Recipe Review: Thirty Minute Skillet Baked Ziti

Being a single mom presents many challenges, the one I face most often is keeping my kid fed between working and the multiple sports and activities. Heck this is challenging for any family. So I’m always on the lookout for quick, simple meals that actually taste good. One of the problems I’ve run into is simple meals sometimes end up tasting bland and then no one wants to eat them. This recipe not only uses just a few pans / utensils (easier clean up, woohoo) but my son went back for seconds, a win all the way around.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

6 cloves garlic, minced (you can also use pre-minced from a jar)

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (want a bit more heat, add more pepper flakes)

Salt & black pepper to taste

1 – 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes

3 cups water

12 ounces (3 ¾ cups) ziti

½ cup heavy cream (half & half, crème fraiche or a mix would also work)

½ cup grated parmesan

¼ cup fresh, minced basil (you can substitute 1/8 cup of dried basil)

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (feel free to add more if you like things cheesy)

Tips: You will need an oven-proof skillet (deeper than a frying pan) or a 2-quart casserole dish. Measure water and pasta before you cook. Prep the parmesan and basil as the pasta simmers.

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 475, you’ll want the rack to be in the middle.
2. Combine oil, garlic, pepper flakes and ½ tsp salt in skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant (~ 1 min).
3. Add tomatoes, water, ziti and ½ tsp salt to skillet, cover and cook for 15 – 18 min until at a rapid simmer and ziti is al dente. Stir frequently.
4. Stir in cream, Parmesan and basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle mozzarella over top and transfer to oven.
5. Bake ~ 10 min until cheese has melted.

Remember: use an oven-mit when removing skillet from oven. You’re probably going, “Well duh!” but trust me, I’ve forgotten a time or two and it hurts, OUCH! The handle may stay cool when on the stove; it definitely won’t be coming out of the oven.

Ideas / Variations

• Add black olives, pepperoni, mushrooms – will begin to taste like a baked pizza
• Replace ½ cup of water with ½ cup of Vodka to make a Vodka-Cream sauce
• Add 2 anchovy fillets, rinsed and minced and sauté with garlic. Replace cream with red wine. Add ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives, coarse chopped with basil for a Puttanesca sauce.
• Serve with roasted broccoli, cauliflower or a nice tossed salad.

If you have any other ideas or variations, we’d love to hear from you. Enjoy!

Are Gordon Ramsay's Scrambled Eggs All That?

Years ago I went through a phase where I watched a lot of shows from the BBC. I came across this British chef called Gordon Ramsay and watching him just made me chuckle. Why? It was very evident he knew his stuff & it was his love of profanity. Yup, the guy swears more than a trucker / sailor / ticked off mama, his favorite word seemed to be the f-bomb. Heck, he even has a TV show called "The F Word." Once you get past the profanity, the content of what he was saying was spot on! If you're looking for truth, he's your man. Not the sugar-coated version of the truth that's prevalent across our society, the truth we say so we don't hurt someone's feelings, it's the very brutal, pointed truth that makes you cry. The kind of truth that once you get over being insulted, you realize you can actually learn something and improve yourself, kind of truth. Hard to come by these days. But I digress...

Chef Ramsay has become well-known state-side from shows like Hell's Kitchen & MasterChef. Yes, he swears, the network just bleeps it out. Lately my son and I have taken to watching MasterChef together. We discuss what the contestants are cooking, would we ever eat the food and of course, Chef Ramsay's profanity. My son, not unlike me, finds it amusing. Anyway, while we're watching, one of the challenges was to cook scrambled eggs a la Ramsay. I said, "I could do that" and he said, "I would eat that." Challenge accepted!

I had all the ingredients (eggs, butter, salt, pepper) except creme fraiche, which was easy to find. I normally use a frying pan, this time I used a pot. I normally scramble my eggs and add milk before applying heat, this time the butter and eggs went in the pot unscrambled. I usually use a whisk, I used a spatula. The biggest difference was moving the eggs on and off the burner. I accomplished that without dropping the whole darn pot on my foot. Win! At the end put in the salt, pepper and creme fraiche, then plated. Please keep in mind that it was 6:00 AM and I didn't add the fancy garnishes, like dill he suggested. I did manage to make cinnamon toast for my son.

Well, if you're looking for dry, hard scrambled eggs, these are NOT for you. They're absolutely not runny, but they are soft and creamy. Not what you usually find at diners. Verdict: Jacob liked them, but wished they weren't so soft. He said he liked mine better. Brownie points earned. I on the other hand loved them. They were light and creamy. Definitely a winner with me. We're going to try them again, I may use less butter or more eggs to try and get them a smidge firmer for the boy. If you're looking to wow your family and friends at brunch, this could do the trick.

