wellness

Wellness is the ability to eat an A1 Thick and Hearty from Whataburger at midnight. I would normally not endorse such nonsense (please, do not eat fast food…ever), but for us this burger was monumental. A mark of certain health. Deserving of a toast (of fountain Dr. Pepper). Or a loud halleluiah. Ben is back…well sort of. We are going to take it slowly on the “real” foods, but at least we now have duck and burgers once again dancing around in our minds like sugar plum fairies (and we are going to eat them too). Thank you so much for any and all of your prayers- your time was well spent!  Now we are on the road to fattening him up…but if my mama taught me anything, she taught me how to do that. I will proudly don my apron and accept the challenge.

I have learned that illness is very difficult when you love someone this much. Love has the ability to make you feel the most helpless, the most toppled, and the weakest while at the same time feeling the most blessed for the privilege to be so meaningfully connected to one specific person. I can only imagine how difficult it will be to have children one day…

Savory French toast

just a little afternoon snack

Start with 3-4 slices Rosemary pugliese (rosemary bread, but I think ciabatta or sour dough would work great too). In a wide shallow bowl, mix 1 egg + ¼ cup heavy cream + ¾ cup milk + 1 teaspoon fresh chopped oregano and/or rosemary + pinch of salt and pepper. Turn on your broiler. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a cast iron skillet. Soak bread in wet mix then fry on high heat in the butter. Place french toast on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with shredded gouda cheese. Broil for just about 30 seconds to a minute (til cheese is bubbly!). Serve immediately!

home is wherever i'm with you

I used to not mind the termites in our bathroom. They were kind of entertaining to watch, trailing along on their little missions to and from somewhere important, while I was brushing my teeth or taking a shower. But things have recently gotten out of hand… I caught one crawling over my toothbrush. A bit brazen of these little buggers, eh?? Just having a festival all over our bathroom and not even minding our stuff, in fact probably loving the obstacles like a kid at Discovery Zone.

[Remember Discovery Zone? My “cool” aunt Susie used to take us there when we would come visit her here in the big city. We would wear our little selves out crawling through all those tubes and slides and balls and more tubes with all the other grimy little kids. After taking Microbiology, the thought of a DZ kind of makes my skin crawl.]

But back to our little house-guests. Despite these termites, I truthfully love my home. One day I will look fondly back at this old fourplex and sigh with sweet gratitude. At my roommates: the opera singer downstairs and her husband that always takes our trashcans to the street; the flautist/clarinetist/loud-tooting-instrumentalist-of-some-sort Rice student next door (that I appreciate much more now that she has advanced past her scales); and Kavita, the neighbor dog, so sweetly submissive that she cannot help but pee a little upon greeting you. At the sink with no disposal. At the gas-lit fireplace that Quimby absolutely loves. At the front door that jams every time it rains. At the world-famous Texas Medical Center skyline out our window. At the Rice announcer I can hear any time they have a baseball game. And most memorably, at our first nest as husband and wife. 

tomatoes roasting...

so good. really, so good.

Creamy Roasted Tomato & Basil Soup

Makes 6-7 cups 

Ingredients:


1 ½ lbs Roma tomatoes, sliced lengthwise


3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


2 tablespoons unsalted butter


1 medium yellow onion, diced


6 garlic cloves, minced


1 tablespoon fresh thyme, minced


1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes


2 cups basil leaves, roughly chopped


2 tablespoons dried basil


1 tablespoon sugar


2 cups low sodium chicken broth


salt and pepper to taste


2/3 cup heavy cream


garnish:


goat cheese, crumbled (such a good compliment)

Directions:


1. Preheat oven to 375°F.


2. Spread tomato halves onto a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.


3. Roast tomatoes for about 1 hour.


4. While tomatoes are in the oven, melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat.


5. Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes.


