Niles had called me and asked if I was going to bake anything for Lost night, and I said yes because I had nothing to do all afternoon (after I went running), and he was busy, so I would cook.

I decided to make Spinach Pinwheels and Cranberry Pumpkin Cookies.  I found both of these recipes using the Allrecipes.com app for my iPhone.  It seems very neat, and it only gives out recipes that are rated 4 starts or higher!  The chances of getting a good recipe are pretty high.

Wednesday night I went for a run, and ran to the grocery store.  I walked back to City Hall and my dad gave me a ride home.  I was planning on running home from City Hall (which is why I went - to drop the groceries off), but Trevor and my dad both agreed that I had run enough already.  It was a good thing, too, because I would soon find out that I was very stressed for time  (It’s about 5:30 at this point).

I get home and immediately start cooking.  I had already made the dough with the bread machine, so I got the dough out (it had been preparing while I was running), and set that up.  I separated the dough in half and two equal sized balls that I rolled out into a circle.  Then, I cut them up like they were pizza.

This was a mistake.  I was following two recipes.  One was to make the Spinach Pinwheels out of Pillsbury Cresent Rolls (bought at the store), and the other was how to make my own Cresent Rolls with a bread machine.  I cut up the dough thinking I was just making regular rolls, but then the recipe told me to roll them up, and let them rise like that.  I had to put stuff in my rolls….. how was this going to work?  So I cut them up, and let them rise like that, just flat and cut.

Then, after they rose, I filled them, and rolled them up.

This was when I found out that they were suppose to be mini.  So I combined two of the triangles together to make a large rectangle, and rolled them up like that, then I had to cut the dough and cook them so they were very little.  Cutting the dough sucked.

Then, they baked for about 12 minutes.  I burned one tray of them, but luckily it was the last tray that only had about 6 pinwheels on it.  I actually ended up cutting away the non-burnt part and eating it.

When I got to Niles’ house with this, I was angry at them.  They were a pain in the ass to make, I didn’t think they were that delicious, and they sure didn’t look that great.  My dad had one and said they were very good, but I was still bitter.

At Niles’ house, everyone LOVED them, and every single one was eaten.  Yay!!  Next time, however, I’m going to use the store bought dough.  It will make them MUCH simpler.  For something that isn’t 5 Stars, hours of work just isn’t worth it.

Spinach Pinwheels

Use either Pillsbury Crescent Rolls, or make your own dough.  Here is the recipe for a bread machine.

• 1 cup warm milk
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 2 eggs, beaten (I used egg whites only.  2/3 cup)
• 4 cups flour
• 1/4 cup sugar  (I used a bit less than this.  The original recipe called for 1/2 cup!)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 ounce active dry yeast or 2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast

Place wet ingredients in machine first, followed by flour.  Yeast goes in last, on top of flour.

This is where the recipe gets tricky.  I think next time I would let the dough rise before doing anything with it.  Then, I would separate it into two balls, roll them out, and cut rectangular shapes.  Then, inside the dough, you use:

• 1 (7 ounce) package garlic herb cheese spread
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

and distribute evenly.  I think I would use less dough so there is more cheese on each biscuit.

This recipe is all very confusing, and I don’t have the time right now to write it all out.  Basically, buy the store bought ones and it will be a LOT easier.  Plus, it probably makes less anyway, so there is more cheese per roll.

On to the cookies!

These were very fun to make.  Actually, no they weren’t, but they are just so delicious I’m pretending that they were fun (because I have nothing but good thoughts towards these cookies).

Follow all directions according to recipe.  I added more cranberries because I love them.  I used about 1.25 cups instead of just one.  I think it could use even more next time!

I also used a food processor because I was too lazy to chop up individual cranberries.  I tried a couple of them, and I just made a mess (and squirted cranberry juice all over!)

Drop cookies onto a cookie sheet using a spoon.  They should be about the size of a golf ball.

I was freaking out cause it was super late, and I was stressed I wasn’t going to get done in time (I was doing both of these recipes, and eating dinner all at the same time.  My dad helped take the cookies out of the oven while I was busy rolling up stupid pinwheels.  He wanted me to take his picture to show him being helpful!

