Barbecue Shrimp!

Tonight I made, New Orleans style barbecue shrimp, a dish that was so freakin' delicious that I had a mouthgasm. Seriously...it was amazing. It really has nothing to do with barbecue, but whatever. It still tasted good regardless of the fact that the name is stupid. I got the recipe from Chef John from Foodwishes.com (check him out)

Here's the recipe( if you're interested in making incredible mouth watering food, that is)!

New Orleans style barbecue shrimp! :D

What You Will Need
1 1/2 pounds of colossal shrimp (I didn't use colossal...in fact...mine were even frozen, but it's better to get them fresh from the store)
1 1/2 tbsp. of vegetable oil
1 tbsp. black pepper
1/4 tbsp smoked paprika
1/8 tsp old bay seasoning (this stuff is incredible on shrimp)
4 tbsp cold butter, cut in cubes
6 cloves of minced garlic
1 tbsp minced fresh rosemary (mine wasn't fresh, it was dry, but apparently the fresh is 10 times better)
1 1/2 cups shrimp stock (which is reserved shells sauteed in 1 tsp butter and 2 cups of water. (chef John used chicken broth))
Juice from 1 lemon
2-3 tbsp worcestershire sauce
white rice

btw: the beauty of this recipe (for me anyway) was that I already had the majority of the ingredients. All I had to buy was the shrimp and rice!

What You Do

1.) peel shrimp- set aside skin in a sauce pan
2. In a bowl, drizzle the vegetable oil all over the shrimp. then add the black pepper. paprika and old bay. (New Orleans food is spicy, so the original recipe called for some cayenne too, but the people I was cooking for don't like hot food, so I didn't add it, but you should if you like hot stuff)
3. Mix together and throw plastic over that and let it sit in the fridge for at least an hour.
4. Now, it's time to make the shrimp stock! Put the sauce pan with the shells over med/high heat with a tablespoon of butter. Mix that all around until the shells turn pink.
5. Dump in two cups of water (or chicken broth, whatever you choose to use) and bring that to a simmer, and on low, let that simmer for about 20 minutes.
6. Strain stock into a bowl, and add the lemon juice and worc. sauce. (as I said earlier, the original recipe was from New Orleans so it was hot and it called for a few drops of hot sauce here...but I left that out)
7. Mix that together and set aside. (shrimp stock is ready!)
8. preheat the largest pan you have on high heat (needs to be super hot before you start putting the shrimp on)
9. place all the shrimp on the hot preheated pan, and cook for 1 minute on first side, flip, and add butter (4 tbsp), garlic and rosemary. Cook for 1 minute, then stir all that together.
10. pour in the shrimp stock (remove the shrimp so you don't overcook them), and boil the stock until it thickens, reduce heat to low and put the shrimp back in!

Now serve it up on some rice and you're good to go!

It's seriously awesome, and I suggest you give it a try.

Love you guys!

Oh, and here's a picture. I forgot to take a picture of my salmon. :(

I'M LEARNING. Salmon!

I actually found the motivation to cook something tonight! Hurray for me! I cooked mashed potatoes, corn, salmon and cornbread muffins! It was delcious. Here's what I did:

(WARNING: NOT FANCY INGREDIENTS, I'M A BEGINNER)

Okay. First, I made the mashed potatoes. Took 6 smallish potatoes, (if you have large potatoes, 4 will do) and washed them and peeled them. I then sliced them into little bites and boiled them until I could easily cut through them with a fork. Drained them, then put them back in the hot pot they were cooking in, and mashed them over medium heat (the heat was to get all that extra moisture that you don't need out). I added a stick and a half of butter, and a half cup of milk, salt, pepper and a tiny pinch of garlic powder. I mashed that all up together all nice, and then sprinkled some parsley over top, covered it with aluminum foil and sat aside in the microwave.

I had 4 pieces of frozen salmon, so I needed to thaw them. To thaw you put the salmon into plastic bags (you don't want to put them straight in the water) and placed them in a bowl full of lukewarm water. It probably took about 10-15 minutes to get them how I wanted them, and then I placed them on a foil-covered baking sheet seasoned with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper on both sides. I preheated the oven to 450, and put the salmon on the middle rack for about 15 minutes. Don't gotta flip, they were perfect! I wanted to put some lemon juice overtop of the salmon to kind of add some moisture, but I couldn't find any, so I used soy sauce...which worked like a BOSS. (was proud of myself for figuring that out on my own btw)

Heated up some canned corn, and made some Jiffy corn muffins as well.

