i thought i hated meatloaf

I went for many years thinking that I hated meatloaf. I think it was because I had not tried this meatloaf. What? It doesn't look so great in the picture? Well, funny story about that. I did a sloppy job of taking it out of the pan yesterday, and it was all crumbled on the plate. I decided to take a picture of the leftover loaf instead and forgot. So there you have it - cold, morning-after meatloaf in a Tupperware container. Whatever. It's still GOOD! How good? My brother asked for a meatloaf for his birthday last year. :)

Anyway. This is by no means a healthy recipe. It is the tastiest meatloaf you'll ever try. We don't make it often. If you experiment and find a way to make it tasty and healthier, let me know and you can do a guest posting! :) I have not played around with it - but you should make the original first so you have something to compare to! Yes, I know the obvious choice is to substitute ground chicken/turkey and chicken sausage. I've never tried though!

Of course I got this recipe in my favorite cookbook - "The Bride and Groom's First and Forever Cookbook" by Mary Corpening Barber and Sara Corpening Whiteford.

2 teaspoons oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 cup plain bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup ketchup, divided
4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, divided
1 pound ground beef
8 oz. ground breakfast sausage
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 and 1/4 teaspoons Mrs. Dash seasoning mix
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender.

While the onion cooks...

Combine the milk and bread crumbs in a small bowl and set aside. Combine 1/4 cup ketchup and 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce in another small bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, add the beef, sausage, the remaining 1/2 cup ketchup, the remaining 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, the egg, seasoning mix, garlic powder and bread crumbs. Add the onion when it's finished - mix (I like to hand mix because it's easier...) until just incorporated.

Transfer to a loaf pan (9-by-5-by-3). Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven, pour of the fat, spread the ketchup mixture over the top, and bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer reads 160 in the center. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

If you don't have an instant read thermometer, well... why not? They're cheap. You can buy one at Wal-Mart or Market Basket, and it takes all the guess work out of your cooking. You'll never overcook again. :)

a little off topic, but why not?

A slightly off topic post. Yesterday I took my Gram to the Parker House in Boston. She went there for the first time in 1944 on her honeymoon, and then again in 1945 when my Grandfather returned from WWII. She has not been back since.

I had to kidnap her a little bit, because had I told her where we were going I would have gotten an argument. I just said we were going to lunch - wear something pretty. She was totally excited when she found out where we were actually headed!

We had a delicious lunch - and were able to sit at table #40, the table where JFK proposed to Jackie. We took lots of pictures. A memorable day!

Pictured above? Gram sitting at the place she had martinis with my Grandfather in 1944.

chicken with a few hints

Chicken cordon bleu. Yum-o (as Rachael Ray would say). Basically this was my plan. I bought chicken cutlets, ham, and fontina cheese. We had some puff pastry in the freezer. I was going to grate the fontina, and layer the chicken, ham and cheese inside the puff pastry. A tip about puff pastry. When you use it, make sure to seal it back up nicely before putting it back in the freezer. Freezer burn makes icky pastry. Also. Make sure it defrosts entirely before trying to roll it out or you get broken pastry.

So, I tried to make it in a ramekin. I ended up serving half raw chicken to Dennis and had to put it back on the baking sheet to finish. :( After it was done, it was very good though, so don't let me ruin it for you. In the future, I'd make sure to dry the chicken and ham well - because there was a lot of moisture in the ramekin. Also - follow the tips for puff pastry success, namely the lack of freezer burn and the proper defrosting. Pockets would have been better.

PS - I cleaned the house today! Yay for vacation! All that's left is the upstairs bathroom because I totally hit the wall and could not clean another square inch. It will have to wait until tomorrow!

PPS - I'm taking Grammy to a very special lunch tomorrow... more details to follow! I'm totally excited!

roasted chicken smells like home

There's something about roasted chicken that makes your house smell homey. :)

Last night I made a small roasted chicken and vegetables. It's not that hard to make, and delicious!

First of course you have to clean your little bird. Ours was a little over 4 pounds, so it was pretty tiny. Don't forget to remove the little presents inside the cavity. The key to a crispy outside to your chicken is to dry it after you wash it.

Take 4-6 garlic cloves (depending on size and how much you like garlic) and smash them with either a meat tenderizer or the side of a large knife. Put them in the center of your roasting pan. Put the chicken on top of the garlic.

Stuff the cavity with fresh herbs. This makes the meat soooo tasty! I used sage, thyme, and a lemon half. It's really about what you like, or what you have on hand... and don't be shy about the herbs or you won't notice them. I used a handful of each. (Some markets will sell you "poultry bouquets" of fresh herbs, usually featuring sage, rosemary and thyme.)

For veggies I peeled two carrots and cut them into 1 inch pieces, two red potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces, and pearl onions. You could use a whole onion if you want - just cut it up into pieces - but I saw these and decided to try it. The idea of peeling all those mini onions making you want to cry? Don't be sad! Get a small saucepan and fill it with hot water, then set it to boil. It should heat up while you're cutting the carrots and potatoes. Toss the onions in the boiling water and leave them there for about a minute. Dump them into cold water. Snip the end off, and the squeeze the onion out of the skin. It pops right out.

Melt some butter and brush the bird all over. Use the rest of the butter to toss with the veggies. Spread the veggies around the bird. I sprinkled the bird and veggies with some herbs de provence (thanks, Mom!) , salt and pepper.

The whole thing goes in the oven for 45 minutes. After that, take it out of the oven and tip the bird on the side to pour out any juices from inside the cavity. Move your veggies around - don't worry if a few are stuck, we'll deal with that later - and baste the bird.

Back in the oven for 15 minutes at a time. Baste in between and check the temp. of the thigh. When you've reached 170-175 degrees you're done. Side note, when checking the temp. of a chicken or turkey make sure you're checking in the dark meat - thigh - because it cooks slower than white meat. When you tip your chicken over, the juices should run clear. For my little bird, I only needed 30 more minutes.