These cookies were absolutely delicious.  I like pumpkin bread, and I like cranberries, and this was a mix of the two.  They are very cake-like cookies, and are extremely soft.  They would be called something better than cookies, but I don’t know what.  Someone said they are like soft scones.  The dough was clearly the consistency of cookies, but the cookie themselves are very soft.  I think next time I might make them in mini muffin tins.

I give this recipe 5 stars. My mom said she liked these ones a lot better than the cake-like Apple Cookies Megan made us in December (HA!).

I just ate three of them…….. and I ate one earlier today, too.

They’re just so delicious!!!

Cranberry Pumpkin Cookies

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 cup solid pack pumpkin puree
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 and  1/4  cup fresh cranberries
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon orange zest  (I used 1 tablespoon frozen OJ concentrate)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla, egg and pumpkin. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; stir into mixture until well blended. Cut the cranberries in half and stir into mixture along with the orange zest and walnuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until bottom of cookie is lightly brown.

Niles had made food too.  There was confusion there.  I thought he was telling me he was too busy to cook, so I would cook.  Then I got there, and he was cooking boatloads of food.  Luckily, it was the biggest Lost night yet with 10 people, and all of the food was eaten.  It worked out perfectly.

Sorry for the late post.  Right now I’m in a hurry to go to Rob’s house in Dartmouth.  I’m staying over, and we’re cooking dinner, and then tomorrow we’re going to see Watchmen.  I bought the graphic novel yesterday and I want to finish it before the movie.   I’m about 60% done.  After my family reads it, I’m donating it to the library.  It was a good purchase.  But now I’m off for a 2 hour drive (I got an audio book for the trip - Bill Bryson!).  I’m also bringing my computer and camera so I can blog about our adventures.  I also asked Rob if he’d devise a 3 mile run for us tomorrow morning!!!

I really enjoyed the pizza, but my dad thought it tasted too much like bread, and not enough like pizza dough.  He liked his homemade pizza better, but he bought his dough.   So really… his wasn’t fully homemade, and mine was.  So there!

I put everything in the bread machine under dough cycle again, and it was a lot different than the Italian bread dough.  This was a LOT stickier and I had a hard time getting it out of the container.

Then, I had to scrape out all the stuff that was still left in the container.

Then I started to cover it with flour and knead it a bit, when I felt something hard.  “Uh Oh, What’s that?”  I thought.  Oh, it was the little spinny thing that is suppose to be in the bottom of the container!  (I got my camera covered in lots of flour taking these pictures!)

After the dough sat for a bit, I rolled it out and placed it on the pizza peel (the wooden spatula thing).

Then I decorated it with sauce, cheese, peppers, scallions, mushrooms, and some deli ham we had in the fridge (for my dad).

I mixed some cooked TVP with tomato sauce and added that to a portion for me.  My mom wouldn’t try any until we looked up exactly what TVP was.  It is soy.  Now she is “not afraid of it”  and will eat it more willingly.

Here is the pizza cooked!  The second pizza was in the oven at 500°, the first one was only in at 400°.  The higher temperature was much better.  I also brushed the second pizza’s crust with olive oil.  So which of these made the crust better?  My mom thinks it was the higher temp.  So 500° it is!  I really enjoyed the pizza even though my dad said it was too “bread like.”  I like bread, so I was ok with it.

I did make a HUGE mess in the kitchen, and got flour everywhere.  This was a very messy and time consuming dinner.  That was the only down fall.  Oh, and getting the pizza off the peel and into the oven was also tricky.

Homemade Pizza

• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and brown sugar in the water, and let sit for 10 minutes.

1. Put all ingredients in bread machine following the instructions of the bread machine.  Flour is the second to last ingredient, and then the yeast is last.
2. After dough is done, separate into how many pizza you want.  I did two small ones, which was good cause a large one wouldn’t have fit on my pizza stone.
3. Once separated, leave the dough alone, covered for 10 minutes to let it settle.
4. Roll out the dough on a floured surface, and form on the pizza peel (or a wooden cutting board, or a clean piece of thick cardboard.
5. Decorate pizza with toppings
6. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (220 degrees C). If you are baking the dough on a pizza stone, you may place your toppings on the dough, and bake immediately. If you are baking your pizza in a pan, lightly oil the pan, and let the dough rise for 15 or 20 minutes before topping and baking it.
7. Bake pizza in preheated oven, until the cheese and crust are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.

