GTCosita

99 posts
I am a slightly funny, slightly crazy lady from PTY. I love food, wine, scotch, sarcasm, photography, and McDonald's fries. My shtick is that I can make yummy things from a few basic ingredients, and I believe that good food should be easy to make. Check me out at organizedrandomness.com, on Twitter @orgrandomness, on Instagram @organizedrandomness, and on the B Squared Media blog.

Recipe Sunday: Pico de Gallo

I got back from Dallas last night, where I spent the last five days eating all the tortilla chips, salsa, and guacamole that I could get my hands on; I am still craving pico de gallo! Even though pico seems like a very summery dish, it is a must have whenever you serve Mexican food. The key to this recipe is to make sure the ingredients have at least 30 minutes to “hang out” before you serve the pico. Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Fall is in the air! Well, not in Central Florida, here it is currently 95° F and very humid. However, every once in a while, in the afternoon, I feel a cool breeze that tells me we have made it over the hottest part of the year hump, and we have cooler temperatures to look forward to. This means that we can go ahead and turn on our ovens and get to baking and roasting without feeling like we are living on the surface of the Sun. Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Key Lime Pie

A few Sundays ago I shared a recipe for Strawberry Limeade Cake. The base for the custard filling is a great Key lime pie recipe. When I was researching to see if I could use regular old Persian limes instead of Key limes I discovered that the majority of Key limes come from Mexico, not the Florida Keys. I also figured out that the pie tastes delicious using Persian limes instead of Key limes without making any other changes. Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Baked Grouper Topped with Garlic Shrimp

I absolutely love fish and seafood. I grew up eating fish at least once a week, and I try to keep the tradition going. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve had the best luck at our local fish market and buying fish on Tuesdays. I decided to take the traditional baked grouper up a notch by creating a sort of scampi sauce for small shrimp and then topping my grouper with this concoction. Continue reading

Run Less, Run Faster Book Review

run-less-run-fasterI have established elsewhere I am not a very fast runner. However, I am obsessed with reading about running and trying out new training programs. I purchased this book about a month and a half ago, and so far I am very impressed with the methodology.

First of all, the authors of “Run Less, Run Faster: Become a Faster, Stronger Runner with the Revolutionary 3-Run-a-Week Training Program” are bona-fide scientists with the Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST). Their focus is on injury prevention due to over-training. The premise of the book is that each run should have a purpose: to make you faster.

This methodology is not about jogging for the sake of jogging but focusing your training on three runs: Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Strawberry Limeade Cake

The limes on my lime tree recently started ripening, so I wanted to use a bunch of them in a dessert lest they start rotting. At first I thought of just making a key lime pie, but the more I thought about it, what I was really craving was the key lime pie filling mixed in with strawberries. I had an angel food loaf in the refrigerator, so I decided to experiment. Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Risotto alla Penski

RisottoAllaPenskiRisotto is one of those dishes that gets a lot of flack for being “hard to make”. Yes, you can’t just set it and forget it, and it is a bit of a pain to stir it every few minutes, but the effort is totally worth it, and realistically you will only be stirring on-and-off for about thirty minutes. NBD. This recipe is near and dear to my heart as I created it when I was wooing my husband. On Tuesday we celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary, so I can say with confidence that this dish will certainly get you some. Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Strawberry Basil Martini

Summer is officially here, and one of the most important decisions you will make is choosing the right summer cocktail: crisp, refreshing, and fruity without being too sweet. My new obsession is St. Germain, the french elderberry liqueur that seems to be all the rage lately. After trying out a few different recipes, I settled on this concoction. The gin helps balance out some sweetness and the sparkling water gives it just a bit of fizz. Continue reading

Recipe Sunday: Hearty Black Bean Soup

I recently had a craving for a thick and hearty black bean soup. After wandering the aisles of the grocery store without finding anything that was prepared, I pulled out my phone and realized that making it from scratch would be super easy. This black bean soup is loaded with pork products: pork belly for the fat base, and prosciutto and chorizo for flavor. Sorry vegetarians! Another great recipe inspired by Dave Lieberman. Serves 4. Continue reading