Daily Fluff

I have been a very busy Christmas elf over the past couple weeks, so instead of anything of substance, you get TWO overly adorable photos of Beau and his new bestie, Turner.  He babysits and I'm obsessed.

 

Happy holidays!



 

 

 

 

 

Holiday Season!

Welcome to the holidays!!  I love this time of year, and I feel like I am starting to get into the holiday spirit! It has been oddly warm in Rhode Island (almost 60 today...whattt???), but looks like maybe some winter is coming next week.  Stud and I got our tree up before Thanksgiving, hopefully it survives until Christmas!  He has a TERRIBLE schedule this year, no holidays off, so we started early so he can enjoy the season on his few days off. It was also the last day off we had together until January, so we were one of those weird couples embracing the holiday creep.  We listened to Christmas music for one day then went back to normal until after Thanksgiving...I promise!!

I was able to get home for Thanksgiving, but as I mentioned, poor Stud was stuck here working.  We made some big meals on Monday and Tuesday to last him through the week, Mushroom Lasagna and Bolognese (coming soon!).  So at least I know he was eating well and he had Beau to keep him company.  And I brought him back some gifts and prizes....

I had no idea you could FLY with airplane bottles!!  I crammed as many as I could into one quart size bag, and no questions were asked!  Good to know... I had a great break home, it had been about six months since I had seen my family.  So I did a lot of relaxing, eating, sitting, napping, and eating. As I said, it was nice.  Our Thanksgiving is always a late lunch, and just my family of four (five when Stud can make it), and of course, we need TWO pies for four people.  AND IT WAS ALL AMAZING. I also get to go and see Stud's family for dinner on Thanksgiving, so I get two meals - it's the best. I practice for weeks.  It always so nice to see everyone during the holidays!

EASY Pad Thai

So Stud and I are fans of ethnic food (he much more so than me...there is this Ethiopian place he really wants to try, and I keep switching it back to Pan-Asian), and for him, the spicier the better.  I am always on the lookout for meals we can easily make at home, where the level of spice can be adjusted for each one of us.  We have been making pad thai for a few years now, but it was always such a PROCESS that we hadn't made it in a while.  Then I stumbled upon this super fast recipe on Cup of Jo and decided we had to give it a try. There are some uniquely Asian ingredient on the list, but they are things we tend to have on hand since we make Asian food quite a bit.  I also made some adjustments, because well, we wanted a little more pizzaz and we are down with mega leftovers.

EASY Pad Thai

1 lb rice noodles

1 lb chicken breast, diced

4 eggs

1-2 shallots, diced

4 cloves garlic, diced

3 green onions, chopped, white and greens separately

Cilantro (if wanted)

Peanuts (rough chop)

Canola Oil

Lime Juice

Sauce:

1/2 c. chicken stock

4 T brown sugar

6 T fish sauce

2 T soy sauce

1 T Sambal Oelek (can be omitted or increased)

Whisk all the sauce ingredients together and put 3-4 T over the chicken to marinate and set the rest aside.  Then, since this comes together so quickly, I like to get the rest of the ingredients ready, so time for some chopping.  Also, follow the directions on the package of rice noddles - usually involves letting them sit in the hot water for 10-20 minutes depending on the thickness.  Once everything is chopped, add some oil to a large skillet and heat up the oil, and add the chicken.  Cook until there are no obvious pink parts remaining and push to the side of the skillet where it can continue to cook.  Add some more oil if necessary, and add the shallots, garlic, and the whites from the green onions.  Saute for a couple minutes until the shallots begin to soften, then crack in the eggs, breaking the yolks. I like to let them sit and get some brown parts, but up to you, so I let them sit a while, then stir, then let them sit, then stir etc until the eggs are all cooked.  Add in the noodles, sauce, green parts of the green onions, cilantro, and peanuts and stir until the noodles have absorbed all the sauce.  Squeeze the juice from one lime over the pad thai, top with sriracha and enjoy!

Another Year...

Welp, another year has passed and here I am, blogging again.  I am going to try this time...really I am!  I have no more class (haven't for a while now), Stud and I are still eating delicious foods, and we still are learning about our new city - Providence.  So I thought why not.  Stud has actually been cooking ME dinner for the past month or so (maybe I can get him to write some up here again!), he had a relatively easy month, but we are heading into a long winter with his schedule, and I will be doing a lot more of the cooking.  Example - right now.  Stud is working, and I am experimenting with some Black Bean Burgers.  They are in the oven and they smell delicious, but I think I needed to mash the beans more.... Hopefully they don't completely fall apart!

In conclusion, I am back.  Again.  Woot!