A Mother's Balancing Act

Creeper at the Movies

OK, is it just me, or is it weird for a guy to go to the movies, by himself, with the intent of picking up women?

Creepers. Yuck!

So, my High School Daughter (HS Girl) and I went to a movie the other night (Super 8 - which was great, by the way), and we decided to stop in line at the concessions. We were third in line and discussing what to get.

Balanced Babe: Mmm...I haven't had popcorn in forever. We have to get some.

HS Girl: I don't like movie popcorn...it's too salty.

BB: How could you not like movie popcorn? It's the best...it's so bad for us...but I don't care. Yum-oh.

HS Girl: I want something sweet.

BB: (whispering) I have M&M's...

Just then, Creeper (directly in front of us) turns around and grins leers at us. He has to kind of peer up at us - me, 5'11, and HS Girl, towering above him in all of her own teen stretched out glory, complete with braid down to her waist.

BB: Uh...helloo??

Creeper: I like to listen.

BB: Uh, yes...? (expecting him to utter some sort of excuse or apology for eavesdropping)

Creeper: And I've always loved tall women, so I couldn't help myself...

HS Girl: (eyes wide, smirk on her face, speechless)

BB: OKayyy...

Creeper turns back around.

HS Girl: (whispering) Flash your wedding ring!!! (explodes into a flood of giggles...)

Can I just say, "Not ok, Creeper Dude. Not ok." And as far as I'm concerned, he wasn't necessarily focused on me. My daughter was oblivious, but she can easily be taken for older than her 16 years. He could have been hitting on either one of us. In the end, her laughter shamed him on his creeper's way.

But, YUCK!

This is why women never, ever, ever, ever want to go to the movies alone...God forbid. Reminds me of the old Mad TV skit... "Can I Have Your Number?" Hilarious. In that case, the "creeper" was played by a young woman, dressed as a young man. Too funny.

Balanced Babe - Molly Wendland

Monday Morning Coffee

As I sit this morning, making my "to-do" list before dashing off to work, I am ever so thankful that I roasted a turkey breast yesterday, in order to make my gravy in advance of "The Big Feast". And oh my goodness, it is delicious, if I do say so myself...and I do!

Entertaining 21 is not something that I do often. It didn't occur to me until last weekend that my cleaning crew (once again) did not "ping me" to ask when they could reschedule me since my regular day falls on "The Big Day". Last year, when I realized this, I opted out, figuring we were heading out of town to my brother's house. I thought, "Hey, we'll save the hundred bucks, do some cleaning ourselves (ahem...), and no one will be the wiser." Well, this time, I've got a cast of thousands coming to my house. It needs to be cleaned. I was sick a good part of last week (yuck!), and College Girl comes home tomorrow night to boot!

It looks like we'll be pulling together as a family to do an "all-out-effort" to get the house in order. I worked on everything but the floors in the kitchen last night, so it's in pretty good shape at the moment. I reminded Big Strong Man (that's BSM for any of you newcomers...) that I'd need his assistance, and we'll just make it work. That's right...Tim Gunn style. Yeah, I know. It sounds lame, but when you're used to having help, it takes a village to really get the whole house clean at the same time!

Truth be told, I'm just so excited to get my College Girl home tomorrow night, I'll do anything to get the Big Feast on the table on Thursday. Family, friends, feast, faith. It'll all be there. Life is good.

Cheers,

Balanced Babe (Molly Wendland)

Needle In a Haystack...

Just found this post that I never published. I liked it when I wrote it, so I decided to go ahead and send it out into cyberspace - about a year after the fact...

About 6 months ago, my 15 year old offered to "organize" my collection of recipes. If you'd seen them then, you'd know why I was thrilled beyond belief and willing to pay nearly any price for this precious service. We settled on the approximate amount of $100. This is what I've gotten so far...um, yeah...

 

Ain't life with teens grand?

