A stylish, modest swimsuit...is there such a thing?

I am in the market for a new swimsuit. Once again Dan and I are heading down to the Outer Banks, NC for Memorial Day and I don't have a swimsuit. Let me rephrase that, I don't have a swimsuit that looks good on my body anymore. There is no way in hades I am going to be seen in one of my bikinis that I used to wear. Years ago I could have gotten away with it, but not so much anymore, no siree!

For those of you who have a swimsuit that is stylish and modest, please let me know where you got it. I don't want to look like this at the beach:


But I also don't want to look like this:

The stork stopped by....

And I am now the proud aunt of twin baby girls.

Congratulations Matt & Lesa!

New Discovery

I am forever in debt to my best friend Carrie. This week she introduced me to something that has changed my life forever. I may be completely behind the times and I'm sure some of you are rolling your eyes and thinking, "Mer, that is so last year". Well, even if it is, I'm introducing it to those who haven't heard of it.

Go to www.pandora.com for the little gem.

Pandora is an Internet music service with an unusual twist: you merely select a song or artist you like and the system builds a playlist of additional songs based on those musical characteristics. You can listen to songs all day long and discover new songs and artists just from typing in one of your favorite groups.

Now my new iPod is full of new songs that I never would have heard of unless I was introduced to this service. Thank you Pandora!

Happy Valentine's Day

Hugs & Kisses to my fellow blog fans!

Aren't these pretty? My biggest fan had them sent to me at work today.

Pineapple Salad with Cucumber & Peanuts

Trust me, this was amazing!




Pineapple Salad with Cucumber & Peanuts
(serves 4 as a salad or 2 as a main entree)

Ingredients:
1 to 1 1/2 cups fresh or canned pineapple chunks
1 English cucumber, or 1 medium field cucumber
3 spring onions (green onions), sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced thinly, or diced
1/2 cup dry whole roasted unsalted peanuts
1 cup fresh cilantro + handful of fresh basil leaves (roughly chopped if leaves are large)

Salad dressing:
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red chili, de-seeded and minced, OR 1 tsp. chili sauce (or more if you want it extra spicy)
1 T. soy sauce
1 T. fish sauce
juice of 1/2 lime (about 1T.)
2 tsp. brown sugar
1 T. pineapple juice (reserve off cutting board if using fresh pineapple)

Stir well then set aside

Preparation:

Place pineapple chunks in a mixing bowl.
To prepare the cucumber: Remove skin with a vegetable peeler, or cut off with a knife (if the cucumber is organic, leave the skin on for extra nutrients and fiber). Next, cut the cucumber in half lengthwise. Cut these sections again lengthwise (several times if the cucumber is thick), then slice the other way to create cubes or chunks. Add these to the mixing bowl.
Clean out the seeds of the red bell pepper, then slice it thinly into strips. Slice these in half to create matchstick-like pieces. Add these to the mixing bowl.
Add the sliced spring/green onion, plus the whole roasted peanuts. Add most of the basil and cilantro, putting aside a little of each for the garnish.
Now pour the salad dressing over. Toss well.
Pour or scoop the salad onto a serving plate. Top with the extra basil and cilantro you kept back, plus a sprinkling of ground or chopped peanuts. If desired, serve with lime wedges on the side. ENJOY!

What did I get myself in to?

For mutual last week I thought it would be a fun idea to teach my girls to decorate cakes. So 8 batches of icing, 9 cakes, 15 icing bags, and 13 hours later I ended up with this:

And this:


And this:


Oh yeah...and a HUGE mess:

(The red coloring paste still has not come off my counter)


But the outcome.....

....Was a success!

Thai-Fried Bananas

These were super duper good!

The rice flour and tapioca flour give a lighter consistency to the breading on the outside.



THAI-FRIED BANANAS

1 pound bananas
3/4 cup rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca flour (can use cornstarch if in a pinch)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 T. sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup water (may need a little less)
4 cups oil for deep frying

Method: Peel and slice each banana lengthwise into four slices. In a mixing bowl, combine rice flour, tapioca flour, sugar, salt, coconut and baking soda, then add water a little at a time. Mix well to form a thick batter. Heat the oil in a deep fryer or wok to 375 degrees F. Dip each piece of banana into the batter to completely coat, and deep fry until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels.

Pad Thai

This is for all of you requesting the Pad Thai recipe from my cooking class. Enjoy!