I ran errands today.  Literally.  I RAN.  It was awesome.  First stop the post office box to mail a letter to the place where I applied to be a substitute teacher (they needed me to sign a sheet for a criminal background check).  Then I ran to the bank, CVS, and Walgreens (I bought a total of 4 boxes of cereal!), then I walked home (because I was carrying a lot of stuff).  It was about a two mile run, but then another one mile or so walk back (because I got hungry and wanted to get home the quickest way possible).  I needed to exercise and do errands, and be back home and showered by 2pm, so I decided to do them at the same time!  I thought it was a great idea until I checked the weather.  25 degrees.  Oooh that’s cold!

I have heard that when going for a run, you should dress like it is 20 degrees warmer.  Ok, so 45 degrees.  But should I dress to run in 45 degrees? Or walk in 45 degrees?  I have no idea.  I wore a sweatshirt and my winter jacket, and a hat, and both hoods.  The hat came off quickly because I got too hot, and then by the time I got to CVS I was way too sweaty and hot and it was awful.  But then I got outside and was freezing again, and I put on my coat that I had just taken off!  Stupid weather.

Dad isn’t going to be home for dinner tonight, so my mom wanted to do something simple.  Spaghetti!  My mom loves spaghetti.  But I didn’t want to do something too simple, so I am making my own Italian bread (using the dough setting on the bread machine).  I also want to make my own tomato sauce, but I think that it is too complicated.  I want to try to take some canned spaghetti sauce and add some stuff to it to make it taste better.  I also want to add some textured vegetable protein (TVP) to it, to make it like a “meat” sauce.  I read that I just add equal parts TVP to equal parts boiling water, and the TVP absorbs the water, and then I will just use it like meat.

And so, on to the process.  Lots of pictures!!!

Italian Bread using a bread machine

• 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1 1/3 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast (1.5 teaspoons)

Take all the wet ingredients, and put them in the canister first. Then, added the flour.

After the flour is added, hollow out a little hole, and add the yeast.

Put it in the bread machine and choose the “dough” setting.  An hour and twenty minutes for dough ??  That’s bull crap!

I used up four cups of flour so I looked through the cupboards to see if we had more.  While sifting through, I found a small Crystal Light packet, and I thought “Oohhh… I’ll be making that.”  Then, I found TWO boxes of generic Jell-O!  And I said “Ooohhh… I’ll be making that, too!!”   (and I had some peach jasmine tea, too)

The Crystal light is still on the counter, but I mixed the two flavors of Jello (Strawberry Banana and Raspberry), and made them right away!  I made the “quick” version with ice cubes because I wanted Jell-O right now!  (I even added some bananas to part of it).

After the machine dinged to tell me it was done, I took it out and placed it on a cutting board with flour.  It was a lot more dough that I expected!

Then I separated it into two loaves, let them rise for 40 minutes under a damp towel, and then put them on a cookie sheet.  I brushed them with egg, and put them in the oven for 35 minutes.

The final product!!!

Look at how beautiful and golden it is. (Oh, but I’ve just realized that I forgot to add the slices to the top to give it that characteristically Italian bread look. D’oh!)

1. Place flour, brown sugar, warm water, salt, olive oil and yeast in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select dough cycle; press Start.
2. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Form dough into two loaves. Place the loaves seam side down on a cutting board generously sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise, until doubled in volume about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
3. In a small bowl, beat together 1 egg and 1 tablespoon water. Brush the risen loaves with egg mixture. Make a single long, quick cut down the center of the loaves with a sharp knife. Gently shake the cutting board to make sure that the loaves are not sticking. If they stick, use a spatula or pastry knife to loosen. Slide the loaves onto a baking sheet with one quick but careful motion.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Spaghetti was made as usual, but I did make some TVP to add.  I did 1/2 cup TVP and 1/2 cup water.  Then, I microwaved it until all the water had been absorbed.

I fluffed it with a fork to make sure the water was all gone.

Then, I just mixed it in with tomato sauce before adding it to my spaghetti.

