Excuses, excuses...

I have been blog slacking, I know.
Mostly it is because I have been going in to work earlier. Usually I would blog in the morning.
Lately I have been trying to get more chores done in the morning before work and blogging does not always make that list.
By the time I get home from work it is at least 9 p.m. and the last thing I want to do after sitting at a computer all days is sit at a computer.
So I need to work out some blogging time in the morning.
Anyway...

It's rainy here. I like it. I think I need to make cookies this weekend. Or a cake. Something. I love how the house feels all warm and cozy from the baking.

So, what have I done this week?
I got my chimney swept Wednesday. They also replaced the seal and chimney cap. He said the the old cap was too small for the chimney. I hope the new cap means that I can have fire without the house smelling like a campfire.

I did some minor household chores and errands. Other than that I pretty much just worked.

Boring. Yeah, I am boring.

I have begun planning my kitchen-warming party. That means I need to get on the ball and hem (or have hemmed) the curtains for the kitchen. I also need to paint the door. I have been saying that for weeks and never seem to do it.
It might be too damp this weekend. But if the rain continues, I won't have a choice. I need to have that done my Jan. 20 at the latest.

The party is Jan. 27.

Time to start planning that menu. Yay!

Well, I am going now. I hope to have more interesting and insightful posts in the coming days.

In the meantime, stay dry and stay warm.

Happy New Year

The past year seemed to go by so fast.
But then again, I think I say that every year.
It was a pretty good one, overall.
Here's to health and happiness in 2008.
My best to everyone.

Of course I forgot to take pictures

Since picture taking is not something I normally do while cooking, I forgot to do it yesterday when I was in my kitchen frenzy.

But I did remember to get some at the end of the frenzy and another this morning of all the stuff I put in the freezer for later.

What I have there is chicken and rice soup with veggies (4 containers on the left), roasted red pepper soup (8 flat bags in the middle front), chili (7 individual portions at the back of the pile) and 6 portions of twice-baked potatoes (two portions each in the containers to the left). I freeze the soup flat, then I can stand them up in one of the freezer baskets.

Everything came out quite good.

The manfriend and I had some of the stewed chicken with rice and beans for dinner. So much so that we were too full for the plantain dessert.

Which is fine. I can make that later in the week.

The mass quantities of the chicken, rice and beans will also be my contribution to our office potluck today.

I like to make sure no one goes away hungry.

I am feeling ambitious today

Today is my last day of winter break from work.

I have done a fair amount of cooking this past week, and I have so enjoyed it.
I rarely get this much time to just make a good, easy dinner more than two nights in a row.
And the manfriend has enjoyed my break, too. He is the beneficiary of all these meals.

Since I have been in a cooking groove, I decided that the best way to use my time today will be to stock my freezer with some more yummy things.

So I am making more twice-baked potatoes. Last night, I thawed and baked the two halves I had leftover from Christmas and they came out so great. I have three potatoes to work with there, so that will be six portions of hearty potato goodness. I could eat just one of those and a salad and be happy.

I have no real recipe for these, I just make them how I remember my mom making them when I was a kid. This works great if you make baked potatoes and have some leftover. This time around I specifically baked the taters to make these.

This recipe has no real measurements. It is all about adding stuff until it tastes good to you.

• Bake the potatoes, let them cool, then cut them in half and scoop out the inside, saving the skins to be restuffed.
• Then I mix the scooped potato with some butter, shredded cheese and and sliced green onion or chives. If I want them to be extra decadent, like I did for Christmas, I add some sour cream to the mix. Salt and pepper to taste.
• Then restuff the skins with the potato mixture, sprinkle a bit more shredded cheese on top and bake once again until they are hot and the cheese on top is melty and golden.

Health food they are not. But if you need a good portion of comfort food, these fill the bill.

I also am making some more of the creamy red pepper soup that I like so much. I used the last little freezer bag of it last night as a starter to a simple supper of baked salmon, potatoes and salad that I made for the manfriend. I was reminded of how much I like it, so I need to make more.

It is a Giada DeLaurentis recipe. It is quite easy and tasty. It makes a great dinner-party starter or a nice simple dinner when paired with a salad or a sandwich.
I make a couple changes to this soup:

• I use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. I think it works well with the overall flavor of the soup. Plus it keeps it vegetarian. I am not a vegetarian, but I have some friends who are and it is nice to be able to serve them this soup.
• I also omit the mascarpone cheese. I am not a huge fan of mascarpone. And in this soup I use a touch of sour cream for the creaminess it needs. Fat-free works just fine.

I decided to make some chili to keep in the freezer. No special recipe for this. I just find my favorite seasoning blend at the market and follow the directions. Usually I do end up with beans and meat in my chili. I know for some people this is sacrilegious. My chili tends more toward to spicy and tangy than the sweet.

Finally, I will be making an arroz con pollo (Cuban style chicken and rice) for dinner tonight and the work potluck tomorrow.
I will experiment with a recipe I found on Smitten Kitchen. I think this is my new favorite blog right now.

