Light Shepards Pie

We have been living in bonus time for the past few months.  The weather in the northeast has been anything but wintery this year and I was loving it.  The sun shone bright and the winds were calm for the Thanksgiving day parade.  Rather than inches of snow for Christmas, a light rain fell.  We hit fifty-five degrees on New Years Eve in the city and it was pleasant enough to stroll the streets of Manhattan with your coat open. 

Yesterday, it seemed like winter had finally won and we were at last in its grip.  The temperature dropped into the single digits overnight and I was not looking forward to my morning commute.  Waiting for the train in the bitter cold is not my idea of a good time.  I decided to brace myself for the wait with knee-high boots, an extra heavy sweater, thick scarf, hat and gloves.  I decided that crazy hair for the day was worth it, just call me Kramer!

Even our offices weren't immune to the cold.  My chemicals all were cold, those with high freezing points were solid blocks in their bottles.  Space heaters were out in full force under desks, sadly I was without one.  I wrapped myself in my scarf and sweater and drank lots of hot chocolate.  I'm okay with winter being outside, but in the office too?  No fair!

Thankfully I had refuge waiting for me at home.  (No, I didn't run home and dive under the blankets.  I actually came home and went to the gym!)  Our apartment is perpetually warm!  It's a big problem in the summer, with the place heating up to nintey degrees easily.  In the colder months though, it's a fabulous thing.  The temperature went down to nine degrees here in New Jersey, but our apartment only fell to a comfortable seventy-two (that's 25 C for all my foreign friends!).

Thanksgiving Potato Pie

Would it surprise you all if I tell you that I'm not cooking this Thanksgiving?  The Wilde kitchen will not only be quiet, it will be completely empty.  There will be no turkey in the oven, no potatoes on the stove and no tubes of cranberry sliced on my cutting board.  The lack of thanksgiving cooking does not mean that I'm just heading to someone elses home for the traditional feast.  Thanksgiving dinner will probably consist of pizza, or sandwiches, and I'm very excited about it.

Don't get me wrong, I love all holidays that revolve around food.  It's the main reason I like celebrating memorial day, picnics!  Thanksgiving is a long standing tradition in my family back home in Buffalo.  Every Thanksgiving of my childhood was spent preparing a dish and heading out to my Aunts house for a great big Thanksgiving dinner.  The dish that we would prepare?  Our classic Jell-O dish!

I have many memories of bundling up and hopping in the car, driving all the way to Grand Island.  The drive always felt like it took forever, although these days I know it only takes about twenty minutes to get there.  We would arrive in the house and shed our layers, slowly coming into a warm house that smelled of turkey.  That smell always brings you into the holiday spirit, if I make a turkey in the summer I still think of Thanksgiving.

We would inevitably wind up eating dinner at four o'clock.  The kids would be first in line to eat and my Uncle would always cut in front of one of us, telling us he was taller.  The adults would retreat to the dining room and the cousins would sit around the kitchen table.  At one point in the years we had dinner there, the kids were relocated to the living room, next to the dining room.  I think it was to let us feel like grown ups.  I spilled red Jell-O on the white carpet that year, the next year we were back in the kitchen.

This year is the first Thanksgiving that boyfriend and I will spend together, living in the same place.  What have we decided to do this year?  Go to New York City and watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!  Since we won't be at home to prepare a giant feast this year, I prepared a little Thanksgiving dinner yesterday.  It's delicious, it combines everything you want and it doesn't take five hours to prepare. 

Cream of Asparagus Soup

I have some terrible news people.  Yesterday morning was going so well, until I went to dry my hair.  My favorite (only), trusty hair dryer was working its magic until it decided it had enough.  With half wet hair, my hair dryer coughed, sputtered and exhaled one final hot breath, then died.  I tried shaking it, pushing buttons, turning it on and off.  Even the tried and true electronic fix of unplugging and pluggin back in did nothing. 

I am now mourning the loss of my hair dryer.  I am also looking all sorts of crazy.  I guess the one bright side of no longer owning a functioning hair dryer (I like to call it an art piece right now) is that I leave the house twenty minutes earlier in the morning.  WIN?

