Beth Cato's Blog, page 144
June 28, 2013
Reading Habits
My friend Rhonda made a comment a few days ago about how many books she reads at once, and that got me thinking. My reading habits have changed in recent years, too. I used to zoom through one book at a time. Now I tend to read two books at once: one in print, one on my iPad. I currently am reading a third book as well--skimming through for research purposes. I will also go through magazines, especially short ones, as I read a book. Longer magazine will take the slot for the paper book for a day or two.
Oh, and my simultaneous reading material is always in different genres. I don't want my brain to get muddled. I usually try to avoid reading the same genre of book back to back, too--there are just too many elements that overlap, especially in fields like urban fantasy.
How many books do you read at once? How has your habit changed?
Oh, and my simultaneous reading material is always in different genres. I don't want my brain to get muddled. I usually try to avoid reading the same genre of book back to back, too--there are just too many elements that overlap, especially in fields like urban fantasy.
How many books do you read at once? How has your habit changed?
June 26, 2013
Bready or Not: Microwave Bread Pudding
I have this thing for bread. You might have noticed by now. One of my absolute favorite things in the world is bread pudding because 1) it's bread, 2) sweet, 3) has this amazing crisp-soft texture thing going on. I am drooling as I type this.
However, bread pudding is also appallingly unhealthy. Most recipes out there make enough for a small army, filling up a 13 x 9 pan with a full loaf of bread and multiple cups of sugar and milk. I don't want scads of leftovers like that because, uh, I'll want to eat it all. It's also not a dish that's friendly for my husband to take to work, being that it's sticky, messy, and not in easy individual portions.
I looked all over for a small-portion recipe and I found one at one of my favorite online sites: King Arthur Flour. They share an individual-sized bread pudding that cooks up in the microwave (!), is totally customizable (!!), and is done in a matter of minutes (!!!). Talk about breakfast friendly! I was a bit skeptical about using the microwave like this, but the comments on the recipe convinced me to give it a try.
ZOMG.
It's everything that's awesome about bread pudding in one little bowl. No leftovers. No extra temptation. I mixed some golden raisins in and topped it with homemade apple butter and a pinch of sliced almonds. Oh, heaven!
(In case you're wondering, my awesome little crock bowl here is from Cost Plus World Market.)
Microwave Bread Pudding for One
from King Arthur Flour
Ingredients:
1 cup cubed bread; fresh, or just slightly stale; about 1 1/2 to 2 slices bread
1 large egg
1/3 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
2 to 3 tablespoons sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, dried fruit, fresh fruit, cinnamon, or the garnish of your choice
Directions
1) Put the bread in a fairly shallow, single-serving, microwave-safe bowl.
2) Whisk together the egg, milk, vanilla, and sugar. Pour over the bread in the bowl, stirring gently to combine.
3) Stir in chips or dried fruit. And/or sprinkle with cinnamon, cinnamon-sugar, or nutmeg.
4) Microwave for 1 minute, uncovered. Check and see if it's still liquid. If it is, microwave in 30-second bursts, till pudding is cooked all the way to the center; the very center can still look a bit uncooked, but it shouldn't be liquid. Test it with fork prongs or a butter knife, like you would a cake.
5) Remove from the microwave. If desired, drizzle with maple syrup or melted caramel or fudge sauce or... whatever. Serve warm. You could also add ice cream.
OM NOM NOM.
However, bread pudding is also appallingly unhealthy. Most recipes out there make enough for a small army, filling up a 13 x 9 pan with a full loaf of bread and multiple cups of sugar and milk. I don't want scads of leftovers like that because, uh, I'll want to eat it all. It's also not a dish that's friendly for my husband to take to work, being that it's sticky, messy, and not in easy individual portions.
I looked all over for a small-portion recipe and I found one at one of my favorite online sites: King Arthur Flour. They share an individual-sized bread pudding that cooks up in the microwave (!), is totally customizable (!!), and is done in a matter of minutes (!!!). Talk about breakfast friendly! I was a bit skeptical about using the microwave like this, but the comments on the recipe convinced me to give it a try.
ZOMG.
It's everything that's awesome about bread pudding in one little bowl. No leftovers. No extra temptation. I mixed some golden raisins in and topped it with homemade apple butter and a pinch of sliced almonds. Oh, heaven!
(In case you're wondering, my awesome little crock bowl here is from Cost Plus World Market.)
Microwave Bread Pudding for One
from King Arthur Flour
Ingredients:
1 cup cubed bread; fresh, or just slightly stale; about 1 1/2 to 2 slices bread
1 large egg
1/3 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
2 to 3 tablespoons sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, dried fruit, fresh fruit, cinnamon, or the garnish of your choice
Directions
1) Put the bread in a fairly shallow, single-serving, microwave-safe bowl.
