Black Swan is NOT Center Stage

Since I was a little girl, I always dreamed of becoming a Ballerina. It still is my dream. Sadly, God did not think that I would make a good Ballerina, so he blessed me with a body type that is more apt to gain weight when I don't eat than to lose it. When the movie Center Stage debuted, it just reinforced my desire to be delicate and frilly, dancing en pointe like that one girl who wears the red shoes and dances with the jerk on the motorcycle. A girl I used to go to middle school with even let me have a pair of her old pointe shoes! It was the best day ever!
I danced around like an idiot pretending that I was the star! But I always made sure that I was home alone at showtime because I knew I had no talent. Well, enough about me, but now you have a small understanding of my obsession with ballet.


So, you can imagine my excitement when I saw the trailer for Black Swan. E! showed a little behind the scenes action on the movie and showed how Natalie Portman lost 20 lbs training for the role (lucky). I immediately got super excited about it and was under the impression that it was a film about the struggles that dancers face to "live the dream" and yada-yada-yada. Something of a sequel to my beloved Center Stage, perhaps? YES!!! So, my best friend calls me up and we are on way to the show! I was expecting something like this:




What I was NOT expecting was this:


Now, I love a good psychological thriller, but you can imagine my shock when I discovered that this movie was absolutely nothing like Center Stage. It was not a feel good movie about elegant ballerinas. It was gritty and graphic with a lot of thought put into it. It was an epic twist on the well-known ballet. We have an innocent fragile white swan who becomes a dangerous and seductive black swan. Natalie Portman's character is a perfect dancer who must learn to let go of the perfection and transform into a wild and free black swan. The film is about her literal transformation and road to liberation. It is beautifully done and was definitely a ride that I was not expecting! I am notorious for spoiling endings, so I am struggling to not give it away, but if you haven't already seen it, do see it. Just beware that there is some lesbian action, intesnse bloody scenes, a really creepy mother, and a handful of crotch grabs. It is very creative and very artistic, but you have been warned that Black Swan is NOT Center Stage.

Have you seen it? What did you think?

Disclaimer: Do not read this intro if you want to get to the good stuff...the food! I know that I already explained where I got the inspiration for my Blog's title. I love to cook, and I am in the process of really taking all the jumbled aspects of my life and attempting to make sense of them and hopefully turn them into some sort of definition of self. I am also looking for my next step in life. Upon reaching my goal of graduating from college, I have yet to set another goal for myself and have been floating through these last 6 months wondering why I am not doing anything productive with my life. So, I must focus on what I am accomplishing and see how I can use these things to my advantage. This post will begin my slow journey to self discovery. Enjoy!


My favorite holiday was fast approaching and my family and I were discussing our Thanksgiving menu. Since my siblings and I are all grown and have our spouse's families to see on the holiday now, my Mom came up with the brilliant idea of having Thanksgiving Breakfast! It is the most genius idea! Our family and neighbors can all be together and get our glutton on bright and early before the dinner rush and imminent 5 pm nap.

It while my mom prepares pumpkin pancakes and ham, my brother is in charge of bringing the turkey bacon, Uncle Dave is preparing world famous fizzes, and I am the designated potato queen. Last year I whipped up some breakfast potatoes with egg, but a colleague introduced me to a whole new world of potato casserole. It is essentially a baked potato in a dish!

I needed eggs involved, so I put my own little twist on it. See below for my recipe.

Photo Cred: The Petticoat Lane

CASSIEROLE
Created by me; inspired by a colleague.
3 Potatoes
12 Eggs
1 cup Sour Cream
1 bunch Green Onions (6)
2 Tbsp Tony's Creole Seasoning
2-3 Chile Peppers
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Hot sauce (optional)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Chop Potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Cut off stems of Chile Peppers. Add peppers,1 Tbsp Tony's Creole Seasoning, Salt, Pepper, and Potatoes to boiling water. Boil for 15-20 minutes until potatoes soften. Drain potatoes and put into a 9X13in dish. Sprinkle 1 tbsp Tony's Creole Seasoning,and salt and pepper over potatoes. If you like to spice things up even further, pour hot sauce over the potatoes as well. Crack 12 eggs into a large bowl and whisk eggs with 1 cup sour cream. Finely chop green onions and add to egg mixture. Pour egg mixture over potatoes. Generously top with shredded cheese. Cover casserole with Aluminum Foil and bake for 45 minutes or until egg is thoroughly cooked.

This recipe was a hit at Thanksgiving Breakfast this year, so I am glad that I made 2 dishes! The 2 dishes fed 20 adults and 3 kids.

In case you are wondering, this is the original "Cassierole" I made this dish the night before and put it in the fridge to bake in the morning. On the foil, I wrote "Cassierole" instead of "Casserole" because I think I'm funny. :-D

Do you have any obscure or new holiday traditions? Recipes to share perhaps?

