Obsessed with Martha Stewart

Your Pets: Weight Matters

Martha Stewart is an animal lover. She has three dogs - she just added a new chow puppy to her family. So it's not unusual that there is a column dedicated to pet care and health in Martha Stewart Living. In the April edition, the author, Amelia Glynn discusses pet obesity. I learned from my vet that you should be able to feel {not see} your dogs ribs.

My husband and I adopted a lab mix when we moved to Virginia. We had no idea that she was pregnant and would have seven puppies the day before our wedding. When she started putting on weight, we took her to the vet, and I asked, "There's no way she could be pregnant, right?" He looked at me and grimaced. He gave me the bad news that she was probably pregnant and the puppies were pretty far along. So, when she had the puppies, we took care of them until they were ready to go to their forever homes. We found good homes for five of the puppies and decided to keep two.

I'm always afraid that we're feeding them too much or too little. I'll feel their ribs on a regular basis to make sure they're on the right track, but it's hard to tell with puppies. Your supposed to feed them much more than an adult dog, so we've been measuring their food each meal and hoping their getting the right amount. However, my problem is definitely the treats. I want my dogs to be happy, so I give them too many treats. Today I spent $45 on dog treats, and we'll be happy if they'll last the whole week. Our dogs aren't overweight, so I guess the amount of treats is okay.

Anyways, a good tip I got from this article is to feed your dog healthy treats such as carrots, pieces of apple, and green beans. My dogs love berries and apples, so maybe I'll try this. They also love a little slice of turkey which I give them when they're being extra good. What indulgences do you give your pets?

Mini Heart Fruit Pies

 

 

Rating (1-10): 8

I can't remember the exact name of this recipe, and I misplaced my February 2010 edition of Martha Stewart Living magazine {insert gasp} where I got the recipe. However, I can remember that the pear and raspberry mini pies were delicious. The crust was flaky - just the way you want a home baked pie to taste. They were a bit of a pain to make, but they were well worth the effort to have these adorable desserts on Valentine's Day.

Note: I'll be out of town this weekend, so I won't be posting - but I'll more than make up for it next week. Have a great weekend!

Raspberry Cupcakes with Pink Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Hearts

 

 

Rating (1-10): 6

These cupcakes were kind of a pain to make. I got the recipe from the February 2010 edition of Martha Stewart Living. They involved a lot of steps, I had to use my mixer and double boiler twice, and puree raspberries in the blender. They made a complete mess that took two loads of dishes in the dishwasher to clean. On top of that, the buttercream frosting was pretty disgusting. It tasted like a slab of butter which isn’t too surprising since I used 4 sticks of butter to make it. The cake of the cupcakes was pretty good – not close to the best I’ve ever tasted and the chocolate hearts were simple and adorable. I wouldn’t make the cupcakes or frosting again, but I’d definitely use the chocolate heart idea to adorn other cupcakes.

What's For Dinner? Martha Stewart Living Feb 2010

 

 

Ratings (1-10):

Warm Potato and Frisee Salad: 5

Caramelized Pears and Red Onions: 6

Croque-Monsieur: 10 (I’m pretty sure this is the first 10 I’ve given out.)

Chocolate Truffles: 7.5

In every Martha Stewart Living, there is an article titled, “What’s For Dinner?” detailing a four person dinner. It usually includes a salad or appetizer, entrée, side dish, and dessert. Not only are there clear recipes, but the article instructs the cook on what order to fix the dishes so everything will be ready together.  In the February 2010 edition, the meal consisted of warm potato and frisee salad, croque-monsieur, caramelized pears and red onions, and chocolate truffles. My husband and I made this meal the night of the Super Bowl and we invited my mother-in-law over for dinner.

I wasn’t impressed by the warm potato and frisee salad and the pears and onions just tasted burnt. My mother-in-law and husband liked both of those items, so it might just be my picky taste buds. However, we all agreed that the croque-monsieur was probably one of the best sandwiches any of us had ever tasted. I don’t like chocolate, so I didn’t eat dessert. My husband and mother-in-law loved the truffles. They said they were incredibly rich. They enjoyed them with a cup of espresso – they drank it out of our Martha Stewart china from Macy’s that was on our wedding registry.

 

 

 

Chicken Parmigiana: Fit to Eat

 

 

Rating (1-10): 9

I have to start this post by saying that my husband is AMAZING. On Friday, it snowed all day. My husband wasn’t able to get to work, so we got to stay in and enjoy ourselves. I organized my craft room, and it’s now my favorite room in the entire house, even though it smells like dog pee because we’ve yet to get the carpet cleaned since having puppies pee in the room. I know – it’s pretty disgusting and completely un-Martha, but it hasn’t been high on the priority list.

Because it took me most of the day to organize my craft room and I was on my feet the whole day, my back starting acting up. I took a muscle relaxer and could barely keep my eyes open as we watched a little television before dinner. My husband suggested that I take a nap and relax. I told him to wake me up in 30 minutes, so I could fix chicken parmigiana from the February 2010 edition of Martha Stewart Living. He said that he would; however, he didn’t wake me up. Instead, he cooked dinner while I slept for the next 90 minutes and woke me up 10 minutes before it was ready. Isn’t that completely sweet? I’m pretty lucky.

