Poese time

I love having company. I really love when company comes for dinner.

Tonight I spent time with the Poese clan. I made chicken sausage (spicy, Italian) with peppers, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and Herbes de Provence. Because as we all know, Herbes de Provence makes everything taste amazing.
I served my chicky sausage-peppery combination over whole grain penne with some more arugula.

For dessert I just topped some Talenti Lemon Sorbet with fresh blueberries.

Then Braden had his 930th photo shoot...

...and Maggie got jealous.

Look! Three of my favorite things!

Cephalopods for dinner.

The fabulous Brittany Reaves came over tonight to eat squid and watch American Idol and generally be awesome.

It was a grand time.
I decided to make squid on a whim. It was pretty and white and fresh at the grocery store, so I bought it. Silly me making something I've never made before for company.
I live dangerously.

It turned out great! Sauteed calamari (bodies and tentacles) with shallots, garlic, butter, white wine, and fresh thyme served over orzo with a salad of watercress and baby arugula.
And then cupcakes.

I made a quick batch of cupcakes from scratch. Seriously, I look back on my cake mix days and wonder, "What the hell was I thinking? This doesn't take any time at all!"
Dark chocolate spice cupcakes with candied ginger and lavender buttercream.
The cupcakes were spiced with ground ginger, fresh nutmeg, cinnamon, lavender, vanilla, and a touch of maple syrup.
They were awesome. As were their cute little striped cupcake liners.

♪♫♫♪♪♫

... that's the veal stew song.
I have been being such a bum. I ate out this past weekend, at Panera Bread (damn you Panera!) and at... crap I don't remember. Somewhere in Pensacola on Saturday.
I needed to cook.
Something fabulous.
Something that would fill my house with a delicious aroma that would remind me that yes, I do in fact like to cook, and I don't suck at it.
Nope, I don't suck at it at all.

Whilst perusing the aisles of the great Publix, I found veal.
Don't give me that PETA BS. Have you ever had veal? It would change your mind.
No, they don't raise the baby cows in dark boxes, in underground dungeons or whatever dark thoughts you have about it. I can't feel bad about veal, because I love lamb. And that would just be a double standard. I used to be a vegetarian, for serious. For quite some time. But... look. If we aren't supposed to eat animals, then why are they made of meat? ;)
I get it. I get how some people can feel bad about it. But to me, we're all animals. Animals eat other animals. When you watch Discovery, do you want to scold that leopard for eating that baby gazelle? Do you want to tell him that he could get his protein from chickpeas? That leopard would scratch your face off.
Lesson being: Don't try to separate me from my veal, I suppose. I think I got off track.
VEAL.
Tonight I made veal stew. Veal, zucchini, celery, potatoes, carrots, onion, vegetable stock, butter, smoked salt, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, and love.
Thickened at the end with a roux of butter, flour, and vegetable stock.

Enjoyed thoroughly.
I am now off to watch the glory that is Anthony Bourdain and have a couple glasses of Gewürtzraminer. Happy Monday!

Happy Happy Sunday

Yesterday Bethany and I saw this whilst at Starbucks.

Look closely, and you'll see that those faces belong to 2 life-sized dolls of the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz. Weird. Hilarious. Confusing. Are they waving? Wtf.

Today we went to Destin to do... I'm not really sure. I found an engagement calendar and B&N, which made me happy. I get one every year but apparently I waited way too long this year, and was lucky to find one. It's cute, it's by Pomegranate and it has famous paintings of women reading. Right up my alley, I suppose.
Yesterday and today were good shopping days. I got 2 pairs of my favorite jeans at the Gap, plus a really soft cobalt blue Angora sweater. I ♥ Gap.
I also purchased 2 pairs of cute yoga pants from Old Navy, they were on sale. Hooray!
Today I set my hair appointment at the Aveda salon in Destin, had a nice lunch of onion soup and half a tomato mozzarella sandwich at Panera Bread, had an encounter with the WORST barista I've ever seen, and bought a coir doormat with a "P" on it at Bed Bath and Beyond. Strange place.
I also picked up this bookThen I spent some down time at the Poese household, cuddling with Braden and talking about silly things with my awesome friend Bethany.

