Shh... I have a secret....

This is where I find a lot of recipes. And guess what... I've been looking at the quiche and tart recipes this morning. I think I might make one for dinner later this week. Delicious!

We also got our CSA box on Thursday:

Peas
Broccoli
Cauliflower (grill recipe to come later this week)
Mint
Green onions
Fennel (GAH - what do I make with THIS??? Put it in a quiche, maybe?)
And lots more...

Happy weekend!

Sew Liberated Tunic

Here's my very first garment project. A tunic. It should be easy enough, right? I think there's only about 25 steps and I'm halfway through Step 1 (which is to trace and cut the pattern with butcher paper, as you can tell, I had a little help with Mich Golden Light).

I guess this is a pretty popular pattern, so hopefully if I get stuck I can google directions or tutorials or maybe find some pictures on Flickr.

And here's the fabric that I picked out - it's Michael Miller. The stripes go the long way, not the horizontal way, I don't want to look any fatter than my size 10 self. I was looking for gray stripe fabric like in the picture but I couldn't find any, so here is this stripe instead. I'm hoping that it doesn't look too awful when I'm done.

Happy 4th of July!!

Yeah, sorry. I've been getting distracted lately by the AWESOME weather. It's been warm, sunny and just perfect to work outside, sit outside and read, cook on the grill, swimming at a friend's pool. Minnesota in the summer is the BEST. So I apologize for not sharing in the fun.

But I have a problem in my garden - my Clematis died. Again. This is the only plant that I kill outside. Continuously. Well, besides the tomatoes that I had to replant. Whoops. Mostly because I don't think the Clematis is in a spot where the soil drains well. I think I'm going to have to go to Sunnyside Gardens and get another one and then plant it right next to the house on a trellis since that soil seems to drain well. GAH. Gardening. It never ends!

Recipes I've made:
Mostly brats on the grill. Who wants to see pictures of brats? Well, not me.
Potatoes AND asparagus on the grill (this is sort of a weekly staple in our house in the summer, I never bother taking pictures because otherwise I'd be posting the same thing over and over again - just seasoned with salt, pepper and Moroccan spices for both veggies)
Chicken on the grill - seasoned with Mediterranean seasoning and sprinkled with lemon juice
Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast

See - I'm boring when it's nice outside. But I found a recipe for Cherry Crisp, so I think I'm going to run to the store and pick up another bag of cherries and maybe make that for dessert tonight. Simple, but delicious!

Happy 4th of July - be safe with the fireworks and hope that everyone's day is AWESOME!

Oh, Man. Rain & Fish.

I've totally been feeling off my rocker lately. Not only has Cora-Bumi-Steve been with us for almost two weeks, but this weather is driving me INSANE.

 Ok, so that's C-B-S in the background, she is super cute, right? ADORABLE is more like it. And here's Rusty. He sort of looks proud of himself... for something... I don't know what. It kind of looks like he killed C-B-S and brought her to me for a gift but no - he sees a camera and he sits for you. Strange dog.

In any case - the rain has been around, the clouds have been around and it seems as if Spring has taken over Summer. I'm done with Spring. Give me my Summer back, please. I'm tired of muddy footprints, frizzy hair and dreary clouds.

Today is the next CSA box, which I'm super excited for. I'll have more recipes soon. From my email earlier this week this is what's in the box:

French Breakfast Radishes

Garlic Scapes

Italian Parsley

Kohlrabi

Napa Cabbage

Rainbow Chard

Red Butterhead Lettuce

Red Leaf Lettuce

Scallions

Strawberries

Oh, and the whole entire point to this post which I probably NEVER would have gotten around to had I not put "fish" in the title:

Cora-Bumi-Steve's owners brought us FRESH FISH FROM THE FAMOUS PIKE PLACE FISH MARKET IN SEATTLE. IT'S LESS THAN 18 HOURS OLD. Ok, I mean this fish was pulled out of the ocean to its death for me to eat less than 18 hours ago. It was not caught, flash frozen and shipped to Cub Foods to be thawed and colored. How awesome is that for a thank you gift? Eep, I know what I'm making for dinner tonight!

