Page 8 June 25, 2009 MANHATTAN BEACH SUN Food Night at the Museum: Battle of MARMALADE CHICKEN ARE YOU A SNACKER? Orange marmalade and freshly grated GOOD FOR YOU! the Smithsonian orange zest make a deliciously tangy sauce Battle of the Smithsonian.” for quick-cooking chicken tenders. Serve While it suffers from and even magnifies with brown rice. some of the same problems that bedeviled Servings: 4 servings its predecessor, I found this offering slightly Total Time: 20 minutes more entertaining than the original. The target Ease of Preparation: Easy audience of younger kids won’t care about Health: Low Calorie, Low Carb, Low Sat any such criticism, however, as they’ll likely Fat, Low Sodium, Heart Healthy, Healthy eat up this combo of action-adventure and Weight museum-based history to figures equaling or Ingredients: exceeding the first pic’s nearly $575 million Marmalade Chicken Eating a snack or two between meals can worldwide box office take. 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth curb hunger so that you don’t inhale the din- With the setup now out of the way -- that 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar ing room table when you finally sit down to explains how the museum figures and attrac- 2 tablespoons orange marmalade supper. Snacking can also help you get in tions come to life thanks to an ancient and 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard all the nutrients you need. On the flipside, magical Egyptian tablet -- the premise here 1 teaspoon cornstarch grazing all day—particularly on foods of little is quite simple. The original museum is shut 1 pound chicken tenders (see Note) nutritional value—may result in eating too down for more technologically advanced 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt much and packing on extra pounds. The key renovations and thus most of the figures are 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper is taking a smart approach to snacking. Here being sent off to the “Federal Archives,” a 6 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil , divided are five simple strategies to get you started. massive complex beneath the National Mall 2 large shallots , minced Snack (and multitask) mindfully. Munching in Washington, D.C. 1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest mindlessly in front of the TV is a surefire Learning the tablet isn’t going with them, Steps: way to gain unnecessary pounds—but that but later receiving something of a distress 1: Whisk broth, vinegar, marmalade, mustard doesn’t mean you can never enjoy your fa- A former museum night guard tries to rescue call stating it did which has resulted in new and cornstarch in a medium bowl. vorite program over a bowl of freshly popped his museum figure friends -- that magically trouble, former night guard turned product 2: Sprinkle chicken with salt and pep- popcorn or (fill in your favorite snack). Instead come to life at night -- from an Egyptian gimmick entrepreneur Larry Daley (Ben Stiller per. Heat 4 teaspoons oil in a large skillet of popping a big bag of microwave popcorn, pharaoh figure that’s likewise now animated in usual “comically bad things happen to me” over medium-high heat. Add the chicken for example, choose a “mini” 100-calorie bag. and desirous of resurrecting his army of the mode) realizes he must do something to save and cook until golden, about 2 minutes per And be sure to account for those calories dead. Comedy/PG. his friends who only come to life at night. side. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil elsewhere in your day. It’s been several years since Larry Daley Once there, he discovers a power-hungry, to keep warm. Use snacks to fill nutritional gaps. Make (Ben Stiller) worked as a night guard at New 3000-year-old Egyptian pharaoh (the brother 3: Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and your snacks count. Choose those that provide York City’s Museum of Natural History. of the one from the first film) and, with the shallots to the pan and cook, stirring often, calcium and fiber—two nutrients that people Despite now being a successful infomercial help of friends old and new (the latter in- until beginning to brown, about 30 seconds. often skimp on. Two snacks to try: a cup of entrepreneur and product inventor, Larry cluding Amelia Earhart, General Custer and Whisk the broth mixture and add it to the pan. yogurt with a half-cup of whole-grain cereal misses his former friends at the museum, others) must prevent the pharaoh and his new Bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned mixed in, or a skim latte plus an apple. but he can only visit them at night. minions -- Al Capone, Napoleon and Ivan bits. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer; Brown-bag your snack. Skip the vending That’s because thanks to an ancient the Terrible -- from taking over the museum cook until the sauce is slightly reduced and machine and satisfy the afternoon “munch- Egyptian tablet with magical powers, vari- complex and perhaps the world. thickened, 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Add the ies” with a healthy snack you packed at ous figures there -- Attila The Hun (Patrick While Stiller again gets the lion’s share chicken; return to a simmer. Cook, turning home. You’ll save money and get a bigger Gallagher) and his crew, Lewis and Clark’s of screen time running to and fro, and once, until the chicken is heated through, bang for your nutritional buck. Try an ounce Indian tracker Sacajawea (Mizuo Peck), Amy Adams makes for a cute it not exactly about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and of almonds and an orange