souped up

Howdy, pals. You may have noticed that I haven't been doing much cooking lately--or, much cooking worthy of a blog post, anyhow (what? you don't wanna hear about my gardenburgers and riblets?).

But, with the recent developments in my car situation, I have a feeling that I'll soon be spending more time at home, and that means more time in the kitchen. So, even though Comcast can suck it, I'm getting my cable back on Friday. Winter + no car = one gal who will need to warm it up with the delights of the boob tube.

(boobs... oh, sorry. nothing.)

So, last night I braved the crowds at the grocery store, stocked up my pantry and made some soup. I love making soup. It does require lots of chopping (which I love) and does not require lots of precision (which I often don't want to have). I didn't use a recipe, just started throwing stuff together, tasting, throwing more stuff in, and so on. I put on a pot of white beans (cannelini) and set to work on my broth. I used some vegetable broth, some mushroom broth, some crushed tomatoes, some marsala, just a touch of Bragg's, some herbs de Provence, a big can of kidney beans, some carrot, celery, onion, garlic, rosemary, parsley, mustard seeds and dry mustard, a little red wine vinegar, a little honey, lots of pepper, some sea salt, a little cayenne. And, I simmered it all night (without the beans, 'cause I didn't want them to fall apart). I took out half of it (I made a HUGE batch), and stuck it in the freezer as a soup-starter for next time (it'd make a great base for a cabbage soup, or if I ate clams, Manhattan clam chowder. The rest I added the white and kidney beans in, seasoned a little more, shaved some parmesan and threw some fresh parsley and rosemary on top and voila! An assload of soup! I cooled it, and then portioned it into single and/or double serving sizes. I brought some for lunch today, and it was the first time I'd really tried it. It's really good! I was describing it to E-dawg, and she said it sounded like minestrone. It's definitely reminiscent, but without the pasta, and the spicing is a little different. It's seriously yummalicious. I am eager to get home and have some for dinner. I might have to make a quick stop to get a little baguette and some triple-cream brie to have on the side with a little salad. Doesn't that sound like the perfect accompaniment to hibernation?

Here's my little lunch portion. Isn't it cute?


Man, writing about it is making me hungry!

Also making me hungry is reading about this recipe for Vanilla Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Autumn Spice Oil. E-dawg was telling me that she's making them for Thanksgiving. I literally drooled when she told me about them, and I nearly died when I read the recipe and saw the photo. Heidi is a genius! Well, it's her adaptation of a Terrance Brennen recipe, but still. (Oh dang! Check out the recipe for Spice-Kissed Pumpkin Pie today!)

I'm also craving these little canapé-type snacks that my aunt used to make when I was a kid. They were ritz crackers with dates and a sweetened cream cheese spread, then baked. I'm not sure why I've been thinking of them, but it seems lately that every time I'm thinking "I'm hungry; what do I want?" I think of those little treats. I'll have to ask my mom about them.

I just found out that I get to leave work early tomorrow--3:00 p.m. I cannot wait to start my long weekend!!

ehrrin vs the cable

Okay. I posted a month (or two?) ago making a big statement how I was going to shut my cable off and then spend all the time I was saving by not watching television by working out and getting in a shape and also saving money and stuff.

But then? They called me the next day and wooed me back with promises of discounts and the like. But in real life my rates went up--not down--and I had technical problems for a month which required me calling them almost every day, then taking off work for a half-day so they could come out and bring me a new box. But, I stuck with it because I am a "Lost" and "American Idol" (oh, Blake, I tried!) and "Ugly Betty" addict. But, guess what, Comcast? Seasons finales for all three shows have been completed (but, I'm watching the "Lost" finale tonight--so, NO SPOILERS, folks!). So--too bad, so sad, Comcast! As soon as the final credits roll on my dvr'ed "Lost" finale, you and I are over. For real. And, we're not getting back together no matter what you say! (until January for the L-Word premiere. I'm only one woman? what do you expect of me???)

And, then my plan of spending all the time I spent in front of the tube into healthy time will magically come to fruition!

I am doing a fun exercise thing this weekend, actually. I'm going kayaking downtown on Saturday afternoon with a group of about ten ladies through Kayak Pittsburgh (http://www.kayakpittsburgh.org/KP/hours.html), and then we're going to have a picnic afterwards. Fun! (if you want in, email me!)

I'm also hitting up the Rachel Carson Centennial Birthday Block Party on Sunday. It sounds so super-fun! Here's the scoop on that: http://rch.extranet.bbfsol.com/Default.aspx?tabid=88

And, dog-sitting my man Zeke on Sunday-Tuesday, too. Good times.

Speaking of goodness, I made a lovely dinner last night (which is also now my lunch, and I'm eating it Right Now).

I got some fresh pasta at Penn Mac (http://www.pennmac.com/) last weekend, and one of the flavors I got was orange-ginger-sesame, so I made that last night with some carrots, peas, asparagus and green onions. First I sauteed some ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes in a skillet with a little toasted sesame oil, then added the carrots & onions, then the peas & asparagus over semi-high heat, and cooked them for about 3 minutes until everyone was brightly colored and beautiful. Then added some Bragg's Liquid Aminos (could use soy sauce), a little more toasted sesame oil and a little honey. Coated all the veggies, then tossed with the pasta, and topped with some more green onions, some grated lemon zest and some toasted sesame seeds. Yum.


I had leftover pasta, but I'd eaten all the veggies, so I made the same thing again this morning, except without the carrots (only because I was out).


I seem to have started developing a case of pms again (grrr!). Between the two-week pms last month, and the nine-day dms (during menstrual syndrome), it pretty much just ended! What the bleep?! Annoying. I realized it was starting up yesterday when I found myself driving way out of my way to try a cupcake from Coco's (http://www.cocoscupcakes.com/). I'd heard that there was a rivalry between them and Dozen (http://dozencupcakes.com/), and I've tried Dozen, so I wanted to try Coco's. I declare Dozen the winner! They both have way too much frosting (actually, the cupcake I really like from Dozen is the lemon-lavender which has a lemon royal icing and is perfect, but most of the cupcakes have buttercream frosting piled absurdly high). Like, WAY too much. Makes them look impressive, but totally overwhelms the cupcake, and I just scrape almost all of it off anyway. I had some kind of espresso cupcake with Kahlua frosting. They frosting really just tasted like butter. Like, an entire stick of butter whipped and plopped on top of a cupcake. The cupcake was okay, but eh. Actually, I'd heard that there was another place called Food, Glorious Food in Highland Park that beat them both, but I think it's since closed. Too bad. Anyway, my uterus was not amused.

I think I found a buyer on Craigslist for Scout (the bike I bought from CL, but it ended up being a kids' bike, and is way too small). I hope so. I would like to have that money back to put towards a grown-up bike.
http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bik/336025225.html

What am I going to make for dinner tonight? I'm thinking maybe just a salad and some edamame. Lauren is coming over to watch the "Lost" finale with me, so maybe I'll try to think up a tasty vegan tv-style treat...