What's Shakin?

Happy Late St. Patrick's Day.... I know what you're saying... Lauren, why even bother saying late... it is full on celebration 30 days before and 30 days after your birthday. Well, you're right.

While in Denver for work, I got to spend MUCHO time with my friend Kelly who spoiled me rotton the weekend before St. Pat's and took me to have fun downtown at the parade (well.... we walked by it anyway)

Then we had green beer... and some appetizer samplers (caution not healthy or impressive in any way)

The dancing was pretty good though.

She got me a FABULOUS Birthday cake with fondant!!!! There aren't enough exclamation points to describe how much I loved it.

Also while in Denver, I tested the eats at Appaloosa Grill on the 16th street mall. AMAZING. Probably my favorite kind of Eggs Benedict Ever. How have I never thought of putting avocado on it?

For my actual Bday, after working Kelly, Tiffany, Michael and co. went to Watercourse Foods around the corner from Kelly's condo. All Veg, mostly vegan, UBER healthy and insanely delicious. Just what the doctor ordered after days of heavy steak house style company meals and a little too much St. Pat's indulging over the previous weekend. Not sure what we're looking at here... some sort of mushroom taco methinks.

These veggie eggs rolls (and corresponding sauce) were SO GOOD. They were for the table. I ate 3/4 of them. Selfishness is allowed on birthdays... write that down.

Later in the week I went back to Appaloosa for some Pad Thai. YUM. I was checking sports scores on my phone religiously (for the first time in my life i might add), back when my bracket had some exciting things happening. That lasted about 1/2 a day. Thanks for nothing Villanova.

Upon arriving back in MO, I immediately hit up the grocery store and then began the trek to my parents house for a fun birthday dinner for my momma and me. Oh, my sister was there too... ignore her.

We decided to make it a picnic, because eating on the floor is vastly superior to tables. We brought the table cloth with us though, because what are we.. animals? We had every dipper's dream appetizer turned meal, FONDUE! I used a recipe loosely based on Giada's Fondue recipe... mostly because my cheese options were limited. Essentially it was Gruyere and Fontina Cheeses, White wine and dippers. The cheese was completely smelly before it was all melty and amazing. Dippers included veggies and crusty bread - YUM! Totally doing this again. Plus the floor enabled us to watch soapnet while we ate and have lengthy conversations about all of our daytime friends like they were real people.

My wonderful papa got me green flowers for St. Paddies (he used to send me green carnations every year at school :) and my wonderful boyfriend got me some roses. The camera ate the green flower picture, and below are my bday cards/flowers goodies plus a few days.




After all of the Denver, and back home excitement, you're probably wondering how I POSSIBLY could go out on the road again. However, a girls trip to Kentucky was calling. Plus, who could say no with snuggies involved.

We drove by this a couple of times.

Spent a random and fun day out in nature. Not posing. At all.

We also hit up a WKU baseball game in quite possibly the most perfect weather ever. If you get a chance to go I highly encourage it, cheap college priced beer with a fabulous bar/deck off of first base. That combined with telling fun college stories with your besties? Yes please.

We hit up a gift shop or too... I want that hat. I might drive another 9 hours to get it.

Obviously there was dancing involved (P.S. our star and weekend hostess isn't in any of these photos, sorry Amy!)............ DJs love when you request songs from when you were in college (not, they do not, they look at you like you're old... apparently Nelly dropped off the face of the earth)

That's all folks. I hope everyone had a happy Easter and is enjoying the sunshine. Spring time cooking coming soon now that I'm no longer living out of a suitcase. Ciao!

So..... I never got a housewife

Other things that did not happen in February include cooking, cleaning, making myself proud to be an american/female/human being. Mostly I just delved further into my vitamin D deficiency and cursed mother nature for bringing 90 consecutive days with Gray skies and 20 degrees weather.

However all was not lost, as I watched hours upon hours of the Gilmore Girls in PJs (well, they were clothed, I was a hot mess).. hello fuzzy slippers.