6. Stir in the garlic and thyme and sauté for another 5 minutes.


7. Add crushed tomatoes, basils and sugar. Season with salt and pepper.


8. Stir the mixture and reduce the heat to medium or medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, covered.


9. Pour broth and roasted tomatoes into the pot. Season with salt and pepper.


10. Continue to simmer soup, covered, for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.


11. Carefully puree soup with an immersion blender until smooth.


12. Stir in the cream until fully incorporated.


13. Ladle soup into bowls and top each soup with a sprinkle of goat cheese-serve hot!

Only slightly adapted from Spoon Fork Bacon

soup

Sweet Potato Soup with Fried Pancetta and Rosemary croutons

1 (3-ounce) package thinly sliced pancetta (Italian bacon), chopped

1 ½ tablespoons butter (then about 1 tablespoon more for the croutons)

1 cup sliced shallots (3 or 4 large)

1 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary (then ½ tsp more for the croutons)

2 cups mashed peeled red-skinned sweet potatoes

3 cups chicken broth

½ cup heavy cream

1 cup (1/3-inch) cubes country-style sourdough bread

Sauté pancetta in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to paper towels.

Add 1 1/2 tablespoons butter to drippings in same saucepan; add shallots and reduce heat to medium. Sauté until shallots are soft and golden, about 4 minutes. Stir in 1 teaspoon rosemary (and I threw in some fresh chopped oregano), then mashed sweet potatoes and 3 cups broth. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 10 minutes to blend flavors. Add the cream about 5 minutes in. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Puree soup with an immersion blender or ladle soup into a regular blender to blend until smooth.

Meanwhile, melt remaining 1 (or 2) tablespoons butter in small skillet over medium-high heat. Add bread cubes and remaining ½ teaspoon rosemary and sauté until croutons are crisp and golden, about 3 minutes.

Ladle soup into bowls. Top with croutons and pancetta and serve.

ensuring

Oh, hello dear readers. I seem to have distanced myself momentarily from this blog (unfortunately that is a direct reflection of my distance from the kitchen). It is just not as fun to cook when there is no one to eat the finished product. husBen is about to make the switch from Ensure to other-things-also-liquid-but-at-least-not-Ensure and we are really excited about that. I am growing quite tired of hearing that everyone’s grandma had to do this same Ensure diet…right before they died…thanks for the empathy? Anyway, I got to spend some good time dining with girlfriends this week so I whipped up a little granola for them from a recipe I’ve been using for years. Hope ya’ll enjoyed it (because it makes me happy when you do).

Cranberry Almond Granola with White Chocolate Chips

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

2 cups old-fashioned oats

½ cup slivered almonds

1/3 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1/3 cup pecan halves

1/3 cup frozen concentrated apple juice cocktail, thawed

1/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

pinch of salt

1 cup dried sweetened cranberries

¾ cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray heavy large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Combine oats, almonds, coconut, and pecans in large bowl. Combine cranberry juice concentrate, brown sugar, oil, cinnamon, salt and allspice in medium saucepan. Bring to boil, whisking until sugar dissolves. Pour hot syrup over oat mixture; stir to coat evenly. Spread mixture out on prepared sheet. Bake until golden brown at edges, about 20 minutes. Add cranberries; using metal spatula, stir to blend. Bake until granola is golden and beginning to dry, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes longer. Cool completely on baking sheet. Once entirely cool, add white chocolate chips and stir to blend. Now share!

In sickness and in health…

I vowed these words at an altar not so long ago and boy, am I getting my chance to prove them now. I sincerely apologize to you if you have been the recipient ear to my laments lately, as I have humbly found I am not so great at this sacrificially supportive wife thing. Sweet husBen has recently been saddled with a little illness (gastroparesis) and I am helplessly determined to encourage him through it (helplessly being the keyword here).  I so wish I could take this pain from him, or even share half of it with him, but I am unable. I do not know enough or have the right guns at this point in my life. I am constantly reminding myself to be patient, as I foster his patience, to persevere as I encourage his perseverance, and to keep proper prospective, as his perspective in this trial is crucial.  Short of joining him in his Ensure diet purely for solidarity’s sake, I plan to try out some soups and soft foods for alternate nourishment when he is ready. I apologize in advance for the upcoming pseudo-baby food recipes (just kidding, who doesn’t like soup?), but as I promised the kid, I will always love him, in sickness and in health. 

pumpkin pie

What better way to acknowledge nature's attempt to announce the new season than to bake a pumpkin pie? It's fall! Or at least it is no longer 90 degrees outside. Enjoy the weather and this easy pie.

