Philomena, Frost, Movie. Glucometer Case,

Not a lot on TV on Tuesday (for us anyway) once Jeopardy was over. There was a programme on PBS about the investigation into the Irish Roman Catholic convent who took in pregnant girls and then sold their kids away from them. Basically the story of the movie Philomena which starred Judy Dench. If you haven't seen the movie, it was very good and a true story. They treated the pregnant unmarried mothers like dirt, made them work like slaves during their pregnancies and just whipped the kids away from them without their consent. This was some 50 years ago. Terrible story. In the movie a reporter is investigating the story and helps Philomena hunt for her son. The movie was based on the book The Lost Child of Philomena Lee by Martin Sixsmith. I am only sorry the nuns, some of whom were still alive at the end of the story, didn't get their comeuppance but I guess that doesn't always happen in true life.

Major tragedy in my life, we had frost last night and are supposed to get some tonight. Asparagus does not like frost. It's spring for goodness sake. The farm says a couple of days before they are in full swing again. Might go there today to see if they have any at all. Want some rhubarb too. I just can't believe we are getting frost.

We watched The Princess Bride again tonight, love that movie and I knew if was one of the few Matt doesn't walk out of, not sure why. We have lots of movies I love but he doesn't - I keep asking him to choose one because I don't always know what he wants to watch. I am easy to please.

Foot nurse came again on Tuesday so now our piggies are all lovely again LOL. I also got a new case for my new glucometer. Very fancy and quite large. I don't have to take it around with me so I guess it doesn't matter. Looks a bit like this, it is certainly orange but half moon shaped. Maybe I should take a picture tomorrow. I haven't figure out where everything fits yet.

This looks a super recipe which I have just picked up from Food.com but I take issue with a couple of points. The tart is for 4 but they only use 2 eggs then show you someone diving into a piece with a whole egg on it, I would therefore use 4 eggs. They also say 3/4 lb of asparagus, how mingy. I would use at least 1 lb if not more.

Caesar Asparagus Tart

3 garlic cloves
2 Tbs Dijon mustard
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 lb  asparagus
1 sheet puff pastry

To make tart filling
2 eggs
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup Parmesan cheese
2 Tbs chopped chives
1 pinch black pepper
1 pinch salt

1. Blend garlic cloves, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce and gradually add oil while blending.

2. After it's well mixed, add Parmesan cheese and black pepper.

3. Blanch asparagus (boil for 1-2 minutes then place in an ice bath).

4. Spread out asparagus in a baking pan, top with the Caesar salad mixture.

5. Prepare the puff pastry dough, roll it out flat until you have a rectangle shape.

6. Create a border around the edges of the puff pastry, approximately 3/4" wide, using a small sharp knife.

7. Then create diagonal score marks around the edges of the puff pastry.

8. Poke holes throughout the pastry dough using a fork.

9. Brush the egg yolk + water wash around the crust (edges).

10. Bake the pastry at 400°F for 10 mins.

11. To make tart filling, combine egg, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, chives, black pepper--mix using a whisk.

12. Spread tart filling evenly on top of the pastry.

13. Spread the asparagus evenly on top of the filling.

14. Gently place 2 eggs (make sure not to break the yolk) on top of the asparagus.

15. Bake at 400°F for 25 mins.

Servings: 6

Source: Food.com


Have a great day

Luck, Frost.

And so it continues. Later on Tuesday night I realised the doctor had given me a prescription for a pill I don’t need and not given me one for a pill I do need. Wednesday I got back a birthday card I had sent a friend by snail mail, wrong street number!! I did get a new soup ladle though although I nearly dropped it on the store floor!! I think JoJo has it nailed (see yesterday’s comments), it’s Mercury Retrograde messing everything up. Still I went to exercise class and managed most of the exercises, just the odd one was too much for my strained hamstring. Forgot, the blood work report on the bruise was fine. Nearly missed that because I was so ticked off at the doctor’s yesterday. One good thing today, Matt got his coupon for a free meal at the Mandarin (assuming they are not shut for any reason) for his birthday.  I thought, as a friend didn’t get one, that maybe they had stopped doing that. Maybe the luck is getting better.

This morning when we awoke, it was quite foggy. However, it must have been a freezing fog as later in the day, all the trees were covered in a frost and looked really pretty. Tried to take some pix although it doesn’t do it justice.






I’m afraid you can’t really see it, pity, it was so pretty this morning. My friend got a much better picture than I so I have stolen this picture from her Facebook post to show you. This was her  back yard this morning.

I thoroughly enjoy a good salmon dish and this sounded like a good one. There is a note at the end about sustainable seafood and the work of the Monterey Bay Aquarium which I strongly support.

Smoky Maple-Mustard Salmon

WebMD Recipe from EatingWell.com

It doesn’t get much easier—or more delicious—than this speedy recipe for roast salmon topped with a smoky maple-mustard sauce. The sweetness of the maple balances the tangy mustard; smoked paprika or ground chipotle adds another layer of flavor. Ask at the fish counter to have the salmon cut into four


4-ounce fillets with the skin removed. Serve with roasted green beans and whole-wheat couscous tossed with pecans and chives.


Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons whole-grain or Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika, or ground chipotle pepper (see Notes)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 4-ounce skinless center-cut wild-caught salmon fillets, (see Notes)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray.
2. Combine mustard, maple syrup, paprika (or chipotle), pepper and salt in a small bowl. Place salmon fillets on the prepared baking sheet. Spread the mustard mixture evenly on the salmon. Roast until just cooked through, 8 to 12 minutes.

Tip
Notes: Smoked paprika is made from smoke-dried red peppers and adds earthy, smoky flavour. Look for different types of paprika at some large supermarkets or at tienda.com or penzeys.com.
Chipotle peppers are dried, smoked jalapeño peppers. Ground chipotle chile pepper can be found in the spice section of most supermarkets or online at penzeys.com.

Wild-caught salmon from the Pacific (preferably Alaskan) is considered the best choice for the environment because it is more sustainably fished and has a larger, more stable population. Farmed salmon, including Atlantic, should be avoided, as it endangers the wild salmon population. For more information, visit Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch at www.seafoodwatch.org.

Have a great day