, 10kers, and 5kers on their way back.

The finish line was equally disorganized. About .1 miles before the finish, everyone was funneled into a single file line so they could collect your "scanner" used to determine your time. SO bascially you came to a dead stop for the last bit of the race, and then walked at a snail's pace through the finish. Then handed over a strip with a barcode for them to collect. I'm not really sure why they even bothered because there's no way to really determine what your time was from the method they were doing it. Instead I used my Nike+ to let the people beside us know what their time likely was.

This is a typical Thatgirl face after crossing the finish. L's face wasn't nearly as happy. That bitch beside her decided we shouldn't try run/walking, we should run the whole thing. She was happy she'd run the whole thing, but right as this photo was snapped she had a less than flattering look. And I only publish flattering pictures - unless they're of Thatbrother.



See how cute she looks here? That's exactly how she typically looks. And only a couple minutes after crossing the finish line.


Then Thatboy and I headed up to Orange County because we had a dinner date that night! Dinner with Sweetcakes and her husband! It has been months since we've seen Sweetcupcake and she is growing so big! She looks like a real baby now, and not just a tiny little squiggly thing. Although, apparently she is just as perfect a baby as she was a newborn. The four of us decided she's going to probably be a terror as a teenager because she's just so good and easy now. Sweetcakes wined and dined us with a fondue dinner and dessert which easily put her back in the lead as "Thatboy's favorite one of my friends." And then the Sorry board came out.



Sorry is a game where you have no friends. Except for Sweetcakes and me. Mr. Sweetcakes continued to be baffled when we failed to screw each other over to get ahead. Instead focusing on how we could screw over Thatboy and Mr. Sweetcakes. Luckily we all left the night as friends.

And since I've been so good about giving you yummy dessert recipes, here's a super healthy breakfast recipe. Or as I like to call it: "Pancake Fail." Basically I tried to make pancakes as incredibly healthy as possible by subbing out everything that could be bad with things that are better for you. No butter, no milk, no cream, no sugar, whole wheat flour......It did not go well. Thatboy liked them better than I did, so maybe it's personal preference, but I think maybe some ingredients should be kept in, even if there are healthier alternatives out there. Unsurprisingly the blueberry syrup - which consists of blueberries and sugar, was delicious.

Pancake Fail
2 cups blueberries
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup cottage cheese
3 eggs
1 cup nonfat plain yogurt
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp salt

1. Combine blueberries, water, and sugar in a saucepan and heat over low heat for 10 minutes.
2. While the blueberries are cooking, beat together the cottage cheese, eggs, yogurt, and lemon juice.
3. In a separate bowl, combine baking soda, flour, and salt.
4. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients just until combined. (quiz AB fans - what method is this?)
5. Heat skillet over medium low heat and spray with cooking spray. Ladle batter onto skillet and cook until the batter begins to bubble. Flip and cook till browned.
6. Serve with the blueberry syrup.

Hanko Panko

I did not grow up in a house where we made our own breadcrumbs. "Breadcrumbs" came from one of two places - either the blue progresso canister, or from a bag with other ingredients meant for stuffing a Thanksgiving turkey. I'm sure somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that bread crumbs were small pieces, crumbs if you will, of bread. But the back of my mind isn't well lit and the stairs are kind of falling apart and well, it's just a scary place to visit. So let's not go there.

When I got older and started living on my own, I realized how difficult it is for a single person to use up an entire loaf of bread before it goes bad. And thus ushered in the era of homemade breadcrumbs and croutons. And stale baguettes in my freezer. But like the back of my mind, let's just stay out of the freezer.

And then I started hearing about this stuff called "panko" that was like breadcrumbs, but crispier. Crispier is always better. Ask anyone. So a couple years ago I started buying panko, and the rumor was right! It IS like breadcrumbs, but crispier. My only issue with this is the back of the mind thing. Because in my mind I get that breadcrumbs are crumbs of bread....so what does that make panko? The nagging voice I keep back there under piles of broken timber says it's probably shrimp...because that sounds about right, right? tiny dried little shrimp? (and yes, I'm sure I could google it to find out what panko is made of, but it makes me happier thinking that now every time you use it, you'll think of tiny dried shrimp dancing all over your food. Because that's what tiny dried shrimp do.)

Panko Chicken

1 egg white

1/2 Tbsp dijon mustard

1/8 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 cup panko

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 lb chicken tenders

1. Preheat oven to 425. Whisk egg white, mustard, cayenne, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl.

2. Combine panko and thyme in another shallow bowl.

3. Dip the chicken tenders in the egg white mixture, then roll in the crumb mixture.

4. Bake for 13-14 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Sweet Potato Fries

2 sweet potatoes

1/2 Tbsp avocado oil (or olive oil if you don't happen to live in Thathouse - although when this bottle is gone, Thathouse is switching back to olive since they restocked at their favorite olive oil supplier)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1. Preheat oven to 425. Cut sweet potatoes into wedges and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, and paprika.

2. Bake for 30 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are crisp.

Twas the week before Christmas

'Twas the week before Christmas, and on this little blog,

No one was around, not even Thatdog!

The stockings were hung by the tree all aglow,

And treats were all given to friends high and low.

We threw on our jackets and all sallied forth.

We packed up the car for our journey up north.

Pismo! We cried, what a nice place to stay.

The rooms are so spacious and Thatdog can play!

Free drinks after dinner, and free breakfast too!

We'll certainly stay here again, wouldn't you?

We headed up next to spend time in SLO,

with shopping, and walking, and new friends to know.

From there we were onward, we'd people to see!

And Thatmoms and Thatbrothers to keep company.

And soon it was Christmas, we watched without fail,

as angels and shepherds told the Christmas tale.

We had a nice Christmas, but whenever we roam,
it always reminds me - I'm so glad to be home!!!!!!!

And in the spirit of the winter holidays, I thought I would let one of my presents inspire some holiday treats. For Channukah, Thatboy got me the new Gregory Maguire book. I heart Gregory Maguire. I love the way he twists fairy tales. He already has a "Christmas" story out - Lost, but I'd seen he had a new Christmas tale, a re-telling of The Little Match Girl and it went right on my wish list. Beautifully written and reworked, I made myself read it over 3 nights to make it last longer. And I still cried on a couple of those nights. Then I decided to cook something from the book for the blog. Even though there aren't recipes. The book mentions special Christmas anise cookies. I've never made anise cookies. And there was both my challenge and my problem. I'd never made anise cookies. But I HAVE made gingerbread cookies. And I figured that would make an excellent base. So I took a gingerbread cookie recipe and adapted it. And you know what? Fantastic. Amazing. Maybe my new favorite cookie. I was thankful Thatboy and I could bring them into work because otherwise I would have eaten every last one of them.

Gingerbread Anise Cookies
(adapted from Better Homes and Gardens as seen on The Novice Chef)
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
3 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup molasses
2 eggs
1/2 tsp anise extract
1 tablespoon milk

1. Preheat oven to 375. Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds.
   
2. Add brown sugar, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and flour and mix until combined.
3. Add molasses, eggs, anise extract and milk until combined.
   
4. Drop dough by rounded tablespoon onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until bottoms are lightly browned.