How Does Your City Netflix?

Ok, I'm about to geek-out here, but I just thought this interactive feature on The New York Times just had to be shared! It's a look into the ebb & flow of Netflix rentals in top markets across the U.S. You can look at specific movie titles and how they index by zipcode and city, as well as how titles index vs. each other!

A Peek Into Netflix Ques

Check it out, I'll bet your inner geek just might cause you stay longer than expected!

Enjoy ~ 

Jill

Mom's Triple-Berry Crisp

This is Mom's first post and I can't wait to try it! Wow, it makes me miss Blue Bell though!
Enjoy! ~Jill


Sally: I have been looking for delicious desserts that are quick and easy to make but satisfy my sweet tooth and can somehow be healthy. I have made this recipe 3 times in the past month and we just love it as a bedtime snack with either a squirt of Redi Whip, a dollop of Cool Whip, or better yet, a conservative 1/4 cup vanilla Blue Bell Ice Cream.

This recipe makes 12 1/2 cup servings. Prep time is about 20 min and it bakes for 50 minutes.

3 12-ounce packages (8 cups) frozen mixed berries (I used Bird's Eye Frozen Mixed Berries in a 12 oz bag)

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons butter

1 1/2 cups regular rolled oats

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thaw berries. Drain and reserve the juices. The original recipe read to reserve 1/2 cup of the juices and discard the rest but don't do that or your cobbler wil be too dry. Keep all the wonderful juice as a little runny is much better than too dry.

2. In a large bowl, combine berries, sugar, juices, and cornstarch. Transfer to a 2-quart rectangular baking dish.

3. In a medium bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until pieces are pea size. Stir in oats and nuts. Sprinkle over berry mixture.

4. Bake 50-55 minutes or until bubbly and topping is golden. Serve warm. Per serving: 214 calories (without any Cool Whip or ice cream topping), 5 g fiber, 5 g protein, 5 g fat (2 g sat. fat), 5 mg chol., 16 mg sodium, 38 g carb.

A delicious lower calorie version to the traditional crumb top cobbler.
Enjoy!

Sally ~ Jill's Mom

Just because...

It's a Candelier! Love it.

Handstrung by Kevin Champeny. Approximately 5,000 acrylic gummi bears. 31" diameter. Credit: My Modern Met

Batting Practice in the Kitchen

For those of us that are new to the cooking-for-yourself thing, trial and error is inevitable within the kitchen. All the recipes in the world can't teach one to poach an egg (which I'm still admittedly nervous to try.) Much like hitting a softball, it's all about practice! Timing, pace, focus, picturing the end result... you see the connection, right? ;)

So while I do love time in the kitchen, if I cooked at a .500 average (50% chance of success), well I'd run out of money, food, time and most importantly patience! 


For this reason, I just had to post a new article by Cooking Light, The 25 Most Common Food Mistakes. It's seemed like such a great 101 session for us newbies, and potential refresher for those of you who have spent more years within the kitchen triangle (sink to stove to fridge.) So let the learning begin!

1. You don't taste as you go (Jill note: obviously the best part of being the chef, right!?!?)
2. You don't read the entire recipe before you start cooking (guilty)
3. You make unwise substitutions in baking
4. You boil when you should simmer
5. You overheat chocolate
6. You over-soften butter
7. You over-heat low fat milk products (just another reason to just use the good full fat stuff!)
8. You don't know your oven's quirks and idiosyncrasies (that's a trial and error issue)

9. You're too casual about measuring ingredients (guilty, really only a big deal if baking right?)
10. You overcrowd the pan
11. You mishandle egg whites
12. You turn the food too often
13. You don't get the pan hot enough before adding the food
14. You slice meat with - instead of against - the grain
15. You underbake cakes and breads (brownies do not fall within this "no-no")
16. You don't use a meat thermometer
17. Meat gets no chance to rest after cooking
18. You try to rush the cooking of caramelized onions (best pizza topping ever)

19. You overwork dough
20. You neglect the nuts you're toasting (totally guilty!)
21. You don't shock veggies when they've reached the desired temperature
22. You put all the salt in the marinade or breading
23. You pop meat straight from fridge to grill/oven
24. You don't know when to abandon, skip or start over
25. You use inferior ingredients (great balsamic has become my new best friend)


Hopefully you will find this info as helpful as I did. Check the Cooking Light link for more info on all 25 tips!
Enjoy~ Jill