Dark Chocolate Fluffer-Nutter cookies...

3 C all purpose flour, unsifted
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda

2 sticks butter (1/2 lb) at room temperature
3/4 C sugar
3/4 C brown sugar, packed
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs

10 oz dark chocolate chips
10 oz peanut butter chips
1 C chunky peanut butter
1 small jar of marshmallow fluff

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour, salt and baking soda together.

In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined.

Add the dry ingredients, a little at a time. Make sure that the flour mixture is completely combined before adding more.

Add the remaining ingredients to the mixture.

Drop cookies onto un-greased baking sheet, and bake around 9-11 minutes or until golden brown along the edges.

Yields about 36 cookies.

Chicken and Bean Soup

I know, I know... It's been a while yet again. Call me busy-exhausted. LOL. Not to mention poor.

On the up-shot, being poor meant that I got to try some new ideas with stuff I hadn't done in a while. Last night was one of them, and I liked it so much I figured I'd pop it up here so others can try it, too.

Serves: 12-14 people

6 cloves garlic, minced
2 c mixed beans/lentils/split peas
8 c boiling water
1 c dried vegetables
2 Tbsp freeze-dried red onions


2 quarts water
2 c chicken stock
2 chicken leg quarters
2 Tbsp dried rosemary, crushed *OR* 3 Tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
1 Tbsp dried sage *OR* 2 Tbsp fresh sage, minced
2 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 Tbsp Crushed Red Chile Flakes (optional)
1 Tbsp ground black pepper

12 oz dried pasta *OR* 8 oz uncooked barley

1 c sour cream
2 c diced tomatoes, drained

Take the first grouping of ingredients and let sit for between 5-12 hours to plump everything up.
In a large stockpot, bring the 2 quarts of water and the stock together with the leg quarters.
Bring to a boil, and add seasonings.
Reduce heat to medium and let cook about 30 minutes.
Add the bean mixture, water included, into the pot.
Cook about 2 hours.
Remove the chicken and shred it. If there is skin still on it, remove it, too.
Add the pasta or barley, and let cook on medium high until almost done.
Temper in the sour cream.
Mix in the diced tomatoes.
Let finish cooking until pasta or barley and beans are completely done.

Serve with your favorite artisan bread and enjoy!

Easy Spicy Chicken Soup

A little back-story... I was recently diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and Rheumatoid Arthritis. One of the reasons this blog was sort of put on the back burner. As the weather has been turning colder, I've been getting worse and worse. It's difficult sometimes to get enthused about something that could, potentially, set you back several days just from doing it. And when it's something that you normally love, it's just worse.

So - that being said... I just made a really simple, very tasty soup tonight. My husband was hit hard by some sort of bronchitis-like something that currently has him on antibiotics and cough syrup with codeine in it for sleeping. Keeping that in mind (and the fact that I've also been feeling less-than-stellar), I scoured the freezer and found a few things to start working with: boneless, skinless chicken thighs, a small package of roasted, chopped Anaheim chiles that I'd put away from the summer, and a pound of frozen mixed veggies. Soup it is, I thought...

It makes about 12 servings.

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped up into bite-sized pieces
6 cloves garlic, minced (adjustable to your preference)
2 Tbsp no salt seasoning mix from Costco (highly recommend it - tastes great!)
1 roasted Anaheim chile, minced (optional - if you don't like spice, don't add it)
2 cups dry elbow macaroni
1 lb frozen mixed veggies

Bring 10 cups salted water to a boil
Add the chicken, garlic seasoning mix and chile
Add the macaroni, and stir once it comes back to a boil
Let cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally
Add the mixed veggies
Salt and Pepper to taste.

This literally took me about 20 minutes from start to finish, and gave me plenty of time to sit down between times.

Other short cuts I like are getting the pre-minced garlic. It's great if your hands are really bothering you.

Turkey Enchiladas

Enchiladas are one of those go-to foods for me. If I'm feeling blue, or want something super filling and only have a little bit of meat, or leftovers, I make enchiladas. They're tasty, and very very filling. I don't make them like most people do, though...

