Time to Rise & Shine....

and workout.  When I have goals in mind, i.e. my wedding, my best friend's wedding - the motivation to exercise is definitely there and I'm able to power through.  I'm a little late to the 2013 party, but with it being my birthday month, I gave myself reprieve from getting up and at 'em.   

In the past, I usually work out either right before dinner, or late at night, like around 10pm.  With the work day longer, and me being more tired and with "better things to do,"  I'm going to give the workout morning a shot.  I'm not a morning person by any means, but I'm hoping that getting it done at the beginning of my day (and being rewarded with fresh blown out hair for work), my workouts will be more consistent.  I'm going to start off with every other day to start, and see how that goes.  When the sun is finally up when I get up (hopefully Daylight Savings in March) I'll be able to amp it up for the three weddings we'll be attending this year.    

I don't want to deny myself sleep either, so I guess a 10:30 bedtime's in order.  

Here's hoping I can wake up at 5:20am tomorrow!

Hawaiian Pulled Pork

We've been fortunate enough to have vacationed in Hawaii twice - once for our honeymoon back in 2009, and then just this past year in May for my best friend's wedding.  The food in Hawaii is fantastic, of course, and the amount of food photos I took while there is pretty amusing.

The one dish that we've duplicated several times already is pulled pork with Hawaiian pink sea salt.  As I've mentioned, we've become quite fond of using the crock pot, and using it to slow cook this dish for 12 hours is no exception.  This is actually hubs' recipe, and I can pretty much say that he's perfected making this.  The texture of the pork melts in your mouth while bursting with flavor from the salt and bacon. 

Ingredients:
fresh pork shoulder (this one made was 4.5lb)
2 T medium grain pink sea salt 
1 Tsp bacon fat (in lieu of liquid smoke)

1. Pierce pork shoulder with knife cuts to insert salt into crevices.
2. Rub shoulder all over with salt, including under skin and in crevices. 
3. Rub bacon fat all over pork shoulder.
4. Place in crock pot and set on low for 12 hours.
5. When done, place on cutting board, remove skin, and shred pork with 2 forks.
6. Add to buns to make sandwiches, or as we did here, pair with rice pilaf and fresh veggies for a complete meal.  

Cut up meat a bit to add salt within.

medium grain Hawaiian pink sea salt

Evenly distribute salt inside and out.

Adding a bit of bacon fat.

Pop into the crock pot for 12 hours, set on low.

Oops - forgot to take a pic of the pork "done."

 

 Shred pork with two forks.  Hubs' hands, not mine ;)

 

 The finished pulled pork.

 

Paired with rice pilaf and green beans.

Leftovers are delish (baked in the oven or heated in a pan) and I've also added it cold to salads.

Enjoy!

Turning 30

Last weekend I turned 30.  This is the age where finally, age-wise, you become an adult (supposedly). 

My 20's were a pretty amazing decade - graduating from college, starting a job in the real world, meeting the love of my life, marrying, buying a house to call our own, and settling into a job that I'm happy at.  Learned a lot, built up experiences, traveled more than I had in the 20 years before, and met and lost loved ones.  I've got to say that I'm proudest of my marriage - we make quite the team, and after three years, it still keeps on getting better.  I consider myself very lucky.  Overall, I'm pretty pleased and proud of where I'm at. 

What comes next?  Well, at work alone, I have two coworker buddies who are pregnant and due this spring.  Most of hubs' friends have kiddies running around, and two are pregnant with their seconds.  The ironic thing is none of my close girlfriends have kids yet...  Now that I'm 30, yes, the biological clock is ticking because if two kids are in our cards, then ideally they come by 35.  I'm not worried that I can't handle babies and little kids, because I've had plenty of experience with that.  It's when they become pre-teens and teens that worries me.  I'm also worried about the drastic lifestyle change that children bring about.  Because as I've seen and been told, kids change EVERYTHING.  I guess part of me just wishes that we had a few more years of just the two of us before we had delve into that.       
 
Will I fib about my age and say I'm 29 from now on?  That remains to be seen... ;)

Chicken Tortilla Soup - a pinterest test

If I remember correctly, I first fell in love with chicken tortilla soup at California Pizza Kitchen.  Theirs is a soup that I have yet to imitate perfectly at home, although I've tried, nor have I tasted anything quite like it elsewhere either.  This copycat version I tried a while ago came out pretty good, but I thought I'd give one that looked appetizing on Pinterest a whirl, especially since this one utilizes a crock pot, my new go-to appliance during chilly weather.  This one is courtesy of Baked By Rachel.

Pretty basic ingredients other than the serrano pepper.

Everything in!

The final product - with monterrey jack cheese & tortilla chips sprinkled in.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
1lb chicken breast, trimmed
15oz can sweet whole corn kernels, drained
15oz can diced tomatoes, drained
5C chicken stock
3/4C onion, chopped
3/4C green bell pepper, chopped
1 serrano pepper, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp salt, divided
1 tsp ground pepper, divided
Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded
Seasoned tortilla strips

To your slow cooker add first 9 ingredients plus 1 tsp salt and 3/4 tsp ground pepper. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.  (We did low for 8.)

