Coffee talk

Living at my parents house means that I have access to a HUGE pot of coffee as soon as I wake up every morning. This coffee pot is so HUGE that it takes an entire day to consume all of the coffee that it holds. So HUGE that my parents think they have to use half a bag of grounds for each fourteen-cup batch. And 99% of the time this misguided notion results in a HUGE pot of coffee that tastes very strongly of pee and molded charcoal.

A week after I moved home I decided I'd had enough fermented urine and rot and I started drinking Folgers instant coffee instead. And you know what? It's DELICIOUS! I know I know, how sinful I am to prefer the instant gratification kinda sorta coffee over the real stuff that percolates, drips, and smells up the house something wonderful, but my taste buds can't help it. Yesterday I got really creative and added a sprinkle of cinnamon in along with the granules and the Sweet 'N Low and the creamer. And can you guess how quickly I had a new best friend? Instantly!

Buuurp!

For dinner tonight I dreamed up a delicious and simple (oh let's call it) "vegetable enchilada" that I'm looking forward to eating again and again and again. I've provided the recipe below, though I'm not sure it will be a universal hit as it sort of requires that you have a taste for vegetables. Since I've been assailing my taste buds with figure-friendly fare for going on three years, I LOVE the flavors of spinach and red onion (and fat-free cottage cheese for that matter) but I'm practically betrothed to someone who could live without all three, so I know this enchilada's not for everyone:

1/4 large red onion, cut into chunks
2/3 cup frozen spinach
garlic salt
cumin
1/3 cup fat-free cottage cheese
black pepper
1 high-fiber La-Tortilla Factory plain tortilla (small size)

Spray a small skillet with cooking spray. Saute onion until it just begins to brown. Add frozen spinach and heat until it has melted completely. Sprinkle with garlic salt and cumin (I don't measure, just add until it looks good. More cumin than garlic salt, please!), turn off the burner, and add cottage cheese and pepper. Stir until cottage cheese has just begun to melt. While mixture is still on the burner, microwave tortilla for 10-20 seconds, depending on your microwave. Dump cottage cheese mixture onto tortilla, roll up, and enjoy!
156 cal + 2 fat + 9 fiber = 2 Points

Four Foods Friday: 3/6

I'm in no mood to read about the rhetoric of China (barf!) and that last post felt so good that I've decided to post again! Once you pop, you just can't stop (as they say) so don't be surprised if I go a little overboard today.

Four Foods Friday:
#1. Coffee. Do you use ground, bean or pods?
Ground. I'll sacrifice freshness for convenience any day.

#2. Coffee filters. Do you use paper, gold or other?
Paper. I have no idea what a gold coffee filter is.

#3. Tea. Do you prefer tea bags, loose tea or something else?
Tea bags. I LOVE Egg Noggin' by C.O. Bigelow, it tastes like a liquified sugar cookie. Unfortunately, it's only available at Christmas time. I also like green tea mixed with lemonade and raspberry tea.

#4. Share a recipe for something you like to eat with coffee or tea.
This is my grandmother's recipe for teacakes (apparently they're a Southern treat). They don't have much taste on their own, but they suck up the flavor of whatever they're dipped in. I've never actually eaten them with tea, but they're quite excellent in coffee.

2 cups sugar
1 cup shortening
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
4-1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cream sugar and shortening in a bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating mixture slightly after each addition, then add vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour and salt, then mix into the cream mixture two cups at a time. When dough is thoroughly mixed, turn out onto a floured surface and roll until dough is about 1/4-inch thick. Cut out cookies with a round cookie cutter and place on a greased cookie sheet. Bake 10 minutes, or until golden brown.