#tempted to give corn to sausage

[minecraftbookshelf]

So like…there are potatoes and cacao in empires because there are potatoes and cacao in minecraft which means that clearly trade has been established with the americas they have a mixture of european and american crops.

So its plausible that at least one empire grows corn as a staple crop.

Anyway, how is everyone else’s night going?

That is a genuine question if anyone wants to answer I’m procrastinating at work.

[luninosity]

fanfic writers tag game!

I was tagged by the marvelous @musette22 for this lovely fanfiction tag game that was devised by the clearly very brilliant @thewaythatwerust, to discuss some of the fics I’ve written over time! Thanks so much! 💖

Let’s see, I shall tag... @thebestpersonherelovesbucky @turtletotem @gerec @whtaft and @ninemoons42 <3

Which of your fics…

* Did you think would get a bigger reaction/audience than it got:

Ah, a tricky one! I feel like I never really have expectations - I just write words because I can’t not! But maybe lines of light, which was my Steve/Bucky Fake Character Death Trope fic - it’s sort of a weird little fic, but I wanted more of that trope, but maybe that’s just me!

* Got a better reaction than you expected:

Oh, goodness - just about all of them! I remember being so shy and so nervous to share any of my writing, years ago, and now I write things that people seem to like...I think probably never mind the why and wherefore surprised me most, though! That’s my TJ Hammond/Johnny Storm fic, and when I started writing it mine was literally the third fic on AO3 for that pairing, and for that small a fandom, I’ve just been amazed.

Also, of course: I’m constantly amazed by how much people love Like Sugar! It was the biggest thing I’d ever tried to write, and it made me a better writer along the way, and I suspect it’s the Evanstan fic/series people might remember most, from my fics? (Also also, if original-fic-inspired-by-an-Evanstan-drabble counts: the love for Character Bleed has been overwhelming!)

* Is your funniest:

...am I funny? I don’t know! *waves hands about* I feel like I never set out to “write something funny,” but then again I like terrible puns and wordplay, so there’re probably funny lines in most fics? I hope?

Honestly maybe every inch of north and south, which has the Chris-turned-into-a-puppy plot, or Now That I’ve Found You, Stay, because giant patriotic dildos, or some of the banter in just a couple lovebirds, because I love Chris and Seb in that one. Or some of Bucky’s pulp fiction stories in tales to astonish. Or all the TERRIBLE autumn-related puns in the current Evanstan fic, A Place Not Far Away!

Or we could go REAL old-school and pull out the McFassy semi-crack fic in which James gets magically cursed to turn into a kitten. There’s that.

* Is your darkest/angstiest:

Ahahahaha. Um. *stares in Characters Having Emotions*

Okay, okay, um... Aside from certain specific chapters of Like Sugar and Amateur Cartography, it’s either The Tones That Tremble Down Your Spine (Bucky needs all the softness, after this! of course so does Steve...) (sometimes I think about adding a chapter, because it ends a little abruptly, but I also wanted it to - not everything’s 100% resolved, but it’s clearly on a healing trajectory!) ...

...or, over in Cherik-land, I hope we rise to the occasion, which does have a hopeful ending but is painful, or the balancing act stories (also Cherik) which were...personal in many ways (also originally written over on Livejournal, because I’m old).

* Is your absolute favourite:

Impossible! *laughs* It’s always the current story I’m (actively) writing. Which at the moment is the Evanstan autumn fluff-with-porn A Place Not Far Away. I don’t know if it’s my favorite-favorite, but it’s nice to get back to Evanstan and I love fall.

* Is your least favourite:

Also impossible! There’re things I love about all my stories. If I have to...maybe It’s Time To Bring This Ship Into The Shore, mostly because Michael’s such a dick to James for a lot of it. Which is also true in Loving Days (why was that a plot point in a few of my McFassy fics?) but I think I did a better job with his redemption in that one, and showing how much he changed and tried harder. And with Ship & Shore I wasn’t super-knowledgeable about the soul-bond trope (it was a request-fic) so I never felt quite sure I’d done it well enough!

* Was the easiest to write:

Amusingly, considering how epic and glorious and long the whole series became, I’d say Like O, Like H - the first Like Sugar Evanstan story. It just flowed. It knew what it wanted to be, and I tried to keep up. (Lovebirds was also one of those, as was the TJ/Johnny fic, never mind the why and wherefore.)

* Was the hardest to write:

the sound of rain on tin. It’s been the fic I’ve had the hardest time with ever. It’s my own fault for trying to do too much in terms of plot - sort of AU, an Evanstan-Stucky crossover, Lovecraftian elements - and then starting to post before I had it all properly sorted. I do know how it ends in general terms, I promise! but resolving plot/action has never been one of my strengths, and we’ve hit the point where I actually have to figure out How To Fix The Magic Portal-Thing, and I don’t feel like I’ve got it worked out well enough.

I mean if you all just want me to write the emotional Sebastian talking to Steve Rogers (and maybe a little curious kissing) and Chris talking to Bucky, and then *poof* suddenly Seb and Bucky are back in their respective universes and we get Emotional Reconciliation Scenes and Love Confessions, that part’s easy. I’ve had stray bits of those scenes done for years.

* Have you re-read the most:

Like Sugar, in part for continuity as I worked on later stories and in part because I’m really kind of proud of it.

* Would you recommend to someone reading your work for the first time:

Depends on what genres they like! I’m probably best known for - if anything - Like Sugar, and I think it’s pretty representative of my writing in terms of loving tender kink-with-emotions! But the person would have to not mind Evanstan RPF and soft Dom/sub kink and arranged (sort of) marriage tropes.

Other than that, for Evanstan, maybe Sweet Disposition (the third version of the clothes-sharing fic!); or (baby won’t you please), which is the Chris And Seb Go To A Sex Club For Research For a Role fic, or tempt me, tease me, which is...Sebastian leaves an unsatisfactory date with someone else (brief and random) to go pick Chris up from a bar, and then there’re lots of revelations about Feelings, and also porn-with-emotions. Those last two ‘feel’ similar in my head for some reason - mood, maybe, or story arcs about revelation and discovery.

...for Stucky, maybe when and where our eyes meet (Bucky falling asleep! soft blankets!)...or tales to astonish, because it’s such fun!

...if you want to go a bit older, I have weird affection for my first-ever Cherik fic, Know That It’s True, which is a Cerebro hurt/comfort fic, and then I love the slow development of the McFassy in No Wonder, No Wonder, which I occasionally still think about trying to revise as original, but it’s so character-driven that it’d be hard, but I love the feel of it, the hints of magic and the setting...

* Are you most proud of:

Like Sugar! At the time it was the biggest story I’d ever tried to write, both in terms of length and in terms of world-building and planning and characters growing closer together. Character Bleed got more complicated in terms of needing multiple outlines and plot, eventually, but I couldn’t’ve done that if I hadn’t done Like Sugar first.

* Has your favourite line/exchange/paragraph (share it):

Too hard to pick! There are so many! 

I sometimes say it’s this one, from tempt me, tease me, though not always:

“If you’d like,” Sebastian offers, “we can even tell them I borrowed your key and lost it, if you don’t mind asserting small untruths to hotel personnel.” Big blue half-plastered Captain America eyes stare at him some more. “…Chris?” “You…” One hand waves, a partial gesture, pulled back at the last second. As if Chris has meant to reach out, and thought better of that. “You really would? You wouldn’t, y’know, mind?” Sebastian half-smiles. Thinks of cars with broken-glass windows in Romanian capital-city streets, thinks of students waving flags and cheering with feral glee, thinks of saucer-eyed childhood memories and songs of revolutionary fervor and desperate upheavals of optimism like birthing-pains. Chris Evans is beautiful and genuine and real, and Sebastian would do far worse things, would splinter his body and perjure his soul, to give Chris one more day in which to eat pizza and laugh and clap friends on the shoulder with a broad happy hand. “No,” he says, “I wouldn’t mind.”

Or, from the WIP - the next chapter of A Place Not Far Away - because my favorite is often what I’m currently working on, there’s this! Enjoy? <3

They both watch Sebastian for a second; he’s nodding, jotting down a quote, hair bouncing with the motion. His fingers are quick and tanned, gathering notes; his jacket’s casually open, and dirt’s left a scuff on his right boot.

 He’s a New York City reporter in a black leather jacket and a stylish sweater, but he’s also a reporter who doesn’t mind getting dirty and will run through a corn maze and helped set out signs the first day Chris ever met him.

 Carly pats Chris’s shoulder, says, “Enjoy yourself,” and heads off to supervise some historical blacksmith demonstrations. The sky shimmers in clouds and satin and magic and unfallen rain.

 Sebastian bounces back over. “That’ll be fantastic, she was so excited, she’s already thinking about next year, which is so perfect for a pull quote, and it’ll get people thinking ahead about coming here then!”

 Would you come back, Chris doesn’t say. Would you come back next year, next month, next week, even if your story’s done? Would you stay and not leave?

 He can’t ask that. This is Sebastian’s job.

 He says, “That’s awesome. You want lunch?”

 “Absolutely. I haven’t eaten my way through your menu yet. Recommendations?”

 “Classic Oktoberfest? The whole German sausage, potato, onion thing? That one’s popular. And, um, baked apples. In maple cream sauce.” Food. He can talk about food. Promoting their menu. Not getting down on both knees and promising to bring home every pumpkin Sebastian likes, if that’ll make those happy eyes stay at his side.

 “Sounds good.” Sebastian’s eyebrows go up, beckoning Chris into the joke. “And I do like sausage.”

 “I like your sausage,” Chris tells him, and Sebastian’s laugh is a splash of sunshine through clouds and cold and tree-branches that stretch to the sky.

[gosetmind]

20 Diet Success Tips

Dieting is not easy. If it were, we would probably all be thin. Since we are not, here are some tips that successful people use to lose weight so that others can benefit, too. 

  SUCCESS TIP NO. 1: DRINK 8-10 GLASSES OF WATER EACH DAY 

  Okay, for many people this is a big problem. Water doesn't taste all that great generally because water doesn't really taste like anything. Drinking water 8 to 10 times each day gets easier the more you actually do it. It is simply a matter of conditioning your taste buds, and yourself, so that it becomes easier to do. Once you get started, you will begin to crave water. 

To begin with, you should drink a glass of water in the morning first thing, before you eat. This is probably the easiest glass you will drink all day and it will help you remember to drink water all day long. Better yet, why not drink two glasses? 

If you really cannot bear the taste of water, try using a water purifying pitcher or filter. You can also add a few drops of lemon or lime to your water but no sugar or sweetener! Ice also helps. 

Check out flavored waters on the market, too. Just keep an eye out for additives. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 2: EAT BREAKFAST 

Do not skip breakfast. If you need to go to bed a little earlier so that you can get up 20 minutes earlier each morning do it! Breakfast is so important to your good health and to weight control. According to Dr. Barbara Rolls a professor of nutrition at Penn State University, "Your metabolism slows while you sleep, and it doesn't rev back up until you eat again." 

Eating breakfast is not only good for overall weight loss, it will help you stay on track with your diet the rest of the day. You are more likely to binge on something sweet and in the bread group if you skip breakfast. 

You can always keep a couple of hard-boiled eggs in the fridge or some high-fiber, low starch fruit around. If you plan to eat fruit at all during the day, breakfast is the perfect time to do it. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 3: EAT AT LEAST 3 MEALS AND 2 SNACKS EACH DAY 

This can be one of the hardest adjustments to make. After all, you are busy! You already have a full-plate. When do you have time to worry about filling your plate with more frequent meals? 

Just like eating breakfast will increase your metabolism, so will eating more often. This will also help you curb your bad-carb intake by making sure that your snacks are planned and occur regularly throughout the day. 

Really, it will just take a minimal investment of planning time at the grocery store and at home each morning before you head out for the day to make some healthy food choices and prepare a few healthy snacks and meals. For suggestions, just see the handy list of snacks and appetizers listed later. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 4: AVOID WHITE FOODS 

This is one easy way to remember what not to eat. If it is made from sugar, flour, potatoes, rice or corn - just say no. Remembering this rule of thumb will make it easier to recognize those rice cakes as an unhealthy high-carb snack. 

Always look for colorful fruits and veggies to substitute for the white ones. Buy broccoli, lettuce, bell peppers, green beans and peas, brown rice in moderation, leafy greens like kale and spinach, apples, melons, oranges and grapes. 

These foods are not only colorful they are also high in fiber, nutrients and important antioxidants. Eating colorful fruits and vegetables will give your diet variety as well as give you added health benefits. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 5: EAT YOUR VEGGIES 

  It is so easy to use a low-carb diet as an excuse for poor nutrition. Resist this temptation. If the only vegetable you have eaten in the last 5 years has been the potato, now is a good time to begin experimenting with other vegetables. This is important for your overall health and to avoid some nasty side effects of not getting enough fiber in your diet. 

If you try hard enough, you will find vegetables that you enjoy eating. Experiment with grilling veggies and cooking with real butter to add flavor. You can also search for new recipes on the Internet or in cookbooks. 

Remember, if you are only eating 40 grams of carb a day or less, two cups of plain salad greens contain only about 5 grams of carbohydrate. You have no excuse not to eat your veggies. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 6: PREPARE YOUR OWN FOOD AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE 

While more and more restaurants are offering low-carb friendly menu items, many of them are still not ideal low-carb fare. There are many recipes for quick and easy meals that you can prepare yourself at home. Try to do this as often as possible. 

If you cook your own foods, you know exactly what the contents are and you will be able to better control for hidden sugar and otherwise processed foods. 

Another benefit is the cost savings over the long run. Even if you must go to the grocery store more often, you will save a significant amount per meal as opposed to eating at restaurants and fast food establishments. 