Indy 500 Checklist

1. Kegs - Mich Golden Light & Surly

2. Food: Pasta salad, fruit salad, veggies + three dips, bruschetta, pulled pork sandwiches, homemade BBQ sauce, Black bean salsa, regular salsa, chips, hummus & pita chips, maybe cous cous something or other?

3. Desserts: Margarita cupcakes, brownies, key lime bars again? Maybe Mississippi Mud Cupcakes?

4. Clean the floors with Bona. Make them pretty

5. Set out rugs at doors so people take their shoes off

6. Clean up the back patio, get outdoor rug so people can go barefoot if they want

7. Dog water dishes

8. Clean the bathrooms, make sure two kegs fit in bathtub

9. Clean kitchen (and really clean it, don't just "wipe it down")

10. Purchase $30 vacuum that works then go and return it. (Ok, mostly kidding on this one but I do need a vacuum)

11. Get pile of crap ready for THE GREAT SWAP

12. Realize that I will need to accept this day as insane and start the day off with a mimosa or similar drink.

What To Cook This Week?

Meh, I have no idea.

What sounds good? What do I have in my fridge? Leftovers? I have to keep in mind that I'm picking up turkey necks, bison liver and something else for the dog tomorrow that needs to go in the freezer...

I guess I'm going grocery shopping this afternoon.

Maple Glazed Pork Chops?
Shrimp with Gnocchi and some sort of veggie?
I think I might have pork ribs hidden from the dog in the basement fridge...
Salad with grilled chicken with a balsamic glaze?
Salad with the champagne dressing (oops, infusion) from the local olive oil shop?

Please, someone, knock me over the head with a 2x4 to knock some sense into me so I can actually meal plan for once and I don't make my life harder on myself.

So what is everyone else having for dinner this week? Anything that I can try?

This Week's To-Do List

1. Make a quesadilla for lunch on Monday.

2.Adopt out the puppy, Abner on Monday (Let me tell you, we have a friend with a similar name and I've forgotten the name "Abner" so I've called this puppy a variety of things - from  "Puppy" to "Um, what's your name, Dog" this past weekend).

3. Clean the floors

4. Vacuum

5. Cook with the following veggies this week: red onions, carrots, pork chops, chicken, red peppers

6. Peruse Pinterest a bit more and see what I can find to inspire me to sew more crafts with all the dang fat quarters that I have.

Soups To Make This Fall

Cheddar Ale Soup

Curried Pumpkin Soup - I think I'm actually going to make this week because I have pumpkin and I really like having some sort of soup in the freezer at all times.

Southwestern Tortilla Soup

Wild Rice Soup

I'm so excited for Fall soups! I mean, I like summer and all, but I just need a change in diet. Especially since I went to the State Fair yesterday and ate:

2 Pronto Pups
Cheese Curds
Lemonade
Beer
Chocolate Chip Cookies & Milk
Buffalo Bites
Onion Rings

Yep, I really did eat all those things. But I shared with Bimmer Man. He's pretty good at sharing and so am I. Especially since I'm sure the caloric content equals a week's worth of food! I get to go back tomorrow and pick up a painting that we bought too. Super excited! It's going in the living room! Oh, and I'll get to have fajitas since I forgot to eat those yesterday!

Menu Planning

It's way too hard. I swear, every week I try and menu plan... something just happens and it all falls apart!

So this week I'm sort of menu planning... I'm sharing a few links to other people's blogs where I ALWAYS find something that I want to eat. And eat. And eat.

So here's a few recipes on my list of items to make this week:

Joelen's BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad

Pioneer Woman's Chicken With Olives

Lemon Ricotta Potatoes from the Kitchn

Simply Recipe's BBQ Turkey With Mustard Sauce

Hmm... I think I might be on a BBQ kick this week. Although it's been raining a heck of a lot, I think I may see the sun starting to peek through the clouds. Woo hoo!!

I've Been Painting

And unfortunately, not cooking very much lately or I've been cooking the same things like eggs, pasta and grilling brats which I don't find blog-worthy because honestly, they're super easy and well, I just wouldn't want to see scrambled eggs on my blog every day.

However, with Bimmer Man going to the racetrack this weekend, I will be making at least one item with mushrooms.

But for now, here's what I've been doing:
The trim is now white instead of the awful, awful old ugly stained oak.

