On tonight's agenda, we have a wide array of scrumptiddlyumptious dishes, easy and cheap to make but sure to impress! Also and firstly, I will be talking about the movie, Legends of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole.
The creators of one of my favorites, Happy Feet, also made this movie and like Happy Feet, had a very intense message to convey. The movie corresponds well with the original novel series "Guardians of Ga'Hoole" the movie itself however was intriguing enough to get me to read the books. To be perfectly honest, the parts that drew me in the most were the ones that depicted the realistic brutality of war, heroic passion and a blind drive for adventure. One of the best lines is from Liesle Gill "It's not glorious, its not beautiful, it's not even heroic, it's about doing whats right", in regards to battle.
The "Pure Ones" are a race of owls that consider themselves to be superior to all owls. Sound familiar? The movie has a strong undertone of WW2 Nazism, with Metalbeak representing Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun as his mate. Of course, this is all based on fantasy, you can't help but to pick up on the influences. I can only assume the Guardians of Ga'Hoole represent America or the Axis of Good. It brings to use a good saying of my father's, "to protect the innocent from injustice". Which to me, was the main message of the film. That we all must do our part to help those who cannot help themselves due to tyranny or poverty. A real hero's creed, so to speak.
Bottom line, this movie should have gotten way more attention than it did but like all classic cult films it probably won't be recognized for it's greatness for many years down the road. The animation alone was spectacular, again just like Happy Feet's, it was unique in the overall quality. That being said, it practically rendered the 3-D version useless, it was already so brilliantly done. I suggest buying it on blu-ray when it comes out on the 17th of Dec, it would certainly make for the perfect Christmas gift.
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ON TO DA FOOOOD! For tonight's feast we have a simple to make yet gourmet dish of turkey shoulder and asparagus with a side of cheese fondue! I need to come up with a nicer name for it. Like all my recipes, I came up with this one all by whim. Initially started when I found a large turkery tenderloin chunk on sale at my local Wally World. Thinking to myself, that I had never cooked 'turkey tenderloin' before; I needed to try.
(after marination, with olive oil, pepper, and salt)
I coated the tenderloin with it's natural juices in olive oil and topped it off with various herbs and spices; oregano, pepper flakes, and salt. You can use whichever seasoning you'd like. Then I let it marinate in the fridge for an hour. After the hour I preheat the oven to 350F and prepare a sturdy deep dish for the meat. Put at least 3 tablespoons of olive oil and spread evenly on the pan. Coat the oil lightly in more seasoning and add minced garlic, try to get some garlic juice in there too. Now comes the best part, brushing on the topper sauce. I suggest Hot Pepper Vidalia Peach sauce. You can buy different variations of it in your local store, a good store bought one is Paula Deen's. Look out for my own sauce recipe later on. Brush the sauce thoroughly over the tenderloin and place in oven.
(coated and ready to be cooked)
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes and you should have what resembles, this:
Now, while you've been baking you will have had most of the fondueing and sauteing done. You can use any one of your favorite cheese recipes for the fondue but if you want something more affordable make it yourself instead of buying them premade. I use velveeta melting cheese, white wine, pepper, garlic, nutmeg and hot sauce. Bring the fondue to boiling and stir constantly with a wooden spoon. Add a few drops of lemon juice if the wine isn't blending well with the cheese (acids and bases kids). Reduce to a simmer and keep over a hot plate, sterno, electric and serve with vegetables, shrimp, french bread cubes, or even sweet fruit.
(viola!)
Now on to sauteing the asparagus. One word, BUTTA! Get a decent glob of butter and spread it evenly on the pan, add your seasonings and cook medium high, watch closely and turn stalks often, add some lemon pepper, chopped onions and more seasonings. You want to cook them long enough till all the butter is absorbed or evaporated and the tips of the asparagus are blackened but NOT burnt, it may not look aesthetically pleasing but the flavor is out of this world. Sometimes I cook a big batch and eat nothing but it!
(the color and texture that your asparagus should look like, note this is not burnt)
And all in all, the finished product! Use the fondue as an appetizer and side dish to accompany your tenderloin and veggies. You can dip the asparagus and tenderloin in the cheese for an extra added flavor!