It will also be easier to maintain your diet with your own favorite fresh food selections on hand. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 7: INVEST IN A GOOD SET OF FOOD STORAGE CONTAINERS 

Having food storage containers of various sizes on hand will make it so much easier for you to plan your meals and snacks. When you buy nuts, fruits and vegetables in bulk you can simply prepare, separate and store them for easy use later. 

For instance, you can pre-slice your apples and snack on them over several days. Simply cut them, rinse them in pineapple or lemon juice and store. This will make a quick and easy snack for later. 

Fix your lunch and take it with you to work. Better yet, fix your lunch and 2 snacks for work. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 8: EAT SOME PROTIEN AT EACH MEAL & AS A SNACK 

  In addition to everything that's been discussed before, eating protein helps you burn more calories. Jeff Hample, Ph.D., R.D., a spokesman for the American Dietetic Association says that, "Protein is made up mainly of amino acids, which are harder for your body to breakdown, so you burn more calories getting rid of them. 

Just think eating a protein rich snack can help you lose weight. How about a few slices of turkey or ham or some string cheese? 

Eating protein will also help you feel full so that you are less likely to crave unhealthy snacks. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 9: DRINK A GLASS OF WATER AFTER EACH SNACK 

This will help you get in your 8 to 10 glasses of water each day but it can also have other benefits. Ever feel hungry after eating a handful or standard serving of nuts? Try drinking water afterwards. The water will help you feel full and prevent overindulgence. 

Drinking water after a snack will also help remove the aftertaste from your mouth and can help curb your desire for more. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 10: EAT SLOWLY & ENJOY YOUR FOOD

You will feel full and more satisfied if you take the time to savor your food and chew it slower. Don't get in the habit of eating while standing or eating quickly. Sit down and chew. 

Eating slower will help you enjoy your food more, pay attention to what it is you are actually eating and get a better sense of when you are actually full.

SUCCESS TIP NO. 11: EAT YOUR LARGER MEALS EARLY AND SMALLER MEALS LATER

You will feel better and lose weight quicker if you eat a large breakfast and eat a smaller dinner. You may also want to eat the majority of your carbs earlier in the day, saving a salad and lean meat protein for dinner. 

Eating larger meals during the part of the day when you are most active will help you to feel satisfied throughout the day and curb cravings for unhealthy snacks. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 12: CONSIDER EATING SALMON OR MACKREL FOR BREAKFAST

Yes this may seem odd, but it is one way to work in Omega-3 fatty acids that are good for you and add some variety to your daily diet. After a few months you may tire of eating eggs and bacon for breakfast. Substituting fish will give you the protein and healthy fish oils you need. 

You can try canned salmon or mackerel in croquettes for a healthier sausage substitute. Or you could simply eat cold leftover salmon the next morning with dill sauce. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 13: USE LETTUCE LEAVES INSTEAD OF BREAD

  This tip can seem a bit odd at first but if you try it you will probably grow to love it. Instead of eating breads and buns with your sandwiches and hamburgers, why not try leaves of lettuce? 

You can make a double cheeseburger with onions, pickles and tomato wrapped in a whole lettuce leaf. Or you can make tasty wrap sandwiches with lettuce instead of tortilla and bread. 

This will help increase your good carb and fiber intake while giving you more variety in your diet. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 14: EAT A FRUIT DESSERT

Okay, we all want a little dessert sometime, but how do you have your dessert and your low-carb diet too? Why not try cheese with fruit slices or berries? Better yet, why not try cream with berries? You could even try sweet pineapples or strawberries with cottage cheese? 

Berries are sweet and high in fiber and nutrients and dairy products are high in protein. If your low-carb plan will allow it, this is a sweet and tasty alternative to more sugary desserts. 

An added benefit is that the protein in the dairy products and the fiber in the fresh fruit will make these desserts more filling. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 15: GET YOUR FRUIT FRESH NOT SQUEEZED

  Fruit juice can be very tempting as a replacement for soda, but just how healthy is fruit juice? If you read the labels you will soon realize that in many of the commercial juices available at your local grocery store there is very little actual fruit juice. 

What you will find is lots of sugar water and other ingredients. Why not skip the juice altogether and eat a fresh piece of fruit? Not only does fresh fruit contain less sugar than juice, fresh fruit has fiber that is good for you and will help you feel fuller longer. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 16: GO EASY ON THE MEAL REPLACEMENTS

New meal replacement shakes and bars go on the market almost every day. These shakes and bars may claim to be healthy, but almost all of them, even the Zone Perfect bars, contain hydrogenated oil and sweeteners.

So be careful. The bars especially may be only slightly healthier than a Snickers candy bar. Occasionally, they may not be that bad for you but as a rule you probably don't want to indulge in a meal replacement shake or bar every day.

SUCCESS TIP NO. 17: IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE IT PROBABLY IS

Low carb doughnuts and muffins? You can find these prepackaged low-carb labeled goods at your neighborhood grocery store and at many low-carb lifestyle specialty shops. That does not mean that you should make a habit out of eating them. 

While low-carb pastries may be tempting remember that they still contain all of the usual carbohydrate suspects: sugar or a sugar substitute and flour. 

They may be healthier than your typical muffin as an occasional treat, but remember to stick with the basics for continued low-carb success. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 18: AT THE GROCERY STORE ?SHOP THE OUTER AISLES

It will be easier to stick with your low-carb lifestyle if you learn the one common thread in all grocery store designs: the healthy foods are on the perimeter aisles. 

Think about it, when you go into the grocery all of the healthy stuff, fruits, vegetables, meats, and dairy products are arranged around the stores walls. You only rarely need to enter the center aisle areas in those few stores that stock butter and cheese in the center near the frozen foods. For the most part all of the foods that you need for your low carb diet can be found on the perimeter of the grocery store. 

Train yourself to start on one end of the outer aisle and work your way around. It will be much easier to avoid carb cravings and fill your basket with healthy items if you do so. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 19: INVEST IN GOOD COOKBOOKS

  Can抰 figure out what to eat? Need some variety in your diet? Turn to a cookbook. Granted, not all recipes in a cookbook are low-carb fare, but you will be surprised at the number of low-carb and low-carb friendly recipes you can find in your standard Betty Crocker Cookbook. 

Cookbooks are great reference tools that often contain handy tips on purchasing cuts of meat and preparing meats, fruits and vegetables in new and exciting ways. 

Plus, new low-carb cookbooks are hitting the shelves all the time. So be sure to take advantage of these resources to try something new, different and delicious. 

SUCCESS TIP NO. 20: TAKE A GOOD MULTIVITAMIN

We can't all do it right all of the time. Even the most conscientious food combiner may miss some healthy vitamins, minerals and trace elements in their diets. To help make sure you get everything that you need, consider taking a good multivitamin. 

Check with your doctor first for recommendations and you should be tested for anemia to see if you need a vitamin with iron. However, the longer you eat low-carb and the more red meat you eat, the less anemia will be a problem and you should be able to take vitamins with less iron.

Your success is totally up to you. Assuming that you are an otherwise healthy individual, your body will do its part. Just remember to adhere to the low-carb diet plan that is right for you and add some variety to your meals to help you stay faithful to your health and weight loss goals.

[crystalized-dreams]

So, we ended up going to Tennessee last weekend to see some friends (And well, go to Worlds while there anyway), which if you check my Twitter or are subscribed to my Youtube channel, you likely already knew 😛 But anyway, it was nice to go somewhere new. I had never been to Tennessee so I had fun just enjoying Nashville.

Before we get into the general trip stuff, I’ll talk about Pokemon and Pokemon Worlds a bit 🙂

So, we picked up our badges on Thursday afternoon. Figured it was best to get that and the shop out of the way ASAP. I think I generally liked the colors/theme of the Worlds 2017 stuff better, but I still really liked the lanyard at least. I loved all the Pokemon with the different instruments. I kind of wished there was more merchandise featuring all the Pokemon for this over just Pikachu. They did, however, give out this free poster which was perfect (And we were even given a few extras!):

So, while we didn’t really buy any of the exclusive stuff, we did get these adorable plushies: And here’s the bag by itself:

We also got some packs of cards with our spectator badges and these were essentially the highlights from our pack openings: I did not get nearly as nice cards from opening the digital versions 😛

They also had a demo station for the Let’s Go games! I was really excited to try them out:

And even got this cute Pokeball stress ball for playing:

I actually had a lot of fun with it. I really like the look of the game and how Pokemon show up and just exploring. The world feels so much more alive which is really nice. The Pokeball controller worked well, though, I found I accidentally would hit the button versus moving it sometimes, but I think that’s more just because I was getting used to it. It also reacted fairly well, but I couldn’t figure out exactly where the timing was for Pokemon who move around a lot and sadly, my time with the demo ended before I could play around with it more.

I’m really looking forward to it though. Now to just… finish Ultra Moon.

But yes, some pictures from the Pokemon Center, the main room, and where it was being held: #gallery-0-9 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-9 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-9 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-9 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

The view was so nice.

The Prize Wall

I want one of these in my house.

One of the various stands around. Meloetta was the Pokemon available to download. If only it was able to come with a ribbon…

Part of the Stage! I love the building names.

All the set-ups were genuinely really neat.

They’re really nice. But honestly, the card artwork is my favorite.

I really love these so much

I was so tempted to buy one of these, but $50 was too much for me… 😦

I really loved the stage. I love the buildings being all Pokemon world themed and it just really makes me wish there was some big combined Pokemon game of all the various cities and things we’ve gotten from every game. The Pokemon World is already so huge and there’s so much to see and I wish they’d actually use that versus constant new regions. At this point, I’m just kind of tired of new regions and new Pokemon. I’d mind a new region less if we could visit it alongside familiar ones, but I think there’s plenty of Pokemon at this point 😦

Moving a bit more outside the convention center, I wish we got to do more in Pokemon GO, honestly. We seemed to manage to miss every single raid, there weren’t too many Pokestops actually in the main room, my GPS was constantly a bit finnicky, and I just didn’t have much luck with spawns either. I at least finally got a Sneasel and I did get a shiny Sunkern:

Also Tom traded me one of the Shiny Mareep he caught when we had visited back in April so yay 😀 And I at least got a lot of gifts to send back to people. Since I don’t go out much (and sometimes just can’t especially with the weather lately), I don’t usually have many chances to give gifts out 😦

But yes, as to one of the biggest reasons for going, it was to pick up this from a very amazing friend:

This was one of the prizes for the first winner of the Sylveon Girls Battle in 2016 in Japan and one of my most wanted items that featured Mega Audino T~T My next big goal will be Mega Audino Ddakji:

So, if you’re in Korea or know someone who could maybe help with those, let me know! ❤

Going into general Tennessee, it’s time for various random tourist-y pictures and food tours 😛 #gallery-0-10 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-10 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-10 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-10 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

I couldn’t help but take pictures of some of the things at the airport when we landed

This was in the center of the hotel’s main entrance. Though, this was taken as we were leaving…

Close-up because of the cute bird in the tree!

Fireplace in the lobby.

Flowers in the hall.

Our hotel room!

The breakfast at the hotel! It was nice.

The hotel actually occasionally had stuff for dinner too though.

And for lunch as well!

And they switched it up a bit. Some nachos with chili and cheese! They also always had cookies–chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin.

Our very first meal was at the Corner Bakery Cafe that was right at the corner of the hotel. I had a Club Panini with Chicken Carbonara.

My husband had the BBLT with the Asian Wonton Salad. The drink was a Hibiscus Lemonade. I actually really liked this place, but due to the hours, we didn’t manage to go there again sadly.

This pig was near the entrance of Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint. You’ll see we ate there a few times 😛 As it was my husband’s favorite and pretty much everything we had there was good. I wonder if this pig has a name. I will name him Sir Pig for now.

Meanwhile, I got a sausage sandwich and potato salad

My husband’s pulled pork and corn bread~

Dessert! I got pecan pie while he got their fried pie to try.

On another day, my husband got the “redneck taco” and potato salad.

Meanwhile, I got the sausage platter with hush puppies and cornbread.

On our final day, I had actually still been sick from the day before and so, we didn’t have lunch (paired with just not many people being open on Sunday). In combination with that and it being our last day and my husband still wanting to try a lot, we kind of overdid it a bit. I got a brisket sandwich with a side of mac & cheese and a baked potato. He got the the Brisket Burger with the cornbread, and then Loaded Fries and Catfish for sharing. And a strawberry cake for dessert.

They also had homemade brownies. I miss this brownie.

Also cheesy bread to share.

And olives! My only issue is only some were pitted and it wasn’t even just like… one specific type that wasn’t pitted. It was a bit random.

My husband’s pizza~

This is from Hot Diggity Dogs 🙂 I got a normal hotdog and the Polish Sausage while my husband got the Nashville and Bratwurst. Also cheese fries.

Straight down from the convention center was Al Taglio, a pizza place. I got an all cheese pizza.

Wild Bill’s was essentially a soda stand in the convention center. They had all kinds of different soda’s and if you got one of their special cups, you could get free refills on Friday and Saturday. While soda isn’t really my thing, my husband enjoyed it.

One thing we saw a lot was a Party Bike. Which was like a Party Bus… but with a group of people biking. They were always kind of amusing to see.

Butterfly we saw at the airport!

But yeah, I had more fun than I would have expected and there’s definitely more I would like to do and see so hopefully we have time to go again. And hopefully we won’t have another person pulling the fire alarm or another super hot day that destroys me because those were really the only bad things.

As for Pokemon Worlds next year… We don’t have too many plans, but Washington DC is a pretty good location for us, so maybe~

A Trip to Tennessee! (Pokemon Worlds and Goals) So, we ended up going to Tennessee last weekend to see some friends (And well, go to Worlds while there anyway), which if you check my Twitter or are subscribed to my Youtube channel, you likely already knew 😛 But anyway, it was nice to go somewhere new.

