spring is here!

chilled salad of roasted beets, peas and meyer lemon

4-5 medium beets, washed and trimmed
olive oil
salt & pepper

few handfuls of sugar snap peas, sliced lengthwise
crumbled blue cheese
herby croutons

dressing combine:
1/2 cup olive oil
zest & juice of 1 meyer lemon
1 tbs. honey
salt & pepper

1. Place beets in foil and drizzle with olive oil and salt & pepper. Roast at 375 degrees until tender, about an hour. Cool, peel and slice into rounds 1/4 inch thick. Chill.

2. Toss peas in a little dressing. Season with salt & pepper. Chill.

3. Arrange beets overlapping on plates. Place a mound of dressed peas on top. Sprinkle the plate with blue cheese and croutons. Drizzle with more dressing and serve!

temptation

this picture pretty much sums up what i'm feelin.

started a 7-day cleanse yesterday.
i dreamt about big macs last night...
gimme some fat and sugar quick!

hello.

i'm sitting here, eating spaggets with half a numb face from the dentist...i hope that's a noodle i just crunched on. and i hope everyone had a great christmas! i'm trying not to be depressed it's over!

maybe some pictures will help.buckwheat crepes with orange butter!

tara made renditions of each one of our family members as an owl!
they line up to create a family 'tree branch'.

lottie and mattie dancin.
:0)

merry christmas eve!

through the tender mercy of our god;
whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us.
to give light to them that sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
luke 1:78-79

holiday foods

during the holidays i have a sort of mental list of recipes i want to try. it never seems to stop growing...this year:

cauliflower and chestnut gratin- last meal on earth goood!
sauteed chestnuts with bacon and onions- these look so succulent.
chex mix- i don't think i've ever made this.
buckwheat crepes with orange- christmas morning!
gougeres- savory cream puffs...you can even deep fry them.
roasted dates with pancetta, almonds and chile- michael symon you genius you.
white chocolate tiramisu trifle with spiced pears- so elegant...white on white.
buche de noel- for the meringue mushrooms alone!

made: roasted dates and gougeres
will make: crepes, buche de noel and/or pear trifle
my sister, nicole, is teaching our family how to make tamales today.
i'm not in charge of christmas dinner, so the rest of you recipes will have to wait.
oh if only christmas could last a little longer...

what's cookin in your kitchens?

come on snow...

it is so cold on our hikes, our sinuses are freezing up!

i'm not sure if lottie should wear a sweater, wish she would tell me.

don't want the other dogs teasing her.
do slugs stay alive when it's icy?

or do they turn into slugcicles?

december the first!

if you have a turkey carcass still hanging around and/or thanksgiving guests that just won't leave...make a bubblin batch of this stock, add some veggies and meat and have yerself some delectable turkey soup! michael ruhlman shares a brilliant oven method here.

also...check out my new pastry blog bread & chocolate with 12 days of cookies.
oh man i'm gonna get fat.

happy day after the day after thanksgiving!

the chestnut pie was fun to make...
but definitely an acquired taste.

:0)

eeesh

man i’ve been having some horrible sleeps this past week.

the other night i dreamt that my bottom front tooth was falling out and the dentist wanted to replace it with a tooth from an old navy mannequin. later that night i dreamt i had a vet appointment at 5am, but slept in till 7 and missed it. then i woke up for real at 7, stressing out.

last night i was dragging moving boxes overflowing with my possessions into church. after the meeting i was sitting with some teenage boys at a table and i spilled a jug of olive oil all over the table and the floor. then this lady came in and started yelling at me and I had to drag the heavy boxes out of the church, all the while legos were spilling over and the boxes falling apart. what is the meaning of this?

anyways…back to reality…reminiscing w/ lindsey today about a few years ago when everybody was advertising products to give you that “j. lo glow”. yes, we did purchase some glotion, but now I think it was a scam to market greasy skin. today we stuck with the pleated plants at gap.

going to make a chestnut pie for thanksgiving! went to pike place and picked up these delightful 'bargains' at delauranti!some chestnut creme and chestnut puree. the creme comes in a handy little travel tube...take it on the plane, pack it in your diaper bag or simply spread it on a toothbrush. lottie says yum.

why are there no thanksgiving songs?