2) Whisk together the egg, milk, vanilla, and sugar. Pour over the bread in the bowl, stirring gently to combine.
3) Stir in chips or dried fruit. And/or sprinkle with cinnamon, cinnamon-sugar, or nutmeg.
4) Microwave for 1 minute, uncovered. Check and see if it's still liquid. If it is, microwave in 30-second bursts, till pudding is cooked all the way to the center; the very center can still look a bit uncooked, but it shouldn't be liquid. Test it with fork prongs or a butter knife, like you would a cake.
5) Remove from the microwave. If desired, drizzle with maple syrup or melted caramel or fudge sauce or... whatever. Serve warm. You could also add ice cream.
OM NOM NOM.
June 23, 2013
Sunday Quote thinks it is too hot outside
"It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by that time I was too famous." ~Robert Benchley
June 21, 2013
Where to find me
I haven't done one of these posts in a while, so I figure I'm due.
HI. My name is Beth Cato. I love the word "bustenhalter" and unicorns and baking delicious stuff that is in no way good for you. I write fantasy, science fiction, poetry, and Chicken Soup for the Soul stories. I'm easy to find on social media, so always feel free to chime in on a conversation or otherwise say hi. I don't bite (usually).
Email: Beth.L.Cato @ gmail.com (remove the spaces)
Blog: Catch A Star As It Falls [uh, here]
Facebook: Beth Davis Cato
Twitter: @BethCato
Google+: Beth Cato
Pinterest: bethcato
Web site: bethcato.com
Goodreads: Beth Cato
HI. My name is Beth Cato. I love the word "bustenhalter" and unicorns and baking delicious stuff that is in no way good for you. I write fantasy, science fiction, poetry, and Chicken Soup for the Soul stories. I'm easy to find on social media, so always feel free to chime in on a conversation or otherwise say hi. I don't bite (usually).
Email: Beth.L.Cato @ gmail.com (remove the spaces)
Blog: Catch A Star As It Falls [uh, here]
Facebook: Beth Davis Cato
Twitter: @BethCato
Google+: Beth Cato
Pinterest: bethcato
Web site: bethcato.com
Goodreads: Beth Cato
June 19, 2013
Bready or Not: Jumbo XXL Blueberry-Lemon Muffins
I'm a sucker for kitchen gadgets. I admit it. However, the thing that makes me even weirder is that I actually try to use the stuff, too.
One of my latest acquisitions is a jumbo muffin pan like this one, though mine was bought on woot.com. This makes what I like to term big honkin' muffins. The size that you find in a bakery. The size that probably has enough carbohydrates and sugar to power a moped.
This required me to seek out recipes designed for big honkin' muffins. Not just any recipe would do--I needed one that provided the chemical scaffolding to make the muffins rise. I was very happy to find Sally's Baking Addiction was already up to this task.
I tweaked the recipe just a bit. My husband loves a blueberry and lemon combination, so I added the zest and juice of one lemon to the recipe. This didn't require any changes to the dry ingredients for me, but I do live in a dry place, and my recipes often need a little extra moisture.
The result was an awesome, cakey muffin, the kind that begs for milk and coffee in accompaniment. The combination of cinnamon, lemon, and blueberries works very well together, creating something that's spicy, sweet, and sparkling fresh all at once.
That's one cup to show the size of these babies.
If you don't have a jumbo pan, the original blog says this also works well with standard muffins and even mini-size. To quote her: "For standard size (12 count) muffins, reduce baking time to 18 minutes with the 5 initial minutes at the 425F temperature stated above. For mini muffins, bake for 12-13 minutes at 375F the entire time." That higher initial baking time is very important in this recipe! It's what makes the muffins rise in such a fantastic way.
Trust me. You don't want this beauties to go flat.
Jumbo XXL Blueberry-Lemon Muffins
(6 jumbo muffins // 12 standard muffins // 24 mini muffins)
modified slightly from Sally's Baking Addiction
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 eggs, room temperature
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk (skim, 1%, almond, rice, soy are all ok - room temperature preferred)
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
(optional) sparkling or turbinado sugar for the top
Directions
1) Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Spray your muffin tin with non-stick spray or line with muffin liners, and I recommend spraying the muffin liners as well.
2) In a large bowl, toss together flour, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and cinnamon. Mix until all dry ingredients are combined.
3) In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until combined. Mix in milk, oil, juice, and vanilla. Mixture will be pale and yellow. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand. Gently mix until all the flour is off the bottom of the bowl and no big pockets of flour remain. Don't overmix! The batter will be VERY thick and somewhat lumpy. Fold in the blueberries; I like to reserve some to place on top of the muffins.
4) Pour batter into prepared muffin tins, filling all the way to the top. Top with some sparkling or coarse sugar, if desired.
