CaliPoutine

Ding, ding, ding. You win the prize. Thats 16lbs of buttercream!!

Can you guess what this is? We had another busy day today. I don't know what I was thinking when I agreed to blog during this week. I thought it would be easy, but its been hard. I feel like I'm ripping everyone off because I'm barely posting and I often forget to take pics. I did get a few pics today. We had 2 extra people helping so we actually finished at 3:30 today. lobster stock prep We ordered pizza for lunch today. Can you tell we're foodies? We added some different cheeses ( feta and sharp cheddar) to the pizzas. 3 people were wrapping these? I hate doing this little piddly stuff. waterchesnuts

Yes, absolutely! I am loving every post in your blog and I admire your stamia to keep on blogging with such a hectic week going on. ← First Wedding Appetizers Bacon wrapped water chesnuts tarragon chicken salad on date nut bread spanikopita sausage rolls cheeseball surprises( or something like that, I can't remember the name) cherry tomatoes stuffed with crab salad Main spring greens with garlic vinegariette cheddar chive scones rosemary chicken breasts( grilled) w/ garlic cream sauce filet of beef oven roasted potatoes grilled veg medley wild thing wedding cake Second Wedding Lobster bisque or potato leek soup cranberry citrus salad peppered beef tenderloin with mushroom sauce mediterraean pasta( for the vegetarians) oven roasted potatoes veg medley white cake w/ lemon curd raspberry cake

I spent most of today making wedding cakes. I made 3 triple batches of white cake. 1 was flavored with lemon peel and that will get a lemon curd filling. The other cake was baked with frozen raspberries inside. It will be filled with whipped cream and raspberry jam. I had pans and parchment paper and bowls and cups and spoons all over the place. I stopped taking pictures early on because there really isnt too much to see until the cakes are assembled. I also did a poached salmon with a sour cream sauce. Are you interested in seeing the menu for each wedding? I might add that it was about 90 degrees in the kitchen. Tomorrow I'm bringing my bathing suit and going to the beach after work. Hobart Mixer w/ butter and sugar pans more pans Rose Levy Bernebaums sour cream cake( for a client who was picking up) salmon

I just got home after another long, long day. I'm going to heat up some dinner( leftovers) and upload some pics. See ya later.

Completely reasonable, given the horrific schedule you're keeping whilst blogging !! BTW, my dear departed PoodleDiva Ella was an inveterate trash scrounger. I couldn't keep anything in the kitchen garbage can unless I was there to stand guard. If it was in the kitchen trash, it was Ella's. I had cleaned out the fridge one day, and thrown away about 1/2 of a very garlicky meatloaf, then had a senior moment and forgot to take the trash out before I went out for the evening. Needless to say, Ella had found the meatloaf, and the house reeked of garlic. But SHE was smart enough not to eat the whole thing. Instead, she took the bulk of it and stashed it in the couch in the den (under throw pillows, no less) for future munching ! She was most perturbed when she came trucking down the hall for a little nosh a couple of hours after I got home, and found that the purloined, carefully stashed meatloaf was not quite where she left it. LOL, poor baby looked for that thing for about a week........ ← That is a funny story. Poor Ella. I hope she didnt get sick like Oliver. Btw, I just notice you live in Long Beach. Thats where I lived before I moved to Canada. I'm so jealous!!

Oh yesssssssssssssss !!! DITTO what she said ^^^. I was thinking that same thing myself when I read this thread at work, but couldn't post it. Please, please pretty please? It really does sound yummy. ← I will, I promise, but not until Monday. Things are going to be crazy for the next few days.

I worked for the caterer from 4pm-8pm. I thought I was only going to work 2 hrs. Robin made me dinner . Her version of chicken Kiev. She could have made me toast and I would have been happy. We had some leftover salad( from this afternoon). We're prepping for 2 big weddings this weekend and my boss told me today that 6 people she expected to work with her at one of the weddings are not working. This means my boss is very stressed out. This also means that work won't be fun for the next few days. I hope I survive. I'm heading to bed.