It tasted pretty good, it wasn’t bad at all, but I agree with my mom that she said it didn’t have much of a taste.  But it tasted fine with the sauce.  I made my mom try it, even though she said “It doesn’t look very appetizing.”  And I said “Come on mom, that’s where Dylan gets it.  Just try it.“  (Dylan is terrible about trying new foods.)

And here is the final product.  It looks just like ground up meat.

The TVP would make excellent Sloppy Joes!

And now I am too full to eat my Jell-O.  I’m waiting for my stomach to empty out some. 

I’ve been eating soup everyday for lunch lately, and I decided it would be best if I just made my own.  It would be healthier and more affordable.

Can of tomatos - $1.39 (the big 28 oz can)
Two cans of beans - $1.32
Pasta - $.32
One onion - $.34 (I’m guessing on this one)
Other ingredients - $.50

Total: $3.87  Makes 7 one cup servings.  $.55 per cup.  I eat two cups for lunch of the canned soup, but I’m not sure how much I will eat of the homemade.  Perhaps less soup will fill me up more.

The Market Basket cheap soup that I’ve been buying (cause it really does taste as good as Progresso) is $1.29 a can (16 oz).  $1.10 vs $1.29 sure isn’t that big of a difference.  But I was able to package up a soup for lunch tomorrow (I’m working at macy’s), I put two tupperware things in the freezer, each containing two cups, and then another cup is left over in a bowl in the fridge for someone else to enjoy.

Vegetarian Pasta Fagioli

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium sized onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (or 4 teaspoons dried)
• 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup ditalini pasta

1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat until hot. Add onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or until onion is tender.
2. Add undrained tomatoes, undrained cannellini beans, broth, parsley, basil and pepper to pan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Let boil for approximately 1 minute and then let simmer for 10 minutes, covered.
3. Add pasta to pan and simmer approximately 15 minutes or until pasta is tender. Serve immediately.

Makes seven cups of soup.

The process in pictures:

Making homemade vegetable broth!  I used one vegetable bullion cube, some carrot slices, and some onion peel, and added it to a bit over three cups of water.

Straining the broth so I would only get the liquid.  Dylan was my photographer for this shot.

Adding the spices.

Glass of wine while the soup simmers?  Don’t mind if I do!

The finished product.

And a close up.

We were going to have lasagne Wednesday night, but when it came time to make them, I couldn’t find the noodles, and after I called mom, she told me that dad wasn’t coming home anyway, so she and I should just make a frozen Bertoli dinner we had saved in the fridge.  Fine with me… I was late making the lasagne anyway (cause I was at the gym).  So I tossed the frozen thing in the oven, and noticed that it was frozen into a big chunk, just like a lot of our other food.  Meaning, it had defrosted a bit and then refroze from us being without power for 12 days (don’t worry, I moved all the food we saved to a friend’s house who still had power).  So far, none of us have gotten sick on anything we’ve eaten (and I’ve eaten stuff that we left in the freezer and fully defrosted after 12 days).

Thursday night turned into lasagne night.  That last time I made lasagne, we invited over three friends.  The six of us were able to finish the entire thing, and anyone who’s made lasagne knows that they are huge.  With only three of us eating it on Thursday, I knew I didn’t want to make a full lasagne, even though in the past, I always make a huge one.  My mom says “We’ll have lasagne for dinner, and then again for the next four days.”  It’s depressing how huge they are, and how much we have left over.  We usually freeze some, but it still makes boat loads.

I decided to try something different.  I decided to make two mini lasagnes.

I placed two 8×8 pans next to each other, and so I wouldn’t confuse myself, I just said “Ok, just think of it as one big pan.”

(Don’t worry, I only added a tad bit of woolite, for that delicate clean taste)

This white pan wasn’t as perfectly square as the clear one, so I had to trim the lasagne noodles a bit.  At first, I had the trimmings discarded on the side…. but then I realized that they were noodles, and they’d cook, so I threw the little pieces back in.  The white pan we use quite a bit, so I cooked that one, so we’d have the pan for later use.  The clear pan I rescued from our lazy susan.  It was being used to hold onions.  I washed it, and made my second lasagne in it.  The onions wouldn’t miss the pan, and I knew my mother wouldn’t, either.  Into the freezer it went, not to come out until we were desperate for food and no one wants to cook.  I foiled the top, and added instructions on how to cook.  It wasn’t until later that I realized it would have to cook longer because of the whole frozen aspect.  Barilla online suggested defrosting it for 24 hours in the fridge, and increasing the time to 1 1/2 - 2 hours.  So this can’t really be a spur of the moment dinner to just toss in the oven out of the freezer (but watch me try!)

