Time to Board The Train America!

Papa and Mimi!

Mark’s View from the Bleachers on Tonight’s SOTU Address!

No matter what your party affiliation is or your part time participation in the process is or your over the top convictions based on God knows what…The President has a plan and we better get on the train!

We the people are in charge of this recovery! Make no mistake my fellow Citizens of America…at the end of the day, Americans buying cars, houses and shopping at Target every weekend is what will fix this economy! No matter your party affiliation, get with the program and help this nation recover or go back in your cave until the next election!

The people have spoken; the President is in the White House for four more years!

We can set a good example for our House of Representatives and Senate by working together and making it happen!

Go ahead naysayers, respond with your next load of crap and bring it on! If you don’t have a solution in your post, don’t bother to hit Comment! Word Press has a cool tool where I can choose to reject the comment! I will if you pose no real solution! I do not wish to hear about how a democrat is responsible for our lot in today’s world. We need to take responsibility for whom we put in office and how we plan to follow up with how they perform!

We vote on the House and the Senate in two years. “Make It Happen” in your own community if you are so unhappy and need someone to blame!

Start with some original ideas or thoughts…

I will start!

1. Buy American every time you go shopping, even better, buy local, and help your neighbor’s small business succeed!

2. Recycle like your life depends on it! Our Black (Garbage) Tub goes to the curb half full every Thursday; the Blue (Recycle) Tub is overflowing every week!

3. My daughter started a compose project this year. It is simple, two containers in the kitchen to collect coffee grounds, egg shells, veggies, you name it we can recycle it! My SIL in-training bought a compose turnstile and the compose goes from the kitchen to the drum!

4. Conserve, Conserve, Conserve! Gas, oil, water, time in the shower, temperature at home while you are at work, temperature at work when you are not, lights on at home and work, you get the picture!

5. Do not speak up or out unless you know what the hell you are talking about! Educate yourself AND your children on the issues. I was appalled at what a family member was saying to me during the election and I knew where it came from and I did nothing…NO MORE! Pick up a newspaper and READ IT! Liking and Sharing a crazy nonsensical, hysterical political post from someone you would never have over for Sunday dinner is not expressing your right to free speech! Be responsible for what you say, preach and teach! Share these convictions and how you came about them with your children! At least that should make you think twice before you lay another load on the rest of us!

6. Did you all know the response tonight from the other party to the SOTU Speech will have smaller TV ratings than “Leave it to Beaver” reruns on Nick?

7. AND now the Tea Party has demanded TV time as well, to bash BOTH parties; No solutions mind you, just bashing for the sake of bashing! I think the motto of the Tea Party is scaring the daylights out of my folks and seniors and anybody else not capable of their own thinking and reasoning! My Tea Party Friends scare the hell out of me with their politics or lack of a viable plan other than the doom and gloom of the current administration!

8. Start a grass roots town meeting if you really want change! Invite ALL of your representatives to attend! Volunteer in your congressman’s local office! Work a phone bank for your Senator. Learn, really learn and understand the issues and how a common man or woman can get involved to make a change and make a difference!

9. Invite your family and friends to participate with you. Educate yourselves, concentrate on a few things and be better than anyone else. Select a platform based on your ability to move the sticks!

10. RELAX and be ready to do it all over again in 2 years!

 

Good luck my friends!

I’m Out!

 

Sister For Rent……….

Sister For Rent………..

Another Quick and Easy Summertime Outdoor Meal; Lorie’s Chicken Shish Kebabs!

Papa and Mimi!

Does anyone know the history or translation of Shish Kebab? I thought I had better educate myself before I wrote this blog. My thanks to about.com and Peggy Trowbridge Filippone for the insight and article. The term shish kebab comes from Turkish words literally meaning “skewer” and “roast meat,” and it is a signature Turkish meal. Kebabs were a natural solution for nomadic tribes. Unusual meats were marinated not only to tenderize, but also to get rid of some of the gamey flavor. Today, shish kebabs have expanded into most cultures in some form or another. Oriental cultures have satay, which is roasted, skewered meats served with a dipping sauce usually made with peanuts. Japan has yakitori, which is grilled skewered fowl. In France, they are called brochettes, meaning “skewer.” You will often find this dish commonly misspelled as shish kabobs or shish kababs.

Let’s get grilling!

The Gang in Las Vegas!

After spending the past two weeks with the kids on “Extended Summer Vacation”, Lorie and I wanted to grill a simple Sunday dinner that would be quick and delicious and not over bearing with sauces, spices and preparation.

The Menu;

• Grilled Chicken Shish Kebabs.
• Thin Spaghetti Pasta with Smart Balance Buttery Spread, Teriyaki and Garlic.
• Frozen Super Fruit Bars.

