Wordless Wednesday: Eyes

"An animal's eyes...

...have the power to speak...

...a great language."

~Martin Buber

Wordless Wednesday: Step 1, Step 2, Step 3

Muffulettas

I've only been to New Orleans once. It was a sad and humiliating experience that I will have to share some other time...but not today! Today I'm talking sandwiches! Again. Because (cue record) it's baseball season and I need food on the table fast.

I have no idea if these muffulettas taste like the real thing though. I know I've blocked out a lot about that trip but I don't think I tried a muffuletta while I was in New Orleans. I don't even think I tried a beignet. I did have a whole heaping of parental disappointment though! But Cooking Light insists that this recipe captures the essence of the New Orleans Muffuletta and that's good enough for me because I love Cooking Light and would never make it feel like a huge, fat failure by laughing at it in the middle of a dinner party. Never. But I digress! Let's get to the recipe shall we?



Muffulettas (original recipe from Cooking Light)

1 1/2 cups bottled giardiniera, drained and chopped
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
10 pimiento-stuffed manzanilla (or green) olives, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
4 Kaiser rolls, cut in half horizontally
4 slices reduced-fat provolone cheese
4 ounces skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken breast, sliced (about 1 breast)
4 thin slices Genoa salami
4 thin slices ham

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl; mix well.

2. Layer bottom half of each roll with 1 provolone cheese slice, 1 ounce chicken, 1 salami slice, and 1 ham slice; top each portion with about 1/3 cup olive mixture and top halves of rolls. Wrap each sandwich tightly in plastic wrap; chill at least 1 hour or overnight. Remove plastic wrap; cut each sandwich in half.

Like I said, I don't know what real muffulettas are supposed to taste like but I love this version!

Wordful Wednesday: Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo...

A few weeks ago I followed my sister and her boyfriend around and took a million pictures of them. Trust me, a "million" is only a slight exaggeration. I barked orders at them the whole afternoon, "Smile! Wait, look at me! Now look at each other! Okay, now smile! One more shot but this time jump higher! One, two, three, jump!" And much to Angie and Billy's relief, I was forced to put away my camera when we ran out of daylight. But now she has the difficult chore of deciding which set of pictures to use as wedding invitations.

Which set do you like best? Sepia, color or black and white?

For more Wordful Wednesday's be sure to visit Angie's Seven Clown Circus

My "Motherer's" Day

Awwwww...

Awwwww...

Awwwww!

This is what I got for Mother's Day from the boys. Not the new Asics like I was wanting but it will do. For now;) Hope you all had a great Mom's Day!

Another Toothless Wonder

My Little Pup loves corn on the cob. This is an old picture, taken a few years ago when he was 3 years old. Look at that long, beautiful blonde hair! Now he's 6 and the long hair is gone but he still loves corn on the cob. This past Sunday he was almost in tears because he couldn't eat any--his loose tooth wouldn't let him. But look what happened yesterday...

...he lost his first tooth! And for his pain and suffering resulting from having to eat corn off the cob he got a dollar:)

And because this is Poetry Friday, here's one of my favorite poems and it's even tooth related:

Steak Sandwich

We have 3 baseball games this week plus one practice and each of those days we need to be at the field at 5 o'clock. So I need something fast to fix for dinner. Something like sandwiches! I have several in my arsenal, the french dip, the Italian sub, meatball sub and the muffuletta...all delicious but I needed a good steak sandwich recipe. After perusing through my sister's discarded Cooking Light magazines I found a keeper. There's the great combination of onions and peppers (my favorite) and steak and mushrooms (WD's fave). And toasted rolls with cheese? I think that's everyone's favorite.

Steak Sandwich (recipe from Cooking Light)

1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups presliced onion
2 cups green bell pepper strips
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1 cup presliced mushrooms
3/4 pound top round steak, trimmed and cut into thin strips
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
4 (0.6-ounce) slices reduced-fat provolone cheese, cut in half
4 (2 1/2-ounce) hoagie rolls with sesame seeds

1. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic to pan; sauté 3 minutes. Add mushrooms to pan; sauté 4 minutes. Sprinkle beef with salt and black pepper. Add beef to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Stir in Worcestershire sauce; cook 1 minute.

2. Place 1 cheese slice half on bottom half of each roll, and top each serving with one-fourth of beef mixture. Top with remaining cheese slice halves and tops of rolls.

Wordless Wednesday: So How Did You Celebrate National Star Wars Day?

Lost And Not Found

Well, my wedding ring set lasted almost 13 years. Look closely at the engagement ring--see anything missing? The diamond fell out and I can't find it anywhere. I know that I lost it somewhere in the house so I've been vacuuming and vacuuming and vacuuming hoping it will show up in the canister of the vacuum cleaner. It hasn't. On the upside, though, my carpet has never been cleaner.

The way I see it I have 3 options:
1) I could have a new marquise diamond put in the ring
2) I could buy a cheaper stand-in
3) WD and I could have a second wedding complete with registry

And I think I'm leaning toward option 3 because I could really use some more towels, a food processor and a new stock pot.

That's Strange Part IV

Wow, it's been over 2 weeks since my last post? And 18 days since my last twitter? Eeeeek. I wish I could say I've been away doing grand things but, nope, I haven't. We celebrated my youngest son's 6th birthday and my oldest son's First Communion and we have been extremely busy with the start of baseball but before I post about all that I need to baby step my way back to blogging with a meme. It's the return of The Strange Question Meme.

31. Who’s the last person you talked to on the phone? My sister, Angie. Duh.

32. Any plans today? Yep, my usual Monday routine--school, groceries, fish tank water change, laundry, back to school, dinner and a baseball game.

33. In how many states have you lived? Just one--Arkansas. I can't imagine living anywhere else.

34. Biggest annoyance right now? Hmmmm...actually, right now I'm good.

35. Last song listened to? Not sure but I know it was something from Amy Grant. My good friend Merrie held a contest and I won Amy Grant's new cd!

36. Can you say the alphabet backwards? Nope. Can anyone?

37. Do you have a maid service clean your house? Hahahahahaha! Really?

38. Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time? During the summer it's a pair of black flip flops. Winter, my slippers.

39. Are you jealous of anyone? I don't know. Kind of. Maybe? Or not. When this one person pops into my head I always get angry and sad and I think there may be a little bit of jealousy mixed in with those feelings.

40. Is anyone jealous of you? Hahahahahaha! I don't think so!

Part I
Part II
Part III