In the midst of my hibernation, I decided to make a recipe featured on the tin foil covering my yogurt, creative, no? It had a few of my favorite and always-on-hand ingredients, so how could I go wrong, right? I'd like to call this particular adventure: 'The max fill line is no joke people'

Here we are, simmering sweet potatoes in veggie broth, smelling yummy and promising.

Except that when it came time to puree it in the food processor I was feeling lazy. Really lazy. Suddenly I hated everyone with an immersion blender and decided, F* it, I was going to put it all in the Cuisinart and it would just deal with it. In my kitchen, I'm the boss applesauce.

So I'm not sure why I was surprised that although the potatoes stayed just fine, the carefully simmered liquid ran all over the counter top, soaking anything it came in contact with, and made a waterfall down the cabinets below.

Awesome.

My cat-like reflexes to stop it included taking a picture.

So after I felt like a moron and was reminded that shortcuts are for losers and criminals, I opened a new thing of veg broth and put it in.... max fill line respected, the food processor for pureeing.

All this produced another recipe that felt like baby food. DANG. How do I never see this coming?

I roasted some chickpeas and put a dollop of sour cream in the soup to finish. Served here with fine grain triscuits (i could eat those things every day of my life) and a laughing cow wedge.

Also this year for lent I decided not to go Veg at the last minute. I have loved proclaiming my veg affiliation for 6 weeks of the year... however the novelty of trying it had worn off after four years, plus I eat veg 80% of the time anyway, and I was ready for something new.

Currently I'm doing chocolate, but I'm not too jazzed about that sacrifice either. I'm thinking I might have to revert back to my chillaxed days in college where I gave up nail polish and wearing the color brown (for 1.5 months that was actually harder than it sounds).

Anyway, old rules be damned I made myself a carnivorous steak salad, and used a salad dressing recipe from Giada, which did not knock my socks off. In fact it kept them on, or added layers. I don't think homemade vinegar/oily sauces are for me.

Alright folks, how have YOU been the last month? I made repeats of Salsas (previously seen here) for superbowl parties, I did NOT injure myself or my vehicle in the massive snow showers we received, practiced my triple sow cow in my living room while watching the Olympics, and I have attended 304932049 of John's games. Extra gold stars next to my name this season!

March is going to be great, I'll be in Denver for 1.5 weeks for work, but will secretly be hanging out with my friends there and it will be GLORIOUS. There are umpteen bdays in my fam including the st paddies babies like myself, my mom, my aunt Sheila, my uncle bill. BRING ON SPRING :)

I want a housewife

So my collegie roomie came to see me last weekend and it was JUST what the doctor ordered. She arrived from her travels late friday night and I had a bottle of wine and some apps waiting for her! She's Vegan, although she gives herself weekend passes for cheese (duh, who could live without cheese?). I had some hummus with crudites, sweet potato fries and cresent rolls baked with sour cream & chive cream cheese and chopped spinach stuffed inside. It tasted..... interesting. I might have enjoyed eating the raw cresent rolls and cream cheese most. Classy.

We caught up and it was good for my soul! Saturday evening I took the world's longest steamiest shower and it felt amazing after an crazy week! When I got out I ventured to the kitchen (1.5 feet away) and saw Nickie already doing all of the cooking! She practically had everything finished and it felt SO GOOD to be clean, completely at home and feel fussed over. That only happens with my mom (who is the best at it) but was heaven on earth for it to be happening in my very own kitchen. I consider myself pretty tidy and well fed, but having a housewife has got to be THE LIFE. I want one.
Before Nickie came she said she was going to bring one of her favorite new cookbooks. I knew it would be healthy and right up my alley, what I did not know... is that it was a cookbook I already had! John's sister and husband got me this beauty for Christmas and though I have thumbed through it and admired it, I had yet to cook anything (no pictures or nutritional stats require more adventurism than I have given over the past month) ... I hear NPR did a thing on it too. Sa weet.We made the Shepard's pie... except that whole foods was out of Seitan (pronounced Satan? I can't get over that) so we subbed veggie crumbles. I do wonder how it would've changed the flavor/texture though, since I've never had that particular meat substitute.