Filling:

2 lb meat, cooked, your choice
2 c cooked rice (spiced how you like)
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, minced
1/2 c queso fresco, cubed
1/2 c cotija, cubed

6 medium or large flour tortillas
3 cups enchilada sauce (homemade or package, your choice)
1 c shredded colby jack cheese
1/2 c black olives, sliced
1/3 c chopped cilantro

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees f.
Mix meat, rice, peppers, and cheeses all together in a hot pan and mix until fully combined.
Divide into 6 equal parts, and ladle into the tortillas
Roll tortillas around the filling, and place into a baking dish
Ladle over the enchilada sauce (Yep - no dipping the tortillas)
Top with the shredded cheese and black olives
Bake for 20 minutes
Top with cilantro and serve

Stuffed Shells

This is a bit of a departure from your normal stuffed shell recipe. I like it because it's not as tomato-y as what you may find elsewhere. It also has meat in the stuffing, rather than in the sauce. The meat is completely optional - if you don't add it, add in about 3 cups of shredded zucchini.

yields about 32 stuffed shells

1 box of jumbo shell pasta, cooked to al dente (about 10 minutes)

stuffing:
1 lb small curd cottage cheese
1/2 lb ricotta
12 oz frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained of liquid)
1/2 lb shredded mozzarella cheese
1 lb ground sausage, browned and crumbled
2 eggs
nutmeg (to taste)
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Sauce:
2 Tbsp butter or oil
2-3 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp garlic
3 c cold milk
1 c grated parmesan cheese
1/2 c cream cheese, cubed and softened
2 cans flavored tomatoes (drained)
salt and pepper to taste

Asiago cheese (topping)

Noodles
Follow the package directions to cook to al dente
Drain and rinse with cold water, separating the shells from one another, until cold

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

Stuffing
Combine all ingredients into a large bowl

Sauce
In a saucepan, melt butter, and mix in flour to make a roux
Blend completely and cook until just starting to smell nutty
Add the garlic and cook about a minute, stirring constantly
Whisk in the cold milk a little at a time, making sure it doesn't get lumpy
Once milk is completely added, add each of the cheeses, blending before adding the next one
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer
Add in the tomatoes and, switching to a wooden spoon, add the tomatoes in
Season with salt and pepper and let simmer about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally

Building The Dish
In a large, 9" x 14" x 4" deep pan, put down a ladle or two the sauce
Stuff the shells individually, and place them side by side until they are all in
If necessary, layer the shells - make sure the layers are even all the way across
Ladle the remaining sauce over the top
Sprinkle with Asiago cheese

Cover with aluminum foil and bake about 35 minutes.

Parmesan Crusted Pork

Actually, this can be done with chicken as well, if you'd rather. The trick is to try and make it about a 1/2 inch thick, and even across the whole portion of the meat...

1 lb white meat (pork or chicken), butterflied flat

1 c flour
2 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp black cracked pepper
1 tsp Kosher salt

3 eggs, beaten
3 Tbsp milk

1 1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese

Set up your breading station: Pan 1 has the seasoned flour, Pan 2 has the eggs, Pan 3 has the cheese.

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large skillet, heat up vegetable oil to between medium and medium high
Make sure that the vegetable oil is about 1/4 inch deep - no more
Bread the pieces of meat and then lay gently and carefully into the heated pan
Let cook until golden brown, and flip
Let cook again until golden brown
Remove and place onto a broiling pan
Place in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until the meat is fully cooked

**Note that chicken is a little more delicate than pork is, so it may take less time to finish it off in the oven**

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Serves about 5 very hungry people.

