tasskaff 3| bowlful of berries

breakfast, anyone?

'08 AP-week four

My commitment to this project grows, as my ass is hopefully shrinking.
I think I may have seen some results this week, no wait let me rephrase that I did see some results.

The other day as I got dressed , I put on my favorite turquoise colored t-shirt and my most comfy pair of denim shorts. It wasn't until I walked by the mirror, that I caught a glimpse of my shrinking belly roll . My body was more gravity defying. No, wait that's too strong a word, it was less jiggly. there was less jiggling going on.When I flexed my arm, I had a firmer muscle under there, a bicep and triceps, for cripes sake.

My brain has an Oprah moment, right then and realized simply that, exercise is good for my body!!! That exercise, that's right I'm using the E word again,helps build muscle tone.
I am shocked and pleased at how frickin' simple this whole concept is, and why I let it allude me. I'm actually using moderation when eating. Moderation, not dieting. I eat two oreos instead of 6. I'm eating more fruit and veg. I'm still having my ice cream. And stop the presses!! I'm drinking more water, even.

I look forward to my visits to Mr. Bowflex,I no longer mock them,I'm getting more flexible, and strong doing a a few sets of yoga. Who knew endorphins could feel so good.So so so good.

I'm four weeks in, and I feel great. Yay! me.

dinner and a movie

This is a list of some of my favorite movies, and some of the reasons.

"Eat Drink Man Woman" such a wonderful movie, the visuals are superb. It's definitely a dinner and movie recommendation.Meaning you can't watch this movie, and not want to eat at the same time. The cooking scenes are sublime, as is the story.A senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.

"The Scent of Green Papaya" this movie, is rich in visuals, and not a lot of dialog, compared to how gorgeous it is to watch. Little things mean a lot in the world of 10-year-old Mui, a girl who's trained to be a house servant in 1950s Vietnam.

"Big Night" This movie, even my husband and my son enjoys. It has a great soundtrack,if you haven't heard of Louis Prima, you need to. The mouth watering scenes of the workings of the restaurant, it's sublime.This is another movie, to get take out and eat and watch.

"Babette's feast" this movie,is another thought provoking movie, and the cooking scenes are equally wonderful.This movie definitely gives you food for thought.

"Chocolat" this movie is wonderful, from beginning until end, the chocolate making is wonderful, and Johnny Depp is in it, need I say more.

"The Wedding Banquet" this movie, is fun and sweet and slice of life, it's about a gay landlord and a female tenant agree to a marriage of convenience,to satisfy his nagging parents, but his parents arrive to visit and things get out of hand.

All of these movies are at Netflix, so get busy and add them to your queue, I think you will enjoy them.

French toast

I'm hoping working this 3 night stretch at work won't effect my ability to write about the lovely but mundane details about my life.
Saturday night dinner is usually a pretty relaxed affair, during the summer, we go to Janine's or Howard's , local drive in eateries, that have good fried food for cheap, and you can eat in your car and people watch.

Once the temperatures start to fall, those seasonal drive- ins close, and well you want to be in the warmth of your own house.So we do, and we still keep dinner pretty relaxed, a way to do that is to have breakfast for supper, and having french toast for supper, well if i had been thinking fully about my favorite things this would have been on the list.

This recipe is by no means precise measurement, it'll feed 3 people , 3 pieces each. It's simple and good, and well is there anything better than that?

Tracy's French Toast
6 eggs
milk (approx 1/3 cup, maybe more ,maybe less)
zest of one orange, be it a clementine, naval, or mandarin, they're all good in the zest department.
juice of 1/2 an orange
1/4 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 tsp of nutmeg

1 loaf of day old bread,sliced thick but not too thick.I have use also new fresh bread in a pinch.

mix the milk and eggs together, then add the zest, and juice to the mixture, lastly add the cinnamon and nutmeg, mix real well.

I use a pan to soak my bread in, place the slices down then pour the mixture over it, don't forget to flip the slices, so it can really soak in all that yummy goodness, then fry in what ever manner, you fry things. We are a butter family, we believe in it's creamy goodness, and it's ability to brown and flavor things.

The final step cook with your family, My husband does the cooking on this one, I'm just the one that gets the French toast ready, for him to cook, and I'm also the butter girl, you know you have to always add a little more when you flip the slice.Does it taste better because he cooks it? Most definitely.

This recipe can adjust up and down, depending on the people, and if we're cooking a brunchy thing, to keep the slices hot, we keep them in a single layer on a sheet pan, in a 300 degree oven, they stay crisp, and hot, nothing is worse than cold French toast.

and lastly Enjoy!