Stream-of-Consciousness Sunday...Zip It

So here it is...Sunday.  My only day off this week.

At 5 a.m., the lovely Lady Zip woke me up...

Mike took her outside to do her business.

He then brought her back inside, turned on the bedroom light,

and left the room.

Excuse me, but, what the hell???

So, we had a little conversation...and I went back to bed.

And then Zip began to whimper.

Arrgh!

So after about 3 hours, I finally got back to sleep...And when I finally woke up,

that is, when the puppies woke me up (Mike put then in front of me to lick my face),

at least there was coffee made.  Thank you, Mike.

Mike lured me into coming out on the couch by bribing me with coffee and breakfast.

After all, NASCAR was on.

Breakfast of scrambled eggs with cheese (my favorite), sausage and toast was delicious.

And then, Mike fell asleep.

I wonder if we will ever be on the same schedule again...

Mike is so exhausted noow from making Zip a dog house, so now

I get to make dinner...Yippee!

I am a better BBQ'er than Mike anyway =)

Another Boring Friday Night

I totally tried to write this post on Blogger Droid.  It didn't work.

Mike has been sick all week.  I, of course, had to work.
And then, I came home and cooked dinner and took care of the dogs and did everything that we usually do together- None of which, by the way, did I mind doing.

I thought, since Mike was sick, I would get soup and make grilled cheese to go with it.
Yum.  I got a bunch of Safeway soups: Hearty Chicken Noodle, Garlic Potato, (My favorite), and Chicken Corn Chowder.  OMFG, what an amazing idea this was.  

I made grilled cheese, cheddar and provolone, and we each chose a soup.
It was so fantabulous that we had the same thing the next night.
Different soups, of course.

Tonight, we had chili.  I got the box chili mix, recommended by my sister,
at Vons.  Two pounds of hamburger, a can of tomato sauce, cut tomatoes,
kidney beans, some onions and sour cream - Oh, and some cheddar cheese.
YUM.

I had two bowls.

And now, Mike and the kids (Coco and Zip) are all asleep.
I am enjoying my new find- Lipton Vanilla Caramel Truffle tea.

Life, my friends, is good.♥

Tropical Summer Tri Tip Sandwiches

At my house, we barbeque at least three or four times a week,
Usually, on one those days, we have Tri Tip, which I love to serve 
with some sauteed onions and peppers, but today I was looking for
a fresh, delicious twist on the Tri Tip sandwich. 

I have created one that I think is going to knock your socks off!
I built my recipe around the Cattleman's Finest line of beef at Smart & Final.
Cattleman's Finest has an excellent selection of cuts, including Filet Mignon, New York Strip.
Ribeye, London Broil and Top Sirloin.

 Let's make my Tropical Summer Tri Tip Sandwiches!

Here's what you will need:

Cattleman's Finest Tri Tip Roast, 2 lbs.
1 Pineapple
1 Large Sweet onion
2 Red Bell Peppers
4 - 6 Sandwich Rolls
First Street Provolone Cheese, 4-6 slices

Marinade:

! cup First Street Basalmic Vinegarette

              3/4 cup First Street Orange Marmalade  (room temperature)

1 tbsp Ginger, grated or minced

2 heaping tbspns  Brown Sugar

(Prep time: 15 mins, Cook time approx. one hour)

Make the marinade first.  Ideally, the Tri Tip Roast should marinate for at least two hours.


In a medium bowl, combine the basalmic vinegarette, marmalade,
ginger and brown sugar.  Taste how tangy and sweet it is, then set it aside.

Take out your Tri Tip and trim excess fat from the back.
I have to say that the Cattleman's Finest Tri Tip had minimal fat on it,
which I was really impressed with.
You want to leave on a little fat for flavor, but not too much, 
because it can cause your meat to burn on the grill.


Place your Tri Tip in a large bowl or gallon-sized zip lock bag.
Use only one cup of the marinade on your Tri Tip, 
saving about 3/4 cup for basting the roast 
and drizzling on sandwiches when plating them.


Place marinating meat in the refrigerator until about 30 mins. before grilling.

While you are heating the grill, cut the peppers in half, removing the stem and seeds.
Slice the onion into 1/4' slices.  Cut up the pineapple.
About six slices of pineapple and onion, and two cut bell peppers
should be good for a 2-pound roast, (4 to 6 sandwiches)

Cook your Tri Tip on low to medium heat.
For me, the key to evenly cooking a Tri Tip is:
Turn the meat every 5 to 7 minutes!!
 (Set a timer if you have to)

After about 35 minutes or so, place the peppers and onions
on the grill.  Use a spatula for turning the onions.
The onions will cook faster, so when they are done I like to place them on aluminum foil,
seal it up and leave them on the corner of the grill to stay hot.
Use tongs to turn the peppers.  
After the veggies are on the grill for 6 - 8 mins, add the pineapple to the grill.