The lasagne in the white pan came out beautifully, and we still have some left over, and this was just HALF a lasagne.  Luckily, tomorrow is Saturday so we’ll all be home for lunch.  It will get eaten up real quick!

I’m very proud of my resourcefulness, and the fact that we have a whole lasagne left over!

For the recipe, I just used the one on the box of the no boil lasagne noodles.  Next time I think I will try something a bit more adventurous, and more homemade and doctored up.

Lasagne:

1 (9 ounce) box of barilla no-boil lasagne noodles
2 eggs
1 (15 ounce) container semi-skim ricotta cheese
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 lb ground beef, browned
2 (27 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce

Preheat oven to 375.

In bowl, combine beaten eggs, ricotta cheese and two cups of the mozzarella cheese and parmesan.
Set aside.

In a 13X9X3 pan, spread 1 cup of sauce on bottom of pan.

Layer in the order, 4 uncooked lasagne noodles (they will overlap), then 1/3 part of the ricotta cheese mixture, half the browned meat (if using, I did not), 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and 1 cup of spaghetti sauce.

Next layer, 4 uncooked lasagne noodles, 1/3 part of the ricotta cheese mixture, and 1 1/2 c. sauce.

Next layer, 4 uncooked lasagne noodles, remaining ricotta mixture and remained meat, 1 cup of sauce.

For top layer, 4 uncooked lasagne noodles, remaining sauce, and remaining 1 cup mozzarella.

Bake covered with foil for 50-60 minutes.

Uncover and continue cooking until all the cheese is melted on the top (about 5 minutes).

Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

If you are using a pan that is only 2″ deep (like I was) just make 3 layers to avoid boiling over.  You will have 4 lasagne sheets left over.  Save them.  Once you’ve used three lasagne boxes, you’ll have 12 sheets saved up, and that’s enough for one more lasagne!

Here are the directions for using a 2″ deep pan:

1. In bowl, combine beaten eggs, ricotta cheese and two cups of the mozzarella cheese and parmesan.  Set aside.

2. In bottom of pan, spread 1/2 the sauce from one jar.

3. Layer in this order: 4 uncooked lasagne noodles (they will overlap), 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture, half the browned meat (if using, I did not), 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and then the rest of the first jar of spaghetti sauce.

4. Next layer, 4 uncooked lasagne noodles, 1/2 jar of second sauce, and one cup of mozzarella.

5. For top layer, 4 uncooked lasagne noodles, the rest of the ricotta mixture, the remaining sauce, and remaining 1 cup mozzarella.

Bake as stated above.

My practicum went really well.  I was there from 9am - 1pm.  We saw two clients for a whole intake assessment (50 minutes), and then another patient of my supervisor’s stopped in for a few minutes to chat about starting counseling again.  I just sat there the whole time, and observed.  I need to understand and watch the practice first, and then I’ll be able to do it myself!  I have to audio record myself in these sessions, and I need people who will allow me to record them.  That might be pretty tricky, and I hope I don’t have problems with it. But I only need to have three sessions recorded.  I need the first one by mid March.

I can’t go back tomorrow, because I have to babysit at 10:30 until 3ish (yay money!)  Unfortunately, my supervisor is going to Aruba on Thursday, and won’t be back until March 2nd.  I’ll have just under two weeks to get my first recording.  I can definitely do that!

After I was done at 1pm, I went home and had lunch.  Then, I went out to run some errands. I went to the Salvation Army, and didn’t find anything that looked good. Then I went to Michaels and I finally bought my yarn and needles for my afghan.  I bought size 50 needles, and the largest ones I have ever used in the past are size 13!