Bake at 425F degrees for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 and continue to bake for 25-26 minutes until tops are lightly golden and centers appear set. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan before enjoying.
The muffins are best the same day, but you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. They can also be frozen.
OM NOM NOM.
One of my latest acquisitions is a jumbo muffin pan like this one, though mine was bought on woot.com. This makes what I like to term big honkin' muffins. The size that you find in a bakery. The size that probably has enough carbohydrates and sugar to power a moped.
This required me to seek out recipes designed for big honkin' muffins. Not just any recipe would do--I needed one that provided the chemical scaffolding to make the muffins rise. I was very happy to find Sally's Baking Addiction was already up to this task.
I tweaked the recipe just a bit. My husband loves a blueberry and lemon combination, so I added the zest and juice of one lemon to the recipe. This didn't require any changes to the dry ingredients for me, but I do live in a dry place, and my recipes often need a little extra moisture.
The result was an awesome, cakey muffin, the kind that begs for milk and coffee in accompaniment. The combination of cinnamon, lemon, and blueberries works very well together, creating something that's spicy, sweet, and sparkling fresh all at once.
That's one cup to show the size of these babies.
If you don't have a jumbo pan, the original blog says this also works well with standard muffins and even mini-size. To quote her: "For standard size (12 count) muffins, reduce baking time to 18 minutes with the 5 initial minutes at the 425F temperature stated above. For mini muffins, bake for 12-13 minutes at 375F the entire time." That higher initial baking time is very important in this recipe! It's what makes the muffins rise in such a fantastic way.
Trust me. You don't want this beauties to go flat.
Jumbo XXL Blueberry-Lemon Muffins
(6 jumbo muffins // 12 standard muffins // 24 mini muffins)
modified slightly from Sally's Baking Addiction
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 eggs, room temperature
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk (skim, 1%, almond, rice, soy are all ok - room temperature preferred)
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
(optional) sparkling or turbinado sugar for the top
Directions
1) Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Spray your muffin tin with non-stick spray or line with muffin liners, and I recommend spraying the muffin liners as well.
2) In a large bowl, toss together flour, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and cinnamon. Mix until all dry ingredients are combined.
3) In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until combined. Mix in milk, oil, juice, and vanilla. Mixture will be pale and yellow. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand. Gently mix until all the flour is off the bottom of the bowl and no big pockets of flour remain. Don't overmix! The batter will be VERY thick and somewhat lumpy. Fold in the blueberries; I like to reserve some to place on top of the muffins.
4) Pour batter into prepared muffin tins, filling all the way to the top. Top with some sparkling or coarse sugar, if desired.
Bake at 425F degrees for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 and continue to bake for 25-26 minutes until tops are lightly golden and centers appear set. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan before enjoying.
The muffins are best the same day, but you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. They can also be frozen.
OM NOM NOM.
June 16, 2013
Sunday Quote sends out happy Father's Day wishes!
"If you want to be successful, it's just this simple. Know what you are doing. Love what you're doing. And believe in what you're doing." ~Will Rogers
June 14, 2013
The Return
I am back!
On the blog here, it was hard to tell I was gone since I had scheduled posts in my absence, but the truth is that I've been mostly offline the past two weeks. We did one of those once-in-a-lifetime sorts of trips: we dropped off Critter with my parents in California, then took off on a week-long Alaskan cruise. We returned to spend a few more days in California and finally returned to the barren wastelands of Arizona yesterday.
My brain is still in that weird limbo of 'Hey, I did lots of awesome things but now I'm back in reality as if nothing happened at all.'
On the blog here, it was hard to tell I was gone since I had scheduled posts in my absence, but the truth is that I've been mostly offline the past two weeks. We did one of those once-in-a-lifetime sorts of trips: we dropped off Critter with my parents in California, then took off on a week-long Alaskan cruise. We returned to spend a few more days in California and finally returned to the barren wastelands of Arizona yesterday.
My brain is still in that weird limbo of 'Hey, I did lots of awesome things but now I'm back in reality as if nothing happened at all.'
June 12, 2013
Bready or Not: Grilled Cilantro Chicken
A few years ago I had a friend react with horror when I mentioned that I grew cilantro. "Ew! It taste like soap!" she said. I confess, this baffled me. Soap? Then a few months ago, I had genetic testing done through 23 and Me. To my shock, one of the gene trait results involved the taste of cilantro. I do not carry the soap-tasting gene.
If cilantro tastes like soap to you, I'm sorry. This recipe is not for you. Unless you're happily weird and like eating soap, in which case, here you go!
As I noted, I like to grow cilantro each winter. It thrives in the mild Arizona cold, and it's perfect for salads and Mexican dishes galore. When it starts to warm up in March and April, the plant tries desperately to go to flower and seed, and in turn I desperately search for uses for my fresh cilantro before it's dead and gone.
