Playing Hooky

I took the day off today.  It was one of the best decisions I have made in a long time.  Both of the courses I teach finished their content for the year last week and my AP kids had their exam.  I barely survived.  Many days over the last 8 months I have looked a lot like this:

Frazzled and more than a little stressed, but trying to pull it all together and keep smiling.  There have been countless breakdowns, tears and sleepless nights (not to mention the 5+ pounds and numerous gray hairs I've gained from stress) this school year.  However, I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel since we only have 12 more school days.  Hallelujah!!!!!

I celebrated my day off by staying up incredibly late last night reading and then sleeping in until almost 8... just because I could.  Heavenly.  And when I finally did get up and out of bed this morning I found this on our bathroom mirror:

Made my day!!!!  The Hubs earned some major brownie points for that one.

I spent the day tying up loose ends around the house, running errands and renewing my license at the DPS.  Not especially exciting, but incredibly relaxing.  All of that time spent waiting for them to call my number to get my new picture taken gave me even more time to read.  And the best part of the day - no one asked me any questions!  The teachers (and moms) out there know what I mean. 

To wrap up such a great spring day I needed a delicious, light dinner.  A spinach and arugula salad topped with roasted pecans, red onion, fresh goat cheese, roasted salmon, sliced strawberries and a balsamic vinaigrette fit the bill quite nicely. 

YUM!  Perfect way to round out a perfect day.

Yum.

I have one word to describe this "sandwich":  Yummy



photo: The Hubs



They are amazingly easy to make and almost too pretty to eat.  Almost.  Slices of panko-crusted eggplant serve as the 'bread' for these tomato, basil and chevre sandwiches.  Genius!  They are perfect for a lunch with the girls or as a light dinner when paired with a green salad and a glass of wine.   

I'm forever in my cooking gal pal's debt for choosing this recipe for us to try last summer.  We used standard eggplants then, but tonight I used baby eggplants and  loved how much more manageable it made the sandwiches.  One more tip: season every step of the way and don't forget to sprinkle the hot slices with salt as soon as they come out of the pan. 

Enjoy!

Spring Salad

I was so ready for spring to arrive this year.  I have enjoyed the clear, warm afternoons spent on the back porch after work recently.  I have adored the way springtime foods seem to awaken my palate after a winter of creamy and heavy foods.  There's nothing like the perfect salad this time of year to remind you what fresh tastes like.

photo: The Hubs

Although the grilled pork chops weren't bad, the real star of tonight's show was the Asian Citrus Salad.  Very simple: some arugula, spinach, dill, cilantro, & parsley, some thinly sliced red onion, a few blanched sugar snap peas, an orange and a handful of roasted cashews.  It was tossed with a simple vinaigrette made with the juice from the orange, a grated clove of garlic, a spoonful of orange marmalade, a splash of soy sauce, a couple of splashes of rice vinegar, some olive oil, salt and white pepper. 

Crisp, clean and perfect.

Weekend Fun and Food

I had a great weekend!  It was full of fun times, good food and great friends.

We kicked off the weekend with "patio time" at a neighbor's house on Friday afternoon.  I had a pitcher of Sangria left over from Dinner Divas so I brought it along.  Now this wasn't just any Sangria, this was The Pioneer Woman's recipe ... with a twist.  

Instead of using brandy like the recipe calls for, I substituted Tuaca.  Tuaca is an Italian liqueur from Livorno, in Northern Italy and is to die for.  I was only recently introduced to it and am hooked! 

The food we had out on the patio was delicious.  Kerry is such a great cook and made some absolutely phenomenal quesadillas - sweet and spicy.  

The theme of the evening was sweet and spicy, in fact.  Raspberry Chipotle sauce on cream cheese as well as a Pineapple Habanero Chutney on some cream cheese.  I also brought a jar of Pineapple Sweet Fire from Berrytown Produce (in Hammond, Lousiana).  It's a combo of pineapple chunks, bread & butter pickles and jalapenos.  Yum. 

Later on in the evening they fired up the chiminea and we roasted Peeps. 

Quote of the night, "It's like creme brulee on a stick"

Now, I normally hate Peeps and it took quite a bit of convincing on the part of others to get me to it, but holy-moly they are delicious!!!  They get this carmelized crust and are so ooey-gooey inside.  Next time I find Peeps at the store, I'm stocking up.

Last week on Facebook I got a recipe for homemade creme fraiche from one of the best cooks I know.  This woman is amazing in her kitchen... and in her art studio.  She is one incredibly talented woman who I admire very much.  The recipe is so simple, but so delicious. 

I put the ingredients together before we proctored the ACT on Saturday morning and by the time I woke up on Sunday morning it was completely ready. 

Only two ingredients.  Obviously not low fat.

Mix them up and let them hang out.  Couldn't be easier.

We had the creme fraiche for dessert this evening.  It was all I hoped it would be and more.  I served it atop fresh strawberries in a Balsamic & Red Wine reduction. 

Heavenly.

Out with the old, In with the new

I love spring... almost as much as I love autumn.
It seems like the entire world comes out of hibernation and begins to celebrate life again.

There is something incredibly joyful about the first pedicure of the season, the packing away of winter clothes and the deep spring cleaning that accompany this time of year.

It's a time for fresh starts, new beginnings.

