Monday, January 18, 2016

Behind the Scenes at Stephen Colbert, Making Blackened Cajun Mahi-Mahi, and More

Hi, everyone! I hope you have been enjoying Martin Luther King, Jr Day.  I'm loving this quote from Dr. King: "The time is always right to do what is right".  Today's King Day rally in South Carolina was the first at the Dome in 17 years without the presence of the Confederate flag. Pretty sweet.

It has been a while since I wrote a week recap post, so I just wanted to catch up a bit with you guys!

The highlights of the week were auditioning for a new AMC show and going to the Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Olivia Munn had an original fan club way back when she did Attack of the Show, and they were a great bunch that welcomed me.  Since then, I have been to several events she arranged for her fans to join. I wrote a post on a past movie premiere of "I Don't Know How She Does It" (in which I had a scene with Olivia, but my head got cut off. Frame-wise. Not literally). 

Anyway, she invited some of us to Stephen Colbert.  A double whammy! I love love love both of them.  And I had been to The Colbert Report before, but this was going to be my first time at his new show and at the Ed Sullivan Theater!

Me looking uber fashionable here. I was actually wearing different shoes and wardrobe earlier, but it was freezing outside! As ugly as UGGs are, they are so warm!





We weren't allowed to take photos inside the actual studio area, but here is a pic right outside of it. It was a holding area to inform us about the rules and expectations. We had VIP tix, but we seemed to have general seating.  I believe the perk was no waiting outside in the long line; you just showed up at a certain time and got escorted inside. I appreciated that! Like I said, it was cold. 

First of all, the studio is beautiful. Gorgeous! 

To give you an idea...someone else's photo of inside.
image via nytimes.com

You can currently watch the episode of the Late Show here.  But below are some things that happened that won't be shown on the episode.

Some comedian named Peter came out to "warm up" the crowd. Omg. He was kind of out of control.  He asked a husband and wife duo to come up to the front.  When he found out it was the wife's birthday, he immediately asked her how old she was.  Offended, she looked at him and said, "Really?!" When she gave in and told her she was 67, he seemed genuinely impressed and requested that she take her top off. She was not amused. The next couple of seconds were dedicated to complimenting her amazing "pillows". Yay.  He then asked a black woman to come up to "add color to the stage".  Wow. She was this deadpan hilarious woman, and Peter even had to tell her to let him do his job. 

Peter noticed a guy with the "most fabulous hair". He asked for a name, and the owner of said fabulous hair had Lau as a last name. Peter then went "Of course" and waved his hand over his own face as in "Yes, your Asian face".  Oh, and then Peter added that Mr. Lau looked like a crackhead. 

So basically, I was sinking down in my seat and praying that I would not be Peter's next victim. I guess it's like when you're a possible target at a standup show. 

The show's band made of Jon Batiste and Stay Human warmed us up, too.  The tambourine guys got a little too rock and roll and smashed their instruments on the ground. Pieces flew everywhere. You should have seen the stagehands' faces with their hands out like DUDE, WTF. They had to clean up the mess before the actual taping.

Then the Almighty Colbert came out to answer a couple of audience questions. The first question asked was "Why do you only wear one suit?" This totally cracked him up.  If you watch the show, you will see him emphasize his "many suits".  If you hear us laughing really hard, then you know why. Colbert is brilliant. 

During Olivia's interview, I don't think the part where Colbert texted her mom was rehearsed!

I don't want to spoil it, but there is a part of the show that involves egg yolk. I don't think Colbert was ready for that. When the segment was done, wardrobe was furiously trying to scrub all of it out.

Before Colbert filmed his introduction of Father John Misty, he told the lead singer that he looked like a cult leader. Telling it like it is!
image via guardian.com

Stephen Colbert is PERFECT. Well nearly.  For the few times he messed up (seriously like 3), they went back and filmed him saying that word or phrase.  Just those few seconds.  It was neat to see!

I would definitely go back again to watch the live show. The experience was very entertaining and NOT drawn out.  I'm just going to wait for the weather to warm up before waiting in line!

*****

One of my goals this year is to cook something new once a week.

The challenge was Paleo Blackened Cajun Mahi-Mahi with grilled asparagus. <----recipes linked

Making my rub!


The frozen Mahi-Mahi from Costco has been great for dinner these days!  I added lemon to the fish and stuck it back in the refrigerator to marinate while I cooked the asparagus.




My mistake: Trying to cover up the entire surface area with a thick layer of the rub.  You can imagine how BOLD the flavor was.




Thank God we had rice.  It helped balance out the super flavorful fish.  A light layer of rub next time, and it will be A++++!


*****

I'll end this post with some yumminess from The Melt Shop.

Their shop tots are delightful!  Beautiful crispy tater tots sprinkled with parmesan goodness.  Just get ready for the fragrance of stinky gym socks. Mmmmm.


image via mrclements.com


The grilled chicken, Muenster, tomatoes, and truffle mayo on multigrain toast. THE MAYO, guys! It was magical.  It is not a light meal, my friends. But when you're in the mood to indulge, come here.
PS. Grab lots of napkins. Your fingers will be covered in buttery residue.


xo,

Erica


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