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Roasted Vegetable Orzo

January 2, 2013
Food
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While I try not to make serious resolutions, I do try to get back to eating and being a little healthier once the holidays are over. Husband made this for us last week, and it’s the perfect dish to bring us back to flavorful but healthy dishes. I’d never had delicata squash before, it’s a wonderful mild flavor, a bit like a sweet potato. I’m a big fan of winter vegetables, particularly anything that calls for kale.

roasted vegetable orzo

Roasted Vegetable Orzo
via 101 cookbooks

1 medium delicata squash, seeded & sliced 1/3-inch thick
3 shallots, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil or melted clarified butter
fine grain sea salt
4 medium cloves garlic, peel on
12 kale leaves, washed & dried well, de-stemmed & cut into 3-inch strips
1 1/2 cups uncooked orzo pasta
1/2 cup plain yogurt
For serving: slivered scallions, fresh oregano, toasted nuts or seeds

Preheat the oven to 400F / 205C with racks arranged in the top and bottom thirds. Line two baking sheets with parchment. You’re going to roast the squash, shallots, and garlic on one sheet, and the kale on another. Prep the delicata squash, and toss it in a large bowl with the shallots, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, and a big pinch of salt. Arrange in a single layer on one of the baking sheets, add the garlic and place on the bottom rack, for about 30 minutes. Spin once or twice along the way to get even roasting – let it all get deeply golden.
After the squash is in the oven, use the same bowl to toss the kale with another splash of olive, and pinch of salt. Arrange the leaves on the other baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, or until you get a touch of browning, but the leaves are primarily still green. Set aside.
Get the pasta water boiling, salt well, and cook the orzo pasta. Drain and use quickly (warm) OR (if you won’t be serving for a while) run under cold water, and toss with a tiny splash of olive oil.
For the dressing, extract the roasted garlic from its peel, and mash it with a bit of the yogurt and 1/4 teaspoon sea salt. Work in the rest of the yogurt, taste, and add more salt if needed.
When you’re ready to serve, toss the orzo, and roasted vegetables with about half of the yogurt. Turn out onto a platter and sprinkle with scallions, oregano, and seeds/nuts. Serve the remaining yogurt to the side.

Chorizo with Kale

December 1, 2012
Food
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We have this amazing local sausage maker here in Seattle called Uli’s Famous Sausage at Pike Place Market. When I came across this simple but lovely recipe this week, I knew getting a great chorizo would be the key to making this dish perfect. While I was out and about, my darling husband whipped this up with the chosen Uli’s Chorizo Picante. It turned out sooo spicy and so good. I’m looking forward utilizing this again and again with our favorite green, kale.

chorizo with kale

Chorizo with Kale
via stonesoup

2 chorizo, sliced
1-2 cloves garlic, peeled & sliced
1 large bunch kale, finely sliced crosswise
1/2 lemon
handful roasted almonds (optional)

Heat a frying pan on a medium high heat. Add a little oil and the chorizo. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until well browned on the first side. Turn and cook for a few seconds on the other side. Remove from the pan to a clean plate. Add garlic and kale to the chorizo oil in the pan and stir fry for 2-3 minutes or until kale is wilted and tender. Return chorizo to the pan to warm up. Taste and season with salt, pepper and a small squeeze of lemon.

Ted Baker Winter 2012

November 9, 2012
Fashion
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While the husband and I were in Paris on our honeymoon, we did a bit of shopping. Well, maybe a little more than a bit! One of the shops I fell in love was Ted Baker; I tried on a gorgeous white dress and that was it. True love. I was thrilled to come home and find all the beautiful things available here in the states. Their winter lookbook is dreamy and whimsical, a fantastical interpretation of my favorite season, a perfect color palette of creamy winter whites and bold jewel hues.

images via ted baker

Butternut Squash Risotto

October 23, 2012
Food
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A little over a week ago my friend Danielle made this amazing risotto – twice! Even though she was sweet enough to share a bit with me, I wanted a whole batch of my own. And since I’ve been on the mend, but not one hundred percent wonderful yet, my dearest husband whipped it up for me this week. So sweet! Definitely a fall favorite and on the short list for Thanksgiving.

