I’m watching Nat Geo’s Multiples, which is all about twins, triplets and quads. Did you know if you’re left handed there’s one school of thought that says perhaps you had a twin that was reabsorbed in the womb? All I can say about all of that is Neat!
One week and a few days and we’ll be hopping on a plane to Florida to celebrate my mom’s 60th birthday and deliver her brand-new fat cat. I wonder if our fellow passengers feel a disturbance in the force or are seeing some funky tarot cards come up, all having to do with having an unusually yowly flight coming. And yet, I am not concerned enough for them to drive him. So we will all just have to endure.
Last night we had three friends over for a “We win!” dinner. James and Charles had just signed the contract on their new apartment, it was Charles’ birthday, Damon’s birthday was Sunday, Brian was in town to meet with his agent and publisher about his first novel (coming to bookstores near you in April!) and I had shipped off our finalized adoption dossier that very afternoon. What more could we possibly ask for? I made a big, organic salad with my home-made Italian dressing (It’s the best you’ll ever have), linguine with a choice of two sauces (sweet & spicy egg and lemon cream with olives and broccoli), garlic bread and a banana cake with chocolate and chunky peanut butter icing. The icing was interesting. Charles loves peanut butter so I wanted to work that into dessert. But the bakery had nothing peanuty. The cake mixes were no help, the icings were no help. The only thing I could find was a box of microwave peanut butter brownies. And that’s as good as nothing at all. So I bought a banana cake mix and some chocolate frosting. When I got home I threw the frosting in a mixing bowl and then dumped in a few big spoonfuls of chunky peanut butter and then hit it with the mixer. It wasn’t nearly as creamy after that, and it took some careful spreading, but it was delicious.
jaysaint 
Posted by yellowdoggrl on February 2, 2007 at 2:49 am
Another fun thing to do with cakes that call for banana involvement is to mash ripe bananas up (with something, depending on the ripeness and the rest of the recipe… rum, chocolate syrup, or yes, peanut butter) and using that in between the cake layers. Just for future reference.
If you wanted to share that Italian dressing recipe sometime, I would promise to use only tender organic leafy greens and the freshest vegetables available at Central Market…
Posted by yellowdoggrl on February 2, 2007 at 2:49 am
Another fun thing to do with cakes that call for banana involvement is to mash ripe bananas up (with something, depending on the ripeness and the rest of the recipe… rum, chocolate syrup, or yes, peanut butter) and using that in between the cake layers. Just for future reference.
If you wanted to share that Italian dressing recipe sometime, I would promise to use only tender organic leafy greens and the freshest vegetables available at Central Market…
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
What a great banana tip. Thanks!
I’m happy to share the dressing. Of course I don’t have a single measurement, but I’ll try to indicate as best I can.
Start with a base of apple cider vinegar and oil. I like olive oil, my mom swears it’s better if you use vegetable oil. She may be right, but I keep using olive anyway. I like about a 50/50 ratio. Then into the dressing goes:
a little salt, pepper, oregano, basil, sugar
a lot of mixed Greek seasonings (You can use salad seasoninig mix if you can’t find Greek.), parmesan cheese
Give it all a good shake and then pour onto the salad to marinate for a bit. I like to use bigger chunks of lettuce, like a chopped romaine, so that it doesn’t get soggy. It should be really colorful from the reds and oranges in the Greek seasonings and the white from the cheese. If you can’t see lots of those then add more.
You’ll definitely fiddle with your amounts a few times before you hit the jackpot combination for you.
It’s pretty simple, but every time I make it people go crazy. My mom has occassionally given bottles as Christmas gifts because it’s so much in demand.
Let me know how it goes!
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
Almost forgot a critical element — lots of celery seed!
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
Almost forgot a critical element — lots of celery seed!
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
Almost forgot a critical element — lots of celery seed!
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
What a great banana tip. Thanks!
I’m happy to share the dressing. Of course I don’t have a single measurement, but I’ll try to indicate as best I can.