The living room is yellow, which I like much better than the blue (Midwest Spring by Freshaire at Home Depot). The blue looked like Barbie's boyfriend Ken had a bit too much fun on a Friday night and vomited up his favorite color, blue.

So the living room is super messy because I'm trying to paint around everything. Soon I'll have different curtains (I think I may make them myself) and then eventually different furniture.

Happy Friday!

Have To Share A New E-Mag!!!

Sweet Paul

OMG. I think I want to make every recipe. I love the pictures too...

Have fun on this Friday! My goal is to distract you from work for awhile...

Have a fantastic weekend!

In A Funk Lately

I don't know if it's because I don't get a full night's sleep (hello, practice for future parenting by having a foster puppy) or because it's the winter and it's so gray all the time.

I made poop cookies the other day (I'll post pics and the recipe if you'd like to make poop cookies too) and decided that I probably shouldn't make cookies that look like poop ever again. So I have white chocolate chips waiting for me at home to make something. So I've been put off from baking for this week (and cooking, thanks to poop cookies).

But my left eye is twitching again and I haven't worn make up in 4 days. So, I need something fun.

10 Random Facts About Me Today

1. I didn't eat breakfast

2. I miss breakfast. Especially having hot water at work for oatmeal

3. I really like the show The Good Wife

4. There's a huge knot in my right shoulder that hurts like heck and no amount of ibuprofen will take the pain away (see? I need summer back!)

5. I think I want a guinea pig. Or maybe two to keep each other company.

6. I have no idea how to take care of guinea pigs

7. My mother would never step foot in my house if we had guinea pigs

8. My mother also misses my dog, so maybe I could bribe her to come over if we had guinea pigs

9. I love homemade pizza

10. I'm excited to make Rusty a dog bed that's green

Help Find Me A Pasta Sauce

With no tomatoes.

I mean, I have a six month supply of tomato sauce, but I'm craving something NOT tomato for this week. It can be alfredo or carbonara... or plain olive oil but I'm just not feeling the inspiration that I need for when I go grocery shopping (either in my pantry or at the store)...

So, what are some good recipes with no tomatoes?

Go ahead, leave a link! I'll give you some good stats! (I'm known for leaving a webpage open while I cook, so if you have Google Analytics and you notice someone looking at one page for like an hour, that's probably me... I give GREAT stats!).

Yep, or if you know it by heart, leave it in a comment. I just need some inspiration!

Thanks fantastic readers, friends and family!

This Is An Organizing Post

Amazing, right? Um, yeah.

So I chose the facebook cartoon, not because it's all that funny but because it seems like every time facebook makes a change, there's a change in our lives.

Like moving.

So here's the To-Do list that I have in my notebook - because we're moving in... 8 1/2 weeks.

Can you believe it? Back to the MSP we go... This time I have to document it so that way I know how I packed everything so when we move again, I'll have an established checklist.

So here's the list:

1. Bimmer Man needs to graduate first and foremost
2. Stop eating take out so I can cook and blog about it
3. Close out the photo business here, establish LLC in Minnesota
4. Finish out photo orders here
5. Try to remember how I packed everything the last time we moved - it seems like we're missing some plastic bins... (Mental Note: Ask Bimmer Man about plastic bins)
6. Re-establish the number system for packing - where all boxes end up in the garage of my mom's house. Seems like all the boxes will have a #1 on them where the garage = #1.
7. Don't go to Sam's Club to buy food. Eat what we have and only replenish what we need.
8. Play more Wii Fit. And Shaun White Snowboarding.
9. The MONSTER needs a moving plan too - darn it, that means another list!
10. Take advantage of health insurance and get all check ups before last day of work.
11. I thought this was going to be about moving, but um... I guess not!

So, as the 8 1/2 weeks comes closer and closer, I'll definitely have more leftover recipes and what to do with all the random crap that you're left with in the fridge. Like the half box of spaghetti, cucumbers and feta (pasta with cucumbers, feta & olive oil perhaps...). And all the other randoms that you happen to find - like black beans, canned tomatoes and frozen corn (Hmm, Southwestern Black Bean soup anyone???).

Ok, enough... Have a fabulous Thursday!!

McTatty

To Make. Eventually.

I'm such a bad planner sometimes. I bought way too much spinach, so here's a few ideas that I have. Anyone else have any favorite spinach recipes?

