Loaded Scrambled Eggs

I have a secret. A deep, dark secret. I. HATE. Scrambled. Eggs. Where do I start? The slimy, squishy texture? The hideous smell that pervades the house during cooking? The bland, gag-inducing taste? I'm going to go with all of the above. 20 years have I lived in fear of scrambled eggs. In fact, threatening scrambled eggs for dinner was a regular scare tactic used by my mother to motivate me to fix dinner. But the tables have turned. I have found the Holy Grail of scrambled egg recipes, the one that finally broke through my hatred and made it into my "favorite recipes" cache. To celebrate this momentous occasion, I thought it only fair to share my golden egg with you (pun intended).

 NOTE: This recipe differs only slightly from the original, which you'll find the link to below.
Originally, the recipe calls for tomatoes and crusty bread to serve it on, but I thought the tomatoes made it too watery and I served it with fresh-squeezed orange juice and turkey sausage instead of bread.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
1 red onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 TBSP. olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper
8 large eggs, beaten
3 oz. Cheddar, grated (about 3/4 cup)
1/3 c. finely chopped flat-lead parsley leaves

Directions:

1.  Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, 1 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender, 12-14 minutes. 
2. Add eggs and cook, stirring frequently, until the eggs are just set, 1-2 minutes. Add the Cheddar and cook, stirring, until just melted, 1-2 minutes more.
3.  Remove from heat, stir in parsley, and serve.

 Source: Real Simple

The Last Necromancer - C.J. Archer

Do I love the feel of a book in my hands? Yes. More than my own children (technically accurate, as I don't have any). But I also love my Kindle. I've lost track of how many amazing books I've found while browsing through the B&N store. And, if you sort it by low-high price, you can pick up some awesome reads for free. The only kicker is that once they've gotten you hooked on the series with the free book, all the others actually cost something. This strategy works perfectly on suckers like me, I'm sad to say. In fact, this book is the perfect example. The first book was free, but I promptly finished that one... and the one after that... and the one after that. 3 days and 4 books later, I finally had to rein the horse in, but you get the idea.

Meet Charlie, a dirty street urchin who steals to survive in London's impoverished neighborhoods. But two things set Charlie apart from the rest of the street rabble: Charlie is a girl and the last necromancer. Forced to disguise herself as a boy to keep her safe, Charlie (a.k.a. Charlotte) was kicked out of her home when her conservative father inadvertently discovered her powers. When word starts getting around, Charlie finds herself being pursued by persons unknown. She soon falls into the clutches of one such group, a strange trio of men that answers to an organization known only to her as the Ministry. The leader of the group, Lincoln Fitzroy, is a serious, intimidating man who has been training to lead the Ministry for his whole life. His only goal is to protect the Queen from supernatural harm, and keeping Charlie out of evil hands is one way of doing so. She soon learns that they are up against a dangerous foe who is harvesting body parts from the dead and trying to reanimate them. But can Fitzroy convince Charlie to stay and help willingly, or will he have to hold her hostage? Charlie has no desire to become a tool of the Ministry, but she has nowhere else to turn. Aside from that, she is becoming more and more intrigued by the mysterious Mr. Fitzroy, despite his warnings to stay away. As Charlie's position becomes more and more precarious in the household, she must decide if she will join forces with the Ministry or return to her life in the streets.

First things first. A Frankenstein character looking for a necromancer in Victorian era London?? I'M IN HEAVEN! This is an actual dream come true. It's like science fiction meets fantasy meets mystery meets romance. Second of all, the author actually addresses things that are relevant to life as a female. Did you ever notice how lots of books and movies leave out some of the less pleasant aspects of life (e.g no need for bathrooms)? Not so for this series! For example, I bet you never thought about the work that goes into disguising yourself as a adolescent boy when you're actually a female in your upper teens, especially during *ahem* certain times of the month. It's so refreshing to finally have a series where this stuff doesn't get pushed under the rug. All in all, I highly recommend, not only the book, but the series in general. With all that being said, here's the standard "pros v. cons" list for your browsing convenience.

Pros:

• Science fiction meets fantasy meets mystery meets romance
• An edge-of-your-seat read
• Character development and plot progression are through-the-roof awesome

Cons:

• Some language
• After the first book, you pay >:(
• There's no movie (actually, this might be a good thing considering the history of book to movie conversions)