Take the bird out of the pan and put it on a plate to rest. Scoop the veggies into a bowl. I used a little white wine to deglaze the roasting pan. I like to carve the chicken and cut it into bite sized pieces. I add the chicken to the bowl of veggies, the veggies you were able to scrape off the bottom (they look burnt, but they are not - they are tasty), and some of the wine/juice.

breakfast for dinner

OK, just a quick post. What do you do when you have nothing for dinner? Well, you do breakfast... and you and your husband remember how much you love having breakfast for dinner.

Pictured: OJ in fancy glasses. Pancakes with various toppers, since we were out of syrup - different jams, and of course, honey. Scrambled eggs and cheese with pepperoni mixed in. (We had made pizza recently and they were in the fridge begging to be used.) The bread things sticking out of the bowl are these lite multi-grain pita things we found at the store. They were intended for sandwiches, but I toasted them.

So there you go. Quick. Easy. Delicious.

blue cheese- stuffed chicken with buffalo sauce

Another new favorite from "Cooking Light".

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 tablespoon reduced-fat sour cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
4 (6-oz.) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup flour 2 tablespoons milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided
6 tablespoons finely chopped drained bottled roasted red bell peppers
2 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine blue cheese, sour cream, lemon juice, and pepper a small bowl. Cut a horizontal slit through thickest portion of each chicken breast half to form a pocket. Stuff cheese mixture evenly into pockets.

Place flour in a shallow dish. Combine milk and egg in a shalow dish, stirrin well with a whisk. Place panko in a shallow dish. Working with 1 chicken breast half at a time, dredge chicken in flour, then dip in egg mixture, dredge in panko. Repeat for each piece of chicken.

Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon butter to pan. Swirl until butter melts. Arrange chicken in pan and cook for 4 minutes or until browned (don't turn too early or you won't get a crust!!). Turn chicken over and place skillet in oven. Bake for 20 minutes.

While chicken bakes, combine remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons butter, bell peppers, water, Worcestershire, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer. Cook until butter melts. Remove from heat, stir in hot sauce. Serve sauce with chicken.

Yield: 4 servings. Calories: 392 Fat: 12.9 g. Carb: 18.5 g. Fiber: 1.1 g.

I served it with mashed potatoes. Very easy to make. I boiled some potatoes, mashed them, added milk, butter, and garlic powder. Also pictured are brussel srouts. They were disgusting, mostly because I hate brussel sprouts. Dennis liked them.

my dad will be so proud...

My Father is an amazing gardener. This is a combination of green thumb, enjoying working outside, and his particular nature. His yard is always incredibly groomed, from lawn to the several gorgeous flower beds throughout the yard.

Although I have many of my Dad's traits, I do not think that the green thumb is one of them. I've killed every houseplant I've ever owned. A year ago we had 3 plants on the bay window in the sunroom. They're all dead. The last one got thrown away this morning - according to Dennis, Tommy tried to take a bite of the brown dried leaves and started gagging until he coughed them back up.

In college Dennis gave me flowers. I put them on my desk and left them there until the water turned murky brown and smelled like rot. The petals all fell off.

Dennis is no better. He had a plant on his desk at work named "lettuce". He watered it constantly and eventually it got bugs. His solution? Spray it with Windex. It killed the bugs, also - lettuce.

Every fall I decide to plant a beautiful mum in this giant pot and put it on the front steps (first at our N. Andover apartment, then at our house). I obviously can't be bothered to water the damn thing and by Halloween it turns into a pot of dead mum - and it usually haunts our front steps until the snow flies.

Last summer Dad came over because (surprise surprise) some of our flower beds were getting out of control.

But first - here's the layout. Our yard is divided into 4 basic flower areas.

This is next to our kitchen door. My plan is to get rid of this grass in front of the bed. I want to plant some colorful annuals, plus, it's a pain to mow.


The front of the house. This is one of the areas Dad had to fix. It was covered in weeds, and these ugly pine bush things. We (Dad) dug up the ugly pine things and planted these cute dwarf pines. Apparently they never have to be trimmed - score! Side note... under the ugly pine things was a massive nest of bees. We (Dad) got stung many many times.

This is an area we call "the circle". It's full of day lilies. A year ago it was also filled with weeds almost as tall as me. (I'm not short.) Dad fixed it, pulling the weeds and spreading bark mulch. Now it's lovely.


OK. Below is what will make him proud. I edged the fourth area (surrounding the deck). I played a little game called "weed or flower?" and pulled what I believed to be weeds. I put a nice edge in and hopefully it stays beautiful all summer!

risotto = love

I decided that if you make risotto, you must really love cooking. You have to lovingly make it little by little.

I found a great recipe in "Cooking Light" that I want to share. Yes... risotto = love, but don't' let me turn you off from this recipe because I'm making it sound like a lot of work. I didn't slave in the kitchen - I promise. I just had to be available in the kitchen to add the broth. You'll see...

The recipe is for Shiitake and Sweet Pea Risotto - but I used portabello and white button mushrooms. I couldn't find fresh shiitake mushrooms at Market Basket - only dried... and I'm sad to report that the package smelled like stinky feet. I went for a mushroom that didn't stink. (I'll be open minded... maybe the fresh ones aren't gross, but the dried ones WERE!)

4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 and 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, divided
1 cup uncooked Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, divided
3/4 cup frozen green peas
6 tablespoons grated parm. cheese, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Bring broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan - keep warm over low heat. (This is the secret - this is the first time I've successfully made risotto and I think this was part of the reason... heating the broth first!)

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 2 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add rice and cook for 1 minute stirring constantly.

Add wine - cook for 2 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently.

Stir in 1/2 cup broth. Cook for 2 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently. Add remaining both - 1/2 cup at a time - stirring frequently. Do this for each portion, making sure it is fully absorbed before adding the next. (About 20 minutes).

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms to pan and saute 5 minutes or until tender. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic and 1 teaspoon thyme. Saute for 1 minute and set aside.

