2011

I'm back in the blogosphere, but here. Stop by when you have a minute, ok? :-)

orecchiette with artichokes, tomatoes, spinach, and feta

This autumn, every Wednesday, aka "hump day," I am going to feature a "fast & furious" recipe that you can throw together in less time than waiting for the pizza delivery. A well-stocked pantry is a lifesaver, and I am currently putting together an autumn larder "must have" list to post in the next week or two.

In the meantime, here's a quick and easy family favorite. Ingredients:

Orecchiette, the lovely "little ear" pasta
Olive oil, 2 T
Garlic, 3 cloves finely chopped
Red pepper flakes (optional), 1/2-1 t
Tomatoes, 2 medium chopped
Artichoke hearts, 4/person quartered (canned are OK)
Spinach leaves, 2 cups torn in medium-sized pieces
Feta cheese, crumbled or cubed for topping

Prepared the vegetables and cheese while waiting for the pasta water to boil. After adding the pasta to the water, heat the olive oil to medium and add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Saute for just a minute or two. Be careful not to let the garlic brown---you just want it to be golden. Add the tomatoes and artichoke hearts, stir occasionally, and saute for about 5 minutes. Throw in the fresh spinach, and allow it to wilt while you drain the orecchiette. Add the cooked pasta to the vegetables, stir, and remove from the heat. Cover, and let sit for a minute or two. Dish up, and sprinkle with the feta.  Enjoy!

freebie alert

New week, new month, so how about some freebie links to kick off? :-)

• Looking for some Halloween and autumn craft projects? Lion Brand yarn, one of my favorite sources for patterns and inspiration, has more than 70 free patterns here, for both crocheting and knitting, and beginners, too!

• The University of Chicago Press has released their free e-book for October, the novel Loving Little Egypt by Thomas McMahon. To get your download, go here.

• Lastly, Northcott is offering a free pattern download for its Child's Play with Kate and Nate collection crib ensemble. For details and your download, here's the link.

Happy Monday!!!!

carrot curry soup

Have spent much of this lovely September Sunday in the kitchen, and I am happy to report it's been a very successful cooking session! :-)

I'm also happy to share with you one of the concoctions I came up with this afternoon---carrot curry soup. I originally planned to make carrot ginger soup, but then I started adding cumin and coriander and something else was born. :-)

Here's what I used:

• Nine carrots, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• Olive oil, 2-3 T
• Onion, 1 medium-sized chopped
• Ginger, 1.5-inch piece finely chopped
• Garlic, 4 cloves finely chopped
• Veggie stock, 6 cups (use less if you prefer a thicker soup)
• Fennel seeds, 1 t
• Curry powder, 1-2 t OR I used 1/2 t each of cumin, turmeric, coriander powder, and asofetida
• Greek yogurt (or regular plain yogurt, sour cream, crème fraîche, etc.), 2 small individual containers
• Parsley, to garnish

First I sauteed the onion, garlic, ginger, and fennel seeds in the olive oil for about 10 minutes, medium heat, stirring frequently until the onion was translucent. Then I added the stock and carrots, brought to a boil, and simmered for 30-40 minutes, until the carrots were soft. After removing from the heat, I used a hand blender (if you don't have one of these, get one! Otherwise, use a regular blender) to cream until smooth, adding the curry spices and yogurt. Finish off with a bit of parsley---or a drizzle of fresh cream! Enjoy!!! :-)

the count is on

Let's be honest, I know no one is quite ready to accept the fact, but it won't be long before Christmas decorations start creeping into shops and catalogs fill our mailboxes. As I'm making most of our gifts this year, I've already been busy sorting through patterns and my yarn baskets and stocking up on supplies.

Lots of people on our list will be getting one of these wool hats this year. The pattern is easy, is FREE here, is available in both children and adult sizes, and the colors can easily be changed so that everyone can wear their favorite team or school colors = win, win, win, win! :-)

Oh, and in case you're wondering, 103 days until Christmas and counting!

in love

I stumbled across a new blog yesterday, and I am in love. Design Sponge, you make me swoon. So many pretty---and practical---ideas to make my head spin!

I love these faux books, which are easily made from scrap cardboard and hide art supplies and assorted knickknacks.

I also love this simple but fantastic stenciling tutorial (perhaps I'm partial on this one because I also love to eat ;-).

And before you gag over this Tom Cruise jumping on the sofa link love, here's just one more: I love both of these "afters". Two pretty generic pieces of furniture given personalities of their own---wonderful!


Photo is from Design Sponge.

back to school

Confession: I was---probably still am---a school geek. As a child, I loved school. When I came home from school, I played, you guessed it, school. Although I enjoyed summer vacation, I couldn't wait to go back to school. Even today, I still love shopping for school supplies---found myself a really cute pencil tin this year! :-)

As effects from the Great Recession drag on, however, school shopping is something that many families are having a difficult time facing this year. If you don't know of any programs locally established where you can help fund local students or needy schools, check out some of the links provided here by the Charity Guide.

If you'd also like to help out those a bit further away, consider a donation to Shining Hope, who sponsor health programs and schools in some of the most impoverished areas of Kenya.

Lastly, if your older kids need a bit of help with math and science, look into the free tutorials provided on YouTube by the Khan Academy here. You may want to use them to brush up yourself---even Bill Gates is a fan!


Photo is from the Charity Guide.