jerseyhousewife

September is always a crazy month and I’m shocked it’s almost over. Where has the time gone? People have been asking me about the sauces course I took at The Institute of Culinary Education, so I thought it was time to blog about it. I spent three days in the city mixing and tasting and chopping and whisking and bleeding. Yep…I cut my finger and I’m going to have a scar to show for it. I sliced my finger while cutting an onion. King of the Castle told me he’s sending me to a knife course next so I can learn to use those things without hurting myself. Other than the pain, I had a really fantastic time in class. We flew through the sauces. First day was all about classic sauces: veloute, espagnole, béchamel, glace de viande, demi-glace and classic tomato. Second day was emulsion sauces: hollandaise, béarnaise, beurre blanc and mayonnaise. The last day we covered contemporary sauces: coulis, salsas, chutneys, relishes, infused oils and citrus juices. I now have the culinary school bug and

The historical significance of this day is not lost on me. As I was riding the train into NYC this morning, I tried not to cry at the thought of the many people who did this exact same thing 8 years ago. Only they didn’t come back. Today is cold and rainy…unlike that fateful day. But, the weather seems to fit the mood of the city today. I’m more aware of the sights and sounds today. I’m more aware of the people around me. Was that morning just like this…with everybody moving around the city to their jobs, walking their dogs, grabbing a cup of coffee before work? Were people frustrated at delayed trains? Were they happy to see the sun that morning? Were they making plans to meet friends for lunch before their worlds turned upside down? So many questions filled my mind this morning as I walked to school. At one point, I crossed 6th Ave and looked towards the Financial District and saw the empty space where the towers once stood. I had to hold back the tears again. I’ve had a

I wanted to share my menu plan for the week. I mentioned in my previous post that I’m training for a Foodie Marathon. This is the basic idea of what my weekly menus will look like. Sunday : Take-out (Pizza) Monday : Chicken Fajita Salad with Poblano-Buttermilk Dressing Cheese Wedge Biscuits Homemade Lavender Ice Cream with Honeyed Pine Nuts Tuesday : Burgers with grilled Vidalia Onions Sweet Potato Fries Corn on the cob Wednesday : Barbeque Beef Subs Red Potato Salad Thursday : Leftovers Friday : Bow Ties with Pesto, Feta & Cherry Tomatoes Baby Spinach Salad with Shaved Parmesan and Garlic Vinaigrette Watercress-Fruit Salad Roasted Salmon with Roasted Plum Tomatoes & Caramelized Lemons Blueberry-Pecan Crumble Saturday : ????? Surprise…. So who wants to come over for dinner on Friday?

Hello, My name is JerseyHousewife…and I’m a FoodNetworkAholic. Food Network’s Chefography week was last week. I was able to DVR most of the episodes I wanted to see. The kids and I have been slowly making our way through each show…with a twist. I thought it would be fun to watch a Chefography episode and then try a recipe created by the chef or cook featured. Here’s how it went down: Chefography: Rachael Ray Food: Summer Shrimp Rolls (Yum!) Chefography: Giada de Laurentiis Food: Stuffed Shells with Arrabbiata Sauce (Double YUM!) Chefography: Bobby Flay Food: Napa Valley Burger with Sweet Potato Fries (Gotta have more!) (O.K. I’ll admit it…I cheated on this one. We actually went to Bobby’s Burger Palace for lunch. I didn’t actually cook.) Chefography: Paula Deen Food: ?? I’m undecided on the Paula Deen thing. I’m not a big fan of southern style cooking. We just watched the Chefography today and I have a newfound respect for Paula. I do have a recipe for her Top Secret C