Pumpkin Pie

1 packaged (yes, I used packaged) pie crust (comes with 2 rounds)

1 cup (packed) brown sugar

2 large eggs

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ to ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 ¼ cup canned pure pumpkin
1 cup heavy whipping cream

For crust: 
Position oven rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 350°F. Transfer crust to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Fold edges under and crimp decoratively. I cut out some leaves with a cookie cutter with the extra pie dough. Freeze crust 20 minutes.

Line crust with nonstick foil around the edges and fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until crust is set, about 20 minutes. Gently remove foil and beans. Return crust to oven and bake until partially cooked and golden brown around edges, pressing down on crust with back of spoon if bubbles form, about 15 minutes. Cool crust on rack. Keep your oven hot.

For filling: 
Whisk brown sugar, eggs, sea salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and pie spice in medium bowl. Add pumpkin and cream and whisk until well blended and smooth.

Pour filling into crust. Bake pie until filling is firm, covering crust with foil collar again (I did this for sure) if browning too quickly, about 30 minutes. At this point I put the leaves around the border of my pie and stuck it back in the oven for nearly another 30 minutes. Adjust cook time according to your oven (center of pie should be set and not wobbly!)

Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.

french macarons

FRENCH MACARONS

I mostly followed the recipe from http://flour-and-butter.blogspot.com/2011/07/chocolate-macarons.html

CONFESSIONS

Turns out I am not so strong when someone I love is the patient in the hospital gown.

I will inevitably think differently of you if you tell me your favorite restaurant is Applebee’s.

I am not afraid to eat off other people’s plates (and I actually really enjoy it).

I hate men with blowers just about as much as you can hate anything.

I subconsciously tug at my eyebrows when I get nervous (before I took the MCAT, a whole section of my left eyebrow vanished :)

I am only as bossy as anyone around me is lazy I am bossy.

I really like dark chocolate. Hardly a day goes by that I don’t indulge this craving.

Large herds of girls intimidate me.

I am unapologetically and often intentionally late to most everything.

I get anxiety for about the whole month of December, which has caused me to be uncertain as to whether or not I like Christmas (I love love love the family aspect of it and I wholly appreciate the birth of baby Jesus, so I think the presents are the root of all my angst).

I was spanked as a child. And I plan to spank my children.

I often wish I had a Nerf gun with me on my bike rides to school so that I could politely remind people not to take up the whole sidewalk and help cars know to wait their turn.

I am a really good keeper of other people’s secrets (future HIPAA champ?)

Despite the fact that I love to cook, if I lived alone I would probably eat cereal followed by a bowl of Blue Bell for nearly every meal.

Medical school (especially Developmental Anatomy, Microbiology, Genetics, and Behavioral Science) has made me wonder how any of us turned out normal (and thankful that we did…for the most part).

I am a terrible driver. I am not so sure I know all the rules… and I like to drive a little fast and crazy.

My need to eat Kashi GoLean everyday for breakfast meets the criteria for a compulsion.

I have a natural affinity for red hair. I think God planted it in my mind when he thought me up. I immediately like you more if you are so well endowed with a head of red. 

I think these French Macarons are too she-she poo-poo fancy for me (I am still not good at making them yet) and that they will eventually go the way of the cupcake (aren’t those out of style yet?) and the Furby.

cooking catharsis...

Fricassee of Creminis

Adapted from Bon Appetite, serves 2-3

The Noodles:

6.5 ounces all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

2 large eggs, at room temperature

Combine the flour and eggs in the bowl of a mixer and use a dough hook to knead for 10 minutes. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest for at least 30 minutes. Roll out dough as thin as possible and slice into ½ inch wide strips. Boil water with salt in a large pot and briefly cook the pasta (about 5 minutes) al dente.

