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.