So, recently, when I wanted to prepare my fabulous Pineapple Ketchup to go with the Pork Tenderloin that we were grilling for our family's Sunday dinner for nine, it was with sheer amazement that I retrieved the recipe from the pit on our guest room bed in under a minute. Serve this with grilled pork, beef or chicken. Yum! It's also good alongside marinated red onions. (Marinate for a couple of hours in a ziplock bag: one thinly sliced and quartered red onion, the juice of one lime, 1 T. red wine vinegar, 1 t. sugar, coarsely ground pepper to taste.) This meal pairs nicely with with a glass of pinot grigio, or if you prefer red, you are best to stick with a lighter one, perhaps a pinot noir or petir syrah. I even like a smooth Crianza with this. Enjoy!

Chunky Pineapple Ketchup

• 1 T. vegetable oil
• 1 yellow onion, very thinly sliced
• 1 pineapple, chunked
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 rice wine vinegar or vinegar
• 1 t. rose water (optional)
• 1 pinch ground cloves (important!)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 T. corn starch, mixed with 2 T. water

1. Saute onions 5-7 minutes.
2. Add pineapple. Cook about 3 minutes more.
3. Add remaining ingredients, except corn starch mixture. Cook add'l 5 min or so until mixture begins to thicken.
4. Add corn starch mixture, and boil until mixture thickens substantially.
5. Serve with your favorite grill meat!

Osborne Seven, Red Wine of Spain - Octavin Home Wine Bar

I am enjoying yet another in the Octavin Home Wine Bar series. This one is from Bodegas Osborne, one of the oldest wine producers of Spain, dating back to the 1700's. For this wine, the winemaker Jose Maria Nieto selected seven red wine varietals to create an everyday drinking red, perfect for pairing with pizza, hearty pastas, tapas, soups, and burgers.

This is the perfect wine for a large gathering. It's a step up from what you find in the party section at the liquor store (magnum size), where you might normally see Frontera, Delicato, Yellow Tail, and the like. Plus, it's in the environmentally friendly packaging of the Octavin and will last up to about 5 weeks right on your counter (if you can stretch it out that long!). (For more about the "features" of the Octavin Wine Bar series, refer to this previous post.)

I am taking the rest of mine to an event this week, so it's likely that I won't get to enjoy it much longer, but it really was pretty good while it lasted -- which wasn't long!

Vinter's Tasting Notes:

"The grapes are picked at the coolest part of the day just before dawn, and then harvested and fermented separately to allow each variety's individual character to develop.  We chose to minimize oak treatments to maximize fruit flavors, using micro-oxygenation instead to soften tannins.  We focused our efforts on finding just the right blend of varieties until we came across the perfect mix of berry fruit flavors, soft tannins and nice acidity to make an energetic, approachable and distinctively Spanish wine."

My Tasting Notes:

I mentioned above that this wine would be good with pizza. I enjoyed it with homemade pizza on a recent desperation dinner night. I used a pesto base, roma tomatoes, Italian cheese "blend", extra Parmesan, artichoke hearts, and fresh ribbons of basil. Yum-oh! This blend isn't too oakey, so the lighter pizza goes just great with it. There are hints of cherry, apricot and chocolate on the palate and a very light finish. This wine is nice for drinking on the patio with friends or while reading the paper in the evening -- or the afternoon...ahem.

Appellation:  Spain
Inaugural Release: 10,500 cases
Blend:  25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 18% Syrah, 8% Petit Verdot, 8% Tempranillo, 8% Grenache and 8% Graciano
Alcohol:  13.6%
Retail: $21.99 for 3L Octavin

Disclaimer: I received an Octavin free of charge from Underdog Wine Merchants for sampling. All opinions expressed are my own, and this post was neither reviewed nor approved by Underdog Wine Merchants prior to publishing.

Coasting @ Costco

OK, seriously...what is it with folks these days? I was shopping at Costco this afternoon, and I was absolutely blown away by the number of grouchy pantsed people in there...geezy Pete!

I'd be strolling down the aisle, and all of the sudden, there'd be someone reeling around the corner, acting as if they owned the entire store. Really! No apology. No "excuse me". Zero, zip, nada. Just a steely glance. "Pardon me," I stammer as I struggle to get out of their way. No response. Zero, zip, nada. Just that steely eyed stare.

