5-7-5
i normally doodle in long boring meetings. last week, though, i took to trying my hand at some haiku. i remember learning about this poetry form in junior high. you needed 5 syllables for the first and last lines and seven for the middle. the rule, from what i remember, is the last line should not follow the first two. i find this to be rather difficult, since your mind wants to follow the same path in all three lines. it's weird to be thinking of one thing and then have to totally change direction. in any case, here are a few that i thought up last week and during my early morning training session today:
freezing conf'rence room -
enough to make popsicles.
giant tree has birds
~.~.~.~
training is boring
when you've done it all before.
mmm, yummy coffee...
~.~.~.~
we've got a bleeder!
he is gonna need stitches.
grill that cheese sandwich.
~.~.~.~
rockin that jukebox,
dancin till the break of dawn!
e-mail reloading...
~.~.~.~
the river runs north
and the fish swim with the flow.
my car runs funny.
+_+_+_+
last night i decided to try and make something different for dinner. my june 2007 issue of gourmet had this lovely cover photo of a dark grilled chop, of some kind. it took a lot of detective work to figure out WHAT that meat was. turns out it was a pork chop. since pork is actually a lean protein (much like chicken), when it's not bacon, i though it would be a nice change from chicken and better for us than red meat. the particular recipe was called "grilled pork chops with adobo". just making the adobo paste for the meat had me drooling. the aroma of the paste was so delicious - i wanted to just take a spoon and eat it! i managed to control myself and slather the chops with the paste and set it aside for grilling. the paste is really quite easy:
2-1/2 TB olive oil
2 TB paprika (not hot)
1-1/2 TB dried oregano
1-1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp freshly grated lime zest
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper.
mix all that in a bowl and the result should be a thick paste. rub the paste on both sides of 4 pork chops. the actual recipe called for thick-cut chops, about 1-1/2" thick. they had these at the store, but it looked like too much meat. i used the same amount of paste for the regular bone-in thinner chops. sure it's a little more paste for the meat, but it's such a great flavor, you won't care. grill the chops over direct heat for 1-2 minutes, turning occasionally. then move the chops off the coals (or turn off the middle burner of a gas grill) and cook for about 7-8 minutes. take the chops off and let them rest. then dig in.
these chops were super juicy and had a TON of flavor. just the smell alone was enough to get excited. before now, whenever i thought of pork chops i thought of pan-fried chops, dry as a bone, served with apple sauce (a la alice, from the brady bunch) OR breaded with shake-n-bake and served with corn and mashed potatoes (mmm, nothing like triple the starch for a balanced meal). my mom never cooked pork, because my dad didn't like it. he said it was always too dry and usually served with something sweet and fruity, which he hated ("fruit doesn't belong with meat. period."). but these - these chops were delicious. they weren't dry at all and were not sweet, but spicy and fragrant. the lime zest adds just enough zing to cut through the spice. the paprika is mainly for substance and color, but you can detect a slight smokiness and the oregano adds a very subtle herb base. i served them with roasted cauliflower (florettes with lemon juice, olive oil, chopped garlic and salt and pepper, roasted @ 350F for 40 minutes), but it didn't TOTALLY match. marshall and i agree that this would be great served with some grilled summer veggies like zucchini and summer squash. otherwise, though, it was a thoroughly satisfying meal and one i'll definitely go back to. :)
+_+_+
tonight's game is at 6:40. any locals who want to cheer us on (we'd love the support!), come on out to twin creeks. it's $2 to get in the door and the clubhouse has a bar! :P
freezing conf'rence room -
enough to make popsicles.
giant tree has birds
~.~.~.~
training is boring
when you've done it all before.
mmm, yummy coffee...
~.~.~.~
we've got a bleeder!
he is gonna need stitches.
grill that cheese sandwich.
~.~.~.~
rockin that jukebox,
dancin till the break of dawn!
e-mail reloading...
~.~.~.~
the river runs north
and the fish swim with the flow.
my car runs funny.
+_+_+_+
last night i decided to try and make something different for dinner. my june 2007 issue of gourmet had this lovely cover photo of a dark grilled chop, of some kind. it took a lot of detective work to figure out WHAT that meat was. turns out it was a pork chop. since pork is actually a lean protein (much like chicken), when it's not bacon, i though it would be a nice change from chicken and better for us than red meat. the particular recipe was called "grilled pork chops with adobo". just making the adobo paste for the meat had me drooling. the aroma of the paste was so delicious - i wanted to just take a spoon and eat it! i managed to control myself and slather the chops with the paste and set it aside for grilling. the paste is really quite easy:
2-1/2 TB olive oil
2 TB paprika (not hot)
1-1/2 TB dried oregano
1-1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp freshly grated lime zest
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper.
mix all that in a bowl and the result should be a thick paste. rub the paste on both sides of 4 pork chops. the actual recipe called for thick-cut chops, about 1-1/2" thick. they had these at the store, but it looked like too much meat. i used the same amount of paste for the regular bone-in thinner chops. sure it's a little more paste for the meat, but it's such a great flavor, you won't care. grill the chops over direct heat for 1-2 minutes, turning occasionally. then move the chops off the coals (or turn off the middle burner of a gas grill) and cook for about 7-8 minutes. take the chops off and let them rest. then dig in.
these chops were super juicy and had a TON of flavor. just the smell alone was enough to get excited. before now, whenever i thought of pork chops i thought of pan-fried chops, dry as a bone, served with apple sauce (a la alice, from the brady bunch) OR breaded with shake-n-bake and served with corn and mashed potatoes (mmm, nothing like triple the starch for a balanced meal). my mom never cooked pork, because my dad didn't like it. he said it was always too dry and usually served with something sweet and fruity, which he hated ("fruit doesn't belong with meat. period."). but these - these chops were delicious. they weren't dry at all and were not sweet, but spicy and fragrant. the lime zest adds just enough zing to cut through the spice. the paprika is mainly for substance and color, but you can detect a slight smokiness and the oregano adds a very subtle herb base. i served them with roasted cauliflower (florettes with lemon juice, olive oil, chopped garlic and salt and pepper, roasted @ 350F for 40 minutes), but it didn't TOTALLY match. marshall and i agree that this would be great served with some grilled summer veggies like zucchini and summer squash. otherwise, though, it was a thoroughly satisfying meal and one i'll definitely go back to. :)
+_+_+
tonight's game is at 6:40. any locals who want to cheer us on (we'd love the support!), come on out to twin creeks. it's $2 to get in the door and the clubhouse has a bar! :P