(Cook time for peppers, 9-12 mins, Onions, 6-8 mins, and Pineapple, 5-6 mins.)


For the last 10 to 15 mins, (While fruit & veggies cook) baste your Tri Tip with the marinade.
Remember to save some to drizzle on the sandwiches.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees for melting cheese on the sandwich rolls.
OR - If you have a top rack on your grill, you may heat rolls there.
I ran out of room on my grill, and I am always afraid I will burn the bread,
so I thought the oven was safer for me.
Place cheese on rolls and heat in oven about 6 - 8 mins. Just enough to melt the cheese
and lightly toast the bread.  Ideally, the rolls are still soft on the outside.


Remove meat from grill and allow it to rest for about 5 minutes before slicing.
Remove veggies andcut into slices or chunks. Cut pineapple into
small chunks (1/2" or so).


Cut Tri Tip into bite-sized pieces.  Remove rolls from oven.
Add meat, peppers, onions and pineapple to rolls.
Drizzle with the extra marinade.

Grab an extra slice of pinapple (way better than a pickle to complement this sandwich)
Grab sandwich with both hands and dig in!


Now, if you like my sandwich, (and I know you will), head on over to
Cattleman's Finest and vote for my recipe. Click the recipe tab and my recipe is in "Week 2". You'll be entered to win a 
$50 Smart & Final Cash Card AND a Weber Q220 Grill in
Cattleman's Finest Grill Up Your Summer Sweepstakes!
How cool is that?

Get on out there and #GrillUpYourSummer

This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for  #CollectiveBias. All opinions are my own

Zippity Doo Dah!!!

Last Saturday, we drove four hours to Woodlake, California to a cool Stallion ranch.

There, we finally met Zip.

She loves her daddy.

 She loves to dig.

 

And she loves to sit in her dirty creation - a small hole in the backyard.

She really, really loves that hole.

And she loves her big sister, Coco.

Coco's not so sure about Zip yet, 

but I'm sure she'll come around.

Stay tuned for The Adventures of Coco and Zip....♥

Wordless Wednesday - Mike's Orchid in Bloom

Four-Legged Family Members

I have the most adorable little dog in the world.

But she has the smelliest poops on the planet!

I cannot believe that those stinky things come out of sweet little Coco.

Next weekend, we are driving north about four hours to pick up our new little baby, Zip.
She will be 6 1/2 weeks old.  

There will be potty training, and chewing, and lots of adjustments.
I'm confident that Coco will be a sweet and loving surrogate mommy.

If any of you have any words of wisdom for the new mommy of a puppy,
I would appreciate hearing them!
 

June 3rd

I Feel Like a Total Gimp

Okay, so I just finished working eight straight days.

Well, almost.  See, yesterday,  I was headed through the swinging door at my work,

when a co-worker came at it from the other side.

My toe got jammed under the lower edge of the door. (Ouch!)

Like a trooper, I "shook it off", managing not to say "F***!".

My co-worker apologized profusely, even though I said 

"Listen, if it was a car accident, it would have been fifty/fifty."

So I went on my way, and finished out my shift.

When I got home, I took off my shoes first thing, as usual.

I went to walk across the room, and I almost fell down.  My foot hurt that bad. 

What the hell is it about the feet that causes "little" injuries to turn into

ridiculously painful traumas?

 If you are a podiatrist, could you please let me know??

Needless to say, when I got out the door and went to work, I quickly realized that being on my feet just wasn't going to work for me today.  I sincerely apologize to all my co-workers for 

having to leave on a crazy-busy Friday morning.

Sweeps Week Hangover

No more Desperate Housewives, or Glee.

And Dancing With The Stars ended.   

House had its shocking, albeit humorous,

season finale.

So now what?

Well, tonight, Whale Wars begins its fourth season on Animal Planet.

Mike got me to watch this show shortly after we moved in together last year.

I would say I'm hooked, but that seems a terribly inappropriate pun.

I also really enjoy the Police Women of Broward County (which succeeds Police Women of Dallas and Police Women of Memphis) on TLC.

Last night, I watched the premiere of NY Ink (a spin-off of Miami Ink - 

which also spawned the Kat Von D-featured series, LA Ink.) 

Ami James returns to New York and opens a new shop

with a new crew.  And, believe me, the drama hits you in the face right out of the gate.

Everybody have a great weekend.

I've gotta run.  Mike's grilling hamburgers and I have tater tots in the oven.

And Whale Wars is about to begin.

                                Life is good.