Prior to serving, remove chicken breasts. Transfer chicken to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for easy shredding. Alternately you may shred chicken by hand. Season chicken with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Return shredded seasoned chicken to slow cooker bowl. Stir gently.  (We shredded the chicken via two forks.)

If serving immediately, divide among bowls. Top off with a generous helping of shredded cheese and seasoned tortilla strips. Soup may be stored in the fridge for up to several days.  

This soup was much thinner in consistency than CPK's, but nonetheless tasty with a good kick.  It may seem a bit "watery" straight from the crock pot, but thickens up a bit when you add the cheese and tortillas.  This recipe's a repeat! 

For the love of reading

I have always loved to read.  In fact, my parents blame my having to wearing glasses starting in kindergarten on the fact that I'd sneak books into my bed and read with a flashlight when I was supposed to be sleeping.  (Thank goodness LASIK fixed that problem for me.)  I've always loved fiction in particular, and have devoured books for as long as I could remember.  Those book reading contests in grade school - I won prizes for reading so much and I never looked at it as a chore or obligation, but truly something that I enjoyed doing. 

When electronic e-readers came out, I hullabaloo'd them, claiming that I was more a "nothing-like-having-a-physical-book-in-your-hand" type reader.   That all changed when I received the Kindle E-Ink Reader about two years ago as a gift.  It changed my mind in an instant - the convenience, portability, and access to books has made reading so much easier, especially on the train rides to and from work.  There are always free books on amazon.com and with Prime, free kindle lending each month.  Coupled with Nassau County's digital library, I have more books on my queue to read than I could've imagined.  Not all books are available digitally, so I will still head to our local library to borrow one if needed.

Come this past Christmas, I knew I wanted to upgrade my e-reader.  The question was Kindle Fire HD or the Nexus 7?  I did tons of googling/research and compared them in person at the store, but in the end, the benefits of being an Amazon Prime member outweighed those of the Nexus 7, as well as my preference for the shape of the Kindle HD and ability to hook it up to the TV via HDMI to watch videos, etc. on it.  I've been using it for a few weeks now, and I can definitely say I love it.  Again, the Kindle has changed my way of reading for a second time.    

     

Blog change-up & a fitting recipe

Well, there was something up about my previous blog title and layout that wasn't really appealing to me.  I wanted to make it more me, and not just feel obligated to use "tiff" in the name somehow.  A blog site suggested to just put two things you like together while making it relevant to the blog.  And voila, Bread & Brulee.  There is something so simple and basic about bread, and it has always been one of my favorite foods.  And my favorite dessert?  Crème brûlée - simple ingredients, but "fancy" in preparation and perception.  And who doesn't love alliteration?   

A new recipe that I tried this past Christmas was fittingly,  crème brûlée cheesecake bars, per Pinterest from the Betty Crocker site.  So good and definitely a go-to recipe and new personal fave.  (Because yes, although I love to bake, I don't always eat what I bake.)

Ingredients:

• 1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
• 1 box (4-serving size) French vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 eggs plus 3 egg yolks
• 2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup toffee bits, finely crushed 

1.  Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, pudding mix, brown sugar, melted butter, 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and 1 whole egg until soft dough forms. Press dough in bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of pan.  

2.  In small bowl, beat cream cheese, sour cream and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add remaining whole egg, 3 egg yolks and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla; beat until smooth. Spread over crust in pan.  

3.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set in center. Immediately sprinkle top with crushed toffee bits. Cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate about 3 hours or until chilled. For bars, cut into 9 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.  

I always read reviews to see if changes are suggested to improve the recipe - none to this one!  Perfect as is.   The sugar cookie crust, cheesecake middle, and toffee topping complement each other wonderfully, and it definitely reminds you of crème brûlée.  Enjoy! 
           

Ringing in 2013

Happy New Year!  2012, in the blink of an eye, has come and gone.  Overall it was a great year:   Second-time trips to Vegas, Hawaii, a few days with the family at a lovely summer house upstate, and an awesome holiday stay-cation with hubs.  (Note to self to save up dates to repeat this again next year.)  Work was overall good - promoted, two new work buddies, out with a baddie and in with a goodie.  We reno'd our basement just as I'd hoped, and were fortunate enough to have not been too affected by Sandy.  Rekindled friendships and made new ones too.  A third year of blissful marriage celebrated with hubs as well.

In less than two weeks I turn 30 - something I'm still trying get my head around.  I'm hoping this year will be a milestone one in more ways than one.  I have my usual New Year's resolutions that I prefer to keep private, but one that I'll share is trying to regularly update this blog. 

Some snapshots of last night's New Year's Eve festivities:     

I stayed up 'til 3am this New Year's day - something I haven't done in a very long time.  I'm feeling my age for sure (haha), and will be sure to go to bed early tonight in preparation for my return to the "real world" tomorrow of work and year-end close!