Feel free to share and comment away. What's the best scrambled egg recipe you've every made?

Review: Wegmans Delivery Service - Loved It!

Hi Everyone! I haven't written anything in awhile. Call it busy, uninspired or both. But I found a topic that has my hands on the keyboard again, woohoo. I'll be reviewing Wegmans grocery delivery service. 

Honestly I was nervous to try it. Over a decade ago (yup, it's been a while) I lived in northern Virginia and routinely shopped at Giant (not to be confused with Giant Eagle). I liked the store (it was no Wegmans) and was tickled that they had a regular aisle for beer and wine (coming from PA, that was just unheard of at the time). They also had one of the first grocery delivery services I can think of called Peapod. I tried and it was atrocious. My fruits and veggies were mangled, my meat was open and my diary products were left out in the hot Virginia sun. Hello, who does that? Needless to say I was not ever going to pay for crap service and crap groceries again. When I saw Wegmans was offering a delivery service, I was really hesitant as that long ago traumatic experience came rushing back. But it's been a long time since 2000 and technology is much better. Plus, Wegmans has an awesome reputation, there is no way they'd put that at risk. So, I sat down on my laptop and tried it...

Some of you may be asking why I couldn't get up, off my butt, simply walk into the store and do my own shopping. What am I, lazy? If you choose to think that fine, be judgey OR you could choose this think of it as a smart choice. If you're like me you shop by walking up and down the aisles putting stuff in your cart. You may or may not have a list, you may or may not have your meals planned and you're always tempted by items you don't need (stores really know product placement). I routinely spent a lot more money than I should just grocery shopping, many items would go to waste. In addition, I spent less time shopping on-line than I did in the store. That's more time to cook, clean, watch TV or...what I really love to do...spend time with my son. I was done in 45 minutes and part of that was spent looking up recipes. There was no traveling to and from the store, no lines to stand in and no butt head shoppers leaving their carts in the middle of the aisle blocking traffic (excuse me can you move your cart jacka$$, there's other people on this planet, it's not just you).

Let me quickly take you through my experience. Wegmans uses an company called Instacart for this service. The icon can be found in the top, right corner of Wegmans home page.

Top Right: Instacart Icon

If you don't already have an account they will prompt you to create one, use Facebook or Google to log in. You can link your Wegmans store card and a credit card. You also set up communication preferences like whether you want to receive texts or not. Account set up was quick and easy. I was ready to shop. I thought finding things was going to be a pain in the butt, it wasn't. I did the majority of my shopping by typing in the product I was looking for, either the generic name (e.g. cheese) or the brand (e.g. Welch's). I had no problems finding my groceries. They have all the different brands they usually sell and their own Wegmans brand available as well. In addition, you can choose quantity or weight for applicable products. For most it's one click and it's in your cart. They also provide you with options to shop by Departments & by Coupons, which makes

 

it easy for whatever way you like to shop. They also tell you when your order can be delivered, 1 hr, 2 hr or you can select your delivery for when you'll be home. The one thing I would like to mention at this point is about product prices, they are a bit higher. Example, I usually get Oikos Triple Zero yogurt and pay $1.00 per cup in store. I paid $1.19 per cup with this service. Keep in mind they do tell you about this ahead of time, you are paying for convenience and because you are not filling your cart with extras, they still want to make money. I get it. It's not like they're a non-profit. They also did a good job explaining the 10% service fee, the delivery charge and you can add a tip for the driver if you choose. It shouldn't be a surprise when you check out.

Loaded my cart up with what I needed, not a lot of extraneous crap and began the check out process. Because I set up my account before checking out, this process was a breeze. But then again what company doesn't want the part where they take your money to be easy? Check out is very similar to Amazon & Walmart, if you've ordered from them, you can order from Wegmans. Very shortly after I submitted my order I received a text that said "Fred (actual name changed to protect the innocent) just started shopping! We'll notify you if there are any changes. Your perishables will be temperature controlled until delivery." Ok! So now I have the first name of the person who's packing my stuff and whose neck to wring if crap is delivered. We're off to a good start.

