I Say a Little Prayer For You... :)~

Well my readers......tomorrow is the big day.........
I have been dreading it ever since the doc told me I needed this surgery back in June......
But, it has to be done!......Without it, I will never work in my field again....it's bad enough that I may not be able to go back to working on the line.....but we'll see about that!

You see...... I am one of the lucky ones who actually enjoys what they do for a living.
Food is my PASSION....Particularly The Restaurant/ Catering Life!
When I am in the kitchen concocting creations for others to enjoy eating, is when I am at my happiest!
I miss everything about it!!!!... From the kitchen banter.....to the adrenalin rush I get for those few hours a day when my ticket line is full......
Ahhhhhh, and the instant gratification I get when all my food has gone out without any complaints!.......
And then there are the greatest of moments......When a server, or even the customer themselves, comes into the kitchen and raves about the food...It just makes me feel good when I can make someone else happy with my food!!!!

Soooooo.... needless to say, I have to have this surgery if I want to go back what I love.
Now I know I've said it a million times, but I am scared shitless!!!...I just want it to be Wednesday afternoon already. When I wake up from anesthesia and someone tells me that everything went just fine!!!....

Here is a little note my Auntie E sent me this morning...I hope she doesn't mind me sharing it with you all....But it is something I would like for you all you to do for me.....

It's PRAY.....Please PRAY for me to whatever god you believe in...
And if ya don't pray or believe in anything....how about some positive energy sent my, and Kat's way tomorrow!
I'll take all I can get!........here is my aunts letter.

Hey TMC,

About your operation... I will pray for you this week and for your operation. I'll pray that your body accepts the medication and that the surgeon's hands are steady and sure. I will pray for peace and comfort in your operating room and that the angel's of light are protecting you. If there are any other concerns that I can pray for you, please let me know.

And, I'll pray for a speedy recovery.

I'm sure I'll hear from your mom how you (and Kat) are doing. Just so you know that I'm thinking of you.

Breathe baby, breathe... PEACE to you!... Love, AEM

Catching up......or ketchup.... :)~

My posts seem to be spaced further apart than I would like these days.....Things have been busy at work, and in my personal life. Before I know it...It's 10pm and I'm half asleep on the couch....Ohhh, who am I kidding....I'm out like a light...LOL...5:30 am comes way too early! :)~

So here's a little catch up..Congrats to my cousin John and his bride Kate....I was sick the night of the wedding and missed it...sigh...

shout out to my best friend Lisa...woot! woot! Happy B-day ya old Lady...I can say that....she's older than me...ahahahahahahahhahhaaa!....Luv ya Lis

For Halloween this year I dressed up and went out with her, and her 3 girlz...I was a vampire of course...Sara my God-child was a little devil....hehehe...Anna was a dead bride and Kayla, the youngest, was a kitty.
Being the big kid that I am I went up to most of the houses with them with my booty bag held out proud!!!....HEY! I think if you take the time to get dressed up....You deserve the Treats damn it!!! Kayla was totally into it. She was always the first one to the door. She had a little system. She'd ring the bell, take 2 steps back, and patiently wait to almost in a whisper say...Trick or Treat....That child paid attention to every thing she got. After every house she would get so excited to tell her mom what she just scored...too cute I tell ya!



This past Saturday I got to catch up with Ella, Catherine, Angie, and Katherine at lunch at Kobis in Fairfield. I love this place. They have Hibachi there. I like watching the chefs cook right in front of me, especially when they have a good sense of humor. Some of them really put on a good show. However our chef this time had no personallity. It's hit or miss with that. But the company was great. Also on Sunday Val and Linda, and Val's family came to Brunch at work. I love when friends and family come in when I am working. I get to make the table something complemetary from the kitchen...Go out to the table and chat a bit if I'm not too busy.....BTW congrats to Val and Linda on their engagement. I got to see the ring live and in person. It's so sparkly.

An unexpected family gathering of sorts... :)~

Last Thursday my cousin Rose and Frank stopped by after thier hair appt. up the road from me at our cousin Annmarie's hair salon. Normally I would have gone up there to hang with everyone, but I was waiting for the DISH Network people to finish installing....By the way, I love it way better than Cablevision/Optimum....and it's much cheaper. $68/month...180 channels & Showtime & Serious Radio stations....Plus we definetly get way more than 180 channels...