3 thawed chicken breast, cut into chunks 1-2 bites big

Breading:
3 cups cheese crackers (your choice of flavor - I love the 4 cheese)
30-40 Extreme Buffalo Wing Pringles chips (the ones with Frank's Red Hot on them)

Wet ingredients:
2 eggs
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup milk
1/4 c Frank's Red Hot sauce

Heat oven to 375 degrees F
Crunch the crackers up into a powder, in a ziploc bag, with a rolling pin
Pour breading into one large container
Mix the wet dredge well in another container
Place pieces of the chicken into the wet, and let soak a few minutes
Remove and place into the breading, and coat completely
Lay onto a cookie sheet
Repeat until all the pieces are done
**you may need 3 cookie sheets, to make sure they don't get crowded**
Drizzle a little bit of olive oil onto the chicken
Place into the oven and cook about 12-14 minutes
Remove and serve with your favorite dip

Potato Cakes

I came up with this recipe last night when I was at a loss as to what to do with potatoes. Sometimes, going in a completely different direction can lead to good things - this being one of them... This does have the option of being easily vegetarian, which is great.

Yields about 20 potato cakes, 3" diameter

4-5 fist-sized russet or Idaho potatoes, washed and large diced (about 1" cubed)
2 eggs
1/4 c milk
**optional ingredients can include shredded onion, bacon, garlic, whatever you want**
up to 1 c all purpose flour (depending on what is needed)
Salt
Pepper

Boil potatoes to just past done (not easily mashed, but smash-able*)
Drain and place into a medium bowl
Smash potatoes but leave some chunks, and add eggs and milk.
Add flour, 1/3 cup at a time, until the mixture is thick and does not easily drop off a spoon

In a medium saute pan, heat 1/2" olive oil and 1 Tbsp bacon fat (optional)
Take one large spoon-ful of the dough and place into the oil, then spread til it's about 3/4" thick
Repeat until you have 3 or 4 in the pan at one time
Fry until golden brown, then gently and carefully turn
Fry until golden brown
Place onto a paper towel to drain
Repeat until finished

*think potato salad done, rather than mashed potato done

Excerpt

An excerpt from "The Making Of A Chef" by Michael Ruhlman. At this point, Mr Ruhlman is interviewing the president of the Culinary Institute of America, Mr Ferdinand Metz.

'Mr Metz had told me one puts one's values on the plate; in fact, he suggested that this was the final and distinguishing element one brought to the basics of cookery. "The thing you add is your own sense of standards and quality," he said.

'I asked him to clarify what he meant when he said one puts values on a plate.

'"You know an artist is represented by his or her paintings or drawings or sculpture, the quality of it," he said. "I think we project our values by the food we have on the plate, not necessarily in the same artistic sense, but in the sense of flavors we offer. I always feel that when I put food on the plate for my family - anybody - I'm saying, 'I feel good about this. This is what I believe is good food. If it's not good food, I wouldn't put it there. This is what I like, this is my standard, this is what I believe is good food and I hope you enjoy it.' I think you make a value statement every time."'

I honestly believe that I have never seen anything as succinctly put as this. It is the epitome of how I feel about food. Never give someone what you feel is second rate. It is a reflection of yourself and of your ideals, and you show others how you feel about both yourself and your ideals with it.

~M

Family Style Lasagna

yields 1 lasagna pan (14" x 9" x 4" deep) filled to the top

Sauce:
1 lb mild Italian sausage
1 lb hot Italian sausage
3 cans chunk tomatoes, Italian flavor
2 small cans tomato paste
2 cans mushrooms -or- 1 lb fresh mushrooms, sauteed in butter
1 bunch fresh basil, minced
8 cloves garlic, minced
salt
pepper

Cheese filling:
1 lb ricotta cheese, drained
1 lb fine curd cottage cheese, drained
1 lb grated mozzarella cheese
4 eggs
1 lb chopped spinach (drained) -or- 3 medium zucchini, shredded
1/4 tsp nutmeg (fresh-grated is best)
salt
pepper

2 boxes uncooked lasagna noodles
1 1/2 Cups water

1/2 lb mozzarella cheese, shredded, for topping

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

For the sauce:
Mix the sausages together and brown.
Add the tomatoes, garlic and tomato paste.
Mix together until smooth
Add mushrooms and mix until combined.
Let simmer about 15-20 minutes.
Add basil and salt and pepper to taste.

For the cheese filling:
Combine all ingredients together in a large bowl until completely mixed.

