This Documentary That I Made

So, I finally have a website up and running for that documentary that I've been working on for the past year. Please check it out:

http://www.midwifethedocumentary.com

And if you could like the facebook page, that would be great. I'm kind of nervous about not getting very many likes.

https://www.facebook.com/midwifethedocumentary

Thank you.

Blog Earnings

Remember that blog post, where I talked about using my blog earnings to buy something frivolous (in an effort to teach myself how to spend money more frivolously, remember that?)?

Well, I am only $2.14 short of the $100 mark, from whence I am able to cash in on the earnings. And I was thinking I would either spend the money on:

1) Bar Poker

or

2) Another Visit With a Psychic

Just Start Eating

So, I have been experiencing a little bit of what one would call "stress" lately.

• I have my documentary to market (I'm hosting a screening of it at a local theater here in the Twin Cities on September 24, getting ready to launch the website this week). 
• I learned that we have to move out the place we are currently living in (our landlord is ready to make it her office space; we knew this going in). 
• Vern and I were going to take a "just us" vacation over Labor Day, but we have no idea where we're going or what we want to do.

So, just a bunch of stuff to get done.

I was telling my problems to my therapist, who happens to be my friend's ten-year-old son (no joking, this kid is GOOD), and this is what he says to me:

"You just need to start eating."

And I'm, like, "What are you talking about?"

And he says, "Look... you've got a lot on your plate, right? So, you just need to take one thing at a time, pick it up off your plate, and start eating."

Smart kid.

This is much better than my idea of ignoring my plate until the food rots, or yelling at it and throwing it on the floor.

Jalapeno Strawberry Swirl Ice Cream

Finally, we stumbled upon another good ice cream flavor. This turned out really nice. You could taste the jalapeno, but it was very subtle. My kids liked it. (I got the recipe from here, which they adapted from here.)

For Candied Jalapeño

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 medium jalapeño seeded and sliced

In a medium saucepan on medium heat, combine the sugar and water. Stir. Once the sugar has dissolved, toss in the sliced jalapeño. Turn off heat once the contents are boiling. Let sit until room temperature. Set aside until needed.

For the Jalapeño Sugar

1 medium jalapeño seeded and chopped
5 slices candied jalapeño
1/8 cup sugar

In a mini food processor, combine the jalapeño, candied jalapeño and sugar. I added more than 5 slices to give the ice cream more kick. Pulse until finely chopped and mixed. Set aside.

For the Strawberry Purée

1 pint of strawberries (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/8-1/4 cup sugar, depending on your preferred sweetness

In a mini food processor (and I didn’t even clean it out after making the jalapeño sugar), combine the strawberries and sugar. Pulse until finely chopped. Set aside.

For the Base:
2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
healthy pinch of cayenne (optional)
In a bowl, whisk together the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, and cayenne until the sugar is dissolved.

Chill thoroughly at least 3 hours or overnight. Once chilled, churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Five minutes until the end of churning (or when it looks like it’s almost solid), mix in the jalapeño sugar. Then scoop into an empty container. After every scoop, swirl in the strawberry puree. Let freeze. Serve with the fresh chopped or sliced strawberries.

Peach Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza

This pizza was freaking spectacular. The whole family loved it. Very delectable combination of ingredients. (This is where I got the recipe.)

Pizza Dough
4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded
4 oz Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1 cup chicken, shredded
2 peaches, thinly sliced
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Place pizza crust on your pizza pan. Top evenly with 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, chicken, Gorgonzola cheese, and peach slices. Top with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella. Bake at 400° for 11 minutes.
3. Place vinegar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat; cook until reduced to 2 tablespoons (about 5 minutes). Drizzle balsamic reduction evenly over pizza.