I have been dying to try my hand at growing my own veggies for several years now, but just haven't gotten around to it.  Turns out, this is the year.

First of all, the old stuff had to go...

I know it doesn't look tough from this picture, but I had to dig out the roots of 3 dead shrubs from this area. 

They were some stubborn son-of-a-guns.

Luckily my sweet husband made me a little rest spot...

complete with shade, a drink and my cell phone.

Eventually all plants (and their roots) were cleared out.

While I was working and resting back here, R was busy building this...

an 8' x 4' frame for my little garden.

It took a little finagling but we finally got it in place

Pretty impressive, huh? 

The crepe (crape) myrtle had to sacrifice a few branches for it to fit.

 Another big change we made over the break was to replace our back door. 

In the interest of honesty and full disclosure, it needs to be noted that when I say "we" replaced the door I really mean that I helped pick it out, but R and a dear friend, MP, actually did the manual labor. 

Here is a picture of the old door that was incredibly drafty and as energy inefficient as possible.  Not to mention the fact that the door knob was broken... long story. 

Yes, the door did have moulding around it before the picture was taken.

Door's out and R is trying to salvage a 2 x 4 to make a new header...

or something like that. 

MP took this picture.

I was out grocery shopping at the point and missed all of the fun.

The guys did a great job installing the new door and avoided any major problems.

No drafts, a door knob that works and energy efficient glass!

Evidently this was a tough job...

R and SP needed a big nap afterwards! 

(Well, SP needed one.  R just wanted to pretend.)

The next day R installed the moulding around the door

and this time I did help with the actual labor part.

R still needs to do the caulking and I still need to do the touch-up paint on the wall around the door and actually paint the door and trim, but it's functional and allows us to enjoy our patio once again.  

Success is sweet. 

Attempts at Gardening

I am tired of paying through the nose each week at the grocery store for things like herbs and basic veggies I can (theoretically) easily grow at home. 

Now that it's nice outside again there is no reason I can't.  Or at least can't try. 

This spider-like pink flowering plant is about the only thing that didn't die over the winter.

In the past I have successfully grown basil, cilantro and chives, so I thought I would give it a whirl again. 

Remember, I'm uber-cheap, so I'm using empty coffee cans to start the plants.

I realized drainage was going to be a problem, so I punctured the bottom of the cans. 

I hope that does the trick.

I also put a few pieces of broken pots at the bottom of each can to help with drainage .

This is what Target had in stock the evening we visited.

The packages are pretty at least!

Tiny basil seeds - they kind of look like little 'droppings'. 

Cilantro seeds.  I couldn't get enough of this smell!

Here are my Herb Cans: Day 0. 

(That's a classy labeling system, huh?)

For some reason I got brave/optimistic at the store yesterday and purchased 3 plants:

Two Roma Tomato Plants

 

One Jalapeno Plant

Hopefully in a few months I will have the ingredients in my garden to make my own Pico de Gallo ... minus the onions. 

Spring Has Sprung!

On Saturday my sister came in to town to continue with the birthday celebrations for my dad.  

My mom had gotten Dad a kite and an airplane for his birthday, so it was time to play!

This was take 2... the first time the string came off the kite.  Dad was not allowed to tie it on this time.

Success!  Turns out that Dad is a pretty darn good kite flyer.

Laura assembles and applies decals to the plane. 

The plane did not fly well, but that wasn't her fault.  I think it was a design error.  Every time the plane landed (well, came to a crashing halt would be a more accurate description) the right wing kept popping out of its socket.  It was really fun for the 8 or so 'flights' it did survive. 

Despite the fact that everything in this field looks drab and gray and my dad and sis have jeans and jackets on, it really was a beautiful day!  It was the first day that really felt like spring.  In fact, I wore shorts for the first time since September. 

And just to prove that spring truly has sprung, here are a few pictures from my mom's garden:

I love how crisp and clean these tulips are.

Pretty Purple Pansies!

Since it felt like spring outside, it put me in the mood to cook some more spring-like foods.  I mean, I love those rich, roasted meals that just scream winter, but I am ready for foods that are a little lighter... in flavor and in calories.

Stumbled up on a new cooking blog, Natalie's Killer Cuisine, and saw she had a very 'springy' recipe that day - Lemon Chicken Wrapped Asparagus.  I couldn't resist!  It looked so simple, light and healthy... just what I've been craving.  

1. Pound the chicken breasts to about 1/2" thick.  (I went ahead pounded out two extra breasts since I will need them on Wednesday night for PW's Chicken Piccata...)

    

Other ingredients - Asparagus, Lemon Slices, Lemon Zest, Mustard Powder and S&P

2. Assemble the rolls

After seasoning the the chicken with S&P, lay the asparagus on the chicken and sprinkle the mustard powder and lemon zest on top.  Roll the chicken up and secure each one with a couple of toothpicks.

3. Cook the rolls

 

Brown on all sides on the stovetop, then finish cooking the chicken rolls in a 350 degree oven. 

4. Eat up

 Served with Parmesan Asparagus Couscous

Super easy meal that turned out to be quite tasty, healthy and filling.  Only thing I will do differently next time is to make a quick white wine or lemon butter sauce after I pull the chicken from the pan.

Tomorrow night's dinner - Broiled Tilapia Parmesan.