[winnwinn-moved]

heaven on earth

doyoung - fluff - 3258

    ah summer vacation. the ideal time for swimming, for surfing, for soaking up the sun. summer vacation means no rules, no worries, no problems. summer vacation is supposed to be the absolute best part of the year. and so far, summer vacation has been going pretty okay. so maybe it’s been more than okay, it’s been pretty amazing because you’re spending almost every single day with your best friend (and crush), doyoung. and you’ll soon be spending every single day with him down at the beach. yes, the beach, with the crystal clear waves, and oh so warm sand, and the best ice cream on the face of the planet. a few weeks ago, doyoung has casually mentioned that he and a couple friends (taeil and yuta to be exact) where heading down to the beach for a week of rest and relaxation.

    it sounds nice, in theory.

    really, it does.

    but then the car ride started.

    taeil’s little red corolla seemed really nice at first. it was enough space for the four of you to feel comfortable, yet close enough that you could still talk to everyone and reach over to the radio to change yuta’s kyary kyary pamyu mixtape. the trunk also has enough room to hold of your luggage too. the air conditioning works, the motor runs smoothly, and fate just so has it that you and doyoung are the two sitting in the back row. oh, and sharing a blanket. a fuzzy red blanket that doyoung draped over your legs three minutes into the ride because he saw you were shivering.

    the first three hours of the car ride passed by quickly. most of the driving was through cities and on major roads, so there was always plenty to see. the numerous road signs provided you and doyoung at least an hour of fun, and you discovered that doyoung is much better at the alphabet game than you could ever hope to be. the billboards, ranging from “real christians obey god” to “savannah’s gentleman club” and your possible favorite “real human hair wigs”, had you and doyoung cackling for hours while taeil and yuta glanced back, whispering about how cute you two are. even when there weren’t signs to entertain the two of you, doyoung seemingly could talk for hours and hours and hours, and you realized that this could actually be kind of… fun.

    but then you left the familiarity of the city and entered the great open country. for miles, all you can see is corn. and more corn. and the occasional water tower. you wonder where the hell taeil is driving you guys, and you’re starting to think he doesn’t know where he is either. your suspicions are soon confirmed when yuta yells “oh wait the map was upside down this whole time!”. doyoung has lost interest in his rambles about outer space (a topic you rather liked to hear about), and has instead decided to stare out the window blankly. you don’t want to bother him from his daydreams, despite the growing urge to say something stupid just to hear his voice, but you don’t. you decide to listen to taeil and yuta bicker instead, because that’s at least more entertaining than the corn.

    you sigh loudly. doyoung glances over at you, though you remain unaware of this, too busy messing with your shoelaces to notice his soft smile. yuta notices however, and winks at doyoung at least a million times before turning back around to try and figure out the map. doyoung blushes hard and swats at the back of yuta’s head, which gets your attention, and now you’re interested in why doyoung seems so upset. but when you ask, he only gets more red and crosses his arms over his chest, telling you that yuta doesn’t know how to keep his nose in his own business.

    “now now kids, you need to behave.” taeil yawns. “or else i’m gonna leave you on the side of the road.”

    the infinite loop of pon pon pon makes his offer tempting, but it’s getting dark, and the last thing you need is to be abandoned in a corn field. doyoung is apparently ready to take that risk though, and he whacks yuta’s head one last time before returning to his thoughts. you laugh a bit at this, and start to laugh harder when yuta whines about being mistreated.

    “you always defend doyoung.” yuta complains. “i bet he could bury me in the sand this week and leave me to drown and you would swoon over how creative he is.”

    “oh come on, i’m not that biased.” you retort, but you feel your face heating up, and know it must be obvious because the smirk on yuta’s face is so wide your half tempted to ask taeil to pretty please slap it off. “you’re just delusional.”

    “oh come on, you know you’re soft for doyoung.” taeil laughs. “you don’t need to hide it. everyone knows. except maybe doyoung, maybe he doesn’t know. we should ask him.”

    “you know i can hear you.” doyoung says slowly. he doesn’t look away from the window, and you’re worried that maybe he’s mad now. “stop teasing them.”

    “wow, doyoung, the hero we never knew anyone needed.” yuta rolls his eyes but winks at him.

    doyoung groans and pulls his tangled earbuds from his backpack. with a dramatic glare at both taeil and yuta, he puts the earbuds in his phone, then proceeds to drown them out with his music. taeil and yuta start to laugh at his reaction, and it’s obvious that doyoung is now turning up his music, so loud in fact that you can start to hear muffled lyrics pour out from the earbuds. you can’t help but smile slightly; it’s one of your favorite songs. doyoung knows this, how could he not? why would he even pick the song in the first place?

    he pulls the left earbud from his ear, handing it over. you give him a confused look, but you soon put it in, your cheeks tinting pink. yuta spins right around and there on his face once again is that wicked cheshire cat smile that makes you blush even more. doyoung does his best to ignore yuta’s grin, but soon, he too is blushing, and now even taeil has taken his eyes off the road to give you two a knowing smile.

    “it’s not like that!” doyoung’s voice sounds desperate. “i’m tired of listening to your weeb trash, and i know they are too. that’s all!”

    “okay, first of all, the persona three soundtrack is critically acclaimed, i hope burn my dread is played at my funeral, it’s not even web trash, because i am not a weeb-” yuta cuts himself short. “besides… you could have just asked to change the station. you didn’t need to share all romantic like this, but nooo, you just have to be smooth.”

    “boyfriend material.” taeil calls from the front. “ten out of ten would date.”

    “taeil you have a girlfriend.”

    “oh you’re right…”

    this of course only makes you blush harder, because even though it’s obvious to everyone in the world that you and doyoung are wildly in love, neither of you have actually done the whole confessing part yet. granted, yuta has confessed on your behalf at least a million times, and mark and donghyuck have trapped you in a group chat where they spam you pictures of doyoung doing anything (not like you’re complaining). you and doyoung have danced around the idea of an actual relationship for months now, but something is stopping the both of you, something unknown, something unnamed. countless times you’ve had to stop yourself from pulling doyoung down by the collar and crashing your lips onto his, and countless times more you’ve had to shut your big mouth from screaming “i love you” at the top of your lungs. things are hard when you’re suddenly smitten. accidental touches are no longer accidental, innocent staring is now something more, i miss you texts are not a good night, but a cry for attention and love.

    you and doyoung could practically be dating with all the time you spend with each other. he is in your fact, your best friend before anything else. doyoung’s apartment (the one he shares with sicheng) has an entire closet dedicated to your belongings, because as time passed, doyoung realized your tees and jeans were becoming more and more and his need for a coat closet becoming less and less. your favorite snacks (though often stolen by sicheng) are always stocked up in the fridge, and your favorite movies and television box sets are always piled high near the dinky television in the living room. you have a key to the apartment, tucked away safely on your lanyard, and even when doyoung isn’t there, you find yourself huddled on the worn futon, reading one of the books he picked up from the library earlier in the week. sicheng teasingly complains you two should just kick him out already, and now that you think of that, you or doyoung have never really said anything to challenge that. it’s not like you dislike sicheng, that’s humanly impossible, but the idea of living with doyoung… that’s heavenly.

    you shake your head. now isn’t the time to plan your future out, not when taeil and yuta are watching your every move to catch a crack in your apathetic facade. you cross your arms over your chest, and then suddenly remembering your outfit, take a peek down at your shirt only to realize it’s not really yours- it’s doyoung’s.

    no wonder everyone thinks you’re together.

    you look out the window, only to find the sun has sunk low in the sky, and in its place is a host of stars. you smile softly, then yawn. you’ve been driving for more than half the day, and you’re sure everyone, especially taeil, is exhausted. besides, it’s evident that you’ve lost your way. nothing seems more tempting right now than finding a tiny motel and passing out on a mattress rather than the car seat. it would be nice to stretch your legs out, walk around a little bit, shower and clean all the travel funk from your skin. and hotels have breakfast in the morning, and anything could be the imitation sausage biscuit you stomached from mcdonald’s earlier today.

    it’s as your mind has been read, your prayers answered, because doyoung says, “hey, let’s stop for the night, before taeil gets us lost in the middle of nowhere. i saw a road sign, there’s a hotel on the next exit.”

    “i think we’re all tired anyhow.” you add, tugging at your blanket.

    “of course you would agree with him.” yuta winks over at you.

    “you just yawned like two seconds ago.” doyoung glares. “so be quiet.”

    “no, i agree too. i can’t keep my eyes open.” taeil puts the blinker on. “here’s to hoping they have a room.”

    as you guys pull into the hotel parking lot, you start to wonder if you’ll be spending the night in the car. every parking space is filled with a car or truck (and occasional motorcycle). taeil circles the lot once, twice, and three times before glumly deciding that all hope is lost, the waffle house across the street is your only option, but then doyoung points wildly over to a back corner that somehow all of you overlooked, and there it is, the only free parking space in the lot. taeil whips in immediately, then parks the car and turns it off. you scramble to get out of the car, but in the process, yank not only your, but doyoung’s earbud out. he looks over at you, and upon seeing your sheepish smile, breaks into a grin as well.

    “come on love birds, i’m tired.” yuta laughs.

    after unloading your necessary luggage from the trunk, the four of your head inside to check up on room availability. yuta is the one to venture to the front counter and consult the scowling employee, and yuta is the one to come back with two room keys in hand. he tosses on to doyoung, and keeps the other in his hand. he’s whistling. why is he whistling? yuta doesn’t whistle, why is he-

    and then, with the most devious smirk a man can muster, he wraps his arm around taeil’s shoulder, pulling him in close. “hello roomie.”

    “oh no you don’t” you and doyoung shout in unison.

    yuta shrugs and taeil mimics him. before you and doyoung can clobber them, the two of them sprint down the hallway, the nasty desk manager yelling after them.

    doyoung gulps. you shove your hands into your pockets. for what seems like an eternity, the two of you remain silent, refusing to do so much as look each other. you can feel your hands go clammy, your cheeks heat up, an army of butterflies swarm your stomach. you bite down on the inside of your cheek to stop yourself from blurting out something stupid, though that seems unlikely to happen thanks to the frog now stuck in your throat. you cough, and sputter, and as soon as you find the courage to speak, doyoung tries to talk as well. now you two are back to stage one, and things are even more awkward than before.

    finally, he whispers, “there’s probably two beds.”

    “o-of course there are.” you nod.

    doyoung grabs his luggage. he then proceeds to reach for yours, but you do as well, and now his hand is atop of yours and he won’t move it- why won’t he move it?!

    he gently pulls your bag from your hands, then slings it over his shoulder. he pushes his suitcase in front of him. you can do nothing but follow along silently, cursing god for allowing something so wrong, no, something so absolutely wonderful to happen to you of all people. you swallow the lump in your throat, walking so close behind doyoung you step the heel of his shoe. he turns to fix it, except you’re there, standing mere inches away, and his most immediate thought is to lean down and kiss you long and hard, but the hotel hallway hardly seems appropriate for that, so instead he mumbles an embarrassed sorry. sorry for staring. sorry for thinking outside his place. sorry for crossing the boundary. sorry for not making it known.

    doyoung stops in front of the elevator, then presses the button. you two wait, the awkward silence threatening to engulf you two, but thankfully the door dings loudly and slides open. doyoung lets you go first, then follows behind with the luggage, finding an interest in the key card. he then presses the second floor button, and the elevator doors close before it lurches upwards with a violent groan. you wince and without thinking, doyoung rests his hand on your shoulder supportively, but then he realizes what he’s done and he pulls away at once, stammering out an apology.

    “it’s f-fine.” curse your nerves.

    curse your luck. curse your situation. curse your stupid crush on doyoung. and curse doyoung above all. curse his stupidly handsome bunny smile, and his stupidly angelic voice, and his stupidly selfless love and drive for others, and his stupidly kind and idealistic heart that always finds the good in others, and, and-

    the doors slide open once more, and you hurry outside, relieved to be out of the suffocating elevator, doyoung soon pulls ahead of you, leading you down the hall to your room. taeil and yuta are nowhere to be found, and you can’t help but wonder if they’re waiting to ambush the two of you and laugh about their little scheme. the halls are dreadfully silent though, and you’re convinced that you can hear your heart slamming against your chest.

    “two fourteen.” doyoung says almost to himself.

    he slips the key card in the door, then pushes it open.

    you almost faint,

    there in the middle of the room, is the bed. yes, the bed, as in, there’s only one. one right in the dead middle, sheets so white that you can’t help but stare at it. or maybe because you realize that neither you or doyoung want to catch any sort of bug that lives in a hotel carpet, which means that the bed, yes, the one bed, will have to be shared, shared by the two of you. for the entire night. wonderful. absolutely perfect. ideal even.

`    you flee to the bathroom, bag in hand. the first thing you need to do is regain your composure. slowly, you change into your pajamas, wash your face, and prepare for the long night ahead. you don’t want to leave the safety of the bathroom however, and you don’t plan to either, but there’s a faint knocking on the door, and reality reminds you that you’re sharing a room. with doyoung. and that he also has to get ready.

    you gather your things, then slip out of the bathroom. doyoung has apparently called his side of the bed; it’s obvious by the pillow is moved and the comforter is shifted slightly. cautiously, you make your way over to bed. you mentally debate whether or not you should try to set up some sort of cot on the floor with your clothes, but the stronger part of you eventually wins out and you slowly climb into bed. immediately, your tense muscles relax and you remember that you have been in the car for hours now, and even if you’re sleeping with your crush, it’s worth it for a good night’s sleep.

    right?

    clearly, your need for sleep outweighs your fear of the unknown, and within moments, you have drifted into a deep sleep. doyoung comes from the bathroom only to find you snoring softly, your head buried under the sheets. he smiles gently, then turns off the light. he then slips into bed beside you, careful to never invade your space. for safe measure, he puts a pillow between the two of you, then closes his eyes.

    you can’t remember where you are when you awaken the next morning.  the sunlight shines in from the window to your right, and the beams dance across the sheets and cause you to smile. outside, there’s the faint song of a bird, and the occasional honk of a car, but it’s nice. you’re warm, pleasantly comfortable, so you keep your eyes closed and snuggle closer to doyoung.

    wait.

    what?!

    you open your eyes and push yourself up a few inches. however, your movement is limited by doyoung’s arms around your waist. his grip is tight, but not painfully so, just enough to make you feel… secure. still, you want to move, just a little bit, so you wriggle just enough to roll over so you’re facing doyoung instead of spooning. despite your movement, doyoung is still sleeping, his eyes shut peacefully and his lips parted slightly. his hair sticks up in every direction, and he snores lightly. your face is so close to his that your noses are brushing in a sweet eskimo kiss, and you think you must be dreaming, yes, dreaming, because this is heaven. your own personal heaven on earth. you smile and close your eyes.

    you move your head slightly, pressing a lazy kiss to his jaw before mumbling, “i love you.”

    and doyoung sleeps on, but you don’t need his words to know that he feels the same exact way.