It was awesome, ya'll! And I actually didn't use a recipe for any of this. Did it all on my own...you know what that means?? I'm LEARNING.

Hoorah!

Hope ya'll had a great day today. I'm not sure why I've used "ya'll" so much in this blog.

What Lord of the Rings Taught Me

It taught me that bad times never last forever, "even darkness shall pass",  and "there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for". It also taught me that I can make a difference because "even the smallest person can change the course of the future". It taught me that it's okay to cry because "I will not say 'do not weep' for not all tears are evil". It taught me that life is not all there is, but while we are here "all you have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to you". I learned that even when I'm feeling weary...to keep going because "a day may come when the courage of men fails, but it is not this day". Love is worth everything and "I would rather spend one lifetime with you, than face all the ages of this world alone". As we grow we become stronger and “your time will come. You will face the same Evil, and you will defeat it.” To be cautious when traveling, and exploring the world because “it's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.” I've learned it's important to make the world a better place for future generations to come, but “It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succor of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till. What weather they shall have is not ours to rule.” I've learned how important supporting a friend in their time of need is. So,  “Come on, Mr. Frodo. I can’t carry it for you. But I can carry you!” And last but not least, if your teacher really hates you in college "YOU SHALL NOT PASS"

Once Upon A Time

So, today I'm going to tell you a little story I like to call Dillon & Sheridan.

I'll start off with a few weeks before I started talking to him. I was going through one of my extremely anti-social, anxiety attack filled times in my life, and refused to ever go out with anyone. Not even my family hardly. I was always just sitting alone in my room. At this point I had been through two pretty bad relationships that were never right for me since the day they began. So, I had really given up on the whole dating game, and I was just tired of people in general. I was pretty much a hermit. Just trying to spend time with me, and rediscover the awesome chick that I used to be. So, yeah. I wasn't really accepting any invitations to hang out at this point in my life. I was perfectly happy sitting alone in my room playing Legend of Zelda every weekend.

I was sitting at my nana's house one weekend with my cousin, and she mentions this guy named Dillon Penland and how she thinks I should text him because he'd be a good guy for me to hang out with since we're so much alike. I'm like "Wait...Dillon Penland...that name sounds so familiar" This, of course, lead to Facebook stalking. I was like "Oh, my god, I remember him...WHERE IS HIS HAIR?" It obviously took me a few seconds to recognize him without his Jesus hair. I was like...hmmm not bad. Pretty cute. So she made me text him. So here I go, whippin' out my cellular device and I text him. The whole time I was like...wow this is going to be super weird, he's going to be like who the hell is this person trying to start up random conversation with me?

Surprise surprise, he definitely remembered me and we just started chatting a little bit. Not too much at first, but then we gradually started talking more. I was like YAY I FOUND A BEST FRIEND. (We had way too much in common, I was super excited) About a week into talking, I started to kind like him. A lot, actually. And I knew that if I wanted to pursue this, that would require me to be social and accept his many invitations to come hang out with him. I of course turned down the first few 100. (haha) I just had so much anxiety about it. I didn't really know what to say or do. And for any of you that knew me very well in high school, it'll be hard for you to believe, I've become a tiny bit of an introvert in the last couple years or so. Anyway, I finally agreed to go to lunch with him. Just to catch up. So we plan to meet at Kostas one day for lunch. So here I go, kinda nervous, but surprisingly calm. I show up at the restaurant and I'm a little early, so I wait for him for about 20 minutes. He finally shows up, and when he sat down at the table, I was like "Who is this incredibly handsome man that just sat down at my table?" Then I was like holy. shit. It's Dillon. We started talking, both of us nervous of course, and it was as if I just fell completely head over heels in love with this guy in the time that it took me to finish my BLT sandwich. Which actually kinda took forever because I was taking baby bites because I was nervous. After we finished eating, he paid for my meal, which was the sweetest thing ever. I thanked him, we hugged and we said see ya later, and parted ways. Little did I know that that was the beginning of the most incredible thing that's ever happened to me.

