is very much acting her age today! Mommy *might* be going crazy!
Monday, November 29, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Sweet Potato and Acorn Squash Curry
I like to cook. I happen to think I am pretty good at it. It comes rather naturally to me - something I inherited from my mom. She has an amazing ability to create a gourmet meal out of whatever is laying around. I have had a couple sweet potatoes and an acorn squash languishing on my counter for weeks. While they were far from being "old", they were taking up precious real estate on my already over flowing counter. I was sick of looking at them. I couldn't even remember what I had originally intended them for when I bought them. So I put my thinking cap on and started dreaming up some uses. We love Indian food around these parts. Hmmm, how about a curry? I did a quick Google search and glanced through a few recipes but didn't find anything that fit the ingredients I had on hand. "Oh well," I thought to myself. "I'll just make it up as I go along." And so I did. And OH!MY!WORD! Success! Here's what I did:
Ingredients:
3 sweet potatoes
1 acorn squash
1 medium to large onion
1 TBSP vegetable oil (or whatever you have - canola, olive, ghee)
1 heaping tablespoon curry paste
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cumin
1 TBSP turmeric (did you know turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties?)
1 - 2 TBSP curry powder
1 can light coconut milk
1 large can chickpeas
Method:
Peel and chop sweet potatoes and squash. Chop onion and saute in oil until translucent. Add sweet potatoes and squash. You will want to add a little bit of water, just enough so the potato and squash are covered and start to cook. Simmer until they are starting to get tender, about 20 minutes or so. They don't have to be done, just starting to soften up. Add spices and curry paste. Let cook for another 10 minutes or so. Rinse and drain the chickpeas and add them to the party. Stir in coconut milk. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are fork tender. Serve over Basmati rice.
You may notice that I say "about" a bit. I just kinda cook. I am not sure on the exact times. And I am just guessing about the amounts for the spices, as I didn't really measure. You could certainly up the ingredients a bit to suit your taste. This came out flavorful but not spicy. If you like spicy, by all means, add some heat. Since I have a two year old to feed (in theory anyway - she wouldn't eat dinner tonight!) I scale back a bit on the spicy. You could also add some frozen peas or green beans in towards the end.
Enjoy!
Ingredients:
3 sweet potatoes
1 acorn squash
1 medium to large onion
1 TBSP vegetable oil (or whatever you have - canola, olive, ghee)
1 heaping tablespoon curry paste
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cumin
1 TBSP turmeric (did you know turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties?)
1 - 2 TBSP curry powder
1 can light coconut milk
1 large can chickpeas
Method:
Peel and chop sweet potatoes and squash. Chop onion and saute in oil until translucent. Add sweet potatoes and squash. You will want to add a little bit of water, just enough so the potato and squash are covered and start to cook. Simmer until they are starting to get tender, about 20 minutes or so. They don't have to be done, just starting to soften up. Add spices and curry paste. Let cook for another 10 minutes or so. Rinse and drain the chickpeas and add them to the party. Stir in coconut milk. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are fork tender. Serve over Basmati rice.
You may notice that I say "about" a bit. I just kinda cook. I am not sure on the exact times. And I am just guessing about the amounts for the spices, as I didn't really measure. You could certainly up the ingredients a bit to suit your taste. This came out flavorful but not spicy. If you like spicy, by all means, add some heat. Since I have a two year old to feed (in theory anyway - she wouldn't eat dinner tonight!) I scale back a bit on the spicy. You could also add some frozen peas or green beans in towards the end.
Enjoy!
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Random Thoughts
I know I keep promising to post about things and then not doing it. I really do intend to post about Halloween, Lily's first sleep over, my new love of scrapbooking, and all the other things that have been happening lately. It is just that life has seemed a bit out of control and crazy lately. Do you ever feel like that?
It is already the middle of November, which means the holidays are already right around the corner. I actually feel pretty good about the holidays this year. I have some lists made, and I just need ideas from family members. I am totally taking advantage of Lily's age and use the "let's ask Santa" line frequently. I am also a really big fan of "Santa's watching, better be good!"
Speaking of Lily's age, we moved her to her big girl bed on Wednesday. So far she has done really well. I don't think she realizes she can get out of bed on her own. I am hoping this lasts a while. We have been working on potty training. While she seems to have no problem with the concept, she just totally lacks interest in it. I know she will come around eventually, but it is frustrating! Lily can be quite a handful. She is smart and funny and polite...except to me! She has been telling me lately that she wants to get a new mommy from the mommy store. I have no idea where she came up with that notion and am trying not to take it personally! My little girl has a mind like a steel trap. If you make a promise or suggestion, you better be prepared to come through with it, because I guarantee she will remember! It is really remarkable.
