Six weeks ago, Camille and I were both faced with a health scare, like two sisters, we are so connected that we are the epitome of two peas in a pod.

After that scare I had with the tummy issue I have flashbacks in my head like a 60’s video reel playing memories of the worst kind: camera down my throat and the choking feeling when I would eat something because my esophagus was dealing with too much acid. I had a slight fever so I just didn’t know what caused that choking feeling every time I ate. Did I swallow something bad or was it the way I was eating? What is the bad bento that I had the day before, or was it that I was just eating way too fast. It seemed like a perfect epitome for psychedelic hallucinations. If only it were a hallucination. The problem was, I could feel everything!

On the bright side, I have been working on getting ready for the summer. That means toning up, and slimming down, clearly as my doctor obligingly told me, “Well, you are not doing enough. Cut the calories more and work harder.” Like a placid Hitler trying to be acidly sweet while every word was actually scathing! In a very matter of fact way, he also told me to get rid of my muffin top (what, this small thing?) and even went so far as to say, “You got a little bit of overflow on top of your jeans.” What??? This sure puts a gloom over the otherwise sunshiny summer! What joy!… Not!

Talk about rubbing salt into the wound. I was already feeling horrible, couldn’t eat without feeling like I was choking, and I have to listen to this lecture from my doctor. While I have been prepping for the summer and trying to lose any unwanted weight gained from this past winter, Dr. Hitler further states… tummy fat pushes against my intestines. I’m a pretty fit person (despite the muffin top) but this shows that not only does counting calories matter but also what’s in those calories (and it doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy my favorite comfort foods from time to time, blah blah blah… Hiel Doctor! (I eat a dessert once a week, that’s it) (I even calculate the 250 ml of cola, give or take) I just don’t relish the thought of actually feeling myself regurgitate every bit of it. Or worse, see what it looks like after being half-digested inside my body!) Who knows why that happened to me but it was a wake up call. I’ve always been on the go, eating too fast, and never sitting down to really enjoy what I’m eating.

Lest I face the wrath of herr doctor, I obligingly stuck to a strict regimen. Dare I say it was out of pride? Or was it fear for what harsh words I might have to hear yet again from ‘you know who’. I was on medication for two weeks, to curb the acid reflux, which took a few days to work but helped. I also went from 1600 calories a day to 1200-1400, and changed my exercise routine from moderate aerobics to an high incline on the treadmill for 45 min at 3.0 (broken into two.) I thought I was doing enough, clearly I needed to watch more of what I ate and increase my work out. This is on top of the other exercises, including the 30 day shred, but the treadmill kicks my butt into shape! Always has, but I never replaced my old machine, finally, I did. Doing the treadmill at a medium to high incline will MAKE YOU SWEAT. Oh, the things we do for our bodies! I am slowly but surely getting back into my skinny jeans. They hug my hips and I can’t button them yet.

So while it was a slight fever, and probably not what I was eating (bad food) or eating too fast, the muffin top comment from my doctor made me take my workouts and counting calories more seriously. I guess you can say… It wasn’t all for naught! ;)

Sometimes, I feel that certain experiences make me feel so helpless. I feel like some people around me, including family, have so much power over me when my mind and body is sacrosanct. Having stared adversity right in the face, I refuse to allow myself to have to go through those adversities again and have decided to take control. I believe that Japan has changed me from being meek and mild, to someone stronger and more centered. The “me” that I was once and had always been, essentially finding “me” again.

There are periods in our life when we are confronted with issues that we think might break us, but when we face off with adversity, it is best not to wave the white flag in defeat but to stare at the proverbial bull square in the eye and grab it by the horns. I guess after everything I’ve been through, all I can say is…Heil Me!

Here is to “Taking the bull by the horns” with an open face roast beef sandwich.

Sunday Rib Roast

Adapted From 2002 Barefoot Contessa Family Style, All Rights Reserved
Show: Barefoot ContessaEpisode: A Barefoot Contessa Holiday

Ingredients

• 1 (3-rib) standing rib roast (7 to 8 pounds)
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• Mustard Horseradish Sauce, recipe follows (we used pomegranate sauce)

Directions

1. Two hours before roasting, remove the meat from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature.
2. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F (see note).
3. Place the oven rack on the second lowest position.
4. Place the roast in a pan large enough to hold it comfortably, bone-side down, and spread the top thickly with the salt and pepper.
5. Roast the meat for 45 minutes. Without removing the meat from the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F and roast for another 30 minutes.
6. Finally, increase the temperature to 450 degrees F and roast for another 15 to 30 minutes, until the internal temperature of the meat is 125 degrees F. (Be sure the thermometer is exactly in the center of the roast.) The total cooking time will be between 1 1/2 and 1 3/4 hours.
7.  Meanwhile, make the sauce.
8. Remove the roast from the oven and transfer it to a cutting board. Cover it tightly with aluminum foil and allow the meat to rest for 20 minutes. Carve and serve with the sauce.

Note: Be sure your oven is very clean before setting it at 500 degrees F.

Mustard Horseradish Sauce

(optional) We used a reduction of Pomegranate sauce.

• 1 1/2 cups good mayonnaise
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Whisk together the mayonnaise, mustards, horseradish, sour cream, and salt in a small bowl.

Brazil has the largest population in Latin America and ranks fifth in the world. It is currently the fifth largest economy in the world and is home to the Amazon Rainforest and is a popular location for tourism. Most of the 190 million Brazilians live in the south-central area, which includes the cities of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Belo Horizonte. Brazil is the only Portuguese-speaking country in the Americas.

