Wednesday, November 28, 2007

last night


I finally finished a knitting project in the late afternoon yesterday and made it into the outside world. The weather was amazing...warm and a beautiful sunset we both enjoyed, but not together. It was errand night, which included tickets for a Naked Raygun show, canned pineapple for a new recipe, more Christmas shopping and ended up in the "Center of the World" aka Fremont at Blue C Sushi. It was a delicious end to a beautiful and productive day. (Plus, we sat next to a very generous sushi connoisseur...which was interesting as well.)

Monday, November 26, 2007

a good start


It seems as though Fall has finally arrived in the Northwest. It is chilly and still beautiful. I had to put a sweater and a jacket on Snoopy yesterday for his walk. By the way, he is as cute in person as he is in that photo! Last night we received an excellent package! This particular item made Topher's night! Yep, that is a real smile and he plans on keeping this box. I learn something new every day I spend with him. Did you know Walleyes have bad eyes, hence the name and the glasses on this guy?

We also read through our new cookbooks and I feel invigorated to cook again! As I continue to knit my way through Christmas presents, thoughts come and go and today I could not get coconut milk out of my head. We do not have a lot of the ingredients needed for Thai coconut milk soupish dishes, but I did some research online and made this delicious broth:

1 can coconut milk
3 1/2 cups veggie stock
4 tsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. powered ginger
2 minced garlic cloves
1 lime, zested

simmer for 10 minutes
add 2 tablespoons of red or green curry paste

Then I added what we had available:
1 can Enoki mushrooms
green beans
1 pack firm tofu, cut into triangles
1 carrot, sliced thinly

I heavily garnished this with Cilantro, I'll take any chance I get!
Yum! Prefect for a chilly day.

lovely days







Thursday, November 22, 2007

Today...

1. mighty-o donuts
2. coffee
3. packer game
4. prepare:
- pistachio-pomagrante pilaf
- sweet potato soup
- mashed potatoes
- tofurkey
- roasted brussel sprouts
- sauted green beans
- classic jellied cranberry sauce

5. snack and watch football or if you are angela, grade papers at the same time
6. eat our first thanksgiving meal in our new house with our first visitor
7. take a afternoon stroll through discovery park
8. flying apron carrot cake and ice cream

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

knee deep and fluffy bunny


Yesterday a dog named Lug kicked my ass, yes I know. Today I slept in, ha, when Topher had to be at work at 7 am. I was sore and worked on another Christmas present today, then the afternoon turned out to be beautiful, so I took a walk up the Queen Anne Hill, not a "walk in the park" so to say. I picked up Topher at work so we could go and spend tons of money at the grocery store for the "sham with yams" we will be celebrating on Thursday. Home again, home again...where I made a first attempt at cream sauce sans dairy. Turned out good...more to come! Buenas noches...

Monday, November 19, 2007

Thursday, November 15, 2007

who's got the button?


Thursday!

Hi everybody. This is Topher. I'm writing the blog today, because Heather is busy making cookies right now. She is making cookies called Chocolate Buttons. I am going to eat these cookies. In other news, Heather got her hair dyed today. It looks awesome. It took the people at the Aveda School 6 hours to dye her hair. I was mad because they didn't even get her any lunch or anything. She just sat in a chair starving to death for six hours. So we went out to dinner at Bamboo Garden. Then everybody felt better.
Now we are going to watch DVDs that I got from the library and sit on our comfortable couch .

In more Topher-related news - I went to work today. It was okay. I made some mussels and some cabbage soup. Probably the most exciting thing that happened was that I banged my hand on a table while taking out the compost. (Yes, my job composts, this is Seattle.) I know nobody is reading this right now because you're all just wondering what Heather's hair looks like. Dont worry, it looks really good. Here's a picture:

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

link

in case you were having trouble with the link to the FAB pumpkin pie brownie recipe...it is now fixed. go forth and gorge yourself!

It was a good day.

I finally got a haircut yesterday and it's extreme in a good way. I get it dyed tomorrow by the same person, she's good. I think it's cold out, but I have been in here all day, yes, knitting and trying to clean as much as I can. I feel lazy! Yesterday Topher was off and we went Downtown and to Capital Hill to hang out....then back to Fremont to watch some sort of sporting event...we had to settle for Sports Center, which is always good. Leading to a half-assed discussion of what team will end up in Seattle when the Sonics move on.

Chantrelles are in season and they are delicious. I begin dogwalking at the shelter next Monday morning, my cousin is coming into town for Thanksgiving and that's about it.