PAD THAI
(Serves 6-8)

1 ounce tamarind paste
3/4 cup boiling water
2 T. fish sauce
2 T. brown sugar
1 T. rice wine vinegar
4 ounces rice stick noodles
6 ounces chicken, tofu, or shrimp
1 to 2 T. peanut oil
1 cup chopped scallions, divided
2 t. minced garlic
2 whole eggs, beaten
2 t. salted cabbage (or chopped cabbage dipped in soy sauce)
1 T. dried shrimp (use for garnish, it was a little too fishy for me)
3 ounces bean sprouts, divided
1/2 cup roasted salted peanuts, chopped & divided
Freshly ground dried red chili peppers, to taste
1 lime, cut into wedges

Place the tamarind paste in the boiling water and set aside while preparing the other ingredients. (if you use tamarind concentrate you can skip this step-only place in boiling water if it comes in a cube form).*
Combine the fish sauce, sugar, and rice wine vinegar in a small bowl and set aside.
Place the rice stick noodles in a mixing bowl and cover with hot water. Set aside while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Once the other ingredients are measured out into separate bowls, drain the water from the noodles and set them aside. Cut the tofu into 1/2 inch wide strips, similar to French fries (or chop up chicken).
*(If tamarind comes in cube form, press the tamarind paste through a fine mesh strainer and add to the sauce. Stir to combine.
Place a wok over high heat. Once hot, add 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil. Heat until it shimmers, then add the tofu (or chopped chicken). Cook until golden brown. Remove meat from the pan to a small bowl and set aside.
If necessary, add some more peanut oil to the pan and heat until shimmering. Add 2/3 of the scallions and then the garlic, cook for 10-15 seconds. Add the eggs to the pan; once the egg begins to set up, about 15-20 seconds, stir to scramble. Add the remaining ingredients in the following order and toss after each addition: noodles, sauce, cabbage, shrimp, and 2/3 of the bean sprouts and peanuts. Toss everything until heated through and noodles are soft. Transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with the remaining scallions, bean sprouts, and peanuts. Serve immediately with the ground chili peppers and lime wedges.

Have you ever had a morning like this?

Spilled foundation all over the bathroom?

Make-up brush falling in a toilet of urine & hairballs?
(that's make-up on the side..not what you're thinking it is)

Well, that was my morning. I could have either laughed about it and taken pictures for my blog, or blurted out a few profanities just before leaving to church. (I did a little of both).

Thai Garlic Shrimp

I've had several people ask me to post my Thai recipes on my blog, but the bummer thing about that is that I have to type them all up and some of them are long, so I'll just post one a day. Here's the recipe for the garlic shrimp. It was indeed my favorite!




Thai Garlic Shrimp

Ingredients:

*12-15 medium to large shrimp or prawns (if frozen, allow to thaw quickly in a bowl of cool water.
*2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
2 Tbsp. soy sauce (or tamari-soy sauce with no wheat)
1 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
6-7 cloves minced garlic (or 1 1/2 Tbsp. prepared pureed garlic)
2-3 Tbsp. canola (or other oil) for stir-frying
Optional: 1-2 fresh red chilies, minced (de-seeded if you prefer less spice) omit for mild shrimp

Garnish:

lime or lemon wedges
handful of fresh coriander (cilantro)

Preparation:

Make the marinade/sauce by combining in a mixing bowl: oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and 1/2 the fresh chili (if using). Stir well.
If your shrimp are shelled or raw, remove all of the shell up to the tail (leaving the tail on makes them easier to eat, but you can cut them off if you'd prefer).
Devein the shrimp by running a sharp knife along the spine of the shrimp to remove the black "vein".
Optional: if you want "butterfly shrimp", make an inch long cut into the end of each shrimp (through the spine where you removed the vein).
Place shrimp in the marinade and stir well to coat.
Heat some oil in a wok or frying pan.
When hot, add the shrimp (with the marinade).
Stir-fry 2-3 minutes, or until shrimp are plump and pink (but also lightly browned from the sauce). Enjoy!

Thai Cooking Class

Last night I went to the Thai cooking class I wrote about in a previous post. It was so much fun. There were 12 people in the class and 10 recipes to make. We divided into groups of 2 or 3 and chose 2 recipes to make. I made the Pad Thai as well as the Thai fried bananas (which were amazing). When all the cooking was done we had a feast!

If you're in the mood for Thai food, you know who to call! If you want any of the recipes let me know, I'd be happy to pass them on.

My cooking partner Andria from Australia.
Here we were making Thai fried bananas.

Everybody hard at work

*Thai Barbecue Chicken Wings

*Garlic Shrimp

*Thai Lettuce Wraps
*Mushroom & Snow Pea Stir-Fry







*Thai Fried Bananas
*Pineapple Salad with Cucumber & Peanuts (this was one of my favorites)

*Pad Thai
*Mango Sticky Rice




There were two other dishes that I didn't try so I didn't take pictures of them. Thai Iced Coffee and the Hot & Sour Soup (I hate mushrooms).

Sad but true....I am addicted

75%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Thanks for the idea cousin Abby!