The Sauce:

4 tablespoons butter, divided

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned and halved

½ cup heavy cream

Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon fresh oregano plus more for garnish

Fresh lemon juice

Melt 2 tablespoons butter with 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly golden, 4–5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in wine and cook until liquid is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter, remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Add cream and nutmeg and cook until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in 1 teaspoon fresh oregano. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Toss cooked pasta into the skillet. Serve with oregano to garnish.

Dutch baby

My mom always cooked breakfast for us growing up. She would wake up, drag herself to the kitchen in her robe, pour herself a big Dr. Pepper (that we would sneak sips of until it was nearly empty), and make us something impressive. We were expected to be at the breakfast table at 7:30 (regardless of the day of the week) in order to sit down as a family and share a meal together. I have this vivid memory of my mother, squatted down on the floor in her robe, peering through the oven window, watching with appreciation as this Dutch baby puffed up in its skillet.

Dutch Baby

From the Cast Iron Skillet Cookbook (thanks Mrs. Patti)

2 tablespoons butter

4 extra large eggs

½ cup all-purpose flour

½ cup milk

To top:

3 tablespoons butter

Juice of 1 small lemon

½ cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 425°F. To make the Dutch baby, melt the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet over low heat. Mix the eggs, flour, and milk in a blender on medium speed until just blended, 5-10 seconds. Pour the batter into the skillet with the melted butter.

Place skillet in the oven and bake until the top puffs up and is lightly golden, about 20-25 minutes.

To clarify the butter for the topping, melt it over low heat in a small saucepan. Skim off and discard the foam. Remove from the heat and let stand until the solids settle, about 5 minutes. Pour through a strainer into a glass measuring cup.

*Feel free to skip this step and just melt some plain ol’ butter to pour over your hot Dutch baby!

When the Dutch baby is done, drizzle the butter over the top, then sprinkle with lemon juice, and dust with the powdered sugar. Cut into six wedges and serve immediately! Serve with syrup.

im alive!

Oh hello world! But first, note to the self that survived that marathon of exams: remember to enjoy the means, not just the end. I was abrasively reminded this week by nothing less than a tragedy that I must avoid the idea of “just getting through” a rough time period; I cannot wait to love my life until this part of the process is over, or I would miss out on the joy and appreciation garnered by this hard work it entails. You see, we may not all live to the end of the process, so we must enjoy (or at least value, appreciate, acknowledge the significance of) each of the moments that make it up.

A girl in my class died halfway through our testing period (last Friday). I did not know her well enough to say, but I do hope she was enjoying this education process and not holding out for some future (and empirically elusive) comfort. Her name was Natalie… and she will henceforth remind me to enjoy each day, not as if it were my last (no, I would NOT study if I doubted tomorrow), but as if it were specially given to me to do something awesome with. I should appreciate my privilege to exist, from that first cup of coffee to that final glass of wine and all the moments in between.  

Time out

Calling for a time out. I have to abstain from excessive blogging for the next two weeks while I take exams (one down, five to go!). The last thing whipped up in my kitchen was an embarrassing amount of spaghetti that I hope husBen will happily eat for the next week or so for dinner—I do not think I need to post a picture of that…you know how to make spaghetti. I have already begun my list of things to cook/bake as soon as I break out of this academic bondage so I will see you then! 

praise praise

Ben came home from school on Thursday with a huge grin on his face. “I got the job!” he beamed. He has been interviewing since August for a job to occupy next summer (law students start early!) and I do believe the only part of it he was left to enjoy was getting to wear his fancy suit all the time (oh, and of course “needing” to purchase more ties). All his stress joyfully abated when he got the email from his shiny new employers at Looper Reed. You should see this kid now- freed from the burden of unemployment and excited to work hard! I wanted to celebrate him so I made him a little cake while he was out to dinner with some friends and offered it to him on this hilarious plate we have that says…

personal chocolate toffee molten cake

He is special. Everyday really.

We also opened a celebratory bottle of wine to toast his accomplishment/blessing. The commemorative cork jumped into our growing wine diary—we write on the corks and save them in a giant bowl—thus solidifying our excitement for future reference.