Miss USA Update: Exhibit A

Update:  I'm not making this stuff up, she really is the best.  After I wrote yesterday about my plea for why you should be voting for Brittany Toll, I see this:

East To West, Simply The Best!

Let me start by saying I don't know much about pageants or pageant life.  In fact, one of my first conversations with my then neighbor, and now Miss New Mexico, was an explanation of the difference between Miss America and Miss USA.  In case you aren't sure, the skinny on Miss USA and Miss New Mexico are summed up in the Qwikis below.  I don't know if I have ever watched a pageant or even know the name of any Miss USA's of the past...wait, Shana Mokler, right?  Anyway, I am compelled to compel you to ensure that a person of the highest quality could show the world what we should be celebrating in women and in humanity.  Let's sum it up with a top-5 list of why Brittany Toll is Miss Unbelievably Sharp and Altruistic:

5.  She is simply one of the best Pre-K Teachers I have ever seen in my 9 years of work in public education.  If you have EVER spent more than 15 minutes with a 4-year old, let alone 20, you get it.
4.  She is so down-to-earth and willing to share with anyone.  You'd never think you could find her on the pages Wikipedia.
3.  That girl has some energy.  I have never seen her down.  She will share a smile or a baked good with anyone in her path.
2.  Her incredible beauty is second to her endless talents.
1.  She loves many things completely and absolutely above herself:  Her family, her friends, New Mexico, and giving to others.

If you think these are great traits to share with others, click here! Your vote could put Brittany in the top 10!  Check out her blog, Happy Brittany, too!


View Brittany Toll and over 3,000,000 other topics on Qwiki.


View Miss USA and over 3,000,000 other topics on Qwiki.

East to West, What is Your State's Worst Feature That It is Best At?

I find a lot of these fascinating, but here are my editorials (West to East):

1. Who knew, Washington?  
2. I have lived in Montana and New Mexico, and I think that NM is definitely in the running for drunk driving.
3. I know a pretty good set of attractive North Dakotans.  I dispute this title and would love to know how this was determined.
4. If I lived in PA, I'd be burning shit down too.

Things That (Sigh) Will Never Be East

I just spent my first vacation since moving to Baltimore at home, in Montana.  And it was abundant with things that just will always be home, always be West, always be my favorite things in life.

I landed to a beautiful late April Montana snowstorm, which meant that the upcoming ski trip would be fantastic, and was a much-needed break from what had already become summer in Maryland.  I was on the edge of my seat the whole flight in, a landing can never come soon enough.

In deed, the trip was set for a great turn.  Big Sky had one of the best closing weekends ever.  On top of an already 120 inch base, we were treated to foot after foot of fresh powder each morning, making for sore legs, perfect hot-tubbing conditions, and the necessity for lots of drinks.

And things that are uniquely Montana?  Well here are some pics from the Big Sky Pond Skim.  Click here for the full album.

Cherry Blossom Festival or Beer Today, Gone Tomorrow

Each year, the National Cherry Blossom Festival commemorates the 1912 gift of 3,000 cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo to the city of Washington, DC. The gift and annual celebration honor the lasting friendship between the United States and Japan and the continued close relationship between the two countries.

I decided to commemorate it by hooking up with my good friend Cristina and check out the festivities.  We were really motivated to walk the Mall from Union station to the Washington Monument.  Unfortunately we were sidetracked by a penchant for an afternoon cocktail.  We found ourselves at Hamilton's amid a rabid group of rugby players celebrating either a monstrous win, or a soul-crushing loss, as determined by the amount of PBR's being passed around.  

Eventually we make it to the end of the mall, but all the Cherry Blossoms were making us thirsty again, so we headed back to Union Station and Capital City Brewing for some of their seasonal Cherry Blossom Wheat Beers, before hitting the tracks back to B'more for a night on  the town.  Click here for the album.