Here’s a picture of me with three sets of needles.  The blue ones are size 8 that were the first ones that I ever knit with (I made a scarf).  The pink ones are the biggest I’ve used in the past, and the huge red ones are the ones I just bought.  They’re called “Speed Stix.”  They’re so large that it makes knitting go faster.  But the afghan will probably be holey. But I think that’s what makes it an afghan.

I’m so excited to get started!  I have eight skeins of yarn that I have to roll into balls (it makes it easier to knit with).  The total of all my stuff came to $43 (I bought a cute pack of note cards for $1 - they have an ‘R’ on them and they’re blank inside).  I had a gift card that I got from Dylan for Christmas, and I figured I’d just front the rest in cash.  After the gift card went through, I only owed $3!!!  Dylan had gotten me a $40 gift card!!!   I called him to thank him, and told him I was able to buy everything with the card. Yay Dylan!

I stopped at the library and picked up 5 books.  One of them is Angels and Demons, which I want to read before the movie comes out in May.  I’ve heard from many people that it’s much better than the DaVinci Code. I think the other four are all memoirs.  I’ve like to read memoirs lately.

On to dinner!  I used the Sloppy Joes recipe that I got from the Low Iodine Cookbook.  My mom and I both give it 5/5 stars.  It is SOOO delicious.  Absolutely amazing.  I ate it on one hamburger bun, open faced, and doubled up on my meat.  It was so messy!

Sloppy Joes

1 pound ground beef or turkey or Quorn (beef only for LID)
1 small chopped onion
1 small chopped green bell pepper (cut really small)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup (to make it LID compatible, use no salt ketchup)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 Tablespoon cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Combine first three ingredients in large skillet. Cook until meat is browned, stirring to crumble, scoop the fatty water out of the pan with a spoon.
Add rest of ingredients to skillet and mix. Simmer 15 minutes.
Serves 4-5.

You know how good it was?  It was so good, I licked my plate clean.

Megan and I have a history of licking our plates, especially if there is pie involved.  I’ve gotten in the bad habbit of doing it even when there is no pie involved.  I physically had the plate up to my face, licking it with my tongue.  I was in the middle of talking to my mom, and she didn’t even flinch.  I think she’s used to it, too.

I must admit, my mom made most of this.  I was at the gym, and she was antsy to start eating, so she found the recipe on my computer, and was already making it when I got home.

Potato and Vegetable Soup

• 2 1/2 cups water
• 2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 tablespoon salt, or to taste
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/4 onion, chopped
• 1 cube vegetable bouillon
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup frozen mixed vegetables (I only used frozen green beans)
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of celery soup
• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• ground black pepper to taste

1. In a large stock pot boil potatoes in the 2.5 cups water and add salt. Cook potatoes until tender and soft and then add carrots, celery, chopped onions, vegetable of your choice, oil and bouillon. Mix together and cook until all vegetables are soft.
2. Add cream of celery soup and season with parsley, onion powder and pepper. If you desire a thinner type of soup you may want to add 1/2 cup of water.
3. Heat soup through, stirring occasionally, and serve.

Serves 6.

It was good.  I had it again for lunch today.  I added about 1/3 cup frozen peas (I sure do love vegetables!) and a little of milk too, because it had really dried up in the fridge.

I think it was too celery-y.  I didn’t really like using cream of celery soup, but that’s what it called for.  I would rather have used a flour and milk base instead.  Next time, I will probably make a regular potato soup and just add lots of vegetables.

Here’s the recipe for the dip I made.  It is entirely vegetarian, and a 7 ounce service (that’s almost a whole cup!) has only 140 calories.  My mom said “It seems fatty.”  Ahh… but it’s completely the opposite.

• 1 16 oz can refried beans or black beans
• 1 cup chunky salsa
• 2 cups plain yogurt (I used non fat)
• 1 cup sliced olives (black or green)
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded lettuce

1.  In a bowl, combine beans with 1/3 cup salsa.  Spread half of the mixture into a flat serving dish.

2.  Spread 1 cup yogurt over the bean mixture, followed by 1/2 cup olives, 1/3 cup salsa, 1/2 cup cheese, and 1/2 cup lettuce.

