12.25.2011
french ovens vs. dutch ovens
In other news I slept 11 hours last night and it felt amazing! I'd been working long hours at work and needed the rest. I'm looking forward to having a more normal schedule in a week! My blogging frequency definitely decreased on this crazy schedule I've been working.
12.04.2011
getting into the holiday spirit
I feel like my eyes are always doing something weird. I'm either squinting or blinking. Whatevs.
Anyway, my job has been going really well and even though I don't work on the Adventures I was itching to try one. This one was Wreath Making and Three-Course Lunch at Smash Wine Bar in Wallingford.
When we arrived, we went inside where we had a choice of hot buttered rum, hot chocolate or cider. They had a breakfast spread laid out with the best banana muffins either of us had ever had. They were super moist and had a complex sweet and spicy flavor. While people nibbled, they went over a wreath-making demonstration.
Because I thought "arrive 20-30 minutes early" was for noobs, we arrived promptly at 11. It hadn't occurred to us to arrive early to secure your wreath-making station. So we had stations outside in the 35 degree cold. Fair enough- sort of our own fault. Each station had a gigantic pile of fir for your base plus pine, juniper, holly, and eucalyptus for accents. Making the wreaths wasn't as hard as we thought. All of the tools we needed were provided plus other accents like bows and pine cones. The glass of wine that was served during the wreath making helped as well. It turned out to be a fairly physical activity and only my feet were cold.
When we moved inside for lunch, there was one little two person table right by the window that was perfect for us. We warmed up while enjoying a delicious three-course gourmet lunch. I had mixed greens with apple and cranberry, buttermilk crispy cumin turkey tenderloin beside sweet potato frites (their description lols), and chocolate caramel lava cake topped with cranberry sauce served with ice cream. Since the Adventurers had the whole restaurant, the courses had a nice, natural pace. No rush to turn over the tables.
The whole event was organized and the staff was super helpful. I felt like it was definitely worth the money and I'm happy we tried it. Our wreaths are making the house smell like Christmas!
10.21.2011
10 years can fly by
10.19.2011
good bye for now, asparagus
Because I hear pictures make a blog more interesting, here are the ingredients:
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Manchego cheese |
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Garlic naan |
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Asparagus |
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Prosciutto |
Preheat the oven to 400F. Trim off the woody bottoms of the asparagus and lay them out on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil and salt/pepper. Go light on the salt because the prosciutto is salty. Pop them in for about 5 minutes to start the cooking process. In the meantime, shred the cheese on the naan and arrange some torn pieces of prosciutto. When the asparagus comes out, chop it as small as you like and add it on top of the naan. Put it back into the oven until it's done to your liking. I did about 5 more minutes because I wanted a soft and chewy crust.
This was super tasty and quick. I'm kind of bummed though because I think I'll need to wait until spring before the asparagus is back in season to make it again.
10.17.2011
roasted green beans
Making them could not have been easier. Preheat the oven to 400F. Put the green beans on a baking sheet and toss in a little olive oil. Grind some pepper on. Grate on a good amount of parmesan cheese. Cook about 8 minutes. (Note: the recipe said 10 which translates to 8 in my oven.) Eat.

*Don't use pre-ground pepper. The disposable Mccormick pepper grinders are actually pretty good. I use it for everything and it lasts several months.
To go with it, I butterflied a chicken breast and pounded it flat. I breaded it in a mixture of plain bread crumbs, more grated parm, and red pepper flakes. It baked at the same temp but went it 6 minutes earlier (so 14-15 mins total.) Poured on some store-bought chicken gravy. Super tasty!
10.14.2011
bad dream
10.03.2011
it's official
10.02.2011
when you've got to feel it in your bones
I'm pretty sure this is one of those albums I'll still be listening to in my 50's reminiscing about how things used to be. I feel like this one doesn't get the credit it deserves because all these years later it can still make me feel exactly like I did the first, second, and hundredth time I listened to it.
10.01.2011
new job
9.04.2011
my favorite jeans
Replacing them will be impossible because Express, like every other company, changes the sizing and cut of their jeans every other second. I've been burned by other stores in the past (I'm looking at you, American Eagle) so this time I bought both washes in hopes that new colors would come out before the store decided curvy is out again and skinny little boys are in. Sadly this didn't happen.
