St. Baldrick's - 11 days!

So the countdown is to 11 days now.  We have official confirmation of the shaving event at the Hospital.  It will take place Friday, March 9, from noon - 3:00.  I can't wait for this special event.  It will be great to have the patients and families involved this year.  It will remind me why I started doing this in the first place.  I don't begrudge A.J. Rocco's their event, but I am not a bar person at the best of times.  But shaving your head in an exceptionally narrow bar in downtown Cleveland ON St. Patrick's Day is not my idea of fun.  I am grateful for the opportunity to have it done in a family-friendly environment again.

So, here are the stats:

-St. Baldrick's is the largest non-government entity giving money to childhood cancer research.
-Last year, they gave over $21 million in research grants
-Since 2005, the annual amount of grants given has gone from over $12 million to over $21 million!
-A.J. Rocco's has been doing shaving events for 10 years.  In those 10 years, they have raised more than $1.5 million for St. Baldrick's (including the side events like ours at the Hospital this year).
-More than $1 million in research grants has been given to Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital in those 10 years (the Children's Hospital at University Hospitals in Cleveland).
-One of the labs that has benefitted from those grants is our colleague, Dr. Alex Huang's, lab.
-Since I joined the Rainbow Babies & Children's team, we have raised over $40,000 for St. Baldricks.
-I have personally raised over $800 in the three years I have been doing this.

But so much more needs to be done and only you can make the difference.  Even a gift of $1.00 can make a difference.  So, please, give from your heart!

To donate, click the following link: http://www.stbaldricks.org/participants/mypage/516321/2012.  Once there, click on the Make a Donation button under my picture.  That will allow you to make a donation by credit/debit card.  If you prefer to make a cash donation, send me an email at csafoodie@gmail.com.  I can go ahead and make your donation for you and you just send me a check (I am very trusting, so please, do not take advantage of me) or send the payment by PayPal.  Please help us make this an extra special event this year!!!!!

Bariatric Update - Paperwork received

So, the good news this morning is that my paperwork has finally been received by Medical Mutual and I have a case number.  Now I just wait for the decision.  She told me that the paperwork was received Friday, Feb 24.  So, it makes me wonder what happened to the other 3 copies of the paperwork. One was sent by mail and the other two were faxed with confirmation.  I am just grateful that they finally have it.  I just hope they don't take another week to make a decision.  And I hope that the decision is to go forward.  I live in fear that they are going to deny me the coverage.  They really could.  I don't have diabetes or heart disease, so anything is possible.  I just hope not probable!

Bariatric Update

The drama continues on my attempts to get a surgery date.  My paperwork has now been sent to a 3rd fax number at Medical Mutual because they cannot locate the file.  I am to the point where I want to ask if I need to physically carry the file over to them and put it in their hands!  But since it seems to always get lost in "imaging", I am not sure that would help.  The insurance coordinator told me today that he is now pissed to which I said, good, then I will do my best to just remain frustrated.  No sense in both of us being pissed off.  He said he's hopeful that we will get an answer by the end of next week.  So, we shall see.

Jambalaya

It's that time of year again: Mardi Gras! Today at Murray Hill Market, I found a beautiful andouille sausage. What better to make jambalaya with to celebrate Mardi Gras? I always make my jambalaya in the rice cooker. Fuzzy logic is a wonderful thing!

 Rice Cooker Jambalaya

•  2 cups shredded chicken*
•  1/2 pound andouille sausage
•  2 cups brown rice, uncooked
•  4 cups water (or stock)
•  24 oz crushed tomatoes
•  1 cup salsa (CaJohns Trinidad salsa*)
•  1 cup frozen sweet corn*
•  1 cup baby peas

 Place all ingredients into bowl of rice cooker; mix well. Set to porridge and press Cook. Serving is 1 1/2 cups.

 * CSA Ingredients 

Spelt Flour

The other nice thing about Fresh Fork Market is that we get grains and flour from local producers as well. I have white wheat flour, cornmeal and spelt flour to choose from. Today I decided it's time to try my hand at yeast bread again. The last time I made yeast bread, I had a breadmaker. Unfortunately, it broke down 2 moves ago, so now I have to make it myself. Fortunately, my brother sold me a Kitchenaid stand mixer about a year ago. I used a recipe for spelt bread that normally be made in a breadmaker, because they are so simple. It's rising for the second time as I write and looks like it may work out just fine, so here's the recipe.

Spelt Bread

• 1 1/4 cup skim milk*
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 cups spelt flour*
• 2 1/2 tsp yeast

Place all ingredients in large mixer bowl. Mix with dough hook, adding water if necessary, until proper texture. Transfer dough to a greased bowl. Spray with cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until doubled in a warm place. Preheat oven to 350° F. Punch dough down, form into a loaf and place in greased loaf pan. Allow to rise then bake 30-40 minutes until browned and done. Cool on a rack.

 *CSA ingredients  

Chicken

I do love to get whole chickens from my CSA. If you've never gotten a whole free-range chicken before, I suggest you give one a try. You will never go back to grocery store chickens again. As always, I cooked this chicken in the crockpot and am now making chicken stock with the skin and bones. I found a recipe that had a great blend of spices.

 Sticky Chicken in Crockpot
 Adapted from: www.newlyweds.blog.com/2008/09/26/sticky-chicken-in-crock-pot 

• 2 tsp salt
•  1 tsp cayenne pepper
•  2 tsp Paprika
•  2 tsp garlic powder
•  1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
•  1 tsp fresh ground pepper
•  1 large roasting chicken*
•  1 large onion*, chopped

 In a small bowl combine seasonings.

 Remove giblets from chicken , clean cavity well and pat dry with a paper towel.

 Rub the spice mixture into the chicken , both inside and out, making sure it is evenly distributed and down deep into the skin.

 Add onions to bottom of crock and chicken cavity.

 Place chicken breast-side down in Crockpot. Cover and cook 8-10 hours on Low.

 To make stock:

 Remove chicken from Crockpot and cool. Remove meat from bones and return skin and bones to Crockpot. Add 8 cups water, cover and cook 8-10 hours on Low. Cool, strain, and freeze for later use.

*CSA ingredients

Sweet Potatoes

Let me start by saying I never really liked sweet vegetables. What I've figured out over the years is that I didn't like winter squash or sweet potatoes because everyone insisted on making them even sweeter. For some reason, both could only be served with brown sugar and/or marshmallows. Well, in my opinion, these vegetables are sweet enough on their own, and even better when prepared in a savory manner. We have gotten a lot of sweet potatoes in the past few weeks. So, today, I decided to treat myself.

 Baked Sweet Potato Fries

•  1 medium sweet potato*
•  2 tsp olive oil
•  cayenne pepper
•  garlic powder 
• salt 

 Preheat oven to 450°F.

 Wash sweet potato and slice 1/4 inch thick. Cut slices into 1/4 inch sticks. Drizzle with olive oil and sprikle with cayenne, garlic and salt. Spread in a single layer on a prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, turning once, until crisp. Cool on papers towels 5-10 minutes before serving.

*CSA ingredients