629.2872 -- Roll Over

My little blue Focus (affectionately named "Little Blue") has hit a milestone. Yep, the big 100,000. We're going to be able to buy me a new (or at least new-to-me) car in a few months, but part of me is a little bit sad about the prospect. I heart Little Blue! I bought her all by myself just after college. I even haggled the guy down, and did a test drive on my own. I'd never done that before, and I'll never do that again. Not that I'd want to of course... but I was really proud of myself!

Plus, I still have my DOD sticker on Little Blue. It's a fun little souvenir that will never be replaced. Then again, maybe I'll warm up to the prospect of a newer car... here are two I'm looking at.

641.692 -- Miso Glazed Cod

Being that it's Lent, and being that we're Catholic, fish has been introduced into our dinner rotation. Although I am generally not a fish or seafood lover, Matt came home with cod fillets last week, forcing me to come up with a tasty (un-fish-like) recipe. What I found was Food Network's recipe for Miso Cod. Finding no miri at the local Kroger, I substituted Chablis. Finding no white or blond miso, I settled on something called "Minute Miso."
The result was über delicious. In fact, I might try the same glaze on chicken sometime. It's a decidedly Asian flavor, but if you like teriyaki, give it a try. And let me know what you think!

Ingredients

6 6-ounce black cod fillets or regular cod fillets
1/3 cup low sodium blond or white miso
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons mirin (Japanese cooking wine)
toasted sesame seeds and scallions for garnish (optional)

Directions

Preheat broiler.

Rinse fish fillets and pat dry with paper towels. Combine miso, brown sugar, sesame oil and mirin and stir well until brown sugar is fully dissolved.

Brush about 2 tablespoons miso glaze on each fish fillet. Marinate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 1 hour. Place fish under broiler for 3 to 4 minutes, or until top is slightly charred and glaze has caramelized. Remove fish from oven and brush with remaining glaze. Lower oven to 375 degrees F. Cook an additional 5 to 6 minutes, until fish is flaky but not overcooked.

If desired, serve with toasted sesame seeds and scallions. *NOTE* We had this with brown rice and steamed veggies. Delicious!

508.2 -- It's official!

Spring is here!


Our spring perennials are in full bloom!


The brand new flag pole in our front yard
(installed yesterday!) looked picture
perfect in the beautiful weather.

I want more days like this!!

636.7 -- The Furry Monster

A little slow on the updates, but for those of you I haven't told, Charlie is having some old man problems. First, his teeth and gums were an absolute mess. One surgery later, he is almost completely toothless (he retained his molars) but much happier.

He is also, however, suffering from lateral patellar luxation (Grade III). Basically his kneecaps pop on and off every time he bends his hind legs. It seems to bother him less in warm weather, so we're going to leave it for now, and decide later if he'd be better off with or without surgery. It doesn't seem to cause him pain so much as discomfort.

It's also likely that he has arthritis in his hind knees, and his hearing is rapidly deteriorating. I know he's old -- 14! -- but he still acts so much like a puppy. It's hard to believe. Poor little smoosh :(

155.925 -- Friends

While Matt and I were at Ft. Drum, I made some of the best friends I could imagine having. Earlier this month, they converged on Fairfield for our first reunion in almost 2 years. Of course we have been keeping up to date on each other, but no amount of blog postings or emails could replace actually being together.

Jackie, Erin, Briana, Karen, and me
Jackie and Karen posted more pics on their blogs. Check them out!

641.8654 -- Unconventional Cookies

A staple of my childhood was quick and easy graham-cracker-and-icing cookies that my mom would throw together with leftover icing. Ours usually consisted of chocolate or white icing, but the cookies I made recently for Matt were created with leftover lemon icing. YUM!

Ingredients:
Graham crackers
Icing

Directions:
Break graham crackers into square pieces. Ice one side of each cracker. Start munching! (You can also "sandwich" the cookies by putting a second graham square on top of the icing, but I like it better with just one.)

P.S. I'm curious to know if anyone else is familiar with this method of "cookie baking." Anyone? Anyone?