I'm going out tomorrow in hopes of finding a new pair of favorite jeans. Wish me luck!
8.04.2011
if you had windows phone 7, you could be playing wordament

This is the most addictive app ever but it's only on Windows Phone 7. The concept is just like Boggle. You get 2 minutes to find as many words as possible and your score is based on the point values of the letters you've used. There is only one game going on at any time, hence they call themselves You vs. The Internet. At any given time there are 200-400 users playing. My best ranking was second place but one day I will win!
Learn more about it here: http://wordament.com/
7.26.2011
stop unwanted phone books or as i call them "door stops"
Catalog Choice
Some other cities appear to be participating. It's free and it reduces waste and hassle!
7.10.2011
prosciutto and leek pizza
I've been blogging a lot about food lately! Today I made this tasty pizza. It has a whole wheat crust and the only toppings are mozzarella, prosciutto, leeks, and parmesan. I was unsure about pizza without sauce but it didn't need it. I love the mild onion flavor of leeks. Just make sure after you slice them you wash them really well. Leeks get tons of dirt stuck between their layers.
Today we hit Seafood Fest in downtown Ballard and it was great. Tons of vendors were set up in addition to the regular Sunday farmer's market. In addition to all of the mobile food vendors, the regular restaurants added seafood items to their menus. The most intriguing was a seafood cupcake at the vegan bakery. I'm not really sure how that was supposed to work. The live entertainment was decent and the weather couldn't have been better. It's finally feeling like summer in Seattle.
See more about Seafood Fest on MyBallard.
6.30.2011
wild rice salad
The components of the salad:
Cooked wild rice
Yellow pepper
Scallions
Pecans (toasted)
Dried cranberry
Parsley
Raspberry vinaigrette
Salt and pepper
Cool the rice completely. Since we were cooking for two we use these:

I am rice challenged so this stuff is great. Inside the box is always a coupon for your next box too. Anyway, after the rice is cooled, just mix all of your ingredients together. You can see I chopped everything about the same size. I used a store-bought raspberry vinaigrette because I couldn't find any raspberry vinegar to make my own. The Marie's brand in the refrigerated section was very tasty. A lot of salad dressings have a chemical aftertaste to me but this one was just the right combination of sweet and tart. I just kept adding and tasting it until I liked it. Here's the finished product:
We ate this as a main dish but you could definitely use it as a side. You can shred up some left over chicken if you want to add some protein but we found it satisfying as is. I like that this is more of a method than a recipe because you can swap out ingredients if you have something different. I put in roughly the same amount of everything but put in as much as you like until it tastes good to you.
6.28.2011
cilantro pesto
It's super easy and I didn't follow an exact recipe. If you've made pesto before, you know what I mean. You have a rough idea of the ratios but you make adjustments based on texture and taste as you go. Here's about what I did:
2 cups cilantro
1/8 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup manchego cheese
2 cloves garlic
juice of half a lemon
salt and pepper to taste
Combine in the food processor until everything is evenly mixed then start streaming in extra virgin olive oil. I made mine thick because I used it to stuff chicken breasts and spread on sandwiches. You can thin it out if you're making a dip or a pasta sauce.
I've seen a lot of variations online using different vinegars, red onions, shallots, different cheeses, parsley, etc. Just make sure your cheese is a hard cheese. I've seen recipes using cheeses like cojita which have a higher water content and if heated will turn your food into a gluey mess. If you've never made pesto, I suggest following a cilantro pesto recipe you think sounds good first and then make adjustments to taste from there.
I want to experiment and see what other leaves make good pesto since this small batch has gone a long way.
6.22.2011
spicy chickpea patties with cilantro, lime and chilies
1/8 cup canola oil or olive oil
1/2 medium red onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 (15 3/4 oz) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chickpea flour
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, minced
3 scallions, minced
Juice of 2 limes
Salt to taste
Extra chickpea flour for dusting cakes
Cooking spray
On the stovetop, saute the onion, garlic, jalapeno, curry powder, and cumin for 3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to the food processor and mix for 20 seconds until coarsely chopped. Add chickpeas, chickpea flour, bread crumbs, cilantro, scallions, lime juice, and salt. Mix for 20 seconds more or until a thick paste (below) forms. If you have a small processor like mine, you'll need to do this in batches.
