My Vacation Movie/Show Reviews.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009

I hate going to the movie theater. I admit, I went to watch Avatar, but not because of the awesome storyline that got yanked from a 90s film, Ferngully. Instead, I went because I read about what James Cameron did since Titanic. I honestly think the cinematic experience was great. Of course, I had to ignore the plot as a factor.

Anyway, I recently subscribed to Netflix and I am very satisfied. I highly recommend it to those who want to catch up with all the shows without having to leave the comfort of your couch or even walking to the mailbox if it's on the Instant Queue. I'm lazy. Can you tell? =)

• Dexter (Season 1 and 2) - If you haven't watched this series, start from the beginning. It's just one of those shows you HAVE to watch! Not a kid-friendly show.
• Jarhead - Meh, boring war movie. It's more about the psyche of a soldier. I want more explosions.
• Step Brothers - It was funny, but I wouldn't watch it again.
• Helvetica - If you like typography, graphics, and art, watch this!
• Primer - Interesting view on time travel and the effects it has, no Butterfly Effect crap here.
• Battlestar Galactica (old school) - It's hilarious and awesome. I've watched the new series, but never the original. I'm on the fifth or sixth show and so far so good.

Time to get back and play Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Labels: movie reviews, netflix

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Clam and Mussel Soup, MmMmm...
Saturday, December 19, 2009

I've been trying to figure out what to do with the pound of mussels and pound of clams sitting in my freezer. I found this recipe a few weeks ago, and here is what it looks like:

• 1/2 cup plus 1/2 cup white wine
• 3 pounds mussels, scrubbed, bearded and rinsed
  Bearded? Haha, whatever. I just cleaned it.
• 2 pounds clams
• 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 3 salted anchovy fillets, rinsed and chopped
• 2 red bell peppers, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 medium red onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 2 ribs celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 carrot, cut into 1/8-inch dice
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 4 slices country bread
  I just totally skipped out on bread
• 1 bunch Italian parsley, chopped to yield 1/4 cup
  Italian parsley? I just used the regular bunch

Prepare the shellfish
In 2 separate pots, place 1/2 cup white wine. Add mussels to 1 pot, clams to the other, cover both pots and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to an active simmer and cook until mussels and clams have been steamed open, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the shellfish from their respective pots, reserving the cooking liquid, and allow to cool. Once cool, shuck shellfish and discard shells.

Put it all together
In a large soup pot, combine the shellfish cooking liquid, vinegar, 1/4 cup oil, anchovies, peppers, onion, celery, carrot and garlic and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the shellfish and stir to heat through.



Now I have no idea how to store it, I made way too much!

Labels: cooking

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My First Home Cooked Meal, Made by Me.
Saturday, December 12, 2009

Yeah, I've made SPAM and rice, hamburger helper, PB&J, mac and cheese, or raman noodles, but this is my very first "real meal."

Here's what the recipe called for:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
  I only had extra virgin olive oil, does it make that huge a difference? Oh well.
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and chopped
  I never knew apples had crazy names like this. I only knew they came in red or green, lol.
• 8 fresh sage leaves
  The recipe didn't say what to do with them, so I had to call my brother about what to do. I just finely chopped them.
• 2 cups thick-cut white bread cubes, crusts removed
  Elizabeth explained to me what this means. I just cut up sliced bread, but remove the crusts? WTF am I going to do with the crusts? Throw them away? I left mine in.
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth, plus more if needed
• 1 (3 pound) pork loin roast, butterflied
  I cut a huge ten pound strip of pork loin up into smaller pieces. Don't do that for this recipe, the best thing to use is a smaller, longer strip of pork loin.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Making the stuffing
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, apples and sage. Saute until softened. Remove from the heat and gently stir in the bread, egg, butter and salt and pepper. Add the chicken broth gradually until everything is moistened. Let the stuffing mixture cool completely before putting it in the pork loin.

Stuffing the stuffing
Spoon the stuffing down the pork, horizontally, in a line. Roll the pork over the stuffing, jelly roll style, ending with the seam down and fat side up. Lightly score the fat, in a diamond pattern, with a sharp knife. Tightly tie the pork roast up with butcher's twine, season it with more salt and pepper, and transfer to a roasting pan. Roast the pork in a preheated oven for about 90 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees F.

All Done
Remove from the oven and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing. Garnish with apples and fresh herbs.



Time to EAT!

Labels: cooking

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