I will modify this dish by making the chicken in the slow cooker. And I am using only boneless, skinless chicken breast. I want a nice, lean dish. Plus I hate funky chicken parts and the way the skin gets when it stews. Gross.

And I am omitting the chorizo. Mostly because I think it will be hard to find. Plus I know I like it, but I am not sure how the work people will feel about the sausage. So out it goes. I am sure it will be tasty anyway.

I also will do some simple black beans. I probably will just get the canned type and dress them up with some extra onion and herbs. I am not sure yet if I will do this for the potluck, too.

Finally, my last part for this meal will be some fried plantains. These are so good and really easy to make. These will not be part of my potluck meal. I am thinking they will not reheat well, especially since I will only have access to a microwave.

Well, I think I have my shopping list set, so I should get moving while the day is still young.

I will try to remember to take some pictures of all this culinary activity. This will be a really great workout for my kitchen.

Time to get motivated again

So I was doing pretty good with the whole idea of getting stuff accomplished at home without stressing myself out about it.
I did grocery shopping on the day before Christmas Eve to get me through the better part of my time off.
I made a yummy smoked salmon pasta with vodka cream sauce that night for dinner.
I have been whittling down the giant pile of dirty laundry in my garage.
I roasted a chicken for dinner Christmas Eve and made mashed potatoes and roasted squash medley.
I made a big pot of chicken and rice soup the other night for dinner (using the leftover chicken) and put a bunch of single portions in the freezer for later.
I have cleaned all the rooms but the office / spare bedroom.
I made food for the various Christmas gatherings.
I am slowly working on reclaiming my garage.
I painted outlet covers so I can put those in the kitchen.
I went to IKEA and got some curtains for the kitchen (not to mention some other impulse buys. Damn you, IKEA!)
I paid some bills.
I mowed the grass in the back yard.
I did various other chores, errands and tasks.

Then yesterday afternoon upon returning home from IKEA and my other errands, I just could not get motivated to do anything.
I figured it was just one afternoon and it IS my vacation. I am entitled to goof off for an afternoon.
Of course then I stayed up too late last night and slept until 10:45 this morning.
I do blame part of that on the electric blanket.
It keeps me so warm I do not want to get out of bed.

So now it is almost 11:30 and I have done pretty much nothing more than feed the cat. And that was just so he would pipe down so I could enjoy my tea in peace.

OK.
I need to get up off my rear and get moving. If I get started by noon, I can get the last of the painting done in the kitchen and get the outlet covers in place.

Which means I should go now. I have only 30 more minutes to slack.

I should go look at the mess that is my garage. Maybe that will get me motivated. I really want to be parking in there again by Jan. 1.

Movie recommendation

I don't usually offer up suggestions for movies to people.

I like what I like, but I don't go to a lot of movies and I don't rent a lot of movies.

When I was at the video store Christmas Eve picking out a few things to watch over my break, I was really just not interested in a lot of what they had.

But this one jumped out at me.

"The Hoax" starring Richard Gere.

Now Gere is OK. I have no particular like or dislike of him. He has done some good work and some bad work.

But the story was what interested me.

It is the story of Clifford Irving, the author who convinced McGraw-Hill that he was writing an authorized biography of Howard Hughes.

This all took place in the early 1970s. So I was a baby and do not actually remember it.

The movie is based on Irving's own book, "The Hoax," which details the scam.

In addition to Gere, the cast includes Marcia Gay Hardin as his wife, Alfred Molina as the bumbling co-conspirator, Hope Davis as his editor and McGraw-Hill and Stanley Tucci as the head of the publishing house.

There are also good, smaller performances by Julie Delpy and Zeljko Ivanek. I have seen Ivanek in several things and think he is a good, underrated actor.

There is a great exchange between Gere's Irving and Ivanek's Ralph Graves of Life magazine.

The movie is from 2006, which shows you how behind I am with movie watching.

Anyway, it is told in a funny yet serious way. And it really is a interesting story of how this one guy roped in his friend and his wife in order to perpetrate his fraud on the world, which at that time was fascinated with the reclusive Hughes.

If you have not seen this movie and want something with a great story, I would say get "The Hoax." It is one of those movies you have to really watch though.

It has fast-paced dialogue and a lot of the story is about how Irving juggled all the lies.

It makes me want to go get his book now to find out more.

Tagged

A few days ago Sona tagged me to post seven things about me. So here I go.


I have done a couple of these before, so I apologize if I repeat something I have used in the past.


1. I have a 38-inch inseam, which makes it tough to find pants. I buy my jeans online and I wear a lot of skirts to work.

2. I would never make it as a vegetarian.

3. I have a serious addiction to cookbooks.

4. I watch a soap opera. Just one. I know. It's shameful. But it makes for good, mindless background while I clean house.

5. I don't have a junk drawer. I have a junk closet. Again, shameful.

6. I have never lived in New England, but I root for the Patriots. And it began before Tom Brady and before they starting winning Super Bowls.

7. I cannot listen to Willie Nelson without crying. It just reminds me too much of dancing with my dad. He liked to do the two-step.

I am not going to tag anyone specifically. But if anyone wants to do this, that would be great.