Because it was a smaller group, I walked around the tables while they were eating and I could tell they liked it. There was very little food that came back into the kitchen( we use the leftover food to package up as takeouts). They were very excited about the asparagus. I heard a few people comment on that. All the volunteers ate as well and wanted to take home leftovers. The food I cook is very different from the other cook. Even the pre-teen boys said " We've never had food like this before"

I cooked for the Seniors today. I normally cook for 50ppl , today was just 25 because I filled in at another program. I think I'm getting used to cooking for 50 now as I made way too much salad. So, onto the menu..... Chicken, mushroom, onion pie mixed green salad corn muffins fresh asparagus( roasted) Not Yo Mama's Banana Pudding for dessert. The pie is made by cooking onions, green peppers and ground chicken( or ground beef). The adding paprika,2 tbls of flour, salt and pepper. This is mixed with sourcream and eggs and fresh parsely. The mixture is placed into an unbaked pastry shell and baked. Omg, they loved it!! I made 6 pies and cut them into 6 pieces. I sold all the extra pie as take-out dinners. The salad has romaine, radicchio, red leaf, iceberg, shredded carrots, green pepper, radish and grape tomatoes. I forgot the cucumbers at home. I served a bottled dressing( french) because I just had too much to do. I normally make homeade dressing. The corn muffins are just a PC organic mix. I was surprised at how good they were. They didnt taste like a mix at all. I roasted the asparagus with Evoo, salt and pepper. They never get fresh veg so they were very excited. The dessert was a Paula Deen recipe. Instant vanilla pudding is mixed with Milk. 1 bar of cream cheese is whipped with a can of sweetened condensed milk. Combine this with the pudding mixture and then add 2 cups of whipped cream or coolwhip( I used whipped cream). On the bottom of a pan place Peppridge Farm Cheesman cookies( not availble in Canada, I used a PC all Butter shortbread cookie) lthen a layer of sliced bananas, Then more crumbled cookies. Chill for a few hours. Oh, I had 3 " helpers" today. Not having kids myself, my patience was a wee bit tried today. Three 12yr old boys came over from the public school to help cook and serve. Then they eat with the Seniors and help clean up. I was trying to supervise all three of them at the same time. They all wanted to cook. I had one of them helping with the banana pudding, one of them using the salad spinner and one of them dishing out the honey butter. I had left a toothpick( for testing the corn muffins) on the counter. Guess where it ended up? In someone's banana pudding. I think it might have stuck to the bottom of the bowl with the whipped cream or cream cheese mixture and when the boys dumped it into the larger mixing bowl it fell in. I also found bits of lettuce in the pudding too. Thankfully, the lady didnt swallow it. Oy Vey!! Ok, on to the pictures. Any questions, please ask. I'm rushing thru writing this as I have to be at the caterer for 4pm so I can make multiple batches of lemon curd and custards for the wedding cakes. kitchen salad filling baked pie dessert muffins asparagus cut up pie This post is crossposted in my foodblog!!

Hi all, So sorry I havent posted until now. I was out of the house this morning at 7:30am and I just got home. I cooked for the Seniors today. As I said earlier, I was filling in at another program. I normally cook for 50ppl , today was just 25. I think I'm getting used to cooking for 50 now as I made way too much salad. So, onto the menu..... Chicken, mushroom, onion pie mixed green salad corn muffins fresh asparagus( roasted) Not Yo Mama's Banana Pudding for dessert. The pie is made by cooking onions, green peppers and ground chicken( or ground beef). The adding paprika,2 tbls of flour, salt and pepper. This is mixed with sourcream and eggs and fresh parsely. The mixture is placed into an unbaked pastry shell and baked. Omg, they loved it!! I made 6 pies and cut them into 6 pieces. I sold all the extra pie as take-out dinners. The salad has romaine, radicchio, red leaf, iceberg, shredded carrots, green pepper, radish and grape tomatoes. I forgot the cucumbers at home. I served a bottled dressing( french) because I just had too much to do. I normally make homeade dressing. The corn muffins are just a PC organic mix. I was surprised at how good they were. They didnt taste like a mix at all. I roasted the asparagus with Evoo, salt and pepper. They never get fresh veg so they were very excited. The dessert was a Paula Deen recipe. Instant vanilla pudding is mixed with Milk. 1 bar of cream cheese is whipped with a can of sweetened condensed milk. Combine this with the pudding mixture and then add 2 cups of whipped cream or coolwhip( I used whipped cream). On the bottom of a pan place Peppridge Farm Cheesman cookies( not availble in Canada, I used a PC all Butter shortbread cookie) lthen a layer of sliced bananas, Then more crumbled cookies. Chill for a few hours. Oh, I had 3 " helpers" today. Not having kids myself, my patience was a wee bit tried today. Three 12yr old boys came over from the public school to help cook and serve. Then they eat with the Seniors and help clean up. I was trying to supervise all three of them at the same time. They all wanted to cook. I had one of them helping with the banana pudding, one of them using the salad spinner and one of them dishing out the honey butter. I had left a toothpick( for testing the corn muffins) on the counter. Guess where it ended up? In someone's banana pudding. I think it might have stuck to the bottom of the bowl with the whipped cream or cream cheese mixture and when the boys dumped it into the larger mixing bowl it fell in. I also found bits of lettuce in the pudding too. Thankfully, the lady didnt swallow it. Oy Vey!! Ok, on to the pictures. Any questions, please ask. I'm rushing thru writing this as I have to be at the caterer for 4pm so I can make multiple batches of lemon curd and custards for the wedding cakes. kitchen salad filling baked pie dessert muffins asparagus cut up pie