Butternut Squash Risotto
via martha stewart

1 tablespoon butter (or olive oil)
1 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth, mixed with 1/2 cup water and heated
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage, plus more for garnish

In a medium heavy-bottom saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add squash; season with
salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until edges soften, 10 to 12 minutes. Add rice; stir to coat.
Add wine; cook until almost all liquid has evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; add 1/2 cup hot broth mixture. Cook, stirring, until almost all liquid is absorbed. Add remaining
broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring until liquid is absorbed before adding more, 35 to 40 minutes total. Stir in parmesan, sage, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.
Serve immediately, garnished with more Parmesan and sage, if desired.

Cheesy Quinoa with Roasted Broccoli

October 17, 2012
Food
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I love it when the husband cooks! Particularly a treat like this one. This is a kicked up mac &
cheese (and you know I have quite the fondness for quinoa). And also this blog I just discovered! Carey Nershi has quite the eye and I look forward to scouring every corner
of her blog for new recipes and more of her gorgeous photos.

Cheesy Quinoa with Roasted Broccoli
via reclaiming provincial

3/4 cup of quinoa
1 1/2 cups of water
half a large head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup of milk
1/2 to 3/4 of a beaten egg
3 oz. of sharp cheddar cheese, grated
a pinch of kosher salt

Preheat oven to 425°. Toss broccoli in olive oil, salt, and pepper, then spread out over a
baking sheet. Bake for 15–20 minutes, or until the broccoli just begins to brown.
In the meantime, combine water and quinoa in a pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to
a simmer, and let cook until all of the water has absorbed.
As soon as the quinoa has finished cooking, combine the butter, milk, egg, and salt in a
large saucepan. Add cheese and quinoa, then cook over low heat, stirring continuously,
for about 3 minutes. Mix in the broccoli and enjoy!

Zara Home Collection

October 14, 2012
House
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My lovely husband sent me an exciting update this week – Zara now has a home collection! Even though we don’t have a store here in Seattle, I’m a huge fan of their on trend and reasonably priced clothes. Their new catalog is gorgeous and I’m looking forward to picking up a few things!

Vegas!

September 29, 2012
Random
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So we finally took a little time off this week… five days in Vegas to be exact. Vegas! Oh, what a week. Just me and the husband. A little gambling, a lot of sun, so much great food and a much needed couple days of down time.

The day we landed I asked our friends for suggestions and we got so many great ones!
Favorites: Fremont Street and $5 Black Jack tables at 4 Queens Casino, Parasol Down Bar at the Wynn and the crazy, strange, wonderful water show outside, Carnevino & Craftsteak at MGM for fancy dinners, Peppermill for the best cheesy, over-the-top Vegas-esque lounge. Love! Thanks all!

Spicy Thai Noodles

September 1, 2012
Food
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Even with all the birthday madness this week, we did manage to whip up a few easy, delicious meals. Husband made this one night while I worked late, and it’s definitely a new favorite. I loved it for dinner and even more the next day cold. This recipe is also great because it is a great base that could be mixed up with a variety of different ingredients and toppings. For the meat eaters out there, I think adding cooked chicken and tossing it with the oil would round out this dish nicely!

Spicy Thai Noodles
via a small snippet

1 box linguine
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
1/2 cup sesame oil
6 tablespoons honey
6 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 carrots, shredded
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
3/4 cup peanuts, chopped

Combine the crushed red pepper flakes, vegetable and sesame oil in a small sauce pan. Cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Strain out of the red pepper flakes, reserving the oil. Whisk the honey and soy sauce into the reserved oil. Cook the noodles according to the package, to al dente.
Drain the noodles and toss well with the oil mixture until the noodles are well coated.
To serve, top each bowl of noodles with green onions, carrots, cilantro and peanuts to taste.