That Skinny Little Bitch

Lear's Supper

2011-12-08T11:47:00.001-05:00

there once was a girl from northwest whose sprouts remained still quite undressed her hearth set aflame as pork lay its claim to brussels fantastically finessed The Deal: Calories: 274, Fat: 12g, Protein: 19g, Carb: 27g

5 Days of Turkey

2011-09-22T14:29:00.005-04:00

What? Exactly. I don't even like turkey. I always pass it up in favour of the ham at Christmas. Which is why there is an extremely large turkey still frozen in my refrigerator as of this very moment. Every year, I volunteer at People's Congregation Church in upper northwest D.C. handing out food baskets at Thanksgiving and Christmas. My former bosslady (and awesome friend) Carol invited

Sunday's Post

2011-06-16T21:55:00.013-04:00

Tonight, my Dad and I shared a bowl of yaka mee (yaka mein for all you sticklers). Growing up, yaka mee was my chicken soup. I didn't have it very often, despite how easy it was to make, but when I did it reminded me from where I came. It brought me back home. Some things can bring it back immediately. Some things bring me right back to the house where I was raised in northwest D.C. Small

Random Tip #2

2011-05-22T12:25:00.005-04:00

Never pour steaming liquids into a blender, attach the lid and attempt to blend. Simple laws of physics. Ponder that while I towel the cabinets clean of asparagus soup.

A Week Without Waste: Day Five

2011-05-22T10:58:00.001-04:00

Shut up. We've done it. Not a single thing in the fridge fermenting, turning unnatural colours, or growing legs and walking out altogether. I'm so jazzed I can hardly stand it. Here's what's left: mustard greens romaine leaves acorn squash turnips red potatoes yukon gold potatoes pink lady apples spring onions eggs ground buffalo bacon milk yogurt not much one can do with 2 ingredients but

A Week Without Waste: Day Four

2011-04-10T11:41:00.008-04:00

Hmmm. The choices are not so fantastic now, eh? I suppose this is the challenge? If I've said it before, you're going to hear it again. I could brunch every day of the week. There is nothing better than a leisurely meal smack in the middle of the day. Especially when it involves mimosas. Brunch during the day is fantabulous, but when it's carried out until the dusk, it takes on an

A Week Without Waste: Day Three

2010-07-07T20:39:00.002-04:00

So, where were we? The turnip salad was fantastic (big up Bren), I hope you thought so too, so let's have a look at our list now: mustard greens romaine leaves acorn squash turnips red potatoes yukon gold potatoes pink lady apples spring onions eggs ground buffalo bacon milk yogurt So, as you know (I think), I'm delightfully employed at the Smithsonian Institution. Established for the

A Week Without Waste: Day Two

2010-06-09T09:37:00.003-04:00

Alright, so I successfully used up a few of the ingredients on my list and I am down to the following: mustard greens romaine leaves acorn squash turnips red potatoes yukon gold potatoes pink lady apples spring onions eggs ground buffalo bacon milk yogurt I'm thinking I'll go ahead and rock out the turnips and a few of the red potatoes for a lovely potato salad. When I was a kid, I hated

A Week Without Waste: Day One

2010-03-17T12:00:00.009-04:00

Who feels me? You go to the grocery store and buy a huge lot of groceries with all good intentions. Cilantro for those black beans you intend on making, swiss chard and sprouts for that healthy green drink that will start off your week, beef, chicken, and pork because, well... you're not sure what you'll want two days from now. A week later, you're hauling half of it to the garbage bin. Herbs are

The Grand Balloon

2010-03-11T11:10:00.012-05:00

OK, so last night I had a "boys night" and went to a whiskey tasting in downtown DC. Just me, a room full of men and Johnnie Walker. Sounds like a good time, right? By the end of the night I was almost in stitches, I was laughing so hard. When I was about 7 years old, I made my parents take me to this seminar way out in Virginia because they said they were giving away Grand Pianos. I played the

The Southern Staple

2010-02-12T11:46:00.015-05:00

So, I am a grandorphan. Like many others my age, I do not have any living grandparents. My paternal grandfather died before I was born (I hear he was a prankster), my maternal grandmother died when I was 15, my maternal grandfather at 26 and my paternal grandmother when I was 30. Unfortunately for me, this was around the same time I caught the gastro bug. I was just starting to love the art of

Random Tip #1

2010-02-12T09:47:00.003-05:00

Never, ever use a store bought beef broth to make a bourguignon. Ever. Your kitchen will smell like a cheap cafeteria. You know the ones with the marbled plastic trays that you slide along the metal racked counter as you pass up boxed mashed potatoes, stringy brisket and jello fruit salad? Yeah.