It was right around 7:00 PM when Fred started shopping. Delivery was scheduled between 8:00 PM & 9:00 PM so he didn't have to rush. But then again he may have also been shopping for other customers, I wonder how he keeps all the orders straight? As Fred continued shopping some changes had to be made. First I received a text that said the cost of my sea scallops was refunded. I clicked on the link provided in the text which took me to where I could approve the refund, found out they didn't have them available. Received another text saying that Fred needed to replace one product for another. Another link was provided where I approved the substitution. I could have asked for a different product or had them refund the cost. 20 minutes later received a text that my delivery was on the way and approximate arrival was 8:00 PM. Car pulls up before 8:00 PM and low and behold, it was Fred, the same dude who packed up my stuff delivered it as well. He brought the stuff to the door, smiled a lot, was professional and friendly.


Ok, the moment of truth, did they deliver crap? I warily opened my eggs...not a crack. I gingerly took my Roma tomatoes out of the bag...not a bruise. I continued unpacking and didn't find a single thing to complain about. Then I noticed my bananas were missing. The horror, my heart just sunk. I went and checked my order, my mistake, I never put the darn bananas in the cart, ugh!. Fred did a great job picking out some good stuff. I had fruit and veggies, meat and dairy, all of it was just want I ordered and in fantastic condition, definitely not the experience from a decade ago with that other service. It was overall a fantastic experience. So now the question becomes, will they be able to meet these high expectations when I use the service again? Time will tell.

My recommendation is to try it! First delivery is free and you may have even received $10 off in your email. Instacart does have a subscription service that I'm going to look at an determine my break-even point. If it makes sense, I'll subscribe to save additional money. If you do try it, be sure to let us know what you think. I can send you a $10 off coupon, just send me your email.

What I Liked:

~ No traffic, no lines, shopped from the comfort of my home

~ Saved money even after the service charge & tip

~ Person who packed my groceries was the same person who delivered them

~ Friendly, professional customer service

~ Groceries were not damaged and what I ordered

~ Receiving texts with updates and links to approve changes

~ Overall ease of the end-to-end experience

What I Didn't Like:

~ Wish they would have told me they didn't have the product before I put it in my cart

~ Had a bit of trouble getting logged in the first time, nothing major

~ Guilt that I didn't get off my butt and go shopping (I'm over it now, lol)

Links

• My Referral Link
• Wegmans Instacart Link
• Wegmans Link
• Instacart Link
• Instacart Express Subscription Service Link
• How to Use Instacart Link
• Pricing Legalese Link
• Payment Information Link
• Ordering Information Link
• Delivery Information Link

An Ancient Symbol Reinvented - The #

There are many of us raised to believe that this innocuous symbol # is called a pound sign. I would say that most (not all) Baby Boomers still call it a pound sign as I've had this discussion with my folks on numerous occasions, all in good fun. Then you have my generation, Generation X / Gen Xers who got to witness FIRST HAND the transformation of the pound sign to the...drum roll please... hashtag #. An experience like this only comes around once in a few generations, such as Venus' transit across the sun. Before this there was the wheel, then sliced bread, and coffee makers that brew one cup at a time, all equally transformational. Yes, I know I'm leaving out the REALLY important changes like the end of slavery and the industrial revolution, but this article is really more tongue-in-cheek. 

Currently I have the incredible opportunity of working with a diverse group of people and as I get long in the tooth calling # a pound sign is becoming obsolete. Matter of fact if I mistakenly slip up and say "pound sign" most heads swivel around like Linda Blair's in The Exorcist, (cue creepy Exorcist music here) staring at me with blank, zombie-like stares, not able to comprehend what I just meant. Fellow Gen Xers in the room often jump in with, "Oh, you mean the hashtag" in an effort to help me not look like a BOF (Boring Old Fart). As soon as that's said there's a collective sign of relief, like what I had spoken was utter blasphemy. There are quick whispers that rise up like the swell of a wave, "Poor soul, she knows not what she speaks" and "Wow, I can't believe that came out of her mouth, where's the soap?" At this point my face is beet red and I try valiantly not to stutter trying to bring the meeting back to order. Eventually the commotion dies down, but for the remainder of the meeting I'm plagued with sympathetic faces or those who can't even look me in the eyes.

As I've just bared my embarrassing moments to you, allow me to get nerdy for just a second. Let's talk #History... Its origins are from libra pondo, ℔. If it's used before something (e.g. #2 pencil) it's read as "number two pencil." If it's after something (e.g. 5#) it's read as "five pounds" to indicate weight. Keep in mind it's not to be confused with the Chinese character 井, the musical sharp sign (♯), the techie viewdata square (⌗), the Latin numero sign (№), the scientific equal and parallel to symbol (⋕) or the game Tic-tac-toe's grid. The subtle difference is the #hashtag has 2 parallel, horizontal lines and 2 parallel, right-tilting, vertical lines, which I really wasn't aware of and have been writing a tic-tac-toe grid these past 40+ years (#HonestMistake). No wonder I had an onslaught of people who wanted to go tete-a-tete with me in this fast-paced, riveting game. I just thought they really, really liked tic-tac-toe (#WhoKnew).