Stir mushrooms, remaining teaspoon thyme, peas, 1/4 cup cheese, and pepper into risotto. Cook for 3 minutes. Sprinkle each serving with 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cheese.

While the broth was simmering I chopped the onion, garlic and thyme (oh - I actually grate my garlic into the mixture because I don't like chunks of garlic in the risotto, and because it is easier!) and sliced the mushrooms. While the risotto cooks, I sauteed the mushrooms.

I served this with a side salad. Here are the nutrition stats...

Yield - 4 servings, 1 and 1/4 cups each. Calories: 324 Fat: 10g Protein: 11.7g Fiber 4.5g

food for thought

Have you seen that new TV show "Food Revolution"? We watched the first episode on Hulu and decided to set up the TiVo for a season pass. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about... it's hosted by Jamie Oliver - a British chef on a quest to promote healthy eating in our children through education. It really got me thinking about the food I make - yes, I know most of it DOES feature fresh veggies meat, whole grains, fruit, etc, but some of it doesn't. You wouldn't know it because I don't blog about my trip through the Wendy's drive thru. I planned a nice week of good eats this week.

Breakfast: Kashi instant oatmeal - I make it during my first period planning time.

Lunch: Greek yogurt, cheerios (dry), fruit (oranges).

Dinner: 2 days of Blue Cheese-Stuffed Chicken with Buffalo Sauce, 2 days of Shiitake and Sweet Pea Risotto, and a freebie day (tonight - Thai from our favorite place in N. Andover).

It's hard to avoid those trips through the drive thru, or those pizza nights... and I'm not really a TV person - but this show really got to me. I don't have kids yet :) but I pledge to make sure they know what veggies are - and not be eating crap processed food for dinner every night.

Oh - you're looking for recipes? Well you're going to have to be patient. They're coming your way.

bacon and butternut pasta

We had a great meal from "Cooking Light" a couple of weeks ago - I took pictures and everything... and forgot to post it! So, better late than never!

This is a nice, inexpensive meal, using some things you probably have in your kitchen already, and a few low price items - BAM you have a great meal!

1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon salt
8 oz. uncooked fettuccine
2 bacon slices
2 tablespoons butter
3 cups cubed peeled butternut squash (I used a half squash that has already been peeled and packaged)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup (2 oz.) crumbled blue cheese
1/2 cup sliced green onions

Bring water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil in a large saucepan. Add pasta and cook for 8 minutes (pasta should still be a little firm). Drain in a colander over a bowl, and reserve 1/3 cup cooking liquid.

Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 teaspoons drippings in pan. Crumble bacon and set aside.

Add butter to drippings in pan and cook for 30 seconds or until butter melts. Increase heat to medium-high. Add squash and saute for 7 minutes or until almost tender. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt, pasta, reserved cooking liquid, and cheese. Cook for 2 minutes or until pasta is al dente, stirring frequently.

Sprinkle with bacon and onions.

Yield: 4 (1 cup) servings. Calories: 385 Fat: 14.1g Fiber: 4.7g

Note - This could be made healthier by using whole wheat pasta!

I paired this with a spinach salad with sliced apple on top. I made a dressing - also from "Cooking Light".

Dressing:
Combine 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons honey, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Whisk.

Toss with 4-5 cups fresh spinach and top with a cored apple (I used a granny smith), cored and thinly sliced.

French Onion Soup - more filling than you'd think!

We've made french onion soup twice lately, and I have to share the recipe because it's easy and delicious. Also, it's more filling than you'd think! The first time I told Dennis we were having soup for dinner with nothing else, he was a little skeptical. But this soup is a real meal. Trust me.

By the way - this is yet another standby recipe I got from my "Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook" by Mary Corpening Barber and Sara Corpening Whiteford. You need this book. Everything in it is a perfect 10.

12 french baguette slices cut on the diagonal (each 1 inch thick)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 cups sliced yellow onion (about 1 large)
1/8 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup cream sherry, such as Harvey's Bristol Cream
3 cans (10.5 oz. each) prepared french onion soup
2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 cups (4 oz.) grated gruyere or other swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

Place the baguette slices on a baking sheet and bake, turning once, until lightly toasted on both sides, 10-12 minutes. Set aside. Turn the oven to broil.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and salt and season with pepper to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is very soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the sherry and continue to cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, 3-5 minutes. Add the canned french onion soup, water, and thyme and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Ladle 1 1/2 cups of soup into each of four 2-cup ovenproof bowls. Top each with 3 pieces of toasted bread (or less, depending on the size of the baguette) and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Broil until the cheese is melted and bubbling, 3-4 minutes.

I love this recipe.

a little change... and dining room pics!

The tidy cave blog has been neglected as of late. So sorry about that!

So I've decided to change the blog slightly. I'm not going to number the days anymore. I'm spending too much time trying to figure out the timeline. I want to focus more on the things we're doing around the cave. Also, I want to focus on more than just the day to day cleaning - like home improvement projects and cooking!



So you may be asking... what have you been doing around the cave, exactly?

Well. As promised - here are the dining room pics. The wood trim is called "ultra pure white" and the paint is called "campground", which is basically the color of spicy brown mustard. I like it a lot! We've been having dinner in there quite a bit, and I have to tell you, it's so nice having dinner in an actual dining room again!

Dennis really got the job done - he painted the walls mostly, and hung and wired the chandelier. After it was hung up, I was able to move things around and decorate. I went through the floor and cleaned up all the little places where paint splattered.

What's left in the dining room / kitchen area you ask? Well...

Duane is going to come over and frame in the hole around the breakfast bar with painted white trim. It's going to look great! He's also going to help us put up the baseboards and heater we took off while building the new half wall. We also removed the baseboard in one other place, and that will have to be put back on. No big deal.

My Mom is going to make curtains for us! We're doing a valance on the window over the kitchen sink, kitchen door, and the little bay window in the kitchen. We're doing longer drapes in the dining room with rod iron curtain rods. Also, the light over the sink has not worked for quite some time, so I'm getting a new one that matches the chandelier. Oh, bar stools would be nice too - but we can use the old ones for the time being.

