Monday, February 20, 2012

Math makes me cry & Better-Than-Takeout

First, my sweet Loverbrains is studying for his Masters degree and is currently reading a research paper written by one of his profs.  It cracked me up...she had this quote at the beginning...
"Medicine makes people ill, 
mathematics makes them sad, 
and theology makes them sinful."  
Martin Luther
I said, "I sure agree...math makes me cry!!"  HAHAHA!  Actually, I think I'll need to ponder this a bit more...Why would Luther write this?  I guess when we study God, THEOLOGY, it convicts of sin...hmmm?
Now, I must share this most awesome recipe from my favorite healthy crockpot cookbook!  Better-Than-Takeout Mongolian Beef.  Now, I have to put a little plug in here for buying those odd ingredients...those hard to find items.  Most of the time I don't go to the effort...but in the wintertime when my senses are numbed by the weather...and I'm attempting to eat healthier...it's good to think out of the box.  And with the nice assortment in your average grocer's it's just NOT that hard...I promise!
 I made a simple side salad with lettuce, thin radishes, peppers and citrus vinaigrette.  I'll guesstimate my recipe here:  1/4 c. oj, 1/8 c. lime juice, 2 T. dijon mustard, and EVOO to emulsifyThat's a Loverbrain word...hehehe!
 Here ya go...
Better Than Takeout Mongolian Beef
3lbs lean beef bottom roast (remove extra fat)
3 cloves garlic, grated
1" knob peeled fresh ginger, minced or grated (I keep this in the freezer and snap off pieces as needed...it lasts longer!)
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. low sodium soy sauce
2 T. black vinegar (the one ingredient I could not find...so I substituted balsamic the blackest I had)
2 T. hoison sauce
1 T. five-spice powder (awesome stuff!)
1 T. cornstarch
1 t. red pepper flakes (or more:-)
1 t. sesame oil (LOVE this stuff too!)
 Put it all in the pot on low for 5 hours.  Take roast out and slice it thinly and then into strips (put paper towels around cuz otherwise the juice will pour onto the floor...don't ask me how I know this!)  Put meat back into crockpot and cook another 20 minutes or so...while you cook your noodles.  Use chop sticks for additional funtimes!
 It was delicious...I can take pictures of me holding chopsticks...TRICKY!  This meal challenged my chopstick abilities...but Loverbrains did GREAT....no surprises there, eh?
 Emma (our ballerina in residence) enjoyed it, too...using her fork, of course!  She wasn't crazy about the salad though.
 My pickiest eat...cleaned his plate!  Two thumbs up from this Sweet Boobah is a REAL selling point.  AMAZING!
And Scruffy approved of the leftover lickings too!  The WHOLE family loved it!


5 comments:

Lisa notes... said...

I'd have to hit the grocery store before I could make that, and then not tell my family that it has the word "Mongolian" in the title. ha. It looks yummy though!

I like math, but I've been known to make my children cry when I tried to teach it to them. ;-)

Barbara H. said...

I'm not familiar with some of those spices, so I'm trying to imagine what that would taste like. Asian-ish I would guess, lol! I tend to do that -- leave out things I don't have on hand. My oldest son does everything by the book, and it does make a difference. I've even started changing some of the ingredients I use after eating some of his foods.

Math would make me sad if I still had to take classes in it, lol! Thankfully my dear hubby was a math minor so I can refer anything mathematical to him.

I would guess that's what Luther means as well -- echoing what Paul said in that "I had not known sin except the law says thou shalt not covet" and Jesus saying something about about the Pharisees not knowing sin until they heard Him speak but now they're responsible for what they know. I should take the time to look those up rather than going by fauty memory....

Pastor D said...

I think you should come and make this food for your parents! It looks great!

Caleb looks very satisfied with this meal, too. That's a big plus.

Joyce said...

Definitely will be trying this one-looks delicious! Thanks for sharing : )

GLENDA CHILDERS said...

Math has always made me cry.

Fondly,
Glenda