From here, you can choose the size of patties you want to make. I went for silver dollar sized so there would be more crunchy surface area. Form the paste into your desired patty size and dust each size with flour. If you are cooking them on the stove top, heat a nonstick pan over medium heat. Put a thin layer of oil in the pan and fry on each side for about 4 minutes or until golden brown. If you are cooking them in the oven, preheat the oven to 375F. Spray the patties with cooking spray and bake for 10 minutes, turning them halfway through.
I served them with Thai chili sauce and peanut sauce. It would also be good with a curry sauce.
I will need to work on my food photography skills! This batch was made in the oven. Next time I'm going to try to fry them.
From my favorite cookbook: The Whole Foods Market Cookbook: A Guide ot Natural Foods with 350 Recipes
[I got this before I knew what Whole Foods was so don't hold it against the book that it's Whole Foods!]
6.16.2011
what aisle IS velveeta on?
1. Albertsons- crackers, sports drinks, gold fish
2. Fred Meyers- crackers, cookies, gold fish
3. Publix- soup
Please add your grocery store/Velveeta aisle in the comments and I'll update the list.
6.13.2011
um... bus?
6.12.2011
navigating costco
We were rewarded for our effort. Somehow we managed to arrive at the sample stands just as they were putting out the fresh food. Some notable samples were Bagel Bites (which I hadn't had since childhood) and Falafel (which I was able to sub for meatballs in a recipe last night). We pretend sample calories don't count.
Costco Gas has been a win as well. $3.76/gal unleaded is definitely the cheapest I've seen in Seattle so I was pumped! (Ho ho ho pumped. I'm sorry.)
When we remodel the kitchen, the big fridge is definitely going to need to go on the list because we are in need of more space for our Costco bounty.
6.09.2011
i ate salad
I finally found a salad recipe that I can have again and again. From the Food Network website:
Caramelized Pancetta and Fennel Salad
Ingredients
- 1 bulb fennel, halved and cut into 1/2-inch wedges
- 5 slices pancetta
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 5 ounces (about 6 to 7 cups) mixed salad greens
- Red Wine Vinaigrette, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, toss together fennel, pancetta, garlic, brown sugar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place the ingredients on the baking sheet in a single layer. Cook until the pancetta is crisp and the fennel is caramelized, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, place the salad greens, crumbled pancetta, and caramelized fennel. Toss the salad with the Red Wine Vinaigrette and serve immediately.
Red Wine Vinaigrette:
- 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Mix the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt, and pepper in a blender. With the machine running gradually blend in the oil. Season the vinaigrette, to taste, with more salt and pepper, if desired.
Yield: scant 1/2 cup
Prep Time: 5 minutes
On a work night I'm lazy and just use store bought salad dressing and it's still really good. I get the Boarshead pancetta from the deli counter. You can ask them to just cut a few slices and it's far tastier than the prepackaged kind. The taste of the fennel mellows out from roasting it so it's not an overwhelming flavor. I'm not sure how healthy it is but I'm definitely a fan of this salad.
smart phones part 2
Exhibit A:
From PC World
Smartphone Etiquette: Mind Your Manners for the Holidays
"Rule 4: Holiday parties are a time for socializing, not social networking. Seven out of 10 respondents think it's unacceptable to check emails, send text messages and make phone calls while in the company of others, let alone while on a date. And more than half said they would be offended if they were at a holiday party and someone secretly tried to tap the Internet at the table. I'm assuming they would include tweeting and playing Texas Hold 'Em on the iPhone as inconsiderate, too."
Exhibit B:
The Emily Post Institute is generally considered an authority on manners. Welcome to the new world of tablets and smartphones
Exhibit C:"How are my actions affecting others and how am I perceived? Both are important aspects of good etiquette. If you are perceived as being disrespectful it can be as damaging to a relationship as actually disrespecting someone. Be clear with the people around you about how you are using your new device so they don't assume the worst."
Debrett's is another authority on manners.
Mobile Phone Etiquette
"Don't carry on mobile phone calls while transacting other business - in banks, shops, on buses and so on. It is insulting not to give people who are serving you your full attention."
