Kathleen Rowland's Blog, page 3
June 11, 2017
The lobster roll– do you prefer Maine or Connecticut style?
That’s right, two styles compete, but both includes heaps of sweet lobster meat piled onto a soft, buttery bun. Wherever you are, the lobster roll is served with hot French fries, and you’ll need a clear ocean view while enjoying one. Here are the differences:
In Maine the meat is tossed with mayonnaise, tarragon and celery or scallions before it’s piled into a bun. Generally, it’s served on a “New England” or “Frankfurter” roll, which differs slightly from a standard hot dog roll in that the sides are flat and can be buttered on the outside and then lightly toasted or grilled.
In Connecticut hold the mayonnaise and bring on the butter. That’s the attitude of Connecticut-style die-hards, who believe a lobster roll served warm with butter.
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June 3, 2017
The Juno mission to Jupiter brings new data!
Juno mission to Jupiter delivers first science results last week. The photo below is from the JunoCam, a visible-light camera, about a NASA spacecraft.
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This is a report from the Southwest Research Institute. In summary NASA’s Juno mission has been in orbit around Jupiter since July 2016, passing within 3,000 miles of the equatorial cloudtops. The mission was led by Dr. Scott Bolton.
King of the planets even more exotic than expected. “What we’ve learned so far is earth-shattering. Or should I say, Jupiter-shattering,” said Bolton, Juno’s principal investigator. “Discoveries about its core, composition, magnetosphere, and poles are as stunning as the photographs the mission is generating.”
The solar-powered spacecraft’s eight scientific instruments are designed to study Jupiter’s interior structure, atmosphere, and magnetosphere. Two instruments developed and led by SwRI are working in concert to study Jupiter’s auroras, the greatest light show in the solar system. The Jovian Auroral Distributions Experiment (JADE) is a set of sensors detecting the electrons and ions associated with Jupiter’s auroras. The Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVS) examines the auroras in UV light to study Jupiter’s upper atmosphere and the particles that collide with it. Scientists expected to find similarities to Earth’s auroras, but Jovian auroral processes are proving puzzling.
“Although many of the observations have terrestrial analogs, it appears that different processes are at work creating the auroras,” said SwRI’s Dr. Phil Valek, JADE instrument lead. “With JADE we’ve observed plasmas upwelling from the upper atmosphere to help populate Jupiter’s magnetosphere. However, the energetic particles associated with Jovian auroras are very different from those that power the most intense auroral emissions at Earth.”
Also surprising, Jupiter’s signature bands disappear near its poles. JunoCam images show a chaotic scene of swirling storms up to the size of Mars towering above a bluish backdrop. Since the first observations of these belts and zones many decades ago, scientists have wondered how far beneath the gas giant’s swirling façade these features persist. Juno’s microwave sounding instrument reveals that topical weather phenomena extend deep below the cloudtops, to pressures of 100 bars, 100 times Earth’s air pressure at sea level.
May 22, 2017
You might like this low calorie creamy vegetable stew
Did I write low calorie and creamy in the same sentence? I did! One large bowl is 320 calories. Enjoy a salad and bread sticks with this filling summer entre.
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Ingredients
8 ounces frozen pearl onions
2 cups baby carrots, halved
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
1/2 pound zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch half-moons
1 15 1/2 – ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup light cream
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons grated Asiago cheese
2 cups cooked white rice (optional)
Directions
Place onions, carrots, corn, broth, vinegar and 1-1/2 teaspoons herbes de Provence in slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 3 hours.
Stir in zucchini and chickpeas; cook for 45 minutes. In a small bowl, stir together cream, cornstarch, salt, pepper and remaining 1/2 teaspoon herbes de Provence; set aside.
Stir in cream mixture and tomatoes and cook an additional 15 minutes or until thickened. Sprinkle with Asiago and serve with rice, if desired.
Nutrition Information for Creamy Summer Vegetable Stew
Servings Per Recipe: 4 PER SERVING: 311 cal., 9 g total fat (4 g sat. fat), 23 mg chol., 681 mg sodium, 48 g carb. (9 g fiber), 11 g pro.
May 20, 2017
Do you enjoy books with an underlying theme?
Characters in my books have jobs that matter to them. In Unholy Alliance the lawyer hero, Grady Donahue Fletcher, appeals cases of the poor and wrongly accused. In this romantic thriller he is a tough, formidable protagonist who believes an advanced society should not be comfortable with the way a country punishes crime. In the book Grady Fletcher represents a different marginalized person, a mobsters daughter accused of murder.
What about all the people in prison who don’t have enough money to hire top defense attorneys?
