Tiger Woods

A golfer, but also the namesake of our most recent beverage of choice. Actually it is the iced tea with lemonade from starbucks. Typically this is called an Arnold Palmer, but since our version is made with green tea, we thought we'd modify the name to include the asian element. I've duplicated it at home. There aren't exact measurements, but here's what to do. Boil a saucepan full of water and add 3 green tea bags (I used the zen tea from starbucks). Let it steep for 3 minutes and discard tea bags. Pour into a pitcher. Add 1/4 C. Splenda or sugar to taste. Add lemon juice or true lemon to taste. Fill the rest of the pitcher with cool water. Chill. This is a surprisingly refreshing drink. Too bad I didn't know about it when I was prego.

My newest obsession

Now that I'm a working mom, I am trying even harder to find easy ways to put healthy meals on the table. I've always thought highly of spice rubs (especially the gourmet rub from Weber Grill), but this truly is an easy and tasty way to cook meat and vegetables. Forget the complicated recipes with a gazillion ingredients, a little EVOO and a spice rub, maybe some lemon juice for the meat and all you have to do is grill or broil it! I purchased some spice rubs from World Market called Tulocay's and they are pretty nifty. The Asian Accents rub is amazing on zucchini. Who knew?

If you feel awful, eat Falafel!

At Hannukah, or for special occasions we like to make Falafel at home. I got this recipe from a little recipe book put out by the Israeli Embassy. Hope you enjoy it.

Falafel
16 oz. cooked chick-peas (drained)
1 lg. onion, roughly chopped
2 tbsp. Parsley, chopped
1 egg
1 tsp. salt
1/2 to 1 C. Breadcrumbs
1 tsp. Ground Cumin
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. Crushed Red Peppers
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
A whole lot of vegetable oil

Combine chick-peas with onion. Add parsley, lightly beaten egg and spices. Mix in a food processor or blender. Add breadcrumbs until mixture forms a small ball without sticking to your hands. Form chick-pea mixture in small balls about the size of a quarter (one inch in diameter). Fry until golden brown. (If frying in a pan, flatten them slightly before frying and flip to brown both sides.) Drain on paper towels. Serve with chopped tomato, cucumber, lettuce, onion, and tehina inside pita.

Tehina
1 C. Tahini (sesame paste)
2 cl. Garlic, crushed
1/2 C. Water (or more)
dash of cayenne
1 tsp. Salt
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
juice from 2 lemons
olive oil for garnish

Mix tahini, garlic, water, pepper, salt, and lemon juice until you get a smooth paste. Add water if tehina is too thick.

A Tip for Dallasites and Chicagoans

Whenever I'm in the mood for serious chocolate, I know where to go. Eatzi's. The name of the cake: Chocolate Oblivion. They sell them whole, but often they will have individual slices in the refrigerated case or they have single serving mini-cakes in the bakery case. Imagine a bottom layer of moist (sorry Jerod) chocolate cake topped with a thick layer of creamy chocolate mousse and finished off with chunks of Toffee and caramel sauce.

I recently purchased this cake for a department event and was quite amused by the reactions to it. It reminded me of one of my favorite scenes from the movie Chocolat, when they are celebrating Armand's birthday. In slow motion you watch the group savor the delicious meal that Vien has prepared for them; a truly sensual experience.

So, if you live in Dallas or Chicago, you may also satisfy your inner chocolate monster. In Dallas Eatzi's is located on Oak Lawn just south of Lemmon, in Chicago it is located on Clark just north of Diversey. They have a wide variety of other gourmet foods that are delicious as well, but none quite as noteworthy as Chocolate Oblivion.