Soundtrack: Walking With The Begger Boys- Elf Power
Liquid of choice: Tazo Zen

Monday, November 12, 2007

and the recipe

Onion Relish

1/2 sweet onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 jalapeno, chopped (For hot relish, leave the seeds in and for not so hot, remove them)
1 ear sweet corn, freshly cut corn off ear right before cooking it
tsp course ground salt
tsp cracked black pepper

On medium heat saute onion and garlic with salt and pepper for 2 minutes
Add the rest of the ingredients and let cook for an additional 4 minutes, while stirring frequently.
















I served this on a simple salad of:
mixed greens

avocado
cilantro and
lime juice
and a tortilla on the side, to help with the heat!

It is a very simple, yet very tasty touch for a salad or another Mexican or South American dish. I included all the seeds in mine, of course, and it was pleasantly hot for me...Topher enjoyed it, but was panting a little, so be careful. (Also when chopping). Buen provecho!

Relish

Yesterday was one of the most rewarding days I have had in a long time. After the training I worked the remaining few hours of a "Matchmaker" shift, which includes going into kennels and hanging out with dogs or walking them and helping out prospective dog adopters. It was a busy day at the shelter and 3 dogs that I helped meet families got adopted! One of the lucky dogs was a beautiful little rat terrier named Willy, my type of dog, who was an amazing bouncer. Then I took 2 guys outside, not at the same time, both were larger orange dogs, one part Chow and the other Retriever. These 2, Chester and Rocko, were so sweet, leash trained and one, Rocko was a great fetcher! I am going to love this! I urge anyone looking to get a dog to check Petfinder first! There are so many amazing dogs and cats (and critters too), who have had to part ways with their previous owners or are found as strays and need a home.

Topher had a good day too, brunch went well and his job continues to be mellow and enjoyable! We went to Central Cinema to see Rear Window and that was a blast. Topher was happy to know the references made on Bart of Darkness and then he felt pretty slick when he found it at home and we could watch it!

Sunday, November 11, 2007

OMG

There has been a car alarm going off for 2 days down the Queen Anne hill from us. I hate to hate, but I swore to swear at the dumb car when walking to the shelter today for my final training. But, as I type this I hear, perhaps a tow truck, something and the horn traveling past my house, up the hill...I may have some peace and quiet on this Sunday morning finally...

Topher's working brunch this morning, his new job is great. (I keep bugging him to post something and he groans, so I'll do it for him.) Yesterday we hung out with Topher's family and then hit the Ballard nightlife and it was VERY entertaining...I don't even know how to explain what I do not understand.

Tonight we are going to see Rear Window (in a movie theater!) one of my favorite movies of all time, which Topher has never seen! That's about it folks...

Thursday, November 8, 2007

volare....

Oh, how I love feedback. Glad to see and hear that people are reading this silly thing! I am currently trying to get the house ready for Topher's parents. I know, silly me, huh? But any excuse to clean and tidy...though I may drive my boyfriend crazy in the process...

I just got off the phone with my mom, we are very excited for our x-mas celebration in cali once again. Topher will join us for a few days, finally seeing the CALIFORNIA that I often reminisce about...
Here is one evening glorious site...

and Topher as a beer cozy model!

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Hump day already!

It's weird to have all the days of the week off. Topher has weekdays off too and that makes it even harder to keep track of what day it is. I thought I would say hi to our blog readers and wanted to tell everyone about our new favorite charity! Goats Do Roam is a vineyard that gives goats to folks in need! The red blend is very good and very inexpensive. We have the others, but haven't gotten around to tasting them yet. Topher refers to this as our "house wine".

Any knitters out there? Check out my *new* knitting blog like a phantom band

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

buenas dias

Topher has the day off and we are off to The Globe for big vegan breakfast and then to Snoqualmie Falls for the afternoon. Last night we ate at La Carta De Oaxaca and it blew my mind. I think it is the best Oaxacan food I've eaten stateside.

And by the way if you're interested here is the Pumpkin Pie Brownie recipe that you see pictured below, it's the bomb!
Cheers!

Sunday, November 4, 2007

settling in

So, we have been cooking a lot. It has been fun experimenting with new and different ingredients. Topher has been picking up extra hours at work and I continue to relax. Several things I am into right now; still training for the animal shelter, knitting, reading, vegan, wheat free baking and selling crafty items online. My brain is hyperactive with all the projects I want to be involved with! It's fun to not have my brain preoccupied with work crap.