From the Market;

• 1 Package of Boneless, Skinless Chicken breast.
• 1 Large Red Onion.
• 1 Basket of Mushrooms.
• 1 Basket of Cherry Tomatoes.
• 2 Medium Summer Yellow Squash.
• 2 Medium Zucchini.
• 1 Can of Pineapple Rings.
• 1 Red Pepper and Yellow Pepper.
• 1 Package Skewers.

 Chicken Preparation;

Cubed Chicken in Marinade.

Begin with 6 boneless, skinless, chicken breast, washed, rinsed and thawed. This will be enough chicken for 16 skewers with 3 cubes of chicken on each skewer. Cube the chicken breast by cutting each breast lengthwise in half then quartering each half. Make appropriate changes based on the size of the chicken breast you have purchased.

Vegetables Preparation;

Veggies in Marinade.

• Wash, rinse and cube all veggies.
• Cube Red Onion.
• Slice Mushrooms in Half.
• Slice Squash in ¼” slices.
• Slice Zucchini in ¼” slices.
• Quarter Pineapple Slices.
• Cube Red Pepper.
• Cube Yellow Pepper.

Marinade;

In a glass mixing bowl

• Add 1/2 Cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce.
• Add 1 Cup  Teriyaki Sauce
• Add 1/2 Cup Water
• Add 2 Tbls. Honey
• Add 1 Tbls. Granulated Garlic
• Place chicken in bowl for an hour or two prior to grilling.

Make an identical marinade for the veggies and place veggies in separate bowl for an hour or two prior to grilling.

Tips and Tricks; Do not prepare marinade in advance or marinade overnight. The salt content is high because of the teriyaki and low sodium soy sauce. If you marinade overnight or for several hours prior to grilling you will significantly increase the salt content.

Preheat the grill to medium and soak the skewers in water for 20 minutes.

 Build the Skewers;

Lorie building skewers.

Pull a skewer from the water;

• Yellow Squash
• Cube of Chicken
• Onion
• Cherry Tomato
• Zucchini
• Red Pepper
• Yellow Pepper
• Pineapple
• 1 cube of chicken
• Pineapple
• Red Pepper
• Yellow Pepper
• Zucchini
• Cherry Tomato
• Onion
• Cube of chicken
• Yellow Squash

Repeat until all 16 skewers completed. Place completed skewers in cake pan and pour marinade over skewers and rest until grilling.

Ready for the grill!

Place on grill on medium heat. Leave one end of the skewer over the edge of the grill so you can easily rotate skewer during grilling.

Rotate and baste skewers every 5 minutes for 20 minutes.

Reduce heat to low and continue to rotate and baste until chicken and veggies are golden brown.

Remove from grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Yum!!!

Pasta;

Bring pot of cold water to boil, add a ¼ cup of Smart Balance Blended Oils and ½ tsp. of Morten Lite Salt.

• Add Ronzoni Smart Taste Thin Spaghetti, boil until al dente.
• Add ¼ Cup Teriyaki Sauce.
• Add 2 tbls of Smart Balance Buttery Spread.

Rinse spaghetti and place in serving bowl, add ingredients and fold until buttery spread has melted.

Dessert;

Dreyer Frozen Bars

Nothing beats a cool and tasty treat on a hot summer night. Try these Super Fruit Frozen Treats!

All Natural Pomegranate Antioxidant Frozen Fruit Bars. Fat Free and only 70 Calories.

Each Bar Contains; Zero Trans Fat, Zero Cholesterol, Zero Saturated Fat, and Zero Sodium. They are located with the ice crème bars at your local supermarket.

There you go another heart healthy quick and delicious outdoor meal.

Keep Grilling America!

I’m out.

Another Quick and Easy Summertime Meal; Kimmy’s Fav BBQ Chicken!

Time for another summertime quick & easy BBQ recipe!

Last week I asked the kids for their fav Daddy BBQ meals. Kimmy was easy! Her fav has always been thighs and drumsticks with Mommy’s mac salad! I remember Kimmy standing on a milk case helping me turn the chicken when she was four or five.

So when she recently returned from two months in Ecuador, we asked what she wanted for her first home cooked meals. Number 1 was Monday Nite Pasta, her Mom’s homemade lasagna with spinach & cottage cheese. Lorie will share this heart healthy recipe when we are closer to cooler weather!

Second was Daddy’s BBQ Chicken, Kimmy Style, with Mommy’s mac salad.

Okay, let’s get grilling!

