Weird soup

Barley, water, veggie broth, garlic, red onions, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, celery salt... boiled, drop 2 eggs. On top, add sugar snap peas, green onions, avocado.
So weird. So good.
So happy with my new Le Crueset bowl!

Kitchenaid bread!

So thrilled,  finally used my new kitchenaid,  and made gorgeous bread! The whole house smells warm.

Tomato saffron confit

The best thing I have put in my face in a long time, and soo easy.

3 pints cherry tomatoes,  halved
1/3 cup olive oil
1 pinch saffron
Salt and pepper

Cook the tomatoes in the olive oil in a medium saucepan on highish heat til they start blistering (15 minutes or so) and add the spices. Then reduce heat to lowish and simmer for another hour. Add more salt if it needs it. Eat with french bread, on noodles, or lick the bowl like I did.

Yummmm.

Lentil salad

So yummy I ate before I remembered to take a picture...

Lentils (steamed ones from trader joe's)
2 beets (also from tj)
1 big cucumber (diced)
1 tbs of sunflower seeds
Apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper.

So good, filling, refreshing. Next time I might add cherry tomatoes and raisins. Yuuummm.

Food that makes me feel virtuous

I made crockpot chicken last night for tacos (chicken + salsa), then instead of throwing away the salsa-y broth it created, I added corn, onion, garbanzo beans, cilantro, water and some taco seasoning and made soup!

In the bowl I added a little cheese and a bunch of tomato. I plan on freezing half of it. No wasted leftovers,  hooray!

Le creu-tatta

My first meal in my le creuset skillet!  A deeeeelicious frittata!

Melted butter and sauteed about half a diced onion on the stove top,  then added about a half cup of diced ham. I mixed 8 eggs with a quarter cup shredded cheese, and added the whole mixture to the pan. I let it cook for a few minutes til the edges looked golden, then stuck it in the oven at 400 for fifteen minutes. It was golden and delicious and lofty, and has much potential for future breakfasts!

Enchiladas

I am lucky to have an incredible husband. The few weeks right after Wyatt was born, our house was at its cleanest, thanks to him. We ate great homemade meals, again, thanks to him. 6 weeks later and it's about time for me to start figuring out how to balance the things that need to happen in the house, with baby timing.

I'm excited tonight because I made a good looking dinner while baby hung out with me in the kitchen. We sang along to my Leeann Womack pandora station and he hummed happily while I chopped, prepped, cooked and washed dishes. He started fussing right when I put the last dish away. Such a thoughtful baby!

The enchiladas were great. I mixed some ricotta cheese with enchilada sauce, and put a spoonful of that mixture along with a thick slice of mozzarella on each corn tortilla. I lightly fried each tortilla first, and dragged through the sauce. Topped with sauce, cheese, onion, cilantro and black olives. Sourcream and avocado got added after. Canned beans and corn for sides... thank you easy food!

Photos. .. baby chipmunk cheeks, the view of the kitchen from baby perspective, and the finished delicious product.

Harry potter movie day

Yesterday we had some friends over to watch the first two Harry Potter movies. In keeping wth the theme, I made pumpkin pasties and butterbeer!

Seeing as how I have a baby, I decided to go the easy route. I used premade pie crust, cut them into circles, spooned about two tbsp of pumpkin pie filling,  crimped the edges with a fork and baked them at 400 for about 15 minutes. I added some butter and sugar to the tops after.

The butterbeer was an interesting experiment. I heated up condensed milk (3-4 tbsp), butterscotch topping (3-4 tbsp), and butter (1 tbsp), then added a few spoonfulls of that mixture to hot cream soda. It's really pretty and very foamy, but the general consensus was to go easy on the condensed milk, and I could have probably left the butter out entirely.

passion berry

A friend of mine in San Diego sent me a beautiful package - and it's a gift that keeps on giving, because it included a variety of tea bags. So I am here, enjoying my evening, working on my marathon crochet flowers, drinking passion berry tea, out of a ceramic mug I made. Feeling sweet and thoughtful and loved.

Los Feliz farmers market

Another farmer's market! My mom, sister and I just happened upon it, tucked in on Vermont in Los Feliz. We bought ALL THE GREENS. So many bags FULL of chard, spinach, kale, celery, cucumbers... soooo much goodness. We then took ourselves and our crazy purchases to El Greco, had a really yummy Greek lunch. Wonderful day exploring my new home.

gooseberry and wild cucumber

Had the best day today. Invited naturalist friend of mine up and she took my mom, dad and I on a "hundred inch hike." We went up to one of the little foot paths in the canyon below the observatory, and took the new plant ID books that she bought me, and I learned me some plant stuff!

This picture has.. (left to right, top to bottom) fuchsia gooseberry, sugarbush, lilac, and wild cucumber. 

Then my dad wandered off and we found him a little while later.....

Then BBQ and sitting around the firepit in the backyard. Deeeeeelightful.

dinner and a show

For my mama's birthday we trusted in Yelp and tried an Indian restaurant on Sunset we'd never been to before. It was an adventure - the outside is this terrible looking little hole in the wall - less than a hole in the wall. We almost didn't go in. But we were so glad we did -- the inside was beautiful. Every little detail was gorgeous, lush, rich... the food was southern Indian, and amazing. I have no idea the names of anything we ate -- we got appetizers and two platters, and tried a little bit of everything. It was so good. Can't wait to go back.

After going to dinner, I surprised her with tickets to Cavalia's Odysseo -- a beautiful show that's like Cirque de Soleil but with horses. The music was live, and haunting, the horses were amazing, the production value stunning. We had awesome seats, and I would very much recommend this show to anyone.

morning latte

Pleasant morning -- dog enjoying the light coming in from the window, and I took a little walk up to the Trails Cafe for a soy chai tea latte. 

The Trails is a cute little coffee/sandwich/pastry place up the street. It's got vegan food, fun tea combinations... they put soy bacon bits in their avocado sandwich. What's not to love? Huell Howser did an interview with the owner in the Fern Dell episode of his show.

baby greens

Now that I have a new backyard, I thought that it's time for some gardening! My dad has always had a huge, beautiful garden, and I always wanted one too. The last few years have been gardening disasters -- we had a dog who loved to dig, and who I could not successfully keep out of the garden. But without that dog, and in a new place.... maybe I'll be enjoying some backyard squash and tomatoes this year! Planted zuchinni, yellow squash, jalapenos, tomatoes, basil, and mint. Keeping it small and do-able for now.

farmers market

Took a trip to the other side of the park for a visit to the Farmer's Market at the Gene Autry Museum. It was a beautiful day -- bought some fruit and veggies, some hummus and pita bread, was extremely grateful for easy and plentiful parking... love that this takes place in my very own backyard!