 

Thanksgiving 2010 - Sage Oven Fries

Okay, I’ve said it before. Potatoes at Thanksgiving time should be mashed. However, this year, for our healthy goals, we are having them baked. I know, I know. Sacrilege. When I read this recipe I just knew that it would fit in so well with our health conscious goals, plus these potatoes are so pretty! Roasted potatoes with crispy sage leaves, yum. Enjoy.

Sage Oven Fries

Cooking Light Complete Cookbook

This recipe is said to serve four people (three slices a piece).  If you are having more people simply scale!  The sage leaves get all crispy and the potatos get this amazing crust on the edges.  You won't miss mashed potatos one bit!  Okay, maybe a little.  If you want to splurge then feel free to use this recipe!

2 baking potatoes

Olive oil

Kosher salt

12 sage leaves

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Wash your potatoes and slice each potato into 6 slices. Place in a bowl and coat with olive oil and a dash of salt. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 40 minutes.

Coat sage leaves with a little olive oil. Take baking sheet out of the oven. Place one sage leaf on top of each potato slice, then flip over. Cook for 10 more minutes. Serve immediately.

Roasted Red Pepper, Leek and Potato Soup

I forgot how dark and rainy fall in the northeast can be. It makes me want to hide under the covers and watch Sell This House all day long. Something about watching other people work makes me warm and happy. Maybe this is why I like teaching Bodystep classes so much? Nonetheless, fall can be so different, depending on where you live.

Fall in my hometown is cold, gray and wet. Ahh, the pleasures of living near Lake Erie. Fall in the Midwest is crisp and sunny, perfect for getting up early and drinking hot apple cider. Fall in the Rockies is fantastic with warm, sunny days and cool, dry nights. Great for hiking during the days and sleeping under heavy blankets at night.

Fall in the Northeast is a little more temperamental. We have swayed from cool, cloudy days to warm, sunny ones. I like to think of this season as a manic depressive one for the region. Maybe fall just needs some lithium. I have some in the lab, I should offer it up to the season. Here fall, would you like some lithium wire? I’ll clean the mineral oil off of it for you! Be careful though, it’s kinda flammable…

Perhaps offering the season some lithium metal is a bad idea. Maybe it just wants some soup. Soup should make it all better. This soup should make it great. Sunny days and cool nights are in my future! Not only is this soup delicious, but it is fun to make. I might just be saying that because it meant I got to use my immersion blender for the first time. You can make this soup with a simple pot and blender, altough I was more than happy to pull out my new toy. This soup has a fabulous texture, great flavor and most importantly, it’s so pretty!

Mashed Potatoes with Blue cheese and Thyme

Okay, so things around the Wilde household are a little crazy at the moment. Let’s see if you can keep up… 1. Boyfriend and I are heading to Europe on Thursday, where we will road trip across the continent. 2. Job hunting season is upon us and I have an interview today. 3. I am trying to finish three projects before I leave for my dream job. I’m tired already. So what to eat for dinner when you have no time to make anything? Mashed Potatoes!

Now listen, I’m well versed in nutrition facts (I also work in the fitness industry as well as the lab), I know that potatoes alone do not make a meal. But when you add cheese, then you have dinner.  No, really. Mashed potatoes are easy. If you want to be really lazy you don’t even have to peel the potatoes before cooking them! I found the extra five minutes to do that, because I am not a fan of potato skin, unless they are drowned in cheddar cheese and bacon.

These mashed potatoes are just yummy. And nothing is more satisfying after a long day of packing, chemistrying and stressing, than a yummy dinner. The hint of thyme and the kick of blue cheese make it hard to stop yourself from eating the entire pot.  Maybe just throw down a V8 also, pretend like you're a healthy eater.



On a side note, while boyfriend and I are in Europe I have to decide whether to post the recipes I have stored away on my computer or to share our European vacation.  If you have a preference let me know!  I would be happy to share our destinations, adventures and eats!