Posts Roundup at Dennys Blogs - 30 May 2010

*** Check out what's happening at all 14 of Denny's blogs: news, politics, political cartoons, poetry, great recipes, science and health news, photography, humor and spiritual thoughts from great quotes.



Cup of coffee from Brazil by il Quoquo @ flickr




The Social Poets:

Obama Cowers to BP: Rejects Super Tankers for Gulf Clean Up

Whats Happening in America This Week: BP Oil Spill Cartoons - 29 May 2010

Peace Upon The Land poem – Libations Friday 28 May 2010

Check It Out: Rolling Stones Mag Names 5 Best Songs Ever

BP Oil Spill: White House Updated News - 24 May 2010

Transcript of White House Press Briefing on 24 May 2010

Roundup of Late Night Funnies and Funny Videos - 24 May 2010

Funny Video: Outgoing British Leaders Walk of Shame After Election

Funny Video: Colbert Mocks Glenn Beck for Comparing Himself to God and MLK


Funny Video: Jon Stewart Sees BP Fixing Oil Spill with Stupid Anagrams

Posts Roundup at Dennys Blogs - 23 May 2010




Dennys Global Politics:


American and World Politics Cartoons - 29 May 2010


Child Porn Social Site Busted - News Headlines 27 May 2010

Use NASA 4 Oil Spill Help, Corrupt MMS, Lightning Rod Rahm Emanuel - News Headlines 26 May 2010




Beautiful Illustrated Quotations:


What Is Your Quality of Listening to Truly Benefit From the Hearing?





Photo by Helen Maria Bjornsd/Nordic Photos/Getty Images


The Soul Calendar:


Passionate Volcano Chasers: Photographing Eruptions Around the World

Why Black Holes Burst With Light When Galaxies Merge




The Healing Waters:





*** Photo by asobitsuchiya @ flickr



Heart Health: Beware of Sugar Pirates in Your Diet

Coming Soon: Get an Orgasm Boost with Female Viagra




Humor blogs:


Tea Party and Rand Paul Cartoons - 29 May 2010

Funny Facebook Cartoons - 29 May 2010




Romancing The Chocolate:






Cream Cheese n Sour Cherry Filling 4 Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate Cream Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Battle Belly Fat: Fudgy Dark Chocolate Brownies, Chocolate French Toast

Simple Summer: 2 Super Easy Spaghetti Sauces



Comfort Food From Louisiana:


Seafood Recipes: Crawfish Casserole, Crawfish Corn Bread, Crawfish Tortellini

Easy Recipes: 4 Versions of Crawfish Pie



Unusual 2 Tasty:

Battle Belly Fat: Pan-Seared Shrimp Tacos, Crunchy Crust "Mac n Cheese,” Oven Fries

Spicy Shrimp Fra Diavolo Sauce Used 3 Ways: Seafood, Chicken, Polenta

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

2 Crowd Pleasing Easy Casseroles: Mexican Lasagna, Turkey Tetrazzini




Visual Insights:


Memorial Day Madness Cartoons - 29 May 2010





Poems From A Spiritual Heart: This is a poetry only blog so the poems don't get lost in the noise of all my other posts on The Social Poets. So, if you are in the mood just for a quick read of some simple poetry I'm parking it here after it debuts on the Libations Friday segments.


Peace Upon The Land

The Mystics Arrive

We Are All Sleeping Beauties

Legacy of Love

Honoring Ourselves

Pollen Storms

Snowing The Perfect Balance

The 11 Choices

The Smallest Earth Day Poem

Three Endings and One Beginning

One Mother and One Child

Release Your Dreams and Spring into Life



*** 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!

Battle Belly Fat: Pan-Seared Shrimp Tacos, Crunchy Crust "Mac n Cheese,” Oven Fries

*** Eat your favorite comfort foods and still battle the belly fat. Recipes the whole family will enjoy they won't even know they are eating healthy!




Flat Belly Diet Family Cookbook by Liz Vaccariello



From Denny: Want guilt free comfort food that actually taste good? Look no further in your quest to battle belly fat and not roll your eyes at typical diet food that has you bored and your family in revolt.

Liz Vaccariello is the author of the newest cookbook in her series about good food to battle belly fat, "Flat Belly Diet! Family Cookbook." She features traditional comfort food favorites like macaroni and cheese (Mac 'n' Cheese for those in the know), oven french fries, shrimp tacos and dark chocolate brownies. That line up sure doesn't sound like we will be deprived of good taste or familiar dishes.

This cookbook and recipes are geared to family healthy eating without sacrificing great taste and favorite foods. While she does limit each meal to about 400 calories the real success is combining a MUFA with each meal.

What's a MUFA? Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acid. They are found in olive oil, olives, nuts and seeds, peanut butter or other nut butters and the biggest favorite: dark chocolate.

Here are the three basic rules from Liz Vaccariello, Editor in chief of Prevention Magazine, to help lose that belly fat:

1. Eat a MUFA with every meal

2. Stick to 400 calories per meal

3. Never go more than 4 hours without eating


Recipes Featured:

Pan-Seared Shrimp Tacos
Crunchy Crust "Mac and Cheese”
Salt and Pepper Oven Fries

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Pan-Seared Shrimp Tacos

From: "Flat Belly Diet Family Cookbook"

Makes: 4 servings, 320 calories

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Haas avocado, cubed
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• 1 cup shredded romaine lettuce


DIRECTIONS

Combine the avocado, onion, jalapeno pepper, cilantro, lime juice and 1/4 teaspoon in a bowl and set aside. Combine the shrimp, chili powder, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper in a separate bowl.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook 2 1/2 to 3 minutes per side or until opaque. Transfer to a plate and keep warm. Heat tortillas in a dry skillet over medium-high heat until hot and lightly toasted, about 30 seconds per side or according to package directions. Place 2 tortillas on each plate and top each with 2 tablespoons lettuce, 1/8 avocado mixture and 1/8 of the shrimp. Serve immediately.





