breathe

It's been hectic. Really, just crazy over the last few weeks. I'm trying to remind myself to stop and takes a few deep breaths everyday.

Yesterday I helped with flowers for a wedding that I would have very much liked to be a guest of. The bride and groom were extremely stylish but managed to be easy going and relaxed.

wishlist

I have a well stocked kitchen. If you take into consideration that I live in a small apartment and that I am pretty young, it borders on obscene. Well, I don't really believe that but someone else might try to argue it. One really important item that I don't have though is a mortar and pestle. I know! How can I call myself a cook?!
In other news...my birthday is just around the corner.

Pot and Pantry $28

Urban Homesteaders $8.95

Clamlab $40

Ethanollie $32

what we're eating

This week's menu:
Sunday-Green Chile Enchiladas with Vegetables and Black Beans
Monday-Orzo Salad with Roasted Vegetables and Feta
Tuesday-Broccoli Soup and Sausages
Wednesday-Carne Asade or Vegetarian Tacos

We ate the enchiladas last night and they were the best I've ever made. I think Cristina's stock was the key. To make your own sauce, you'll need:
3 anaheim or poblano chilies
1 green bell pepper
1 jalapeno
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1c stock
small handful cilantro

Roast the peppers over the flame on your stove or in the oven. When they are good and charred, put them in a paper bag to sit for a few minutes, then peel. Chop roughly.
Heat a teaspoon of oil in a saucepan over medium heat, saute the onion until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 30 sec. Add all the peppers and the stock. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and throw in the cilantro. To blend, use a food processor, blender or emulsion mixer.

I always put vegetables in my enchiladas, but you can make them all cheese or chicken if you prefer.

new product

Bow ties have been such a huge request over the last few months. I've been making them for custom orders, but clearly it was time to get some into the Etsy Shop. More are coming, but there are a few listed finally.

what we're eating

As promised, (yeah I know it's a day late) here is our menu for the first part of the week.
Sunday: Lentil Soup with Sausage or Fake Sausage
Monday: Sesame Soba Noodles with Peanut Citrus Dressing, Cucumbers, Bok Choy, Mixed Greens and Mint
Tuesday: Greek Omelet with Spinach, Dill and Feta, Roasted Potatoes
Wednesday: Bombay Curry with Cauliflower and Eggplant, Homemade Dal

Since it is already Monday after dinner, I will tell you that Cristina made amazing Lentil Soup from the Barefoot Contessa and the Soba Noodle Salad came from Bon Appetit and it was so good I am including the recipe. Maybe an odd choice for a rainy night, but this one is going in the file for summertime.

Dressing:

1/2 c fresh orange juice

1/4 c smooth peanut butter

2 T rice wine vinegar

2 T fresh lime juice

2 T peeled, chopped ginger

1 T orange zest

1 T soy sauce

2 cloves garlic

1 t lime zest

Mix in a blender until smooth

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook 8 oz Soba Noodles. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drizzle with sesame oil.

In a large bowl, combine:

3 c mixed greens,

2 heads bok choy (I steamed mine and rinsed with cold water)

1 cucumber sliced thinly

3 scallions sliced

a handful of cilantro and mint chopped roughly.

Combine the greens, dressing and noodles. Garnish with salted roasted peanuts.

park day

sunday's dinner is good for lunch

I almost always cook with leftovers in mind. Last night's fajitas and cabbage salad were terrific for lunch. I just threw the last of the pinto beans and sauteed vegetables onto the cabbage and brought along a little container of dressing.

what we're eating

A few years ago, we decided to take a good hard look at our spending to figure out how we were ever going to start a savings account. Something that we realized is that we spend a lot of money on food. We wanted to spend less but we did not really want to change what we were eating. At the time, I walked past the grocery store on my way home everyday so it was very easy to pick up whatever we needed for dinner and any other odds and ends I was in the mood for. As an experiment, we decided to cut down the number of times I went into the grocery store which also meant we'd need to plan our meals ahead. Lo and behold, it makes a difference! Each Sunday, I spend a little time sitting on the floor of the kitchen flipping through cookbooks and planning out at least 4 meals for the week. It takes stress off of trying to figure out what to make while I'm at the grocery store and I find I am smarter about using ingredients in more than a single meal which seems to save money and create less food waste. Double bonus!
So the point of this long winded story is that I had this idea to blog our weekly menu so that all of you could benefit from my planning. It's a new idea and I'm not exactly sure how it's going to work, but I'm thinking I'll post at least the menu on Sundays and hopefully include some recipes and pictures throughout the week. Do you want a grocery list too? Let me know if you think that would be helpful. You may not know that I am a vegetarian so most of the recipes will be too. My wife eats meat though so I'll let you know if she's going to be eating some variation.

Sunday: Pepper Onion and Zucchini Fajitas and Cabbage Salad with Mango, Avocado, Radishes and Homemade Buttermilk Dressing

Monday: Baked Eggplant with Tomato Sauce and Mozzarella and Roasted Cauliflower with Mustard and Caper Sauce

Tuesday: Grilled Marinated Tofu or Chicken and Napa Cabbage Slaw with Sesame Lime Dressing

Wednesday: Chickpea Fritters and Tabouleh

this week

I'm working on several orders this week. One thing I love about working with weddings is the variety of fabrics I get to see. I like to see the color trends (hello coral and plum) and hearing about all the different types of wedding themes keeps it interesting.

I realize Mother's Day hasn't happened yet, but I have already moved on to Father's Day on account of ties making really good gifts. (A subtle hint, people!)

winners

I have a few friends who are riding the Aids Life Cycle this year. If you don't know what that is, they each raise money for Aids research and then ride from San Francisco to LA. That's like 500 miles! I cannot fathom the chaffing that must happen starting right around mile 6 and then the thought of another 494 to go. Over the weekend we helped these friends raise a bunch of money by donating goods to a raffle. The Heated of course gave some organic tote bags, and I made a bicycle print necktie and bow tie. I'm pretty sure the winners of each of my items were pretty stoked.