or a handful of miniature diorama figures cowboy Jedidiah historically accurate transatlantic fly girl, stir in orange zest. pretzels with some hummus. Planning snacks (Owen Wilson) and Roman emperor Octavius the film’s modest pleasures come from the Nutrition: (Per serving) that provide both carbohydrates and protein (Steve Coogan), and former President Teddy smaller elements and moments. Some of Calories – 213 will help tide you over until dinner. Roosevelt (Robin Williams), not to mention that stems from various characterizations, Carbohydrates – 10 Choose your “midnight” snack wisely. If a several Neanderthals, a T-Rex skeleton and a such as those offered by small to extended Fat – 8 good night’s sleep is what you crave, there capuchin monkey known as Dexter -- come cameos by Jonah Hill and Bill Hader. Hank Saturated Fat – 1 may be a food combination to help. Special- to life at night after the museum is closed. Azaria is somewhat fun as the pharaoh, even Monounsaturated Fat – 5 ists recommend a pre-slumber snack that’s Things are going to change, however, due if the slightly effeminate and half-serious, Protein – 27 rich in carbohydrates and contains a bit of to the museum undergoing renovations where half-goofy villain character has been done Cholesterol – 68 protein; this combination is said to increase most of the figures will be sent to the Federal to death, and despite the actor doing a weird Dietary Fiber – 0 the tryptophan levels in the brain, causing Archives located underground beneath the accent that’s supposed to be Boris Karloff Potassium – 55 you to sleep more soundly. Try low-fat Smithsonian museums in Washington, D.C. but sounded more to me like an odd Jeremy Sodium – 246 yogurt with a sprinkle of granola, a small And with the magical tablet staying put, that Irons impersonation. Note: Chicken tenders are the virtually bowl of oatmeal or a sliced apple with a bit means those figures will never come to life All of that said, and as was the case the fat-free strips of rib meat typically found of peanut butter. again. Accordingly, when Larry gets a call first time around but multiplied here, there are attached to the underside of chicken breasts. Don’t get tripped up by travel. However for help from Jedidiah, he decides to travel simply too many characters in play, meaning They can also be purchased separately. Four often you fly, prepare in advance so you’ll to D.C. to set things straight. most of the original ones (including Robin 1-ounce tenders will yield a 3-ounce cooked have healthy snacks to eat en route. For After stealing a security pass, he enters the Williams) and many of the newer ones end portion. Tenders are perfect for quick stir- shorter flights, pack a quarter-cup of dried underground complex only to find Egyptian up shortchanged. The same holds true for fries, chicken satay or kid-friendly breaded fruit, such as apricots, a handful of almonds pharaoh Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria) -- the the creative plot elements. “chicken fingers.” and a few whole-wheat crackers as healthier older jealous brother to his 3,000-year-old While scribes Robert Ben Garant & Thomas Provided by Eatingwell, Courtesy of Ar- alternatives to the salty snacks served in- counterpart in the New York museum -- has Lennon occasionally have some fun with the camax.com • flight. Sip plenty of water; low humidity and likewise come to life thanks to Dexter the built-in potential -- characters interacting with recirculating cabin air can be dehydrating. monkey taking the magical tablet with him. historical paintings and even entering the By EatinWell, Arcamax.com • Kahmunrah wants to resurrect his army of world inside of a famous photo -- the film- the undead, but Larry and newly animated fly makers, including returning director Shawn girl Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams) manage to Levy, don’t utilize enough of that or take it as elude and leave his guards inside a painting. far as they could and obviously should have Accordingly, Kahmunrah enlists the likes (a problem I also had with the first flick). of Ivan the Terrible (Christopher Guest), The same holds true for characters inter- Napoleon Bonaparte (Alain Chabat) and Al acting with famous inanimate objects found Capone (Jon Bernthal) as his new minions in the Smithsonian’s various museums (and whose task is to catch Larry and force him don’t get me started on the creative license to decipher the Egyptian tablet’s secret code. of the assembly of such items -- some of That’s all while Larry and Amelia get help which aren’t in any of the museums -- into from General George Armstrong Custer (Bill one locale). Hader) and gigantic stone President Lincoln Notwithstanding all of that, younger kids (Hank Azaria) from his monument to try to will likely love it, and many adults probably thwart the new museum villain. won’t mind sitting through it. Yet, had as The sequel to “Night at the Museum” only much creativity gone into maximizing the had one such destination. After all, New York story potential to equal all of the running City’s Museum of Natural History is a pretty around, goofy jokes and PG-related action, big place, so the logical next locale would this could have been so much better. be the mother of all such institutions -- the Even so, “Night at the Museum: Battle of “nation’s attic.” The result -- that brings back the Smithsonian” is entertaining enough to most of the human and magically brought to come in a notch above its predecessor, and life museum attractions and mixes them with thus rate as a 4. 5 out of 10. Courtesy of a brand new set -- is “Night at the Museum: Screenit.com •