My house is threatening to swallow me up, which is really not a good sign as we are heading into winter! I have the itch to majorly purge! I would love to get rid of our desk top computer and computer desk and just get a laptop. However, since our desktop is working just fine, I can't actually justify doing that. I hope the economy turns around and housing prices rebound because we really need more room! I know that our house is just fine and that it is a good size house for many parts of the country and more than many, many people in this world have to call home, but I still desire something bigger! It leaves me feeling conflicted!
There finally seems to be a hint of a real chill in the air. I think we may even get some snow flurries this week. The daytime temps are supposed to be in the 50s, but overnight the temps are supposed to be below freezing. I love snow. I love a good snow storm, particularly on a Friday night, when we have know place to go the next day. Lily is in bed, the snow is falling, and I am curled up on the couch with my sweetie, watching a movie, enjoying a glass of wine, or maybe hot chocolate. The world just feels cozy and still. Of course, the reality usually is more like a child who refuses to go to sleep, we have no food in the house and a million things planned for the next day and the cable is out. But a girl can dream, right?
I really have been lacking motivation and direction lately. I have been horrible about grocery shopping, meal planning, cleaning, etc. It bugs me. I am never a super motivated person. I am the biggest slacker I know. However, I try to remind myself that my job, in this season of my life, is to be a homemaker. If I was shirking my duties in any other profession, I would be fired. And just because I can't actually be fired from my job doesn't mean I can just slack off. Hopefully I will pull myself out of this funk and join productive society again soon. I am probably driving my husband nuts!
Okay, I need to go change around a load of wash. That's productive, right? Until next time friends!
It is already the middle of November, which means the holidays are already right around the corner. I actually feel pretty good about the holidays this year. I have some lists made, and I just need ideas from family members. I am totally taking advantage of Lily's age and use the "let's ask Santa" line frequently. I am also a really big fan of "Santa's watching, better be good!"
Speaking of Lily's age, we moved her to her big girl bed on Wednesday. So far she has done really well. I don't think she realizes she can get out of bed on her own. I am hoping this lasts a while. We have been working on potty training. While she seems to have no problem with the concept, she just totally lacks interest in it. I know she will come around eventually, but it is frustrating! Lily can be quite a handful. She is smart and funny and polite...except to me! She has been telling me lately that she wants to get a new mommy from the mommy store. I have no idea where she came up with that notion and am trying not to take it personally! My little girl has a mind like a steel trap. If you make a promise or suggestion, you better be prepared to come through with it, because I guarantee she will remember! It is really remarkable.
My house is threatening to swallow me up, which is really not a good sign as we are heading into winter! I have the itch to majorly purge! I would love to get rid of our desk top computer and computer desk and just get a laptop. However, since our desktop is working just fine, I can't actually justify doing that. I hope the economy turns around and housing prices rebound because we really need more room! I know that our house is just fine and that it is a good size house for many parts of the country and more than many, many people in this world have to call home, but I still desire something bigger! It leaves me feeling conflicted!
There finally seems to be a hint of a real chill in the air. I think we may even get some snow flurries this week. The daytime temps are supposed to be in the 50s, but overnight the temps are supposed to be below freezing. I love snow. I love a good snow storm, particularly on a Friday night, when we have know place to go the next day. Lily is in bed, the snow is falling, and I am curled up on the couch with my sweetie, watching a movie, enjoying a glass of wine, or maybe hot chocolate. The world just feels cozy and still. Of course, the reality usually is more like a child who refuses to go to sleep, we have no food in the house and a million things planned for the next day and the cable is out. But a girl can dream, right?
I really have been lacking motivation and direction lately. I have been horrible about grocery shopping, meal planning, cleaning, etc. It bugs me. I am never a super motivated person. I am the biggest slacker I know. However, I try to remind myself that my job, in this season of my life, is to be a homemaker. If I was shirking my duties in any other profession, I would be fired. And just because I can't actually be fired from my job doesn't mean I can just slack off. Hopefully I will pull myself out of this funk and join productive society again soon. I am probably driving my husband nuts!
Okay, I need to go change around a load of wash. That's productive, right? Until next time friends!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Hi! Remember me? I am the author of this little blog. I haven't been around much the past month. We have been having fun, hanging out. October was a super busy month. We had two weddings, Halloween, I co-chaired a fundraiser, and about a million other things. I really do intend to blog about the past month, but for now, I just wanted to check in and let you know I haven't forgotten about this little blog!
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