I don't expect perfection from people and I've certainly been guilty of peeking at my phone while in a social setting before. I'm just requesting others to be considerate of how that distraction can be perceived by others.
6.07.2011
smart phones
I think it's selfish and inconsiderate.
If there is an important text or email, excuse yourself before you respond. Even if it's something quick, I feel I deserve an explanation for the interruption. "My mom had a question." "It was my sister." Something.
I'm curious to know how other people feel because it's obvious not everyone thinks it's rude to check Facebook every 10 minutes while out with friends. What is acceptable smart phone usage in a social setting?
This is important because I love technology. Clearly, I love Facebook. All I'm asking for is some balance.
6.06.2011
a visit from my parents
We finally hit the 70's so the weather was perfect. The grill got a lot of use and we did tons of walking. We've been here almost 3 years and haven't run out of things to do yet.
5.22.2011
grilling season is here
I got Nate a Weber charcoal grill for Christmas because that's what I think of when I think of summer grilling. The weather is finally starting to get a little warmer so we can BBQ on the weekends. Friday night we had some beer brats at another couple's house and Saturday we grilled burgers here. Nate even toasted the buns which was a nice touch.
The weather hasn't improved to the point that you want to eat your food outside but it's getting there. And when it does, we need to be ready with a patio set which we've yet to purchase. I always thought of it as "fake" furniture so I didn't expect it to cost as much as a regular dinette set. Clearly I was mistaken. I'll be keeping my eye on the circulars for a sale!
5.19.2011
syttende mai
5.10.2011
no more leaks!
In other news, Pandora keeps throwing Kings of Leon at me.. wearing me down. They're starting to grow on me...
5.01.2011
most practical baseball souvenirs

This is a bit of a late post but a couple of weeks ago we went to two Mariner's games. The weather was terrible. They had to close the roof for one game. However, we got these awesome souvenirs- compost! Cedar Grove Compost was giving out free bags which were made partly of waste from Safeco Field. Compost isn't cheap so I made everyone grab some!
We forgot about it in the trunk until yesterday when I got in the car and gagged from the smell. Don't leave compost in your trunk.
4.17.2011
tulip festival 2011
We drove up to Mount Vernon for the tulip festival today. As you can see, it's a bit sunnier than last year but the rain was lurking just up the road. Afterwards we had a nice picnic lunch. They looked to be blooming about a week later than last year because there were still several rows that hadn't bloomed and no rows had been cut. I ordered several new varieties to add to my garden.
4.14.2011
kinecting

Nate's brother bought an X-Box with a Kinect and we had a good time testing it out today. The video chat worked really well and has a feature where the camera will follow you if you move. We also tried out online play with the Adventures game. The competitive events worked really well. The cooperative ones- not so much. It's hard to steer a river raft with someone in another state, even though the device does have a microphone so you can chat in the game. The Kinect snaps photos of you while you're playing and you can trade them with your opponent afterwards so there's an added level of interaction. I had a really good time and can't wait for more games with the online play option.
4.10.2011
financial housekeeping part 2
When we divide out how much we spend per month on home repairs and renovations it's like a second mortgage payment. We joke that we could have just spend more for an updated house and saved time and energy. I think after 2 or 3 more years it will be pretty well updated though with the mortgage payment of a smaller house so I still think we did it the right way. We're on super saver mode to get the kitchen and bathroom knocked out since they are failing on us quickly. Once those are done we can ease up a bit and do other projects at a slower pace.
I know finances can be stressful for a lot of people and they procrastinate going over them but I truly find it relaxing. Even when we find we ate out too much one month or had an unexpected expense, it still feels a lot better to be aware of what's going on so we can make adjustments for the next month.
I made a similar post last year so I wanted to follow up with something related. I think it's really important to be honest with yourself about what you spend your money on. I found it really helpful to take some of our larger expenses and divide them by 12 to see what they would be as a monthly expense. Sometimes "one time" expenses can add up to quite a bit over the course of a year.
I also found it helpful to look at our loans in terms of what they will cost if we pay them off as scheduled. If you already have an emergency fund, it might make more sense to direct extra money towards a loan with a higher interest rate. Our loans are all higher interest rates than we make in our accounts at the credit union. With online payments it can get tricky to make sure your payment is applied to principle so read the instructions carefully!