Exhausted baby!

How could I not?

Deutsch Food and Baby Instructions.

Last night Bethany and I had German food at a place called Helga's in Niceville (deceiving name).
The food was pretty good, not the Germany food I remember, but the owners are from East Germany, so that might explain it. I had the Jaegerschnitzel and fries with a glass of dry red, and it was tasty tasty.

Then, Braden decided that it was cry time. Good thing he came with directions.

So Bethany scooped him up, and it took him a minute...

...but he felt better.

Then he waved goodnight and went to sleep.

I got an email this morning from Ricky with this.
Dali + Star Wars?
Awesome.

And now for something completely different.
I am madly in tv-lust with Anthony Bourdain, and I'm so excited to watch the new season of No Reservations on the 11th.

Missing yoga, but there's tea...

I'm working later than expected, so there is a chance that I won't make it to yoga tonight.

If I miss it tonight, I'll definitely be going Saturday morning at 0900.
I'm making the most of it by having a nice hot cup of blueberry tea.
For lunch today I had a spinach salad with mushrooms, bell peppers, and radishes, some acai juice, and some pineapple, strawberries, and kiwi. I feel healthy.

=)

The man on "Scariest Places on Earth" shares my maiden name. We must be related. ;)

I've been tired. In as many ways as that can mean.
Night before last I just had leftover curry for dinner, and was in bed by nine.
Last night I made homemade pizza again (whatever, it's tasty!) but made my sauce a little differently.
First, I roasted halved plum tomatoes, white onion, and unpeeled cloves of garlic with a little drizzle of olive oil at 300º for about 2 hours. The onions and garlic went in at the 30 minute mark.

Then I took my roasted tomatoes, onions, and garlic and combined it with red pepper flakes and fresh oregano in the food processor. I gave it a good whirr and then spread it on my prepared crust. Thank you Publix, for selling balls of fresh dough.
I made two pizzas and froze on. Both were topped with my favorite combination of the sauce, chopped Kalamata olives, goat cheese, and fresh basil, and baked for 12 minutes at 500º.

Then, to cap off my easy going afternoon, after my workout and shower, I took a nice hot bath. I mixed together baking soda, epsom salts, ground ginger, and a pinch of green tea and let that dissolve in the tub. It was awesome.I'm so glad it's already Thursday. I have a yoga class tonight that I'm really looking forward to because I've had a terrible pain in my right shoulder for weeks now, and then only one more day until the weekend. I've got some serious yard work I want to get done, so hopefully the weather will be agreeable.
I stopped by Lark's Nest again (I must stop!) this morning and picked up a tasty-riffic double shot 12 ounce soy sugar-free hazelnut latte. Bliss♥

This is where Ricky and I are going in October

Costa Rica!Yes, I know it's only January, but my reservations are made and I'm so excited! I'm taking Ricky for his birthday. See that lovely blue strip in the background? That's the ocean.♥

On a separate note, I'm thrilled with the Spring Collection at Pottery Barn
because we all know how much I love bird things.

They make "lite" coconut milk?

Yeah. Who knew? And it doesn't take like garbage water, which is always a plus in my book.

Tonight I made one of my favorite things: Tofu Curry.
Si.
Oui.
Yes.
Cubed tofu, white onion, zucchini, 4 cloves (trust the Nissa) of minced garlic, 1 small can of bamboo shoots, all cooked in a wok with 2 tablespoons of canola oil.
(Order: Tofu, onion, zucchini, bamboo, garlic)
Then I whisked together 3/4 of a can of lite coconut milk and 2 tablespoons thai red curry paste. Toss that in the wok with your veggies and 'fu. Then sprinkle (yes, that is a unit of measure) in some fish sauce, soy sauce, and also about a 1/4 cup of chicken or vegetable stock.
Bring to a boil and then remove the pan from the heat, because you're finished. Serve that tantalizing Thai tastiness over jasmine rice.

Look at those Forelle pears I found at Publix, aren't they the most adorable little fruits you've ever seen? The answer is yes.