I spied this recipe on Pinterest and I knew it'd be perfect and tasty and not at all like soap. Plus, it's by RecipeGirl, and she posts lots of amazing stuff.
I made the marinade here and my husband did the grilling on the barbecue. We decided to go the skewer route and add in bell peppers and onion, but you can also do these in whole pieces. They'd also be great done in a grill pan on the stove.
There's no exact science to the recipe. You just kinda throw it together. I halved the chicken in the original recipe since it was to feed two of us, but you could easily double or triple this to feed more. You can serve this with any kind of dip--mustard, BBQ sauce, sweet chili sauce, ketchup, whatever!
Grilled Cilantro Chicken
modified from RecipeGirl
Ingredients:
1-1.5 pounds boneless/skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro (a big handful)
dipping sauce of choice
Directions:
1) If you want to skewer the chicken, cut it up into large chunks. If not, leave it whole. Place chicken in a gallon Ziplock bag.
2) Place olive oil, garlic and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Process until the mixture is combined and smooth. Scoop the marinade into the bag with the chicken, press the air out of the bag and zip it closed. Knead the marinade into the chicken until it is evenly distributed. Marinate overnight or all day long.
3. Preheat the grill to medium heat and coat with oil or grill spray. Remove chicken from the bag and grill 4 to 5 minutes on the first side, until good grill marks are showing. Flip and grill an additional 3 to 4 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.
OM NOM NOM.
If cilantro tastes like soap to you, I'm sorry. This recipe is not for you. Unless you're happily weird and like eating soap, in which case, here you go!
As I noted, I like to grow cilantro each winter. It thrives in the mild Arizona cold, and it's perfect for salads and Mexican dishes galore. When it starts to warm up in March and April, the plant tries desperately to go to flower and seed, and in turn I desperately search for uses for my fresh cilantro before it's dead and gone.
I spied this recipe on Pinterest and I knew it'd be perfect and tasty and not at all like soap. Plus, it's by RecipeGirl, and she posts lots of amazing stuff.
I made the marinade here and my husband did the grilling on the barbecue. We decided to go the skewer route and add in bell peppers and onion, but you can also do these in whole pieces. They'd also be great done in a grill pan on the stove.
There's no exact science to the recipe. You just kinda throw it together. I halved the chicken in the original recipe since it was to feed two of us, but you could easily double or triple this to feed more. You can serve this with any kind of dip--mustard, BBQ sauce, sweet chili sauce, ketchup, whatever!
Grilled Cilantro Chicken
modified from RecipeGirl
Ingredients:
1-1.5 pounds boneless/skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro (a big handful)
dipping sauce of choice
Directions:
1) If you want to skewer the chicken, cut it up into large chunks. If not, leave it whole. Place chicken in a gallon Ziplock bag.
2) Place olive oil, garlic and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Process until the mixture is combined and smooth. Scoop the marinade into the bag with the chicken, press the air out of the bag and zip it closed. Knead the marinade into the chicken until it is evenly distributed. Marinate overnight or all day long.
3. Preheat the grill to medium heat and coat with oil or grill spray. Remove chicken from the bag and grill 4 to 5 minutes on the first side, until good grill marks are showing. Flip and grill an additional 3 to 4 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.
OM NOM NOM.
June 10, 2013
Whose Line Is It Anyway?
I'd like to step away from the usual topics of writing and yummy cookies to let out a squeal of delight that one of my very favorite TV shows of all time is making a return in about a month: Whose Line Is It Anyway? I adore this show and its regular guests like Colin Mochrie, Ryan Stiles, Brad Sherwood, Wayne Brady, Greg Proops, and others. One of the most delightful experiences in my life was going with my friend Karyn to see Colin and Brad perform live in Phoenix a few years ago, and it's made even more special because Karyn passed on last year.
One of my very favorite Whose Line moments was when Richard Simmons guest-starred. (This might be NSFW because of rather blatant double entendre.)
The new show will debut The CW on July 16th at 8PM EST. I don't even know what channel number the CW is, but by golly I'm going to hunt it down for this.
Any other Whose Line fans out there?
One of my very favorite Whose Line moments was when Richard Simmons guest-starred. (This might be NSFW because of rather blatant double entendre.)
The new show will debut The CW on July 16th at 8PM EST. I don't even know what channel number the CW is, but by golly I'm going to hunt it down for this.
Any other Whose Line fans out there?
June 9, 2013
Sunday Quote rocks out to "Eye of the Tiger"
"I detest 'fine writing,' 'rhetoric,' 'elegant English,'--tommyrot. Who cares for fine style! Tell your yarn and let your style go to the devil. We don't want literature, we want life." ~Frank Norris