The Menu

• 1 package chicken thighs.
• 1 package chicken drumsticks.
• Lorie’s Smart Balance Macaroni Salad.
• Kimmy’s Cabbage Salad.
• Sliced Seedless Watermelon

Preparing the chicken;

• I prefer using fresh chicken legs and thighs or frozen bags of legs and thighs from Sam’s or your butcher. Wash and rinse thoroughly. I par boil bone in chicken to ensure it is cooked properly to 165 internal degrees. It also ensures tender and moist chicken when you remove from the grill. I started adding ingredients such as, vinegar and garlic to my par boil years ago. It adds an amazing zing and taste to your finished Chicken BBQ.

Par Boil

• 1 Large Pot of Cold Water.
• 1 Cup of Apple Cider Vinegar.
• ¼ Cup of Smart Balance Oil.
• 1 TBLS of Pepper
• 2 TBLS of Granulated Garlic.
• DO NOT ADD SALT*!

Bring water to boil, add chicken and cover. Boil for 20 minutes.

To keep a cooler kitchen in the summer, I prepare outside as much as possible, I boil the chicken, eggs, and pasta on my outdoor Camp Chef Cook Stove.

Anytime Lorie upgrades pots and pans I get the hand me downs for outdoor cooking. I boil outside in our original pasta pots from Sam’s that Lorie purchased in Albuquerque, New Mexico in the late 80’s.

Prepare Lorie’s Homemade BBQ Sauce;

Lorie’s BBQ Sauce!

• Tomato Sauce – 1, 29oz. can
• Tomato Paste – 1, 6oz. can
• Garlic
• Paprika
• Sea Salt
• Pepper
• Yellow Mustard
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Molasses
• Brown Sugar
• Brewed Coffee
• All seasonings are to taste.  We like a very sweet/sour sauce, so the balance of vinegar, brown sugar, mustard and molasses is very important and can take a while to perfect.
• A good, “cheater,” or just for a bit of a kick, is salsa.  We use medium or hot.
• For a real bite, add chipotle seasoning, chili powder or Cajun spice.

Mix all ingredients and simmer in saucepan for 20 minutes. I prefer to separate into two containers, one for basting and one for serving.

Tips & Tricks; Please DO NOT reuse any sauce you have basted raw meat or chicken with. Once you are done grilling any leftover sauce must be thrown away.

Preheat the Grill;

Another advantage of using a par boil on this recipe is you will not need a super-hot grill to cook the chicken to 165 degrees. I preheat my grill to medium high only. Also, keep a clean fresh water spray bottle by your grill; be careful with flare ups, usually this means your grill is too hot.

4th of July BBQ 2012

• Place the chicken on the grill.
• Sear 5 minutes each side.
• Baste and grill another 5 minutes each side.
• Reduce heat to medium.
• Baste and grill 5 minutes each side.
• Reduce heat to low.
• Baste and grill 5 minutes each side.
• Move Chicken off the heated section of your grill.
• Turn off all burners except one and allow the chicken to Rest for 5 minutes.

Remove and place on Serving Platter.

Macaroni Salad;

4th of July BBQ 2012

Another Summer Classic is Macaroni Salad; always best when prepared fresh! We use all fresh veggies from the market.

Okay, let’s get started; I prefer to boil 1 dozen eggs and boil the pasta in advance and place in the fridge to ensure it is nice and cold! I place the eggs in a medium saucepan and COLD water, set heat on high and set the timer for 18 minutes. When the timer goes off I remove from the heat and rinse in cold water. I add a cup of ice to the eggs and crack immediately.

Tips & Tricks; to shell the eggs use this old trick; crack the egg once on each end against the sink, then using your thumb, gently peel away the shell in one piece. Rinse in cold water and place in bowl. Also, fresh eggs are harder to peel. Use your oldest eggs when making salads and baking.

I boil the eggs and pasta outside on my Camp Chef Camp stove, during warmer months to keep the kitchen cooler. Boiling the pasta is very important, Lorie always says; cook between al Dante and mushy. Overcooked and you have a junk salad, undercooked and the sauce will get absorbed into the pasta. I use an over-sized pot and add a little Smart Balance oil and a dash of Morton Lite salt. Stir occasionally, do not over stir and break your pasta into pieces. When done, pour into colander and quickly rinse to cool down. Place eggs and pasta in a metal bowl in the fridge when finished.

Tips & Tricks: Metal absorbs the cold faster and will cool the pasta and eggs more quickly than plastic or Pyrex.

The Pasta;

• Fill big pot with cold water.
• Add 2 tbls Smart Balance Oil.
• Add 1 tbls of Morten Lite Salt.
• Bring to boil and add pasta.
• Boil until done, then rinse in cold water.
• Place uncovered in fridge to cool.
• Chop 1 whole onion (we use red or white).
• Chop and dice 4 stalks of Celery.