[katewalton]

Trying a low-carb diet in Jakarta, despite loving Indonesian food

Note: I couldn’t find a home for this, so I’m just putting it up on my blog instead. All photos are my own.

Indonesians love carbohydrates. Rice in particular, but also noodles, cassava, corn, sweet potatoes, taro, sago... the list goes on. Almost every meal involves a huge portion of carbohydrates with a significantly smaller amount of vegetables and protein on the side. Sometimes, noodle dishes such as stir-fried vermicelli or egg noodles are even eaten as the side dish to rice.

So when my GP back in Australia mentioned I needed to lose weight, she suggested trying a low-carb diet. She told me to eat as few carbohydrates as possible, and cut out all sugars, including tropical fruits, and after six weeks, I could lose as much as 10cm from around my waist. It sounded like a good idea to me, so my boyfriend and I agreed to give it a try.

I moved to Indonesia at the end of 2011, first living in a small town in Sulawesi for a year, then moving to Jakarta. I’ve been there ever since. Jakarta is a hot, humid, smoggy metropolis with a population of around 10 million people. Walking is not only unpleasant but also difficult: footpaths are generally in a state of disarray, obstacles designed to stop motorbikes from using sidewalks are everywhere, and street-based sexual harassment just never seems to end. This means while I still try to walk as much as possible, I walk nowhere near as much here as I would do in Australia. Also, I hate the gym and refuse to go.

The Indonesian diet is also not only carb-heavy but oil- and sugar-heavy, too. Iced tea is served sweeter than soft drink, and snacks are often deep-fried. Much of this is to do with the fact that many people live on or below the poverty line; carbs are cheap and filling, while meat is expensive, especially beef. All of this ultimately led to me putting on around 15kg over the six years since first moving to Indonesia.

This is my experience trying a low carb diet in Indonesia. Your mileage may vary. It should be noted I’m not working full-time right now, so I have time to cook low-carb meals, which you may or may not be able to do. Also, I plan to return to eating carbs after six-to-eight weeks, as there is frankly just too much delicious food around to not do so.

Day 1: Monday

8am: I rifle through the cupboard, trying to find something for breakfast that doesn’t contain carbs. I find a half a packet of almonds, and scoff a handful down with a cup of milk tea.

9.15am: Arrive at a seminar on the new draft Criminal Code, only to be met by platters of cake and deep-fried snacks. I valiantly ignore them and have two cups of jasmine tea, no sugar. I feel smug.

12.30pm: Leave the seminar, still feeling smug but also very, very hungry. No time for lunch as I have to meet a friend for coffee at 1.30pm on the other side of town.

2.00pm: Make it to the coffee shop. Order what is described as a ‘grilled chicken and green leaf salad’, only to get some sort of Caesar salad filled with croutons and topped with a deep-fried breadcrumbed egg. The ‘greens’ are iceberg lettuce, and are covered in mayo. I hate mayo. I reluctantly eat a few mayo-drowned leaves and pick out the chicken. I have an iced chai to make me feel better (no sugar).

6.00pm: Starving. I didn’t think this through very well. Cook spiced chicken with a kind of chana masala, Indian chickpeas with pumpkin and spinach. I feel full for about half an hour then feel hungry again. Damn it.

7.00pm: Make some chia puddings with coconut milk (no sugar) for breakfast.

9.30pm: Boyfriend gets home from work, and eats his portion of dinner. We are both starving. We eat the chia puddings and make new ones for breakfast.

Day 2: Tuesday

8.30am: Chia pudding with blueberries, raspberries, and almonds for breakfast. I feel like such a bule (white person), eating all this unusual food. Also, berries are bloody expensive in Jakarta and I remember why I never buy them.

11.00am: Discuss lunch plans and go shopping. Buy every vegetable in sight including two ginormous bags of carrots for snacks.

1.00pm: Cook a green curry with beef, pumpkin, sugar snap peas, eggplant, and baby corn. Stare lovingly at the 5kg bag of rice on the shelf while waiting for the curry to cook.

1.30pm: I feel full but unsatisfied. Something is missing.

3.00pm: Eat a few fistfuls of carrot sticks while trying to come up with pitches to cover the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival in October. Get distracted looking at the food-related events rather than the speakers’ list.

6.00pm: Head out to go to an evaluation meeting for an event our community ran in August. Everyone brings food to share: JCo doughnuts (my fave!), pizza, bento boxes. Someone even makes a lemon drizzle cake. I hate everyone.

6.30pm: Another volunteer arrives with bags full of KFC. Chicken!! I take out the rice, put it to the side, and eat my chicken. I stay strong and manage to refuse all the doughnuts and slices of cake being passed around, even though it makes me want to cry. I love cake.

10.00pm: I get home to a very hungry boyfriend, who is over the moon when I present him with some KFC. I have a cup of tea.

Day 3: Wednesday

8.00am: Wake up feeling good. I can do this!

8.30am: Get out of bed and feel ravenous as soon as I stand up. Bugger.

9.30am: Cook a big breakfast with omelettes, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, and spinach. I hate eggs but force myself to eat them. (My mum hates them too; maybe it’s genetic?)

11.30am: We make a meal plan for the rest of the week, including the weekend. Decide to try making cauliflower rice this evening, as we are both craving rice like crazy.

12.30pm: Hungry again. My online order of roasted almonds hasn’t been delivered yet, so we have a small piece of dark chocolate each to keep us going.

3.00pm: Boil a huge bag of fresh edamame, which are very cheap, thanks to a large Japanese population in Jakarta.

6.00pm: Make a chicken, cashew, and vegetable stirfry. Cashews are oddly expensive in Indonesia, even though some regions such as Southeast Sulawesi grow literally tonnes of them. They must get exported instead. Eat it with cauliflower rice, which is shockingly delicious.

Day 4: Thursday

8.30am: Wake up feeling… surprisingly not hungry at all. Eat a chia pudding with some berries and almonds anyway before going to a meeting, where I drink only plain jasmine tea.

12.30pm: Heat up leftover stirfry and cauliflower rice from the night before. Three cacao-coated cashews for dessert.

2.30pm: Iced latte while working from a café. I try to ignore everyone eating rice and bread around me.

6.30pm: Cook Chinese tofu, eggplant and broccoli stirfry for dinner while chatting to a new kost mate. She is newly-married and impressed with my cooking skills. I tell her the secret: black vinegar.

8.00pm: Craving something sweet, so I have a kiwi fruit, which the internet has told me is comparatively low in carbs.

Day 5: Friday

8.30am: Chia pudding with berries and almonds.

12.30pm: Leftover stirfry. I barely feel hungry even before having lunch and don’t even want to kill anybody! This seems to be working.

2.00pm: Hang out with a friend for around three hours. She’s staying in a hotel with minimum facilities so I can’t even have a cup of tea with milk for a snack.

5.00pm: Ravenous. NOW I want to kill somebody. Anybody will do. Catch a motorbike taxi back to the kost from my friend’s hotel and almost cry whenever we drive past street food vendors. I get particularly distracted by a stall selling mie ayam pangsit – noodles with chicken and wantons – but convince myself to keep going.

5.30pm: Supermarket. Buy foodstuffs for dinner and, er, six pork gyoza. I scarf three of them down and leave the other three for my boyfriend. There can’t be that many carbs in dumpling skins, can there?

6.30pm: Cook Korean pork and vegetable stirfry with gochujang sauce for dinner. It is scrumptious and suddenly I don’t even care that there is no rice to eat it with.

The results

On day six, I weigh myself shortly after waking up. Turns out I’ve lost 1.5 kilos in five days and feel great. I’m as shocked as anyone, and commit myself to continue for at least four weeks. I cook more eggs, bacon, mushrooms, and spinach for breakfast, and I find myself daydreaming about rice, gudeg (stewed jackfruit), and chicken curry while I cook… Damn it! Indonesian food is just way too tempting.

[12setsofchopsticks]

TOKYO DISNEY

So now let me tell you about Tokyo Disney:

WARNING: THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG POST!!

OK SO, there are two parks at Tokyo Disney, Disneyland and Disneysea. Disneyland is basically the Orlando equivalent of the Magic Kingdom and Disneysea is kind of like the other three parks combined (I have never been to Disneyland in California so I can only relate to Orlando). Shota and I chose to go to Disneysea, and it was a blast! I wasn’t totally sure if he knew exactly what he was getting into by going to Disney with me, but he kept up so it was all good! 

^Some of the scenery from Disneysea.

It was lucky we decided on Disneysea because a few days later I would end up going to Disneyland with my senseis 

^They are so cute, I love them. 

We went after work with the “After 6 Passport” so all of the fastpasses were gone (SAD!) but we still had so much fun.

First let me talk about the things that were the same:

Attractions: Many of the rides have an Orlando equivalent, like Toy Story Mania and Tower of Terror although they do a little bit of a different spin on them (at least Tower of Terror, we didn’t get a chance to do Toy Story).

Some of the rides are the same but with different theming, for example, the Indiana Jones Adventure is the pretty much the Dinosaur: Countdown to Extinction ride in Animal Kingdom. However, there were also things like Aladdin’s magic carpet and the teacups just to keep it classic. Also OMG I was walking around Disneysea just minding my own business when I saw a whole area themed around CAPE COD. I could not believe it!! I was like SHOTA THIS IS WHERE I AM FROM.

I thought it was so crazy that, of all the places in the world, Tokyo Disney decided to highlight the charms of the good ole’ Cape! 

Apparently there is a bear character named Duffy that is from there, why I didn’t know that is totally beyond me. Anyways. Disneyland was almost exactly the same as Magic Kingdom. There are the three mountains (Space, Splash, and Big Thunder), It’s a Small World, Haunted Mansion, Pirates, etc. Interestingly enough, it was all located in the same general areas too. My senseis were super surprised when I knew exactly how to get from Space Mountain to Big Thunder, without a map, despite having never been to the park before. Cinderella’s castle sits in the middle of the park (it is said that the story of Cinderella resonates in Japanese culture due to her hardworking attitude) but unlike in MK, you can actually go inside and walk around inside the castle! Unfortunately, this was closed by the time we got there.

SIDENOTE! The park music was also the same, at least for Disneyland, I didn’t even realize it until I was in Frontierland humming along to the music and my senseis were like “oh, have you heard this song before?” and I was like “oh, yes I guess I have, LOL!” Then when I got to Tomorrowland I realized that it was indeed the same and I got all kinds of fuzzy feelings. And, of course, in true Disney fashion, there are also fireworks every night.

Fastpasses: Yeah, so they still use the paper fastpasses which, for me, is a bit of a throwback. But I think Orlando is currently the only park that uses the magic bands/MyDisneyExperience FP right now though, so it’s not too different from other parks. When the magic bands come though, you better believe I’ll be ready for it. One thing to note here is that the fastpasses run out MUCH faster than in Florida. We went to Disneysea on a “slow” day and FPs for Toy Story were gone after two hours.

That being said, Shota and I did a really good job organizing our fastpasses and got on a whole bunch of rides at Disneysea. As I mentioned earlier, when I went to Disneyland, it was late so the fastpasses were already gone. So even though it goes against everything I believe in to wait for Space Mountain for nearly TWO HOURS, I did it. It actually wasn’t so bad though because we got Mickey-shaped cheeseburgers and ate them in line, which was one of the best ideas of the night.

Anyways. Kind of related to fastpasses is the ticketing. Like I mentioned above, Tokyo Disney does not yet have the magicband technology so everything is still paper. You *can* get your ticket online and print it out or buy it directly from the ticket counter, but what a lot of people (read: tourists) may not know is that you can actually buy your ticket from the conbini. Have I talked about conbinis yet and how awesome they are? Holy moly, more on that to come later I guess, but YES! There is a 7/11 that is maybe a stone’s throw from my house so we hopped on over the night before and bought our tickets right then and there. Boom, done. How cool is that??

Monorail: There is a monorail that takes you around from the parks and resorts. It was much cuter than the Orlando ones because all the windows and handles were shaped like mickeys.

HOW KAWAII, RIGHT???

One difference here is that you have to pay to use it. This is most likely due to the sheer number of people who come to Tokyo Disney via public transportation.

Staff: Every staff person I encountered was really friendly and helpful. Some more good news here is that most of them speak English really well, too! Someone even gave me a sticker for my birthday and drew a picture with my name on it :3

^ FYI that’s my name. Also my BiRtHdAyYyYy!

Also all of the performers were great! Every show I saw had really talented dancers and their costumes were certainly on point. Not that the WDW parks don’t have good talent, but boy these people really take their job seriously and their hard work shows!

Okay, now let’s talk about the things that were different:

The Crowds: Holy moly, we got to Disneysea around a half hour before the park opened and this was the line to get in:

Keep in mind that it was 7:30 am on a random Monday. The crowds were like nothing I have ever seen before. It should have been madness, but actually…it wasn’t. This was one of the major differences between Disney world and Tokyo Disney that I noticed; that, despite the sheer numbers of people, things were still neat and orderly. However, there were many staff members holding up signs (especially in the morning) that said “please do not run!” The temperament of the crowd was generally considerate, which I think was partly due to Japanese culture and partly also that it wasn’t 95F with 100% humidity. On a slightly related note, I didn’t see any toddler meltdowns (MIRACLE??)

