Random

this week i…

January 14, 2011

1. Came home from my first yoga class in months, damn sore and tired, and ate an unholy amount of St. Andre triple cream cheese for dinner. I took crackers and just swiped huge dollops of it. Who needs a knife when your cheese is like soft butter?

2. Tried to quiet my incessant need to plan trips and travel…and failed. Potential trips coming up this year to San Francisco, Portland (Oregon and Maine!), Detroit, New York, Chicago, and England if I can possibly manage it.

3. Ate tater tots for dinner. Yeah, that happened.

4. Had breakfast at French Meadow Bakery and swore I’ll have breakfast out in the week more often. So much more peaceful, warm and wonderful than at the weekend.

5. Had too many veggie burgers and salads for lunch. I need to make some soup!

6. Caught up with two of my best friends on the phone – one in England; one in Vancouver – and made plans to see both of them within the next 7 months. Happy dance.

7. Spent time oohing and ahhing over photos on three of my favourite blogs: The Little Red House, Hither and Thither, and La Buena Vida.

8. Saw True Grit and loved it.

9. Brainstormed baking projects for the weekend. I’ve missed baking something chronic these past few weeks and I’m excited to get back in my kitchen. Any suggestions are welcome in the comments!

Your turn! This week you…

kitchen resolutions

December 29, 2010

I’m still in Nicaragua ’til early January but I thought up this list before we left…

As we say goodbye to 2010 and welcome in a new year, I thought I’d share some of my kitchen resolutions, hopes, and desires for the next year with you. I’d love to hear about yours in the comments section.

1. I’d like to make at least four bundt cakes with my awesome pan.

2. Perfect some “classics” so that I can share some of my favourites with you all. Classic Eating for England fare you can look forward to? Really good spaghetti bolognese, chicken tikka masala, steak and ale pie, fairy cakes, jammy dodgers and so much more.

3. Invest in some of the cookbooks on my wish list and delve into those recipes headfirst.

4. I would like to buy this table runner and several other items from this lovely etsy shop. P.S. It’s my birthday in March…

5. Explore some new cuisines. I live in Minnesota, where we have really large Hmong and Somali populations. Seems like an exciting and awesome place to start!

6. I want to learn how to bake something that scares me. Things that currently scare me include: croissants, macarons, tiered cakes, madelines, cinnamon rolls, cheesecake. I didn’t say they would make sense. I just said they scare me.

7. I basically want to buy everything from terrain. Chunk Honey in a cute-as-business jar? Don’t mind if I do! Gorgeous pumpkin-coloured terrine? Yes please!

8. Take a photography class so that I can share more of the photos I love to take with you!

What are your kitchen resolutions for 2011?

Sharing is caring!

decem(brrrr)

December 15, 2010

Cuddle up warm; it’s chilly out there.

Buy some toasty, last-a-lifetime boots you love so much you never want to take them off.

Make hot oatmeal with brown sugar and warm milk for breakfast.

Wear your husband’s too-big socks.

Put on your monkey slippers (I don’t own those. Probably. Maybe).

Make some soup.

Put on ear warmers, gloves and mittens, long underwear and a coat with a hood so big that it obscures your vision. Only then go into the world.

Listen to the Christmas CD your amazing friend made you six years ago. Sing.

Get a blanket and huddle on the couch with someone you love. Pop a film in and sink into the warmth.

Grab a slice of Cranberry + Maple Loaf, pour yourself a cup of hot tea and settle down with a good book. There’s nothing like it.

Make a pumpkin spice latte for yourself to avoid leaving the house.

Leave the house, but only to go sledding.

Roast endless trays of root vegetables. Salt, pepper, devour.

Eat chocolate. Preferably this B.T. McElrath Salty Dog chocolate bar. It’s the best thing in the world.

Walk to the local pub and watch some English football on a Saturday morning.

Trudge back through the cold, beautiful snow. Resist the urge to lie down in it. It’ll only end in wet jeans and tears.

Let your husband take you out for burgers and beer on a Sunday night.

Drink coffee.

Bake some cookies. Double chocolate with sea salt or lemon buttermilk. Your choice.

Pet your cats. Watch them sleep. Snuggle up with them. Let them keep your belly warm.

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