My kids are big fans of The Food Network. I’m quite sure I’ve mentioned this before. I get a reminder from Miss Mini Boss every Sunday night to DVR The Next Food Network Star. This morning, the kids woke up early. When I got out of bed and came downstairs, I found them watching the end of last night's episode of The Next Food Network Star. Here’s their review of the show (Warning: Spoilers ahead): Miss Mini Boss: Jeffrey won the challenge and he gets to cook for Red Lobster! Mr. Smarty Pants: Debbie lied to Bobby Flay. She told him that she put capers in the dressing and she really didn’t. She really forgot to use the capers. Miss Mini Boss: Yes, she did. I think she should’ve been disqualified for that. Mr. Smarty Pants: But, Debbie didn’t go home. Jamika lost because she yelled at the judges. She doesn’t really have a smiley face when she works. I think Jeffrey should win because he’s a really good cook. Miss Mini Boss: Yeah. And he’s himself when he’s on the

Mr. Smarty Pants is a big fan of Rascal Flatts. So, when I saw they were one of the bands performing for The Today Show’s Free Concert Series I knew I had to take him. I tried to get a fan pass to get a better view, but didn’t win them. But, that didn't deter me from still showing up. We had to be at the plaza by 6:00 AM. Anybody who knows me knows that I don’t do 6:00 AM. I couldn’t sleep the night before. It didn’t help that I went to bed past midnight and kept waking up to make sure I didn’t miss my alarm. I even dreamt that I over-slept and missed the concert and that Mr. Smarty Pants was terribly disappointed. Well…that didn’t happen. We woke up at an ungodly hour and got to the train station on time. We arrived at the plaza around 6:15ish. The place was packed. If you don’t have a fan pass you have to stand around the corner or across the street and behind the stage. Mr. Smarty Pants is only 3’ 9” short, so we found a spot near a planter and I helped him climb up the planter

Last week I got an email from Disney on Broadway announcing that The Little Mermaid on Broadway will only be playing through August…and then they’re shutting their doors. Mr. Smarty Pants heard the announcement on the radio and said, “Hey, Mom! They’re shutting down The Little Mermaid!” He then proudly pronounced that it’s all his doing…he’s taking full responsibility for shutting it down. Why? I’ll share a post from my previous blog and let you be the judge: Monday, February 9, 2009 I love New York City. There’s always something going on. It truly is the city that never sleeps. My mom was in town last week. We had a really great visit with her and wish she could’ve stayed longer. While she was here, we took advantage of Kids’ Night on Broadway and took Miss Mini Boss & Mr. Smarty Pants to see The Little Mermaid. It was snowing, so I wanted to start our little trip early to give room for delays. I pulled the kids out of school 40 minutes early and drove to the train station. Found

Miss Mini Boss and Mr. Smarty Pants are big fans of The Food Network. Their favorite shows are Ace of Cakes, Food Network Challenge, The Next Food Network Star and Unwrapped. When TLC picked up The Cake Boss, we started watching it out of curiosity. It was an instant hit in our household. Lilly recognized Buddy Valastro (The Boss) from the Food Network Challenge. When the kids figured out that Carlo’s Bakery was in Jersey their first question was, “When can we go there?” (Notice it wasn’t a “can we…” question. It was a “when…” question.) Last week, we hopped in the car and drove to Jersey City for a day trip to the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City. I decided to surprise them with a stop at Carlo’s Bake Shop in nearby Hoboken. They were giddy with excitement when they realized where they were. “Can we see Buddy?” We walked into the bakery heaven and were drooling over the seemingly endless row of pastries. A loud, Jersey-girl type in front of us asked, “So…is ‘The Boss’ here?” The

Starting over. A fresh start is always nice, right? I gave up blogging a few months ago, but I really need to get back at it...so here it goes. This is a blog about my life. My life as a mom of three kids...Miss Mini Boss is 8 and getting ready to enter the 3rd grade. Mr. Smarty Pants is 6 and about to tear up the 1st grade. Miss Personality is 14-months and is sitting next to me looking cute...even as she shoves pancakes into her ear. The King of the Castle and I have been married for over 13 years and I'd marry him all over again...if given the chance. We live in the Garden State...probably one of the craziest places to live in the U.S. I'll tell you more about my husband later. I will tell you this...King of the Castle grew up in the Midwest and I'm a California girl. We met and married in the Pacific Northwest and moved out here to the East Coast almost three years ago. A lot of people I talk to say they can't wait to leave New Jersey. I don't blame them at time