Unusual 2 Tasty

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Posts Roundup at Dennys Blogs - 23 May 2010

Cup of coffee from Brazil by il Quoquo @ flickr

From Denny: Thanks for visiting all my blogs! It's amazing how much the web has changed in only 18 months. Now people can read blogs without ever physically visiting - just read the posts in a reader.

At the top of the list here for each blog are the most recent posts. I've included many of the most popular posts you've enjoyed the past few weeks too.

I've just started up yet another interest blog for posts and news on music and art. Thank you for the great response! I had no idea people would respond so well to those couple of posts so quickly.

And special thanks to the folks who posted the Jazz Music poem up on social sites this week. Apparently, there are a number of music fans out there! :) Thanks for visiting The Social Poets!

The Social Poets:

America This Week: World Politics Cartoons and Commentary - 22 May 2010

Jazz Music poem - Libations Friday 21 May 2010

Funny Poet: Guy Wetmore Carryl

Funny Volcano and Weather Quotes - Cheeky Quote Day 19 May 2010

Scientists: New Airport Scanners Not Safe

Roundup of Late Night Funnies - 17 May 2010

Funny Video: Stewart Skewers Conservatives 4 Obama-Bush Comparisons

Funny Video: Colbert Lampoons Kagan Confirmation Hearing

Posts Roundup This Week at Dennys Blogs - 16 May 2010

Dennys Global Politics:

Political Cartoons: Local and World Economy

Actor Kevin Costner Pitches Solution to BP Headache, Intelligence Head Resigns, Why Kagan Elitist Good - News Headlines 20 May 2010

Russia Furious With America Over Afghan Drugs, Terrorism Financing Un-Islamic, White House Food - News Headlines 19 May 2010

Sticking It to Iran, Obama and Jobs Creation, Survey Goes Against New Oil Drilling - News Headlines 18 May 2010

Airport Scanners Safety Questioned, Iran Skirts Nuke Sanctions, Sex Criminals Indefinitely Detained - News Headlines 17 May 2010

The Soul Calendar:

Ground-Breaking King of the Lab: Venter Creates Synthetic DNA

Video: Check Out the River Monsters Swimming Near You

Bloggers: Get The New Google Buzz Buttons

Neuroscience: Want Your Man to Better Understand You? Try Empathy Nasal Spray

Beautiful Illustrated Quotations:

Sometimes What You Sideline is a Good Thing

3 Quotes: Have You Validated Yourself Recently?

3 Positive Attitude Quotes to Help Shape Your World

Are You Stuck in Life Not Knowing Where to Go Next?

Mothers Day Quote From Rose Kennedy

How Can You Help Your Child Keep Their Balance And Yours?

Mothers Day Quote: The Funny Stages of Motherhood

4 Special Quotes to Anchor Your Dreams

Humor blogs - Dennys Funny Quotes, Ouch Outrageous Obnoxious And Odd:

Dark Humor: BP Oil Spill Cartoons - 22 May 2010

Outrageous: Graduation Debt Cartoons - 22 May 2010

Funny Video: Colbert On BP Oil Containment - No One Knows What The Flock They're Doing

Funny Video: Cartoonist Mocks Tea Party Hypocrisy

Funny Video: Betty White On SNL Monologue

Funny Video: Betty White, SNL Golden Girls Lampoon Lawrence Welk Show

Funny Video: Cover Up Your Sex Scandal With A New Batch Of Euphemisms

Terrorism and Times Square, Immmigration Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Hunh? Funny Political Cartoons 15 May 2010

10 Funny Odd Photos - cute animals and crazy dressed people!

Funny Video: TV Anchor Falls off Chair

The Healing Waters:

Controversial Successful New Treatment 4 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Injuries During Sex, Miracle Baby, Bad Drug Ad Snitches Wanted - Health News Stories - 14 May 2010

Funny Wall Street Political Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Food blogs - Romancing The Chocolate and Comfort Food From Louisiana:

Simple Summer: 2 Super Easy Spaghetti Sauces

Easy Recipes: 4 Versions of Crawfish Pie

Triple Chocolate Toffee Brownies

Elegant Cheap Dishes From Manhattan Chef: Chicken With 40 Garlic Cloves, Salad and Dessert

Sweet Breakfasts: Caramel Pecan Buns, Sweet Blueberry Drop Biscuits, Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Tradtional Sandwiches Updated: California Tuna Melt, Egg Salad