3.  Repeat layering.  Cover and chillin until ready to use.

Yield:  8 servings (7 oz per serving)

Calories with non fat yogurt - 140
Calories with low fat yogurt - 150
Calories with regular yogurt - 160 (abouts)

There are 10g of protein, 680mg of sodium, 4g of fiber, and 20% of your calcium needs.

I will say that it should be eaten the day it is made.  My parents tried their small portion the next night, 24 hours later, and it was too hard.  When we were eating it, it was soft and more dip like.  It also was pretty expensive to make, $5 perhaps?  Because everything needed to be bought for the dip.  Luckily, I eat yogurt and salsa, and I bought Mexican flavored cheese that I will then use to make quesadillas!  The olives and beans were used up in their entirety.  And the lettuce we already had.

Sausage Minestrone soup was pretty good. It wasn’t fantastic, but it was good. It was a bit too spicy, so I’m going to cut the red pepper flakes in half, from 1/4 t to 1/8. I’m also going to add more pasta, because my dad and I felt there was too little. It was a nice dinner with Italian bread and a salad. The bread was store bought. I should look into making my own sometime, and do a soup and bread night like Megan used to do. Here is the recipe for the soup with my added changes. I think I liked the pasta e fagioli better, and that didn’t have meat in it.

Sausage Minestrone Soup

2 T Extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups water
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (10.5 oz) chicken broth
1 t dried basil leaves

1 t dried oregano leaves
1/8 t crushed red pepper
12 oz Italian turkey sausage, thoroughly browned
2/3 cup pasta – ditalini or small shells
1 (16 oz) cannellini beans, drained

Heat oil in large saucepan over med heat. Add onion and garlic cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add water, tomatoes with liquid, broth, basil, oregano and crushed pepper. Bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, cut sausage crosswise into ½-inch slices. Cut each slice into quarters. Stir sausage, and pasta into soup; simmer 13 minutes or until pasta is tender. Add beans; cook until heated through.

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Speaking of Megan, she called me today, and we talked for a whole hour! I still miss her and I still wish that she and Mac would move home to the US. She said that Mac wouldn’t be able to get a job, but they could live near me, and he could help me run my garden and tend to the chickens! We would have our own little eco-community.

I spent a lot of time today looking at recipes to make later this week. I think I want to try a potato soup. It will be like a clam chowder, but without clams. They make a good one at Panera Bread that I enjoy. It’s the only one I’ve ever had. Monday night I have class, so I won’t be making anything. Wednesday night we’re going out to dinner with Bob and Gail for Gail’s birthday. That’s two days I don’t need to make dinner.

While talking to Megan, I mentioned to her that it seems like every single dinner they make is delicious. She is always writing on her blog about how wonderful their dinner was. I don’t understand how they can continuously cook fantastic meals. Megan explained it differently, and said that perhaps she just isn’t picky. Either way, I still find it amazing that they are able to cook meal after meal that she (and probably also Mac) find delicious. I thought the pot pie was delicious, but I don’t think that this soup was. I’d give it 3/5 stars. The pot pie gets 5/5!  Perhaps I should start rating all of my recipes like this.

I also need to get better at photographing my meals.  I should decorate my plate with fancy napkins, and decorate the food with fresh basil or parsley.  I also should not use my iPhone as my camera!  It makes the food look not-so-good.

Update (the next morning):  I tried my first hand at food photography!  I think they came out pretty damn good!  Muuuuuuch better than the iPhone.

Dinner with Larry (the veggie pot pie) was great!  I did all the work myself, and made the veggie pot pie, mashed potatoes, and a mixed green salad with spinach.

I modified a chicken pot pie recipe.  Here it is:

• 1 cup sliced carrots
• 1 cup frozen green peas   (or four cups of any vegetables)
• 1 cup frozen green beans
• 1 cup sliced celery
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 3/4 cups vegetable broth
• 2/3 cup milk
• 2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
2. In a saucepan, combine all the vegetables. Add water to cover and boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
3. In the same saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Slowly stir in the broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick.  Remove from heat and set aside.
   
4. Put the bottom pie crust in the pie pan, dust with egg whites, and cook for 5ish minutes.  (this makes sure it isn’t doughy) - do this step while the liquid is thickening
   
5. Mix the vegetables into the milky liquid. Pour entire mix into pie dish. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape. Brush with egg whites.
   