Brazil’s impressive Atlantic Ocean coastline is 4, 655 miles long and it is bordered on the north by Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. Brazil is bordered by Colombia on the northwest and by Bolivia and Peru in the west. Argentina and Paraguay border Brazil in the southwest while Uruguay borders the south. Brazil, amazingly, borders all South American countries except Ecuador and Chile.

Brazil was given to Portugal as part of the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494; however the first person to officially claim Brazil for Portugal was Pedro Álvares Cabral. The Portuguese settled Brazil in the 1500’s and it remained a colony for three centuries. The initial settlers were simple people looking to find natural resources to trade. They weren’t as interested in conquering and exploring as the Spanish in other South American colonies. The name Brazil comes from an Amerindian word Brasil, which describes a dark rosewood. This wood became the main export for many years but the exportation of Brasil wood was banned in 1968.

Brazil is rich in natural resources such as iron, tin, aluminum, gold, platinum, copper and coal. Agriculturally rich, Brazil exports coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus and beef. Brazil is culturally rich as well. Many of the European settlers in Brazil intermarried with native Indians and slaves creating a diverse ethnic environment that gives Brazil a vibrant culture to this day.

The food you will discover in Brazil varies from region to region, but the national dish of the country is feijoada. Each Brazilian puts their own touch on this meal, making it their own, making it a perfect national dish for a country with so much diversity.

We could not pass on this dish even though the weather might be too warm for such a hardy meal. It is a very convenient meal and you, like all Brazilians can make feijoada your own by adjusting it to suit your taste. This one dish with many interpretations truly represents one country with many diverse ethnicities.

Feijoada (Found at Celebrate Brazil)
Ingredients

Raw bacon – 3 strips
Onions – 2 small to medium size
Garlic – 3 cloves or you can substitute 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Smoked sausage – 1 pound
Boneless beef – 1 pound
Stewed tomatoes with juice – 14 ounce can
Hot water – 1 cup
Yellow mustard – 1 Tablespoon
Canned black beans with juice – 4 cups
Salt and pepper to taste

Make the stew:

1. Cut the raw bacon strips into large pieces and fry them at medium-high heat setting in a large pot for about 3 minutes. Don’t let them stick to the bottom of the pot.

2. Reduce the heat setting to medium.

3. Dice the onions, peel and chop the garlic, and add both ingredients to the pot with the bacon. Cook until the onions become soft, which is about 3 minutes.

4. Cut the beef and sausage into bite-size pieces and add them to the pot.

5. The meat should be cooked until all sides of the meat are browned.

6. Add the stewed tomatoes and juice, water, mustard, and salt and pepper to your desired taste.

7. Turn the temperature setting down to simmer and cover the pot.

8. Cook the entire stew for about 45 minutes. Stir it often to meld the flavors.

9. Add water if the consistency is too thick for you. Don’t add more than 1/4 cup of water at a time.

10. After the stew has cooked for 45 minutes, add the black beans and juice and stir.

11. Return the cover to the pot and cook for another 10 minutes.

Photography Data:
ApertureFNumber: f/5.6
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D3100
ExposureTime: 1/125
FNumber: 56/10
ExposureProgram: 1
ISOSpeedRatings: 100
MaxApertureValue: 10/10
MeteringMode: 2
LightSource: 0
Flash: 0
FocalLength: 500/10

Sliders are extremely popular in the USA. They are the ideal pub food. Of course, the most popular sliders are simply miniature hamburgers. However, with the popularity of sliders came more diversity. We’ve eaten lamb sliders, buffalo sliders, bbq pork sliders and buffalo chicken sliders just to name a few. Each slider is delicious in its own right and for each slider there is a complimentary beer.

We find our sliders a perfect solution to the gooey, cheesy, moist dilemma that seems to plague this type of food. All types of sliders can be quite delicious when cooked properly, but if not a slider can be dry and disappointing. Our sliders are the perfect solution to this problem and they are perfect for any winter weekend party.

The meat is prepared in a crock pot which allows you time to prepare for your party. When serving our sliders we recommend, for the adults in the crowd, heavier tangy ales such as Samuel Smith Old Brewery Tadcaster, The Famous Taddy Porter. We aren’t fans of this beer on its own, but this dark, full bodied ale acts as a condiment to our slider. The Taddy Porter and the slider are complimentary.

We love our slider. It is small food with big taste. While the name “slider” isn’t exactly sophisticated there is something about these small sandwiches that make you feel more sophisticated. Men will often pop the slider in their mouth in one gigantic bite, while women will nibble at them in a more dainty way…maybe. If the slider is as succulent, juicy and cheesy as the ones we’ve created then there may be no other way to eat them than with extreme enthusiasm.

Shredded Beef Sliders

Ingredients

1 (5lb) roast
16oz Coke (not sugar free)
1 packet Lipton’s dry onion soup mix
1 medium Vidalia onion, cut
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
½ stick butter
Extra sharp cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
1 package of 12 small potato rolls

Directions

1. Place the roast, Coke and onion soup mix into a Crockpot. Cook on low for at least 6-8 hours.

2. Remove the roast onto a cutting board. Remove the juices into a saucepan.

3. Shred the roast and put it back into the Crockpot. Set the Crockpot to “warm” and make the gravy.

4. To make the gravy use the juices from the roast. Add the cornstarch to the juices in the saucepan and let simmer, while periodically whisking, until thickened. Pour the gravy over the shredded roast and mix thoroughly.

5. Melt the butter in a pan and sauté the onions and mushrooms on medium –low heat until soft.

6. Cut all rolls and place on a platter. Lay a thin slice of extra sharp cheddar on each roll. Spoon the shredded beef onto the roll, atop the cheese. Add a bit of the onion and mushroom mixture on top of the beef. Put the top on the roll and proudly serve this delicious platter of sliders to your guests.