Home Yoga Practice with Dooley

In the last year or so, I have been discovering the joys of yoga - a surprisingly effective workout that makes me feel flexible(ish), relaxed and nicely stretched out.

Another fan of yoga is Dooley.

...and by fan, I mean a fan of of laying on my yoga mat and helping me.

...and by helping me, I mean thwarting every pose by laying on top of me or crawling underneath me.

"You don't need to see the video, I'll demonstrate."

Many of you may be familiar with the ‘hip new trend’ - “doga.” No one I know practices this, of course, but word on the street is that many folks love it.

Doga is the practice of yoga with one's dog. You pose them, integrate them into your practice, and so on. The videos you find, such as the above, feature people bending their dogs as if they were furry yogis, naturally skilled via innate canine zen.

"Hi, ma!"

In my case, Dooley likes to give me a crazy look before squeaking away on a toy in my ear or squirming up to my face and belching on me.

This particular video sums my experience pretty splendidly.

If I am going to continue living in Los Angeles, Dooley and I had better get our act in gear. As it stands, I am pretty sure we would get thrown out of a lululemon on sight.

Has anyone tried one of the professional doga classes? If so, was it helpful or a comical farse?

"OK, that's enough. I'm tired."

Build-Your-Own Breakfast Burrito Bar with Fresh Tomatillo Salsa Verde

Looking for a main dish to serve with the H-100's you have totally mastered?

How about something that is hearty, simple and can be made en masse? That's right, friends, it is time for breakfast burritos! More specifically, a make-your-own breakfast burrito bar.

Half of the fun of taco nights, after all, is custom-creating your own spectacular plate and crafting it to your liking. So why not apply this logic to breakfast burritos?

These are also kicked up a notch with the offering of homemade salsa verde. The most fascinating part of this salsa recipe... the entire pot took 80 cents worth of ingredients. EIGHTY CENTS! The tomatillos are extremely inexpensive at a Mexican market, although you can also find at most major grocery stores. Ryan started making this a year ago, and now we almost always have some in the freezer.

So lets' dive right in - how do we make this help-yourself masterpiece?

Let's start with the salsa verde. This can be made far in advance, and, indeed, freezes splendidly.

The star of this show is the tomatillo - this is also known as a "Mexican husk fruit" and the taste is reminiscent of a tomato crossed with a pepper. This is a big time staple in Mexican cuisine. Wash these guys to get started.

Chop up one onion, approximately half a cup of cilantro, three cloves of garlic and one serrano pepper.

Grab your trusty oregano and cumin.

Get your whole salsa verde family together...

...and throw them in a pot. A dutch oven is great here as it provides consistent heat but, if you don't have one handy, any pot will do (just be sure to keep your eye on the heat). Turn your stove on medium heat and, once at a boil, simmer for about 10 minutes.

Once the tomatoillos are soft,  blend together using an immersion blender OR ladle one scoop at a time into a blender and pulse until smooth.

The texture should be as such. Allow to cool, then pop into the fridge to chill. After about 20 minutes, it is ready to serve!

Now wasn't that easy? Plus, you have to remember... EIGHTY CENTS A POT! Have I over-emphasized that? Nonetheless.

Shopping note: I always found an immersion blender to be at the tipping point of expensive-to-the-point-of-not-being-worth-it, coming in at about $30-$40 each. Not a lot overall, but not something you use every day either. Then I started making salsas and soups. If this is a favorite of yours, I recommend purchasing. If for nothing else, it was worth it so I could quit scalding myself while transferring things to a blender.

This salsa can be used for dishes, great and small. Pour over a citrus-marinaded chicken for a quick sauce, or served with fish for a hint of heat. Naturally, it is also great with chips as a dip. Today, however, is the day we pair it with breakfast burritos.

These burritos are featuring pepper-rubbed bacon, onion, orange bell pepper and eggs tenderly scrambled together, lovingly served with your fresh salsa verde and shredded pepper Jack and cheddar cheese.

The recipe below is easily modfied to include or omit any ingredient based on your preference. Hate peppers, but love tomatoes? Swap the latter in for the former. Vegetarian? Swap in Soyrizo instead.

So let's go!

Start with your bacon. We used pepper-rubbed, available at many grocery stores, but plain bacon will work just as well. To get your bacon uniformly flat and crisp, cook on a baking sheet. We used a rack in our pan so the fat drains off.

While the bacon is cooking, dice up an onion and your orange bell pepper. Be sure to remove the vein in the pepper, to avoid the bitter taste.

Grate your cheese and put in the dish you will serve it in. Cover and chill in the fridge so it doesn't get melty.

Your bacon is ready when the dog starts staring at the kitchen like this.

...or when it the bacon looks like this. It should be brown all around with crispy edges.

Delicious, delicious, crisp edges.

Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and allow to cool slightly. Once cooled, chop into pieces.

Yes, these guys will get along royally. Add a little bit of butter to a nonstick skillet and cook the onions and peppers. They are ready once they are soft. Be sure to forget to take a picture of this...

Once the vegetables are cooked, toss in the bacon and 6 eggs, whisked  together in a bowl with a little milk and seasoned with salt and pepper (or cajun seasoning if the mood strikes you).

The best egg technique I received is from my friend Yolanda, who never stops moving her eggs around the hot pan. By not keeping the eggs on the heat for too long, they won't get brown or tough. The result is a more tender, even-tasting scramble.

The eggs are ready when it is no longer runny. Remove from heat and transfer to a serving dish.

Serve with a stack of tortillas, warmed in the oven.

