Tag Archives: kitchen

write like a…

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My new inspirational mug, from The Rumpus. Feel free to swap out “write” for “read,” “comment,” “eat,” or “knit.” I’m a little slow to attack the work pile this morning because I know I’ve got a whole day of writing comments on papers and prepping for class ahead of me. And really, I’d rather knit and snuggle Boh on the couch.

He’s just so sweet. And helpful.

And somehow literate? (I don’t know what you think about this photo, but this suggests secret code to me. I was in the kitchen with my friend M., and we came out to the family room to find that Boh had arranged ALL of his bones in a straight line. What could it mean?)

And here he is, politely asking for a bit of my open-faced ham sandwich made with the best (local) deli ham I’ve ever eaten. Sorry, Boh. Ham sandwiches with really good cheese melted under the broiler are for people.

One more food photo, snapped at my friend J.’s house. I brought the salad, she made an excellent risotto, and before we sat down, we both decided that our meal was so pretty that we needed to document it (before we inhaled it and went back for seconds).

And here’s a view of the driveway from the porch. It doesn’t look like this right now, as it’s been a warm week, but this is what it looked like last Saturday morning after I spent an hour shoveling the whole thing. (Which I did partially because I hosted reading group last week, so there were more cars than usual in the driveway, and partially to just get a sense for how long it would take, since I need that information to plan to have enough time to dig myself out and get to campus for the class I’m teaching, if ever I wake up on Monday or Wednesday to a snowy yard.) Hope you’re having a great weekend! It’s about time for us (you know, because Boh will “help”) to get to work.

a post from last week.

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So I formatted a handful of photos for a blog post last week — and then life got in the way, and it turns out I never actually wrote the post. Forgive me; I’m a little bit frazzled. This is the week before classes start, and I’ve been hustling to get everything in order for my very first course as the instructor of record: I pitched the class, wrote the syllabus, and students enrolled! (I TAed my second and third years of grad school — and enjoyed lots of autonomy and the professional/personal development that accompanies it — but this is the first class that is entirely mine, if that makes sense.) Bear with me as I try to establish a rhythm for the semester.

More reading and Boh snuggling occurred last week.

And an amazing care package arrived from New Mexico: green chile, red chile powder, tortillas, biscochitos, even yarn (made partially of possums?!) from my friends’ recent trip to New Zealand! Boh’s reaction made me smile — he must remember the desert. And he has been extra attentive whenever the green chile and tortillas are out. Good boy.

Morning sweetness.

Creamed spinach. (And a little bit of kale.) Easy and so good.

We finished Stegner last week. I think Boh was sad for it to end — we haven’t been parked on the couch with a good book at all this week. Instead, he keeps wandering into my office, sighing, and collapsing into a pile of sleepy dog on the floor near my desk. It is cold, snowy, and blustery today, but I’m hoping to bundle up and give him an extra good walk.

Hope you’re staying warm/wrapped in handknits, wherever you are. (And stay tuned: there’s some gorgeous yarn on my dining room table right now that I need to tell you about. And cast on with.)

mussels and brussels(prouts).

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Last week one of my favorite people returned from a semester of travel in the South. We celebrated with rye and a delicious seafood stew that she made in my kitchen. (I helped. And by “helped,” I mean I poured the rye.)

Mussels!

Sitting down to dinner: big bowls of stew, good cheese, and fancy olives. Yum!

Also, (local and happy) bacon and brussel sprouts. This year, one of my Christmas presents to myself was a small share in a local charcuterie CSA. On my way back into town from my parents’ house, I stopped in for some bacon to go with a huge bag of brussel sprouts I already had in the car. (Big bags of brussel sprouts were on sale in the grocery store near my parents’ house, and I couldn’t resist.)

 

This meal was so good I made it twice, including on New Year’s Eve. I can’t find the recipe I loosely followed (it might be this one), but basically I cooked the bacon in my big cast iron pan, added the brussel sprouts and a generous amount of salt and pepper, and then put them in the oven for about half an hour, stirring occasionally. The second time I made them, I added a little bit of balsamic at the end. These are pure magic.

Alright, off to make soup (and manhattans) at M’s place tonight! More soon.

christmas week.

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This is the first year in several years (really, the first since I picked up knitting again as an adult) that I didn’t knit any Christmas or Hanukkah presents. I didn’t necessarily plan it that way; it just turned out that this year I’m doing a lot of knitting for weddings instead. And somehow, despite bringing home the hap blanket and the socks I started a few weeks ago, I didn’t knit a stitch while I was at my parents’ house for Christmas. I did eat, however, and that’s mostly what I’ve got pictures of.