Below...

The chandelier being assembled, then Tommy trying to help us with the wiring. He was not much help.

Days 51-57 dining room fun

Now that the kitchen is in working order, it was time to tackle the dining room.

Oh - and I'm sorry for being so "off the grid" these past few weeks. Life is beyond crazy and adding a house under construction has been making it waaaaay worse! Another busy week awaits... but first. Back to the fun stuff - the dining room!

I was able to finish the white paint on the doors in the bathroom and basement, replaced the hinges and door knobs, and hung them back up. It feels good to have a bathroom door again! (As you can imagine!)

Thursday night we had some crazy winds up here in NH, so due to power outages, school was canceled for me on Friday. I love a day off! I had already gotten up, showered, had breakfast, brewed my coffee, and dressed - I had one foot literally out the door when I found out. A bonus day off! I put on my sweats and enjoyed my coffee with my laptop chatting with my friend Kristin. After Dennis left for work I really got myself going.

I taped the edges of the windows, and baseboards and used oil based primer to prime them. Once again, oil based paint smells horrible. On Saturday and Sunday, Dennis and I worked to complete the room as much as possible. I'm not feeling so hot, so I have to admit, he did most of the work. As of Sunday night we had two coats of white paint on all of the wood trim, and two coats of a paint called "campground" (like a spicy mustard color) on the walls. The room is looking mighty good!

What's left? A few touch ups on the trim bordering the ceiling, hang the chandelier, replace the outlets and light switch with white, reattach the baseboards on two walls. In addition to these last few "construction" touches, we are going to be putting the table, hutch, etc. back to where it belongs - maybe get a few things to hang on the walls!

What's next on the agenda?

We're basically trying to get all the painting done in one swoop. We'll be moving on to the hallway/living room to do the wood trim. I plan on taping the edges this week and Friday night!

Days 45-50 a sunny kitchen

This was my February vacation. It didn't feel much like a vacation - but it feels good to be sitting in an almost completed kitchen! YAY!

This is what's been happening since day 44...

Sunday: We grocery shopped and did our usual. We made a trip to Home Depot and picked up primer, 3 cans of paint (different colors), brush cleaner, door knobs, hinges. I had a rehearsal, and it was Den's homework to remove the basement door, bathroom door, and bathroom closet door from their hinges.

Monday: I woke bright and early and ready to tackle the kitchen. First on the agenda was to use oil based primer on our wood trim. I used that blue painters tape to tape my edges. This took a little longer than I expected. Next, I came to the realization that after I painted, I wouldn't be able to sand the wall anymore - because the dust would fall onto the wet paint. So I went through and patched any last spots on the wall. There were quite a few. At this point I picked up Grammy. She was my helper this week!

I know what you're thinking. "You made an 88 year old woman paint your kitchen?" Well. Not exactly. First, let me tell you that she loves painting. She told me that "Nothing is better than having a paintbrush in your hand." That's an actual quote. So I told her we could lay the doors flat between two old chairs and she could keep me company and paint those. We also discovered that she could sit at the table and paint the cross things I took off of my windows.

So anyway. I picked up Grammy. After a much needed trip to Dunkin' Donuts (Gram wanted a little "zing". Another quote!), I sanded the walls. This also took longer than expected, but I know that the sanding is one of the most important things about prepping a wall. I think I did a good job. Of course, there are places where you see imperfections under the paint, but as my father-in-law told me on the phone, you'll never get it 100% perfect. I'm fairly close though! Gram painted, I sanded.

Have you ever used oil based paint? Because it smells worse than anything I've dealt with during this renovation process. We tried opening windows, but of course it IS February in New Hampshire, so it was for short amounts of time. I went to bed with a rockin' headache. Another fun fact about oil based paint - it does not come off of your body. Latex paint is easy to clean. Oil? Not so much. I was covered - hands, legs, hair, parts of my face - and it was there until Wednesday when I finally scrubbed it until my skin felt like it was coming off.

After sanding, I used a damp sponge to get the dust off the walls, and then went to priming my wood trim with the stinky paint. This took - you guessed it - longer than expected. Especially since I had to remove our ugly blinds (those screws were not wanting to come out) and the hinges/doorknobs from the doors. It was a productive day - we got a lot done. I brought Gram home and called Dennis and said - you'd better pick up a pizza or something. (Part of me was afraid of lighting the stove to cook... all those fumes may cause the house to burst into flames!!) I had my pizza and finished the trim, showered, and fell into bed exhausted!

At the end of the day, things pretty much looked like this. Primer on, the walls all patchy looking and everything's a total mess. The refrigerator was literally in the middle of the room, with a door suspended between two old chairs. All my appliances were stacked on the breakfast bar and table in the dining room. Newspaper everywhere. Drop cloths everywhere. Also - did I mention that the space around my kitchen window is so small I had to use a watercolor paintbrush to get in the space?

Tuesday: This was the day of our snowstorm. I decided that Grammy needed a break - and I did not want to have to drive in the snow. So I was flying solo for much of the day. I used painters tape to outline the walls, and then primed the walls. After that was finished - about halfway through the day - I took my white latex paint I'm using to paint the wood trim and gave the wood trim a first coat. Dennis came home early because of the snow! He did a first coat on the doors while I finished the trim. Things were still all disoriented in the kitchen, but it was beginning to look like something - we were excited. We worked together to make a batch of fiesta rice and steamed some tamales MJ from Den's work sent home for us. We played XBox. It was a nice reward!


Wednesday: This day was the longest, yet the most rewarding.

I grabbed Gram - who continued to work on the doors and those cross things for the windows. I put a second coat of white on the trim. It looked great! Then, I took my little paintbrush and used our wall color "Quiet Veranda" (a pale, buttery yellow) to edge around the windows. Yes, in an ideal world I would have waited until the next day so I could tape the trim, but I had time restrictions here - and I needed the kitchen DONE. Plus, I have very steady hands and was very precise. Dennis got another call and I asked him to bring home subs or something because there was to be no cooking break. After I brought Gram home I used the roller to fill in the spaces around my edging. I was up until 10:30 painting, but it looked like a real kitchen. I was so excited! By the way - under the bar I didn't paint all the way to the floor because our heater will be attached there, as well as baseboard - which is currently in the basement!