Firearms: East is Not West

This image from my home state (Montana) showed up on The Daily What today.  There was a huge sense in pride seeing The Billings Gazette attributed as the source for this shot.  It instantly made me think about the sign that sits outside the prison in Baltimore, and how East isn't West.
Hamilton, Montana:

Baltimore, Maryland:

The Resident Gaeilge Is On Call With Your Corned Beef Questions

The blog is giving a little St. Paddy's nod to cooking today, as I worked through some things that come from my Western heritage and some new ideas from my Eastern adventures.  
It seems that in every Irish person's life you have to come to terms with the fact that everyone you meet will want you to make them corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day.  I humbly take on this request, and don't tell anyone, but we don't have a secret family recipe for this dish that my grandma would tell you is "what they feed the bums at the shelters".   That kinda of makes Angela's Ashes seem a bit dramatic now, doesn't it?  Then again, the reason we don't have a family recipe may be because my family has a lot of amazing cooks, and being a great cook does not blend with cooking Irish cuisine. Over the years, I have compensated by creating a "secret family recipe".  The secret is... it takes almost no work to make if you know a few tricks.  Reward for reading my blog?  See tricks below.
So let's start with the West and head East.


Step 1:  Buy a Store-Packaged Corned Beef Brisket (aka ruben cut).  Dump the residual juices from the package in a slow-cooker.  Sear it at very high heat with some olive oil.

Step 2:  Put seared brisket in the slow-cooker with various roots and bulbs.  I like a mix of red and russet potatoes, onion, carrots, and rutabaga.

Step 3:  Rub down the brisket with the seasoning packet enclosed.  Add One bottle of Guinness and fill the rest with water until the veggies are covered.  Put the lid on and cook at low overnight.

Step 4:  You may be saying... HA!  You forgot the cabbage.  Not so... I actually like cabbage.  If you don't, you can throw it in and let it simmer and turn to flavorless slop.  So, the trick is leave the cabbage out until before you are ready to serve.  Slice it into thick strips and saute it with some butter and olive oil, salt and pepper.  What you will get is something that almost tastes like a thick noodle pasta.

Teaser:  Keep going for the Guinness Cheesecake...

You need a good, quick, easy meal to make, since you are really cooking two meals in one day.  Since you saved some money by buying a cheap brisket, splurge on this cheap and quick, yet tasty dinner.  In the East, you can get a lobster tail (have a seat Westerners) for $6!  Snag up one of those per person and steam them to tender (about a minute per ounce).

While it steams prep everything else:  Pick some fresh basil leaves, split some sandwich rolls, slather them with pesto on one side and avocado or guac on the other.  Make a vinaigrette with a tablespoon of dijon mustard, a few tablespoons of olive oil, the juice of a lemon, salt and pepper.  Fry up a few slices of bacon. Slice a few plum or cherry tomatoes.  Add those along with the basil and some mozzarella to your rolls. 

Now that your lobster are done, split the tails, chop the meat, toss in the vinaigrette, and add to the rolls.  I served it up with a simple fruit salad.  C'est si bon! 

Now... the Guiness Cheese Cakes:  I used this recipe from Closet Cooking with the exception of using pre-made, individual crusts instead of making my own.

Guinness Chocolate Cheesecake

One of the most decadent and creamy chocolate cheesecakes around with a shot of Guinness to enhance the chocolate flavour.

Servings: makes 6+ servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 12 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup Guinness

Directions

1. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, cocoa powder, sugar, and butter and press into the bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan.
2. Melt the chocolate in the cream in a double boiler.
3. Cream the cream cheese.
4. Mix in the sugar, chocolate, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and Guinness.
5. Pour the mixture into the spring form pan.
6. Bake in a preheated 350F oven for 60 minutes.
7. Turn off heat and leave cheesecake in the oven with the door slightly ajar for 60 minutes.
8. Let it cool completely.
9. Chill the cheesecake in the fridge overnight.

So it only took about 35 minutes to cook (plus they were cooled to sample last night):

Eat and Enjoy!  Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Ith agus Bain sult as! Lá Fhéile Pádraig Shona!