Grateful

I am grateful for a kitten who has the biggest personality in the house.

I am grateful for a city where you can take trains to new towns.

I am grateful for free train rides.

I am grateful for glutenous rice flour.

I am grateful for thrift stores that sell J. Crew & Ann Klein in my size.

I am grateful for a world where I can see Rick Bayless in Whole Foods.

I am grateful for hot showers that don't run out.

I am grateful for neighbors who think the other neighbors are just a wack-a-doo as I do.

I am grateful I talk to my neighbors.

I am grateful for craft beers, from Lakefront Brewery. Amen.

I am grateful for change.

Irish Soda Bread

I made this super simple bread today for our corned beef and cabbage tomorrow. I was shocked that it came together SO quickly and it tastes so good.

shifted ingredients

oh hello buttermilk

(seriously thank you aunt conni)

kneaded and ready for the pan!

allegedly, the cross keeps the fairies from messing with your baking

this smells so good! and tastes pretty good too!

Irish Soda Bread, from Edible Ireland

4 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 2/3 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F and line pan with parchment paper. You can use a loaf pan or a baking sheet for a free form round loaf.

Whisk together flour, salt and baking powder. Add buttermilk. Stir until it forms a dough, it should be wet and shaggy. Flour your hands and surface and knead gently until it comes together more completely. Pat into a smooth circle about an inch deep and transfer to baking sheet. Cut a deep cross in the center.

Bake for 30 minutes, checking once to make sure it is browning evenly. Let rest on a wire rack at least 30 minutes before cutting it.

<3 Sarah

A Whirlwind Birthday

birthday cake for my mother in law

lunch at the golden house

i love this place 

lincoln square

they look so alike :-)

weifbier in lincoln square

the birthday girl & her happy hubby

so excited for dinner!

m's liver soup (it was a bit too...iron-y for me)

pork goulash w/spatzle (so good!)

m's pork shank

steph's meatloaf

at the harold! 

laughing at the comedy club :-)

we sat near kirby puckett at lou's

My in-laws were in town to celebrate my mother in laws birthday and we had such a whirlwind weekend! We hung out in Lincoln Square and had a wonderful German dinner at the Brauhaus. I have always walked by and I am so grateful for the chance to go in and eat the yummy food! We went to Lou Malanti's the second night for the Chicago Classic, and man, is there pizza good.

Sorry for the radio silence, I wanna be better :-)

Sarah

Eggs Poached in Tomato Sauce w/Peppers

This might be the best thing I have cooked in a long time. (Ok ok, M cooked it.) It was so simple and came together really quickly, which was perfect for a weeknight dinner after a run. And health too-just 300ish calories per serving. Thank goodness we only had 3 eggs! Although one had two yolks-what a good luck sign!

pan fry your onions and peppers

add in the marinara sauce & spices

cookin' the eggs

all done! and yummy!

serve over wheat toast

and sometimes you have to be naughty. 

Eggs Poached in Tomato Sauce with Peppers, adapted from Cooking Light
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 sliced red bell pepper and yellow bell pepper, each
1/2 cup sliced onion (about a quarter of the large one we had)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup lower sodium marinara sauce (I added 2 more tablespoons to coat the peppers)
1 teaspoon Italian herb mix (mine's from Penzy's)
2 eggs
pinch of salt & pepper
2 slices whole wheat toast, toasted
cheese for melting on top

Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add oil and swirl to coat. Add peppers and onion and cook for 6 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in marinara sauce and Italian herb mix. Cook three minutes, stirring occasionally.

Form indentations in vegetable mixture for each eggs. Break 1 egg into each indentation; sprinkle salt and black pepper over eggs. Cover and cook 6 minutes until eggs are done.

Arrange toast slices on plate and top with about 1/2 cup of vegetable mixture and 1 egg. Sprinkle with cheese.

Sarah

On #Kony2012

When I saw this video yesterday, I shared it on Facebook and I do wholeheartedly agree with the moves to catch Joseph Kony and remove him from the power he enjoys. It trended for about a day and then there was a backlash against it. A few of the better articles can be found here and here.

I should not be surprised that when someone tries to raise awareness of an issue, the response is to attack the way the story is told, the style of the film and the finances of the organization. What I don't understand is why? We know, and have known for decades, that evil is happening in the Uganda, Sudan, and the DRC. We haven't done much about it.

Yes, there is a non-profit industrial complex. When non profits are create in response to a need, they usually do so with vigor. After a time, they need to figure out how to stay relevant. I get that.

What I don't understand is the completely unabashed anger towards Invisible Children. Don't people in business make it all about them? What makes non profit work so different?

Marriage as a Position of Privilege

I know that some people don't see marriage as a position of privilege. For some, it probably isn't. I know this because I got quite of few questions about why I was getting married so young. As in, what is the point? Well.

