use real butter

Recipe: seafood andouille gumbo

Thanks to all of the good folks who entered to win a Wii console and a Wii Fit Plus package! While we normally have Kaweah pick our giveaway winners, we gave her a break this time. Actually, it’s because we weren’t sure if the Kaweah Method would pass muster with the law-talkin’ guys at Nintendo. But honestly, if you’ve ever met Kaweah, you’d realize right away that she is truly random.

truly

So let’s get on with it! Random.org gave us 393 out of 516 comments. Our winner is comment #393 – Karna! Congratulations Karna! I’ll contact you via email to get your mailing address so Nintendo can FedEx your cool and exciting new system to you! I have to say I was really impressed that so many of you want to get active and fit. Even if you didn’t win the system, I still encourage you to get out there and do something. Whether you buy a Wii of your own or just start walking with friends, doing some exercises in your own home, trying out some yoga classes, or signing up for some sports teams to get you engaged and moving – it’s good for you. I’m cheering you on from here!

I was feeling pretty good on Friday, then had a big crash and burn Saturday (I am told it is not uncommon to hit a wall on the third day after surgery). Reality never seems to be able to keep up with the plans I have in my head. By the way, thanks for all of your sweet recovery wishes. I think I’m finally on the mend. At least I was feeling good enough for us to run a few errands in town and meet up with friends at The Kitchen Upstairs (part of The Kitchen) for Tasting Hour.

jeremy tried a flight

two of my favorite things: food and friends

Cold, fat rain drops plopped on my head as we stepped into a gray and wet Pearl Street. I like the rain. I guess I wasn’t this enthusiastic about it when I lived in Ithaca, NY. There is such a thing as too much rain. Here in the West, the rain is a nice change up from our typical gorgeous and sunny weather. Boulder is right at the transition into Spring where that bright green fuzz you see on the trees will burst into full on leaves in the next week. I drove us home in the rain, then the slush, then the snow. When we let Kaweah out for the night, it was snowing at a good clip.

takes my breath away every time i see it

What better weather for a hot bowl of gumbo? I’ve had this recipe dog-eared for a long time and I figured I’d make it when I thought to look for fresh okra. Lo and behold, I found it at H-Mart last week! Considering that I don’t even know when okra season is, this was a magical thing. I grabbed a pound of the stuff. I call it the stuff because I’ve never cooked okra before and I’ve only had it on three occasions – once by accident (the NASA Langley cafeteria – that was interesting), once in a sushi bar (tempura fried, can anything be bad if it is tempura fried?), and once pickled because my friend Melinda is crazy about pickled okra.

onion, pepper, green onions, okra, tomatoes

okra looks happy, doesn’t it?

**Jump for more butter**

Recipe: lemon bacon goat cheese flatbread

You still have until Sunday to enter to win a Wii console and a Wii Fit Plus package! So if you haven’t entered yet… go do it!

I was all set to sit down and post Wednesday night when our power went out due to some awesome thunderstorms rolling through. And then I had surgery the next morning. I tried to log on from the surgery wing, but their wi-fi was really hosed. I was negotiating local anesthesia and sedation with the anesthesiologist, but he was a no go – he told me the pain levels would be too much for that and so I had to get general anesthesia. Then he asked me why and I replied, “Because I have stuff to do?” Hey, I tried. He promised it would wear off quickly. It was thankfully outpatient surgery, yet it left me feeling queasy and in a fog for the remainder of the day. I wasn’t sure if that was the pain or the drugs, but I don’t fight it so much anymore. I’ve learned my lesson after a lumpectomy, chemo, radiation, and that blasted emergency appendectomy (traditional, mind you, not that nice less invasive laparoscopic kind). I know by now when to push myself and when to let the body rest. And now it’s Friday. I have to remind myself that scheduling surgery is not like scheduling a haircut… But I’m feeling much better today! Thanks for all of the emails, FB comments, and tweets :)

A few months ago I was meeting up with my ladies for happy hour. As my dear Nichole sat down, she handed me a page torn from a magazine and said in her sweet tone, “Would you make that for me!? It looks sooooo good!” It was a picture of a pizza with lemon slices and greens and bacon – maybe some caramelized onions? It was lovely. “Sure!” I said, as I looked around for a description. Oops, that was on the other page, which was still connected to the magazine which was… not here. It was in my queue of recipes to try when Nichole posted on her FaceBook page that she and Luke had made the pizza. I was still determined to try it. Of course, my memory of the photo was further diminished after having recycled the page. You can tell this is going to be a winner.

i’m guessing bacon, onions, goat cheese, arugula, meyer lemon

slice the onions because we want to caramelize them

**Jump for more butter**

Recipe: eton mess

We’ve got three things going on here today, so keep your pants on! Are you ready?

First – I finished processing the photos from Antelope Valley. Serious orange-out is all I can say. That, and California poppies are my favorite wildflowers ever. Okay, I like the other guys too – I just love that there are so MANY of them.

tiny goldfields

poppies glow like little lanterns in the sun

If you want to see enough flowers to make your allergies tickle you can view day 1 and day 2 on my photo blog.

Next – we have a giveaway. I’ve been waiting to give this thing away for about… four months, but it had to get the stamp of approval from the law-talkin’ guys first. No matter, because it is certainly worth the wait. Back in December, I hosted a Nintendo-sponsored Wii Fit Plus party for my gal pals in Boulder! Easiest party I’ve ever had to host because all I had to do was send out invitations and show up. Nintendo took care of the space, the equipment, the food, and beverages.

fruit juice shooters

everyone was let loose to try the yoga and the games after a quick demo

we had a blast

Oh, that was seriously fun. What I love about Wii Fit Plus and the Wii in general is how it’s more than just a gaming system. It gets you moving and it can be a social activity (I’m definitely hosting Wii parties at my house!). Exercise made fun. I’m a big fan of the multiplayer mode. My favorite activity is the Rhythm Kung Fu.

that’s my Mii character

we even have a Mii pet for kaweah

The good people at Nintendo have given me an additional Wii and a Wii Fit Plus game and I’m giving them away here! You merely have to answer the question:

How will you fit some fit in with the Wii Fit Plus from Nintendo?

Let me translate: How are you gonna get your Wii on?

Here are the rules:

1) Leave a comment on THIS POST answering the question above by 11:59 pm MDT Sunday, April 25, 2010.
2) One entry per person. If you submit multiple entries, you will be disqualified.
3) The winner will be selected at random using a random number generator and announced on Monday, April 26, 2010.
4) Contest is only open to US residents 18 years or older.
5) Anyone related to me cannot enter.
6) Nintendo employees are ineligible to win.

Full disclosure: I received a free Wii™ system and Wii Fit™ Plus package (including Balance Board™) from Nintendo. The Wii Fit Plus party was entirely sponsored by Nintendo. The giveaway Wii system and Wii Fit Plus package were given to me by Nintendo, and I’m giving them away.

And finally: the recipe. California strawberries are popping up in the grocery stores around here. Yeah, I know they aren’t local, but who can resist a luscious red strawberry after months of winter? Heck, who can resist a luscious red strawberry ever? My favorite way to enjoy a strawberry is straight up, but a close second is an Eton Mess.

strawberry

separate the egg whites from the yolks

**Jump for more butter**