dinner 8.29.07
OK. Stuffed bell peppers. I have had a love-hate relationship with them my whole life. But, on Wednesday, it was all love. We had a little overload of veggies from the CSA that I just hadn’t gotten around to, so I managed to use up what I could (to make way for the stuff we got this week). Granted, the drought has hurt us more than significantly — so much so that we only got a meager few items this week — but we are still getting food. I am going to try my best at posting a recipe, in case this is a comfort food for you, too… I do not measure much. So bear with.
stuffed peppers –
– 2-3 bell peppers, seeded and sliced down middle (i assume you could do this with just cutting out the tops and seeds and veins and then you’d only get like 2 or 3 servings instead of 4-6 but personally i think that’s an imbalance of pepper to filling)
– 1 cup cooked brown rice
– diced onion, probably about 1/4 cup
– 3 garlic cloves, minced
– diced bell pepper (i used a little remnant — i think you need a reflection of pepper in the stuffing), probably about 2 tbsp
– 1 can tomato paste
– 1 cup vegetable stock
– cumin, red pepper flake, sea salt, black pepper to taste
– sugar, two pinches or so (someone should try it with a tsp or so of molasses — great way to add iron!)
– 1 cup veggie crumbles (or rehydrated TVP would work)
– red wine, about 1/4 cup
Cook the rice (or at least start it). Then, put the prepared peppers in a microwave safe dish with a lid. Pour boiling water over the peppers and cover. Microwave for about 5 minutes on high or until peppers seem soft but not mushy. (In other words, you want your pepper to be cooked all the way through before you put it into the oven. Otherwise it will take a couple hours for everything to get hot.) Drain the water from the peppers and spray an oven safe dish (or the same dish in my case) with a little veg spray. Return the peppers to the dish (or put in newly sprayed dish). Saute onion and pepper in a little olive oil until desired doneness. Add garlic and veggie crumbles. Cook until the crumbles are heated through and browned a little. Pour in the wine. Cook until there is no smell of alcohol left and pan is deglazed. Add tomato paste, veg stock, sugar, and seasonings. Add water if mixture is too dense. Remember to make sure everything is well hydrated but not too soupy! Bring to a nice simmer and add rice. You want the mixture to be heavy but not too dry. Stuff the peppers with the mixture. Cover with foil (spray the foil first to keep it from sticking) and bake at 400 degrees for about 30-45 minutes or until hot all the way through.
If you were to choose to put cheese on these (vegan or dairy) put it on after 30 minutes and leave uncovered and bake until cheese has melted.
We didn’t use cheese and it was great. Serve hot with a good hot sauce!
batch
Sometimes you just need to bake. No, really, you just do. Like at least once per week. Remember being a kid and getting the homemade cookie in your lunch? Well, I hope you do. I know I do. I remember feeling like a huge dork because my mom made everything, especially cookies and other foods. Now, I realize just how cool that was.
So, I whipped up some cookies [to gift as a present] and to give to the girl for her lunch today. And for us to eat while we watched Weeds last night and Supernanny.
We were talking on the way home from church Sunday about the things that we have done in our life that weren’t “logical” but we wouldn’t trade for anything. Parenting is at the top of that list — it makes little to no financial sense, takes up a ton of time, gives a lot of frustration, and is a huge responsibility and liability. But we wouldn’t trade it for the world. I am not sure how I got my selfish body out of bed every day before I had my children or what I could have possibly done with all that extra time that I know I had and didn’t realize I had. I hope I was really well rested because I could go for a few days of sleep now. Or a few days of not having to do some of the lesser than glamorous things I do on a daily basis… Hourly basis… You understand.
I say this because I lived for most of my life assuming that parents were simply crazy and that I wasn’t sure why they told me they love me and all that mess. But I can say now that I sure do love my kids and I never understood that type of love — it doesn’t make sense to love something that just wants to grow up and be different than you — until I was pregnant, but particularly after they were born. I absolutely know that in their sweet child minds that do really adore us, that they will have no idea at all what it is to love something so oddly and absolutely as when they have their own kids. And hopefully, they will bake vegan cookies for their kids. And pray that they will grow up and remain thinking individuals who want to better the world and their society. But most of all, I hope they experience the same type of absolute love that we have for them.
results
Well, my dr’s office called today with my test results. I am slightly anemic, but no more than what a vitamin supplement can help repair. No thyroid malfunction. So I am to try their drugs for three months (already started and it’s getting better — less nausea) and then go back to see how I feel. So, I am free to do my workouts and everything else.
I can’t say that I am happy with these results since I was hoping that they would find something very treatable and that I would be feeling worlds better. Possibly, though, it’s just the mild anemia getting to me? I don’t know. That and my very let down feeling of having to do their bidding for three months. Apparently these things “just happen” sometimes and we were at least able to rule out some serious problems. It doesn’t, however, make my life easier or more comfortable. I know it’s unfair of me to complain about my near perfect life (let’s face it, I have it so good) but I just hoped for a real answer. Instead, I got a “let’s try this” and “wait and see” and “sometimes it takes away the problem and sometimes it doesn’t” kind of response. But at least it’s better than a life of thyroid disease. It is possible, too, that my body hasn’t adjusted to me being active. So, bumps on that road, I guess…
I was able to spend some time in the kitchen yesterday, fortunately, so that’s good, too.
quiet weekend and waiting
So we have had a quiet weekend. Friday was a little tumultuous with my doctor’s visit, and since I haven’t felt well in a while, I have been trying to take it really easy.
