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October 21, 2007

RED SOX WIN THE PENNANT!!!

trader joe's makes pumpkin butter, try it! take a peak at my bread i love you, dear sourdough bread toast with butter & pumpkin butter my husband is a blue hanger my side of the bed you're supposed to be filled with fresh veggies! what i look at while cleaning dishes new shoes rogue leaf sometimes my mess is better than my painting hello paint, i've missed you up close- meatball sub i could eat fries all day long goat cheese fondue with fresh tomatoes park chow menu- food/drink new pins (the right two) from craft mafia fabric scraps from craft mafia i had to have you. sprout studio! so exciting to meet you! chez panisse! october 20, 2007 i made some pom-poms for craft room

this weekend was filled with:

-pumpkin butter & toast (oh yes, it’s that time of year)

-craft mafia with the girls & a yummy comforting lunch at Park Chow in SF (fun & yum!)

– eating at chez panisse with the family (excellent! pictures need to be uploaded still)

-relaxing time at home with the hubby (briefly)

-checking cellphone for Red Sox updates/watching my hubby go nuts! YAY RED SOX! Good Luck Wednesday!

-making pom-poms for craft room (thanks martha stewart!)

-finishing a painting for my friend (can’t wait to see her this week)

-making broccoli-lemon soup (recipe posted tomorrow perhaps?)

more soon! time to watch dexter!

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October 18, 2007

one of those days

Today I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. I was dragging ass for the most of the morning. At work I just couldn’t get my excel spreadsheet to work right…In the midst of figuring it out I had like 20 more things to fix/do. I called one my favorite people in the world to vent and she reminded me that I should write 3 good things down a day in my journal. Today this goes in my written journal- and online. It’s a reminder to remember that there can be good parts of the day among all the crappy parts.

So here goes….three good things that happened today:

1. the Red Sox won tonight (woot!)

2. i had a good workout at the gym that went by faster than I anticipated
3. my neighbor brought casey & i home caramel apples:

caramel apple

 

mmmmmm goey with rice krispies on bottom

 

im pacing myself with you, caramel apple

4. (just cuz i’m on a roll) I’m happy for my new flash & my new keyboard. Yay technology.

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October 15, 2007

Curry Zucchini Soup

curry zucchini soup

Curry Zucchini soup is the perfect fall/winter soup. My mom always makes it special on Christmas Eve. We look forward to it year after year. In the soup pictured above, I used whole milk instead of Half & Half. It tastes just fine that way. Serve with some crusty/cheesy bread or top with some bits of bacon and you have yourself a wonderfully hearty meal. 

cheese toast

dinner tonight

 

Curry Zucchini Soup

makes about 8 servings

  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 2 teaspoons curry powder
  • 7 large zucchini cut into chunks
  • 1-quart chicken stock
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup melted butter mixed thoroughly with 1/4 cup of flour
  • salt & pepper

In a large pot, saute onion in olive oil until transparent. Add thyme and chopped zucchini. Cook until soft. Add curry powder, cream & stock. Bring to a boil; add butter & flour mixture. Reduce heat and simmer soup for 15 minutes. Puree soup in blender or use an immersion blender.  Season with salt & pepper to taste.

 

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October 14, 2007

another weekend has passed….

This weekend I:

drank some coffee with my hubby:

coffee & pearls

caught up on my catalogs:

i love clothes

had a good friend sleepover & this is the breakfast i made for us this morning:

sunday morning breakfast with livia & casey

reorganized craft room & hung more stuff up on the walls:

did some desk/office organizing

found some prettie flowers blooming in the front yard:

flowers in the front are kinda blooming

decided not to rake leaves:

walking thru the leaves

-went to a birthday party (neighbor turned 10) Met some new neighbors & saw the most amazing apple tree

-trimmed the roses in the back yard

-went to target & whole foods

-made a yummy dinner of salmon, roasted yams, roasted delicata squash & a green salad with almond slices and avocados

-watched Knocked Up (again, cuz my friend hadn’t seen it)

– bought the latest issue of Donna Hay

-went to Daiso with a friend & bought some cute stuff

-thought about watercoloring

-put together b-day prezzies for friends

….contemplating doing the NaBloPoMo next month…..

