My Cornucopia of Chaos!

I woke up this morning in a great mood---well rested and organized with what i was going to accomplish today...well, life had a few other plans for me and decided to start sharing them at about 6:57am!

I put 4 cups of water on to boil and added my steel cut oats---I was really looking forward to having these for breakfast as they are my absolute favorite thing to eat in the morning with frozen wild blueberries, toasted almonds, a sprinkle of brown sugar and cream...AND, i just bought these fast cooking version from TJ's that is done in 8mins so I am psyched to think I can make my breakfast and still be on time for my carpool...So, the pot comes to a boil and I turn it down to simmer and set the timer for 7 mins and walk away to the bathroom...I return in less than 3 mins to a bubbling brew of what looks like vomit all over the top of my stove AND the oats are not even done cooking! UGH! I still need to make lunch for my daughter and leave by 7:15am...this will just have to wait.

Go to the fridge to gather out the salad making stuff and what do i find---------a pool of some leaching liquid that looks like piss but smells like nothing i have ever smelt before. OMG, now i need to pull everything out and have a spontaneous cleaning session of every piece of food inside and all of the drawers and shelves! I have not even had a sip of my coffee...which is sadly lacking in cream....and I am buried in a Cornucopia of Chaos! So, I yell for help from Mr. Sleeper and he offers to drive the carpool while i clean things up!

I learned a couple of new things during this process, here's the first:

Sinks are like men! And, SIZE DOES MATTER! My sink is not the smallest I have seen but for the amount of cooking that goes down in my kitchen it is definitely NOT big enough to satisfy most of my culinary & cleaning tasks----so, now I have a wet floor too. Hey, when you are cleaning at 7am, why not mop the floor too!

Next, I learned something more philosophical...As I was standing there in my kitchen cursing the mess with every explicative I chastise my daughter for saying, I realized that even though I have a supersize mess on my hands, at least I HAVE MY VERY OWN KITCHEN. And, I was moved to great thankfulness! And, even though all of our food looks like an explosion, we are NOT going to go hungry tonight! God Bless the people of Haiti at this great hour of need...

And then I thought for a moment, and decided that when life hands me lemons, I am going to bake a "Lemon Merinque Pie with a Pomegranate Twist! Yes, this is a newly inspired recipe that I am going to experiment with today. Cuz, really, isn't that what "mixin it up" is all about?

So, in addition to the chaos of boiled over steel cut oats, strange ooze all over the inside of my fridge, an impromptu juicing of 25lbs grapefruit, 3lbs of mixed lemons & limes and 1 lone pomegranite, I now have a clean fridge, stove and floor, fresh grapefruit juice, a pie started, and turkey stuffed magical peppers AND veggie delight stuffed peppers with a mushroom duxelle all ready for dinner tonight and I wrote this blog and it's only 9am!!!!!

So, here's my question.........how's your morning going?????

ps...check back in a few hours for my newly created recipes for Lemon Meringue Pie w/a Pomegranite Twist and "Magic Stuffed Peppers."

Have a magical day!
xoxox
mrs. z

magic abounds in san francisco...

what a day!

but let's work backwards from dinner...black sweet rice steamed quite simply. sauteed sliced brussel sprouts with caramelized shallots and pecans with a dash of maple syrup. along with magically rubbed flatiron steak served with a newly created magical sauce and a fresh salad of avocados, mixed greens and tomatoes...oh my goodness! paired with two delicious bottles of wine: a cline and some trueblood shared with old friends and family...i have heard there are amazing restaurants and dining experiences to be had in san francisco, but that will have to wait until tomorrow because this dinner in on a rainy night was beyond perfect!

nitenite...

sleeper's magic rub heads north...

in our quest to spread the love for our taste-full, magical products we are going to fancy food west, the premiere event for the gourmet and specialty food industry.

held in san francisco from 1/17-19 this is our chance to explore new options and opportunities for growth in our foods.

so, food fans and lovers of magic who will be in the san francisco area, follow our updates on twitter and come by and see us!

that's all for now...
love & spice,
mrs. zzz

4 days without doughy carbs makes mrs. sleeper...

well, first the shrimp...when i walked in the door i was overwhelmed by the aromas of garlic and herbs. oh, it smelled heavenly! and then i peeked to the kitchen to see mr. sleeper putting the finishing touches on the dinner platter---he thought it would be fun to eat with our fingers cause everyone ought to "play with their food" every once in a while---so he circled a platter with skewered magic shrimp and filled the center with farmer's market fresh steamed broccoli. (i wish i had my camera for a picture...but i ran out of my office without it! suffice to say, it was a site to behold!) mr. sleeper KNOWS food stylin!

so, we sat down all comfy on the couch and popped in a video. he poured us some wine and BANG! bad shrimp! how can something look and smell fresh at the market, look and smell intoxicating on the platter and then taste off---you know, shrimpy? we attempted to eat another skewer thinking it was just one bad shrimp but alas we gave up and cleansed our palate with lots of broccoli and wine and...

popcorn!!! oh, yes! sleeper's magic rub on a stove popped bucket of popcorn with drizzled butter cured us of the "shrimpy shrimp!" and, it's one snack that is low carb so i barely broke any rules.
i sure felt naughty!

sprinkling magic into 2010...

hello blogland!

this is my first post! woohoo!

i have thought about this and pondered the how and when of this for years...and now, within a couple of minutes on a friday night, here i am. blogging!

so, now the what! the meat of this blog is gonna focus on adding magic to meals and finding magic in the moment, making magic out of the ordinary and sharing magic with those you love. . . i love magic!

so first, food...tonight mr. sleeper has added some sleeper's magic rub "original" to fresh shrimp. i cannot wait to taste it. first, because i am starved! and second because i have been cutting back on the carbs after a "magical holiday" culinary binge of cookies and champagne...
back to the shrimp...when i eat shrimp it always makes me feel naughty...like i am sneaking a treat! decadently! richly!

oh, there's the call. gotta go. i will let you know how bad i was later...

xoxox
mrs. sleeper