Administrativia

Baked Zucchini Casserole 1 1/2 cup grated zucchini 3/4 cup grated carrots 1/4 cup diced onion 2 eggs or equivalent egg-beaters 1/4 cup no-fat sour cream 1/4 cup grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese 2 slices of sour-dough bread Mix zucchini, sour cream, onion, carrots, cheese and egg together and put in 1 quart casserole dish. Cube sour-dough bread and arrange evenly on top casserole. Brush lightly with olive oil or lightly spray with cooking spray. Bake 1 hour at 350 F. (Serves 2) Calories per serving: 210

Today marks the 30th anniversary of the annual Houston Pride Parade -- I'll be heading down to Monstrose later this afternoon to help get our Chevron float set up. Thank heavens it's a night-time parade, so the temperatures may actually moderate from the 90's down to the lower 80's by the time the parade starts (but I don't hold out that much hope). Our best shot at cooler temps -- given that the streets will be radiating heat along with 100,000 + spectators -- is if the threatened thunderstorms bring no rain to the area, but clouds and a breeze. In any case, it will be fun! Update: Breezy and threatening rain up until the parade... and what a parade. We finally got on the route about 9:30... the Chronicle estimated 200,000 people along the route and it certainly seemed that way. My only beef was the lackadaisical security and crowd control. Unlike previous years, it seemed like the police and parade organizers just didn't care if the crowds spilled out onto th...

This Week: Asian-style Chicken & Spinach Dumplings Dumplings 6 wonton wrappers 1 5oz can of white meat chicken packed in water 1 cup fresh spinach, stems removed, chopped fine 1 tablespoon green onion (chopped fine) 1/2 teaspoon ginger 1/2 teaspoon garlic 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 tablespoon sesame oil Sauce (mix in small bowl and refigerate overnight) 1/4 cup soy sauce 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 1/4 teaspoon ginger In food processor, mix in this order: chicken, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, onion, spinach. Place one wrapper on a plate or board, then place 1 scant tablespoon of the mixture in the center of the wrapper. Moisten the edges with water and fold over to form a half-moon shape. Pinch the center together first, then stand the dumpling up on its base and pleat one of the sides of the half-moon twice, halfway between the outer edge and the center. Pleat the other side in the same way and leave the dumpling standing up. Stand the finished dumplings on a baking she...

Speculators in the market have, rightly, been targeted for thier use of the Enron-loophole to basically compete (unfairly) in a market that is mixed between highly-regulated (see integrated oil companies) and unregulated players (see commodity brokers). This imbalance of power has led to the free flow of capital to a market from sources that a decade ago largely abandoned investment in oil companies -- in favor of the speculative bubble of the dotcom boom. That lack of capital infusion -- and the capital-intensive nature of the oil & gas business -- led to the mega-mergers of 1999 - 2001. Bear in mind that even with all that merger activity among the multi-nationals, their true competition is with national oil companies -- basically branches of their nation-state governments: Pemex (Mexico), Petrobras (Brazil), Pedevesas (Venezuala), Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia), Cinoco (China) ... you get the picture. On the one end, you have national oil companies -- either in OPEC or non-aligned ...

George Carlin is dead at age 71.

(and both right, too.) I guess it's too much to ask during the political silly season for a real discussion about what needs to happen regarding U.S. (and world) energy policy. Offshore Drilling: Obama is correct in asserting that this will have no immediate effect on prices. He is wrong, however to assert that opening up more offshore acreage is unnecessary. McCain is correct in asserting that there are potentially large reserves that can be tapped in currently embargoed U.S. waters. He is incorrect to assert that tapping these will provide any immediate relief at the pump. Long-term, the U.S. will need stable and local sources of hydrocarbons -- not just for energy, but for all the products that require it as part of the manufacturing process or as the base material. Two reasons to open up more acreage for exploration: we need to find out what is there (and commercial) and it needs to be in the queue for eventual development. Once doesn't happen without the other. Obama's...

This Week: Stroganoff-style Chicken 2 tbsp. vegetable oil 1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into strips 2 cups sliced mushrooms 1 medium onion, chopped 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup (98% Fat Free) 1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt 1/4 cup water 4 cups hot cooked no-yolk medium egg noodles, cooked without salt Paprika Heat half the oil in skillet. Add chicken and cook until browned, stirring often. Remove chicken. Add remaining oil. Add mushrooms and onion and cook until tender. Add soup, yogurt and water. Heat to a boil. Return chicken to skillet and heat through. Serve over noodles. Sprinkle with paprika. Calories per serving: 330 Chicken 140 Sauce 90 Noodles 100

A lovely email that should be circulating, rather than the crap that usually floats along the tubes of the Internet: (h/t = Slate.com for full article ) From: [Redacted] To: [Redacted] Subject: WHO IS BARACK OBAMA? There are many things people do not know about BARACK OBAMA. It is every American's duty to read this message and pass it along to all of their friends and loved ones. Barack Obama wears a FLAG PIN at all times. Even in the shower. Barack Obama says the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE every time he sees an American flag. He also ends every sentence by saying, "WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL." Click here for video of Obama quietly mouthing the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE in his sleep. A tape exists of Michelle Obama saying the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE at a conference on PATRIOTISM. Every weekend, Barack and Michelle take their daughters HUNTING. Barack Obama is a PATRIOTIC AMERICAN. He has one HAND over his HEART at all times. He occasionally switches when one arm gets tired, whic...