Along with your amazing salsa verde, feel free to add any other salsas or sauces you like.

Add the eggs to your brunch spread along with a potato side, such as H-100's (Tater Tots), and enjoy!

Breakfast Burritos with Eggs, Bacon, Onion and Peppers

7 slices bacon
1 medium onion, chopped
1 orange bell pepper, chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup pepper Jack cheese, grated
6 eggs
1 tbsp milk (approximately)
Cajun seasoning (if desired)
Salt
Pepper
2 tbsp butter, for the pan
12 medium flour tortillas, for serving.

Preheat oven to 425°.

On a cookie sheet, lay out the bacon. Cook until crisp, approximately 20 minutes. I find that every oven is a little different when it comes to bacon, so this should be based on doneness rather than time in oven.

While cooking, chop the onion and orange bell pepper and set aside. Grate the cheeses, place in a serving dish, cover and chill in fridge until ready to serve.

Remove bacon from oven, transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and allow to cool slightly. Chop and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk. Start with 1 tbsp milk, and add more if you like yours creamier. Add cajun seasoning, if desired, and salt and pepper to taste. If using cajun seasoning, be sure to use less salt, as it is often salted already.

Timing Note: Now is a good time to toss your tortillas in an oven to warm them up. Use the dish you intend to serve them in, ensuring it is over-safe. Wrap in a clean dish towel.

Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and peppers, and sauté until soft, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Lightly salt and pepper (more is coming in the eggs). Add bacon and stir. Add egg mixture and softly move around the pan with your spatula. Keep moving the eggs slowly, and remove once it is no longer runny.

Transfer to a serving dish and set out with the salsa verde, grated cheese and tortillas (warm from the oven). Enjoy!

Fresh Tomatillo Salsa Verde

adapted from AllRecipes.com

1 pound tomatillos, husked
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano chile pepper, minced
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cumin
Salt, to taste
2 cups water

Timing Note: This salsa is best if allowed to chill in the fridge. Plan for an extra 30 minutes before serving to account for cooling down and chilling.

In a Dutch oven (or large pot), combine all ingredients and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for approximately 10 minutes, or until the tomatillos are soft. Remove from heat, and blend until smooth using an immersion blender. If you do not have an immersion blender, ladle one scoop at a time into a blender and pulse.

Set aside to cool slightly, about 10 minutes, then allow to chill for about 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

A Cruise Through South Pasadena Homes

Subtitle: My Creepy Afternoon.

This past week, I got very lucky and was gifted a half day of work. As such, I decided that I wanted to work on my stalking photography skills, and take some photos of the beautiful houses I often drive by. With more or less no knowledge of architecture, please don't judge my classifications too harshly.

Plus, doesn't this guy look like he needs a walk?

Such a sad, deprived dog...

To provide some context, when my husband and I first decided to move to South Pasadena, we felt as if the neighborhood houses had the ultimate "Americana" vibe. It was as if everyone in America, as portrayed on TV, lived on streets just like those we can find around here. Since moving here, we have come to realize that one of the main reasons we got this feeling is because, indeed, so many television families HAVE lived in these houses (in a manner of speaking).

South Pasadena is continually aflutter with film crews, many of whom work for popular TV shows, all filming the beautiful home exteriors. The houses are picturesque, classic Craftsman styles for the most part and ranging in size from grand to quaint.

To kick off our unofficial house tour, Dooley and I headed down toward Mission Street, aka South Pasadena's Downtown area, and wandered North into the neighborhood. Camera slung around my neck, I'm sure I looked like a snooping paparazzo with a furry alibi.

First up...

I LOVE this house. This may be my favorite house in the area, because it is the manifestation of a classic haunted house. It's like Old Man Withers' house, from which you and your friends flee after thinking you see a ghost in the attic while walking by.

It is so rare to see houses this size and this style in the Los Angeles area, with old school brick and meandering stairways. There even is a grand veranda. So dreamy. Even the gate's lighting is Gothic and beautiful.

If I were to daydream about moving into any style of house in particular, outside of the brick haunted paradise, it would be a Spanish-style home. The bungalow we live in now is decorated in hacienda colors and Mexican folk art, and I love the idea of an expansive Spanish- or Mission-style house.

Taking these photos probably made me look less like a creepy stalker, more like an insane person talking out loud to her dog about how we should live there.

We took a quick stop at this pretty street corner for some sniffing.

...after which he started sneezing for about a full minute. Doggie allergies, one presumes.

The trees in the general Pasadena area are also spectacular. The Jacaranda trees have purple flowers and only bloom twice a year. The Spring is gorgeous to behold, albeit probably a major pain to those who garden.

 

There are also a selection of more modest houses, bungalow-style. These look positively idyllic, like the home of the heroine in most chick-lit novels (the ones I read, anyway).

Look at this lemonade stand, for crying out loud. This is the cutest thing ever.

Even the fire hydrants are charming and quirky.

...before you go thinking that I work for the South Pasadena Chamber of Commerce or have decided to become a realtor, I really am just a big fan of this area. The Pasadena area (once considered impossibly far away from the hip West Hollywood neighborhood I used to live in) is a superbly picturesque place, and would recommend to anyone looking for a place to live.

It is so fun for both woman and dog to explore.

What are your favorite Los Angeles neighborhoods?

Dog Kisses

Do you kiss your dog on the mouth?

I do.

I kiss him on the snout. I kiss him on the side of the snout. I eagerly accept / prompt kisses and I sometimes blow at his face when I have eaten something tasty to get more kisses.

That is all. Someone please tell me I'm not the only one.

I mean LOOK AT HIM!