a midsummer night's independence day sunset

manhattan island.  looking west toward new jersey.  pier 54.

my kind of brooklyn

My father makes trips every few weeks into Brooklyn to see my Aunt Mary.  Usually I am working, so I cannot go with him.  Fortunately, summer vacation has opened up the opportunities for day time adventures that always involve eating.  Before getting me, he picked up Aunt Libby in the Bronx whose sons own a bread bakery.  Their bread can be found in Westchester restaurants and grocery stores. These are the same loaves of bread that my brother and I would eat in the grocery store as any good little Italian children would while my mother shopped. She had to embarrassingly give the cashier the empty bread bag in order to pay for it. 

some treasures from brooklyn

The journey to Brooklyn involved a trip to Coluccio's on 60th Street, a grocery store known for their cheeses, pastas, breads and all things Italian. Now Coluccio's has ravioli, but they aren't the best.  I was introduced to another gem....Pastosa's on New Utrecht Avenue...known to have the superior Ravioli. 

18 count box of love

breadsticks from the bakery

Once at Aunt Mary's, we had a delicious lunch coupled with desserts, watermelon and iced espresso over conversations in Italian.  I climbed the fig trees to find any ripe ones.  I picked string beans, fresh basil and mint.  All in all....a lovely day for family, food, and an adventure.

a worldly a-fair

In 1851, the world held it's first fair in London.  The purpose of this fair was to exchange cultural ideas, brand a nation, display technological advances, and promote tourism.  World's Fairs have delivered us such prominent city structures as Paris' Eiffel Tower (1889) and Seattle's Space Needle (1962).  New York City hosted the World's Fair in 1939 and 1964-65 in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, home to the Unisphere. I decided to spend an afternoon checking out this park and what remained of the World's Fair.  Much of the land is now used for recreational soccer fields, the USTA National Tennis Center, and the fountains that were once filled with water entertained skateboarders doing tricks. I spent the rest of my afternoon under a tree with sounds of laughing children in the distance, all while having Lunch in Paris.

unisphere: dedicated to man's aspirations toward peace through mutual understanding and symbolizing his achievements in an expanding universe - united states steel corp (1964)

standing 140 feet tall, weighing 700,000 pounds

the 1964 time capsule, 50 feet underground

my ride

dali's funhouse - dream of venus

mister softee has gone global

our epic return to the yard

"If you ever feel like you are growing up too fast, like many of you are, I ask that you return to the play ground and find the kid inside of you. You might just find me there because no matter how old we get, we all have a kid inside of us."

- words to her first class to see graduate ('04)

world cup soccer

this is how we watch it during the last week of school.

to be in italy or not to be....

with the school year ending, the world cup approaching and the lazy days of summer only weeks away...i cannot help but think about summer travel. when i first started blogging this time of year four years ago, i talked about my trip planned to europe. i find myself in the same predicament...the need to travel to italy. i could save my money, eat pizza and pasta while drinking wine in new york...but what is the fun in that?

being short and climbing tall

Here are my shortest students getting ready to climb their tallest. Zoe was confident, Raheem didn't want to think about it yet, Elving was scared for his life and Kevin was picking a weggie.

Stuffed Artichokes

Most people's only experience with artichokes has to do with a dip. I am fairly confident many of these artichoke dip loving individuals do not even know what an artichoke looks like. Personally, I can honestly say I have never had artichoke dip and never plan to, but I respect its popularity.

The artichoke is actually in the same family as the sunflower and typically found in the Mediterranean region. The artichoke that we eat is actually the flower bud of the plant and when allowed to blossom, blue petals are displayed. Most of our artichokes in the US come from California. If you do not know how to properly attack an artichoke, cleaning, cooking and eating it can be challenging. I enjoy seeing people look at an artichoke and thinking, "umm, this doesn't look like artichoke dip" or "what do I do with this?"

I have only eaten artichokes one of two ways. One, I enjoy them stuffed with bread crumb, garlic, olive oil, parsley and some cheese. Two, although not fresh, the artichoke hearts can be purchased in a jar and put in salads or breaded and fried. In my opinion, I love stuffed artichokes and like chicken cacciatore, I will not order it in a restaurant. My reason for this has to do with it being messy, but it is not uncommon to find stuffed artichokes on the menu as an appetizer in Italian and French restaurants.


I recently made stuffed artichokes, so here is the recipe.

• 2- artichokes: the leaves may have thorns, so be careful. Cut each leaf to create a straight edge and cut the stem short. Once you have cut each leaf, you can pull the artichoke apart, separating the leaves and creating space for the stuffing. Cut the stem to create a straight edge close to the base of the artichoke.
  
• Stuffing: in a bowl mix bread crumb, chopped garlic (lots), parsley flakes, and enough olive oil to create a paste.
  
• With a small spoon, stuff each leaf with the mixture created above. Try and push the stuffing it the leaves.
  
• Top the artichoke off with grated pecorino romano cheese.
• Place the artichokes in a covered deep pot with about an inch of water and steam for approximately 1.5-2 hours. They are ready when the leave come off easy when you pull gently. Be sure to check the water level and continuously refill when necessary.
  