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes (on a cookie tray to prevent spills), or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.If the broth and milk isn’t thick enough, the pie will come out wet and will be hard to serve.  It will still be delicious, and will thicken once it cools a bit.  To make a chicken pot pie, cut vegetables to 2.5 cups, and one pound cut chicken.  Add raw chicken to the vegetables, and boil all for 15 minutes, instead of 10.  You can then also use chicken broth.  Four cups of vegetables would be good, and any kind of vegetables.  Even a bag of mixed frozen vegetables would be great.

We ate the entire pot pie!!! After dinner, we had to admit to Larry we didn’t have anything for dessert.  I mentioned that we had ice cream in the freezer, but we didn’t have any chocolate syrup or whipped cream.  I got out my computer, and found a super easy recipes to make chocolate syrup! (I had to cut it down, the original recipes served 32!)

* 1/4 cup cocoa powder (not sweetened)
* 3/8 cup sugar (3/8 cup = 3 oz, a bit under 1/2 cup)
* 1/16 teaspoon salt (half of a 1/8 teaspoon)
* 3/8 cup water
* 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

I got out some frozen strawberries we had in the freezer, defrosted them in the microwave, got out some peanuts, and we cut up a banana.  We were able to make banana splits!  We thought we had no dessert, but we ended up having a fabulous homemade dessert.  The chocolate syrup came out great.  It was a fantastic meal.  All aspects.  Plus, my dad did all the dishes!  That’s one thing I love about cooking, no one ever expects me to do the dishes!

Look at the empty pie dish in front of my dad!  That bowl with the red in it are the strawberries!

This was my bowl of ice cream.  It’s a bit messy, but it was yummy!

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In non-food news:

I applied to be a substitute teacher today for the Fitchburg Public School system.  I think I should also apply to the other two local towns, Lunenburg and Leominster.   Being a sub would be good hours for me, and I’d still have time for class, and to do my practicum.  I would also get very good experience working with kids.

I think I have decided that I want to do my internship with hospice (working with people who are going to die within 6 months).  I would be able to work with a wide range of clients.  Elderly who are dying and their families, and also younger people who are dying and their families.  Possibly even children who are dying, or working with young children whose parents are dying.  I think that it would be extremely hard, but I also think it would be extremely rewarding.  I think I will learn a lot about life, and about death.  There are hospice places in Leominster and Fitchburg, but I think I should venture out to Worcester.  It would be neat to work in a new community, and perhaps I will be motivated to go out after work.  Also, I definitely won’t have money to pay for an apartment to live anywhere else.  I need to stay living at home, and save all the money I possibly can.  I had to pay my Visa bill today (for my tuition bill); it was $1700.  I am just now starting to freak out over money.  The good thing is that I haven’t been buying anything lately.  My only expenses are gas (but barely), car insurance ($150 a month), and my cell phone ($60 a month).  I need to make at least $250 a month to break even.

I would like to go tomorrow to buy yarn for the afghan I want to knit.  Yarn is on sale (still $4.50 a skein, and I need 8 of them!) at Michael’ s Craft Store, and I have a gift card.    This is the afghan I want to make.  I like the colors, but I will make it without the fringe, because I read reviews that said it was annoying, and frayed a lot.

I am slowly getting things done.  I finally clearled out my magazines and put them in the recycling.  And of course, another Marie Claire arrived in the mail today.  D’Oh!  I got my oil changed this week, only 3,000 miles late!  D’Oh!  I cleaned my room up and bit (and completely made my bed - I never do that!).  I still have two piles of trash that need to be cleared out, including a hair dryer that I broke, because it fell off my bed one too many times (I would fall asleep with it at the foot of my bed, and kick if off). It was slowly breaking in half, and I kept having to push it back together.  Things would rattle inside, but it never caught my hair on fire.  This last time, it made a horrible noise and I smelled smoke, so I unplugged it and threw it in the trash.  I vowed to not buy another one, because we have two other hairdryers in the house that I can use.

I also want to rearrange my room.  It feels like time.  If I do, I’ll be sure to post before and after shots.

These are all little things, but it feels good to accomplish things.