"Crunchy Crust "Mac and Cheese"

From: "Flat Belly Diet Family Cookbook"

Makes: 4 servings, 328 calories

INGREDIENTS

• 4 ounces multi-grain macaroni
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 3 tablespoons Panko bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups fat-free milk
• 1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese


DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat an 8-inch x 8-inch baking dish with vegetable spray.

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the macaroni according to package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water and drain again. Set aside. Combine the bread crumbs and 2 teaspoons oil in a small bowl. Stir with a fork to evenly coat the crumbs with oil.

Add the remaining 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon oil to a large saucepan. Set over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour, paprika, salt and pepper until smooth. Add the milk, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking, for about 5 minutes, or until thickened. Remove from the heat. Stir in the cheese until it melts. Stir in the macaroni. Pour into the baking dish. Top evenly with the crumbs.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until bubbling and golden. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.





Salt and Pepper Oven Fries

From: "Flat Belly Diet Family Cookbook"

Makes: 4 servings, 262 calories

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound russet potatoes, cut into 3 1/2-inch long by 1/2-inch wide sticks
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley


DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

Combine the potatoes and 2 tablespoons oil in a large bowl, tossing well to coat. Arrange potatoes in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the center of the oven 15 minutes, turn the potatoes and bake 15 minutes longer or until golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and transfer to a large bowl.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Pour oil and garlic over the potatoes, and add the salt, pepper and parsley; toss well. Serve immediately.



*** For the chocolate recipes go here:

Battle Belly Fat: Fudgy Dark Chocolate Brownies, Chocolate French Toast




Flat Belly Diet Family Cookbook by Liz Vaccariello


*** 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!

Check It Out: Rolling Stones Mag Names 5 Best Songs Ever

*** Rolling Stone Magazines choice for the 5 Best Songs of All Time with music videos.

From Denny: I just spent a couple of hours running down some great music video of the Rolling Stones Magazine's choices for the 5 Best Songs Of All Time. They are putting out a special collector's issue tomorrow that has the best 500 songs of all time. Most of it is grounded in the 60's and 70's but some also in the 2000s decade.

I parked this special post over at Dennys Art Sanctuary where some history of the making of the songs is discussed:

***Rolling Stone Magazine Names 5 Greatest Songs of All Time


Take a look and feel free to put up your choices of the all time best songs in the comment section! :)

Photo by Jsome1 @ flickr

*** 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!

Funny Posts to Get U Thru Your Work Week - 26 May 2010

Chew on some funnies today...


From Denny: Hey! It's Wednesday and you still need to finish out the work week with a laughing attitude that will dismay your boss, wilt your spouse with relief and annoy your teenage children. Take a look at this short list of posts on several of my blogs this week for your laugh of choice!


BP Oil Spill Funny Quotes and Jokes: Cheeky Quote Day - 26 May 2010

Roundup of Late Night Funnies and Funny Videos - 24 May 2010

Scary Video: Dumb Kid Alert

Hunh? Funny Political Cartoons 15 May 2010

Funny Story: New Funny World Myth


*** 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!

Spicy Shrimp Fra Diavolo Sauce Used 3 Ways: Seafood, Chicken, Polenta

Shrimp fra diavlo by arthurohm @ flickr


From Denny: What's great about this pasta sauce is it's basically a marinara sauce and incredibly versatile. Chef Lidia demos how to use it over sauteed fresh shrimp, spooned over sauteed boneless chicken breast and yellow bell peppers or over cooled, cut and grilled polenta rectangles.

You can use this spicy hot sauce over fish and with pasta too. You can freeze the sauce and use canned tomatoes if fresh are too expensive or not available.
I like more spices in mine than her traditional simple version so feel free to add spices you like. I guess you can tell this is one of my favorite dishes and we use ground cayenne pepper at our house for this dish.

By the way, "Fra diavolo" is Italian for "Brother Devil." It's a name they use for any spicy sauce using red pepper for pastas or seafood dishes. Chef Lidia Bastianich's recipe is utterly simple, so fast and easy that you will have dinner on the table in no time at all - and with style! :)

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

From: Chef Lidia Bastianich

Serves: 6 lucky people! :)

This dish is excellent served as a main course or as a dressing for pasta.

INGREDIENTS

• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 2 1/2 pounds jumbo shrimp (about 30) peeled and deveined
• Salt
• One 35-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), cored and coarsely crushed
• 8 fresh basil leaves, torn into quarters
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh Italian parsley
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

DIRECTIONS

Heat 4 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and cook, shaking the pan, until golden. This takes about one minute. Add as many shrimp as fit in a single layer with some space between each. If you crowd the shrimp, they will steam in their own juices rather than get crunchy with a lightly browned exterior. Cook, tuning once, until lightly golden, about three minutes. Sprinkle with salt to taste.

With a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a plate, leaving as much garlic as possible in the pan.

Pour the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the tomatoes into the skillet, season with salt and crushed red pepper, and bring to a vigorous boil. Lower the heat so the sauce is at a lively simmer and cook until it is lightly thickened. This takes about 10 minutes.

Stir in the shrimp, basil and parsley and cook until the shrimp are heated through. This takes just a few seconds.



*** 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!