I love Boar's Head. I love is to much that I pack a cooler with me when I go to visit friends in Ann Arbor and I bring it back with me. I prefer turkey. Oven roasted, thin sliced. When I eat at Subway, I make them put the mayo and mustard down first, then the meat, then the cheese. I dont like lettuce/veggies touching my condiments.

Pork ribs are from Pigs!!! Sorry, I couldnt resist

I picked up some more fruit:

Yes, that is the right one. 6 points or not, they're worth it. They're very good and not too sweet. Maybe you can try reducing the oil, or subbing some applesauce to reduce the points even further.

Bacon Cheddar Muffins; In my own words of course, 1lb bacon, chopped up and cooked. Reserve 2tbls fat. 1 cup chopped green onion( I used 1 entire bunch) 1 tsp salt 1 tsp pepper 1.5 tsp caraway seeds( optional) 3 cups AP flour 2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 1.5 cups milk 2 tbls sugar( I totally forgot this and thus I didnt realize there was sugar in this recipe) 2 eggs 3 tbls dijon mustard( whoops, forgot this too) 3 tbls melted shortening 2 cups shredded sharp( or Old for the Canadians) cheese Saute onions, salt, pepper and caraway seeds in reserved drippings. Combine flour, powder, soda and sugar. Stir well. Combine eggs, milk, mustard, shortening and green onions. Mix into flour mixture. Add cheese and bacon. Bake in greased muffin tins for 20 min at 375F.

Dinner tonight: I went to a Vietnamese place in London and picked up this food. I'm sure none of these are "Vietnamese". From the top, Pad Thai, Singapore Noodles, Curry Shrimp w/ Broccoli and Lemongrass chicken. Total came to 34.56(30.00 +4.56 tax. I know what Robin is taking for lunch tomorrow I'm cooking for the Seniors. Their meal is served at noon. On Sunday, I asked my catering boss if working Thursday, Friday and Saturday is enough time to do what we need to do for the two weddings on Saturday. I suggested I come in on Wednesday afternoon. Why did I open my big mouth? So, tomorrow afternoon I'll be making Lemon curd and multiple batches of custard for the wedding cakes.

I didnt have one, but Robin said they were really good( especially with some butter).

Hi Randi, Thanks for taking us along with you this week. These child safety latches are inexpensive (a couple of bucks) and easy to install and will keep pooches and small children out of your cabinets! See an example here. Did you meet with the kitchen designer yet? We have pull-out trash bins now, and we are very happy with them. I don't think a dog could get into them unless he tore down the entire cabinet. Along with the earlier comments regarding countertop choices, I would also recommend granite. It is easy to keep clean. Just make sure that you order the polished, and not honed, finish. From what I understand, the honed finish is porous and susceptible to staining. I would love to hear more about your new kitchen ideas and plans. Are you replacing the appliances, as well? ← What a great idea. I dont know why I didnt think of that. I think I'm going to pick some up in London. We met with the designer last week. We're waiting to hear from them when they have the plans finished. We are looking at new appliances. Our fridge is a Sears Kenmore and is only about 3 yrs old. I'd like to replace the fridge so everything matches. We dont have a dishwasher( unless you count Robin) and the stove is an old ancient horrible electric model. I want a gas stove, or maybe convection. I still have to research appliances. We don't even have a range hood now. The kitchen is old and needs a lot of work. I'd take some pics of the current kitchen, but frankly I'm embarrased by how ugly it is.

