vegetarian chili

December 31, 2011
the main event, the underwear diet
1 Comment

I know that you’re supposed to have soup when you’re sick, but after trying this–gulp–vegetarian chili, it hit the spot. Maybe I still feel like $#!+, but at least I had a taste of comfort food, and all I had to do was a little prep work the night before, and turn the slow cooker on in the morning.

I came home from work, spooned some chili into a big bowl and topped it with Greek yogurt and sliced scallions.*

You can find the recipe here, on the Real Simple website. Take the opportunity to actually enjoy this meatless chili; I’m not saying it’s better than a beefy variety, but it’s damn tasty.

*Please note: when I am sick, there is little motivation for me to eat in my underwear; however, once I recover, I’ll be stripping down to enjoy this little number. And I won’t feel guilty after polishing off a bowl (or two).

winning that bread

December 29, 2011
ramblings
1 Comment

Years ago, the thought of preparing a meal for a man was a joke. I’m no feminist, but the idea that a woman should conform to gender stereotypes was hilarious to me. Until now.

It’s not to say that I believe it is my duty to feed my man, but the joy it gives me seeing him scarf down a plate of my home cooking is enough to get me to do it again and again. And it’s not terribly inconvenient to be able to rely on him for manual labor. Knowing this, my S.S. likes to resort to his Midwestern roots and convince me that a woman’s place is in the home, and a man is responsible for, well, just take a look (keep in mind that this is mostly a joke. Mostly):

(And my response? “Ah. Well at least it’s documented.”)

While I have no problem cooking, and even committing to mild household chores, I still don’t see the point of making the bed, and I don’t do laundry.

peppermint bark

December 28, 2011
sweet thang
2 Comments

I’ve never considered myself domesticated, but this year I did something that I have never done before: made Christmas goodies for my coworkers, family, and my S.S.’s parents. I know, I’m impressed as well.

In addition to preparing my favorite biscotti (click here for the post and recipe), I also made peppermint bark. Now, I didn’t quite realize what a big deal this stuff is around the holidays, so while it may seem a bit redundant to you, it’s totally new to me.

Crush candy canes in a plastic bag with something hard (I used the back of a spoon, but a hammer or rolling pin will do the trick), and set aside. Melt white chocolate over a double boiler and then spread on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan. Pop in the freezer. While that hardens, melt dark chocolate in the same manner and then layer the white chocolate with the dark stuff.

Before putting it back in the freezer, sprinkle the top with the crushed candy canes, gently patting the bits into the dark chocolate. Freeze until hardened and serve immediately, or keep in the freezer for about two weeks.

a very merry christmas

December 25, 2011
ramblings
2 Comments

Merry Christmas (etc.) to all my favorite people! May your holiday season be happy and healthy.

20111225-160051.jpg

(The tree is decorated with the following: sock, plastic bag, Frosted Flakes cereal wrapper, Red Bull can, Christmas cards, hoop earrings, fake cherries, Halls sucker, generic Airborne.)

baked ziti

December 22, 2011
the main event
1 Comment

It was the night before Thanksgiving (yes, I am still blogging about Thanksgiving) and I wanted to eat something my mom would make. Let’s say I was attempting to summon some kind of culinary genius to aid me in the following day’s demands.

My mom has the gift of transforming simple ingredients and techniques into a dish greater than the sum of its parts. Take baked ziti, for example. She makes a slow-cooked sauce rendered with neck bones that coats noodles that are cooked just right. She experiments with ratios and ingredients, but it always comes out smashing.

Here is my attempt at, not replicating her baked ziti–but hoping that it would be half as good as hers.

Make the sauce: sweat onions and garlic in olive oil. Add sausage (casings removed) and cook until no longer pink. Add a can of San Marzano tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes. Blend in a blender or with an immersion blender so that the sausage is in small, uniform pieces.

While the sauce is simmering, cook pasta of your choice till just under al dente. Then, season ricotta cheese with S & P, and herbs of your choice.

Next, layer the ziti: sauce, pasta, ricotta. Repeat until there’s nothing left, and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake in a 375-degree Fahrenheit oven until hot and bubbling.