Asian Noodles

If you haven't yet tried Pampered Chef, go online and look for someone in your area! It's a line of stoneware, cookware, and gadgetry that is unequaled! I've been buying it for years and have never seen a piece of Pampered Chef that I didn't love ... So, I went to a Pampered Chef party a couple of weeks back and this time instead of stoneware I decided to give their titanium-coated skillets a try. As that little Taco Bell dog says, "I think I'm in love!" Got two pieces, the 8" skillet and the HUGE deep wok-style skillet. Wooohoooo ... I can flip an omelet again! and I made my favorite Asian Noodles without everything ending up all over the stove top! Stacey is my Pampered Chef person -- click on this link to see my new skillets! And don't forget to order your cinnamon and Asian spice while you're there -- best cinnamon I ever tasted!

Here's my recipe for Asian Noodles:

6 oz boneless pork tenderloin or chicken breast cut into 2" x 1/4" strips
Marinate them covered for 10 minutes (can be more) with a mixture of
2 T Chinese rice wine, dry sherry, or good table white wine
2 t hoisin sauce
1/2 t cornstarch

Combine 3 T dark soy sauce, 2 T oyster sauce, 1 T low-sodium soy sauce and 1/2 t sugar. Mix with whisk or fork. Set this aside.

For wok cooking, you want to put ingredients in from the longest to cook to the most delicate. I generally use broccoli, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots and whatever else might be leftover in the refrigerator. Chop the vegetables up into bite-sized pieces and set aside. You also want 3 cups of chopped Napa cabbage (Chinese cabbage)

Cook 1 pound of fresh Asian-style wheat noodles. Drain, rinse with cold water and drain again and set aside. The rest of the preparations will go fast ...

Heat a couple of teaspoons of olive oil (my favorite), canola oil or peanut oil in your wok over high heat. Stir-fry broccoli, mushrooms and bamboo shoots until the colors are bright and they smell wonderful. Put them on a plate and set aside.

Heat 1 teaspoon of oil on high heat and stir-fry cabbage for 2 minutes -- it will wilt a lot!. Set aside, wipe out the skillet and ...

Heat another teaspoon of oil on high and toss in a teaspoon of minced garlic and stir for about 10 seconds. Add pork or chicken mixture (sauce included) and stir-fry about 3 minutes. Put the meat with the cabbage.

Now you're really hungry and the smells are fantastic! Last step! Wipe out your wok and heat 1 tablespoon of oil on high heat. Stir in reserved cooked noodles and stir-fry about a minute. Add a cup of chopped green onions and the soy sauce mixture, cooking about a minute. Add the pork or chicken back in, stir to combine, and feed the hungry masses.

Today's Lesson Learned

We're on the weight control patrol today. Last night I ate some sorbet -- ok, I ate a lot of sorbet. Granted it was fat free and real fruit, etc., but it was still sugar. So why should I be surprised that today I can't get sweets off my mind? Well, I'm *not* surprised! I think I get it ... I think I get it ... If I say this often enough maybe I really will get it. I am addicted to sugar ... if I don't eat sugar, I don't crave sugar. conversely, if I *do* eat sugar, it sets up a craving for me. So, having (hopefully) learned that lesson today, I'll stay away from refined sugar this week and work at getting control of this food thing!

Weighing In

My weigh-in this week wasn't as much fun as last week, but considering how much I didn't do the right things, it wasn't nearly as bad as I was afraid it was going to be. New stepdaughter and family arrived on Monday ... in the middle of the night Monday I was downstairs on the computer (not unusual) and somehow (I'm thinking alien influence) any time I opened my mouth I found an Oreo in it!!! Needless to say the next morning I had one bad sugar hangover. And that of course set me on the wrong road for the rest of the week. The positive thing for the week, though, is that I wasn't filling myself with sugar, just some bad carbs and not balancing my nutrition. It was a little challenging to stay on routine when it was way more fun to be playing with babies :) ... On to another week :)

New book news!

If you've ever ventured into the world of romance, more than likely (and hopefully!) you've read some of Christina Dodd's fantastic writing. She has now expanded her genre into the world of paranormal romance with the first in a new series, "Storm of Visions". I'm totally excited to see this as I've never read anything by her that wasn't great! You can read more about the book at Barnes and Noble.