Shopping: Anyone who’s ever been to Disney knows that the shopping is a big part of the experience and Tokyo Disney is no different. However, what they have in the souvenir shops are really different. A big part of Japanese culture is gift giving, especially in the form of small souvenir snacks or おみやげ (o-mi-ya-gay), which literally translates to “souvenir.” I noticed that, instead of the things that you usually see in the Orlando shops—like pins, mugs, snowglobes, etc.—there were a lot more snacks in fancy tins for people to take home and give to their friends, families, and coworkers. It seemed like many of the items that were being sold were marketed as things that people could give as gifts for others, rather than items to take home for themselves, which really reflects the omiyage culture that is the desire to share experiences with your peers through souvenirs. I got these two, look how CUTE the frozen one is!!

Among the omiyage, I also saw tons and tons of apparel. Ears galore!! One hilarious thing I kept seeing were these giant hats of characters like the aliens from Toy Story or Olaf from Frozen.

Especially when kids in groups wore them they looked like the real aliens, I wish I got a real picture cause it was really funny to see. Another interesting trend is these things that people buy to hold popcorn (more on popcorn below). It’s basically just a big plastic bucket in the shape of a character and people wear them around their necks. I saw them EVERYWHERE, like they were literally the coolest thing since corn first popped.

Food: I’m almost tempted to say that the food wasn’t as good, but I feel like that’s an unfair statement because Orlando has so many world-class restaurants and I only ate park food. HOWEVER, I can definitely say that the food was different. Like WTF is this thing:

Have you ever seen any food item that looks more like a giant isopod? But actually this thing was delicious. With a name called “gyoza sausage bun” how could it not be, right? Still, it looked so alien.

Speaking of alien food, I also saw these lil guys:

I didn’t eat them, but I did take a picture and laugh about them for a little bit. Another big thing in Tokyo Disney is POPCORN. Holy moly, if I didn’t see over 12 flavors of popcorn. There were definitely normal flavors like butter and caramel, but then there were things like soy sauce & butter, strawberry, cappuccino, and curry! I didn’t try any though. PROBABLY CAUSE I DIDN’T HAVE ONE OF THOSE AWESOME POPCORN CONTAINERS. Ugh, next time. One thing I DID definitely have though, was a churro!! Yes, churros!!! However, they were not exempt from the strange flavors either. While I enjoyed a cinnamon sugar one, they had sweet potato and strawberry as well. They also had turkey legs but they were like, half the size as the ones in Orlando. Shota COULD NOT believe it when I showed him a picture of the turkey legs I had in Magic Kingdom, he was like “IS THAT EVEN REAL?? DID YOU ACTUALLY EAT THAT?” Yes, I did. And I learned my lesson, which is why I’m not getting another one ever again.

Also look at this adorable Mickeyburger:

Language: I guess this one is pretty obvious, but pretty much everything was in NIHONGO!! 

Because Disney is an American entity, there was still a huge amount of English around. Mostly these were things like ride and store names (or anything that was trademarked, really) and various warnings/disclaimers (think “please stand clear of the doors/por favor….”). But! Almost all of the character voices sounded the same. It was super strange to hear Mickey Mouse in his Mickey Mouse voice say something like “僕のたもだちが大好き!” (I love my friends!), it was like those stories you hear of someone waking up from like a coma and suddenly being fluent in another language. Bizarre!

Also, the songs would switch back and forth between English and Japanese. I guess I knew that they would translate songs to popular movies like Frozen, but it’s still strange to hear “雪だるまつくろう? ( yuki daruma tsukurou)” instead of “do you wanna build a snowman?”.

At the same time, it’s a little disorienting to finally have gotten used to Japanese Disney only to realize that what I’m *actually* hearing is English. It’s a really hard feeling to describe, but it kind when you snap out of a daydream and you know that someone has been talking to you but you have no idea what they just said.

OH WELL, WHO CARES!

So in conclusion, I still think that Disney World is better than Tokyo Disney (it’s hard to compete, especially given the size), but I’m really glad I got to experience both parks! I think they did a really good job taking an American theme park and blending it with Japanese culture. I will definitely go back before I return to the states!

[goswagcollectorfire]

CARL’S BLOG: MAMIE, AN OZARK MOUNTAIN GIRL OF COURAGE

8-29-20, Carl’s first school whipping

As Roy and Carl grew up together, they fought like cats and dogs, but in the end, they were close to each other.  Loudeen, Willie, Jim, Roy, and Carl attended Post Oak School.   Loudeen finished her eighth-grade education as Carl was finishing the first grade.  One of Carl’s most vivid memories is a whipping from Mrs. Bailey. It came because of a dare from his best friend, Lynn Stark.  Lynn lived next door to the Barger’s and was always at their house.  Lynn was always tempting Carl to do things. “If I did not do what Lynn tempted me to do, he would call me a chicken.  I did not like the word chicken and always ended up taking the challenge.   As I grew older, I learned it was better to be called a chicken than face the consequences.”  Throwing rocks at the girls outside toilet, got Carl his first whipping at school. This is the way Carl remembers it: “As Lynn, Roy, Lavaugh Davis, and I were hurling rocks at the outhouse, Jean Stark, Lynn’s sister, came running out.  She was accidentally hit by one of the rocks.  She began to scream and cry and ran inside to report the incident to Mrs. Bailey.  We boys knew we were in big trouble.  It was not long before Mrs. Bailey came out of the back door and spotted us on the playground.  She hollered, ‘Boys, I need to see you inside, now! “Mrs. Bailey shamed us for being bad boys.  “I’m going to give each of you three licks from my paddle,” she said as she continued to hit the paddle in the palm of her hand.  The sound of the paddle scared me. I had never been whipped with a paddle before and furthermore, I had never been whipped by anyone but my mother.  I felt sure that I was not going to like this new experience.    Mrs. Bailey whipped Lynn first.  I believe she knew he was the main ramrod of the bunch.   Mrs. Bailey whipped him hard, but he did not cry. She then whipped Roy and Lavaugh. Lavaugh cried a little, but not Roy. If I remember correctly, I began to cry. I thought maybe she would go easy on me. I found out quickly that my crying made no difference to Mrs. Bailey.  She gave me three licks.  The sting of the wooden paddle hurt something awful.  I had previously heard other students talk about getting a whipping from her.   I remember them saying, “If she gives you a whipping, you won’t want a second one.” The whipping came just before lunch time.  For some reason I wasn’t very hungry for the sausage and egg biscuit my mother fixed for my lunch.” Although the Barger’s were poor, the children did not know they were poor.  As the school year went on, some of the children began to trade their sausage and biscuits for bologna sandwiches.  They had never seen store bought light bread until starting to school.  They liked it better than biscuits.  They never told their mother about trading food.  They figured what she did not know would not hurt her.  Carl loved everything about school.  He had a burning desire to learn.  He hated to see the school year come to an end.   A school term during the 1940’s averaged about eight months per year in Cleburne County.  Every afternoon as they returned home from school Mamie had a hot pan of corn bread and cold buttermilk waiting for them.  They crumbled the corn bread into a large glass of cool buttermilk.  There was not anything better than warm corn bread and cold buttermilk.  Mamie believed in having a snack ready for her children when they got home from school. She knew they would be hungry. The corn bread and cold buttermilk gave the children energy to do their farm chores.

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19 Essential Thanksgiving Tools | Serious Eats

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

Hosting Thanksgiving dinner is stressful even in the best-case scenarios. Between choosing the right bird, settling on a menu, and stocking your pantry, not to mention cooking the whole thing, there’s already plenty on your plate. Toss in the inevitable array of rowdy/late/oppositional/drunk/inappropriate/whatever-drives-you-insane guests, and throwing a full-blown holiday temper tantrum starts to look pretty tempting.

Thankfully, while you can’t control the chaos that is family, you can have a firm grasp on what’s going on in the kitchen. That means getting all your shopping done early, making what you can in advance, and stocking your toolkit with every vessel and utensil you’ll need to make cooking and serving your Thanksgiving meal a breeze. Here’s the heavy-duty, functional-but-attractive equipment that the Serious Eats staff uses, both to test our Thanksgiving recipes at work and to make our Thanksgiving dinners at home, from casserole dishes to pie plates to the best food processor, instant-read thermometer, and more.

A Good Casserole Dish

Casseroles are Thanksgiving gold because they can be assembled up to a few days in advance and baked off whenever the oven is free. Good casserole dishes heat food evenly in the oven and retain heat well, helping to keep whatever’s inside them warm on the table come serving time. (Really good casserole dishes have the added advantage of looking good on said table, as well.) This porcelain baking dish meets all of these requirements. You can use it to make a wide assortment of Thanksgiving sides, like our sweet potato casserole, this creamy Hasselback potato gratin (or a classic potato gratin), Kenji’s homemade green bean casserole, and Daniel’s cornbread stuffing with sausage and sage.

Cast Iron Skillet

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

An excellent cast iron skillet is useful year-round, but it’s especially handy come the holidays. If you use yours exclusively for stovetop preparations, then you’re in for a treat—since they’re oven-safe, cast iron pans are just as useful for baked preparations, like brown butter cornbread, Stella’s sweet and savory corn casserole, and these delicious pull-apart stuffing rolls.

And did we mention that a cast iron skillet is also useful for so many party-ready desserts? This chocolate cake can actually be made and baked in the pan. And this skillet cookies recipe is another simple-to-prepare crowd-pleaser. What’s more, cast iron pans are handsome, so you can place them right on the table from the oven (with a trivet and a warning…serious burns do not a calm holiday make).

Half Sheet Trays

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Hopefully, you already have some half sheet trays lying around. If you don’t, it’s time. You’ll need these come Thanksgiving for nicely charred Brussels sprouts, roasted root vegetables, and even for the main event. Yup, that means you can say goodbye to that fancy roasting pan; all you need is a regular old sheet pan to make our crisp-skinned, evenly cooked spatchcocked turkey. Well, that and a wire rack to ensure air circulation all around your holiday bird.

Pie Plate

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

The Thanksgiving table needs a pie, and a pie needs a good pie plate. We’re big fans of the tempered-glass plates from Pyrex for our gooey deep-dish apple pie. Also this pumpkin pie with a secret ingredient. (It’s butternut squash.) Want to know if that pretty stoneware dish you bought will do the trick? Here’s how to pick the right pie plate for every job.

Portable Kitchen Timer

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Armed with a portable kitchen timer, you won’t need to worry about burning toasted nuts or your crispy mashed potato casserole. Best part about this one? It hangs around your neck, so you won’t forget about your food. It’s also a nice conversation piece for when things get awkward with your in-laws.

Instant-Read Thermometer

[Video: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]

Undercooked-turkey paranoia is a real thing. The way I banish the I’m-going-to-give-my-whole-family-food-poisoning nerves is to use an instant-read thermometer. You’ll also find that thermometers are useful for more than just meats. They’ll give you blazing-fast results (in under two seconds) whether you want the temperature of sugar for candy or oil for deep-frying. If you feel like the Thermapen is a bit on the pricey side, we suggest the ThermoPop. It takes just a bit longer to provide results, but it’s just as accurate, so you can serve your bird anxiety-free.

Mandoline Slicer

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

Handheld mandolines are great to have on hand if you want to cut perfectly even slices for roasted veggies, salads, and even potato dishes like our cheesy, creamy Hasselback potato gratin. The good news: We have found three mandolines that slice like a chef for under $50. If only all tools this useful were so affordable.

3-Quart Saucier

While it’s a little pricey, this All-Clad saucier will help you achieve the silkiest gravies, sauces, and reductions. The aluminum-clad stainless steel heats evenly throughout, which you’ll need for more temperamental preparations, like egg custards. Better yet, the curved bottom makes it easy to whisk right in the pot, so you won’t need to fret about lumpy gravy. While we don’t want you to have to dirty too many pots and pans, we also think it’s pretty useful to have a stock pot—we recently reviewed them—on hand for super-rich post-Thanksgiving turkey stock.

Rolling Pin

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I know you might think that rolling out your pie dough with a bottle of wine is just fine. But a good, tapered, French-style rolling pin offers a lot more control and precision. Once you have your rolling pin, you’ll be ready to make any kind of pie Stella throws at you. Might I suggest her double-chocolate cream pie? Save that bottle from the floury mess! Drink the wine instead.

Knives

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

You don’t need to go out and buy an entire knife block to prep your Thanksgiving meal. Just a few essentials will do. When it comes time to cut the turkey, you’ll need a good carving and slicing knife. Unlike a standard chef’s knife(which you’ll also want at least one of for all your basic chopping needs), the long, tapered blade of a carving knife will help you get right down to the bone and maneuver around cartilage (which means more meat for you and the fam). While the Wüsthof was the clear winner of our carving knife tests, Mercer Culinary makes a nice sharp alternative for almost a quarter of the price. Finally, you should definitely have a paring knife—we tested those, too—for mincing shallots, cutting up fruits, and lots of other kitchen tasks.

Scale

[Photograph: Emily Dryden]

We did some testing to find the best kitchen scale. While you may not think you need one—you’re more of a “little bit of this and that” person—a scale is the most precise way to measure ingredients, period. Baked goods require precision, so if you have any pies, rolls, or cakes on your menu, be especially sure to invest in a scale. Want some other great measuring tools? We’ve done the legwork to identify the best liquid measuring cups, dry measuring cups, and measuring spoons.

Oven Thermometer

So, what happens when you’ve followed our turkey recipe down to the letter but things aren’t looking quite right? Well, it’s probably your oven. To keep your oven honest, we strongly suggest you pick up an oven thermometer. Simply place it in there to make sure your oven is calibrated and ready to get that turkey skin extra crispy.