In a large, 4" deep lasagna pan (13x9), do the following to layer:

sauce (with no meat, just to cover the bottom of the pan
Noodles, just meeting one another, covering the bottom of the pan
Cheese filling
Noodles
Sauce
Noodles
Cheese
Noodles

Repeat until you have used up all of the cheese, and then top with noodles and sauce.

Top with the cheese, and then add the noodles.

Cover with tin foil and bake for 1 1/2 hours.
Remove tin foil and test noodles for done-ness. They should now be soft.
Bake another 15-20 minutes or until cheese on top is nice and bubbly.

Let rest about 15-30 minutes.

Serve.

On Egg Cookery

Egg cookery is not glamorous. It is relegated in the culinary world most times to either the pantry or A.M. chef, or to the weekend brunch chef, and otherwise forgotten. Today's world looks on the idea of the egg and the myriad of dishes that can be made with it either as a main dish (an omelet, for instance) or an ingredient (take the plethora of cakes, pies and pasta that is made with it) as a mere convenience - some even look at it as a necessary evil because of it's higher cholesterol content than some other protein-rich substances. Be that as it may, to me there is very little that makes it other than a perfect single serving item. It even comes pre-packaged.

Eggs aren't necessarily pretty on the plate (unless you work at it), and when cooked incorrectly will both taste and smell foul. Why is this? There are a few things that you need to understand about an egg. First of all, the protein structure. I could go on and on like a chemist or a scientist about what happens when heat is applied, etc. Simple is always good for most people, though. What happens is this: When an egg cooks, the proteins within it turn solid, trapping the water portion of the egg within it. That water is necessary for the egg to maintain its look and mouth-feel.

If you *over-cook* the egg, the proteins tend to over-stretch itself, and eventually break. This lets out the water, and turns your eggs rubbery and unappetizing. If you've ever stepped away from your eggs and when you've come back, you've wondered who dumped a quarter-cup of water into the pan, I'll tell you: YOU did. You let the eggs overcook. Not only that, you'll find that the eggs smell sort of... well... rotten. That's the sulfur that's inherent in egg structure. Release that, and it's all over.

So, how to cook a proper egg? Well, it depends on how you like your eggs, first of all. Hard boiled, soft boiled, poached, fried, over easy, sunny side up, or scrambled... There's a lot of choices for an egg, which is one of the wonderful things about them.

So, I'll visit each of them in turn and give a little information on how best to cook them, depending on how you want them...

Until then, ponder this: Out of all the meat-based proteins in the world, the egg has all of the omega acids necessary for our body to stay healthy.

~M

Bacon for Dessert...

So, my last entry in Iron Chef did not win - I lost by 3 points. I was disappointed in myself, if only because I didn't feel I gave it my all, and didn't bring my 'A' game.

But, that's OK - there's a new Iron Chef challenge for me...

Now, there's 8 of us (normally) that participate, so, we normally have two people in each category. It breaks down to Appetizer, Entree, Dessert, and Drinks. The drinks portion is normally a separate flavoring from the main secret ingredient, as it's sometimes difficult to figure out how to put peas into an appetizing form that one would want to imbibe... The last time we pulled, dessert and drinks were given to the same person...

This time has been no different, and I have been given Dessert and drinks. I already know the secret ingredient - Bacon.

To that end, I'm going to put together a medley of tasty bacon-based desserts to see which would stand out the most on a plate, and which will fail and burn in a fiery death of shame and woe...

I have such ideas as these:

Orange-cream puff pastry, dipped in chocolate, with bacon brittle
Apple filo dough with maple-glazed bacon
Pear and bacon tartlet with sugared bacon crumbles
Bacon carrot cake with a macadamia nut bacon brittle
Bacon chocolate chip cookie sandwiches with maple ice cream

I think these are all fairly good ideas and they should translate fairly well throughout the tasting...

If YOU have any ideas that you think would do well, let me know and I will consider mixing them in...

Street Vendor Tacos...

About five years ago, I did an externship at a local Caribbean/Florida/cum Northwestern restaurant and catering company.

