My first official birthday gift. This was given to me by a co-worker. See my old favorite mug looking shunned in the background?

Tomorrow's my birthday. I have tricked a large group of my friends- 14 in all - into having dinner Friday night at a local Mexican restaurant.

Let me interject a comment from my 16-year-old son here: "Mom, I am impressed you even have 14 friends."

 I called the restaurant to make a reservation last night and was told they are not taking reservations from 6-8 pm. We live in a college town and this is the first week back for students. Because of this, the restaurants will all be fairly full. The owner offered us a 4:30 time and I laughed. I'm not going to be so old that I have to eat during the early-bird specials. Then the owner offered me an 8 pm. I took this time but this morning I am looking at it in a different light.

Eight at night is kind of late for dinner. I usually eat before 7 and then by 8 I am pretty much done for. That's when I pull on the *give-up-on-life pants and settle down for the evening. So, the question now becomes: Am I too old to eat that late? Gosh, I sure hope not.

*My son's slang for sweatpants.

I think about food all the time. Even right now, I'm thinking about what to make for dinner and whether I should buy more romaine or skip the salad and have mashed potatoes instead, or just skip dinner all together and eat half a chocolate mousse cake. See how that happens? A simple, reasonable thought about food turns into this unhealthy obsession that causes my brain to battle it out with my stomach.
We host many barbeques and dinner parties at our home. We enjoy doing it -- great food, good conversation and even better friends. It's a lot of work, but at the end of the night we go to bed full (not just of food, but life and happiness). The thing is, at these dinners we talk about food. Everyone shares a story about their most recent food experience, their favorite hometown restaurant or the recipe they tried last week. It's natural to talk about food while eating food, but it can go too far. I've had a friend comment on how she enjoys watching me talk about food. She said it was as though I could taste the words coming out of my mouth. (Those were her words, not mine. To me it sounds a little like vomit, seeing as how it is coming out of my mouth.)

Isn't this plate of food beautiful? This mozarella and pasta dish was prepared and photographed by Framed Cooks. (Talk about feeding my food obsession- she's amazing.)

Her comment got me thinking, and I tried to listen to myself when food came up in conversation. I realized I sound as though I am talking about my first love, or recalling my happiest memory. I love food, I have a passion for food-- not just eating it, but preparing it, admiring it and sharing it. The trick is how to find the balance between my love of the art of food and how eating it makes me feel or is a result of how I feel. How do I enjoy food without using it to calm my nerves or allow a celebratory event to become an excuse to have more food? (What? Armistice Day is not a good enough reason to have a three-course meal and dessert bar?)

In any case, I'm still working on that balance. Let's just say, it will be a lifetime battle-- especially since I just became the proud owner of my very own KitchenAid mixer. Can you see how this might be problem?

Isn't it gorgeous?

I plan on making spanakopita for dinner tonight. This Greek dish is made with phyllo dough and is packed with spinach, feta and ricotta cheeses and garlic — lots of garlic. My kids have been begging me to make this dish. This surprises me, because this isn't usually the sort of thing they like. It might be they like it because I make them in little pockets, so they are great finger foods. No silverware required.

I have been away from my blog for far too long. I started to get itchy fingers this morning and decided there was no time like the present to post.


It's December and the city is filled with snow. Signs of the holiday are everywhere — you can't escape them. From the Christmas music playing in the stores, on the radio and even in the street to the tinseled streetlights and houses dripping with icicle lights.

I have had a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit the last few years. Last year, it wasn't until just before Christmas Eve I felt really happy for the holiday. I put up my little tree this weekend, and even though I usually delight in placing the ornaments evenly around the circumference, this year, I let Moira and Maggie do all the decorating. They did a fabulous job. I sat on the couch and watched two, yes two, Hallmark Christmas movies this weekend. They both made me cry (one because of the emotional ending and one because the acting was so terrible). Still, I am not quite ready for the holidays to begin.

Each year we try to do something for someone less fortunate than ourselves. It brings a little humility and always makes us thankful for what we have. Most years we pick a family and do the 12 days of Christmas — leaving them small gifts and home baked goodies. This year, Jon had a different idea. For two weeks out of the month we are not having regular dinners. Instead, we are choosing two countries — the first is Mexico — and eating what those in the poorer regions eat. This week we will be dining on rice and beans (small portions), tortillas and maybe one dinner that involves chicken. The money we would normally spend has been put toward purchasing the items for a few Christmas dinners and miscellaneous non-perishable foods. We will take this all to the food bank this week.