Ok, I went a little off track...So I wound up taking Rose & Frank to Aunt Lucy's to meet her parents there. They were having a late lunch there , and asked me to join them. My Aunt is always yelling at me to come over more often, so I did....What was supposed to be 8 people turned into 19 family members within 45 min. We just kept adding folding chairs to the 3 long tables..... Typical.....Of course she had more than enough food to go around. Did you have any doubt?... :)~

It started with homemade pasta (tagliatelle) w/ light red sauce, and garbanzo beans. I asked Frank, " Are we just having this, or do I need to make room." He just laughed, and shrugged his shoulders. That was a stupid question!!! As soon as the pasta was gone in came all the rest of the food. Pork chops, stuffed baby aubergines (eggplant), oven potatoes, tomato and mozzarella, greens salad, and some great bread. They got it at The Bagel King....Humph! Who knew!.....and Ohhhh, let's not forget the homemade wine. Mmmmmmmm.

Frank and I went outside to have a smoke, and check out the garden. You would not believe the size of some of the squashes they've got growing up the fence. They have two of them craddled with a macrame netting. There are plants every where. And my aunt uses everything. Her pantry is filled with canned and jarred food from the garden, as is most of my Italian Aunts pantry's. I also got to see the new crusher, and old family wine press. They must've just bottled it, cause everything was still out...and the wine was still bubbling in their open vats. He had both white and red. Can't wait to try the 2006 batch. They said the grapes were great this year!

Stuffed Aubergines (Eggplant)

3 small eggplant
1 onion diced
1 red pepper diced
1 shredded large carrot
1/2 c diced mushrooms
diced eggplant from the scooped out pulp
1/2 tsp. oregano
1 tsp fresh chopped basil
S & P to taste
fresh mozzarella sliced

Halve the eggplant lengthwise. Score the pulp deeply with a sharp knife, being careful not to pierce the skin. Scoop out to leave a 1/2 inch shells. Sprinkle with salt and invert on paper towels to drain for 30 min.

Sautee the diced onion, red pepper, carrot, mushrooms, and eggplant pulp. Add oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Cook til tender.
Brush scooped out eggplants with olive oil. Skin too.
Stuff with mixture, and top with sliced fresh mozzarella. Bake for 30 min at 350, or till eggplant is tender.

Did Someone Say Cheesecake?... :)~

What up people???......Had a crazy ass busy... but totally fun time last weekend. Had some friends stop by Friday night. Saturday we hit a local car show....Then later the beach bbq, and bonfire at night w/ Ang, Katherine, Elizabeth, and the rest of the boat crew. It rained til like 1 in the afternoon...but the sun finally came out. It turned out to be a perfect day! We grilled, we ate, shot the shit, we drank, we made FIRE!!!!!!.......We've been planning this for over a month, and wanted a bonfire at night....Which meant we needed a permitt ...This was the date they gave us ....Thanx Ang for obtaining that by the way....I know what a pain in the ass it is to get one... :)~. Then on Sunday, after work, I gave my friend Sue a buzz and stopped by there for a bit. I had to be home on time to watch Desperate Housewives.....LOL...

A birthday shout out to my sister Lisa......Her born day was on the 30th.....She had a party at her place. Here we are with our mom in the middle....Got to see alot of people I haven't seen in a while there. My friend Steve came down from East Bumble F***. .....He is the boy next door...No, literally.... well actualy he lived two houses down from us growing up....LOL....We have kept in touch through the years, as have the rest of neighboorhood gang . He recently moved somewhere upstate NY, and I missed saying good-bye to him and Mary. So I got to say a very happy Hello to them.......... and a :( good-bye.......Also, I cleared up a misunderstanding with a very dear friend.... Hearsay is baaaaad M'Kay!.............

Ok.... so here is what you came for ......the recipe!

Ricotta Mascarpone Cheesecake

3 lbs. Ricotta cheese
8 oz mascarpone cheese
12 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 TB. pure vanilla extract
zest of 1 lemon
2 TB soft butter
6 chocolate biscotti

In a mixing bowl, with the wisk attatchment, add the ricotta and mascarpone first, mixing on low speed. When blended stop the machine, and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula. Then add the eggs one at a time. Break each one into cup before adding it. It is much easier to get any egg schrappnel out of the cup rather than the batter. Scrape down sides of the bowl again to ensure the batter is smooth.....Add the sugar vanilla and lemon zest. Mix on low for 1 minute.

For the bottom crust, and sides: In the food processor add the chocolate biscotti and grind till very fine. With a paper towel spread the softend butter around the pan to coat throughly. Add the biscotti crumbs to the butterd pan. Coat the sides well and level out remaining crumbs to at least 1/2 in. Pour batter in pan and bake in a water bath for 1 hr at 350. Then turn down to 250 for 1-2 hrs more. The top should have a light brown color and not jiggle when done. Let rest at room temp for 1 hr and then refridgerate.

As shown in my pic I like to use a raspberry coulis, and Hershey's chocolate sauce to decorate the plate and it also compliments the cheesecake.