Thursday: I had some private lessons to do in the morning. After that, you guessed it, I picked up Gram. She did a second coat on 1 door, and then relaxed and kept me company. We listened to the "Frank Sinatra station" on pandora. I used a roller to apply a second coat. I cleaned the counters and bar. I put things back where they belong! I love the color of the kitchen - it's bright and sunny! After I brought Grammy home, I made some dinner. (A great recipe for chicken piccata - I will share it later this weekend!) We had a relaxing night! Here's the finished product below.

So, like I said, we're almost done. What's left to do? The light over the kitchen sink needs to be replaced (it doesn't work!). I need to get white outlets and outlet covers and put them on. The lights on the ceiling are low on the priority list, but they need to be replaced too. They work, they're just ugly. I need to clean and seal the grout on the floor, and around the inside of the bar we're putting up white wood along the edges.

Next room you ask? The bathroom is my vote because the doors are not on yet! We'll take it a piece at a time - with me going back to work (tear...) I won't have the time to bang it out quickly.

Oh - PS. Day 50 (Friday) was spent in Boston with some fabulous ladies!

Weekend agenda time. Clean and grocery shop.

A little time...

Good evening!

I've done A LOT of work around here and can't wait to blog about it. Be patient.

Coming soon...

Days 42, 43, and 44 - i see clutter

So, it's Saturday morning, and I'm officially on vacation. YAY!

Between Wednesday and today clutter has built up around here. I'm not too happy about it... it's mostly little things, a book left on the end table, a pair of shoes by the door, etc. but still. I'm not too happy about it. One positive thing though - the bed got made every day.

Today we are going to visit my cousin in RI. She has a Mexican theme going on for dinner, so I'm bringing a batch of fiesta rice! I think it will be a hit! I'm going to start that pretty soon and while I cook, I think I'm going to send Dennis around to tidy up the clutter!

It's the weekend, so it's time for the weekend agenda!

1. Make fiesta rice to bring to Candi and Mike's place.
2. Pick up some of this clutter laying around.
3. Laundry - washed, folded, ironed, and put away.
4. Clean kitchen and kitchen floors
5. Clean bathrooms and bathroom floors
6. Dust living room, sunroom, and bedroom and do the floors.
7. Work out a menu for next week and grocery shop.

See you tomorrow to check in!

Days 39-41 - mmm, dumplings!

Work-wise, an easy week. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are my long days at work - and we had early dismissal both days! Yesterday it was because of staff development, and today it was because of snow - which we didn't really get.

I came home and picked up a few things around the house. Practiced, read, and cooked! I found a great recipe on "A Splash of This - A Dash of That", a great cooking blog! Dinner tonight was their latest recipe, chicken and dumplings. It was delicious, and very easy to make. I'll let them tell you how to do it, and just feature the finished product (see photo!). :)

A Guest Posting

Kate has really done a great job with her blog, and it's time that I finally come through on my promise to add a guest-posting. I agreed to do it weeks ago but, until tonight, I hadn't yet run out of excuses to sit down and write something.

I don't really have anything to say, but Kate suggested that I should write about the pasta sauce I made this evening. I did it a little different than usual, but I think it came out pretty good.

I started with peeled garlic cloves. Quite a few, actually. I think there were probably 10 or so. I find that grated garlic distributes flavor even better than minced, and it's a lot easier. I grated them with a small fine grater, and set the resulting mush off to the side.

Then for no particular reason, I decided it would be an interesting idea to grate the onion too.

Well, onions are a lot wetter than I thought. I ended up with a little pile of onion-mush to match my garlic-mush, but there was also a fair amount of onion... uhh, juice, that I drained off and got rid of. I probably should have just diced up the onion like a normal person.

I browned a pound of lean ground beef and 8 sweet Italian sausages, and set all the meat aside. I heated some olive oil in a medium sized pot, and fried up my grated aromatics over medium-high heat for just a few minutes. Then I added two 24 oz cans of crushed tomatoes, a 6 oz can of tomato paste and reintroduced the meat.

I gave the whole mess a stir, and added 3 bay leaves, some basil, oregano, fresh ground black pepper, salt and crushed red pepper flakes. I'd tell you how much of each, but I never measure. I brought the sauce to a low boil, and then reduced the heat to low and let it simmer mostly covered (I set the lid just a little crooked to let out steam) for about an hour - stirring every 15 minutes or so.

We enjoyed our meat sauce over ziti with lines.

Days 37 and 38 - the view from up here

Good morning everyone! The breakfast bar is IN! After a year, I can finally say I'm writing to you while sitting at my granite breakfast bar, laptop and coffee at hand. Bliss! The delivery happened yesterday morning, and it was very easy to install, more than I thought! The whole thing was done with minimal mess, in about 20 minutes.

I LOVE IT! I am writing to you from it now, but there's a slight problem. My parents gave us two bar stools - but theirs were used on the opposite side of their countertop, which is a different height than our bar. We need stools or chairs that are bar height. Therefore I'm sitting on a stack of three cookbooks. I look ridiculous, and have been laughed at by Dennis several times. Nevertheless, I'm happy, and the view from up here is lovely.

The rest of the weekend you ask? Done. House is clean, laundry is done, and it's time to relax for the rest of the day/evening. Dennis is making homemade red meat sauce - and I got a promise for a "tidy cave" entry about it later! I'm going to a little cooking when he's done. Just to get a jumpstart on the week. Ooooh, also - I'm going to pick out my clothes for the week again. Have you tried this yet? I didn't do it last week and my mornings were way more stressful! I recommend it highly!

Days 33-36 - I need vacation...

As a teacher, I've found that February vacation is always so needed. One more week...

In the meantime, a few things to report.