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October 10, 2007

i heart passion fruit

When we went to Funchal– Portugal we rode on a bus to the market to check out the local produce. We went off on our own and found this man who was selling these wonderful passion fruits. I had no idea there were soo many different types. There were some that tasted like bananas and others that tasted like pineapple. We sampled a few and HAD to have some. 3 minutes later….we walked away with a huge bag full of them. We cut them open later on to find that they weren’t as sweet as the samples the guy gave us. I figured he put sugar on them so they would taste ripe. Oh well! They weren’t the cheapest fruit I’ve ever had. But, the high sticker price was worth it. I would not have these photos if we didn’t have that experience. Adding sugar made them yummy.

my favorite passion fruit

 

passion fruits we picked up at the market added a bit of sugar on top mix that with a little bit of rum banana passionfruit

if you can’t find passion fruit BUT you have a local Trader Joes near you- try their Passion Fruit- Fruit Leathers. They are SOOO good! The seeds are the best part.

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October 8, 2007

Early Riser

so where’s my vacation photos? well… I went through all 700 and narrowed down 370 that i love. I spent all Friday night doing so. I know i should edit them even more….How could anyone sit through looking at 370 pictures??? But how could I not include photos i find so dear? I’m the worst at editing!

the weekend was spent catching up on sleep (at least TRYING to). I keep waking up when it’s dark outside. THANKS JET-LAG! Saturday I woke up at 7AM. Sunday I woke up at 6am. Today I woke up at 5:38AM. What’s with that?? Although… it’s actually nice to watch the sun come up. I never get the chance to do that. I don’t know my house well at that time of day. It’s fun to experience. My sleep usually comes before watching the trees light up with the sun.

glimpse of my weekend:

ash tree changing color brandt new bundt choc with cream cheese frosting let me fuel you for the red sox game mantle decoration cindy made me this cat

-we watched Knocked Up on dvd

-short trip to Ikea for planters

-grocery shopping for Red Sox game on Sunday

-bought a bundt cake mold & made my first bundt cake.

-caught up on all the mail from being away

-made grilled cheese & tomato soup

-helped Casey to get better (he’s sick)

-made part of my halloween costume

-straightened up the house for company

-decorated the mantle in the living room for Halloween (pictures above)

-relaxed & enjoyed being home

After spending 10 days away, I hope to take things easier and enjoy all the things I have.

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October 7, 2007

Prune Bundt Cake

why do prunes have a bad rap?

inside the prune abyss

prune cake! don't be a hatin' on my prunes

Spiced Prune Cake from this month’s issue of EVERYDAY FOOD:

-2 cups all purpose flour (spooned & leveled)

-1 cup pitted prunes

-2 cups sugar

-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

-1 cup of vegetable oil

-1 teaspoon ground cloves

-1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

-1 teaspoon salt

-1 teaspoon baking soda

-1 cup plain yogurt (recipe called for buttermilk, but i used yogurt instead)

-3 large eggs

-1 cup coarse chopped walnuts

-powdered sugar for dusting.

Oven Temp: 325 degrees

Butter & Flour a nonstick Bundt Pan (12 cup capacity). Add some flour to cover- tap out excess.

Boil some water-pour over the prunes to cover & let sit for 10 minutes. Drain & chop. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour/sugar/cinnamon/cloves/nutmeg/salt/baking soda- Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk oil/eggs/yogurt & eggs.

Add wet contents to dry contents. Add the prunes & walnuts.

Spoon into pan- bake until toothpick is clean. (1 hour 45 minutes- 2 hours).

Immediately invert onto baking rake. Dust with powdered sugar when cooled.

***this was delightful! A wonderful Autumn treat. I think it would be great paired with vanilla ice cream & a caramel sauce. My husband ate a piece while sipping his Honey Rum we got in the Canary Islands.  Don’t hate prunes. They didn’t kill anyone.***