I proceed about my business. I stop at an endcap and accept the sample of Brookside Dark Chocolate Acai with Blueberry candies (OMG! Amazing...!). Now, the ADA is probably going to come after me for this comment, but I have to say it. Just because you drive a "Jazzy" electric cart does not entitle you to basically bully everyone out of your way. Those of us on foot have rights, too. Don't get me wrong. I will happily get out of the way just as quickly as I can, but on a Friday afternoon, those aisles at Costco can get pretty congested. So, your terse "Excuse me" and subsequent nudging forward closer and closer to me until I have to step to the other side of my cart, nearly falling over, to avoid you running over my feet? Not cool, Jazzy Driver. Not cool at all!

I start back down the aisle, when who do I encounter but my new friend "zero, zip, nada," buzzing past me once again with her steely stare, as if I have really ticked her off by taking up my 18 inches on the right side of the aisle. I stop at the end of the aisle again to peruse the beautiful flowers (have you seen the gorgeous orange sunflowers Costco has? Stunning!). As I'm standing there trying to decide which ones to purchase for the party we're hosting tomorrow evening, I realize that "Jazzy's wife has appeared on the scene, and they are both blocking the center aisle with the Jazzy and a regular cart, having left the regular cart right in the middle of the aisle while they sample some food. Another customer is trying to pass through but can't, so I gently nudge "Jazzy's" wife's cart out of the way for her, just in time for "zero, zip, nada" to whip around the corner and ace the lady out of the hole I have created for her. The woman's jaw drops as "zero, zip, nada" weasels her way through with her icy stare.

"Yeah, there's a lot of grumpy pants in here today, aren't there?" She smiles in agreement.

Just then, "zero, zip, nada" turns on her heel and replies, "You're telling me!"

Ha! Just goes to show you, it all depends on where you're standing!

Balanced Babe (Molly Wendland)

Note to Readers: The link above for the chocolates is to Amazon, but I buy the same chocolates from Costco for $9.79! Sorry, Amazon! Readers, you'll have to buy the chocolates in person at Costco, though, as they do not sell them online!

People Watching @ Coffee Shops

The people watching at coffee shops can be downright entertaining – even in the 'burbs where I live!

Today, for example, I headed over to my favorite neighborhood haunt to do a little work while I enjoyed a cup-o-joe.

Well, the web connection wasn't working so hot, and I found myself immersed in other people's conversations and lots of…well, staring. Yes, staring.

Let's see if I can do a good job of recapturing the scene with a little panache…

Back in the corner, we had a meeting of the Old Timers' Cycling Club, complete with oh-so-tight bike shorts – yowza! Didn't need to see all that junk! Lemme tell ya! At one point, one of the gents hopped up and sort of trotted out the front door to snag another friend outside. He nearly skidded across the floor because in addition to his spandex, he was wearing cleats. I'm not kidding. Cleats! Since when do cyclists require spiked footwear? Especially 85-year-old cyclists? He was one noisy cyclist, that one! And, Lordy, that spandex…yikes!

Then, there are the ladies who've just gotten their nails done next door…

"Hi! I'd like a triple soy latte, no foam, not too hot…do you have sugar free toffee syrup?"

"No? OK, then, how about Tiramisu? Do you have sugar free Tiramisu?"

"Damn…OK. How about…uhm…(the line is starting to stack up behind her now…) how about pumpkin? Any sugar free pumpkin?"

"Shoot. OK. Let's just do an Americano. No, wait! A mocha! Yes. A mocha. Triple soy mocha. No foam. Not too hot. Is the chocolate sugar free?"

"Awesome! Oh, and LOTS of whipped cream, please!"

Well, allrighty, then.

"Oh, God…can you get the money out of my purse for me? It's right under that brush…I'm so sorry. I just got my nails done…"

"Oh, thank you. I like the butterfly, too. Kind of different, right? They do a good job over there…yes, it's right there. Can you get my debit card out? It's the Commerce card. Right…let's put it on there…oh, can you sign for me?"

Are you kidding me???

"Oh, really? I have to? Well, OK…if I have to. I hope I don't mess them up…"

I'd say "only in Johnson County", but I've witnessed this kind of thing all over the place. Women and their nails. Women and their hair. Women and their children.

Women. Ya' gotta' love us, right?