This has been your annual reminder that money is not your enemy and you should befriend and nurture it so it will work for you not against you. =)
4.06.2011
jury duty update
That's June 15.
JUNE 15
It doesn't tell me what time or place but by God I will be somewhere on June 15.
4.05.2011
amazon- subscribe and save

This seems like it could be competing with Costco on the bulk prices. We just got a Costco membership from my parents and went on Saturday. First, OMG what complete madness. Families had multiple overflowing carts and weren't afraid to use them to jockey for position in the sample line. Second, you have to really pay attention to the unit prices. Some items were half off of the price we typically pay at Fred Meyer and others were about the same. Since we have a small freezer, we had to be somewhat selective about what we got.
I like this Amazon option because Costco doesn't have everything. I reviewed the set up and cancellation looks easy. You get an email before your delivery so you have a window of time to skip the shipment if you need to. Though at the rate I drink green tea I don't think that will be necessary.
4.04.2011
something to sleep on
4.02.2011
the golden beetle

Yesterday was my birthday and we had an excellent dinner at a new restaurant in Ballard. The Golden Beetle is a new Mediterranean restaurant from Maria Hines. She has an impressive resume. She beat Morimoto on Iron Chef, competed in Top Chef Masters on Bravo, and won the 2009 James Beard award for best chef.
The food lived up to the hype! It's described as elevated street food and I think that's an appropriate description. We started with wood fired pita bread and hummus. The pita bread had the perfect soft, spongy texture almost like a crumpet. I could have just had that with different dips all night. We also had spinach cigars (kind of like spanikopita), falafel, and ground beef skewers. Everything was so good so we'll definitely be paying them a happy hour visit soon.
3.31.2011
civic duty fail
I'm not sure how I went 6 weeks continuing to read the date wrong, but I did. Since they don't provide any phone number with a live person or even a voice mail, I just wrote them back with an explanation and the card to request to be rescheduled. The card says very specifically that intentionally not appearing can be a fine or jail time! I promise I'm not intentionally absentminded. ;)
In other news, today is my last day of being 25. We have reservations at The Golden Beetle tomorrow night and I'm very excited to try it.
3.29.2011
you need a keurig

You need one of these if:
- You brew a pot of coffee every morning but don't finish it
- You are too lazy to wait for a tea kettle to heat up to make tea
A cup of coffee or tea brews in under a minute and actually tastes really good. They come in portioned k-cups that you pop in the top of the machine. Because they are in their own containers, you don't have to clean the machine to brew a different drink.
The package from QVC came with 48 k-cups (mostly coffee) to start with and I stocked up on jumbo packs of my favorite teas from Amazon. It also came with a reusable k-cup to brew your own coffee which is much cheaper to do and creates a lot less waste. We're excited to brew some Dunks with it.
I'm really happy with it because I'm drinking a lot more tea and a lot less Diet Coke.
3.28.2011
how to not fall asleep on the bus


(The best part is around 3:00)
I've also
- been on a bus that side swiped the street car and kept going
- sat next to a man wielding a samurai sword
- stepped on a banana peel (the bus did not spin in circles like Mario Kart)
- witnessed numerous fights
Public transportation is certainly more entertaining than sitting by myself in my car everyday.
3.27.2011
high school reunion
1. Do we really need reunions now that we have Facebook?
2. I don't recognize the vast majority of the names. (And all of the faces are pictures of babies.)
3. Isn't the purpose to compare lives and see how everyone turned out? If yes, see #1.
Wouldn't it be cheaper if we all agreed to make our profiles public for a day and read about each other? Or better yet, could we all be comfortable enough with ourselves that we don't need to confirm that the people we disliked got what was coming to them?
2.02.2011
back from hawaii
Hawaii was excellent! I put up tons of photos on Facebook. We spent a lot of time just relaxing on the beach and reading in our cabana but we also ventured around the big island as well. I was in an SPF 85 force field the whole time and did not tan one bit.
I haven't been able to readjust my sleep schedule since we've been back. The time difference is only two hours, but we couldn't sleep on our turbulent red-eye home on Saturday. Also we've come home to a bit of chaos.