We talked every day since then and hung out a few more times. The movies, Lord of the Rings date, meeting his family. And then we decided to make it official. Heck, I would have made it official the moment we left Kostas that day. I've just always known with Dillon. Ever since that lunch date, I just knew. There was such a connection, it was like a million fireworks going off at once. It was even better than Disney World fireworks. Yeah. You know I'm serious now. So we dated for a few months, and I fell completely in love with him. I'll spare you the details because this blog is already long enough. But I can go ahead and tell you, this relationship is unlike any relationship I've ever had with anyone, ever. Like I said, I just knew. So, he left for basic training for the Air Force, and it was really hard saying goodbye, but we had promised we'd make it work. It was actually an incredible growing experience. Only being able to communicate through letters every other week was tough, but it made us 10 times stronger than we already were. It also made me love him 10 times more.

I remember when basic training was finally over after 2 months (that felt like 2 years), I went down for his graduation with his mom, dad and grandma. I can't tell you how much anxiety was felt on that trip. First of all, I didn't really know his dad and grandma too well at the time...so there was new people, it was my first time ever riding on an airplane, and I was about to see my boyfriend that I hadn't seen or really been able to talk to in 2 months. I didn't know what to expect. When we landed in San Antonio, and arrived at the base, his dad and grandma wanted to eat lunch before going to get Dillon. His mom and I were like HELL NO, WE HAVE TO FIND DILLON. So we were running around frantically trying to find him in that huge base. It took about an hour to get to him (because Dillon is AWFUL with directions...even though he'd fight you if you told him that), but when we finally found him, I swear guys, the feeling I got when I saw his little shaved headed self standing there was indescribable. I just wanted to jump up in his arms and stay there forever. Buuuuuut, I couldn't because I wasn't allowed to touch him because of his MTIs. Hahaha. So it was miserable. I did get to touch him later, though, don't worry. Hehe.

But anyway, long story short he asked me to marry him. I knew it was coming, because we had talked about it beforehand. I of course said yes, because by this point I knew he was the man for me, and there was absolutely no doubt in my mind. So needless to say, that was the happiest day of my life. After that he shipped off to tech school in Mississippi and I shipped off back to good old Sylva. It was a lot better because now I could talk to him daily, and hear his voice. It was nice. We always take that kind of stuff for granted. (take this moment RIGHT now, to go hug someone you love and tell them you love them...because you can)

So, I went down to visit him a few times in tech school because I couldn't stand being away from him for too long. The last time I went down, he gave me my engagement ring. I don't think I've ever cried that hard...(happy tears).

I'm ending the blog here because my fingers are tired, but also because there's not really a way to end this since our story isn't over, and it wont be over for a loooooong time. :) But if I could give you any advice it would be this: Do not settle. If you haven't found your perfect mate yet, don't settle for something less. They're out there, just let it happen. Even if you're an anti-social hermit like me, it'll happen. Love is an amazing thing, but sometimes things happen in our life that makes it feel like there's no hope, and love does nothing but hurt you. Trust me, I've been there, but it's not true. Love is beautiful when it's right. And you'll know when it is.

I'm so excited to see what the future has in store for me, and there's no one I'd rather experience life with than my best friend in the whole world. I love you Dillon, always.

And I love YOU guys! <3

Belk Land!

What's up!?

I got the job at Belkland-awesome-store-with-cute-clothes-that I get 25% off at! (aka: Belk)! Yay! I'm no longer unemployed! I'm pretty sure I'm going to love this job. Dillon thinks it's stupid that I got this job because it's in Waynesville. (30 minutes away from my house) But you know, what...whatever. It's a job. I can already tell that it's going to be hard working and going to school full time because I accidentally missed a due date last night preparing for this interview. D: Meh. I was supposed to turn in an essay at midnight last night, but...I turned it in today. So It'll be fine. It's only a daily 10 point reduction. Meh...still...that's 10 points...ugh. I'm not gonna stress over it. I just gotta be more careful...and start carrying a planner so that I remember when stuff is due. I think this is a good time to mention that I'm possibly the most unorganized person you'll ever meet. I never have everything I need to have when I need to have it. Ever. I was that kid that was always asking to borrow a pencil in school. And when someone was nice enough to let me borrow one, I'd chew the hell out of it until it looked like a shriveled up old lady. People don't like letting me borrow their stuff....oh well.