Cassie's Favorite Things!

I recently watched Oprah's final Favorite Things episode a few weeks ago. I recall saying "OMG", "WHAT?!", and "SERIOUSLY NOT FAIR" over and over again, so I thought that I would put together my own list of favorite things. This list is my own list of things compared to Oprah's based on what I can afford. So, to all of you readers, I say WELCOME TO CASSIE'S FAVORITE THINGS!!!!!

Oprah's Pick #1: Apple iPad


It is functional, sleek, sexy, and only for those out there who can afford to drop $499 or more on the little gem. With thousands of apps, it is the one gift that keeps on giving (according to apple, and yes it is true), but until I win the lottery or invent the iPad 2 itself, I have to settle with my #1 pick....








Cassie's Pick #1: Amazon Kindle

Starting at only $139, it is my kind of small, sleek, device that allows me to take my big imagination everywhere without lugging around the extra pounds of books. Currently, I am in the middle of reading the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon and each book averages out to about 1,000 pages each. It begins to get heavy and I may develop wrist problems from holding up the weight. The Amazon Kindle would eliminate this potential problem. Santa, if you're reading this, this is #1 on my list!




Oprah's Pick #2: Classic Sparkles UGG Australia Boots

First of all, I find these hideous. Afterall, I didn't see Oprah wearing these on the show. Hmmm, I wonder why? Maybe because they look like moon boots? There is no way I would be caught dead in these. Especially at the hefty price of $175! Thumbs down. Santa, please note that these are not on my Christmas list this year, but see below for something more my style....



Cassie's Pick #2: Bakers Brown Boots
I have been wanting some brown boots just like these for a long time! They are perfect for dressing up any outfit! I recently found these at Bakers, but it guess it wasn't meant to be since they didn't have my size! But, you really can't beat $75 for these guys! I am all about the deals...especially when they are on sale! They were recently on sale for $29! Again, too bad I don't wear a size 5...










Oprah's Pick #3: Garrett's Special Limited Edition Gourmet Popcorn

I. LOVE. POPCORN! And so does Oprah! This fabulous special limited edition tin created for Oprah's Favorite Things runs for $135....wait, time-out! This POPCORN costs HOW MUCH?! Again, I love popcorn, but I also love being able to pay my bills, so I will have to stick to popping my own bag...





Cassie's Pick #3: Orville Redenbacher's Smart Pop Kettle Korn

Do I really need to explain? It's cheap, it's ready in 3 minutes, and it's my smarter choice! I am always watching my weight, and with this tasty munchie, I can do so while enjoying all the tastiness of Kettle Korn! YES!





Oprah's Pick #4: Le Creuset Cookware
Anyone who knows me knows that I love to cook, bake, and eat. These initially bring to mind the great Julia Child and her famous Boeuf Bourguingnon! They are amazing and well worth the $599 for the 10 piece collection in the color of your choice. Unfortunately, I do not have $599 to spend on these little jewels (tears of sadness welling up), but I have found an equally exciting somewhat comparable set....





Cassie's Pick #4: Kirkland Signature Stainless Steel Cookware

I recently read Kitchen: Confidential by Anthony Bourdain and learned that when shopping for pots and pans, you should look for heavy pots. If someone were to break into your house and you were to grab the nearest pot and smash it over the intruder's head, the pot should be able to do some serious damage to the intruder. If you have any doubts over which would win the battle (robber or pot), you should get some heavy stainless steel ones. This set is heavy with a copper bottom which allows for an even distribution of heat and for you to cook like the pros! And at only $169 for the elite Costco members (me) it makes it a perfect fit for me and my kitchen!


Oprah's Pick #5: Volkswagen 2012 Beetle

Wow, Oprah, you have really outdone yourself this time! She gave a super exclusive, not even released to the public yet 2010 Volkswagen Beetle to each member of her lucky LUCKY audience. It is so exclusive that they had to ship it over to her studio under high security in the middle of the night to ensure the confidentiality of the new Beetle's design. This is all we know about it. The audience members will not receive their beloved vehicles until May 2011, but shoot, I wouldn't mind waiting 6 months to get a FREE BRAND NEW CAR!

Cassie's Pick #5: Someone to pay off my 2007 Toyota Yaris
I only have about $7,000 to go. This would really make my day to find out someone was footing this bill! Santa, PLEASE drop some cash in my stocking this year! I will bake you cookies for a whole year!









Oprah's favorite things was so epic that it spanned over 2 episodes and she gave away countless items! I only touched on the wonderful gifts she gave this year, but it inspired me to make a list my favorite things! For a full list of her favorite things, visit Oprah's Favorite Things website to make your own list of favorite things this year!

What is on your list?