California-Style Clam Bake

(Courtesy of The California Wine Institute)

Serves 4 as a main course, serves 8 as an appetizer

No matter where you are in the world, this garlic-infused California-style clambake recipe will bring the spirit of The Golden State to you.  CelebrateCalifornia Wine Month this September with this light and classic seafood dish, which can be served as an appetizer or a main dish.

Pair with California Sauvignon Blanc or Rosé.  *See below for Temecula wine suggestions!

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons (45ml) olive oil
4 shallots, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
1 cup (240ml) California Sauvignon Blanc or other crisp white wine
1 cup (240ml) chicken stock
2 pounds (900g) mussels
2 pounds (900g) clams
1 tablespoons (15ml) parsley, finely chopped

Directions:

- In a large stockpot, over medium-high heat, add the olive oil, shallots and garlic.

- Sauté for 1 minute or until the vegetables are slightly browned.

- Add the wine and chicken stock.

- Bring the liquid to a boil and cook for 3 minutes.

- Add the mussels and clams and steam for 7 minutes. Halfway through the cooking time, shake the pot several times.

-Remove from heat and pour mussel and clams into a large serving dish.

- Garnish with parsley.

- Serve immediately, accompanied by a fresh, rustic-style bread

I fee like I need to make some important changes in my life and SOON.

We all know that life is short, your only live once, the kids will be grown and gone before you know it, your health is number one and so on.

I feel like I need to live up to those sayings.  I feel like I am depriving myself.  I feel like I am missing out on a lot.  I also feel like my health is not the best.  I get 5-6 hours of sleep each night, usually 5 sometimes less when I am super stressed and I cannot sleep.  I work a full time job.  I have three kids that constantly keep me on my toes and stressed out a lot.  I have a 2500 sq foot house that needs to be maintained.  I have a husband the expects dinner and clean clothes on a daily basis.

What's left?  What do I give back to myself?  Every blue moon I will go get a mani/pedi, but usually I just spend any extra time and money on someone else.  I feel as if I am always thinking about everyone but myself and I am always putting everyone before  me.  I wish I could change, but I always feel guilty when I sneak away to the salon just to get my uni-brow waxed, neverming there for a mani AND pedi!

This whole Chick-Fil-A shit is really starting to piss me off.  I am not a bigot and while I consider myself to be a Christian woman, my way of Christian thinking is definitely different than those of most.  I have gay friends, I have gay friends who have married, I drink alcoholic beverages, I curse, I will smoke a cigarette..Those are all the things in my life that I feel make me not your typical Christian woman.  I believe in God, I pray to god and I believe there are better things to come after my time here on Earth.

I have friends who are all over the board when it comes to religion and that does not bother me one bit.  I do my best to refrain from talking religion and politics.  If you are my friend, I obviously see some good qualities in you and don’t care to judge you based on your beliefs in religion and politics.  Your beliefs are just that….YOUR beliefs. 

I have respected Chick-Fil-A for about 10 years now and mostly due their Christian foundation and their desire to allow their employees to spend Sundays with their families and not working.  I am fortunate enough to work a Monday – Friday job and am not forced to work weekends, but I know that being able to spend Sunday with the family and to attend your church or whatever you do on Sundays is important to a lot of families.

The latest media hype over Dan Cathy’s comment on not supporting gay marriage is .  I find it amusing that someone would actually ask Dan his opinion on gay marriage, knowing very well they are a Bible thumping Jesus supporting organization.  So your intent was to set him up for this media madness?  Everyone should have already known the answer to the question.

We parents spend YEARS teaching our kids to stand up for what they believe in and then when someone does, everyone tries to shoot them down.  His belief is in the traditional family.  He is standing up for what he believes in.  This is all nonsense and just a reason for yet another organized group to rant and rave about nothing really. Let the man donate where he wants.  It is his money, not yours.  He is not taking your tax dollars and giving them to anti-gay groups.

Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy is not the only business tycoon who refuses to hide his faith under a bushel — top executives from some of America’s biggest companies are born-again Christians who talk about their beliefs more often than their balance sheets.

Major corporations like Tyson Foods, Interstate Batteries and Hobby Lobby were either founded or are now led by outspoken and deeply religious bosses. While some of the companies distinguish between their corporate identities and their leaders’ faith, others embrace it.

—Norm Miller, chairman of Interstate Batteries, discusses his faith and salvation at length on the company’s website, even inviting people to write him for advice on prayer;

—Tyson Foods, the Arkansas food processing giant, offers chaplains to counsel its employees on life issues like deaths or family emergencies;

—In-N-Out Burger, the popular California-based hamburger chain, prints “John 3:16” on the bottom of its cups;

—Hobby Lobby, the Oklahoma City-based arts and crafts store chain, cites its commitment to “honoring the Lord” on its website and closes its 500-plus nationwide locations on Sundays, as does Chick-fil-A.

“We believe that it is by God's grace and provision that Hobby Lobby has endured,” its website reads. “He has been faithful in the past, we trust Him for our future.”

I have three boys; current ages 13, 16 and 20.  I want to say that for the most part, my kids NEVER get along with each other.  At least not the past few years.  I always tell myself that it is just an age thing.  I hope that as they grow older they will grow closer and have strong relationships.  Every once in a while they decide they want to get along, but that is a rarity. 

Lately we have been going though some very trying times with our 16 year old who thinks he is a rebel and the rules don’t apply to him.  This most recent incident was a pretty heated one, which seems to be diffusing itself and I hope it continues in that direction.    Last night the rebel child asked me if I had his phone.  I told him that I suspended his service but I did not take the phone.  He then tells me that it is lost, he has no idea where it is and he had assumed that I had taken it.  “Nope, sure did not” 

My husband and I leave to take the 13 year old to football practice and when we get home a few hours later, the rebel child informs me that he found his phone.  “That is great, where did you find it?”  He tells me that his younger brother took it and hid it because he was afraid that Dad or I were going to take it from him this last time he got in trouble.  I know I should be mad, but it actually made me smile.  I was happy that they two that hate each the most, were actually looking out for each other.