Greek Dip with a Dollop of Grief

There is not much more demoralizing than applying to jobs that cap out at half your current salary (and that isn't too high), and still not getting a call.  I know, I know - "Welcome to the recession, Kathryn!" I say in a droll voice.  It's a race to the bottom in terms of benefits and income, and still jarring to see 30K admin jobs in Philadelphia that require an advanced degree and 5-8 years experience.  It's things like this that make me just sit and stare at my computer screen, exhale, and cry.  And I'm technically not even unemployed.  How's that for such a pathetic sense of self-pity?  My last day is this week but we're still waiting for the axe.  We just want to know.  We want finality to it all.  We want to leave the building with purpose.

I had my IVF transfer yesterday and was told to rest.  When I feel tears coming on I take deep breaths, curse my soon-to-be-former CEO and eat jelly beans.  I'm like a badass seven-year-old.  On a good note, the transfer went fine as did this cycle.  And fine is just what I need right now.

We froze 10 fertilized eggs, and implanted two eight-celled critters in my uterus yesterday.  Saucy and sizzlin', I know!  It was the most fruitful sex I've ever had.  Sorry - I lack a sense of boundaries when it comes to my nether regions.  But in all seriousness: this may be the closest to being pregnant Matt and I may ever get. And that's a startling thought.

After a morning of whimpering over admin jobs I'm not qualified for, I'm determined to relax.  And by relax I mean eat a big bowl of chana masala, light my lavender candle, and watch some Whose Wedding Is It, Anyway?.  I also think I'll share a delightful little ditty of a recipe I made a few weeks back for our neighborhood get together.  I know, I know - I never even mentioned it!  It came and went and it was a lackluster week: I was sick, found out I'm losing my job and we just started our fertility meds for this cycle.  I had grand visions of kicking culinary ass at this thing and showing these neighbors what us Hopkins can whip up, but life got in the way and I made due with a big veggie tray and dip, some bought tomato pies, and this number: a layered Greek dip (stole shamelessly from Closet Cooking).  There was still too much food - everyone brings a dish so I don't know what the heck I was worried about anyway.  I always make too much food; it's just my way.  Anyway, who doesn't like leftovers?

So here is a super simple Greek dip comprised of hummus, tzatziki, and diced cucumbers, tomatoes, feta and kalamata olives.  I want everyone to notice my artful arrangement, because, really, it's all I got at this point.  Since I piled high all the fixins', you can't really see the hummus, but it's there and makes the basis of the dip.  In the middle is a good cup of tzatziki, and then I sprinkled the rest like a feign.  It made a great presentation, and an excellent alternative to a staid ol' layered taco dip - you know what I'm sayin'?

Layered Greek Dip

courtesy of Closet Cooking

(Note: I did my own "non-recipe" recipes for the hummus and tzatziki but you can find links to both here.)

• 1 1/2 cups hummus
• 1 cup tzatziki
• 1 cup tomato (diced and mixed with 1 tablesoon lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon oregano)
• 1/2 cup cucumber (cut into small pieces)
• 1/4 cup red onions (diced)
• 1/4 cup feta (crumbled)
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives (pitted and coarsely chopped)
• 1 handful mint (chopped)
• 4 whole wheat pitas (cut into triangles and toasted until just crispy)

Directions:
1. Assemble dip starting with the hummus and stacking each ingredient on top of the last.

Holy guacomole!

This was a bad food weekend...and by bad, I mean DELICIOUS!!!!!!! Duh. We had dinner at friends' (who made a spectacular Thai dish - and I want that recipe, Megan!), and I made a Bailey's Chocolate Irish Cream crazy cake (recipe coming, I assure you), and then today Matt and I went up to his parents to celebrate his brother and sister's birthdays with crepes galore (and all the fixins for both the sweet and savory). My digestive track needs a break.

But, to fill the food void, I have a back-up of recipes that simply demand to be posted. There's that cake, and then a roasted veggie soup I made earlier in the week, and there's what I want to talk about now: simple guacamole. I love guacamole. It's a yummy fat, no? However, I do have a problem with grocery store guacamoles. Mainly, they are sub par and it's all a tragedy because good guacamole takes three minutes to prepare (and a little bit of foresight as you wait for those avocados to ripen).

We live in suburban Philadelphia, so naturally, we cheer on the Eagles. Well, they very pitifully played the last couple of weeks and were knocked out of the Playoffs, but that didn't stop us from making guacamole to go with our game day nachos. If there's one good thing about football Sundays, it's chips and dip. That is it.

This guacamole is as simple as it gets: avocados, a bit of garlic, salt and pepper, cilantro, and a can of Lime and Cilantro RoTel Tomatoes (that is my secret). The can already has the lime you need, it has cilantro (but I add more), and it adds a smidgen of heat. Also, I am strongly against smashing your avocados. I say dice 'em for a chunkier - and somehow, fresher - version.

Simple Guacamole

• 2 avocados, diced
• 1 can RoTel Lime and Cilantro Diced Tomatoes, drained
• 1-2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup (more or less to taste) chopped cilantro
• salt and pepper, to taste
  

Add all ingredients, and adjust seasonings to taste.

Guacamole needs lime, but not when you have a can of this RoTel on hand. It's cheating, but in the best possible way.


Here's Matt properly illustrating how to cut an avocado. Cut the fruit in half, around the pit. Remove the pit. Then, with a spoon, scoop out the inside of the avocado. Viola!


To die for (okay, not literally, but it's mighty good).

Get yo' appetizer on!

My work is having a cook-off. These cook-offs (or bake-offs) have become an HR traditional that I have happily arranged because I love the pseudo-work associated with them. Why do real, honest-to-god work when I can make a bake-off flyer with corny clip-art? In the past we had the "potato challenge" (I made a far-too-fatty baked potato soup - loads of bacon and cheese and cream, and oh god was it heaven). I got first place. (Nevermind there were only two participants.) Then there was the "berry challenge" this past summer, where participants could make anything, but a type of berry had to be an integral part of the dish. I made a fantastic strawberry peach pie. Apparently, no one else saw its fabulousness and I didn't even rank in the top three (out of about 15). In the fall, I concocted a new challenge - the apple and pumpkin face-off, where, you guessed it, apples or pumpkins took center stage. I made my caramel apple pie and I won first place (out of 20). (There was a lot of uproar about this since I organize the event and count the votes, but I swear, I am nothing but honest, and anyway, my colleague Mary audited me as I counted the incoming votes. Oh, and my pie was freakin' terrific.)

Which brings us to now. In two weeks we will have the appetizer challenge in celebration of March madness. The problem is: I don't have any appetizer recipes! There are also a lot of constraints. It's all very Top Chef-esque: you have to work with what you've got, and here, at work, we only have a toaster oven, a myriad of microwaves and some refrigerators. So, I either have to make something cold or haul the crock pot out (or something).

I am asking you, dear readers, to help me out as I'm in a quandary here. Do you have any stellar appetizer recipes that can pounce the competition? I particularly want to beat our receptionist, Hannah, who eggs me on every day and says she's going to sabotage my entry by sprinkling cayenne pepper over it (I'm not sure if she's joking). Don't kid yourself - it's a tough competition.

If you have any good recipes, I invite you to post them for everyone to see. (Disclaimer: I cannot guarantee I will not shamelessly steal them and call them my own.)

Photo courtesy of "Cooking Mama: Cook-Off" game for Nintendo Wii.