After dinner I treated myself to some ice cream. Not just any ice cream, mind you.
Haagen-Dazs makes these great "five" ice creams, boasting that they only use milk, cream, sugar, eggs, and the flavoring agent, be it chocolate, mint, etc.
I found ginger. Ginger ice cream? Yes, ginger ice cream.
It was...weird.
I loved it, but it was not sweet. I mean, there was definitely sugar there, but ginger was waaaay center stage. Nice and spicy and warm. A strange flavor for ice cream, but a successful one in my opinion. The best thing about this is that the flavor is so bold, that I don't want to eat the whole pint in one sitting. This ice cream feels exotic and actually very indulgent, and 1/4 cup was more than enough for me tonight.

I also picked up this Lemongrass and Coriander scented candle, and am basking in it's clean, spicy aroma this very second. It was $7.50, which is a lot for a candle from a grocery store, but I'm glad I bought it.

A few weeks ago, a woman came in to the office and it came up that she's a yoga instructor at a studio very near my house. That nice woman (Kathy of Whole Life Yoga) came back in today and gave me a free class card! I'm so excited, I'm going this Thursday at 6 pm. I can't wait to go to a class, I have been practicing on my own, but I much prefer a group setting, and have really been missing Melissa Jordan's awesome teaching skills. It's been over 6 months since I've taken a class, I hope I'm not too rusty. Better practice my bound pigeon and down dog.

Spicy Peanut Noodles

This afternoon I made a quick supper of whole wheat pasta tossed with a really simply peanut sauce. I was inspired after watching Bobby Flay win Battle Peanut last night on Iron Chef America.
My sauce, no measurements, just figure it out to taste. ;)
Creamy peanut butter
Thai red curry paste
Chicken stock, to create desired consistency
Lime zest
Fresh ginger
Fresh garlic
Red pepper flakes
Fresh cilantro

Puree all of the ingredients in a food processor. Toss with the hot cooked noodles and garnish with fresh basil chiffonade and sliced scallions.

Dessert was 1/3 cup of this...

...drizzled with a little of this.
So good. Try it, you won't be sorry.

If it grows on a plant, eat it.
If it's made in a plant, don't.

P.S.
Today's date is a palindrome! 01-02-2010.

Pizza and Babies

Bethany came over this afternoon! It was nice to have company, I've been so bored since Ricky left, and I really enjoy spending time Bethany and her baby boy.
I made homemade pizza for dinner. I picked up a ball of fresh dough at Publix, and used half for each pizza. I tossed some yellow cornmeal down before kneading and rolling them out, and that really made for a delicious crust. I made some fresh tomato sauce with Roma tomatoes, olive oil, red pepper flakes, fresh basil and oregano, and Italian seasoning. It's so easy and fast to make your own pasta or pizza sauce, it's beyond me why purchase the crap in the jar. Meh.

Toppings! On Bethany's pizza (in the back) there is prosciutto, onion, cremini mushrooms, and mozzarella. On mine I put olives, onion, mushrooms, chopped fresh tomatoes, lots of red pepper flakes, and goat cheese. This was probably the best pizza I've ever made, the tangy goat cheese and the spicy peppers... so good. Especially with a nice cold Tecate with lime.

Here is Maggie laying in my arm like a baby.

Here is a real baby, Braden Dean, having some tummy time.

And here is Maggie staring at said human baby from my lap. Sweetness.
♥Speaking of sweetness, today at Publix I picked up this glorious stuff. Goodbye, honey.

Silly Things That Make Me Glad

Vacuuming my house. I have wall to wall (ugh) and I use the Febreze Vacuum Bags. It makes my house smell great, and there's something so gratifying about vacuum lines in the carpet.

Baking. Anything.

When my puppy sleeps right next to me with her head on my shoulder.

Mrs. Meyer's dish soap, detergent, fabric softener, and counter spray in Lavender.

Reading a book that I didn't think I'd like.

Talking to my parents and seeing that we can be friends now, too.

Walking the Westies.

Going grocery shopping. I'd rather shop for food than shoes. Okay, that might be an exaggeration.

Overnight face creams that actually work.

Diet Coke.

Working up a sweat and then taking a hot shower. With something that smells yummy.

Cost Plus World Market.

Hanging out with Bethany and Braden, as they are the cutest mommy and baby team ever.

My cute red tootsies.