My boss, Laurie, gave me the 411 on everything I'd be doing. Turns out it's way more than just a cashier job. I'm basically a sales woman. I have to convince people to sign up for those credit cards that Belk offers every 18 hours that I work. Which...I think I'm pretty convincing. I'll just slip it in their pocket...muahaha. No. Seriously. I can be pretty convincing. How else do you think I got Dillon to ask me to marry him? Muahahhaa again. Just kidding. He loves me for me......I think.

But anyway, now I'm sitting here taking a break from my studies. Mom gave me an invitation to go on a bike ride tonight, which I gladly excepted. I was planning on going for a run, but biking beats the hello outta that. My parents and I have this island that we visit every so often (not as often anymore) called Jekyll Island. We go there JUST to bike. It's incredibly beautiful. What I like so much about it is that it's not commercialized whatsoever. Well...except for the fact that they put in a Dairy Queen. But I'm not gonna complain about that too much. Peanut butter sundaeee holla!

I'm gonna finish this paper about hydrogen bonds. I'll see ya on the flip side, yo!

$3 Meals? Nope.

Hey!

So my folks went on a weekend getaway to Hillsville, VA this past weekend so they could go to this festival (not really a festival, more like a huge yard sale) that they go to every year. It's actually pretty neat. There's like easily hundreds of booths set up of people either selling their crafts, their old stuff, or antiques. I'm actually pretty mad that I didn't get to go, but that's not the point. Mom brought me back a cook book called $3 Meals. I was kinda losing sight of my whole "cooking blog" idea, because obviously that's not been happening. (I cannot finish anything) BUT, this book seems pretty interesting...maybe I'll try a few recipes from it, and tell you how it goes.

The only problem I have with cookbooks like this is that the recipes hardly ever only cost 3 bucks. (I automatically imagined three male deer just now) I was looking through the recipes, and there was a pasta recipe with like 4 million ingredients, that I guess you're already supposed to have. Uh. I don't have any of that shit. I don't even have an oven that works properly the majority of the time. The noodles alone cost 3 dollars, and I'm poor ya'll. I need to find a cookbook that is titled "put salt and pepper in a pan on high...and if you wave this book over top of it, it turns into a sirloin steak." That's my kind of cook book. But whatever. The whole point of this blog was to cook stuff and then talk about it, and so far I've only cooked one thing. Which was really only a 7 out of 10. Bottom line: I'm a failure.

No, but really. I'm gonna start cooking for real soon. Especially if I get this job at Belk. Yeah. I got an interview with Belk tomorrow, and if I don't completely blow that, then I'll start making some moolah! Which means I'll have money to buy ingredients! and drugs. Wait. What?

I hope you all are having a fantastic Tuesday! (I like Tuesdays because that's when Catfish and Whose Line Is It Anyway comes on)

Chau!

Movie Review: Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Kind of summary: So pretty much this movie was about two best friends who live together, Zack and Miri, who are struggling financially. They come up with an idea to create a pornographic movie in order to make money to pay off their bills, but they have secret feelings for each other...which makes things a bit interesting.

My thoughts: This movie was very well made and I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end. I honestly didn't know what to expect when I read the title--well...I mean obviously there was a character named Zack, and one named Miri...and they prooobably at some point were going to attempt to make a porno. But that's all I was really expecting. I didn't expect to be taken on such an emotional journey. I really got into these characters, and their lives and their feelings for each other. I was literally holding my breath the entire movie wondering what was going to happen with their relationship. But I think that's just the lame romantic side of me coming out.

It was supposed to be a comedy, and it was, and it was hilarious...but I found that it was a very touching story. Both literally and figuratively. But for real...it was able to shine a light on the more emotional part of sex, using porn, while making it super funny...which I thought was an extremely unique way of going about it.

I don't want to give too much away, even though I fear I already did, but you should definitely go check it out if you've not seen it yet. I was completely entertained from beginning to end.

oh, and WARNING: Boobs. Not for the tiny tots. ;D