Ok, coming back to the present, you may be wondering what's it's used for now? Why is it plastered all over my computer, Facebook, on billboards and on TV? And how can I talk about it without sounding like an old fart? Those of you in Generation Y, Millennials, or Generation Z I'm thinking you already understand what I'm about to write, but feel free to keep reading, I'll try and add some humor. So, the # is used to take advantage of metadata or in non-IT terms, it's data that provides information about other data. Why the heck would anyone want data about data? There is so much of everything imaginable out there, so much in fact our computers and especially our brains can't process it all. Yet we still need the ability to find what we need, easily & quickly. That's where metadata comes in. Companies want to sell products, advertisers want to pinpoint their targeted demographics, people like us just want to find funny memes or the dumb things politicians say to post on Facebook and Twitter. This is where the # makes it easy, grouping data about data together for us so all we have to do is click and voila, all the posts, memes, comments, pics we could ever want about the topic is at our fingertips. What I've found through my scientific research is the best place to use the # is Twitter, hands down. Followed by Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. Many people specifically find popular # topics and add them to their post so it will be found more frequently, nothing like free advertising right? Others will #CreateTheirOwn in hopes it sparks a revolution in the #Twitterverse. For me, I'm still trying to figure out when to create my own versus piggy-backing on an already created, trending one. But that my friends is another topic for another day.

With all this being said, if you take one thing away from this scintillating #hashtag discussion it's this, unless you want to be looked at like you have two heads... DON'T say pound sign! And when you want to sound "normal" or easily understood by the masses it goes like this...

#NotAnOldFart is spoken "hashtag not an old fart." You're welcome.

Our Buzzing Little Friends

They're yellow & black...no not the Pittsburgh Steelers. They buzz around your head and sometimes, yes, they will sting you (those are the a$$holes of the group). But they also produce honey and pollinate our fruits and veggies so we have something to eat. You guessed it, they're bees. They come in all shapes and sizes and if you haven't heard they're dying at an alarming rate due to Colony Collapse Disorder.

I'm not going to go into detail about what that is (if you're reading this blog, then you can read). What I will ask is for you to think twice about swatting them, smushing them or using pesticides against them when you're out and about. If you have a hive in your house, well that's a whole other thing! I wanted to show you a few of my recent pictures of bees in hopes you'll think about these little creatures when you're out, when you're eating food or when you hear that buzzing in your ear. 

Not a bee, but a Hoverfly. Another effective pollinator.

Millcreek Youth Athletic Association (MYAA) - 63 Years & Going Strong

If you grew up in Erie and the surrounding areas, you've probably heard of the Millcreek Youth Athletic Association or MYAA for short. If you're a parent of a child who likes sports, more than likely they've played on an MYAA team. Did you know they've been around for 63 years? They started off with baseball and quickly added softball. Today they have many sports such as basketball...which my son eagerly waits for each year. He loves playing because the teams are formed with equal skills across all teams. There is rarely one team that dominates the season making the games fun and competitive without a lot of pressure and the coaches want to help and develop all kids, not just the "good ones." My son also had his first experience playing lacrosse through MYAA and has now fallen in love with the sport. This program not only provided equipment rental, which is a lifesaver if you've never played a sport before, but gave him the basic stick skills and understanding of the game for him to play successfully on other teams. What you may not know is all the other opportunities there are through MYAA:

• Baseball - From t'ball starting at 5 yrs old through junior ending at 15 yrs
• Riptide Travel Baseball
• Softball - From t'ball starting at 6 yrs old through 16U
• Little League Challenger Division - an adaptive baseball program for individuals with physical and developmental challenges
• Boys & Girls Basketball - for K through 9th grade
• Boys & Girls Lacrosse - K through 5th grade
• Boys & Girls Cross Country - K through 6th grade
• Flag & Tackle Football - Flag starting in K through 6th grade and Tackle starting in 3rd grade through 6th grad
• Millcreek Swim Team (MIST)

They also organize multiple golf outings through the year and sometimes even an adult kickball league...maybe we could even talk them into a dodgeball league, ok, maybe that's stretching things a bit too far.

