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Breakfast in Bed – Stuffed Italian Frying Peppers

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Post by Alison Hein.

I’m always on the lookout for a good, new restaurant, and happily, my husband, Kevin, is always on board. So when a homey new BYOB Italian storefront recently popped up,  we promptly made a reservation after learning that the chef makes only fresh pasta, uses handed-down recipes from the old country, and is a CIA alum.

The interior was clean and welcoming, the wait staff cordial and professional. A daily specials menu featured an exciting appetizer of stuffed Italian frying peppers. When a trio of cubanelles was brought to our table, lightly charred and neatly lined up, I began to salivate. Then, Kevin and I each took our first bite, and our expectations were dashed. They were burning hot on the outside, yet cold in the center (heated in the microwave???). The stuffing was bland and over-bready.

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“These could be so much better,” I said.

So I went home and began to experiment, using a stuffing of sautéed Italian sweet and spicy sausages, just a touch of breadcrumbs and parmesan, and a heavy hand with the seasoning. Cooking the stuffed peppers in a lidded foil pan on the grill seemed the logical next step. The results were delicious – an instant success of an appetizer.

A few modifications – pancetta instead of Italian sausage, no breading at all, and a couple of scrambled eggs – turns these lovely peppers into an instant success of a breakfast in bed that will keep your expectations intact.

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Ingredients

1 Italian frying pepper (Cubanelle)
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 tablespoons diced pancetta
1 small red onion or shallot (2 to 3 tablespoons), chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375º. Clean and core Italian frying pepper by cutting a circle around the stem and removing inner seeds. Remove as much of the ribs as possible with your fingers, and give the pepper a good shake to free any remaining seeds. Set pepper aside.

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Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in small pan over medium heat. Add pancetta, and cook for a minute or two, until it begins to render. Stir in onion (or shallot) and garlic. Sautee for another minute until softened. Reduce heat to low and add beaten eggs. Stir and lift, cooking until eggs are fully cooked, about 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and stir in parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste.

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Fill the pepper with the scrambled egg / pancetta mixture, tapping down a little on the work surface to fill completely. Rub the outer skin of the pepper with the remaining olive oil and bake for around 40 minutes, until pepper is cooked and lightly browned in spots. Serve hot.

Makes 1 serving.

NOTE: Peppers can be stuffed one day in advance, then baked when ready.

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Bedroom Design: Going Midcentury Modern in a Bedroom

Post by Tracy Kaler.

If you’ve observed design, furnishings, and graphics from the years 1933 to 1965, you’ve most likely seen the midcentury style. Characterized by the works of Eero Saarinen, Florence Knoll, Charles and Ray Eames, and other tastemakers from the period, the style and pieces are still prevalent today and often essential components in classically modern spaces. Open most any shelter magazine and you’ll usually come across elements and details that originated during this time in history.

Typically mingled with other styles, mid-century modern can also be successful as the lone architectural style in a room, and avid fans of the aesthetic would agree. Sit back with a juicy season of Mad Men and flash back through these five fab rooms exhibiting mid-century design and flavor.

This open-air Los Angeles bedroom is a wonderful example of mid-century modern design. Without a doubt, the architecture is the star, and the rich wood creates warmth throughout the space.

Houston is the home of this gorgeous bedroom boasting mid-century furniture pieces and modern art. Notice how every item is precisely placed.

Orange paint on the door makes a splash in this California bedroom with mid-century accents. Sage green fabrics bring the outside into the room.

This bedroom is minimalist in design but showcases mid-century pieces. The modern wing chair creates a focal point, in an otherwise understated room.

Another Los Angeles bedroom features the best of mid-century architectural design. This bachelor pad doesn’t feel too masculine because the shag rug and splashes of yellow soften the space, giving it a slightly feminine touch.

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Movies in Bed: Wet Hot American Summer

american summerPost by Mark T. Locker.

Summer’s here, folks! My kid’s last day of school was yesterday. Let the era of summer camps and family vacations commence! Summer always puts me in the mood to watch this classic summer camp comedy with an all-star cast. Even better, Netflix is reviving the movie with a series of episodes based on the movie, coming July 31. What better way to prepare than by watching the movie?

Janeane Garofalo plays Beth, director of Camp Firewood. It’s the last week of camp and she is trying to get everything off to a smooth finish. With a staff made up of Michael Ian Black, Molly Shannon, Paul Rudd and Bradley Cooper, you can only imagine how it is going to work out.

This hilarious pokes fun at all the summer camp movies out there while still being a great movie in it own right, not relying on a running gag to make it awesome. Some of the humor is edgy and may not be appropriate for younger audiences. But if you are looking for something that will keep you laughing from beginning to end, this is a great choice.

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Movies in Bed: Loose Adaptations of Picture Books

alexanderPost by Mark T. Locker

Ever since my son saw the trailer for Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day he has been obsessed with the idea of watching it. He has been alone in that camp, I’m afraid. But when I saw it on the reshelving cart at the library, I couldn’t leave it there. So the weekend was mostly spent with him asking if we could watch it yet.

In my mind, what better way to get some extra sleep than to let him watch it when he got up at the crack of dawn on a holiday? Only, he gets so excited that he has to share every little thing that cracks him up. So, when the baby did some funny thing or another, he comes bursting into the room to tell me all about it. So I figured, okay. I’ll sort of watch with him and spare Mom from being constantly disrupted. And so we watched this together, about 7 a.m. on a day off.

Despite my condition, I didn’t hate it as much as I could have. It was totally harmless, family-friendly and silly as can be. I guess the premise is that Alexander has a terrible day (the one discussed in the picture book by Judith Vorst) and his birthday wish is that his family have a terrible day so they can understand that it sucks. Well he gets his wish and the the movie is full of bad things happening to everyone. In the end, I suppose they learn about the value of family and of not giving up.

There are a few well-known actors in this, namely: Steve Carell; Jennifer Garner; and Dick Van Dyke. If you are keen on slapstick and the kind of movie where everything goes wrong and you can handle lots of cringe-worthy moments, it’s a good cuddle-up-and-watch kind of movie.

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Movies in Bed: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2

Cloudy_with_a_Chance_of_Meatballs_2Post by Mark T. Locker.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 is a sequel to a movie that was adapted from a picture book that I used to love as a child. There were a whole lot of reasons I anticipated a terrible movie; for one, it was so many degrees removed from that beloved childhood book that the spirit of the original would surely be lost. I was right about that, but was wrong about what that would do to the movie. I actually enjoyed it, and perhaps that was partly because it was so far removed from the original that it was its own story altogether.

In the land of Swallow Falls, an inventor by the name of Flint Lockwood developed a device which made food rain down from the sky. Something must have gone wrong, because everyone fled. I think the food became enormous. That’s why they left in the book, at least. This is where the sequel picks up. Flint is contacted by a celebrated inventor named Chester V, who tells him that the giant food has become sentient! Flint and his crew head back to Swallow Falls to investigate.

The living food creatures vary from cute to vicious but not at all scary. (My son’s favorite is Tacodile…SUPREME!) Flint and his team discover that these creatures are not monsters at all. But as soon as they decide not to “clean up” the town, the inventor Chester V reveals his true nature; he is no kind inventor. He steals other peoples’ ideas and makes them his own. He will do whatever it takes to get his way. Including murder. Will he get away with this? How could he possibly?

This animated movie is silly, exciting, and geared perfectly towards young children. Adults will get a chuckle or two from the silly puns. Watch it in bed and it’s totally okay if you doze off a bit. 🙂

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