Chocolate Wonders: Kentucky Derby Pie, Make-ahead Chocolate Soufflé

Easy Moist Chocolate Mayo Cake From Bon Appetit

Video: Louisiana Chef Makes Crawfish Etouffee

5 Easy Recipes 4 Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

2 Crowd Pleasing Easy Casseroles: Mexican Lasagna, Turkey Tetrazzini

Awesome Cajun Barbecued Shrimp — New Orleans Style

Yummy Homemade Coconut Cream Pie

Awesome Sauces 4 Louisiana Seafood

Spring Into Grill Season: Mouthwatering Steaks

Chef Rocco Dispiritos Cheap Yet Healthy Comfort Food

Kid Friendly Recipes: Chocolate Quesadillas, Very Best Fudge

Visual Insights, photo blog:

Political Cartoons: Memorial Day - 22 May 2010

Supreme Court Nominee Political Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Dennys Funny Photo Gallery: The Nose Knows

Dennys Photo Gallery: Garden Views

Dennys Photo Gallery: Life is Just Plain Funny

Dennys Photo Gallery: How to Know Its Spring

Funny Odd Couples: Cats and Their Weirdo Friends

Dennys Photo Gallery: Spectacular Sunrises

Dennys Photo Gallery: Beautiful Blues in Our World

Photography, Beautiful Metaphor for Life: 17 Boats

Only White Theme: 26 Photos

Photo History: 1st Lady Gowns, Michelle Obama Donates Hers

Dennys Art Santuary:

The Stones, Otis Redding, Ronnie James Dio - Arts and Music News 17 May 2010

Featuring Marilyn Monroes Jazz Pianist Hank Jones - Arts and Music Headlines 18 May 2010

*** THANKS for visiting, feel welcome to drop a comment or opinion, enjoy bookmarking this post on your favorite social site, a big shout out to awesome current subscribers – and if you are new to this blog, please subscribe in a reader or by email updates!

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Check Out 2 Funny Posts 2 Get U Thru the Work Week

British Petroleum giving "face" to President Obama about paying for their oil spill

From Denny: Check out some funnies and hike on over to one of my other blogs, The Social Poets, for some mid-work week fun!

Funny Volcano and Weather Quotes - Cheeky Quote Day 19 May 2010 - Funny volcano and weather quotes, jokes, political cartoons and funny video all designed to make you laugh til your boss fires you for "excessive merriment."

Roundup of Late Night Funnies - 17 May 2010 - Chock full of funny video clips from Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert and Betty White on SNL as well as the late night show jokes and quips.

*** THANKS for visiting, feel welcome to drop a comment or opinion, enjoy bookmarking this post on your favorite social site, a big shout out to awesome current subscribers – and if you are new to this blog, please subscribe in a reader or by email updates!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Posts Roundup This Week at Dennys Blogs - 16 May 2010

Cup of coffee from Brazil by il Quoquo @ flickr

From Denny: This sure has been quite the week with the drama unfolding out in the Gulf of Mexico with the BP oil spill off my Louisiana coast. The cartoonists have had great fun lampooning the various lies and finger pointing from the CEOs involved. The better news is that BP is finally making a bit of headway on corralling some of the oil for clean up, siphoning it into a tanker.

Some headway is better than nothing and at least it has slowed down the rate of gushing oil and natural gas for the moment. Definitely better than using an atomic bomb to blow up the well like the crazy Russians suggested. There's a plan. Nuke the Gulf of Mexico and irradiate the ocean waters for the next thousand years. Fortunately, BP and the government are contemplating lesser crazy options.

As a result of the oil spill there are countless great political cartoons and funny videos by the likes of Colbert to enjoy. And Betty White was the toast of late night TV on SNL after turning in some hilarious performances. She then proceeded to go out all night carousing with the SNL cast after the show. She's almost 89 years old and there's no time to waste for having fun! :)

The Social Poets:

BP Oil Spill Funny Political Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Love Gift Poem - Libations Friday 14 May 2010

3 Funny Videos: Hilarious Betty White On SNL, Cartoonist Mocks Tea Party

Funny Wall Street Quotes and Jokes, Stewart Lampoons Wall Street - Cheeky Quote Day 12 May 2010

One Million Homeowners Walked Away: Can It Kill Our Economy?