Most exciting is that tomorrow morning our granite breakfast bar is getting installed! YAY! I plan on having morning coffee at it by 10am. Pictures to come!

Cleaning-wise, nothing much going on. I am embarrassed to admit that I left a pile of (clean) laundry on the couch all week. I meant to fold it after work on Monday, and it never happened. I barely used the living room all week.

Another long week for both Dennis and I. I made a quick and easy dinner tonight.

I got pound or so of chicken cutlets, a jar of tomato sauce (I used Classico fire roasted tomato and garlic), sliced provolone cheese, and pasta.

Beat an egg in a bowl, and put some bread crumbs in another. Dredge the chicken first in the egg, then in the bread crumbs. Heat some olive oil in a pan and brown the chicken on both sides.

Pour the tomato sauce in a baking dish. Put the browned chicken cutlets on top of the tomato sauce and top with the provolone. Bake until golden brown and bubbly.

I used some sundried tomato and basil pasta I got for Christmas. Yum, and easy.

Well, it's Friday night, and you know what that means... that's right, the weekend agenda.

1. The usual - dust, floors, laundry, iron.
2. Enjoy my new breakfast bar!

Days 30, 31, and 32

OK. We fell off the wagon a little this weekend. Not a lot, just a little bit. Not to make excuses, but it wasn't entirely our fault. I'll admit, I started it. I was so incredibly exhausted on Friday night! I cooked some supper, and promptly fell asleep on the couch. I staggered into the sunroom to tell Dennis "Time for bed." and left the kitchen a slight mess.

During the night, we lost power. This presents some problems for the average NH resident, mainly because no power = no water, and no heat. We decided the house was freezing and went out for breakfast. When we got home, the power was still out. By the time it finally came on I had about 35 minutes to shower and get myself out the door for my work commitment. I left Dennis with a job. Clean the kitchen, and bathrooms. After I left - you guessed it - power went out again. This put a little bit of a strain on our cleaning plans... water is more important than you may think!

Anyways, we ended up getting the cleaning done on Sunday. No problem. While I was at orchestra rehearsal, Dennis was supposed to grocery shop. Well, apparently our grocery store closes early on Sundays. He could have gone to another one, and spent an extra $40, but he wisely picked up a salad for me to take to work on Monday and came home.

Long story longer, I had to grocery shop after work today. Blah. I hate doing that.

Bright side? I made a great dinner! (Forgot to take a picture... I'll take a picture of the leftovers!!)

Steak Tips with Peppered Mushroom Gravy - source, Cooking Light

2 cups uncooked egg noodles
cooking spray
1 pound top sirloin steak, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1 (8 oz) package presliced baby bella mushrooms
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 and 1/2 cups fat free, less-sodium beef broth
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 fresh thyme sprigs
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (optional)

Cook noodles according to package directions - omit salt and fat. Drain.

While noodles cook, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat the pan with cooking spray. Add steak and saute 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove from pan, cover.

Melt butter in pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and mushrooms. Saute for about 4 minutes. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds. Stir in soy sauce. Sprinkle with the flour and cook for 1 minute stirring constantly.

Gradually add broth, stirring constantly. Add pepper, salt, and thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil.

Cook for 2 minutes or until thickened. Return beef to pan and cook until warmed thoroughly, about 1-2 minutes.

Discard thyme sprigs. Garnish with fresh thyme leaves if desired.

Yields 4 servings.

Calories: 344, Fat 12.5g, Protein 273g, Carb 28.7g, Fiber 1.7g, Cholesterol 95mg, Iron, 4.3mg, Sodium 538mg

It was delicious! A new favorite!

How did your weekend shake out? Did you let your house get away from you a bit? Did you get back on the wagon like me? :)

Days 28-29 - yes, weekend please!

I am so thankful for a weekend! Does anyone else think this was the longest week?

It will be a busy one. And this will be a short post because I need some downtime before tomorrow.

Weekend agenda:

Saturday:
1. Relax with some coffee!
2. Kate goes to chaperone Jr. Districts from about 1-6 pm.
3. Kate makes a grocery list/menu for the week
4. Dennis grocery shops and cleans the bathrooms while Kate's at Jr. Districts
5. Practice the viola.

Sunday:
1. A birthday brunch to celebrate my Mother-in-law!!!!
2. Dust/floors/kitchen.
3. Lay out clothes for the week.
4. My first New Hampshire Philharmonic rehearsal for our upcoming concert on 3/14/10
5. NH Phil rehearsal 7-9:30 pm

What are your weekend plans? Is your weekend as packed as mine?!

Days 26 and 27 - i just want to sleep...

Has anyone else found this to be the longest week in history? I'm shocked that it's only Wednesday!

Yesterday and today are my lesson days. My long days. Since we've changed semesters at work, they're now also my long work days... so big fun until June!

Yesterday I came home from work and Dennis had made a recipe from "Cooking Light" for fried rice. I thought it was pretty good. We both agreed that it needed a little more kick, so we're going to experiment with it a little bit for next time. After I had my supper I laid on the couch and checked email and read. I felt like doing absolutely nothing... on the verge of sleep. I'll be honest and say I skipped swiffering my floors. :( We did scoop the kitty box and sweep the bathroom, and load the dishwasher and clean off the counter tops. So we were almost there.

This morning I was meeting a student at 7:00 am, so I was awake at the crack of dawn. (Literally.) I'll be honest again - I didn't make the bed! I overslept and was running around trying to get to work on time and it just didnt' happen. Just to make a point for myself, I may try and make it when I get home. We'll see... by the time I get home it's almost bedtime anyway!

We all have these days, I guess.

Day 25 - it's only Monday?

I can't believe it's only Monday. It seemed like today went on forever!

Now that I'm home, however, I'm getting a little cooking done. Hopefully I can relieve my stress in the kitchen!

Tonight's dinner? Asian Spinach Salad with Hoisin-Glazed Salmon - another gem from the "Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook by Mary Corpening Barber and Sara Corpening Whiteford". I did cheat a little bit. I guess I didn't read the recipe carefully and I didn't buy hoisin sauce. Instead I found an asian sesame ginger teriaki sauce in the cupboard. I used that instead.