So I totally spoke too soon about me getting between 8-9hrs of sleep a night. Yesterday, when I came home from working with Marley, I open the front door and Oliver is slinking is way out of the kitchen. I go in there to investigate and sure enough he has gotten into the trash again. He actually had just started because of course there were a few rib bones on the floor. He hid for a few hours and then came out to see me. Flash forward to last night. I probably got 3 hours of sleep if that. He was up numerous times through the night wanting to go outside. He was eating grass so I knew he had a stomach ache.( and he threw up in our bed so we had to change the sheets at 3am) It was not a good night for my poor baby boy. I was up at 6:30am to make fruit salad and deliver this food. When I came home a bit ago, I had a Morning Glory muffin. I took a bit before I remembered to take a picture. I have a dr. appt this afternoon in London. I think I'm going to try to take a short nap. I'm bringing home Vietnamese food for dinner. There is NO way I'm cooking tonight.

Hi, How did you figure out the points for the Morning Glory Muffins? Did you find the exact recipe? The bacon cheddar muffins came from a Southern Living cookbook( a compilation). No sugar in the muffins. They do have caraway seeds and green onions, and 3 tbls of melted shortening. I was going to use butter, but for the first time, I thought I better stick to the exact recipe.

Last thing tonight. Here are the bacon, cheddar muffins. I also made the honey vanilla yogurt. The Manuka honey was very thick. I'm off to bed, another long day tomorrow..... See ya later.

Dinner Tonight: We had leftovers and I made a salad. This is my take on the Mexican Ceasar salad from El Torito's( a chain in Cali). The dressing is one of those copycat recipes, Cilantro-Pepita. I buy Anaheim chili's in MI, I roast them, skin them and freeze them. This way I have them when I need them. I went up to the store. At 7pm, our grocery store marks down their cut fruit and salads. I bought this fruit to use in the fruit salad I'm making for tomorrow. I have a whole pineapple, grapes, and some berries to add tomorrow morning. I made the granola earlier. I love it because it only used 2tbls of oil. I used a hazelnut oil I had. I added cherry flavored dried cranberries instead of the raisins. We had the cake tonight. It was way, way too sweet. I litterally had 2 bites, anymore and I'd be in a diabetic coma. If I ever made it again, I'd drastically reduce the sugar. The cake was ok, nothing to rave about. I topped it with reddi-whip( I was too tired to whip up cream).

I worked with Marley today. Her parents are very plain eaters. They don't like anything ethnic or "different". I've tried to give them some new things to try, but I end up using mostlyrecipes from Everday Food or Cooking Light. This recipe came from Southern Living. You make a base with ground beef that you then use for 3 different meals. Sloppy Joes, Meatsauce and a beef noodle thing. Marley's mom was going to freeze the extra 2/3 of the base. We also made Ina Garten's BBQ Sauce. Marley is going to package it up and give it to her friends where they keep their boat. Marley loves cooking. She gets almost giddy when she stirs something. bbq sauce meat sauce. The base mixed with 1 can of tomato sauce,1 can of chopped tomatoes and some herbs. I think I've done too much today. I have a splitting headache. I still need to make 1 more batch of muffins, a batch of granola, cut up fruit, load my car for tomorrow, make dinner( just leftovers), frost that coconut cake and list some stuff on ebay......

Here are the choc. choc chip muffins. I don't have the book(yet). I saw these muffins on a foodblog. I couldnt resist trying one. They were very good, not to sweet and a nice hit of chocolate. I used 2 oz of Perugina and 4oz of Trader Joe's pound plus belgium chocolate( i chopped up a bit more than was called for)