Angie Windheim

First, I must say that this book is NOT for everyone. Definitely, not men.  However, if you are, or have ever been, a suburban mom, you will find an eery connection to Searching for My Natural Hair Color, by Diane Beil. This book is a very quick and easy read.  The overall plot is not even terribly interesting. But, as the comic strip Dilbert speaks to the working stiffs, Hair Color chats to the Bunco-playing, neighborhood-dwelling ladies. Beil totally gets it. As I read, I nodded and laughed and related to the accurate descriptions of what could’ve easily been my Bunco group. The gossip, the cliques, the different personality dynamics, the bonding over life shakers (often with alcohol in hand)  like divorce, affairs, kids, health issues, going back to work, etc. It’s all there. Some of it is just laugh-out-loud funny. I almost feel a little betrayed though…like someone has let the world know about our secret goings-on, what Bunco is really all about! But seriously, it’s a book you just have to pass around to your friends.

Fun exercise? What? The kids received a Wii Fit from their great grandparents this Christmas, and I’m the one clocking the most time on it. It is a blast. I do a little yoga and strength training to warm up. Then I get some cardio going for at least 30 minutes a day. I’m working hard, but it really is fun. This discovery came just in time, because I had recently and tragically fallen out of love with my treadmill.  That is a bad, bad thing during an Oregon winter. Outside exercise, my preference, isn’t always possible or enjoyable this time of year. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

The Wii Fit balance board is a fascinating bit of technology, but what’s great is how well thought out it is. It’s motivational. I like that it checks up on me and nags me if I’ve skipped a day 🙂  And, I love the way it charts my progress. Right now, I’m in the “overweight” BMI category and am setting goals to get to a healthy BMI. I think between this, getting outside when possible, and Weight Watchers online, I will absolutely get to my goal by this Spring.  

Lastly, it’s a good workout, but it’s just plain fun as well. I get the belly laughs watching friends get clocked by virtual shoes and panda heads during the soccer heading game. And I almost wet my pants watching my girlfriend’s husband do the hula hoop. He could really rotate those hips!

The neighbor’s ewe had twin lambs just before Christmas and I was lucky enough to be the first human to see them – I could even see the umbilical cord.  So very nice of the mommy to pose, don’t you think?  The lambs (one white, one black) have already doubled in size and seem to be doing great.

I am always on the hunt for new appetizers. Seems like you’re always being asked to add an appetizer to the table for football games, Bunco, etc.  I’ve recently grown bored with some of my standard crowd pleasers, so obviously I needed to change it up for New Year’s Eve.  I tried this dip out of my What Can I Bring? Cookbook, by Anne Byrn.  Oh, this is now on my short list of food fantasies. I can practically taste it as I’m writing.  We had a major pile of food to get us through to midnight, but this is what had the flavor to keep bringing me back to the kitchen. No matter how very full I was, I came back for just one more cracker full of the onion spread.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Serves 10 to 12

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons butter or olive oil

4 cups sliced yellow or red onions (3 medium-size. I used 2 yellow and 1 red for color)

(1) 8-ounce package cream cheese at room temperature

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste

1/4 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

Bagel chips, sturdy crackers, or pita crisps, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

Place butter or olive oil in large frying pan over low heat. Add onions and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon from time to time, until they caramelize and turn a golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove pan from heat and let onions cool for about 10 minutes.

Place cream cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, cayenne pepper and salt in food processor fitted with steel blade. Pulse until smooth, 5 to 7 times. Scrape onions into processor, and using short pulses, combine with cream cheese mixture until onions are evenly distributed but still in small bits, 5 to 10 seconds.

Taste for seasoning, adding more if needed.

Spoon spread into serving bowl and serve with bagel chips, sturdy crackers or pita crisps.

You can refrigerate if not using right away, but allow to come to room temperature before serving.

Books are like food. Some kinds fill you up and stick with you for a while. Others are empty calories that leave you feeling like you didn’t really read anything at all. American Gods, by Neil Gaiman, is all slow-burning protein.  This book had me thinking the whole time. I had read Stardust. also by Gaiman. It’s light and fun — an adult, bedtime story.  American Gods is riveting. The ideas, depth and detail are amazing.  The story follows Shadow, a recently released convict who goes home to find his wife is not-quite dead or alive, and his best job offer is as a sidekick for an old world god named Wednesday. Shadow is thrown in the middle of a war between those old world gods and the new world gods (like Media and Digital) that we “worship today.” Did I mention that these gods walk amongst people like you and me? A major bonus is the way Gaiman throws in a lot of fascinating old world myths/fables/folklore to chew on. It’s entertaining and thought provoking and definitely not a book for “carb” lovers.

This falls into the category of: “I can’t believe I didn’t already know about this.” The dilemma: you  want to spread “real” butter on your bread. Unfortunately, cold butter from the fridge is too hard and a stick of butter sitting for days on the counter just seems gross. So, I gave  up and we use Natural Balance Light. Well, my friend Riley insists that butter is the way.  And it turns out his daughter (a college freshman) had the answer and only recently shared this little gold nugget of wisdom. Are you ready? A butter pot. A what? Yep, a butter pot.

Evidently they’re everywhere. Though I was completely clueless, masses of people have bought them at Amazon.com and there were oodles to choose from. Lindsey, Riley’s wife, got hers at Sur La Table.  Most are stoneware. You simply squish a softened stick of butter in the lid, add a little water to the bowl that magically seals the pot, and, voila, the butter stays fresh. Change the water every 3 days or so and your set. Pretty cool. Now I need to decide if the Natural Balance is really better for my health or if I should go shopping 🙂

In my house, we like it spicy! Ben (age 11) is now trying to keep up with his dad on the “how many jalapenos can you eat in a row without crying?”  The kid has no respect for his tongue…even after a disastrous encounter with a red chile pepper at PF Changs. He was very upset because he couldn’t taste the rest of his meal. I warned him, but, whatever!  Anyways, I found a recipe on WeightWatchers.com, and with a few modifications, made a great meal. I just love it when you try something new and then know that you’ll make it again ’cause it was so yummy. Brian said it was very similar to some Vietnamese “Pho” that he’s tried.   Oh, and the leftovers were fantastic heated up the next day.  Hope you enjoy it…

6 oz vermicelli

2 tsp peanut oil

4 medium green onions (green and white parts, divided and chopped)

1 medium jalapeno, minced (I used jarred jalapenos with the seeds)

1 Tbsp powdered ginger (could use minced ginger root)

12 oz sirloin, trimmed of fat and diced

6 cups, fat-free, sodium-free chicken broth (can use fat-free beef broth if preferred)

2 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped

1 tsp hot pepper sauce

1/2 cup frozen peas, baby size

Salt to taste

Cut or break noodles into 3-inch pieces, set aside.

Heat oil in a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add white portion of onions, jalapeno and ginger and saute 1 minute. Add beef and saute until browned al over, 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add broth and soy sauce and bring mixture to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover and simmer 10 minutes.

Add noodles and peas and simmer until noodles are just tender, 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add green portion of green onions, cilantro and pepper sauce. Serve hot.

Serving tip: I used a slotted pasta spoon to get the noodles and meat into bowls and then a soup spoon to add broth on top. Much easier than trying to catch those noodles with a regular spoon 🙂

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