Prior to that, while I had gone through "International Cooking", I hadn't had too much in the way of understanding much of anything that was regional in the way of Hispanic foods. I knew they were spicy, and I knew that I liked a lot of it. I also knew that most of what I got in the so-called "Mexican" restaurants (read chain restaurants like Azteca and the like) were *not* Mexican at all, but a Tex-Mex blend of ideas and components that, while tasty, really had nothing to do with South or Central America or its eating habits.

Imagine my surprise when the five women and four men I worked with at my externship showed me what different regions did, even within a 100 mile radius of Mexico city. I learned there how to make street tacos, and they quickly became my favorite treat in the world. I normally didn't have a way to make them for just myself, as it has a lot of condiments involved, and I don't necessarily want to eat 20 of them at a time...

So, since last night I was guaranteed to have at least 3 people besides myself to feed, I figured it was a perfect time for me to make tacos.

Makes about 20 small street tacos

20 small soft corn tortillas
2 lbs chicken breast, chopped into bite-sized pieces
2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced
1 Tbsp garlic salt
1 Tbsp olive oil

optional toppings:
cotija cheese crumbles
queso fresco (mild white cheese)
pico de gallo
salsa
guacamole
sour cream
lettuce

Cook the chicken with the chiles and garlic salt in the olive oil on medium high heat until they are just brown.
Remove from the heat and steam the corn tortillas until they are pliable.
Add chicken, and your optional toppings.

Enjoy!

Drinks!!!

In honor of my "fabulous" daytime job, I have opted to post mixed drink recipes. Whoot!


Nutty Irishman

1/2 Irish Cream
1/2 Hazelnut Liqueur

Mix in whatever proportions deemed necessary, and serve.


Black-Hearted Wench

2 shots Captain Morgan's spiced rum
1 cup Sunny D or Tampico orange drink

Mix and serve.


Raspberry Vodka Sour

2 shots raspberry vodka
1 cup sour mix
2 shots grenadine

To make it a sparkling sour, remove the grenadine, and add a cup of Sprite.


Basic Sour Mix
(yields 2 cups)

1 cup of sugar
1 cup of water
1/2 c lemon juice (more or less)
1/2 c lime juice (more or less)

Heat water and sugar on the stove until the sugar is dissolved
Add about 1/2 cup of lemon juice and 1/2 cup of lime juice - or thereabouts - until the desired flavor of the sour mix is achieved.
Stick it in the fridge to chill.

Grilled Lamb Loin...

Today is our anniversary, so I thought I'd do something a little special... Grilled, marinaded loin of lamb, cous cous, and some sauted green beans.

As a side note, lamb really should be served medium rare to rare. It is delicious and tender this way.

Marinade:
1/3 c balsamic vinegar
1/3 c olive oil
4 long sprigs Rosemary
4 cloves garlic, minced
salt
pepper

Trim the lamb and butterfly it so that it lays fairly flat and is cut fairly even, about 1-2" thick.
Place it into the marinade for up to 4 hours, turning every hour or so.

Heat the grill to about 250-300 degrees, and place the lamb onto the grill.

Let sit about 8 minutes, then turn 40 degrees clockwise.

Let sit about 8 minutes, then turn over.

Let sit about 8 minutes, then turn 40 degrees clockwise.

Let sit about 8 minutes, then remove from heat and place on a warm plate.

Cover loosely with tin foil and let sit about 5-10 minutes for carry-over cooking.

Slice against the grain of the meat to create long strips.

Serve with your favorite side dishes.

Delicious home-made Crock-pot Beef Stew

I haven't been able to run test recipes for a while now, and for that I apologize. It seems like whenever I get the chance, two seconds in something happens and I have to put everything on hold. *chuckle* This recipe is for those who think that those beef stew packets are all that... :-) You don't need to spend so much money on those things, though. Trust me.

Dredge mix:
2 c flour
2 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp onion powder
2 Tbsp garlic powder
salt
black cracked pepper



2 lbs beef, cubed into bite-sized pieces

5 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp Butter

4 c water, beef or veggie stock

1 bunch celery, chopped
1 large red onion, chopped
6 large carrots, scrubbed and chopped
5 large potatoes, scrubbed and chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp lemon juice
3 cups frozen petite green peas

Heat olive oil in a large skillet.
Dredge beef well in the flour, then add, a little at a time, into the skillet.
Cook until brown and place into the waiting crock-pot.
Repeat until all the beef is done.
Add all the vegetables, withholding the garlic and peas.