Just enjoying that cup-o-joe…

 

Balanced Babe (Molly Wendland)

Expanding the Menu

According to Big Strong Man, I have a bad habit. He refers to it as "Expanding the Menu".

It goes something like this. We plan a party. I make up a detailed menu of all of the items that I am planning to serve, and then, at the very last minute…the 11^th hour, if you will…I Expand the Menu.

I panic and worry that we won't have enough food after all (we always have enough food for a cast of Marines…), and I start whipping up an extra batch of guacamole…or artichoke dip…or gooey butter cake. You get the idea.

Well, weekend before last, I did something similar…kinda.

We were preparing to leave for Chicago to take our daughter to college – in 30 minutes.

And at that very moment, I decided to make her some of my famous Pesto Pasta…'cuz' that's her favorite. And I hadn't made any in a while. So, I decided I needed to do it – right then. (Hey, when you have veritable basil bushes like I do, you tend to want to take advantage of them, ya' know?)

Um, yeah…you might say that I'm a little verklempt about sending this child off to school.

So, I put the pot of water on the stove to boil…throw in the kosher salt and some olive oil and put a lid on, so it will boil faster.

Then, I run back to our room to finish getting ready.

I throw two bags of whole wheat spaghetti in with 20 minutes to go before our ETD (Estimated Time of Departure).

Those of you who have traveled with me before know that I tend to run a bit late…ahem.

Big Strong Man sees the steaming pot of water, and steam proceeds to start pouring out of his ears. He is definitely pleased…He quietly reminds me that we are leaving in now…17 minutes.

"I know," I chirp.

A few minutes later, when he sees me preparing to mix up my creamy pesto, I think his head might just spin right off of his neck. "We're leaving in three minutes."

"I know," I stammer. "I'm just trying to do something nice for our daughter. It's her favorite food on the planet." This to justify my completely inane activity at the last minute… ;-)

So, our daughter comes out to the kitchen, pours herself a "go mug" of coffee and sits down at the table. "What smells soooo good?"

"Pesto pasta," I reply, smiling complacently.

"YUMMMM! Oh, that sounds soooo good! Could I have some right now? Please???"

"For breakfast?? At 9 AM?"

"Yes??" she pleads.

"Sure. I don't care," I smile, absolutely thrilled with the early result of my domestic toils. I dish her out a big scoop of the creamy, green, garlicky pasta into a cereal bowl.

"That's plenty!"

She sits down at the breakfast table and starts twisting the strands of noodles around her fork. "Mmm, it's perfect."

"Doesn't need anything?"

"Nope! Why did you make this today?"

"For you and your roommate."

A look of surprise, then, perhaps embarrassment – but finally, pleasure crosses her face.

"We'll put it in a big gallon baggie, and it can go right into your dorm mini fridge. A little touch of home that you can warm up in the micro your first week of school."

Smiles all around.

9:08 AM…ready to walk out the door.

Not bad. Not bad at all…

Balance Babe (Molly Wendland)

Care Package for Your College Student

Our local newspaper ran a feature story yesterday about care packages for college students.

And that got me to thinking...what would my soon-to-be college student like in a care package?

Well, we all like to think that our kid is "special" - different from the norm, if you will.

But I'd have to say that the Star's article certainly hit the mark with the advice to pack it chock full of homemade goodies. Those will be a homerun with our girl, that's for sure.

So...

• Gooey Butter Bars, or
• Nieman Marcus Bars
• Homemade Brownies - always a hit
• Perhaps a few sundry items like magazines, toilet paper and snack items (mac n cheez, granola bars, etc.) - these will make good packing filler

And now for the items that might make our daughter unique:

• The KC Star crossward & NY Times crossward
• Coffee from Hattie's, our neighborhood java joint, preferably Yirgacheffe (yum!)
• Individual creamers (Mini Moo's?)
• Raw almonds - probably the bag from Costco; she loves those!
• KitKats - if it's not too warm out anymore!

This is a great start and a productive exercise. Thanks! I'll keep you updated on future shipments as I think of them.

Hopefully, you've gotten some good ideas for your college student, as well.

As far as I'm concerned, ther are no bad ideas, only bad hair days...so have at it!

