sushi newbie

The other night I went to a local Japanese steakhouse for a friend’s goodbye dinner. I’ve never been a huge hibachi fan (I know, I’m majorly in the minority here); I feel like it’s a lot of show, but come on, it’s all the same. They all do the steaming volcano of onion rings, the egg toss and fancy knife tricks. I don’t want to pay more for my teriyaki because someone is lighting things on fire just inches from my plate. Maybe I just don’t like strangers at my table when I’m out trying to enjoy dinner with someone…

Anyway, ahead of time I decided it would be a great opportunity to order sushi since I don’t go places that have it very often and I’m attempting to broaden my horizons. I’ve probably had it on only five or six occasions in my life. I also didn’t work out that day, so I wanted to make sure I had something light for dinner anyway.

Three of the six of us ordered sushi platters! I’m still what I’d consider a “sushi newbie,” so if I get any at all, it’s typically just a roll with my dinner. I figured this might be a good way to just jump right in with both feet!

The wasabi was HOT! Not that I didn’t know that already… I usually don’t even touch the stuff, but I figured with all the “non-rolls” (is that what you call those? sashimi?) on my plate, I’d want a little extra flavor. Whew, no! This chick can’t handle wasabi.

Thankfully, my friend Nicole was sitting next to me and is much more knowledgeable about sushi, so she was able to help. I definitely prefer the rolls that have fish plus an assortment of other things, as opposed to the plain fish on rice. I ate almost the whole platter and still wasn’t uncomfortably full. (If I remember correctly, I think Heather and I probably munched on chips and dip when I got home that night, so to heck with the “keeping dinner light” idea.)

Bottom line: If you haven’t tried sushi yet because you’re freaked out, or you aren’t a big fish-eater to begin with, start with something cooked. Look for the word “tempura” in the name. Or shrimp or crab. You can always just stick with California Rolls (rice-coated pieces with crab and avocado near the top of the plate) for awhile–that’s what I did. I’ve really gotten a taste for it, although I don’t love it or have to have it that often.

Here’s to my trip to Thai 9 tonight with Heather and her mom! I’m thinking that because I had a whole platter of sushi a couple days ago, I’ll stick with my usual: Pad Thai ZERO HOT!

best tea EVER

I would not call myself a “tea person.” Nine times out of ten, I’d much prefer a steaming cup of coffee with just a little too much flavored creamer stirred in. I love the slightly creamy, sweetness of such flavors as French Vanilla, English Butter Toffee, Caramel Macchiato and Creme Brulee, just to name a few.

I read a magazine article once that rated just how bad for your health some things were, like binge-eating on the weekends, skipping breakfast and skipping a workout. Flavored non-dairy creamer was one of them. And it was bad. Surprisingly bad. Basically, the article said if it’s possible to kick your creamer habit, do it. Like, yesterday. (They, of course, recommend replacing it with a ‘splash of skim milk and a teaspoon of sugar. Or, better yet, skip the sugar and add some cinnamon.’ Seriously? Creamer makes coffee worth drinking!)

While I’m all for implementing the various health-related tidbits of wisdom I pick up here and there, this is one I will not. WILL NOT. I LOVE flavored creamer. LOVE. I have got to run enough to deserve at least one vice. (Or five.) So, I will not be giving up my creamer any time soon. In fact, I just might add another flavor to my arsenal today. (Yes, I’ve been known to keep 3-4 different flavors in the fridge door at any given time, especially during Christmas.)

ANYWAY…all this to say, I’m not a huge tea-drinker. I do, however, like to keep a stash of “before bedtime” and energizing teas around just for those times I’d like a warm drink but not coffee. (I can’t do caffeine past about 4 p.m. or I turn into a gremlin and toss and turn until 3 a.m.)

However, in the midst of my current weight-loss campaign, I’ve begun to drink more and more tea as it’s only an expense of 15 or so calories for a teaspoon of honey. A nice pick-me-up in the afternoon that won’t break the caloric bank. I currently have peach, peppermint (leftover from Christmas), a green and white combo tea and a nighttime relaxing blend (which I just pitched the last couple bags of as I’ve figured out I’m not a huge fan of chamomile).