Every year my dad bakes Czechoslovakian hoska bread. And it is delicious.

Boh, laying in front of the beautiful tree at my parents’ house on Christmas Eve. Both of my parents wrap the prettiest presents I’ve ever seen. (I did not inherit this gift.)

A little bit of work in between Christmas celebrations. Mom and Dad napped; I made a pot of coffee and finished a book. (And it didn’t feel strange. Apparently this is how we roll. Or something.)

And then there was bear meat. This was a gift from my friends J. and E., the sweet folks who got married in the North Carolina mountains this fall. I brought it home so my parents could help me decide what to do with it — and help me eat it. Chili was prepared, and I was sent home with a hearty container’s worth for my freezer. (And it was delicious.)

I can’t believe it is already the end of the December! Here’s hoping your holidays have been filled with family, friends, love, and the warmth of handknits.

expanding my vocabulary.

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Gougeres. Say it with me. (Actually, I don’t know how to say it. Also, my French pronunciation is terrible. See the trip I took to Montreal and Quebec City with the boy from three winters ago.) The good news is that proper pronunciation is not required to enjoy this treat.

And then I made some white bean dip with rosemary and garlic infused olive oil. Also courtesy of Heidi at 101 cookbooks. (This recipe was from one of her cookbooks. Which are awesome.) Anyway, I actually called up friends of mine before eating this for lunch because these seemed too good not to share. We had dinner instead, and I brought the tray of unbaked gougeres I had tucked into the freezer and the leftover bean dip. I will definitely be making both of these recipes again. Soon.

Speaking of vocabulary, I don’t think there’s a word for this.

Or this. Boh loves to smash the flat part of his forehead up against things (like me) while he takes his morning nap. The sweetness, it’s too much.

I’ve got words for this — two, in fact: heel flap! Remember the super short hiya-hiya circular needle I posted about a long time ago? I dug it out for the stockinette section of the leg of this sock and all of a sudden it was time to work the heel. Love. My fingers got used to the needle after only a few rows. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to knit a few rows before Boh and I retire for the evening.

in the kitchen/on the porch.

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My winter farm share started last week, which means the fridge is bursting with tasty root vegetables. Also, my friend M. is moving away (which is very sad). She’s emptying her kitchen, so on Saturday night she came over for soup, biscuits, and some Boh cuddling. And all that provided some kitchen motivation for me. So on Saturday afternoon I made veggie stock (using the recipe in the back of the first 101 cookbooks cookbook as a rough guide), and then I set to making potato leek soup, or to be more precise, the leek and potato soup from Alice Waters’ cookbook, The Art of Simple Food. (Great book.)

Leeks softening in butter on the stove. Yum.

And while the soup simmered, I took some pictures of the sunset from the porch. So beautiful. And then  M. and I had a lovely evening.

Yesterday, I managed to get my phone-camera out fast enough to catch Boh in action, playing a game with his ring toy. He was sort of trying to throw it to himself, but not always succeeding because he was tilting his head back. Funny to watch.

And then, last night, after a batch of kale chips to tide me over, I made this — Deb’s crispy potato roast. (Public service announcement: potato peelers are for potatoes, not for pointer fingers. I’m fine, and the potatoes were worth it.) I might have eaten ALL of this for dinner. That’s how good it was. (M — thanks for the potatoes!)

I’m gearing up for one last research trip this week, so we have plans to take a mid-morning walk with our friend R., who will be hanging out Boh at the lake while I’m gone. It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day. (More knitting soon. Really.)

heels and a hap.

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Crazy, right? I tend to always vote for sensible over sexy in the shoe department, but I’m attending wedding #4 (of 8 this year) next weekend, and I realized that I do not have non-summery shoes suitable for black-tie-optional affairs. (And, you know, teaching. I’m teaching a course I designed this spring, and I figure that being the “instructor of record” might warrant tall shoes. It could also be that I am missing M., a friend currently traveling the back roads of the deep South for research. She wears tall shoes.)

Anyway, I ordered two pairs, and decided to keep them both. Here’s the first pair. I actually wore these to the coffee shop earlier this week to “practice.” No wipe-outs. And I feel awesome in these shoes. (Years ago I would have shied away from shoes like this, both for practical — a broken toe from my rugby days — and political — as affirming certain cultural ideas about prettiness/beauty — reasons. The toe has healed, though, and while my politics are perhaps more radical and feminist than ever, they’re also more nuanced.)

