Mmmmmm...pasta

Normally, I'm not such a big pasta fan but, as you will see later in this post, I enjoyed a lovely pasta dish this evening. First things first. Breakfast.

Yesterday I really wanted French Toast but no one else did so I waited until today to satisfy my craving. It was well worth the wait.



One beaten egg, a splash of cream, mixed with a generous amount of cinnamon and a sprinkling of vanilla and nutmeg. Add to that three slices of bread and you have breakfast for one mom and one kid. Ryan had cheese and crackers instead. He's not real big on breakfast food!

For lunch today, I had a hot dog with mustard and a handful of chips with a glass of organic lemonade. Yummy!

Dinner. It's always a challenge for me. Sean gets home so, so late and, if he hasn't called me by 7pm, I'm just about ready to give up on cooking at all. However that has been leading to some bad eating habits lately (I'm back up to 192) so I think I need to cook dinner early and just let him eat leftovers when he gets home. Tonight was my first journey down that path and I created a really delicious meal.

First, I took a cup and a half to two cups of penne pasta and boiled it. At the same time, I put 1 Tbs butter and a cup of half and half in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter had melted, I added about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of parmesan cheese, a handful of Monterey Jack cheese, some dried rosemary leaves, freshly ground pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg and left all that to simmer over Low heat. Then I chopped some baby bella mushrooms and cooked them in a Tbs of butter. When they were ready (soft and slightly browned) I added them directly to the sauce. Then I cooked 1/2 of shrimp in 1 Tbs butter with one clove of finely chopped garlic and a splash of vermouth. When the shrimp began to get pink, I added the entire mixture to the sauce as well. I combined the sauce with the pasta (DRAINED) and then put it in a casserole dish, topped it with some Italian breadcrumbs and put it in a 425 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes. Since I was cooking the dish in the oven I didn't cook the shrimp in the pan all the way through. It's better for the shrimp to be slightly underdone in that instance.

When it came out of the oven, it looked like this:



Oh, and like this:



And when I put it on my plate it looked like this:



Like I said, I don't usually like pasta but this was really darn good! There was no recipe, just throwing some stuff together at the spur of the moment.

In other news, I got a new food processor today. My old one called it quits after my mom helped me make bread the other day. My new one is a Wolfgang Puck monster, 900 watts and 12 cups. Hopefully it will last me a long time. Good night sweet cuisinart...you were good to me.

Today's Eats

I greeted the morning with 15 minutes of yoga and a small, simple breakfast of French Vanilla organic yogurt, with a sprinkling of homemade organic granola.



It was an incredibly lovely way to begin the day. Later, the boys and I ran to the Fresh Market to pick up some things for my lunch with my friend Krista tomorrow. When we got home, my dad ran by to swab my cheek for HIV, part of the life insurance process. A little weird? Perhaps. After he left, I fixed lunch with simplicity again being the theme of the week. Leftover tuna salad on whole wheat bread, topped with organic romaine lettuce, along with an organic orange.



So good!!

I want to say a word here about mayonnaise. Recently I was reading on a blog that I like and the author, who lives in a town close to me, mentioned that Southerners favorite mayo is a brand called Dukes. Well, I must be even less Southern than I thought because this brand is one I absolutely detest. Can't explain why, but it just tastes gross to me. My personal favorite is Hellmann's which I believe on the West Coast goes by Best Foods brand. I have had fancy mayo, homemade mayo, and Hellmann's is still at the top of my list. Just curious...do any of you have a favorite? Please let me know, I'm really interested! Maybe you hate mayo all together. Tell me that, too.

Check back later for the dinner update!

DINNER

Tonight we had tuna and it was good! I seared it in a pan in which I had heated some canola oil, sesame oil, a pat of butter, some minced garlic, and freshly grated ginger. I did not season the tuna because I think it's easy to overpower the delicious delicate taste that tuna has to offer. Also, it was important to be sure it wasn't overcooked because we like it rare. With the tuna I served my favorite haricot verts which I had cooked in the same oil, garlic, and ginger combination, topped off with a sprinkling of salt and a couple of grinds of black pepper. It was really, really tasty.



I was trying to copy the taste of the tuna we had the other night and I did not accomplish that but our dinner was good in spite of that.

See you tomorrow!

Today's Eats - Barefoot Contessa Showed Up

Ahhhh. Sunday mornings. Quiet, except for the crinkle of the morning paper. It was a nice morning because we were all up early and ready to face the day. Sean was very sweet and went to Panera and got me a chocolate croissant-ish pastry for breakfast. It was tasty!



We hung out, watched tv, and then I ran to the grocery store by myself. Can I just tell you what a luxury it is to go alone? I could actually take the time to look at all the glorious offerings in our newest fancy-schmancy store and it was so, so nice. I have to tell you, I've been buying milk from a local creamery and they sell it in glass bottles and man, it is good! I cannot fathom going back to the plastic jug. Anyway, I got home and fixed lunch for everyone and then fixed some for myself. Sometimes with all the different orders that get filled around here, I feel like I'm probably qualified to work in a restaurant kitchen. For myself I prepared leftover crabcakes and a salad with a honey ginger dressing.



Sean took the boys to a batting cage which gave me more mommy time. Nice! Then we all went to a couple of open houses and came home. I finally had enough time to devote to the Barefoot Contessa's Chicken Stew with Biscuits. I haven't eaten it yet but here is a photo of the finished product:



It is wonderous. You will not believe how good this is and it's not hard to make at all. When I serve myself I will have a small scoop with one biscuit. Delish!

If you're interested in the recipe, please email me and I will see what I can do.

unschoolingwhimsigal@gmail.com

Last Night's Dinner - Deserves It's Own Post

Some of my sister and brother-in-law's friends are getting married in a couple of weeks and last night, they threw a shower for them. I have to tell you that my sister did a fabulous job on the food. Also, I did a fabulous job restraining myself but first, take a look at the wonderful food my sister offered her guests!




Brown Rice California Rolls (these came from Costco)



Chicken Kebabs (these were delicious)



Mini Meatloaf Sandwiches



Mini Spring Rolls (these came from Costco)



Shrimp and a vegetable tray



Pig-pickin' cupcakes (we actually call this Frank's Cake)



Carrot Cake Cupcakes

I had one of everything, except I did not have both types of cake, only carrot cake. I was really proud of myself because quite the bounty had been laid out before us and, partially because we ate such a filling lunch, I was able to make smart decisions about portions.

Food, fun, and friends. What better way to spend a Saturday night?