I do see marriage, as an institution, as a place of privilege. Sure, you, your rights, children were all property of your husband under coverture. But marriage ensured a certain currency in the world. Married women could demand certain rights from their husbands, like fidelity. 

I do see my marriage as having given me advantages that I wasn't expecting. Before the Boss never took me out to lunch, bought drinks, was social outside of work. Getting married got into a 'secret circle' and now I get invited to those gossipy business lunches. 

We get mail addressed to the both of us. Family and friends treat my relationship as more legitimate. 

I am now seen as an adult who has it figured out. Absolutely being married has helped even out the highs and lows between paychecks but didn't magically grow a 401K after signing a marriage license. But I now don't have an excuse for not figuring that out (great, one more thing to add to the to-figure-the-eff-out-list). 

I am not trying to say whether privileging married relationships is good or bad. I don't know. But what I do know is that they are. 

Poblano Chili

poblano chili

My mom can tell you that I was not a bean-person as a child. In fact, she might even tell you that is an understatement. I was one picky eater. Picky as in no eggs, potatoes, beans, lentils, and their byproducts. 

Spending 5 months in Spain cured the eggs and potatoes bit but I still haven't really gotten a handle on beans. 

But in my quest to go more responsible with my meats, I knew I had to add beans into the mix. So. Chili. It has meat AND beans all hidden in yummy spice tomato goodness. M loves chili and this version is a tidy 349 calories per 1.5 cup serving. 

This is the first chili I have ever eaten with relish.

Plus, it only has one kind of beans to pick around, err, eat. 

oh welcome to the party!

sauteeing the onion, garlic, poblano and jalapeno

add the beer!

simmer :-)

delish. 

Poblano Chili, adapted from Cooking Light 

1 pound ground sirloin
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1.5 cups)
1 large poblano pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves
6 ounces light beer
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups stewed tomatoes
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 can no salt added kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 can diced fire-roasted tomatoes, undrained
olive oil
cheddar
chopped cilantro for garnish
greek yogurt (shhh! I told M it was sour cream and he didn't notice!)

Heat a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Coat with cooking spray. Add beef and cook until browned. Stir to crumble. Remove beef and drain fat.

Add oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add jalapeno, poblano, onion and garlic. Saute about 10 minutes or until onion is tender. Add beer and scrape the bottom of the pan to get the tasty brown bits off the bottom. Cook 10-12 minutes until beer reduces by about half.

Add chili powder, cumin, salt and cook for 1 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in beef, beans, broth, both cans of tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes until slightly thickened.

Serve in 1 1/2 cup portions, makes 4 servings. Top with cheese, greek yogurt and cilantro. 

Lou's, The Artist, and the Apartment

the malnati (a house salad with salami, oh yes.)

the chicago classic

lou malnati's!

christine & i on the train headed out! 

daniella, a friend from study abroad 

the apartment

Friday night, after a crazy workday, M and I went to the original Lou Malnati's for a deep dish pizza (which morphed into Saturday's lunch!). We then went to see the Artist, because we both missed it before the Oscars. Saturday night I went out with two great friends and I ran into another good friend from our study abroad trip. It's crazy to think that in a city of 3 million people you can run into someone you know! I had such a good time!

How was your weekend? Have any good plans for this week?

Sarah

Kuku Sabzi (Leek & Herb Frittata)

clockwise: farm fresh eggs, parsley, cilantro, dill, potatos, leeks

chopped herbs-this smells insane 

eggy mixture in the pan

kuku sabzi, all ready to eat! 

When I saw this leek and herb frittata in the March Saveur #145, I know that it was something I could easily make. We had leeks already, which I bought on a whim. Leeks are hard to just randomly use!

I halved the recipe from Saveur. (PS I couldn't find the link, but will update when/if I do)

1/4 cup each chopped cilantro, dill, parsley
1/4 tsp. ground turmeric (I probably should have done a pinch more, couldn't really taste it)
6 eggs, lightly beaten
2 small potatoes, peeled, grated and blanched
1 large leek, quartered and thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
3 tbsp. canola oil

Stir together first 9 ingredients (all expect oil) in a bowl. Heat oil in a 10 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Pour egg mixture into skillet, cover with a lid and cook until almost set. It took about 12-14 minutes. Invert frittata onto a plate, return to skillet and cook until underside is browned and crisp. Garnish with chopped cilantro and cut into wedges.

<3 Sarah

One Productive Weekend

fixed gear from lakefront brewery

planning our attack on homebrewing

matching slippers :-)

I spend the weekend cleaning the house, grocery shopping, going to the bank, organizing the fridge (inspired by Tracy Shutterbean) and my desk stuff. We even made time for an Oscars party! We have been trying to tackle one big project a weekend to get our lives to more stress free. M is really interested in starting to homebrew-if anyone knows anything about it we would love to chat! We want to make we invest in the right equipment.

How was your weekend? I hope it was wonderful!
Sarah