“What can X offer me?”

A swift kick in the pants is what I can offer you! Can’t handle that kind of entitlement!

My to-be sister-in-law (WHAT?!?) sent me this recipe once I got back from Australia. As I was making it, I was like — hey! This is just like lentil soup! But, well, it isn’t, really. Well, sort of… but with a twist.

I’m making no sense, right? Anyway, I love me some lentil soup, but this stuff had me moaning and licking my spoon with extra gusto.

Yes, TMI.

Anyway, here’s the recipe. I translated into American for you… I’m nice like that!

Sausage and Squash Lentils, adapted from Alexandra’s recipe.

3 tsp olive oil

2 sausages. I used mild Italian chicken sausage (instead of “chevapis,” whatever that is). I suspect chevapis is heavier and fattier, but oh well! You use what you got!

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping tsp fennel seeds (CRUCIAL!)

1/8 heaping tsp chili powder (I was out of paprika, and yes, I know they aren’t the same even though they are both red!. Regardless, it was good).

2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped into 1/2″ bits

(optional) 2 stalks celery, chopped into 1/2″ bits (my celery was limp by the time I got to it, so I didn’t use it. Can’t say it’s crucial!)

1 package frozen butternut squash (I estimate about 2 cups), thawed

13 oz green lentils

1 bay leaf

1 heaping tsp dried thyme

4 cups water

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

Heat the 2 tsp of the oil in a medium frying pan over medium-high heat. Cut the sausage into pieces (you could remove the casing, but I was being lazy) and cook until evenly browned. Break up into medium-sized pieces with a wooden spoon while cooking. Remove sausage from heat and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat the remaining 1 tsp of oil, add onions, garlic, and fennel seeds, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring often. Add chili powder (or paprika, if you want to follow the rules!) and stir to coat, then cook one more minute. Add carrots, celery (if using), and squash, and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add lentils, bay leaf, thyme, water, and broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and cook, covered for 30 minutes. Return sausage to pan and season with pepper and salt to taste.

Garnish with cilantro to serve.

ENGAGED!

Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia

18 August 2011

]]> http://whatitiz.wordpress.com/2011/09/06/i-went-to-australia/feed/ 3 whatitiz P1040453b P1040468 P1040472 P1040480 P1040472b http://whatitiz.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/yup-that-about-sums-it-up/ http://whatitiz.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/yup-that-about-sums-it-up/#comments Thu, 21 Jul 2011 16:18:01 +0000 Jenni http://whatitiz.wordpress.com/?p=1056 ]]>

(Don’t know how to credit this one, but it came from here)

My summer has been, well, lazy. Aussie and I have spent time getting back into the swing of things, sleeping in on the weekends and eating leisurely breakfasts, having weekly date nights and exploring our city, plodding our way through “McLeod’s Daughters.” I’d almost feel guilty about our inertia, but, well, the weather isn’t exactly pushing us to action.

That leisurely pace essentially ends now, though. Starting this weekend, it’s WEDDING SEASON (you know what I mean!). In just over three weeks, we’ll be on our way to Australia for what will be the longest vacation of my life (ohmygod, I can’t wait). And then… whoa. It will be September.

Where is this non-summer summer going?

In case you think I’ve been luxuriating far too much in the diminished responsibilities of summer, behold:

It only took me 5 years to get to a farmer’s market… and all Matt and I wanted to make with our spoils was pizza! Fresh peas, artisan sausage, and spinach from the market added to the ricotta, pesto, and parmesan in our fridge made for a very tasty pie.

My ice-cream experimentation continues, this time with Strawberry Sour Cream Ice Cream (recipe, of course, from The Perfect Scoop). Best ice cream ever? Quite possibly. Unfortunately, we aren’t eating enough ice cream to keep up with my making of it, so I’ve got to slow down on this!

My child-self looooved stuffed shells (really, what’s not to love?), but at some point Mom stopped making them. Probably something to do with too much cheese and carbs. So, I made them for my adult-self… and I am still deeply in love (because, REALLY, what’s not to love)? I cooked them in two pie pan and made cute little spirals out of the shells. Really, love. Recipe from 101cookbooks, although I took the lazy route and used jarred sauce.

It took me THIRTEEN MONTHS to finish these socks. One is about an inch taller than the other. Nobody’s perfect. (For the curious: Grumperina’s “Jaywalker Socks,” Koigu Painter’s Palette Premium Merino in an unknown colorway).

Aaaaand… that’s all for now. Pardon the thoroughly uninspired sign-off.

First up: AH-mazing (as in, the most delicious thing ever, I died and went to heaven) Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies. I made these for our belated Father’s Day celebration, since, when we were kids, no road trip was complete with Dad buying Nutter Butters from a convenience store — which he would *kind of* share with us. Recipe from The Grand Central Bakery Cookbook.