I am grateful my kids don't have to be cajoled into doing this. They know we are blessed and have no problems giving to others. Hopefully, this will put me in the true Christmas spirit and I can enjoy the holiday with my wonderful family knowing we did something for someone else.

I did some research this past week on the veterinary science research being done at the University of Idaho — specifically with cattle. My mom was here visiting so I took her along and we were given the full tour by a very handsome gentlemen. While it was a hardship to tear my eyes away from our guide, I did learn some interesting stuff and got some fantastic pictures.

I've decided I really like cows. When I was young our family had a cow named Dodger that grew up to be beef for dinner, but before that my siblings and I loved to be around her. Touring the dairy and Steer-A-Year facilities kind of brought all that back. I think it did for my mom as well.

We were able to see all the beautiful new calves that have been born and pet and be licked by some other gorgeous cows. Their noses are so soft and velvety. All in all it was a great experience and I think will make a wonderful article. We will see how it pans out after I transcribe all my notes.

Mom getting her jacket licked by a research cow.

My mom decided this cow had markings on its face that would look at home during Dia de los Muertos.

A mom with her new calf hiding behind her.

One of the huskier new calves at the barn.

I wish I had some plain white plates for presentation, but no matter what the plates look like, the food still taste great.

So, my not so "on the cheap" dinner turned out spectacularly. I am going to make those green beans again next week. They are fabulous.

Because I am so nice, I am including the recipes for the short ribs and the green beans. Enjoy!!!!

Beer-Braised Beef Short Ribs

5 lbs. beef short ribs (they cut them fresh for me at the butcher- I think that's the best way to go.)
1-14-ounce can beef broth
1-12-ounce bottle of dark beer (I used Deschutes Brewery's Obsidian Stout)
1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
1/4 c. molasses
2 TB. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. dried thyme, crushed
1 tsp. bottled hot pepper sauce
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Place ribs in a 5 to 6 quart slow cooker. Add broth, beer, onion, molasses, vinegar, thyme, pepper sauce and salt.
2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 11-12 hours or on high-heat setting for 5 1/2-6 hours. (I cooked mine on high for three hours and then turned it to low for four more hours.
3. Transfer ribs to platter with slotted spoon, cover to keep warm. Skim fat off the liquid and serve it as a dipping au jus.

Oriental Green Beans

1 TB. soy sauce
1 TB honey
1 TB unsalted butter
2 TB extra-virgin olive oil
12 oz. fresh green beans
Kosher salt
1 TB minced garlic (I used the kind in the jar)

Combine soy sauce, honey and 1 TB water in a small dish. Heat butter and oil on medium-high heat and add green beans. Toss with 1/2 tsp. of salt. Cook until they begin to brown and shrivel slightly. (If you cook them too long they get soft- I like them to stay a little crunchy). Reduce heat to low and add garlic, cook until brown and then add soy sauce mixture. Turn the heat up slightly and cook until the liquid reduces. ( This will give you a thick dark sauce that coats the beans well)

For the mashed potatoes I quartered and cut up about 8 red potatoes until soft and then mashed them with butter, salt and a little milk. In hindsight, I should have used a little chicken stock too, for flavor, but they were nice and creamy.

I can tell I am in need of a vacation after today's trip to the grocery store. To begin with, there were no fresh green beans in the produce aisle. ( I miss growing my own. ) Apparently, they had been out for a few days. This drove me to spend $4.99 a bag on "organic" green beans.

Then to make it worse, the checker tried to tell me I couldn't buy a single bottle of beer. Don't worry, I haven't been driven to drink just yet, but I needed beer to braise my short ribs. After much back and forth and a call to the manager, I finally got my single bottle of beer from the $7.99 six-pack for $2.49. So, if you aren't a drinker the store charges you almost twice as much per bottle.

I got home and realized I had just spent $10.00 on green beans and $30 on other ingredients for what my cookbook claims is a meal for under $1.99 a serving. I don't know where these people are shopping, but by my calculations this is costing me a little over $5.00 per person.

Makes you want to forget about the cooking and order pizza for your whole family for $20.
My beer-braised short ribs with oriental green beans and red mashed potatoes better taste like a million bucks or someone is getting a very terse letter in the future- after I finish all the other crap I have to do like cleaning up after making the meal.