So, I love them. And while they aren’t the most comfortable shoes I own (hello, flip-flops), they’re for me, and nobody else, and I think they’ll give me that extra boost of confidence I’m realizing I need to attend so many weddings this year by myself.

Speaking of which, also on the wedding to-do list was to decide on a gift. Ages ago I thought I’d knit a pinwheel blanket, which seems to be my go-to wedding gift knit, but when the time came to cast on (okay, really the time should have come a few weeks ago), I just wasn’t feeling inspired. I really like the idea of giving a lap blanket because it is cozy (perhaps cozy enough for two — and certainly cozy enough for two newlyweds) and not super gender-specific. This next wedding is the wedding of one of my best guy friends from college, so I want to knit something that feels like it is for him (though I also really like the woman he is marrying, and think they are a great fit).

After a lot of digging around ravelry, I settled on the Hap Blanket, by Ysolda Teague. I’m using two greens — a greyish green heather, and a deeper olive/army green for the contrast color, both in Cascade 220. I’m following some super thoughtful mods I located on a few projects: provisional cast-on, and revised numbers for worsted weight yarn. I don’t think I’ll have this done in time for the wedding, but I’ll bring it to knit on the plane, and then I can send it to the bride and groom shortly afterwards. (They’re getting married not where they live, so I feel like sending it to them at home is best.)

I love squishy garter stitch. So cozy and warm and home-y. Other things that fit this description?

Garlicky chard and toast. Also, this guy:

Yep. I love this dog. Boh and I are going to settle in for an evening of knitting on the couch. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

beginning again.

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Long-time readers will recognize this yarn as the Dream in Color Smooshy that I intended to turn into a Baby Surprise Jacket in February of 2009 for my advisor’s youngest son. I did a less than perfect job of lining up the increases, though, so when it was super close to being finished, I ripped it out, put the yarn on a shelf somewhere, and knit a Baby Sophisticate out of Mission Falls 1824. (It was adorable, and the right idea, as the baby in question was a big baby, and I’m not sure the BSJ would have fit him for very long.) Anyway, lots more babies are on the way in my circle of friends, so over the weekend I found the Dream in Color Smooshy, along with Elizabeth Zimmerman’s brilliant BSJ recipe, and cast on. Right now this fits into a sock project bag, so I’m bringing it with me on my research trip.

And this? Well, it isn’t quite a beginning, but I had to share this picture of an enormous plate of dumplings enjoyed by candlelight on the porch. My cousin and her husband were here for a few days last week. They are in the midst of an epic year of traveling, and in a few weeks, they’ll wrap up the North American segment of their adventures and head to the other side of the world. They’re going to spend three months in Southeast Asia, so we made dumplings. (I’m hoping they’ll visit my favorite dumpling shop in Vientiane, Lao PDR.) I’m so excited for them.

Speaking of traveling, time for me to stop blogging and get back to packing for this week’s research trip. More soon!

brown sugar.

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Brown sugar cookies. What a brilliant idea. I saw these over at Joy the Baker and I had to make them. You should, too. Trust me. You won’t be disappointed. I ate a few (okay, a handful) on Wednesday night, and then I took the rest to reading group on Thursday. Good thing, too, or I would have eaten them until my stomach hurt. So good that I even forgot to be impatient about Agnes, for a little while at least. She is still blocking on the dining room table. Maybe tomorrow the sweater will be dry enough to wear?

Happy Friday!

arms of agnes.

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Sleeves, really, but arms just sounds better. Right?

I finished the first sleeve with my morning coffee. (Still a bit bleary-eyed here.)

And then I made an old school bowl of oatmeal, inspired by my empty fridge (tomorrow is farm day) and, as always, by Heidi and Super Natural Every Day. I added peanut butter, agave, yogurt, milk, and peanuts to my bowl. It was delicious. And deserving of hipstamatic iPhone photographs. (All that remained when I decided to snap a picture was Heidi’s cookbook and this pile of ingredients.)

Here’s a fancy shot of that first sleeve. The hipstamatic effects seem to lessen the impact of this particularly ugly corner of my house (just outside the bathroom door).

Boh seems pleased with my progress.

After a fairly productive day of reading, errands, and yoga, I knit a few inches of the second sleeve. I’m gearing up for a whirlwind weekend trip to the North Carolina mountains to bake the pies for a dear friend’s wedding. The forecast is for cooler weather, and it would be amazing to be able to take this sweater with me for early mornings/late evenings. And maybe to keep me company on the long drive — all the way there on Thursday, all the way back on Sunday. Boh will hold down the fort here with our friend R. while I’m gone. Lots to do before I leave — in addition to the rest of Agnes!