Thai soup

Soup with soy sauce, chili & garlic paste, savoy cabbage, julienned carrots, broccoli, garlic, and chicken stock, garnished with cilantro and green onions.

Brunch

Ricky and I are both sick (awesome) this morning, so we had to stay home from work. On the brighter side, I got to make a tasty brunch for the two of us.
French toast, bacon, pan-roasted tomatoes, bacon, blackberries and raspberries, fresh figs, pears, and some fresh farmer's cheese and brie.

Is there anything better for breakfast than french toast with blackberries and homemade whipped cream?
Me thinks not.

Γειά!

We had Greek (inspired) food for dinner tonight! I made a Greek-style caponata, orzo with oregano and feta, and grilled chicken marinated in lemon juice, garlic, lemon, and oregano.

My mise en place. Sorta. I love that Caribbean Blue that Le Creuset makes, don't you?

Here is my finished caponata. Eggplant (I use Japanese, less seeds) zucchini, tomatoes, squash, red onion, potatoes, and lots of garlic. All mixed together with a little olive oil, salt & pepper, fresh oregano, and tossed into a casserole on top of a bed of canned diced fire roasted tomatoes. Muir Glen is my favorite, but use whatever you have I suppose.

Everything on the plate! I served this all with nice crusty bread for sopping up the juices in the caponata. If you've never put feta in orzo, I insist that you try it, because it is blissful.
And blissful is good.
=)

Food Network

First of all, in case you're wondering, I do have a life, I just seem to find a lot of time to blog.
Getting on with this then.
Food Network. I love Food Network, but there are some shows on the network that make me want to scream out loud and gouge blunt pencils into my eyes, ya dig?
Rachael Ray: Need I say more than her name? There are websites devoted to hating her! Her voice is similar to a prepubescent boy's, she keeps getting fatter and fatter, and her answer to why she loves ANY food is "MY DADDY!" as in, "I love French food, because MY DADDY is French," or "I love Italian food, because MY DADDY is Italian."
Nobody cares. Her food is dreadfully elementary, and after watching her pack on the pounds I'm not exactly biting at the bit to try out her recipes. Do I even need to mention that she calls her audience "kids?" Your time is up Rachael. Put the EVOO in the GB and walk away giggling.

The Neelys: Stop yelling at me. It doesn't take two people in a kitchen to make the same fried garbage over and over again. Stop singing the words "cayenne pepper." Now. I once saw them deep fry a deviled egg. I quickly changed the channel, but not before throwing up a little.

Guy Fieri: Shave your face and dye your hair back to whatever color it was before you went bobbing for bacon in a bucket of bleach, then we'll talk.

Sandra Lee: Your food looks like crap and your table settings look like they came from the Dollar Store. You literally provide no new information or recipe ideas. Your show should be called, "How to half ass everything in less time than usual!"

Of course, Food Network has some saving graces that keep me watching. Giada, Ina, Tyler, Bobby, Alton, even Emeril. They all make great food and make it fun to watch. Why can't they just host everything?

just found another awesome site

Spork or Foon

Halloween is coming

This is me s a zombie... 'cause, you know, it's Halloween and all.
=)

Sick Puppy

Doesn't she look sad and desperate? Maggie received her second puppy booster shot (DA2PPV-L, if you know about these things and were wondering) today, and it has made her mopey and lethargic, and her hip seems to be hurting her at the site of the injection. Poor dear. I've called the emergency vet twice so far (it's been about 7 hours) and they say she sounds like she's fine. They told me to give her 10 milligrams of Benadryl and keep an eye on her. I wonder if I'll sleep...

I quite literally had no idea what to make for dinner tonight, what with being preoccupied with my Maggie situation. Funny how whenever I'm drawing a blank on dinner ideas I always go with something Moroccan. Tonight I just threw together a Moroccan-style stew with chicken, chickpeas, tomatoes, apricots, golden raisins, zucchini, yellow squash, onions, lots of spices, and preserved lemon peel (homemade preserved lemons!). I garnished with more lemon (fresh) and some cilantro. It was pretty damn tasty for being an afterthought. Then again, if you put ras el hanout in anything I'm sure it would be tasty...
I haven't been feeling well. Thank you, Mother, for the allergies.

this makes me happy.

I finally got little baskets and made a cute sign for my laundry closet. I made the sign by painting an ugly old mirror and just writing on it, then sealing with decoupage paint. Given the tiny amount of space, there wasn't too much that could be done, but I think I did alright. Isn't my argyle ironing board cover awesome? I do believe it is.
P.S.- I love my washer & dryer.

My favorite picture of Ricky

I think he's around 2 in this picture, and that is his cat Goliath. Adorable, yes?

Short post, I'm sleepy.

Grilled Mahi-Mahi in butter lettuce wraps with a salsa of mango, tomato, jalapeno, red onion, lime juice, and cilantro!
And of course, Tecate with lime.
Yummy and spicy! Definitely try this if you like fish and spicy food!

Dessert was teeny individual key lime pies! Fantastic!

“The only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook” - Julia Child

Tonight I was feeling adventurous and wanted to make something I've never made before. I decided on Steak Au Poivre with brandy mushroom cream sauce and a rich potato gratin.

The mushrooms! Oyster mushrooms (gorgeous!) and shitake mushrooms. Sometimes I feel bad about cooking such pretty produce... I get over that feeling quickly.