Happy packaging!

Balanced Babe (Molly Wendland)

Yeah, It's Rich in Iron, But...

OK, so when we were kids, we ate things like Frosted Flakes and Fruit Loops. I remember thinking I was having a real Breakfast of Champions when I had Carnation Instant Breakfast and threw a raw egg in for extra protein (OMG...that is soooo gross...). We never got any at my house, but I did have friends who were lucky enough to be Tang kids. Man, I envied them.

So, anyway, tonight my 18 year old asked me, "Mom, what can I eat that has a lot of iron?"

I peered up from the computer screen to see if I could determine her angle...and then I remembered. She's giving blood tomorrow. Last time, she was unable to give because her iron was low (turned out, she had a number of problems, actually, and we have them to thank for bringing them to our attention). So, she wants to be sure that she's able to ante up this time. The gal on the phone told her to beef up her iron intake just prior to coming in (haha - pardon the pun...beef up...I kill myself!).

Since I was already online, I Googled "foods high in iron".

The main site I went to as a result of that search provided us with this scrump-dilly-icious list of some my daughter's favorites:

• Cockles - boiled
• Black pudding
• Fish paste
• Faggots (yes, really...)
• Heart
• Tongue - Ox

Now, those were just some of the more interesting, and all came with varying degrees of iron content, but all were quite high. I shudder to even think what cockles are, but I guess there's the old expression, "You warm the cockles of my heart..."

And if you need seasoning on any of the above, apparently, these should do the trick for an added dose of iron:

• Ground Thyme
• Rosemary
• Cinnamon
• Paprika
• Garam Masala

The website offers this sage (again, sorry about the pun...) regarding the spices, which offered extremely high percentages of the RDA of iron:

* these ingredients are eaten in very small portions and not really a high source of iron. RDA is based on 18mg per day, men may only need 10mg per day. High doses of iron are not recommended.

So...what did she wind up eating?

Life.

Somehow, that seemed appropriate. ;-)

By the way, I just looked up the definition of "black pudding"...man, those Brit's really know how to live it up:

"Black pudding is a blend of onions, pork fat, oatmeal, flavourings - and blood (usually from a pig). As long as animals have been slaughtered to provide food, blood sausages like black pudding have been in existence."

That was taken directly from the BBC's site. Well, allrighty then. Good to know, eh?

 

Balanced Babe (Molly Wendland)

Concannon Conservancy - New Releases

I mentioned in my last post that I will occasionally be blogging about new wines that I have tried. Recently, I took a couple of bottles of Concannon (Livermore Vally, CA) to my sister's for a gathering with family. I figure this is a great way to get a good concensus of opinions on a new offering pretty quickly. Most of my family members generally prefer reds over whites, but we are all pretty much wine-o's. That is to say, if red is poured, we drink it, and vice versa. In this case, I had some of each with me, so we were all covered anyway!

Concannon's new Conservancy Petite Syrah (2007) was a big hit. Jammy with hints of oak and light on the tannin. My  
sister, the Chardonnay afficionado, said "no bitter aftertaste". This was high praise, coming from the white wine lover in the crowd! We all agreed that this varietal delivered a very smooth, velvety finish. It was great with the mixed London Broil we had that evening, but it would also fare well with pork or veal, a hearty pasta dish, pizza, eggplant dishes - you get the idea. I would even serve it with barbecued chicken. I think it would pair nicely with a nice cheese board, as well.

As for the Concannon Conservancy Chardonnay (2008), it pleased our palates, too. I would recommend it with chicken, of course, also pizza, pasta dishes, salad (not too sweet),a cheese board again, and any appetizer fare. The Chard was of a lighter variety. Not too oakey, certainly drier than your Sauvignon Blanc but not as complex (or some would say not as harsh...) as many other Chardonnays. We found it to be an excellent choice for warm weather with hints of citrus and honey. It had a creamy quality to it, not often found in a Chardonnay. Crisp and certainly perfect for summer climes but also well suited for pasta with a creamy sauce. Mmm...thinking I might need to run out for a few more bottles of these. At $15 apiece, they are no brainers!

Happy Summer!

Balanced Babe (Molly Wendland)