Another thing you may not know about MYAA is that it's 100% self-funded. That means no outside funding from school districts, local or state governments. Everything they accomplish is through registration fees and sponsorships. That's pretty impressive if you ask me. So when it comes time for them to expand or take on a larger improvement project they look to the Erie community to find sponsors and partners. One of these opportunities is now. MYAA is looking to expand the Walnut Creek baseball complex. There is land that can be developed into three additional Little League sized fields when once completed will make it a seven field complex that could support 14 teams playing a night. The baseball and softball programs continue to grow with 1000 boys and girls & 90 teams wanting to play. That's a lot of kids who just want to play ball, to hang with their friends, to reach for their dreams. Can you or someone you know help?

If you know my son then you know he doesn't play baseball, so why am I even writing about this? Simple, we need organizations such as MYAA to exist in our community. We need them to thrive and provide a place for children to be children, for them to have a chance to play a sport they love, to try new ones and an opportunity to be part of something larger than just themselves, to be a part of a TEAM. With many schools losing funding for sports programs or for elementary & middle school levels to focus on winning rather than developing, we need organizations like this to thrive. When I was younger I didn't touch a soccer ball until the 5th grade and I made the high school team. If that would have been me today, I would never have made the 5th grade team. So, it doesn't matter that my son doesn't play baseball, MYAA has provided many opportunities for him to play sports in a fun, supportive, developmental environment and if this organization can bring that chance to more kids, then I'm all for it, simple as that.

With that said, if you know of a business or someone that can sponsor or partner with MYAA to make this happen, I would encourage you to share the information below. There are already many, many businesses that sponsor this organization, let's see who else we can send their way and keep making children's dreams come true.

Please contact Kregg Heenan at 814-450-6364 or myaasports@gmail.com.

Thank you.

Join the ever growing list of sponsors:

• Emerald Printing & Imaging
• Marsha Marsh Real Estate Services
• Dick's Sporting Goods
• Erie Sea Wolves
• Bayada Home Health Care
• Colonial Pharmacy
• TSS Photography
• Dobrich Electric & Services
• Father & Son Remodeling
• Bath Fitter of Erie
• Innovative Audio-Visual

Dear Kathy Griffin, You're a Grown-Up...I Think

Dear Kathy Griffin,

I'd like to start out by simply saying I'm not a Trump fan, nor am I a Hillary fan, this has nothing to do with politics, so get that out of your head right now. What I am is a single mother who works hard everyday to teach her child that their actions, their decisions have consequences, sometimes good and sometimes bad. I'm also trying to teach him to think before he acts, to determine what will happen if he makes a certain choice? See, I want my child to be prepared for life...and if he makes a bad decision (he's human), there will be consequences he won't like and he has no right to complain about. Why? Because he made the decision to do what he did, it was in his control, it was his choice, no one held a gun to his head. 

Maybe you missed this life-lesson when growing up, maybe you've lived in Hollywood too long, I don't know. What I do know is you made a conscious decision to pose for that photograph. I'm sure you thought ahead about what might happen and you still made the choice, no one held a gun to your head to participate in that photoshoot...now deal with the consequences of your choice. Anyone with half a brain could figure out what would happen next. Boo-freakin'-hoo that people are saying mean things about you, you made your choice. Who flippin' cares that Trump (and his family) are mad at you, if you posted a gross picture like that with one of my family members or of me so my child could see, I'd be livid with you too, but you made your choice, you can't cry about it. And you can't be upset that people are generally upset with you, you lost the empathy card as soon as the photo was released. Besides, don't Hollywood black holes such as yourself suck up all the attention they can get, positive or negative? No, I don't think all Hollywood folks are black holes, so don't try and turn that statement around. YOU CHOSE to help create a grotesque photo under the guise of art / political statement, now sleep in the bed YOU made (which probably looks like the horse head scene from The Godfather).

See Kathy, this isn't a political post, it's a post about grown-ups being grown-ups and taking responsibility for their choices, not pointing the finger at someone else. Last time I looked, you appear to be a grown-up so stop being a victim and own your choice. You obviously have reasons for choosing to do what you did as vile and distasteful as it was. If my 11 year old child understands this concept someone as old as you are should too. Stand-up, own your choice, grow a set (of ovaries) and deal with the ramifications of your actions. Honestly, count your blessings you aren't rotting in jail for threatening the President of the United States, many people have gone to jail for less. You should also thank your lucky stars that you live in a country that allows you to make bad decisions, such as this, with the only backlash being mean words people are saying about you. I'm hoping you learned your lesson on this one and you grow up.

Sincerely,

A Mother Who's Trying to Raise Her Son to Own His Choices