  

Once the artichokes are done, it is time to eat! You are going to start at the base of the artichoke and pull a leaf off. You will notice the stuffing is on the leaf, unfortunately not all leaves will have kept the stuffing, but there is still something to eat on each leaf. Holding the edge of the leaf opposite to the stuffing, put the stuffing side in mouth. Do not let go of the leaf! Close your mouth to the point where your teeth are gripping the leaf and pull it out. Your teeth will capture the stuffing and the end of the leaf that is edible. Repeat for each leaf.


Please note: although the artichoke itself is rather large, the amount you actually eat is quite small and labor intensive. This may not be your food, but I can assure you it is tasty and good for you.

Chicken Cacciatore

One of my all-time favorite meals from growing up was my mother's chicken cacciatore. I would always request this as my birthday meal, along with stuffed artichokes and spaghetti. Since living on my own, I have been trying hard to perfect my chicken cacciatore to emulate my mother's and I think I am there.

In Italian, cacciatore translates to "hunter." This meal is almost like a stew, but the meal I grew up with is nothing like you will find in any restaurant. Upon their first glance, I've heard people comment, "that is not chicken cacciatore, Olive Garden's looks so much different." To begin with, Olive Garden tends to miss the boat on traditional Italian meals. (Jenny and Meggie....I hate to break it to you, but no where in Italy will you find plump breadsticks to dip is alfredo sauce and a giant salad served before the main meal. I thought you should know this now.) Typical cacciatore has capers, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, and a variety of spices. The dish is cooked until the meat falls off the bone and served over rice.

Just came out of the oven

The recipe I am used to is a little different. I am not sure if it is a Sicilian version or a family version, but it is one of my favorites.

• 2-chicken breasts, 4 chicken legs (any part of the chicken will suffice)
• 8-garlic gloves (ballpark figure....more is welcome)
• 5-red skinned potatoes cut in cubes (leave the skin on)
• 1-large onion sliced
• 3 cans of Delmonte tomato sauce
  
• parsley flakes
• salt and pepper, to taste
• Rice
  

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Place the chicken, chopped garlic, cubed potatoes, and sliced onion in a deep greased baking pan. Pour the tomato sauce in with two cans of water to rinse residue out of the cans. Season with salt, pepper and parsley flakes. Stir the mixture to make sure everything is coated with the sauce. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and bake for a good two hours. Stir the mixture after about an hour of cooking. You will know it is done when the meat is falling off the bone...this can be longer than two hours. Sometimes, I like to remove the foil after the two hours and broil it for a few minutes. Serve over a bed of rice.

I think I'm back...

I have had the urge to blog recently. Not because that there has been any great material to write about, but because I finally have time to write again. I looked back at my blog statistics to find that before I started my public health program (9/07), I blogged 117 times. Since then, I have only blogged 29 times.

Since finishing my public health degree, I have:

1. traveled through Spain with Roommate and a rubber ducky named Pato.
   
2. become an aunt to Sophia....child of Joe Ribods. My auntie duties have to be shared with four cubs now instead of three.
   
3. come to the conclusion that I am not sure where the last two years have gone.
   

sauteed tomatoes with basil, olive oil and garlic to be served over linguini

Needless to say, I have begun documenting what I eat through photos again. I am carrying my camera more with me these days...much lighter than binders and my laptop. I'm on a journey, not sure where exactly it will take me, but I anticipate summer vacation being quite interesting to say the least. Only time will tell....

Pizza

This was my first attempt at making pizza and it needs some work, but I think it went pretty well. The first one is broccoli rabe and grilled chicken and the second one is sauteed onions and mushrooms. All ingredients were fresh....no jarred sauce here!

Peppers and Onions

The foundation of almost everything I make.

A Dive You Won't See in Beijing

Key West Polaroids

When I tell people my roommate likes to go out with a Polaroid camera, they ask me if she has a digital camera. Her digital actually suffered a death due to being accidentally being dipped into a pineapple & vodka drink. This led her to grow fond of a Polaroid camera. We bring it out and get the same response every time. I always hear the snicker about a bunch of girls with some out-of-date camera. Soon after, they witness the instant gratification of a Polaroid....the noise heard when the shutter is pressed and the ejection of the photo. With a few shakes and some patience, you have yourself a masterpiece. They wish I never heard them make fun of us as they ask for their picture to be taken. She brought 20 boxes of film for the trip....here are a few shots!

Hula-hoop contest with tubes on the beach.

The group at Sloppy Joe's

Hmm, interesting.

The group at Sloppy Joe's on our prop night.

Papa Brett, Lil' Rach and Momma Ribods

The ladies in the pool at Parrot Key Resort

An Interesting Realization

So I was sitting in my cubicle in the late afternoon at the Fed and I was beat. I could have napped right there. There was no chance my body was biking seven miles and doing the other various torturous gym activities I find myself doing. I just wanted to go home and sleep. Perhaps I was getting sick, maybe dehydrated, or ever lacking sleep. I am unsure.