Here is my gratin! Potatoes cut paper thin (quite an accomplishment without the aid of a mandolin), cream, parmigiana reggiano, thyme, chives, salt, and pepper. Bake at 375° for 40 minutes. Voilà!

Isn't that dish cute? It's my birthday present from my mummy! An adorable white Le Creuset 9" stoneware gratin dish. Love it!

Aaaaaand dinner. Steak au Poivre (steak with pepper) topped with brandy mushroom cream sauce, a nice little salad, and that fan-freaking-tastic gratin. So good!
Happy Monday!

noodles!

Tonight I made one of Ricky's favorite meals: Baked ziti with chicken.

He loves the crunchy cheese on top. I love how pretty it looks in a gratin dish, and that it supplies leftovers that he eats for lunch for several days.

This is a roasted quince with tiny scoops of vanilla ice cream (I use a melon baller,) walnuts, and maple syrup. If you've never had a quince, then I advise you as your attorney to go buy and then eat some.

I also advise you to rent a very fast car with no top.
Fear and Loathing? Anyone?
Have a good night, Mad Men is on.

Bath and Body Works

Yesterday, Bethany and I stopped by Bath and Body Works and I found some great products! I haven't been in an actual store in some time, since I usually just browse online, so I had no idea that the True Blue Morocco line was no longer available in stores. I was pretty bummed. They did, however, have a couple items left on the clearance table.

I got this Honey and Date Body Yoghurt, which smells fantastic. It's thicker than lotion, but thinner than say, a body butter. I love that the smell isn't floral or girly, but it's still inviting. I've always loved honey-based smells, and of course spices, and we all know of my fascination with all things Moroccan. I love this stuff. The scent lasts, too, so I could honestly skip perfume and just rub some of this on my neck.

My next find is this, Cedarwood and Spice Warming Body Scrub. It supposedly heats up on contact, but my shower is already warm, so if it does I don't notice. The smell is great though. Nice and spicy, almost like a good chai. But for your skin...

This is one of my all time favorite things. C.C. Bigelow Rose Salve. You can use it anywhere! Lips, skin, eyelids, elbows, hands, heels, cuticles... everywhere. It's super emollient, and it has a nice tint (nice for lips!) and a very faint rose smell. At only $5.50 for a tin that lasts forever, it's a great beauty investment.

The last thing I bought was some Lavender Vanilla Pillow Mist. I got the small trial size, just to be sure that I'd like it. It smells great, and it really does make me feel more rested when I lay my head down on my pillow. I'm going to get some more to go in the guestrooms of the house. Great stuff.
So, back to the clearance story, the original price of the body lotion was $17.50. I got all 4 of these products for a grand total of $17.60. Sweet!

Malo's birthday!

Yesterday, the 24th, was Malo's fourth birthday! We got him some special wet food, new Bit O' Love treats, and an awesome new squeaky toy! Malo hates squeakers, he usually mawls the toy and rips out the squeaker and chews it till it breaks, but this toy is pretty durable. It's been about 24 hours and it isn't in pieces yet... we'll see. Here he is guarding it and looking like a devil dog.

Both Ricky and I just wanted salads for dinner last night. Mine was mixed greens with capers, cherry tomatoes, calamata olives, feta, red onion, and olive oil & vinegar. Ricky's had greens, tomatoes, green olives, onion, and capers with Italian dressing. I love Greek-style salads! Thanks Megan Osenbrock! I heated up some nice chewy bread and made some seasoned olive oil for dipping.

P.S.
We live right on a small lake, which I think is more than enough reason to raise some ducklings. Yes?

Happy Happy Day (and yesterday)

Yesterday was my birthday, as you already know. It was a fun day, Ricky and I both had to work, so we went out to dinner to celebrate at one of our favorite Mexican places, El Paso. Best pork carnitas ever, by the way. What better way to celebrate a birthday than with carnitas, horchata, and margaritas! Yay!

I keep telling Ricky to stop making stupid faces when he gets his Carne Asada... he just won't listen...

Then today Bethany and I went to get her pregnancy photos taken, ate lunch at the lovely Panera Bread, and got manicures. Well, she got a pedicure. Though I don't know why, since she won't be seeing her feet for another 7 weeks, haha.
On the way home I stopped by Target and got this sweater. I saw it the other day and really liked it, and today I caved and bought it. I like it! Good color, right?
This is Bethany. Well, this is Bethany's pregnant torso. She's such an adorable pregnant lady! I can't wait for Mordecai (she keeps calling him Brayden, for some reason) to be born.
I love when you get your nails done and they look fake. These are not fake, these are my real nails, and I think they look awesome. Not bad for $20.
Last but not least, please enjoy this fine photo of Salvador Dali walking his pet anteater in Paris with my compliments.
Bon Weekend!

Bon anniversaire à moi!

Today is the 23rd and I turn 23 today. =)

This is my birthday smirk. And my cute Joanie dress.
My mother in law made me these! At Ricky's sister Rebecca's wedding, Deb had made all the bridesmaids these bracelets. I loved them, and she remembered and made one for me with matching earrings! I love them, thank you Deb!
My new coworkers got me a pretty yellow mum and a cake! So sweet! I just started and they've all been so nice to me and made me feel so welcome. Yay for nice people!