Word of the Day
obambulate:
• to wander aimlessly.
The creators of one of my favorites, Happy Feet, also made this movie and like Happy Feet, had a very intense message to convey. The movie corresponds well with the original novel series "Guardians of Ga'Hoole" the movie itself however was intriguing enough to get me to read the books. To be perfectly honest, the parts that drew me in the most were the ones that depicted the realistic brutality of war, heroic passion and a blind drive for adventure. One of the best lines is from Liesle Gill "It's not glorious, its not beautiful, it's not even heroic, it's about doing whats right", in regards to battle.
The "Pure Ones" are a race of owls that consider themselves to be superior to all owls. Sound familiar? The movie has a strong undertone of WW2 Nazism, with Metalbeak representing Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun as his mate. Of course, this is all based on fantasy, you can't help but to pick up on the influences. I can only assume the Guardians of Ga'Hoole represent America or the Axis of Good. It brings to use a good saying of my father's, "to protect the innocent from injustice". Which to me, was the main message of the film. That we all must do our part to help those who cannot help themselves due to tyranny or poverty. A real hero's creed, so to speak.
Bottom line, this movie should have gotten way more attention than it did but like all classic cult films it probably won't be recognized for it's greatness for many years down the road. The animation alone was spectacular, again just like Happy Feet's, it was unique in the overall quality. That being said, it practically rendered the 3-D version useless, it was already so brilliantly done. I suggest buying it on blu-ray when it comes out on the 17th of Dec, it would certainly make for the perfect Christmas gift.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ON TO DA FOOOOD! For tonight's feast we have a simple to make yet gourmet dish of turkey shoulder and asparagus with a side of cheese fondue! I need to come up with a nicer name for it. Like all my recipes, I came up with this one all by whim. Initially started when I found a large turkery tenderloin chunk on sale at my local Wally World. Thinking to myself, that I had never cooked 'turkey tenderloin' before; I needed to try.
(after marination, with olive oil, pepper, and salt)I coated the tenderloin with it's natural juices in olive oil and topped it off with various herbs and spices; oregano, pepper flakes, and salt. You can use whichever seasoning you'd like. Then I let it marinate in the fridge for an hour. After the hour I preheat the oven to 350F and prepare a sturdy deep dish for the meat. Put at least 3 tablespoons of olive oil and spread evenly on the pan. Coat the oil lightly in more seasoning and add minced garlic, try to get some garlic juice in there too. Now comes the best part, brushing on the topper sauce. I suggest Hot Pepper Vidalia Peach sauce. You can buy different variations of it in your local store, a good store bought one is Paula Deen's. Look out for my own sauce recipe later on. Brush the sauce thoroughly over the tenderloin and place in oven.
(coated and ready to be cooked)Bake for 30 to 40 minutes and you should have what resembles, this:
Now, while you've been baking you will have had most of the fondueing and sauteing done. You can use any one of your favorite cheese recipes for the fondue but if you want something more affordable make it yourself instead of buying them premade. I use velveeta melting cheese, white wine, pepper, garlic, nutmeg and hot sauce. Bring the fondue to boiling and stir constantly with a wooden spoon. Add a few drops of lemon juice if the wine isn't blending well with the cheese (acids and bases kids). Reduce to a simmer and keep over a hot plate, sterno, electric and serve with vegetables, shrimp, french bread cubes, or even sweet fruit.
(viola!)Now on to sauteing the asparagus. One word, BUTTA! Get a decent glob of butter and spread it evenly on the pan, add your seasonings and cook medium high, watch closely and turn stalks often, add some lemon pepper, chopped onions and more seasonings. You want to cook them long enough till all the butter is absorbed or evaporated and the tips of the asparagus are blackened but NOT burnt, it may not look aesthetically pleasing but the flavor is out of this world. Sometimes I cook a big batch and eat nothing but it!
(the color and texture that your asparagus should look like, note this is not burnt)And all in all, the finished product! Use the fondue as an appetizer and side dish to accompany your tenderloin and veggies. You can dip the asparagus and tenderloin in the cheese for an extra added flavor!
Word of the Day
obambulate:
• to wander aimlessly.
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