Best of the Week (2)

Best of the Week

August 8 - 12, 2011

I know I've been talking a lot about food lately, but I just had to share this one! When C & I were on vacation, his parents had a bag of Pretz-a-bagels at the house. Say whaaaat?! It's a bagel that tastes like a pretzel or is it a pretzel that looks like a bagel? It even comes with a packet of coarse salt that can be sprinkled on top after it's been toasted and buttered. These are currently only available in limited locations, but C's parents shipped us 4 bags of them. Haha, we'll be set for awhile. Look for them the next time you're at the store!

I never thought I'd be the one saying this, but Rise of the Planet of the Apes was actually really, really, really good! Caesar was awesome! This movie might not be for everyone (heck, I didn't even think it would be for me!), but you may be surprised.

baby ceasar

Let's keep this week's Best Of short & sweet! I've been battling "cold/virus/it's that time of the month (sorry for the TMI)" symptoms so it's amazing that I was able to even get this together. We have our office-wide annual picnic today, meaning free lunch, the chance to win gift cards via Bingo, water balloon toss, and other assorted activities, and an early start to the weekend!

Have a great two days off folks! See you on Monday!

500 Posts

Hi folks!

I've finally hit the 500 post mark on Sweet Tea Diaries! I started blogging in January of 2009 so I guess it's about time, but I still can't believe I've written 500 posts, and I definitely can't believe that anyone would want to read them! But here you are! So old & new followers, thank you from the bottom of my heart for going on this blog journey with me! If it weren't for many of you, I would have thrown in the towel a long time ago. I am constantly inspired and amazed by all of you and I'm thankful for the many blog friendships I've been blessed with.

Cheers to 500 posts and to all of my readers! Be on the lookout for a giveaway soon!

Tuesdays at the Table (3)

I'm so excited that I'm actually keeping up with this weekly post...yay for consistency! Thank you to Cole for hosting Tuesdays at the Table! Also, I'd love to know if you post recipes on your own blog - I'm always looking for inspiration for the dinner table. Please let me know in the comments!

I'm sad to say that C & I have been eating out a lot more than usual lately. Neither of us wants to cook when it's so hot outside! But a couple of days ago, I was inspired by a post over at YumSugar to make Gwyneth Paltrow's Fried Zucchini Spaghetti because a) I love Gwynnie (duh!), and b) I love pasta!

This recipe is super easy to make, and it tastes delicious! You could definitely add chicken or shrimp to bulk it up, but we went vegetarian this time. I'm doubtful that Gwyneth eats this because it can't be very healthy, but I'll just tell myself that she does and that's why she looks so good!

Eat like Gwynnie = Look as good as Gwynnie!

Fried Zucchini Spaghetti

Serves: 4 / Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound small zucchini, very thinly sliced crosswise

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Salt

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3/4 pound spaghetti

1 cup shredded Parmagiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving

1/2 cup torn basil leaves

Freshly ground pepper

Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, toss the zucchini with the flour and a pinch of salt. In a large skillet, heat half of the oil until shimmering. Add half of the zucchini and fry over high heat, turning once or twice, until browned and crisp (3-4 minutes). Using a slotted spoon, transfer the zucchini to a paper towel-lined wire rack and season with salt. Repeat with the remaining oil and zucchini.

2. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking liquid. Return the pasta to the pot and toss with the 1 cup of cheese, the basil, and a generous pinch of pepper. Add the reserved pasta water a little at a time, tossing well to coat. Transfer the pasta to a bowl and top with the crispy zucchini. Serve right away with lemon wedges and additional cheese.

This meal turned out delicious! From start to finish, I'd say it took under half an hour to throw together. The longest part was waiting for the pasta water to come to a boil. I also wanted to note that it's really important to reserve some of the pasta water because it does help to loosen up the pasta noodles once they've been mixed with the parmesan and basil, otherwise it gets too sticky and clumpy to work with.

I hope you'll make this soon! It's a very quick and tasty weeknight meal!

Please Make This For Dinner!

If I had one last wish, it would be that I could convince everyone to make this better than takeout orange chicken. I know that I say many of the recipes I make are "Delicious!" and "Yummy!" (and they are), but this orange chicken is incredible. It has to be one of the best, if not THE best, recipe I have ever made. I pinned this photo last week, and decided it needed to be made asap:

Source: thenoshery.com via Angela on Pinterest

Folks, I can't express how good this is! It tastes just like the orange chicken from a NICE Chinese restaurant and wayyyy better than orange chicken from a fast food Chinese joint.

I know the recipe seems slightly complicated, but it's really not. The most time consuming part is getting your chicken pieces breaded. Once that's done, quickly fry them up in a couple of inches of hot oil. The cornstarch/egg/panko breadcrumbs mixture makes the chicken so crunchy while keeping the inside moist and tender. I thought the sauce was going to be hard to make but it literally came together in less than 5 minutes.

So, if there's one thing to take away from all of this it would have to be...MAKE THIS ORANGE CHICKEN as soon as possible. You won't regret it, and you definitely won't buy the frozen orange chicken from Trader Joe's anymore, either (which is technically still good, but not really when compared to this).

PS - Since I am not a psychic, I had no idea that I would love this recipe as much as I did, hence why there are no step by step pictures here. However, I can guarantee that I will make it again soon, and I'll take pictures when I do!

PPS - HAPPY MONDAY! :)

Best of the Week

Welcome the return of Best of the Week (for this week at least...)! I liked writing this weekly recap so hopefully I can keep some consistency with it, but I make no promises!

I'm just happy because this week flew by for me! Without further ado...

Best of the Week

August 1 - 5, 2011

1. Well, we all knew that I couldn't let the season finale of The Bachelorette pass without mentioning it on my blog! I am so happy for Ashley & JP! Many people hate Ashley and rag on her for being a horrible bachelorette (which I did do that as well), but in the end I think she definitely made the right decision! As for Ashley's sister, I think she was way out of line with her behavior towards JP, but I'm glad that she has since apologized and admitted that she was wrong.

the picture from the photo album JP gave Ashley on their last date

Also, JP tweets now and Ashley has made her account public again!

2. I made a delicious dinner this week, courtesy of Gwyneth Paltrow. I will share the how-to and pictures next week for Tuesdays at the Table, but here is a sneak peek:

Yum! The best part was how quick & easy it was!

3. Shark Week! It's scary to see these animals in action, but fascinating! My favorite show this week was Shark City.

As a side note, C & I watched Soul Surfer last night and I cried at least 15 times. Like, legitimately had tears rolling down my face. It was so inspiring and really teaches a lesson that even if bad things happen to good people, it doesn't mean you have to react in a negative way. Instead, try to see the good in everything and every situation!

And one not so "Best of the Week" event:

My bike and I had a fight with the road, and unfortunately, the road won. It wasn't that horrible of a fall, but it still hurts! My hand is bruised from where I fell on it and my side is also bruised up. But luckily I was able to get back up and keep on going! (After remaining on the road for a few seconds...it was embarrassing!)

PS - If you are a biker/runner/walker you should have a RoadID! It's a bracelet that has your name, your emergency contact's number, your insurance number, blood type, known allergies, etc. so in case you are in a bad accident, emergency help will have all of the information they need to help you immediately. Here is mine (info blacked out for obvious reasons):

Have a great weekend!