What They Don't Tell You...

This is my last week at work. It's been a somewhat weird last couple of months, knowing my job will soon be over. I like my job, not love, but like. I have had it for 5 years and that's fairly significant for me.
My true love is cooking, baking, etc...so while life events are taking longer than I thought to process, I felt the need to look for a part time job.
Where does one look for serious, high quality job possibilities? Why, Craigslist of course!

I found a few here and there. Bakery, bartending, server, hostess...you get the picture.
I thought I had stumbled on a perfection when I found this:

Small Bed & Breakfast is looking for reliable help with breakfast and some occational room cleaning. Duties include helping prepare & serve breakfast for up to 4 couples.

Mostly weekends 7:30 to 11:30 A.M. with occational weekdays during the summer months. This is a permanent position with opportunities possible for the right person

Fun place to work with a relaxed atsmosphere

I noticed there was an email address with the name of the bed and breakfast attached. Perfect! I could check it out online!
 It isn't located too far from me, about 20-30 minutes. I was pretty pumped about applying until I read the line "...clothing optional".

Wait...

What????


A job fixing breakfast for a nudist bed and breakfast? Is clothing optional for the chef as well? Would YOU eat food fixed by a naked person?

I've seen some pretty crazy things on Craigslist...but this seemed legit, innocent, fully clothed...

Guess it's back to the drawing board...

Happy 55th Birthday Ghana!

Ghana.

The name evokes so many feelings, memories, loves:

Cups of hot tea with sugar and evaporated milk
Fresh Ghanaian breakfast bread with jam
The way the sun rises and sets so majestically that it simply takes your breath away
The call to prayer in the morning and evening (I don't care for it any other time...)
The bright colors of tie & dye lined up inside a shop
School children carrying pencils on their head as they walk to school
The sight and smell of banku being stirred
The politics of the market women
Enjoying a Star with the sounds of Reggae and Highlife music blaring around you
The beeping of motos weaving in and out of traffic
Seeing a family of 4 smushed together on said motos
Being able to buy a soccer ball, kuli kuli, gum, or calling cards all from your car stopped at a traffic light
Hearing the phrase repeated just about anywhere you go: Pure water
How suffocating it gets right before a big rain
Being laughed at when you try to dance or speak like your friends; knowing they are laughing with you
How community is more important than schedules
Dancing at weddings and funerals
Omo tuo with groundnut soup and goat meat
Bargaining my way from the tourist price to a "local white lady" price
Arriving at a new place and having people tell you "you are welcome"
Coming back from a journey and having people tell you "you are welcome"
Long, bumpy, dusty roads
Cheesy Nigerian movies any time of day

The list goes on...

So Ghana, today I am thinking of you. Missing you. Remembering you. Thank you for fighting for your independence; it has helped make you who you are. But you have always been strong: a true "Warrior King."

                                                                                       (photo by Mona Hewitt)

Piles...

I sometimes feel like my life is reduced to piles.
Let's face it; we all have piles of dishes, piles of laundry, those piles of important papers you are going to file............tomorrow  next week.

I have even managed to pile things such as friends (this friend goes in this category, this one goes in that category).
I have piles of things that need to be boxed, piles that need to go to the storage unit, piles that need to be organized (yeah, right...), and piles of recipes that need to be made.

And until recently I was able to keep my job out of the "piles" category. *Sigh* Until I was reduced to back scanning all eight file cabinets at work.That is right; removing staples -lots of staples-, paperclips, binder clips, and figuring out why we kept this or that paper for the last 18 years. One month down and another (or so) to go...and I find myself creating.....

                                                                           piles.

It's a love-hate thing...

Monday night 11:57 p.m.




I love:

-Chef Waier - he's awesome. You don't even KNOW!

-Egg Cookery - oh yes, that's right...egg cookery...seriously...

Scotch Eggs - I made some, but these aren't mine.
But mine looked just like them. Basically a hard boiled egg encased in sausage,
breaded and then...fried...that's right...you heard me. FRIED. yum.

-Being all tired and not feeling good but totally forgetting all about it when I am so completely wrapped up in doing what I love.

yum.

-The energy and "high" from being with people who love food like I do.

Students from my school

I hate:

-The energy and "high" that comes from doing what I love and being with people who are doing the same...cause it means that I won't come crashing down and be able to sleep for at least another hour...*sigh*

A few of my favorite things...

Yum. This was dinner for me and a friend recently.  I think it's time for a repeat!

First came the Macadamia-Crusted Barramundi with Mango Cream Sauce

Then Saffron Rice and Sauteed Asparagus

All beautifully together on my plate (yes I ate it all - don't even ask)

This poor mango slice gets eaten moments after this picture.

Can we have a moment of silence for the blueberry shortcake? Obviously with fresh whipped cream.

Macadamia-Crusted Barramundi (You can really use any white fleshed fish)

1 Mango peeled, seeded, diced
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 pinch of red pepper flakes
1 pound fresh fish (bass, barramundi, something that can withstand a good crust)
salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tablespoon olive oil

Combine nuts, crumbs 1 teaspoon olive oil, pepper, and red pepper flakes in a food processor and process in pulses until finely ground (don't just let it go or you'll have macadamia butter, which is tasty, but not good for this recipe). Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 Celsius for those of you outside the U.S. - or Belize...)
In a small sauce pan heat cream, mango, and lemon juice over medium heat until boiling then reduce the heat and simmer until thick. You may have to use a blender to get the consistency you want. I used my immersion blender...that I love so...
Season the fish with salt and pepper then begin packing on the crust. Place the fish on a cooling rack set over a sheet pan. (This allows the fish to cook more quickly and also keeps the bottom from getting soggy.) Then place the fish into the oven. Roast until cooked through. Serve with the oh-so-amazing mango cream sauce.

I don't have the exact recipe for the blueberry shortcake anymore. But if anyone would like it I can certainly find it.

I also apologize for the pics. Something is up with my camera and until I find out what it is...or get a new one...I think I am stuck with that foggy spot towards the bottom of the pictures.

Spiders...I think

So this is the second time in two weeks that I've woken up with an unexplainable malady. The first time it was some sort of itchy bites on my fingers that looked like poison ivy, it went away after a day. And this morning? I woke up with what looked like a goiter sticking out of the side of my neck. Okay. Okay. Not a goiter. But I definitely had to forgo the ponytail I was counting on wearing this morning.

Here's the crazy thing though...I'm pretty sure my bed (which was recently downsized from a queen to a twin size day bed *sigh*) is barely big enough for ME! What are these spiders thinking?! Are they just trying to prepare me for the upcoming holiday? I wasn't even planning on dressing up...

Hope I live to see 31...

Sad Slacker

Ok, it's been WAY too long. Time to get back to it. I apologize to all 2 readers of my blog for keeping you in such suspense of my life.

Alright, well nothing too incredibly exciting has happened unless you want to count going to Botswana, having an "I miss Africa" freak-out, planning a trip to Ghana then going on it, snagging a boyfriend while I was there, coming back and starting culinary school as exciting.

I'm just worn out from typing it. SEE! This is why I haven't written updates...I'm too...busy?

Well, let's just put the past behind us.

Start fresh.

Today, nothing exciting happened...
I suppose that's not entirely true as the day has not quite ended.

However, I guess this post is just to state that I intend to do better in the future.