The Sauce; (All amounts are approximate and to taste.)

• 1 Cup of Smart Balance “New” Omega Light Mayonnaise Dressing. (Non-Hydrogenated)
• ¼ Cup of Bread & Butter Pickles
•  4 TBLS of Bread & Butter Pickle Juice (or substitute apple cider vinegar)
• 2 TBLS of Ketchup.
• ¼ Cup of 1% Milk or Fat Free Half and Half.
• ½ TBLS of Sugar.
• 3 TBLS of French’s Yellow Mustard.
• Add Paprika & Ground Black Pepper.

We now use New Smart Balance Light Mayo; we were very impressed with the consistency and taste of this product.

The sauce is mayonnaise based but the, “secret,” is in the amount of yellow mustard you use.  We like a lot!  If you use vinegar increase the amount of sugar.

In a mixing bowl; add ketchup and mustard, whisk together, add milk or half and half to desired consistency.  Half and half will make a much creamier sauce. Pour over the pasta and the eggs. Garnish with egg slices, a little black pepper and paprika.

Tips & Tricks from Lorie: Use this same recipe for potato salad. Also, add tuna fish and green peas and serve as a main dish. Serve large slices of Beefsteak tomatoes with low fat cottage cheese on the side and add a slice of watermelon and you have another summer meal!

Now your Summer Mac salad is complete, put a plate on top of the bowl and place in the fridge to keep cool.

Kimmy’s Summer Cold Cabbage Salad;

4th of July BBQ 2012

• 1 head red cabbage chopped.
• 2 large carrots chopped.
• 3 beets chopped.
• 1 sweet apple chopped.
• 2 avocados diced.
• 1 tbls diced fresh ginger

Emeril Lagasse Honey Mustard Dressing;

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons honey.
• 2 tablespoons Fat Free Dijon mustard.*
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar.
• ½ cup Smart Balance Oil.*
• 1/4 teaspoon Morten Lite salt.*
• Freshly ground black pepper.

 

*As I usually do with Emeril recipes, I have changed the ingredients to be more heart healthy. You really cannot be heart healthy with any Dijon Honey mustard recipe however; this will knock the calorie count down to around 30 for 2 tbls.

Directions

In a large salad bowl, toss together the ingredients.

To make the dressing, in a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the honey, mustard and vinegar. Slowly add the oil in a steady stream, and whisk until all the oil is added and the mixture is emulsified. Add the salt and whisk together. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Toss the salad with the dressing, to taste, adding about 1 tablespoon at a time. Sprinkle with pepper, and serve immediately.

Dessert;

We have been very lucky in Arizona this summer with great tasting watermelon from California and our local growers.

Easy as pie, two ways to serve!

• Use an ice cream scooper and make watermelon balls and place in serving bowl.
• Cut thick watermelon wedges and place on a big platter.

Always a crowd pleaser young and old alike!

That’s it; you have just prepared a great BBQ Chicken dinner for the entire family!

Keep Grilling America!

I’m out.

4th of July BBQ

Reblogged from mark'sviewfromthebleachers:

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The 4th of July is always a fun and memorable holiday for me. My son Matthew has a birthday on the 2nd and his second one in particular is a miracle. See Lorie's Blog on that subject. Also, during my corporate years I would try to take a vacation around the 4th and make it a two weekend holiday! I also remember as a child growing up in Western New York that July 1st was D-Day, departure day to my grandmother's cottage on Paudash Lake Ontario Canada.

Read more… 3,334 more words

It's not too late to run to Sam's or the grocery store and grill an amazing meal today! Happy 4th of July America! Do not let the rain keep you from the fireworks tonight and great grilling today!

Voices of Freedom on this 4th of July! A Look Back 71 Years Ago!

Voices of Freedom according to our 32^nd President, Still Sounds Pretty Good 71 Years Later!

Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States (1933-1945). His 1941 State of the Union address has been immortalized as the “Four Freedoms” speech.

Credit: Courtesy of American Memory at the Library of Congress.

Sometimes we fail to hear or heed these voices of freedom because to us the privilege of our freedom is such an old, old story.

In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.

The first is freedom of speech and expression — everywhere in the world.

The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way — everywhere in the world.

The third is freedom from want — which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants — everywhere in the world.

The fourth is freedom from fear — which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor– anywhere in the world.

On behalf of a grateful nation, we thank all of you who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our Great Nation, Under God with Liberty and Justice for All!

Happy Independence Day America!

Farm Tour!

Farm Tour!.