Hello blog...i love you.

I LOVEEEEEEEEE NYC!!!

I love NYC!!!!

I really do!!! It is one of my favorite places. There is to much to do and to many neat ,cool places to shop and eat at.
I spent the past weekend with my son and a new friend in the city for a Rammstein concert( I am a fangirl as is my friend, Feather and my son , Charles( though he is more fanman...hehehe..lol)



2 days is not enough time to explore and while I am a walker, I have grown slightly overweightoutofshape as of late. But we managed to cover a some ground and eat so fantastic food.....more on that in a later post(I am at work...need to write fast...)


One thing that I love and hate( hate is strong word but lets face it when you are living in a small town and you go to a huge town, hate is the word to use) is the variety of stores that sell the best and coolest ingredients. I know that I am one  of the few weird freaks that love food shops and "chef" type stores. I love smells , and textures of new products. Seeking out new things that I might have seen on TV or in a book is like going after that one first edition book or rare gem.



  I suppose on some level I have a slight unnatural obsession with food...but not like a kinky I am sleeping with a side of beef or a box of fiddle head ferns. I enjoy my job and I enjoy food,moreover I enjoy sharing what I find and opening new doors for those close to me( oh the ego soaked words there).

I am a bad blogger...please forgive.

http://bourdainmediumraw.com/essays/view/928

http://bourdainmediumraw.com/essays/view/928


So I did this essay thing....

I dont want to be number one cause i think the top 9 have great essays.
I want to be #10....so I am seen:)



VOTE VOTE VOTE EVERYDAY!!!

Captain Phil was a sexy crab man

I will admit it...I am a fan girl of "Deadliest Catch". I am not one do go all weird and watch reality shows( ok I watch like two just cause I, A) LOVE Kathy Griffin and B) LOVE Tori Spelling cause she only takes her family and career serious...and I want to feed her.

But I digress....

So I have been watching DC since it started  seasons ago and right from the get go I was a fan of the scruff tough love sarcastic Captain  Phil. Have to say it was the eyes and big bear exterior but soft heart that attracted me and kept me as a fan.(and for the record Jonathan Hillstrand is my second favorite just cause he is a guy who will be there for you when the shit hits the fan.)


So anyway... My heart broke when Phil passed away this past February and watching this years episodes that show Phil's stroke and ultimately his death made me very sad . I wish  sometimes I had stayed in Seattle...not that i think he and I would have met though ..rawr vvvavv la BOOOM. But i miss the pacific ocean( talk about a 180 on topic) I miss the fresh king and opial crab we could get . I miss talking to crab men and fishermen on their off season. They were/ are some of the coolest and hard working people I know...and they smelled GOOOD...


......if sea water and old spice are your thing.

So the least i can do for my fond farewell to my reality TV boyfriend is a favorite dish of mine....


King Crab Wontons:


The mixture is enough for 15 to 20 wontons....DON'T OVER FILL!!!!


1 package medium square wonton wrappers ..if you have access to an Asian market ,get them from there..FRESH.

2 pounds pound king crab legs, cooked,  and meat pulled from shell
1 red bell  and 1 yellow pepper, finely diced
1 bunch of green onion  finely chop the whole thing
10oz boursin or pub cheese


Vegetable oil, enough to deep fry
 
 
1)Combine crab meat, bell pepper, , green onion, and cream cheese and mix together

2)Separate wonton wrappers into individual wrappers . Place one   tablespoon of crab mixture in the center . Wet your finger with water, trace around the outer edges of the wrapper and fold bottom right corner of wrapper up to top left corner of wrapper. This should create a triangle shape. Pinch every edge to make sure the wonton is sealed. Fill all wontons until you've used up the filling.

3)In a skillet place veg oil and heat up to about 350. Carefully  deep fry the crab wontons until golden brown. Drain on several layers of paper towels. Garnish with some chiffonade of Basil and serve with a spicy dipping sauce.




Rest in Peace dear Phil!! You made this NY girl want to escape back to the Pacific Northwest time and time again.XOXOXOXOXO

WHY do mothers laugh when we kids are being serious

My mum laughed today when I told her not only (again) about this blog but that I am a featured publisher on FoodBuzz...which to me is pretty darn cool.

Though in retrospect we have a sort of love hate relationship in some ways , She and Da are supportive but still after 39 years shake their heads. My voice of unreason tells them," Hey ...you made and raised me. You have only yourselves to blame for churning out to kids who are now sous chef and executive chef respectfully( that would be my older brother and me, if you're not playing along on the home version of " this is Gretchen's silly misshaped and obnoxious life"



oh i have a new bannnnnnnner

I need a muse or how to make me happy without lifting a finger but incase you like to I have some needs that needs tending..thats NEEDS ,not weeds.

Inspiration is hard to come by these days.

I work in a windowless kitchen and office , so half the time I am not even sure if it is am or pm let alone if the weather has changed.
Hotter weather makes me happy...well ok not true. The sun in general just makes me happier. While not a sun worshiper, I do like the big old nuclear star in the sky.

For me the sun evokes thoughts of fresh corn on the grill and swimming. That pretty much sums up my childhood. ...Fresh Eden New York corn and swimming at Mang Park in Kenmore New York...where I am from. There is a sense of warmth and relaxation I feel when I think of not only those things  but when I have either, though my swimming  pool is a creek behind my house.

I am inspired though this year but the green pastures i drive by on my way to work. I live in the country so I see a lot of green as crops are just starting to grow. I wish we had a bigger area around our house that allowed for house grown vegs and fruits...and the time to do them....well for me to have the time. My family does but I dare say at 14 and 3/4 I don't think he finds much interest in tending the garden.

My food at work is resulting in more care I suppose. Or  I am more relaxed because we are not balls to the wall busy...still busy but not to the point where I wont to kill( though this wedding this weekend , someone might die) I find I want to create more and do more. But I am tied down with cost restrictions and time restrictions.

At home, they will eat it if I cook it, so that is more a time to see what might fly with college kids. My sons are like starving kids..they can never seem to get enough food and shovel it in as fast as I can make it. Only problem is, I am so tired after work, I just want to toss burgers on the grill and call it a day.

So motivation is more than inspiration I guess....At work, my catering partner is great. She knows food and knows that if she doesnt offer varieties to our clients that one  of us is going to get hurt....lol

What I need in the long run is money...lots of it to buy ingredient....lots of fun, fun ingredients and equipment like a mandolin or a top to my cuisnart...or better yet their own so I can have mine back.


I need a culinary sugar daddy to go along with my music sugar daddy....wonder if I can combine the two?