Tammy and Marvin are getting married this weekend!
I think I may be the only person who always sings the song from "My Fair Lady" when someone is getting married. The song is going through my head right now -"I'm getting married in the morning. Ding - Dong the bells are going to chime..."
I became friends with Tammy while Patrick was on a six month deployment to Germany. It was July 4th when we first went out to dinner, and it felt a little strange because she is a lot younger than I am. It wasn't long before she became a very good friend. And now, well, she is one of my closest friends. After Patrick came home, he soon realized that she was a fixture at our house, and there were even certain days of the week that were dedicated to Tammy. She loves White Russians, and if it wasn't 10:30 in the morning right now, I would toast you with a White Russian!
We have a lot in common. Even her relationship with Marvin is very similar to my relationship with Patrick. They are both the same age that we were when we started dating, and they dated the same amount of time that we did before getting married! I will never forget when I asked her about their first date, her response was almost identical to the response that I had after my first date with Patrick! I'm trying to think of a way to describe the response, but I can't seem to put it into words. It was the look in her eye, and the way that she said it was - nice. I knew then that she was a goner! So, it was no surprise to me when he asked her to marry him right before they took a cruise to Alaska this past summer.
It feels like just yesterday that we were looking through Bridal magazines and talking about her wedding. I am sad to say that I'm not going to be in Corpus Christi smiling (with tears running down my face) as they say their vows. I'm not going because Patrick doesn't have vacation time yet, and I feel uncomfortable going alone to the wedding. But I want both Tammy and Marvin to know that I love you both very much and wish you only the very best.
A few weeks ago, I told Tammy that I wanted to do something for the special occasion on my blog, and I asked if she had any special requests. She said that she has always wanted my Chicken Adobo recipe. I learned this recipe from my friend Tara, but this is not exactly her recipe because in her family they never put garlic in the adobo. Sorry Tara!
This is not every one's idea of wedding celebration food, but it's what she wanted! I like to serve Chicken Adobo along with Garlic Vegetable Fried Rice. In order to get as many vegetables as I can, I use whatever I have on hand, fresh, frozen or canned. You can make this with only the rice and the garlic, if that is all you have, but I do recommend at least using the carrots - they add a certain something to the dish.
Chicken Adobo
4 lbs chicken thighs
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup soy sauce
3/4 cup rice vinegar (or regular white vinegar)
1 bay leaf
1-3 tablespoons sugar, to taste
3/4 cup water, or more to cover
Place the chicken, garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, bay leaf, and one tablespoon of the sugar in a large dutch oven. Stir to combine all ingredients. Place over medium high heat and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cover until the meat is tender. Season to taste with a little more sugar if needed, pepper and even a little adobo seasoning (this is a Latin spice mix that you can find in the ethnic aisle at the supermarket, but be careful for it is very salty).
Garlic Vegetable Fried Rice
2 cups rice, cooked according to the package directions
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 carrots, chopped
1 can French style green beans, drained (optional)
1 can corn, drained (optional)
salt, pepper and red pepper flakes
Add the oil to a large pan over medium high heat and fry garlic until lightly browned, stirring constantly. Add onion and carrot, stir and cook until the onion is translucent. Stir in the rice, breaking up any clumps with the back of the spoon. Season to taste with salt (or soy sauce), pepper and red pepper flakes.
No comments:
Post a Comment