This week: Spinach, Apple & Pecan Salad (single serving -- double or triple to serve more) 1/2 cup tart apple slices (Granny Smith) 1/4 cup blueberries 1 cup raw spinach (stems removed) 2 tablespoons basil & balsamic vinegrette salad dressing (Ken's Steakhouse brand or similar) 1/2 tablespoon crushed pecans (roasted / salted) 1 tablespoon blue cheese crumbles In a chilled bowl, toss salad dressing, apples and spinach until well coated. Plate and add pecans, blue cheese and blue berries. Serve. Calories: 373 per serving Apple = 60 Blueberries = 21 Spinach = 7 Salad Dressing = 110 Blue Cheese = 90 Pecans = 85

As promised, I haven't blogged on the subject -- though admittedly, I was a bit manic the first couple of weeks about the dieting thing. It's now week six and I'm 259 pounds -- down from 275 (16 pounds so far). My calculated BMI is now 32.2 (a drop of 2 points). Have I noticed a dramatic difference... hard to tell from day-to-day, but I definitely feel better and my clothes are looser... and I no longer look like I'm in my 8th month. I'm flying out to California on the 22nd -- so it will be interesting to see the reaction from folks who I haven't seen since January... It will also be a test for eating correctly on the road.

This week: Skillet Herbed "Roast" Chicken 1/4 tsp. ground dried sage leaves 1/4 tsp. dried thyme leaves, crushed 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts halves Vegetable cooking spray 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup (98% fat free or healthy choice) 1/2 cup water Mix the sage and thyme in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the chicken. Spray a 12-inch nonstick skillet with the cooking spray and heat over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the chicken and cook for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken and keep warm. Add the garlic to the skillet and cook until it's lightly browned. Add the soup and water and cook until the mixture is hot. Serve over Parslied Rice: Toss 4 cups of cooked long-grain white rice with 1 teaspoon chopped parsley. Calories per serving: 210 Chicken 140 Sauce 70

This week: Zucchini Fritters with garlic yogurt sauce 1 pound (about 2 medium) zucchini 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon (1 lemon) freshly grated lemon zest 10 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley, stems removed and leaves finely chopped, plus more sprigs for garnish (optional) 1 medium clove garlic, minced 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1/2 cup all-purpose flour Using the large holes of a box grater, grate zucchini into a medium bowl. Add salt, lemon zest, chopped parsley, garlic, pepper, and eggs. Mix well to combine. Slowly add flour, stirring so no lumps form. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat until oil sizzles when you drop a small amount of zucchini mixture into the pan. Carefully drop about 2 tablespoons zucchini mixture into pan; repeat, spacing fritters a few inches apart. Cook fritters until golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Turn fritters, and continue cooking until golden, 2 to 3 minutes more. Tr...

A wonderful concession speech and full endorsement of Barack Obama. Well done.

I couldn't resist this image. h/t Joe.My.God

This week: Creamy Lemon Chicken 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts 1 can Campbell's Cream of Chicken Soup (98% fat free) 2 tbsp. water 1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley OR 1 tsp. dried parsley flakes 1 tbsp. lemon juice 1/2 tsp. paprika 1/4 cup chopped red pepper 4 lemon slices Brown chicken in a lightly oiled large skillet at medium-high heat. Set chicken aside and reduce heat to medium. Add soup, water, parsley, lemon juice, paprika and pepper to skillet. Heat to a boil, stirring often. Return chicken to skillet and reduce heat to low. Simmer covered, until chicken is cooked through (about 5 minutes). Garnish with lemon slices. Calories per serving: 210 Chicken 140 Sauce 70

According to ABC News , the "Sons of Confederate Veterans" of Tampa will be flying a huge confederate flag near one of the busiest highways in the country. Now usually this is the same bunch of rubes that tend to get all bent out of shape when it comes to shipping 'umercan' jobs overseas. Unless, of course, you want to spend $80K on a confederate flag made (drumroll) in China. Also, according to ABC, the latest fad among (straight) night-clubbers is to slather Preparation H all over their torsos to get that "ripped look" the ladies prefer. I wonder if it really does the trick -- since most of these a**holes don't disappear. From the Washington Post , you really have to wonder about the decision process to house soldiers trying to recover from PTSD next to a firing range.

Now that Obama has wrapped up the requisite delegates (super and pledged), it's time for Clinton to go quietly into the night. She's knows how to be a class act -- and if Bill will let her -- can do this well. (Then the Veepstakes can begin!)

Yeah, I know -- it's all about Obama winning the Democratic nomination today, but lest we forget how we got into the mess we're in...

This week: Slimmed Down Garlic Mashed Potatoes 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 garlic heads 1 3/4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, whole with skin, scrubbed 2 teaspoons salt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature 2/3 cup low-fat buttermilk, at room temperature 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream Freshly ground white pepper Fresh chives (garnish) Prepare garlic in advance of boiling the potatoes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Slice the top off of 2 garlic heads, put in a small baking dish, and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with foil and roast until the cloves are very soft and tan, about 1 hour. When cool enough to handle, squeeze the garlic heads to pop out the cloves. Smash the cloves with a knife and add to the potatoes during the mashing. In a large saucepan, cover the potatoes with cold water and add 1 teaspoon of the salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower the heat to maintain a simmer. Cook until fork tender, about 30 to 60 minutes depending upon the size of the pot...