I do know the following:
- Back in my teaching days; I walked around, talked all day, never had a moment to rest, yelled at kids, walked up and down 5 flights of stairs all day long, no AC and nagging children constantly saying, "Ms. Ribods...."
- Now I sit in AC, cushioned chair (who knew they existed?), stare at a computer, speak the language of acronyms, interact with maybe 5 people in person and I'm no longer on an 8 period schedule.

5:00pm is the new 3:20pm. Conference calls are the new faculty meeting. Lunch? No one does it. And there I am.....ready to pass out at around 3pm. I am not sure what to make of this lifestyle I am living this summer. It's odd. It's what most of the working world deals with everyday. How?! I don't miss teaching, but I miss getting through the day in one piece.

Verdict: The grass is not always greener :)

Cubicle Face Time

So I recently started my internship at a federal government agency. It is a bit different than working in a school mainly because I find myself in a cubicle and there are no kids here. I am learning that working in an office with adults may be worse than working with kids. You cannot threaten a phone call home or a lunch detention to adults. On the other hand, I have not come across anyone worthy of a lunch detention. Everyone is very nice and helpful here.I have no clue what the weather is while I am sitting in the cubicle, it is almost like I am in a time warp, but the day does go by quickly.

I am quite impressed by the security of this place. It is slightly more secure than my classroom with the busted lock. Now I have not one but two separate ID cards that require thumb prints and codes to be punched in. My roommate thinks the ID's can get us through velvet ropes of local lounges and bars. I am not sure I want to test her theory.

Despite learning a ton about a certain humanitarian part of the government (I'm being vague here on purpose!), I hate the thought of not having a summer vacation. Thankfully, I still have a beach pass and hit the sand on the weekends, but there is something amazing about sleeping late every day for 8 weeks and getting paid for it!

Sardinia

I recently got back from a 10 day voyage to Sardinia, Italy. I took 12 kids from one of the schools that I work at. I don't think the "12 kids" part registered when I was asked to go to Italy for FREE. I think it finally hit when I was at the airport getting the kids checked in and it came time for me to get my ticket, I asked the agent to put me far from all the pubescent children he just checked in. Unless you are flying first class internationally or coach on Singapore Airlines, the experience across the pond can be long and mundane with the exception of free wine for everyone! The combination of three glasses of wine and Tylonal PM, put me out for much of the 7 hour journey to Rome and refreshed enough to deal with missing our connecting flight in a foreign country. Luckily, the sight of my last name and saying I was Sicilian seemed to be my get out of a sticky situation card in much of Italy. The traveling experience as a whole felt like being on the Amazing Race with the addition of 12 extra pieces of carry-on baggage that moaned and whined. This quickly led to the enforcing of two important rules: the questions "where are we going?" and "are we there yet?" were prohibited unless you wanted an extremely sarcastic and possibly offensive response from chaperone Ribods.

The trip on a whole was amazing. The people were incredible. The food was awesome (no shocker there). It was hot, it was sticky, there were no AC's or fans, but it wasn't bothersome. I mean, this is Italy! I consumed maybe 8,000 calories a day, but it was fine. Saying no to food is far worse than eating it and dealing with the aftermath. I ate figs and apricots off the tree, made bread, started a sketch book, swam in the Mediterranean, walked about a mile into a grotto, studied an artist, attended an Italian mass, and just enjoyed the life. I lived with a host family that spoke no English. Communicating became a mixture of my horrible Italian, Spanish (got me no where), and hand gestures. I'm sure I said "yes" to questions like, "do you like to eat the heart of a lamb?" and "so you are Sicilian? You know they are the dirty scum of our nation?" It all worked out though.

Here are some pictures (click on them to immerse yourself in Sardina!):

The group before catching the boat to the beach.

Mini espressos...who needs Starbucks.

The beach....I'm not sure we had a good reason to leave.

A cool tree we all ended up climbing during our lunch siesta.

My host family and fellow chaparoner. (l-r: Francesca, Ribods, Pepe, Jerry)

The church where you kneel on planks of wood...no padding here.

The view from my bedroom overlooking the town of Orani.

Seafood salad....I only ate the shrimp, but it was impressive to look at.

Standing behind a cutout of traditional Sardinian garb....wool, it was 95 degrees.

Summer Storm

I was getting ready to head to the train station and back to the city when I suddenly realized a huge storm was making it's way in. The clouds were pretty impressive to watch roll in.

Scenes from the Rooftop

You can see the entrance to the new 2nd Avenue subway line right above the two cabs.

Looking west along 35th Street towards the Empire State Building.

Looking northwest towards midtown.

Life at the Country House

Kaitlyn and Joseph are clearly up to no good in the back yard.

Chicken marinated in garlic, freshly parsley and lemon juice.

Joseph sharing his cupcake with Poppy.

Kaitlyn and Joseph sharing a loaf of bread.

Looking south at the Katonah train station.

I spy Bambi.

Check out the bee!

Mom and Dad laughing it up on the patio.

Megan is loving life.