Then I found this:

I LOVE it. I am completely obsessed with ginger right now, so when I saw it at Kroger, I just had to get it. Bonus that it aids in digestion! Seriously, if I could only have one tea for the rest of my life, this would be it. It’s just slightly sweet with a hint of warmth from the ginger. I must have gotten it a couple weeks ago; I just finished my last bag today! I’ve already purchased a new box for myself, and one for a special friend who just happens to have a birthday coming up…

If you like tea and ginger, go get this. Now.

the cinnamon rolls come out at midnight

Literally, they did. At exactly 11:53 p.m. last night, Heather and I sat down to enjoy the fruits (or rather, breads) of our labor.

Heather’s getting promoted to Captain this Friday (yay!) in a small ceremony here at the house in the morning, followed by brunch. She really wanted to make Pioneer Woman’s cinnamon rolls, and since cinnamon rolls of any kind are a pretty drawn-out process, we decided to make them early and freeze them.

Thankfully, PW includes handy freezing instructions in her cookbook for busy times such as these. Lord, help me get through this week! And really, who has time to make cinnamon rolls, FROM SCRATCH, the morning of? Even the most adept pastry baker (which I am NOT) has to wait for bread to rise. And, I’m sorry, but I’ve done the whole refrigerate-overnight-and-rise-in-the-morning deal, and it’s never the same.

I digress.

We didn’t get started until Maggie went to bed, and by the time we’d warmed and cooled the milk mixture, added yeast (not sure if we got the right amount…Heather forgot whether she put one scoop in or two!), flour and let it rise for an hour…it was pushing 10 p.m. Part of this was my fault, as I’m trying to place an order for a “Scentsy” warmer and spent much of last night with my nose in about a million tiny scent pots trying to figure out what wax I want to buy!

Again, I digress.

Thankfully, I actually remembered to get the camera out. I’m still trying to get used to “documenting” as a blogger. All too often, I realize AFTER the fact that I should have brought my camera. Rather, Andrew’s camera. The one that’s really big and bulky… I’m asking for a new digital camera for my birthday–fingers crossed!

This is why I love Heather:

She makes me get a laugh out of life here and there. (Disclaimer: this photo is posed. However, she really did toss the flour bowl on my head after HAND-SPRINKLING eight cups of flour into the larger bowl while I mixed. This was a miscommunication on my part…)

Check out those arms! (I had to…) I also love Heather because she really likes to take pictures. This comes in handy for a blogger so that I can actually APPEAR in some of them every now and then. Check out the silicone pastry mat, too–incredibly handy for dough, although this recipe calls for you to roll it out in such a wide rectangle that it kinda defeats the purpose…

Here we are at 11 p.m. and no cinnamon rolls have made it to the oven yet. It’s going to be a long night. Heather busted out the chips and dip (again)… She is RUINING my diet! Oh well, at least I’m having fun 🙂

This could be called “Ooey, Gooey Goodness” by Heather A. Simone. Such a great photo!

Frosting….yum! I may have gone a bit heavy on the coffee and maple flavoring, but it’s still REALLY good. I like that it’s not that bright white, sickly sweet icing that comes in those cans of cinnamon rolls you buy at the store. PW also gives an orange variation in the book–definitely trying that next time.

At this point, we’re getting tired and goofy. But still having fun! I swear, in the month Heather’s been here, I think I’ve gotten the least amount of sleep in my life (including field training!), but it’s so worth it.

Loading cinnamon goodness into the oven. Again, please take a moment to appreciate all my hard work these last few weeks. I’ve finally lost enough weight to show off the arm and shoulder muscles I earned in the pool all those years ago. That, and my current lifting routine doesn’t hurt, either. (Side note: I’m planning a full “weight-loss” post once I reach my goal, which WAS only 4 pounds away but now might be more like 5 or 6 since Heather keeps pulling out the chips!)

Finally sitting down to enjoy! Heather’s “before” face, above. Her “after” face, below:

Now those are some well-earned calories! I have to admit, we both thought the rolls themselves were a bit “bready.” And we both swear the first time we had them, courtesy of Sara’s first time at house church, they were much “doughier.” Does that make sense? How can we make sure our bread comes out doughier next time? Does anyone know? Would really appreciate some help on this one…

And because Hadrian is a dog and has a nose and can reach the table…

…we spent the next few minutes giving him dirty looks (which didn’t phase him a bit) and shooing him away. The poor guy…he’s always smelling such great stuff (he seemed really interested in all the Scentsy pots!) and he can see it but can’t quite have it.

I hated putting our freshly baked rolls directly into the freezer, but I’m SO GLAD we have them taken care of for Friday morning, and I’ll get to make a note in my cookbook about how they turned out from the freezer.