Dressing:
1 and 1/2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1 and 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 table spoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
Dash of chili oil or chili sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Salad:
6 cups baby spinach
1 can (11 oz.) mandarin oranges, chilled and drained
1/4 cup chopped green onion, both white and green parts
1/4 cup torn fresh mint
2 skinless salmon fillets (6 oz. each)
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1/3 cup dry roasted, salted peanuts, roughly chopped
1/4 cup chow mein noodles

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil.

Combine vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, chili sauce, and vegetable oil in a jar. Cover tightly and shake until the dressing is thoroughly blended.

Combine spinach, mandarin oranges, green onions and mint in a large bowl.

Put the salmon in the center of the foil. Spread the top of each fillet with 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce and wrap the foil loosley around the salmon, creating a sealed package. Cook until the salmon is just opaque in the center, about 10 minutes.

Toss the salad with enough dressing to coat, divide between 2 bowls/plates. Top each with a salmon fillet and garnish with the peanuts and chow mein noodles. Serve immediately.

I thought it was great! Dennis isn't a huge salmon fan, nor a big sesame fan (the dressing has a definate sesame flavor) but he said he liked it. Another hit from our Bride & Groom book!

Days 23 and 24 - i need an eye for detail, apparently

Good evening!

Weekends are always so short, aren't they?

I started the weekend with a list. I didn't get it all done, but pretty close, so I'm calling this weekend an organizational success!

1. The usual - dust, laundry, iron, floors, bathrooms.

2. Make a potato salad to bring to Jared and Katie's - this may be a "Dennis task".

3. Get my oil changed.

4. Go to the car wash and vacuum my truck.

5. Get in some serious viola practice time - my first New Hampshire Philharmonic rehearsal is coming up quick.

6. Make a weekly menu and grocery shop.

OK, not bad. I made an effort to get the oil changed! Honest! We drove to the dealership "express" area to get the oil change (I got the service plan when I got my RAV4 - so I have to go to the dealership...) but there was an hour wait, and I'm sorry, I don't have that kind of time. I'm calling tomorrow and getting an appointment next week, and we'll bring two cars so we can hang around (Barnes & Noble please?) while we wait.

Saturday was great! We washed my truck at the slowest car wash on the planet, and vacuumed the RAV! So, now I have a new item on my daily checklist. "Remove extra items from the RAV". This is huge for me, because I love my truck, and it always ends up a total pit. I spend way too much time in there. Does anyone else have this problem? Any ideas on keeping your car clean? I'm all ears, I need all the help I can get!

Dennis made a delicious potato salad for JJ and Katie's. He has hinted at a blog post to share it with you... I took a picture of it and everything. We shall see!

Sunday was productive as well. I slept in super late - after 10!!! I read my book for awhile and then we cleaned the house. The house is dusted, floors are steam mopped, laundry done, sheets changed. (As I wrote this, no joke, I saw my cat try to jump onto my dining room hutch and totally slide across the whole thing! I guess the "Pledge" works!)

We took a little drive to Lawrence, MA (aka - the "armpit" of the world, according to my Dad). My Grandparents and my Mother grew up in Lawrence, when it was "nice". Not so much anymore. However, Dennis found this place called Wichit - a totally cool coffee shop/sandwich shop. It was delicious!!!! If you live in the area you should check this place out. It's a real "hidden jewel" in Lawrence - the food is fantastic, the coffee is good, and they're all about organic products!

Since we were in Lawrence, we made a bad decision. There's this place called the "Italian Kitchen". They sell two things. Rice balls, and Crispelli. Crispelli are basically fried dough with a ricotta center. They are delightful. So we stopped in. And made a bad decision - actually five bad decisions in my case, and I feel like I have a brick sitting in the bottom of my stomach. Ugh. They were soooooo good though. I told my husband when we're setting the alarm for tomorrow morning and I waver on getting up at 4:30 to go to the gym or not he needs to look at me and say "Crispelli". I think it will work.

Speaking of going to the gym, that makes me think of packing my gym bag, which will be a snap because for the second week in a row I have picked out my clothes for the week in advance. I tried this last Sunday, and I have to say it worked wonders. I think I looked cute all week :) and my mornings were a lot less stressful!

So, I started cooking this evening. I decided that Crispelli would have to do it for dinner. Dennis agreed. So, I made a chicken soup for myself to take to work for lunch. I recommend this - I've done it the past few weeks. I make something on Sunday night and divide it in 5 Tupperware containers. Lunch is taken care of! Once again, makes my days a lot less stressful to not have to remember to pack lunch!

Here's the "how-to" on the Chicken Soup. I got the recipe from a fantastic book called "Bride & Groom, First and Forever Cookbook" by Mary Corpening Barber and Sara Corpening Whiteford. You should try to get your hands on this cookbook - everything in it is fabulous!

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium yellow onion,m coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon powdered chicken bouillon, or 1 small chicken bouillon cube
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup white wine
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups shredded purchased roasted chicken
2 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
2 oz (about 1 cup) egg noodles
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley

Heat the oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, thyme, and (if using) powdered bouillon. Stir frequently and cook until the onion is translucent, about 5-7 minutes.

Add the wine and cook for about 2 minutes.

Add the broth, bouillon cube (if using), chicken, carrot, and celery.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until veggies are tender.

Add the egg noodles and cook another 5 minutes.

Stir in the parsley and a tablespoon of roasted garlic (optional - I don't use it to bring to work... kids don't like a teacher with garlic breath!)

Salt and pepper to taste.

So. Good.

I then tried to make a batch of chicken fried rice - but did not read the directions as closely. Apparently I need an eye for detail. I missed the word "cooked" next to the rice. So I have all my chicken, veggies, etc. mixed in with uncooked rice. Doh. I will retry tomorrow.

Enjoy your last few hours of freedom before returning to work!

Days 19-22 - do I even live here?