Melt butter into the hot skillet and add remaining flour mixture.
If needed, add a little extra butter or flour to make the roux paste.
Cook until the flour smells nutty and turns a dark brown. Be careful not to burn it.

Slowly add your water/stock about 1 cup at a time, and stir until mixed with no lumps. As it gets more soup-like, you can add more stock at a time until completely mixed.

Add the sauce to the crock-pot, turn on high, cover, and leave sit for about 3.5 hours.

Test the potatoes with a fork, and if almost fork-tender, add the garlic and lemon juice.

Let sit another 30 minutes.

Add frozen peas, and remove from heat, stirring.

Serve with crusty bread.

Potato Stir Fry

I couldn't figure out what to serve with my Thai Chicken bites, so I looked in my pantry to see what I had... I found red, yukon, and russet (Idaho) potatoes, and I knew I had a bag of stir fry veggies. So, I figured I'd just see what happened.

Serves 4 hungry people (when served with the Thai Chicken Bites)

3 Tbsp olive oil
2 red potatoes, diced
1 large yukon gold, diced
2 russet potatoes, cleaned and diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 sage leaves, minced
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
1 16 oz package stir fry veggie mix (your choice)
salt
pepper

Heat olive oil to medium high.
Add all potatoes into the pan and let cook, stirring after 5 minutes, to allow for browning.
Add garlic, sage and red pepper.
Continue to cook until potatoes are mostly browned.
Add stir fry veggies, and cook until completely heated through.
Add salt and pepper to taste.

Thai Chicken Bites

I created the Thai Fried Chicken a while back, and it was such a tasty treat that I wanted to make it more regularly - but without the super deep fry of the original. So, last night, I tried a pan fry of it, and was happily surprised at the results. This has a very mild flavor of sweet chili sauce - if you want more, simply let the chicken marinade in it for several hours before you crumb and cook it.

**Oil should only come up about a 1/4" at most in the pan you're using - I prefer a larger pan, 14" in diameter.**

Serves 4 hungry people when accompanied with the potato stir fry

2 large chicken breasts, cut to 1/2" thick slices

The wash:
1/2 cup sweet Thai chili sauce
1/2 cup honey mustard
1 egg
1/4 c milk
salt
pepper


3 cups Panko bread crumbs (or thereabouts)

Heat olive oil in a large pan to medium-high heat
Set oven to warm, and have a capture tray out

Combine all wash ingredients together in a pie pan.
In a separate pie pan, place the panko bread crumbs.
Take your chicken slices and dip them into the egg wash, then transfer them to the panko.
Cover completely with panko, then lay gently (away from you, please) into the oil.
Cook until golden brown on one side, then flip and repeat.

Please into the capture tray, and place into the warming oven until all chicken is done.

Sprinkle with a bit of your favorite salt, and serve.

If you want, serve a side of the thai chili sauce/honey mustard mix for a dip.

Basic Hash

One of the first dishes I learned to make was a basic hash recipe. Simple, easy, stick-to-your-ribs stuff that was just plain good.

Every time I cook this meal, I'm taken back to my childhood and family. It just makes me happy...

Serves 4 hungry people

1 Tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large onion, minced
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced (optional
1/2 lb ground meat (your choice of beef, turkey or pork, or a mix)
3 large Russet potatoes (aka Idaho potatoes)
salt
pepper

In a large, non-stick saute pan, heat olive oil on medium low heat.
Add garlic and onion, increase the heat to medium, and saute until onions are soft.
Add butter and let melt.
Add mushrooms and saute until soft and slightly golden brown.
Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the ground meat and brown.
Add the potatoes and cook until browned, stirring occasionally.
Add onions, garlic and mushrooms back in.
Season with salt and pepper

Serve.

FYI - New Linky Goodness...

Just so that you are aware, I have some new links up to the right here. Go ahead and look through them, and show them some love!