Dutch Oven

[Photograph: Emily Dryden]

I don’t think there’s anything more versatile than a good Dutch oven. Come Thanksgiving time, you can use it to par-cook potatoes for Kenji’s best roasted potatoes recipe, sauté aromatics for your sausage and oyster stuffing, and even prep your apple pie filling before you slide it into that perfect crust. We did a deep dive into the world of Dutch ovens and found that our old standby, the Le Creuset, is still one of the best out there, thanks to its excellent heat retention, generous capacity, and versatility on the oven and stovetop. If that $300-plus price tag is more than you can handle, we found that the Martha Stewart does almost as reliable a job and costs under $100. (It weighs about 14 pounds, so lifting it also totally counts as a workout.)

Potato Ricer

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

There may be some people out there who are cool with lumpy mashed potatoes. But for the rest of us, a potato ricer is a great tool to have in the kitchen, whether you’re partial to extra-fluffy or rich and creamy mashed potatoes. A good food mill will also do the trick (and proves handy for making extra-smooth cranberry sauce, too). You probably don’t need both, though, so take a look at this guide to see which one you should have in your kitchen.

Poultry Shears

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

If you’re going to spatchcock your turkey, you’ll need a strong pair of kitchen shears. Good thing we finally got around to testing out a whole bunch. OXO’s poultry shears were the winners: The looped handle will keep your hands from slipping (in case of grease), and there’s a take-apart hinge that makes them super easy to clean. These are the only shears we tested that do well getting through slimy skin and cleaving through bone. Take that, turkey.

An Immersion Circulator

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

If you’re looking to do more of a modern Thanksgiving menu, having a sous vide circulator will take your cooking to the next level. We like the Anova for its reliability and easy-to-use interface, which guarantees that even if you’re new to sous vide cooking, everything will turn out just fine. And when we say everything, we mean extra juicy sous vide turkey breast with crispy skin and the carrotiest glazed carrots you’ve ever had. Should you need a smaller model, the Joule will definitely serve you well.

Fine-Mesh Strainer

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

We’ve written time and again about the many uses for a fine-mesh strainer, and on Thanksgiving, it definitely makes the essential tools list. For example, fine-mesh strainers ensure that your stock and gravy will be nice and clear. And they’ll help produce the silkiest custards (like for Stella’s chocolate cream pie, which makes for an incredible Thanksgiving dessert).

Food Processor

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

We recently tested a number of food processors on the market. Sure, they can be heavy and pricey, but a food processor is an excellent tool to have in your kitchen, especially when you’re cooking for a crowd. Use it to quickly blitz your mirepoix, slice potatoes, put together your flaky pie dough in a flash, or even purée soups. Our testing found the Magimix food processor to be the best and most efficient, but if you’re looking for something a little more affordable, the Cuisinart will serve you well at about half the price.

Immersion Blender

We’ve not only done extensive research on finding the best hand blender, but we’ve also written a love letter of sorts about why we think you need one. The long-short of it is, you can use it to make the silkiest butternut squash soup and even whipped cream in a pinch. And if you happen to somehow produce lumpy gravy, a quick blitz with the immersion blender and it’ll be smooth as can be.

All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.

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Tags: 19, Eats, Equipment, Essential, our picks, thanksgiving, Tools

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What to Expect at Las Vegas Best BBQ Restaurant

Pеорlе enjoy diffеrеnt tуреѕ оf food аnd thе itеmѕ ѕеrvеd аt a BBQ rеѕtаurаnt in Lаѕ Vеgаѕ tор thе liѕtѕ оf many. Most оf thеѕе jоintѕ ѕеrvе thе ѕаmе tуреѕ оf fооd but рrераrе thеm in uniԛuе wауѕ. Sоmе, likе ѕmоkеhоuѕеѕ, аrе known fоr a particular сооking mеthоd, whilе others use ѕресiаl herbs or ѕаuсеѕ. If you have nеvеr bееn to a roadkill grill Las Vegas, knоwing what tо еxресt will bе hеlрful. 

Whether dinеrѕ рrеfеr bееf, poultry, pork, beef оffаl, smoke turkey legs оr jerky, thеу саn find it аt the bеѕt restaurants. Fоr thоѕе whо are nоt fаmiliаr, jеrkу iѕ meat thаt is сut into lоng, thin ѕtriрѕ and allowed tо drу tо prevent spoiling. During thiѕ сuring рrосеѕѕ, ѕаlt iѕ uѕuаllу аddеd tо рrеvеnt bасtеriа development, giving jerky itѕ ѕаltу tаѕtе. Thе jerky may аlѕо be mаrinаtеd in ѕеаѕоnеd liԛuid оr a spice rub tо рrоvidе additional flavor. Thiѕ rеаdу-tо-еаt ѕnасk iѕ something еvеrуоnе should trу аt least оnсе. 

Benefit of Visiting The Best Las Vegas BBQ

Cоmbinаtiоn рlаttеrѕ are served by ѕоmе rеѕtаurаntѕ, аllоwing dinеrѕ to ѕаmрlе a vаriеtу of bаrbесuеd diѕhеѕ. Diffеrеnt ѕliсеd meat соmbinеd in оnе ѕаndwiсh can bе ԛuitе a trеаt. Popular choices аrе ѕmоkеd rоаѕt turkеу, рullеd pork, ѕmоkеd sausage, and сhорреd bееf brisket. Sоmе rеѕtаurаntѕ еvеn ѕеrvе smoked сhiсkеn ѕаlаd, whiсh hаѕ a muсh hеаrtiеr tаѕtе than thе rеgulаr version. Other соmbinаtiоn meals fеаturе аn еntréе, оnе оr more side diѕhеѕ, аnd a drink. 

Speaking оf ѕidеѕ, thеѕе restaurants uѕuаllу serve quite a few оf thеm. Baked beans, cole slaw, and mashed роtаtоеѕ аrе thrее оf the most рорulаr сhоiсеѕ. If Frеnсh fries аrе preferred, these аrе not thе thin, wimру friеѕ ѕеrvеd bу fаѕt fооd еѕtаbliѕhmеntѕ--thеу аrе thiсk аnd hеаrtу, wоrthу of dipping in kеtсhuр оr bаrbесuе ѕаuсе. Sоmе dinеrѕ еvеn рut these on thеir sandwiches, соmbining thеir meat and роtаtоеѕ. 

Whеn аn еxtrа kiсk is dеѕirеd, рintо bеаnѕ сооkеd in ѕрiсу ѕеаѕоning аnd ѕеrvеd with jаlареnо peppers аrе just thе tiсkеt. Aftеr a fоrkful of thоѕе, diners will bе rеасhing fоr thе wаtеr. Swееt уеllоw corn mаkеѕ a niсе соmрlеmеnt tо this zesty ѕidе. Of соurѕе, there is аlwауѕ thе gооd оld ѕtаndbу, macaroni аnd сhееѕе. Childrеn, in particular, lоvе thiѕ comfort fооd аnd ѕоmеtimеѕ аѕk for a mеаl-ѕizеd portion. 

Aftеr аll of this еаting, it seems likе thеrе would be nо room for dessert. For thоѕе who ѕtill have ѕрасе in their ѕtоmасhѕ, gооdiеѕ like соbblеr аnd рiе аrе wаiting. A big scoop of сrеаmу vаnillа iсе сrеаm is the perfect topping. Rаthеr than passing оn dеѕѕеrt еntirеlу, thоѕе who аrе full саn ѕеlесt tаkе-hоmе desserts likе сооkiеѕ to share lаtеr in the dау. 

This is juѕt a ѕаmрling of whаt to expect from the BBQ guy at a tурiсаl Las Vegas BBQ rеѕtаurаnt. Dinеrѕ will find many mоrе entrees and ѕidеѕ аnd will ѕооn have thеir оwn fаvоritеѕ. Thоugh it mау be tempting to оrdеr thе ѕаmе thing during each visit, trу nеw itеmѕ tо еxреriеnсе truе bаrbесuеd flavor. Pеорlе dеfinitеlу have thеir preferences when it соmеѕ tо rеѕtаurаntѕ, аnd thеѕе еѕtаbliѕhmеntѕ are рорulаr with ԛuitе a fеw. If you like to eat at a BBQ restaurant, you are going to love Can't Stop Smoking Bar-B-Q Smokehouse. We have multiple BBQ restaurants in Las Vegas, come visit us and find out for yourself.

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28 Keto-Friendly Dinners You Have To Try

The keto diet is all the rage right now, and many people are jumping on board and giving it a try. Whether you’re brand new to the diet or you’ve been dedicated to it for a while, we could all use a little inspiration from time-to-time. If you’re ready to sink your teeth into delicious keto-friendly dinners, then you’ve come to the right place. Here are some of the most delicious keto-friendly dinners you have to try.

1. Cheesy Fajita Stuffed Chicken

If you really want to indulge in some incredible flavor, then you have to give this recipe a shot! It’s perfectly moist chicken stuffed with onions, peppers, spices, and cheese. You can’t go wrong when something tastes this good! Not only is it keto-friendly, but it also happens to be an excellent source of protein, too.

2. Garlic Butter Shrimp and Zoodles

As you may already know, traditional pasta is a no-go when it comes to the low carb diet. However, recipes like this make it totally keto-friendly. Zoodles, made with zucchini can easily transform the dish into a low carb option while increasing the flavor. The texture remains the same and people often prefer the flavor of zoodles.

3. Broccoli Pizza Crust

Yes, you can still have pizza if you are on the keto diet! This broccoli crust makes it all possible and it’s definitely one of the best keto-friendly dinners you have to try. If you’ve never tried this alternative method, then you are in for a real treat. The best part? You can customize the toppings to make it the perfect pizza for you and your family.

4. Cashew Chicken 

When cravings hit, it can be difficult to refuse them. That doesn’t mean you have to go without the delicious food you crave. Instead, focus on healthier alternatives such as this cashew chicken recipe. Avoid takeout with all its extra carbs and make this keto option instead.

5. Juicy Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

Don’t wait for Thanksgiving to sink your teeth into a perfectly cooked turkey breast. This perfectly moist entrée is exactly what you need on your keto menu. Trust me when I say that you won’t be disappointed serving this one up.

6. Healthy Shrimp Alfredo with Carrot Noodles

You’ve heard about zucchini noodles, but what about carrot noodles? This healthier take on alfredo will keep everyone coming back for more. If you’ve been searching for keto-friendly dinners you have to try, look no further than this scrumptious low carb dish.

7. Seared Salmon with Sweet Ginger Soy Glaze

You’ll love this seared salmon with its sweet ginger soy glaze. It’s simple enough to enjoy during a busy work week, but delicious enough to serve to guests. No matter the occasion, you can keep it low carb and tasty with this go-to recipe.

8. Zucchini Lasagna Rollups

If I’ve learned one thing about the keto diet, it’s that nearly anything can be adjusted to become low carb. Take this recipe, for example. Lasagna is usually loaded with carbs, but zucchini comes to the rescue! It still has all the flavors you love the most, but this is a much healthier option.

9. Korean Beef Zucchini Noodles

Try to resist the deliciousness of this low carb dish! This is a great option if you’re trying your hardest to curb those takeout cravings. It’s so good and very simple to make all on your own. Save time and money by whipping this up at home.

10. Crispy Garlic Butter Chicken and Brussels

Garlic butter chicken must have been sent straight from heaven! Add in some deliciously seasoned Brussels sprouts and you’ll have yourself an all-in-one meal. It cooks up in about 40 minutes, which can be great on those nights that you may be tempted to get takeout. This has to be the one of the tastiest keto-friendly dinners you have to try!

11. Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps

For a lighter dinner, turkey taco lettuce wraps proves to be an excellent option. Turkey is a lean meat that’s chock full of protein, and the lettuce wraps go a long way in reducing the carb count. You’ll adore the freshness of this dinner idea that you can whip up in a matter of minutes.

12. Sundried Tomato Chicken

You can’t create a list of keto-friendly dinners you have to try without adding this one to mix. Sundried tomato chicken comes together in less than thirty minutes and is bursting with incredible flavor. If you’ve never cooked with sundried tomatoes before, then you are certainly in for a treat!

13. Chicken Tender Sauté

If tender chicken is your favorite, then you should jot this down as one of the keto-friendly dinners you have to try. The chicken is moist and flavorful because this recipe cooks it to perfection. Not to mention the flavor of the variety of onions, peppers, scallions and more!

14. Cauliflower Pizza Bites

Make dinner fun again with this amazing recipe. Pizza bites can easily work as an appetizer, but you can also serve them up for dinner (especially if you have little ones!). Even people who don’t follow the keto diet won’t be able to resist this recipe, which is one of our favorite keto-friendly dinners you have to try.

15. Skillet Seared Salmon with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce

Keto doesn’t mean flavorless. Check out this tasty dinner that’s brimming with yummy flavors. If you love the garlic and lemon combo, then this is certainly a dish you should try for yourself. There’s nothing better than fresh salmon that is perfectly cooked and seasoned.

16. Low Carb Tuna Casserole

There’s nothing that hits the spot quite like a satisfying casserole. This scrumptious comfort food is just what you need to end a long workday. Not only is it low carb, but it’s packed with valuable nutrients that are good for your body.

17. Buffalo Shrimp Spaghetti Squash with Paleo Ranch Dressing

Tired of the same old same old? Serve up something that will leave a lasting impression. This keto dinner is the perfect way to showcase just how delicious this particular diet can be. There’s so much amazing flavor in each and every bite. Nobody can resist this level of goodness!

18. Skillet Lemon Parmesan Chicken Zucchini and Squash

If you really want to simplify dinner while adhering to your diet, look no further than this satisfying dish. It’s loaded with chicken and fresh veggies which is everything your body needs to thrive. You can pair it with additional sides or rely on this one-pot dinner to satisfy your hunger.