Video: The Case For Walking Away From Your Mortgage

Roundup of Late Night Funnies - 10 May 2010

Funny Video: Colbert Lampoons Conservative Preacher and His Rentboy

Funny Video: Stewart Slams Media, BP, And Hypocritical Politicians For Oil Spill Response

Funny Video: 2010 White House Correspondents Dinner with Prez Obama

See Cartoons by Cartoon by R.J. Matson - Courtesy of Politicalcartoons.com - Email this Cartoon

Dennys Global Politics:

World Economy Political Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Russians Say Nuke BP Oil Spill, Hordes Leaving Facebook, Big Business Cheats, Obamas Tax Reform - News Headlines 13 May 2010

BP Found Cheating, Auto Dealers Sleazing Public, Voters Oust Porkers, Haiti Charities Stingy - News Headlines 12 May 2010

Hedge Fund Short Selling Caused Market Dive, Cameron New Brit PM, Govt Changes Approach to Oil Oversight - News Headlines 11 May 2010

Woman Chosen 4 Supreme Court, BP Sprays Chemicals into Oil Spill, Obscene Exec Perks - News Headlines 10 May 2010

Beautiful Illustrated Quotations:

3 Quotes: Have You Validated Yourself Recently?

3 Positive Attitude Quotes to Help Shape Your World

Are You Stuck in Life Not Knowing Where to Go Next?

Mothers Day Quote From Rose Kennedy

How Can You Help Your Child Keep Their Balance And Yours?

Mothers Day Quote: The Funny Stages of Motherhood

4 Special Quotes to Anchor Your Dreams

Food Blogs:

Triple Chocolate Toffee Brownies

Elegant Cheap Dishes From Manhattan Chef: Chicken With 40 Garlic Cloves, Salad and Dessert

Sweet Breakfasts: Caramel Pecan Buns, Sweet Blueberry Drop Biscuits, Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

See Cartoons by Cartoon by J.D. Crowe - Courtesy of Politicalcartoons.com - Email this Cartoon

Humor blogs:

Funny Video: Colbert On BP Oil Containment - No One Knows What The Flock They're Doing

Funny Video: Cartoonist Mocks Tea Party Hypocrisy

Funny Video: Betty White On SNL Monologue

Funny Video: Betty White, SNL Golden Girls Lampoon Lawrence Welk Show

Funny Video: Cover Up Your Sex Scandal With A New Batch Of Euphemisms

Terrorism and Times Square, Immmigration Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Hunh? Funny Political Cartoons 15 May 2010

Visual Insights photo blog:

Supreme Court Nominee Political Cartoons - 15 May 2010

Dennys Funny Photo Gallery: The Nose Knows

The Healing Waters and The Soul Calendar:

Injuries During Sex, Miracle Baby, Bad Drug Ad Snitches Wanted - Health News Stories - 14 May 2010

Funny Wall Street Political Cartoons - 15 May 2010

*** THANKS for visiting, feel welcome to drop a comment or opinion, enjoy bookmarking this post on your favorite social site, a big shout out to awesome current subscribers – and if you are new to this blog, please subscribe in a reader or by email updates!

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Elegant Cheap Dishes From Manhattan Chef: Chicken With 40 Garlic Cloves, Salad and Dessert

From Denny: CBS runs this Chef on a Shoestring segment over at The Early Show where they give a chef the challenge of creating a wonderful meal to serve four people and do it for $40 or less. In this economy, more and more people are turning to clever ways to create great entertaining dishes for less money.

Featured in this video clip is Manhattan, New York Chef Sebastian Zijp who runs the kitchen for Bar Blanc Bistro. He became executive chef in 2008. His specialties are drawn from fresh seasonal ingredients from local markets. Though he was born in Africa to Dutch parents, he has traveled the world and chose to settle in New York City.

If you have never made this traditional French dish, don't be intimidated by the many garlic cloves. As they bake in the oven the flavor goes from sharp and pungent to softer and mellow. If you really enjoy the flavor of garlic, you can always add more to the dish or bake some (covered or in tin foil) on the side in the oven. If you are in a hurry - or don't enjoy peeling garlic cloves - just use that minced garlic in a jar at the grocery store, usually on the produce aisle. Spoon out about the same volume amount as the garlic cloves - about 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic for an average sized garlic clove.

