Five Fun Food Facts Meme

I was just tagged by Holly over at 2 Kids and Tired with this food meme.

First I'll post the rules, because they say I have to:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 5 food facts about yourself.
3. Tag 5 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them)
4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

But since I'm feeling rebellious today, I'm picking and choosing which rules I am going to follow--kinda like a food menu (get it?). I'll take a number 1 and a number 2 but hold the number 3 and no number 4.

Five Fun Food Facts About Me

I love black olives (not green ones)

I've loved black olives for as long as I can remember. When I was a toddler, I would put an olive on each finger and call myself the "ollie monster".

I don't do that anymore (Hubby is so happy about that--particularly when we're at a party with olives in the veggie tray). I like my olives dipped in ranch dressing now.

I also like the taste of the "olive juice" in the can (I guess it's called "brine"). I love you, olive juice. Get it? Say it slowly if you don't.

I love tomato products but not fresh tomatoes

Give me a great tomato-based spagetti sauce anyday (even with chunks of tomato in it) but hold the tomatoes on my dinner salad.

I grow a lot of fresh tomatoes every summer, but they are all for Hubby who eats them like candy (particularly the Sweet 100's). I, however, don't like the taste of fresh tomatoes. It's the taste that's the same as the tomato plant smells that I really dislike. But if a bunch of fresh tomatoes have marinated long enough in a salsa then I love them.

Given the choice between a piece of chocolate or a piece of white cake, I'd choose the white cake

Although do have my daily dose of 1 oz. of semi-sweet chocolate a day as suggested by Dr. Cristiane Northrup for a happier Cindy (particularly in winter), I'm not a choc-aholic persay. If given the choice between chocolate and something else, I will almost always choose the "something else". I'm a lover of blonde desserts--plain cheesecake, white wedding cake, white angel food cake, vanilla ice cream... you get the picture. And given a choice between a chocolate dessert and a slice of good boysenberry, cherry, or apple pie? The slice of pie will win hands down! And if it's a cherry cheesecake? Well, there's no contest there! The cherry cheesecake will always get my vote.




My all-time favorite home-cooked meal is Porcupine Meatballs

No, they aren't made with porcupine meat! These meatballs are made with ground beef. My mom started making them from a recipe found in a Betty Crocker pamphlet she had. I've now inherited that pamphlet and dug it out the other night so Hubby could see the origin of my favorite meal (see the scan at right). After having spent the last 10 years reciting the recipe to Hubby from memory so he could make it (he's the cook in the house, not me), Hubby wanted to see the original recipe. And when he did, he was surprised at how much the recipe has been tweaked over the years by my mom and me. I think next time he makes them, he's going to make them exactly like the recipe to see how much of a difference there is between the original version and our tweaked version.

Regardless, porcupine meatballs taste great and make awesome leftovers that are easily microwaved. It's a recipe that indeed is a great way to stretch your budget. Here's the original recipe in case anyone else is willing to try out this great classic and make it a family favorite.

And finally... my last fun food fact!

I make great microwave food

For two years in high school, I worked at Burger King. I learned to make a mean Whopper in record time. I also developed an affinity for making microwave sandwiches and other foods. I really don't like cooking (which is why Hubby "owns" the kitchen at Rosehaven Cottage), but if I can make a microwaved sandwich or other entree, I'm happy. A favorite of mine is a re-creation of a menu item that was on the Burger King menu way back before I worked there. It was the Yumbo. It was basically a hot ham and cheese sandwich (just ham, cheese, and the bun) a lot like the one you can still get at Arby's.

I can make a Yumbo at home with a nice high-quality hamburger bun (whole wheat is the best), about 6-8 slices of good deli ham, and 2 slices of deli-quality American cheese. The meat has to be folded and stacked just right to catch all the juices and melted cheese after it's been microwaved for about 45 seconds on high. Man, is it a great sandwich but it's a little high in the cholesterol and fat department.

A healthier microwave meal option that I really love are my whole grain nachos (photo at right) that are only 6 WeightWatchers points for a whole big plateful.

Here's how to make them:

15 whole grain tortilla chips from Trader Joe's (Salsa Fresca flavor is great!)

1/2 can of fat-free refried beans 1 oz. sharp cheddar cheese

optional carmelized white vidalia onions (I use leftovers from other dishes)

Lay out the tortilla chips in one layer with edges slightly overlapping onto a microwave-safe plate. Put spoonfuls of refried beans evenly spaced over layer of chips. Hand-grate cheddar cheese over top. To regulate the amount, I put the entire plate onto my kitchen scale before putting the cheese on, zero out the weight, and then grate the cheese on until the scale reads 1 oz. Place optional onions over the top. Microwave the plate of nachos for 60-90 seconds on high. Enjoy with a cool glass of water!