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The US locks up too many people for too long, and often treats them poorly. I’m glad to see improvement which comes from the Koch brothers, the American Civil Liberties Union, and others in between. Here is an eye-popping fact: the US makes up 5% of the world’s population but houses 25% of the prison population. Harsh sentences are handed out for non-violent drug crime sentences. The Black population is hit the hardest. See data below:
Race, ethnicity
% of US population
% of U.S. incarcerated population
White (non-Hispanic)
64
39
Hispanic
16
19
Black
13
40
May 2, 2017
For dinner– corn-tomato chowder with a grilled salmon salad
Corn-tomato is a flavorful vegetarian chowder. Believe it when I say it goes well with a salmon salad and bread sticks. I’m making grilled salmon for dinner and will chill it for the salad.
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Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 shallots, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 1/4 cups (1 pound) frozen corn, thawed
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
Directions
In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 3 minutes. Place the cooked shallots, corn and chicken stock in a blender. Blend until smooth.
Pour the corn mixture back into the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the tomatoes and basil.
Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with a salmon salad.
A dress fashioned with food waste
As a subscriber of National Geographic I’m often impressed with eco-minded designers. This information is from an article written by Catherine Zuckerman, and the photo is courtesy of Rebecca Hale. To summarize, there is work being done in “farm to fashion”. Sacha Laurin’s medium is a bacterial “colony” left after brewing tart fermented tea known as kombucha. One dried, the material becomes a faux leather. This California designer sews it into haute couture dresses. Isn’t this pretty– the Kombucha dress.
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April 16, 2017
Devilish Chicks for Easter
Aren’t these deviled eggs cute? They’re a humorous twist on deviled eggs. This recipe originated a few years ago from Taste of Home magazine.
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Ingredients for a half dozen deviled eggs
6 hard-cooked large eggs
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup prepared ranch salad dressing
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Dash pepper
5 carrot chips
12 capers
Fresh dill sprigs
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup prepared lighter ranch salad dressing
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Dash pepper
5 carrot chips
12 capers
Fresh dill sprigs
Directions
Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each egg so it sits flat. Cut the top third from each egg. Carefully remove yolks and place in a small bowl; mash with a fork. Add cheese, salad dressing, mustard and pepper; stir until well blended. Spoon into the egg white bottoms; replace tops.
Cut 12 feet and 12 small triangles for beaks from carrot chips. Gently press the capers into the filling for eyes; add beaks. Insert a dill sprig in top of eggs for tuft of feathers. Place feet in front of chicks. Refrigerate until serving. Yield: 1/2 dozen.
April 10, 2017
Do you have a favorite cartoon character from your childhood– mine is Elmer Fudd.
Elmer J. Fudd was the archenemy of Bugs Bunny, but he also hunted ducks from time to time. His name came up at the breakfast table this morning. Ducks are swimming in our pool during off-season, and my husband and I jokingly wondered what Elmer Fudd would do. He’s a villain like Yosemite Sam, but Elmer is too dopey to do Bugs much harm.
Elmer speaks in a pattern called rhotacism, replacing his Rs and Ls with Ws. Watch the road becomes “Watch da Woad, Wabbit.” “Be vewy, vewy quiet, I’m hunting wabbits.” He also had a trademark gloat of huh, uh, uh. I like the cartoon titles of Rabbit Seasoning and What’s Opera, Doc?
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April 9, 2017
Kathleen’s Eggs Florentine– this variation is easy, elegant, and a little lighter.
Don’t over cook. That’s the secret! Spit the English muffin with someone.
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Ingredients:
6 large eggs, slightly beaten
Butter
Salt/pepper
3 tablespoons fat-free cream cheese, cut into small pieces
12 cup mushrooms, sliced
Clove garlic, minced
½ 10-oz package fresh spinach
Directions
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir mushrooms and garlic until garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add spinach to mushroom mixture and cook until spinach is wilted, 2 to 3 minutes.
Stir eggs into mushroom-spinach mixture; season with salt and pepper. Cook, without stirring, until eggs start to firm; flip. Sprinkle cream cheese over egg mixture and cook until cream cheese starts to soften, about 5 minutes.
April 4, 2017
Asian Peanut Slaw with shredded Chicken is a healthy family favorite!
Do you need a delicious easy recipe for tonight? This is what I will be making because I’m multi-tasking today. Have you noticed the new trend to not separate ingredients and directions– it’s efficient to combine them, don’t you think?
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Cook 4 oz spaghetti according to pkg directions, about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse to cool. In a large bowl, whisk 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter, 1/4 cup water, 3 tbsp each seasoned rice vinegar and lime juice, 1 tbsp packed brown sugar, 1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce and 1 tsp (or to taste) sriracha until smooth. Add spaghetti, 2 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken, 6 packed cups shredded cabbage, 2 cups shredded carrots, 3 thinly sliced scallions and 1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro. Toss well. Scatter 1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts over top.