19. Slow Cooker White Bean Soup

This has to be comfort food at its finest. Simply let your slow cooker do all the work and you can enjoy the tasty benefits. Not only is this dish keto-friendly, but beans are a great source of protein, too. If you’re searching for the perfect soup, then look no further than this low carb option.

20. Bacon Cheeseburger Low Carb Stuffed Zucchini Boats 

If you get the hankering for a cheeseburger, make it happen with this low carb recipe! This dish includes all the things you love about a good burger, but the zucchini boat makes it a keto option that you can’t refuse.

21. Parmesan Soup with Corn and Sausage

Don’t settle for bland and boring soup. Instead, serve up this ultimate comfort food. You won’t believe how combining a few simple flavors can create such a delicious soup. It cooks up fast and easy so you don’t have to spend your valuable time in the kitchen. Definitely a win!

22. Cauliflower Chowder

You’ve heard of chowder, but nothing compares to cauliflower chowder. Not only is cauliflower a keto staple, but it also has a fantastic texture that makes it perfect for low-carb soups.

23. Crockpot Sugar Free BBQ Pulled Chicken

Talk about YUM! This BBQ pulled chicken recipe is everything you could possibly ask for! It’s sugar-free, low carb, and it cooks up in a Crock Pot. That creates the perfect combination when you’re busy but still want to enjoy delicious, healthy food.

24. Honey Mustard Chicken Marinade

Honey mustard is one of the yummiest flavors you can ever put on chicken. This marinade recipe makes sure that each and every bite is loaded with amazing flavor. Serve this chicken up and watch how quickly it disappears; it’s sure to be an instant hit.

25. Low Carb Crockpot Balsamic Chicken Thighs 

If you’re in the mood for a recipe that is loaded with bold flavors, then this is the dish for you. There’s no question that this recipe deserves its spot on the list of keto-friendly dinners you have to try. It’s simple to make and even easier to enjoy.

26. Lemon Salmon with Dill

Serve up a different type of salmon recipe this week. The pop of dill flavor is exactly what you need to mix things up a bit. Of course, this dish is keto-friendly and just as delicious as you could imagine.

27. Cranberry and Brussels Sprouts Detox Salad

Can you really go wrong with salad for dinner? One of the best options when it comes to keto-friendly dinners you have to try is this amazing mixture. Not only will you experience an explosion of flavor, but there are a ton of valuable nutrients packed in each and every bite.

28. Chicken Enchilada Zucchini Boats

You can still enjoy a tasty enchilada without any of those unnecessary carbs. This recipe is loaded with all the traditional ingredients, but simply tossing out the tortilla makes it a much healthier option. Instead, rely on a fresh zucchini to hold all the deliciousness together. Learn for yourself why this recipe deserves its place on the list of the best keto-friendly dinners you have to try.

For more delicious recipes, check out our Pinterest and Facebook page. We’re always posting recipes and other helpful tips for living your healthiest life.

The post 28 Keto-Friendly Dinners You Have To Try appeared first on Skinny Ms..

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Best American Restaurants

Every one of us has some affection for home cooking tucked some place in our true inner being. Home concoct suppers summon early recollections of family social affairs, meals at the table, our mom's, or even our dad's, strengths and, obviously, grandmother or grandpa's cooking. In the present urban way of life of junk food and take out, we long for these removed extravagances. No big surprise the greater part of us, when feasting out, pick those American eateries that come nearest to that particular home cooking taste.

American nourishment is of three substantial gatherings. There is the down-home cooking comprising of breaded and fried steak, sauce, browned chicken, green beans, crusty fruit-filled treat, vanilla dessert, pork and beans, potato serving of mixed greens, and those sorts of dishes. The second comprises of pizza, pasta, servings of mixed greens and pop. What's more, the third is the ground sirloin sandwich, fries and milkshake. Most eateries with an American taste have all these three gatherings recorded on their menus. Tossed in the bundle are well known choices for youngsters: chicken tenders, corn puppies and sausage. Best restaurant near milton ma

A significant number of us are getting to be careful about the wellbeing estimation of these nourishments because of discoveries expressing that they are not extremely solid, contains a high volume of fat and cholesterol while hiding out on basic supplements. The nourishment business rushes to put an answer for this and now we see eateries having more beneficial choices in their menus with youngsters' menus refreshed with sound alternatives by including milk, apples, oranges and some more.

What tempt the vast majority to American nourishment are effortlessness, straightforwardness and comfort with regards to planning. This is exceptionally clear in American eateries. One other thing that numerous individuals begin to acknowledge is they could make similar dishes in their own homes and spend less. This could have been a transformed procedure to adapt to the subsidence when schedules we used to appreciate like eating out abruptly turned into an extravagance that put impressive profound scratches on everybody's month to month spending plan. Formulas of most loved eatery dishes could be found by skilled housewives and specialists at that point made accessible online for general society to attempt.  American restaurant in milton ma

Since you have a printed formula in your counter, understand that it won't taste precisely the same as it did in that eatery. This is for the most part because of the way that an alternate cook or culinary specialist is setting up the sustenance and this is you, and you don't almost certainly have the majority of the expert hardware in your kitchen. Likewise, on the off chance that you don't utilize the same correct brands of fixings, at that point things will taste diverse also. Then again, this is a fun path for you to infuse your own specific style or taste and give a specific contort to that dish you generally arrange in that eatery you and your family visit. Simply envision the ability and expertise you get the chance to sharpen simultaneously and the mind boggling measure of reserve funds you can make, while not missing on your customary end of the week exceptional meals.

[wellpersonsblog]

The Picky Eater Solution: How to Turn Your Child into a Plant-Based Food Adventurer

It seems every family has at least one kid who just won’t try new foods.

And there’s nothing more frustrating than cooking a beautiful meal, only to have your kids call it yucky or spit it out. But that’s kids… wearing every emotion and opinion right on their sleeve.

Because of this, some parents spend hours in the kitchen preparing individual meals catering to individual tastes, just to get their children to eat. Or they cave, and let their child eat whatever processed food makes them happy.

No one said parenting would be easy…

My husband Dave and I are parents to four great kids — all plant-based. Sounds like we’ve got it made, right?

Let me tell you, over the years, we’ve had our fair share of food battles. And when it comes to food battles, there’s one important lesson I’ve found to always be true:

Food battles are all about control and identity.

And although it may not feel like it in the moment — when your kids are throwing a tantrum over broccoli — them asserting their opinions about what goes into their bodies is actually a good sign. They’re developing a sense of autonomy.

They may just need a little help directing that energy toward making good choices like kale and mushrooms and quinoa instead of just white rice, bread, or veggie sausages.

My philosophy around picky eaters is to respect, educate, and involve your kids in eating.

And if you can do that, you can create little foodies who love variety, color, flavor, and have a positive identity around being adventurous eaters.

After having our own child and adopting three beautiful Cree children, we felt compelled to transition from vegetarian to a fully plant-based diet. For Dave and me, the transition was pretty smooth — not so much for our kids. But with a lot of patience and encouragement from us, all four kids are excellent food adventurers today and love kale and vegan brownies!

As a mother and plant-based Registered Dietitian, I’ve learned a lot through my own experiences and the experiences of my clients on how best to open picky eaters up to new, fresh foods.

Here are my seven tips to help you turn your picky eaters into food adventurers:

7 Steps to Helping Even the Pickiest of Eater

1. Start with What They Like

Starting with foods and flavors that are familiar for your children will help them feel more comfortable and confident.

Does your kid love peanut butter? Mine too! Try a chunky monkey smoothie with banana, peanut butter, and almond milk. When they get comfortable with that, add some cocoa powder for a chocolate flavor. That is perfect because once you add chocolate, you can add baby spinach too, and the color will still be a rich chocolatey brown. The flavor won’t change.

Kids who love peanut butter might try new fruits if you use peanut butter as a dip or drizzle. Start with dipping a fruit they love, and then introduce a new fruit. Apples, bananas, and berries all go great with peanut butter. But then, just about anything goes great with peanut butter.

Try venturing into the world of savory foods by making a peanut butter-based satay sauce. This sauce goes great with baked tofu or with a power bowl stacked with rice, beans, and veggies.

Starting with what is familiar to your kids, whether it is potatoes or pasta or peanut butter, will help you build their confidence to try new things.

2. Use Mealtime as Family Time

I know all too well that family life is busy, but mealtimes are sacred times.

Do you gather around the table at least once a day, put phones away, and take the time to enjoy food together and speak to each other? If not, it is time to build this practice into your lives.

Even with very young children, treating mealtime as a time to respect your bodies, each other, and the food you are eating is an important message. It is tempting to just eat in front of Netflix, but you will miss a great chance to model healthy eating behaviors for your kids.

And moms and dads, this is the time to start celebrating the foods you eat. Try different foods on the table and talk about what you like about them.

Your children learn by watching you, and mealtime is no exception. Fall more in love with food and one another at every meal.

3. Introduce Food Literacy

Language is important, especially around food.

Kids are quick to judge a meal, sometimes even before trying it, so in our household, we’ve set rules around food language. We don’t use words like yucky, disgusting, or even “I don’t like that” to describe food. Instead, we encourage our kids to identify what aspect of the food is challenging or new for them.

Giving your kids better knowledge, language, and skills around food will build their confidence and the feeling that they are in control.

Instead of your vegan alfredo sauce being “gross,” ask your kids if it was the flavor, the texture, the smell, or the appearance they were not sure about. This may take a little time to build because they may not even be sure what you mean by “texture.”

And that’s okay!

With a little time, education, and play, they will get the hang of it. Once they can better describe what they have a problem with, they will feel more in control, and you will be better able to address it.

Sauces with challenging chunks of veggies can be pureed, salsa that is too spicy can be mellowed, wraps with too much or too little avocado can be adjusted.

Tell your kids “I’m so glad you told me that this sauce is too garlicy for you! Next time I make it, I need you in the kitchen with me so you can help me get it right. You are the best little chef, and the food always tastes better when you help me.”

What kid would say no to that?

4. Get Them in the Kitchen

Speaking of the best little chef…

There is nothing like preparing food to help your kids overcome their pickiness. Build your children’s sense of pride and ownership in the meal, and they will be more likely to try the food and enjoy it. Here are a few ideas for how kids can get involved:

Let them help with meal planning by offering a couple options of what is for dinner (like bean burritos or chili and rice) and let them pick.

Introduce age-appropriate tasks: tasks like measuring and mixing are great (and help build numeracy too!), or let them push the buttons when making dips or smoothies in the blender.

Appoint one child at a time to be your official taster for the meal. Give them a little spoonful of the food before you serve it, and ask them if it needs a little cumin or salt or pepper or a squeeze of lime.

Your kids will likely be proud to help, and more likely to enjoy the food at mealtime.

Make sure to thank them at the table for their help, and make a big deal of the improvements they have made.

5. Offer Meals with Choice

Sometimes offering a meal with lots of options on the table can be easy and take the pressure off you and your kids.

Try baked potatoes, fajitas, tacos, or wraps with lots of colorful and healthy toppings in bowls on the table.

This can work particularly well for families who are transitioning to a completely plant-based diet (it did for mine!).

Make a rule that everyone needs to choose at least three toppings (like corn, black beans, avocado, tomatoes, or spinach), but let them choose which ones.

You can even make a game for who can come up with the best color variety, and celebrate having unique chooses. Then just dig in and enjoy.

6. Try the Tiny Tastes Strategy

The “tiny tastes” strategy  comes from a piece of research in the UK which found that kids may need to try a new vegetable 10 times before they like it. Trying vegetables can be easier if you start with just a tiny (and I mean really tiny) taste.

Try a rice grain sized piece of the veggie first. It is not too intimidating, and it is over in just a moment.

I’ve found that it works well if parents try the tiny taste with their children and then talk about the experience together. Maybe even get your child to feed you your tiny portion so they feel in control, and they see that they’re not the only one trying new things.

Then continue to increase the size and frequency of that vegetable. The more vegetables children enjoy, the more open they will be to trying others.

Be sure to show your kids not only the tiny, rice-grain sized slice of the veggie, but also introduce them to the whole veggie too. Let them hold it, learn its name, watch you slice it (or slice it themselves with a little help). Maybe look up a photo online so you can see how that fruit or vegetable is grown.

Even better — start a little garden yourself.

7. Help Build Their Food Identity

The most important thing you can do for your kids is to build their identity as adventurous eaters.

Once they make this mindset shift, you will find it so much easier to build the repertoire of foods they can enjoy and meals your family can eat together. Instead of complaining about how picky they are, brag to your friends (in earshot of your child) about the new vegetables and fruits they have been trying lately, and how adventurous they are becoming with their food.

Speak enthusiastically about the amazing smoothie they made, or their great suggestion to add more lemon to the hummus, and how much better it tastes now with their input.

By describing your kids as little foodies, they will build an identity around food. There is nothing more powerful than this in overcoming food aversions.

From Picky Eater to Plant-Based Foodie

As every parent knows, there are many challenges that come with raising children…

And food is certainly one of them.

As excited as my husband and I were about transitioning to a plant-based diet, I was equally unsure if my kids would ever be excited about doing the same.

But over time my kids learned to love food and now embrace it as part of their identity.

With these tips, some patience, and a positive mindset, you and your children will become great partners in the kitchen — and that reward is worth the effort.

Start today with some tiny tastes, and let the adventure begin!

Ready to get started? Get the free Picky Eaters Plant-Based Playbook here.

About the Author: Dr. Pamela Fergusson operates a private practice in Canada, where she promotes health and healing through a plant-based diet. She is a Registered Dietitian with a PhD at the University of Liverpool and her Master’s in International Health at Sweden’s Uppsala University. Pamela and her husband Dave have four children, and she loves to speedwalk ultramarathons. Read her nutrition blog and find her on Facebook.

The post The Picky Eater Solution: How to Turn Your Child into a Plant-Based Food Adventurer appeared first on No Meat Athlete.