Start with a base of apple cider vinegar and oil. I like olive oil, my mom swears it’s better if you use vegetable oil. She may be right, but I keep using olive anyway. I like about a 50/50 ratio. Then into the dressing goes:
a little salt, pepper, oregano, basil, sugar
a lot of mixed Greek seasonings (You can use salad seasoninig mix if you can’t find Greek.), parmesan cheese
Give it all a good shake and then pour onto the salad to marinate for a bit. I like to use bigger chunks of lettuce, like a chopped romaine, so that it doesn’t get soggy. It should be really colorful from the reds and oranges in the Greek seasonings and the white from the cheese. If you can’t see lots of those then add more.
You’ll definitely fiddle with your amounts a few times before you hit the jackpot combination for you.
It’s pretty simple, but every time I make it people go crazy. My mom has occassionally given bottles as Christmas gifts because it’s so much in demand.
Let me know how it goes!
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
What a great banana tip. Thanks!
I’m happy to share the dressing. Of course I don’t have a single measurement, but I’ll try to indicate as best I can.
Start with a base of apple cider vinegar and oil. I like olive oil, my mom swears it’s better if you use vegetable oil. She may be right, but I keep using olive anyway. I like about a 50/50 ratio. Then into the dressing goes:
a little salt, pepper, oregano, basil, sugar
a lot of mixed Greek seasonings (You can use salad seasoninig mix if you can’t find Greek.), parmesan cheese
Give it all a good shake and then pour onto the salad to marinate for a bit. I like to use bigger chunks of lettuce, like a chopped romaine, so that it doesn’t get soggy. It should be really colorful from the reds and oranges in the Greek seasonings and the white from the cheese. If you can’t see lots of those then add more.
You’ll definitely fiddle with your amounts a few times before you hit the jackpot combination for you.
It’s pretty simple, but every time I make it people go crazy. My mom has occassionally given bottles as Christmas gifts because it’s so much in demand.
Let me know how it goes!
Posted by yellowdoggrl on February 2, 2007 at 2:49 am
Another fun thing to do with cakes that call for banana involvement is to mash ripe bananas up (with something, depending on the ripeness and the rest of the recipe… rum, chocolate syrup, or yes, peanut butter) and using that in between the cake layers. Just for future reference.
If you wanted to share that Italian dressing recipe sometime, I would promise to use only tender organic leafy greens and the freshest vegetables available at Central Market…
Posted by yellowdoggrl on February 2, 2007 at 2:49 am
Another fun thing to do with cakes that call for banana involvement is to mash ripe bananas up (with something, depending on the ripeness and the rest of the recipe… rum, chocolate syrup, or yes, peanut butter) and using that in between the cake layers. Just for future reference.
If you wanted to share that Italian dressing recipe sometime, I would promise to use only tender organic leafy greens and the freshest vegetables available at Central Market…
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
What a great banana tip. Thanks!
I’m happy to share the dressing. Of course I don’t have a single measurement, but I’ll try to indicate as best I can.
Start with a base of apple cider vinegar and oil. I like olive oil, my mom swears it’s better if you use vegetable oil. She may be right, but I keep using olive anyway. I like about a 50/50 ratio. Then into the dressing goes:
a little salt, pepper, oregano, basil, sugar
a lot of mixed Greek seasonings (You can use salad seasoninig mix if you can’t find Greek.), parmesan cheese
Give it all a good shake and then pour onto the salad to marinate for a bit. I like to use bigger chunks of lettuce, like a chopped romaine, so that it doesn’t get soggy. It should be really colorful from the reds and oranges in the Greek seasonings and the white from the cheese. If you can’t see lots of those then add more.
You’ll definitely fiddle with your amounts a few times before you hit the jackpot combination for you.
It’s pretty simple, but every time I make it people go crazy. My mom has occassionally given bottles as Christmas gifts because it’s so much in demand.
Let me know how it goes!
Posted by jaysaint on February 4, 2007 at 3:35 am
Almost forgot a critical element — lots of celery seed!