Clean Out the Fridge Stir Fry + Reading Issues

This past weekend, I had a serious jonesing for some vegetables, coupled with an overflowing refrigerator. We had so many leftovers that we had taken from various holiday celebrations, not to mention some containers of chopped up vegetables that we had eaten with spinach dip a few days before. My solution? Mix up those veggies in a stir fry!

 

I really love stir fry, mainly because I could eat just about anyting coated in soy sauce. The fact that it's a healthy and tasty way to get some veggies is just the icing on the cake. Don't tempt me with cake right now.

 

I had a can of bean sprouts in my pantry and am always stocked with soy sauce, hoisin sauce and sesame oil. If you ask me, this turned out to be one fancy little stir fry for a Saturday afternoon!

Clean Out The Fridge Stir Fry
any vegetables you have in your fridge (I used a mix of chopped baby carrots, bell peppers, onions and celery)
bean sprouts
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 C soy sauce, preferably low sodium
2 Tbsp hoisin sauce
freshly cracked pepper

Heat both oils together in a skillet. Add vegetables, sprinkle with black pepper and saute until they begin to soften. Stir in soy and hoisin sauces and cook until soft. At the very end, add in the bean sprounts (drained from the can) and cook for just a minute more (I like them to have a little crunch!). Serve as is, or over your favorite grain. For this recipe, I used quinoa cooked in low sodium chicken broth.

It doesn't get much easier than that, my friends! I even had a bit of the leftover stir fry alongside my scrambled egg whites the next morning. Delish.

 

Moving on from food...can we talk about books for a moment? I've kind of been radio silent on the reading thing for a while now. Over the last month, I've been reading book 2 in the Game of Thrones Series, A Clash of Kings.

It's taken me a little while to get into the book, I think because I broke the cardinal rule of book reading. I watched the first book enacted on television (as an amazing show on HBO) and went straight into reading the second book...without reading the first book. I had never done that before, and I'm pretty sure it's hindering my enjoyment of book 2. I am having a difficult time keeping the characters straight (there are so many!) and just getting into the book. Sooooo. I'm debating going back and reading book 1 so that I can get the full treatment! I hate it when I try to take the easy way out and it doesn't work! :)

What are you reading right now? I might need some other suggestions to break this up!

What is your favorite way to 'clean out the fridge'?

What I Pop Cultured...in Aruba

While I recover from my paradise-filled Aruban vacation, where I ate surf & turf, drank frozen cocktails, sat on the beach for 12 hours a day, mourned MJ, celebrated the first anniversary, and finally got a healthy tan, I thought it necessary to update my week in pop culture. Though I have much to share about my Caribbean adventure, I still need to sort through photos and information so it could take a few days. Since I had TONS of time on my hands this week, here's what I brought along for the trip.

What I Read...on the Plane:
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult A novel following a student who shoots up his high school, killing 10 and wounding dozens, in a mere nineteen minutes. Picoult also brings in very likable characters in the form of said student's parents, his childhood friend and her mother, a dashing detective on the case, and very unlikable bullies who've tortured the shooter throughout his lifetime. I appreciate Picoult's writing-style and her ability to incorporate controversial issues into her fictional stories. While she doesn't offer solutions or choose sides in the bully vs. bullied, she does paint a picture that blurs the line of what's right, wrong, and justified. While it was no My Sister's Keeper, it was an easy, interesting read that held my attention.

What I Read...on the Beach:
April & Oliver by Tess Callahan Childhood friends, unrequited love, sexual tension, weekends in the Hamptons...April & Oliver had such potential for a saucy chick lit beach read. Unfortunately, April & Oliver could not have been more disappointing. Perhaps I had unfair expectations of what the book would ultimately be about, but I was left unfulfilled. While I don't mind leaving some ambiguities at the end of a good read, I felt that this one lead me out to sea and left me there. Though the characters were well developed, interesting, and intense, I was highly unsatisfied with the ultimate turn of events. I mean, why would I read a book in which I have no idea what happens to the main characters? Though some may appreciate the ambiguous ending that 'makes you think', I prefer to have a definitive climax. The main character lives or dies. They hook up or they don't (and let's face it, if they don't, why am I wasting my time?). This one left much to be desired...in many ways.

What I Watched...in the Hotel:
How I Met Your Mother, Season 3 The writers finally got it right this season. While always charming, the first two season struggled (in my eyes) with Ted as the lead because...well, because he's just boring. Season 3 focuses more on Barney (played spectacularly by Neil Patrick Harris) and the group is integrated into more storylines, making it a seriously funny sitcom in a dying sitcom era. The only episodes that faltered? The ones that were Ted/finding the Mother-centric. Does anyone really care who the mother is? Give me more Barney.

What I Watched...on the Plane:
Mad Men, Season 1 Skeptical of the hype but willing to give it a whirl mainly due to Jon Hamm and my love for 60's-era things, I finally watched the first two eps and I'm hooked. Drama, comedy, inappropriate gender/racial stereotyping, New York City...a winning combo. I plan to get my DVD on all week, so hopefully it will only get better.

That's about all I had time for last week. I plan to continue pop culturing this week and be sure to check back for Aruba guides!

What I'm Pop Culturing This Week

In between tasting foods all over the city (and subsequently hitting up the gym to work off the poundage), I have a burning need to get my pop culture fix. Since the television season has wound down, I have more free time for things like writing, reading, and dvd-watching. Here's my current week in pop culture.

What I'm Watching...on DVD:
True Blood, Season 1...While I have read all (and I mean all) of the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vamp series, I currently do not get HBO and therefore am a bit behind on watching the series-based show. I anticipated the DVD for what seemed like ages and as I await disc 4 from Netflix, True Blood has not disappointed (though the casting for Eric certainly has). Today, I'll be running home to my mailbox hoping Bill, Jason, and Lafayette (the latter of whom I just can't get enough of) will be waiting for me. Meanwhile I'll fight to get that disturbingly, awesomely kickin' theme song and opening out of my head...

What I'm Watching...on TV:
Top Chef Masters...Aside from my irrational Food Network obsession, June has brought little in the way of good TV. That's why I'm psyched for Top Chef Masters on Bravo. While a much different format than the original Top Chef, as a budding foodie I'm impressed by the ridiculousness of the master chefs featured. Even the judges can't say anything bad because...well, because all of the chefs make incredible food. A great way to see rockin', well known chefs compete for donations to the charity of their choice and learn about their fancy restaurants. The only downside? Not getting to taste Hubert Keller's dorm room mac 'n cheese.

What I'm Reading:
The Pillars of the Earth...A book by Ken Follett that, on paper, I'd generally have no interest in whatsoever - Medieval times, monks, battle armor, political hierarchies. While historical fiction has never been my cup of tea and I only started reading Pillars because many fellow officemates were raving (and it was a mere $6.39 on Kindle), it has done nothing but keep me totally into the story the whole way with phenomenally written characters and intense, arson-filled plotlines. It's a lengthy read but when a book is this good, I only want more so bring on the pages!

That's about all I can squeeze into this week. Any pop culture recommendations are welcome!