Recipes Featured:

Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic
Simple Arugula Salad
Lemon and Parsley Couscous
Poached Pears with Amaretto Cream

Watch CBS News Videos Online

FOOD FACTS From Epicurious.com about some of chef's ingredients:

Pecorino: In Italy, cheese made from sheep's milk is known as pecorino. Most of these cheeses are aged and classified as grana (hard, granular and sharply flavored); however, the young, unaged Ricotta pecorino is soft, white and mild in flavor. Aged pecorinos range in color from white to pale yellow and have a sharp, pungent flavor. The best known of this genre is Pecorino Romano, which comes in large cylinders with a hard yellow rind and yellowish-white interior. Other notable pecorinos are Sardo, Siciliano and Toscano. These hard, dry cheeses are good for grating and are used mainly in cooking. They can be used in any recipe that calls for parmesan cheese, especially if a sharper flavor is desired.

Couscous: A staple of North African cuisine, couscous is granular semolina. Cooked, it may be served with milk as porridge, with a dressing as a salad or sweetened and mixed with fruits for dessert. Packaged precooked couscous is available in Middle Eastern markets and large supermarkets. The name couscous also refers to the famous Maghreb dish in which semolina or cracked wheat is steamed in the perforated top part of a special pot called a couscoussière, while chunks of meat (usually lamb or chicken), various vegetables, chickpeas and raisins simmer in the bottom part. In lieu of a couscoussière, a colander set over a large pot will do. The cooked semolina is heaped onto a platter, with the meats and vegetables placed on top. All diners use chunks of bread to scoop the couscous from this central platter. Couscous varies from country to country - Moroccans include saffron, Algerians like to add tomatoes and Tunisians spice theirs up with the hot-pepper-based harissa sauce.

Amaretto: A liqueur with the flavor of almonds, though it's often made with the kernels of apricot pits. The original liqueur, Amaretto di Saronno, hails from Saronno, Italy. Many American distilleries now produce their own amaretto.

RECIPES

Simple Arugula Salad

INGREDIENTS:

1 bunch baby arugula
2 radishes
1 bag baby carrots
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon shaved pecorino cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

Slice the radishes and shave the baby carrots. Toss radishes, carrots, and arugula with the lemon juice and the oil. Season with salt and pepper, top with the shaved pecorino.

Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic

INGREDIENTS:

4 chicken thighs
40 cloves garlic
4 sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon oil
Salt and pepper

METHOD:

Season the thighs well with salt and pepper. Heat a pan to medium high heat and sear the chicken until very dark golden brown. Remove from pan and add garlic, stir until they are lightly browned. Return the chicken to the pan and cover with a lid or tinfoil. Place in a 350º F. oven until cooked. Maybe 22 minutes.

Lemon and Parsley Couscous

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup couscous
1.25 cup stock or water
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Zest of 1 lemon (use the same lemon from the salad)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Pinch of salt

METHOD:

Mix the couscous with the salt, parsley and lemon in a bowl. Bring the stock or water to a boil with the olive oil. Pour the boiling liquid over the couscous, give a quick stir and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let stand five minutes, fluff with a fork and serve.

Poached Pears with Amaretto Cream

INGREDIENTS:

2 Bartlett pears, cut into quarter inch slices
1 cup water
2 tablespoon sugar
1 cinnamon stick
Zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
1 tablespoon Amaretto di Serrano

METHOD:

Bring the water to a boil along with the sugar, cinnamon and zest. Once boiling, add the pears and turn to a simmer until pears are soft, about 20 min. Mix together heavy cream, powdered sugar and Amaretto and whisk until stiff peaks form. Serve atop the poached pears.

So, how did Sebastiaan do in our "How Low Can You Go?" competition?!

Arugula Salad
arugula $2.50
radishes $1.98
carrots $1.99
lemon $0.50
pecorino cheese $5.49
total $12.46

Chicken with 40 Garlic Cloves
chicken $3.98
garlic $2.64
thyme $1.29
total $7.91

Lemon Parsley Couscous
couscous $2.19
stock $2.79
parsley $2.99
lemon $0.50
total $8.47

Poached Pears
pears $0.94
cinnamon $1.99
lemon $0.50
heavy cream $2.25
powdered sugar $1.29
Amaretto $1.50
total $8.47

Grand total: $37.31

That gets him onto our Leaders Board!!

1. Amanda Freitag $37.17
The Harrison

2. Kelly Liken $37.20
Restaurant Kelly Liken

3. Sebastiaan Zijp $37.31
Bar Blanc Bistro

*** THANKS for visiting, feel welcome to drop a comment or opinion, enjoy bookmarking this post on your favorite social site, a big shout out to awesome current subscribers – and if you are new to this blog, please subscribe in a reader or by email updates!