(These are very much a “sometimes” food!)

Also for Father’s Day, one of Dad’s indulgences from my childhood — Rum Raisin ice cream. Dad and Aussie gave it the thumbs up. None for me, thankyouverymuch. Recipe from The Perfect Scoop.

(Blurry on purpose so you don’t have to see the raisins polluting the fantastic rummy custard base!)

Not for Father’s Day, or even for Aussie (since he likes rum raisin), but purely for me — Vanilla Ice Cream, Philly-style. My first experience with vanilla beans!* Recipe also from The Perfect Scoop (hasn’t failed me yet).

(Most boring picture ever. Enjoy).

It wasn’t all cooking, though. I also made my sister a MAGENTA (the color deserves all caps) slouch hat. “Taylor Swift Inspired Diamond Slouch Beret” by Julie Grantz.

(I’m smirking at YOU!)

But then… back to food. Aussie was so enamored with the blueberry muffins I made last week (and the European romance of eating pastries with breakfast), that he requested another breakfast treat this week. I made Low Fat Banana Nut Bread from Gina’s Skinny Recipes (as muffins instead of a loaf… just reduced baking time to 23 mins), which was described as tasting both like banana AND nuts, and therefore delicious.

(This photo is not, however, delicious.)

And that’s about it! Now I’m just twiddling my thumbs hoping the sun makes an appearance sometime. A girl can only bake (and eat) so much, right?

*Side note: Vanilla bath products have totally nailed it. They smell EXACTLY like vanilla beans. Nice one.

I walked into Whole Foods on Friday to get milk for breakfast (or something equally mundane) and saw all these signs declaring that BLUEBERRIES WERE $1.99 A PINT FOR TODAY ONLY!!!

Huh.

I don’t really like blueberries.

Does Aussie like blueberries?

I don’t know… but probably. I mean, he likes all other fruit (melons not included), right?

It’s $2… I mean, that’s super cheap. Worst case I’ll drink a bunch of smoothies this weekend.

And then I bought the blueberries.

Turns out Aussie does like blueberries… at least, well enough. So I made him some blueberry pancakes, which I didn’t even try, because, duh, I don’t really like blueberries. He said they were tasty, though, and they certainly came out pretty!

I put some in a smoothie.

Aussie tried to infuse some vodka with blueberries. We’ll see how that goes.

None of this really impressed me, but these muffins… well, these were different!

These are Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins from Gina’s Skinny Recipes. They’re good. REALLY good. I even ate one for breakfast. Without butter. Wow.

If I was any kind of friend, I would have figured this out while the blueberries were still on sale at Whole Foods…

I can’t say I mind.

The fantastic rum he bought is being put to good use in dark & stormies. Rum and ginger beer… what’s not to like? I suspect this fantastic rum will not be around for long!

The excellent tequila he bought has to wait until we finish the tequila we already have. I’m eager to try the new stuff but can’t quite tear myself away from the dark & stormies long enough to drink the leftover tequila…so I got creative!

Introducing… Margarita Frozen Yogurt! It doesn’t look like much, but it tastes delicious!

Margarita Frozen Yogurt, loosely based on the recipe on From chile to chocolate

3 cups (one big tub) traditional (i.e. fatty) plain Greek Yogurt

1/2 cup sugar

juice of 3 limes

zest of 1 lime

4 tbsp tequila

pinch of salt

Stir together yogurt, sugar, lime juice, and lime zest. Process in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions. In the last five minutes, add tequila and salt. Freeze, eat, be happy!

This past weekend, I flew to Southern California for the last time in what I hope is a very long time. Aussie and I then drove the (very) long road home.

Our January road trip seems like such a long time ago. I tried to be optimistic about the long-distance thing, but honestly, it’s been much longer and much harder than I ever imagined.

We had good times, of course. We visited beaches and Disneyland and I got to trade in the Seattle gloom for some sun. Still, most of this experience was soul-sucking to the extreme. You can’t hold someone over the phone, and a half-empty bed just feels lonelier and lonelier as time goes by.

I’ve made ten trips to four airports in the greater LA area since October. I’m over halfway to MVP status on Alaska Airlines from the last six months alone. I’ve had exactly four weekends that didn’t involve an airport or train station. Emotionally, physically — you name it –, I’m exhausted.

But that’s all over now. This morning, I gave Aussie a kiss as he left for work, not as he boarded a plane. And tonight, he’ll come home, and we’ll have dinner together, and we’ll do it all again tomorrow.

I can’t wait to start this new chapter. Here goes!