Creamy Spinach Mushroom Skillet Enchiladas

Orzo with Spinach and Feta

Baked Eggs with Spinach and Tomatoes

And of course - a wrap with spinach, feta, turkey and provolone cheese for lunches this week.

Hmm... I really like quiche too, but Bimmer Man isn't so fond...

What Cookbooks Are In Your Kitchen?

These three are staples in my kitchen. I've gone red meatless, but not completely vegetarian yet so I need a little inspiration from any vegetarian books that I can find. Giada is another staple, this is her latest book, but really I'll make just about anything from any of her books. Same with Ina Garten, who wouldn't like her macaroni and cheese or any type of chicken?

Giada's Kitchen: New Italian Favorites
Baking: From My Home to Yours

Then there's Dorie... I can't live without this book. It just so happens that for every work dessert, I've chosen something out of this book. What's your go - to dessert book? I have pumpkin cream cheese muffins memorized, but I can't exactly make those in the summer. This gives great options for all year long.
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food
And vegetarian... Great ideas for sides and main courses for when you have a vegetarian in the house. Or just for yourself!

What other books are staples in your kitchen? (Actually, I have a lot of magazines too...)

Kraft Food & Family Online Magazine

Oh yes, yes I am posting this link. Sometimes I forget that I don't have to cook "gourmet" all the time and I can just hang out in the kitchen with chicken and vegetables.

Kraft has super easy recipes that can be prepared in minutes, which is why I like receiving their emails. It gives me ideas for later, even if I don't follow the recipes to perfection. I think that when you add your own little twist, it gives you a sense of accomplishment to know that you just made something better. On your own. (Bimmer Man now uses other spices instead of just hot sauce and soy sauce in his taco meat. Makes me proud...)

So enjoy the online magazine and get inspired - not every meal has to take an hour to prepare.

If I Have Time...

January has been going by incredibly quickly for me, it's kind of been a bit of a blur - mostly because I haven't been cooking as much as I've wanted to. Bimmer Man has been home, then not been home, MONSTER has obedience school and I, well, I've been too engrossed in reading and crocheting. But I still want to make cupcakes. I still want to makes lots of things.

Here's what's on my list:

Broiled Cumin Lamb Chops with Curried Couscous
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 lamb chops and about 1 cup couscous mixture)

Ingredients

Lamb:
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
8 (4-ounce) lamb loin chops, trimmed
Cooking spray

Couscous:
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup uncooked couscous
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

Preheat broiler.

To prepare lamb, combine first 3 ingredients in a bowl. Brush honey evenly over both sides of lamb; sprinkle evenly with spice mixture. Arrange lamb in a single layer on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray; broil 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.

To prepare couscous, heat a nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Stir in cranberries and next 4 ingredients (through 1/4 teaspoon salt); bring to a boil. Remove from heat; stir in couscous. Cover and let stand 5 minutes. Add cilantro; fluff with a fork.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 510 (33% from fat)
Fat: 18.7g (sat 9g,mono 7g,poly 1g)
Protein: 26.9g
Carbohydrate: 56.8g
Fiber: 4.1g
Cholesterol: 95mg
Iron: 3mg
Sodium: 493mg
Calcium: 54mg
David Bonom, Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2007


Gnocchi with Asparagus and Pancetta

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups gnocchi mixture and 1 tablespoon cheese)

Ingredients

1 (16-ounce) package vacuum-packed gnocchi (such as Vigo)
2 ounces pancetta, cut into thin strips (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shaved Parmesan cheese

Preparation

1. Cook gnocchi according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Keep warm.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pancetta; sauté 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer to a paper towel–lined plate.

3. Add shallots and asparagus to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add gnocchi, pancetta, reserved cooking liquid, juice, salt, and pepper to pan; cook 1 minute. Serve with cheese.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 277 (21% from fat)
Fat: 6.5g (sat 3.1g,mono 2.5g,poly 0.1g)
Protein: 11.2g
Carbohydrate: 43.7g
Fiber: 2.6g
Cholesterol: 15mg
Iron: 2.6mg
Sodium: 932mg
Calcium: 110mg
Jackie Mills, MS, RD, Cooking Light, APRIL 2008