The $5 Egg

2010-02-10T11:56:00.013-05:00

You think I'm kidding, don't you?I yap all the time to my friends (usually unsolicited) about the horrors of the meat selection at any average supermarket and advise them (again, usually unrequested, but what can I say, they humor me) on searching for milk from farms that don't use that freaky bovine hormone in their cows or jack them up with antibiotics. I scream about finding chickens that are

The Farce

2010-01-22T14:34:00.011-05:00

OK, it's official. I'm a fraud. I realized when my dad answered the phone after reading one of my blog posts and said, "hey, skinny bitch". Fresh off my annual doctor's appointment, I realized I was a liar. Maybe it was my fault for scheduling this appointment right after the holidays, but apparently I'm not so skinny anymore. Apparently, I need to go back to the beginning of this journey

Legendary Lunches

2010-01-08T10:19:00.020-05:00

Meet my new best friend. I am thrilled to even type the words. Let me start you off with a story. When I was younger, New Orleans gumbo was a big deal in my house. I grew up in Washington, D.C. and was the only one in my family that wasn't reared in the deep South. With the exception of those Detroit and Chicago cousins, but whatever. So I grew up on Maryland crabcakes and a continental way

Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights

2009-12-27T20:44:00.013-05:00

I happily accept all stones being tossed my way at this moment. I know. I should be ashamed of myself for 1. watching this movie, 2. finishing this movie, 3. liking this movie. But you see, I was doomed from the beginning. Anything to do with the dirty streets and humid thickness of Havana, Cuba, I will love. Hands down. Not to mention that the lead dude in that movie is hot HOT. So when I

The Feast of the Jackass

2009-12-07T11:17:00.014-05:00

"Just think, if the Indians gave the Pilgrims a donkey instead of a turkey, we'd all be getting a piece of ass for Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving!"I shit you not, I got this text twice this year on Turkey Day. I laughed once. Thanksgiving is meant to be a holiday of giving and appreciation. In my house, it's both of those things, plus a big up to Indian Country. For as long as I can remember,

Where is a slice just a slice?

2009-11-09T19:43:00.012-05:00

So, I think that one of the things I miss most about New York City is the water. Seriously. Firstof all, it's one of the cleanest in the country. It was never too harsh for my face and I had no qualms about drinking it straight from the tap if I woke up parched in the middle of the night. Also, as I think all are aware, it is THE reason why NYC has the best bagels and pizza dough. Not sure what

The Linen Lunch

2009-10-13T10:37:00.020-04:00

I enjoy a nice lunch. It's my thing. I am so very over shoving a fast salad into my mouth, at my desk, while simultaneously answering e-mails. At my former job, I would be mid-bite when Melissa would scream from down the hall in thick Brooklynese, "LSD!! Get in here!" I'd grab a napkin, make sure there was no romaine in my teeth and scramble to the fit room to see what she was screaming about. "

The Salad Standby

2009-10-12T17:28:00.011-04:00

OK, so let me tell you about my personal trainer. His name is AC and he rocks my fitness right now. I work out at a gym called Balance here in D.C. It's not your average Life Circuit rotation gym, it's hardcore. A bunch of rugby players own the place and there is nothing cute about it except for, well, the rugby players. At my first session, he had me push a sand bag across the basketball court,

The Fall of Modern Convenience

2009-10-09T09:08:00.020-04:00

I'm embarrassed for America. There. I said it.Let me give you some background...I do believe my 34th was the best birthday I have ever had. I just got back from an amazing experience in Africa. I visited a very dear friend of 28 years who teaches in Moshi, Tanzania. We did all the things old friends do when they haven't seen one another in a while... We laughed over white wine, reminisced about

Pretty Little Moose Killer?

2009-08-10T09:40:00.021-04:00

Ok, so you've got to be thinking, "I dare this chica to link gastronomy and the 2008 election for President of the United States". But there is common ground, I assure you. I, like the majority of us, feel privileged to have seen Barack Obama elected President (regardless of political party) and I have just come out of the electoral haze that has enveloped me since late last August. I was

The "Easy" Way

2009-07-30T10:27:00.019-04:00

I am an extravagant girl. I will admit that for sure. My dad used to tease me and tell me that I'd better find a really wealthy man to put up with my shenanigans. You could put three items in front of me (without pricetags), ask me which one I liked the best and undoubtedly, everytime, I would choose the most expensive. Though I have exorbitant taste, I also have a hard time letting go of money.

I'm a Rainbow Too!

2009-07-20T09:28:00.028-04:00

Every year, I end up on a beach on various parts of the island of St. Martin/Sint Maarten. Every year, I end up on my back with the hot sun burning my skin, grooving on a slight buzz, fantasizing a simple, barefoot, sundrenched existence with a bit of sand at the nape of my neck, a guitar and a Heineken. Every year, I question why I live in a big city (at least when I lived in Manhattan) when I

Soul Food

2009-07-14T12:11:00.011-04:00

After an emotionally and physically heavy holiday, my body and soul needed a good cleansing. My dear and highly enlightened friend Alexis mentioned that she was detoxing with a cleanse that wasn’t your typical lemonade and cayenne fast. It was a simple combination of liquids that gave you lifeforce energies in the well touted green drink and simple vegetable broth. Special teas and hot water with