Friday night, I cooked a hacked version of VWAV’s Moroccan Tagine with Spring Vegetables. It called for several veggies we didn’t have, so I just went with what we did have. I will have to say that the stew teamed with couscous was really delicious, and I will probably eat it again for dinner tonight. That or some of the potatotomatoleek soup that I frequent during colder temps but braved on Thursday night (thanks to being cold most of the time). I was impressed with the tagine because it is such a meld of unexpected flavors. The raisins, also, were so unexpected and fabulous. Of course, I celebrate most dried fruits, so it was Brian who required a little convincing on this one. I’m not totally sure how he liked it, but I feel confident that he was glad I cooked, at least. Friday’s meal was followed up by playing with the kids and resting on the couch, watching Idiocracy. I think I slept through about 20 minutes at least of the film, but I still enjoyed it. Helps that I’ve seen it several times over.
Saturday was an early morning, thanks to the kids, and we were up and breakfasting and listening to music and watching Thomas. We went to Grimey’s and Brian exchanged a record while I managed to score a few things myself — Blonde Redhead “23″, Pavement “Crooked Rain Crooked Rain”, Arcade Fire “Funeral”, and Tears for Fears “the hurting”. Grimey’s seems to have nice selection of the expected indiepop, so I took advantage of that. I wanted to get the new White Stripes for the kids, but it is $26!!! For a record??? Mostly I got the Blonde Redhead album after watching the [rerun] Conan O’Brien performance. I was much more impressed than with the last release “Misery is a Butterfly” that just sounded washed up to me. Of course, I love them from days of old, so it isn’t a surprise or anything… And the other albums were just things I wanted to have on vinyl. Something about vinyl — it’s such a rush.
We spent a quiet rest of the day yesterday and a morning at church today. It was the last day of the famed Star Trek class, and I hope Brian posts about it soon. We need to bring some Christian discussion to the christianleft. I was feeling really terrible overnight, but seem to have recovered somewhat today. We are now just waiting on test results from my blood test (the ultrasound showed nothing alarming, fortunately) to see the extent of my anemia and whether or not I have thyroid problems. I kinda hope I do so we can treat this and I can move on. My doctor didn’t mention whether or not I could continue with my running, but I haven’t felt up to it since Tuesday. Maybe I will try for a walk later on this afternoon. And maybe not. I have to remember to set myself up for enjoyable running for a lifetime and not just my skinny jeans for tomorrow. You know, now isn’t the time to hurt myself further. I just feel wiped and drained and cold. Hopefully some answers soon, though. I am ready to be myself again. However, it is sometimes really nice to have a weekend of little plans to ensure that evenings can be spent on the couch watching tv and listening to musics.
new curtains!
I decided to get us out of the “you know your mother knows your style” scenario and make new curtains. Sure, my old valances were just fine. In fact, I had a great time with my mom shopping and actually making the curtains. It’s really nice to have her to help since she is an amazing seamstress, just like all the women in her family. I do not remember my grandmother buying very many clothes in stores, in fact, because they “would just have to be ripped out and taken in properly” or because the lining didn’t match the fabric or because there was no lining, etc. She was one of the most amazing women I have ever met. All of the wonderful seamstresses (and my uncles can hem their own pants and all) in my family would be probably embarrassed by my skills…but they are done.
It’s nice to have these since I think things are beginning to come around to my style finally. It takes guts to tell your mom that the fabric she chose isn’t the one for you. And that it made me feel old. We just don’t have similar styles. Mom actually took it really well, after I finally got up the gumption to tell her how I really felt (politely, of course). We talked about how if we were to sell our house, we would be marketing probably to people who share our style, just like she would market to people who share hers. And if I were to have my parents’ house, I would redo most things. It’s wallpaper heaven, and that is not the heaven for me. But, I digress.
I just made some really straightforward valances — no more scalloped shape, but still very tailored and no excess. More of a cornice look. They are fully lined, and the fabric is nice drapery quality. I like the asymmetry of the design, and hopefully when my energy level is higher I can make some pillows, too. I think it freshens up the look, pulls things together, and reflects my (our) style better. And it didn’t take a whole lot of time either. I ordered the fabric from fabricguru.com on a Tuesday, it arrived the following day, and the curtains were hanging by Saturday evening.
my breakfast 8.22.07
This week (and for the past little while) I have been a little under the weather, but I desperately want this thing to take off, so here it is. (I see the doctor tomorrow, and I am not contagious — hopefully we’ll figure out what’s going on!)
Usually, I am neck deep in child-rearing. That means I have to answer the beck and call of the one who only cares for trains and the one who is old enough to not need so much from me but who cannot stop talking long enough to realize that. Somewhere, however, in my crazed frenzy of breakfasts (sad, pitiful roars of “more canteloupe” and “I had a little accident with my cereal, but it’s ok!” and “May I please have a paper towel?” and “Mommy can I have some of yours — it looks better than mine.”) I found the time on Wednesday morning to make scones from Vegan With A Vengeance. I started small, having only eating scones on a few occasions in my life and never at home, and made the basic recipe. This was worth every second I had to find to make them. What do you think?
fountainhead
An idea has to come from somewhere, so here we are. This is to be a blog where we discuss many different things, namely politics, vegetarianism (veganism), and knitting/sewing.
Brace yourself as the antics ensue…