Our pipes were leaking. Not from where they connect, but they were so deteriorated they were just leaking out of the pipes themselves. We already had a leak in the pipe outside the house so we ended up having to completely re-plumb our house. Once it was finished we realized we no longer have hot water because apparently draining the water heater killed it. Sure, it was 19 years old which is ancient for a heater but I really can't take a shower in 40 degree water. So now we have a new water heater too.
I was hoping that I could ease back into real life after the vacation, but apparently that won't be happening. It's been one thing going wrong after another so at this point my goal for tomorrow is to not have to write a huge check to someone to fix something in the house. No such luck on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday so maybe Thursday will be our lucky day!
1.09.2011
maple-bacon oven pancake

1.01.2011
happy 2011
I hope everyone had a fun night. We went to a party with friends and had a nice time. Our new favorite game is Wit and Wagers which is trivia game where you bet on correct answers. You can complete a round in about 20 minutes and you don't have to be good at trivia to win- you just need to make smart bets.
My resolution this year is to learn some of the recipes of my family. Whether they turn out successfully or not isn't that important. I just want to make an effort to try.
Yesterday I tried to make pastizzis. Mine came out pretty tasty, but no where near as buttery and golden as they are supposed to be. Part of the challenge is the older generation of Maltese women didn't really write down the recipe. Our family has a video of my great grandmother making them (filmed in the 90's) and she doesn't measure anything. A quick You Tube search shows that apparently that's all anybody has to go off of.
My recipe was as follows:
Combine 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 cup of cold water, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a bowl. When it forms a ball of dough, refrigerate for 30 mins. Roll out the dough as thin as possible and rub Crisco over one side of the flattened dough. [Two things here- 1. I could not determine how much Crisco to use from the grainy videos available. I did a very thin layer. 2. I had to split the dough ball in 3 and repeat this 3 times due to lack of space to roll out the whole ball.] Roll the dough up so it ends up as a tube shape (as if making cinnamon buns). Rotate the tube of dough 90 degrees and roll out as flat as possible again. Crisco that layer and roll up like a pinwheel again. The idea is to create layers and alternating direction helps make it flakier. After 3 roll outs, take the final tube and refrigerate for 1.5 hrs. [Again, in my case I had 3 tubes since I'd split my dough.]
While that is cooling, make the filling. These are traditionally made with either cheese or meat. The cheese filling is just ricotta, egg, salt and pepper. My estimate is about 1 egg per small (I think it's 16 oz) tub of ricotta. I used 1 tub of ricotta and did not need all of it. The meat filling has a lot more variation. Brown ground beef (about 1/2 lb) and drain well. Place it back in the pan on medium. Add enough tomato paste to make it sticky. I needed about 2 heaping tablespoons to do so. Here you add some frozen peas and there is no exact science to this part. Just add however many peas you want to have in your filling. My filling was probably only 10% peas total but you can use more if you like. Frozen peas only need to cook for about 2 mins. The seasoning of the meat filling differs by family. Mine uses a small amount of cinnamon and I think salt and pepper. I didn't have cinnamon so I used allspice and garlic power (2 parts all spice/1 part garlic powder) until I liked the flavor. Other recipes call for curry which would also be good. Once the peas are cooked, remove the meat mixture from heat. It will be easier to work with if it's cooled so you may want to just leave it on the counter until you need it. It's important that both mixtures are not wet.
Once the tube of dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 375. Cut the dough in 2 inch pieces (just like making cinnamon rolls). Use your fingers to flatten each piece into a circle about 4 inches across. You want to try to create more layers as you do this so flatten it from top to button, not turning it to the spiraled side. Scoop filling into the center of the circle and pinch closed in a half-circle shape. This is just like making a dumpling or ravioli. The amount of filling is however much it takes to fill the pastry and still allow you to close it. Coat the pastizzi in another layer of Crisco and bake until golden brown.
As you can see, I did not achieve the flaky golden brown texture I was supposed to. [If you are unfamiliar with pastizzi, do a search online to see what they are supposed to look like.] It should be as flaky as a croissant and these appeared more bread-like. Next time I will use about twice as much Crisco in my layers. These actually did have flaky layers when you bit into them, so my roll out technique was right. I just didn't have enough fat to create the golden brown color. I'm going to definitely make a second attempt in the future because I feel like with some tweaks, this could be correct.