Hey everyone...

It's been a few days, and I'm starting to ask myself... "Do I even live here?" :)

Tuesday was an icky, snowy day, and I ended up canceling my lessons after a few cancellations. It was nice to be home on a weeknight - I made leftovers for dinner and read my book.

Wednesday I had a full day, teaching lessons until about 7:30. I came home to a treat. My husband works with someone who frequently makes a "catered" lunch for the other people in the office. When there's something they think I will like, or if there are leftovers, sometimes I get a doggy bad dinner. This time it was prosciutto stuffed chicken breast with shrimp, garlic, and capers in a lemony sauce with pasta. It was fantastic, and delicious, and waiting for me on a plate! I love it!

Thursday was my BSO night with Alley. Dinner at Whiskey's in Boston - a salad and a Sam Adams spring ale... it made me want spring to come even faster!!!

Tonight, Friday! I took the last of my fiesta rice and tried something a little different with it. I made a dough (a packet of instant yeast mixed 3/4 cup of 110 degree water and a pinch of sugar - add it to 1 and 3/4 cup flour and ta-daaaaa you have a dough) and divided it in half. I made "fiesta pockets" by rolling each half out thin, filling it with salsa, the leftover rice, and cheddar cheese. I made pockets out of it and baked it at 500 degrees for about 14 minutes on my pizza stone. It was interesting - like a baked burrito. I wish I had some sour cream for dipping.

So - it's Friday, so that means it's time for the weekend list!

1. The usual - dust, laundry, iron, floors, bathrooms.

2. Make a potato salad to bring to Jared and Katie's - this may be a "Dennis task".

3. Get my oil changed.

4. Go to the car wash and vacuum my truck.

5. Get in some serious viola practice time - my first New Hampshire Philharmonic rehearsal is coming up quick.

6. Make a weekly menu and grocery shop.

Nothing too strenuous. Laundry is already going, so I'm partially done already! Woo-hoo!

Happy weekend!

Day 18 - a cave fiesta!

My day off! It's always nice to be home - I'm glad to say I got a little relaxing done and a lot of work! As I said yesterday, I wanted to save my cleaning for today. So, after breakfast I dove right in. I decided that since I had cooking plans for the afternoon I needed to reorganize my refrigerator and freezer.

Let's go step by step...

First, I emptied the contents of my refrigerator onto the counter. Yes, at some point I thought to myself "What am I doing?!" But it turned out alright!

Next step? Organize the inside. The shelves are organized by category and the door is organized by how often the items get used. Hopefully it will make things a lot easier to find!

After my fun in the kitchen, I tackled the rest of the house - mainly the living room. I wanted to do a little something different over my mantle, and clean up some stuff that was still kicking around the pellet stove area. I found a little Valentine's Day wall hanging, and put some candle holders and pictures up.

Next - it was time to cook!

I wanted to get a minestrone soup made for me to take to lunch this week. I halved the recipe from last time and after it cooled a bit, separated it out in between 4 plastic containers. Off to a great start!

Next, I made some Fiesta Rice. Since it is Tex-Mex week around here - it's delicious and makes a lot so I can use it throughout the week. I made a chipotle bean burrito filling, and for dinner tonight we had the fiesta rice and the burrito. It was delicious! The bean filling was super easy to make and I found it in my new "Cooking Light" magazine!

To make the burrito filling...

Heat a tablespoon of canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.

Add a minced garlic clove and cook for 1 minute.

Add 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder and stir constantly for 30 seconds.

Add 1/3 cup water, 1 (15 oz.) can of drained black beans, and 1 (15 oz.) can of drained kidney beans. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in 3 tablespoons fresh refrigerated salsa. Mash the beans with a fork to desired consistency.

I got fat-free tortillas and made burritos with a little reduced fat cheese, chopped tomato, lettuce and sour cream. It was very easy - and even Dennis commented that it was "a lot of food!"

Back to work tomorrow...

Day 17 - a week in style

Sunday afternoon. It's got that "just about to snow" feeling outside...

I was looking at my Friday night list - and I think I forgot about the fact that I have Monday off! (I know, I know... how can I forget a day off? I don't know either!) I've decided to put off the cooking and the dusting, etc. until tomorrow when I'm home. You're off the hook this week, Dennis!

So - I have two challenges for this week. Want to do them with me?

Number one. The leftovers challenge. I decided that this was "Tex-Mex" week at my house. The goal is to make a couple of things and use them in different ways throughout the week - to save food, time, and $$$!

So here's the weekly menu.

Tonight is leftover night already - I brought home some of Katie's baked mac & cheese. I'm going to pair it with some Merlot since I don't have to work tomorrow!!!

I'm making a half batch of that minestrone soup from last week. I'm going to divide it between four plastic storage containers and BAM - lunch is packed for the week. I'm going to cook the pasta separately and store it separately. I don't like it when it gets over absorbed in the soup!

The big staple of the week is going to be "fiesta rice" which I found on the wonderful blog "Tiny Kitchen Cooking". I'll be using it sometimes as a side dish, and I'm going to try it as a filling in a stuffed baked burrito. I'm also going to making chicken with a cilantro marinade, and chipotle bean burritos! Ole! Exact recipes to come...

Challenge number two? I'm very excited about it. It's all about clothes. (I got the idea from the "my happy house" blog - link to the right. My friend Christy also does this and says it works well!) I went to home goods and picked up a big basket with a lid (the lid is to keep the cat out!). I picked out clothes - including undergarments and socks - and got them set for the week! The hanger stuff I organized so the clothes will go Tuesday through Friday. The folded stuff is organized by day in the basket. Now, weather it's packing my gym bag the night before, or getting dressed in the morning, everything's set. I'm thinking this will keep my outfits from looking thrown together, and save me a lot of time - especially in the morning. No more morning meltdowns because I'm half dressed and can't find the skirt that matches my shirt. (Yes, please tell me I'm not the only one who's had these morning meltdowns!)

Want to join me in the leftovers or the clothes challenge? Tell us about it!