I was skeptical about this recipe, because it’s listed in the same “Fit to Eat” article as the bland broccoli and cheese casserole. When I stumbled my way into the kitchen, I was delighted by the smell of chicken, garlic, cheese and tomatoes and was even more delighted when I tasted this dish. I couldn’t believe that it was only 307 calories per serving. Martha deserves serious credit for this one. I loved it so much that I couldn’t wait to have it again for lunch the next day.

Breakfast Quinoa

 

Rating 1-10: 2 (1 = Makes me wanna vomit, 10 = Could I please have this for breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day)

I woke up this morning at 6 am even thought my tonsils are swelling and I’m about to get another case of tonsillitis to make breakfast quinoa (pronounced ˈkēn-ˌwä – say it a few times, it’s fun) from the February 2010 edition of Martha Stewart Living. I hate to say it, but Martha’s losing me. A good number of the recipes I’ve tried within the last week have been disappointing (or gross), and I expect more from the one and only Martha Stewart.

One of the things that Whole Living (a part of the Martha Stewart website) recommended as a New Year’s resolution was to eat more quinoa (and I made it one of my goals). First, I had to figure out what quinoa was. According to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary it’s “an annual herb of the goosefoot family.” Hmmm, that doesn’t sound appealing nor help me understand what the heck it is.

If I were to write my own definition of quinoa, it would be “coarse yellowish grains that turn opaque when cooked and taste like tiny plastic beads.” Guess who’s not fulfilling this goal? If you’re not following along, that would be me. At least I tried it. It’s not happening again.

The first couple of bites were kind of masked by the blueberries, cinnamon, and light brown sugar. The thing I couldn’t get past was the consistency and texture. After the first few bites, I was struggling to keep going and keep it down. My belly ached afterwards. This is a true measure to tell whether something is edible: give it to my husband. He HATES when we waste food. He’ll eat food just because it’s about to expire and if I don’t like something, I’ll give it to him and he’ll eat it even if he doesn’t really like it. He wouldn’t finish his breakfast quinoa (he’s not finished his meal like twice in our almost 6 year relationship) and he wouldn’t go near the rest of mine. That’s settled. Quinoa sucks. The only reason it got a 2 instead of a 1 was because I didn’t want to vomit until the fourth or fifth bite.

Broccoli and Pasta Casserole

Rating 1-10: 5 (1 = Makes me wanna vomit, 10 = Could I please have this for breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day)

This broccoli pasta casserole recipe comes from the February 2010 edition of Martha Stewart Living (btw, this month’s MSL is AMAZING…pick it up). The article is called Fit to Eat: A Lighter Take on Comfort Food. I was excited to try out this recipe, because I love broccoli and cheese casseroles and this was a figure-friendly version that promised to be a crowd-pleaser. My mom makes a delicious broccoli and cheese casserole that’s probably 600 calories per serving. You know it’s good when you can barely taste the broccoli, because it’s smothered in sharp cheddar cheese….yum.

I’m also a pasta lover. I have to have a pasta dinner at least once a week, but before this Martha Stewart venture I would easily eat macaroni and cheese two nights in a row and then pasta with meat sauce the next two nights. I thought this recipe was going to be great, because it contains two of my favorite things: pasta and cheese.

The casserole was a disappointment. I don’t know what’s been going on lately, but the recipes I’ve been trying have been lacking in taste. The article claims: “Fat-free milk, part-skim ricotta, and a touch of sharp Parmesan lighten the casserole without sacrificing taste or texture.” Lies, all lies. I liked it enough to have it for lunch the next day, but there weren’t any other appealing options: broccoli and pasta casserole or peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I had to add A LOT of pepper and more salt to make it more tempting than the sandwich.

 

Note: I've added a rating system to the recipes, so I can be more specific with readers on how much I like (or dislike) something.

August 2009 Martha Stewart Living

I got my August 2009 edition of Martha Stewart Living yesterday and devoured each page. I always open the front door with anicipation tingling on my fingertips at the possibility of getting one of the magazines that I subscribe to. My top five favorite things about the August 2009 edition are:

1. The floral flourishes for boring pillows. You only need ultrasuede fabric, a needle, thread, and a pillow to do this craft.

2.The Mackintosh coat on page 58. I wish I could afford a coat priced at $795 - but that's way out of my price range. Here's to dreaming.

3. The easy to make necklaces. These are going to be one of my first projects after my October wedding. 

4. The coast to coaster cocktails...because who doesn't love a great cocktail?

5. The barbecue heaven section (slow-cooked baked beans, corn on the cob, kale slaw with peanut dressing, barbecued pork-shoulder chops, and grilled vanilla peaches - YUM).

Did you get your copy of Martha Stewart Living? If so, what's your favorite part?