Warm Butternut Squash and Chickpea Salad and More!

Why Go Out When You Could Stay In?

Here's a quick break down of my life since the new year began. 

• I fill my free time on weekdays with blogging, workout classes, dates with girlfriends and volunteering (OK OK.. and maybe a little too much TV). My theory is that if I'm busy enough, I might not notice that part of me is 388 miles away. Mostly though, my weekday activities just succeed in making me incredibly tired. I'm still well aware that beloved hubby is. not. here. STUPID PITTSBURGH.
• Moving on... 3 out of the past 7 weekends we've been out of town visiting friends and family
• 2 out of the remaining 4 weekends we've hosted out of town friends and family

That left us with only 2 "normal" weekends to negotiate. And those were completely crammed with plans because we'd been ignoring our local friends for 2 months!

So, you can image how excited we were when we discovered that we'd somehow forgotten to make plans for an ENTIRE WEEKEND.

Let me repeat that.

AN ENTIRE WEEKEND.

Muahahahahahahahahahahaha.

We took walks, watched movies, SLEPT, and most importantly... we ate a TON of amazing homemade food. 

Throughout the weekend I made:

• Spinach and Mushroom Korma This was OK..a little bland to be honest, but had potential if you boosted up the spice content a bit.

• Mushroom & Barley Soup This was FANTASTIC, but only if you LOVE mushrooms. I recommend doubling the barley. (Vegan)

• Beer, Cheddar & Mustard  Pull Apart Bread For the dough: I cut out a tablespoon of butter and used 2 cups of white flour, and 1/2 & 1/3 cups whole wheat flour in place of the extra white & rye. For the filling: I cut 1.5 tablespoons of butter and I used low fat cheddar. This bread was DELICIOUS, but not decadent. If you're going for decadent, use the original recipe.

•  Warm Butternut Squash & Chickpea Salad  DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT attempt to change this recipe. It is perfect just the way it is. (vegan)

• I also made some chocolate chip cookie dough, whiiiiiich... never turned into cookies. Whoops!

In the last 2 months we've dined out in highly regarded establishments in Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Los Angeles, Boston and New York. But really, there's no place like home.

Urban Teenagers are... Special

Once a week I cook dinner by myself, or with a generous friend, for ten lovely gentlemen who just so happen to be homeless. They are all clean and kind, and hard working. You would never know they are homeless if you bumped into them on the street. The shelter is volunteer run, and is part of the synagogue to which I belong.

Public school kids in NYC have to do a certain number of volunteer hours each year, so I often have teenage su chefs.  Last night, I had the assistance of a 16 year old boy. Most of the kids I’ve met are pretty aloof, but certainly helpful enough.

This boy, however, was a disaster.

I asked him to use a 4 step brownie mix to make dessert... not something he'd ever done before. He read the instructions (4 step brownie mix) for a solid 10 minutes. When he finally finished,  he began to get all of the ingredients out of the cupboards. Good start.

Just as he was ABOUT to crack an egg, I asked, "do you have a bowl??"

No, he did not have a bowl.

He took a cereal bowl off the shelf.

Next, he set about measuring the water. The sink is on the opposite end of the kitchen from where he was working (it's a BIG kitchen) and he was using drying measuring cups to measure the water. He walked each cup from sink to bowl, spilling most of it along the way.

Then it came time to crack the eggs.  This didn't go well. I asked if he got any shell in the batter. He said, "just a little", and continued to measure the oil into the bowl.  I said "Did you take the shell OUT?" He stared at me blankly."You have to take the shell out, no one likes to eat the shell".

Finally, he poured in the mix and asked, "Now what?"... so I told him to stir it.  After stirring, he decided to read the box for a few more minutes before he said, in a puzzled tone of voice, "I've done everything it says to except stick a tooth pick in it, and I just don't really get that".

I said, "Well... you have to bake it first."

After I provided a pan of appropriate size, he proceeded to pour in the batter... in 3 different kitchen locations.

 

I am NOT exaggerating when I tell you that he got batter on his shirt, his face, 2 different counters, the microwave, the paper towel dispenser and the stove top. HE WASN’T EVEN NEAR THE STOVE TOP.

When the oven timer went off, he was very proud because he knew he had to use a pot holder.

JUUUUUUST as he was about to grab for pan, I said, "WAIT… may I please see the inside of your potholder?" So he held it up... GIANT HOLE.

If I were one to use hash tags, this one would be #sogladIdidn’tbecomeahighschoolteacher.

Maple Granola with Pecans and Figs

Yes I'm sure I've never had dreadlocks...

I recently spent a weekend with four of my closest childhood friends and their lovely significant others.  As old friends are wont to do, we spent most of our time together reminiscing. In the process, we bored our better halves near to tears.

This did not stop us.

During our bajillionth "Do you remember when...?" conversation, one friend casually asked me,
"You had dreads for awhile, right?"
"No, I never had dreads", I replied.
"Yes, you totally did!!!", another of my friends chimed in.
"No, I'm VERY certain I did not..."

Several childish minutes later of "Yuh Huhs" and "Nuh Uhs", I had not successfully convinced my friends that though my hair has indeed been nearly every color of the rainbow over the years, it has never been in dreadlocks.

But I did go through a bit of a crunchy phase for a few years in high school and early college. Most of my clothes were from a truly terrifying (and equally fabulous) thrift store in Ithaca, New York, I dyed my hair with henna instead of my go-to Manic Panic, I switched to all-natural (barely-functioning) hygiene products, the Indigo Girls played on repeat in my mini-van, and yes, it was during that time that I stopped eating meat.

It's been many years since that particular phase, but a little part of me looks forward to a day when I live in a place where it's socially acceptable for my wardrobe to be 100% linen and well-worn Birkenstocks, my music collection to be composed entirely of acoustic guitar and angsty chick rockers and where it's easier to buy local organic vegetables than imported fake Chanel.

But only part of me.

Maple Granola with Pecans & Figs
(adapted from this recipe in Cooking Light magazine)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups regular oats
• 1/2 cup pecans (broken into small peices)
• 1 rounded teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons wheat germ
• 3 tablespoons ground flax seed
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
• Cooking spray
• 1 cup chopped dried figs

Preperation:

Preheat oven to 325°.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.

Combine water, honey, syrup, sugar, and oil in a small saucepan; bring to a boil.

Pour over oat mixture; toss to coat.

Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper

Spread oat mixture on baking sheet. 

Bake at 325° for 35 minutes or until golden, stirring every 10 minutes.

Place in a large bowl; stir in figs.

Cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Serve with plain yogurt or milk & fresh berries, and enjoy a patchouli candle lit breakfast.