First found here: The Picky Eater Solution: How to Turn Your Child into a Plant-Based Food Adventurer

[healthylivingwithcancer]

Shamelessly pilfered from Felicity Cloake of the Guardian, this is as an authentic a jerk as I have had…very spicy and simply YUM. It really is quick too, the fiddliest bit being crushing the allspice and pepper corns. But you must be very careful with the Scotch bonnets (available in Waitrose and other local grocer’s). We only marinated for an hour or so, being disorganised – imagine if it had the full monty! In fact we started the chicken in the oven fearing it would rain (it did), and meanwhile cooked asparagus, aubergine, sausages and some lamb cutlets (lots of hungry youth to feed). Sadly we were all so wet that I forgot to photo our chicken thighs, so nicked Felcity’s photo as well as the recipe!

Serves 6-8 Prep 15 min Marinate 6 hr+ Cook 25 min

1 tbsp allspice berries 1 tbsp black peppercorns 4 spring onions 1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked, to get 1 tbsp ½ tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp ground nutmeg 3 scotch bonnet chillies 1 tbsp dark brown sugar 1 tsp salt 2 tbsp dark soy sauce Juice of 1 lime 6 chicken legs (thigh with drumstick attached, or 6 thighs and 6 drumsticks, or just thighs), skin on

1 Whole allspice is best

Start at least seven hours before you want to eat, to give the marinade a chance to do its diabolical work. Blitz the allspice berries and peppercorns in a spice grinder (or pound to a powder in a mortar instead). Ideally, use whole berries, because they have a much better flavour than ready-ground allspice.

2 Start making the rub

Coarsely chop the spring onions, using all but the very top of the green part as well as the white, and put in a food processor with the thyme leaves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground allspice and pepper (you could also use a stick blender, or a large pestle and mortar).

3 Prepare the chillies – carefully

Don your rubber gloves: it’s time to chop the chillies. If you’re foolhardy enough to chance it without, wash your hands well afterwards, because scotch bonnets mean business. If you want to temper the heat, remove the seeds, but don’t be tempted to substitute for another variety: their fruity flavour is key to the success of this dish.

4 Finish the jerk seasoning

Add the chopped chillies to the food processor (or whatever you’re using for this stage) and whizz to a thick puree. Add the sugar, salt, soy sauce (dark soy sauce is preferable if you can find it – it has a richer flavour and will give your chicken a lovely tan) and lime juice, and blend again to a fairly homogenous paste.

5 Rub the jerk into the chicken

Put the chicken legs into a large bowl and pour over the marinade. Put your gloves back on (if you used them the first time, that is), then massage it into the meat, making sure you get it right under the skin – you’ll probably need to pull it away from the meat first to do this.

6 Marinate for at least six hours

Cover the bowl and leave it to marinate in the fridge for at least six hours and up to 12. Take it out an hour before you want to cook, so it has time to come up to room temperature, or it will take much longer to cook.

7 Get that barbie going

Light the barbecue, and allow it to cool to a medium heat, so you can comfortably hold your hand over the grill for four seconds. If you’re having a big feast, sear steaks, fish or seafood on it while you’re waiting, or do some asparagus spears, sliced courgette or lettuce halves for an accompanying salad. Anything that will cook before it burns, basically.

8 Cook the jerk over coals

Once the barbecue feels as if it’s reached the right temperature, cook the chicken until well coloured on both sides, then move it as far to the side of the grill as you can, away from the coals. Clap on the lid (if you don’t have a lid, improvise with a roasting tin, large terracotta flowerpot or frying pan) and leave to cook for about 25 minutes, turning occasionally, until it’s done.

9 Or, if you must, oven bake

Alternatively, put the chicken in a roasting tray, cover with foil and bake at 200C/390F/gas 6 for about an hour, until cooked through, then finish in a very hot griddle pan until charred and crisp. Either way, serve with roast sweet potatoes and/or rice and peas.

The joys of an English BBQ!

Jerk chicken to die for Shamelessly pilfered from Felicity Cloake of the Guardian, this is as an authentic a jerk as I have had...very spicy and simply YUM.

[thehungrykat1]

The U.S. Embassy in the Philippines Hosts The Great American Barbecue 2018

Everyone knows that I am a big lover of steaks, ribs, pork, and anything else you can cook on the barbecue grill. This is why I was so excited to participate once again in The Great American Barbecue hosted by the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines. It wasn’t just any type of meat on the grill, but the most premium, high quality meats coming straight from the United States of America. Now that is an event that I could not miss.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture - Foreign Agricultural Services (USDA-FAS) in Manila has teamed up with U.S. industry trade groups, U.S. exporters and local partners to showcase the top U.S. products and ingredients in this annual event. The Hungry Kat was invited last May 15, 2018 to the posh residence of the U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission in Forbes Park and it was truly an evening filled with American meats, barbecues, and overflowing wines.

Welcoming guests to The Great American Barbecue was Michael S. Klecheski, Deputy Chief of Mission of the United States of America, who courteously introduced me to other guests inside his residence. The event started at 6:00pm but I could already smell all the yummy barbecue cooking outside. 

The Philippines is the number one market in Southeast Asia and one of the top ten markets globally for U.S. food and beverage products. This program is meant to highlight U.S. beef and pork products which are arguably one of the best in the world. Stringent controls, high standards on breeding and production, and a quality grading system makes U.S. meat products highly desirable and dependable.

There’s no need to convince me any further because the proof was just outside in the garden where a buffet of barbecued meats and delectable dishes were waiting. The top U.S. suppliers and trade partners were on hand to highlight their specialties and I was only too happy to oblige.

Let’s start with the Greek Yogurt and Parmesan Corn Cobs, a unique way of presenting corn instead of just the usual buttered versions. Over at the cold buffet section, I saw some coleslaw, chicken potato salad and Russian salad. U.S. Johnsonville Sausages were also available for a meatier appetizer.

The hamburger is an American icon and the Mini Beef Burgers represent this much loved item very well. The patties are made with U.S. Beef which gives them a very meaty and smokey flavor.

There were plenty of dishes presented on the grill and on the buffet tables as well, I didn’t know where to start! The Fish Kebabs look really tempting.

If I had time to get my hands dirty I would have eaten more of these Buffalo Chicken Wings, but I needed to save space for the others. U.S. Chicken and Poultry are raised on nutritious feed grains like soybeans and corn. All chicken products offered for export are inspected for wholesomeness by the USDA and transported in climate controlled containers. The presence of the USDA Grade A shield on the chicken is an indication of the highest possible quality.

But it was at the grill and barbecue stations where the action was heating up. The huge Grilled U.S. Tomahawk with Sea Salt and Black Pepper Rub was one of the popular dishes with its strong beefy flavors and aroma.

However, my favorite item at The Great American Barbecue is obviously the Grilled U.S. Wagyu Steak with Black Pepper Gravy. These come from Snake River Farms, a premium brand known for their American Wagyu Beef and Kurobuta Pork which are considered as some of the finest quality meats available. Wagyu is renowned all over the world as a legendary breed of cattle with supreme tenderness and marbling. The quality of the beef is even better than USDA Prime, the highest USDA grade for beef, so they had to develop their own quality scale. I just loved indulging in these tender wagyu steak and they were definitely the highlight of the evening.

Kurobuta pork, also known as Berkshire Pork, is also celebrated around the world for its marbling and flavor. Its origins date back almost 300 years and Snake River Farms uses pure Berkshire pedigrees for their pork. The U.S. Pork Kurobuta Salpicao with Corn Salsa was one example of how using Kurobuta pork enhances the overall quality of any dish.

The same can be said for the U.S. Roast Pork Loin with Buttered Vegetables. The pork slices were extremely tender and the meat easily soaks up the sauce and gravy for a more flavorful dining experience. 

Lamb was also featured during the event and guests were treated to the Grilled Rosemary Infused U.S. Lamb Shoulders and the Grilled Lemon Marinated U.S. Lamb Spareribs. Both dishes were also excellent without that gamey flavor and it was truly a meaty and carnivorous affair.

For desserts, the Chocolate Lust was the sweet ending to our evening. This comes with creamy chocolate pudding on a soft crust with strawberries on top. Key Lime Pie was also an option with its tart lemony flavors.

I also met a lot of new friends during The Great American Barbecue, and I had a pleasant time chatting with dignitaries, trade partners, importers and restaurant suppliers. We all had one thing in common, and that was the love for U.S. meat products. The free-flowing California wines were also great companions and I can’t really remember how many glasses of sparkling wine I had that evening. I’m sure it was a lot.

I would like to thank Deputy Chief of Mission Michael S. Klecheski and Ms. Joy Claridades-Rubio of the U.S. Department of Agriculture for inviting me to this wonderful barbecue event. The United States of America will always be our closest ally and trading partner so it is always a pleasure to grace their wonderful activities and support their delicious and meaty programs.

[cookszone-blog]

Healthy Thanksgiving Menu | MyRecipes

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Healthy Thanksgiving Menu | MyRecipes

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Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad

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Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

Lentil Shepherd’s Pie Recipe

The bulgur releases just enough starch to bind the lentil- and mushroom-packed filling together. The skin of the potato contains about half the total fiber; we love the rustic edge and earthiness it adds to our creamy tater topper.

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Date, Walnut, and Blue Cheese Ball

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Whole Stuffed Roasted Pumpkin

Whole Stuffed Roasted Pumpkin Recipe

In this recipe, pumpkin plays a triple role: cooking vessel, serving bowl, and part of the meal itself. Choose a Long Island Cheese pumpkin for its creamy flesh or a Cinderella pumpkin. The hearty stew simmers inside the pumpkin while the flesh cooks and softens. Berbere, a peppery Ethiopian spice blend, richly seasons the pumpkin and stew. Find it at specialty markets or online at penzeys.com.

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Grand Marnier Cranberry Sauce

Grand Marnier Cranberry Sauce Recipe What makes this sauce extraordinary isn’t the orange liqueur, though it rounds out the tart and sweet flavors beautifully. It’s the whole fresh cranberries reserved before cooking and stirred in just before serving. You might think the fresh berries would be too tart without simmering—we did too—but the result is simply outstanding: jammy sauce punctuated by pops of tart, juicy berries. If you prefer not to use alcohol, you can substitute fresh orange juice. Double the batch and use as a breakfast jam or sandwich spread, or spoon warm sauce over frozen yogurt.

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Lemon-Herb Sheet Pan Roasted Vegetables

Lemon-Herb Sheet Pan Roasted Vegetables Recipe

A mix of colorful root vegetables may be your star side. Peeled, prechopped butternut squash saves time, but pieces tend to be irregular and small–we prefer peeling and cubing it yourself.

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Traditional Sweet Potato Casserole

Traditional Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe This simple casserole uses the same favorite ingredients as its full-fat counterpart but cuts back ever-so-slightly on the amounts used and the portion size resulting in a lower-calorie, equally tasty dish.

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8 of 22 Photo: Charles Masters

Green Bean Casserole

Green Bean Casserole Recipe This deliciously updated version of the classic green bean casserole features fresh green beans and wine-infused mushrooms. We just had to keep the fried onion topping, which is arguably the best part.

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Sourdough Stuffing with Pears and Sausage

Sourdough Stuffing with Pears and Sausage Recipe You might be tempted to leave off the turkey in place of this hearty sourdough bread stuffing that’s packed with carrot, celery, onion, mushrooms, and turkey sausage. Chopped fresh pears adds just a note of subtle sweetness to the savory dish.

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10 of 22 Photo: Ellen Silverman; Styling: Toni Brogan

Buttermilk-Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

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Make-Ahead Gravy

Make-Ahead Gravy Recipe Skip the turkey drippings and the last minute rush a preparing the gravy with this make-ahead version. Prepare turkey stock then flavor it with sage and thicken with flour and butter. You’ll never miss the fatty drippings!

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Basic Cranberry Sauce

Basic Cranberry Sauce Recipe Thanksgiving just isn’t complete without sweet and tangy cranberry sauce. Make this one a few days ahead to serve at your holiday table or to give as a homemade gift to neighbors and friends.

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14 of 22 Randy Mayor; Melanie J. Clarke

Roasted Beet and Shallot Salad over Wilted Beet Greens and Arugula

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15 of 22 HOWARD L. PUCKETT

Southern Corn Bread Dressing

Southern Corn Bread Dressing Recipe It’s just not Thanksgiving without the dressing. This Southern-style recipe calls for both corn bread and biscuits but dishes up less fat and fewer calories than the traditional versions.

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16 of 22 Photo: Jonny Valiant; Styling: Deborah Williams

Wild Rice Dressing with Roasted Chestnuts and Cranberries

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17 of 22 Becky Luigart-Stayner; Jan Gautro

Brined Maple Turkey with Cream Gravy

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18 of 22 Oxmoor House

Apple-Poblano Whole Roast Turkey

Apple-Poblano Whole Roast Turkey Recipe Go in a Southwestern direction with your turkey this year by brining it in a mixture of apple cider, brown sugar and jalapeño pepper and adding onion, cilantro, apples and poblano chiles to the turkey cavity before roasting.

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19 of 22 Becky Luigart-Stayner; Lydia DeGaris-Pursell

Apples Baked in Phyllo with Pear-and-Pecan Filling

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20 of 22 Photography: Randy Mayor; Styling: Lydia DeGaris-Pursell

Classic Pumpkin Pie

Classic Pumpkin Pie Recipe Refrigerated pie dough makes this classic pumpkin pie recipe simple to prepare. This lightened version features egg whites in place of some of the whole eggs and low-fat evaporated milk, but still has the brown sugar and spices you expect from a pumpkin pie.

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21 of 22 Becky Luigart-Stayner

Oatmeal Pecan Pie

Oatmeal Pecan Pie Recipe Rolled oats in the filling add heartiness and increase the fiber in this classic Thanksgiving dessert.

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22 of 22 Photo: Oxmoor House

Pumpkin Pie with Vanilla Whipped Cream

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