This stuff was gooo--ood. It used mashed potatoes on top and the filling had kale, corn, and carrots.

(dramatization of how we at it.... which was NOT straight out of the baking dish, what are we? animals)

We also made the book's Olive tapenade which was SALTY but delicous! We set out snacks since Kelly and Emily were coming over too!

After much wine and gossiping we ventured out into the FREEZING cold for some fun!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH wanna dance with somebody! I wanna feel the heat with somebody... yaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH I wanna dance with somebody!

mwahahahahah

Last night I had a date with my pappa! He has been in town for work and so I made him some yummy chili on a snowy day. I even picked up some sourdough breadbowls for it too, yum! (please disregard the random sideways-ness of the picture, it is being uncooperative)

I made the standard chili recipe, but a tad spicier than usual:

• 1/2 package veggie crumbles
• 1/2 onion
• 1 garlic clove
• can diced tomatoes
• can black beans
• 12 oz tomato juice
• 2 T chili powder
• 1/2 T cumin
• 1/2 T chipotle seasoning
• 1/2 T ground red pepper

Look how happy he looks!

Probably because the way to ANYone's heart is through Kansas City's Boulevard Beer and chili. We headed to Johns game afterwards and they WON BIG. What a fabulous night.

This weekend it's time for QT with my momma and I can't wait to see her... the snow is delaying me unfortunately but I'll make it work. TGIF :)

Endless hugs, 7 varieties of cheesy potatoes, and BFFs

I had been delaying any major cooking activities (grocery trips, etc.) over the last weekend as I waited by the phone for the news that was a long time coming. In my glorious, fun, loud, and wonderful family (I speak of them often, hi aunts!) we lost our Matriach to cancer this week. A lady who never smoked and was otherwise a picture of health got lung cancer. Go figure. My Grandma was pretty amazing for a multitude of reasons including but not limited to: raising 11 children (much of the time as a single parent), having more stamps in her passport from interesting places (the middle east, asia, you name it) than anyone I've ever known, being totally mellow/zen/yoda-esque, and finding a wonderful balance between strong faith and liberalism (what woman in her eighties is that delicate combo?). She was awesome.
A few months back my dad urged my siblings and I to write about my Grandma, as a gift to my mother. As it turned out, we read what we had written at the services. Kudos to my brother and sister for both being funny and sentimental, and prompting many more hugs. My Aunts and Uncles did a great job making everything so meaningful and personal (special shout out to my own mama!). The church ladies did an excellent job in providing the world's largest varieties of casseroles. No kidding, there had to be 7 types of cheesy potatoes... how could you stay bummed?

Sister was happy about all of the dessert varieties

Our family tree..... leaves = grandma's descendents including great-grandkids. Holy big family.

How great do they look? Beauteous and vintage. Little did they know at the time the impact they would have on so many lives.

Love you Grandma! In addition to the church food, we had plenty of other unhealthy comfort food at our disposal. Oh that's right. We tri-ed some. With AE dip... life changing.

After 2938749832749872398947239874 hugs later (although you can never, ever have too many), I drove the SIX HOURS home and got in around 10pm last night. Weary traveler that I was, I was a hot mess getting up to my apartment. Someone in the elevator even had to help me with all of my saddlebags. So you can imagine my delight when I opened the door and saw this waiting for me:

With a wonderful note (I knew giving her a key to my place was a smart move)

...so I checked my fridge:

Goodies!

And as I blissfully munched on a dark chocolate covered strawberry, I couldn't help but notice all of the little notes around the place:

She is correct, my new table IS sweet. Pictures to come. Hey, even Bubba got in on the action (like that is a surprise):

and an Animaniacs quote that had me smiling while I brushed my teeth this morning :)

Thanks Emily, way to turn this frown upside down! In related news, my college roommie and BFF Nickie will be arriving for the weekend in just a few short hours. Quality time with friends makes EVERYTHING better, I'm convinced. Plus we'll be doing some cooking this weekend :) stay tuned!

Accidentally, Innocently, Completely Offensive

So last night Emily and I decided to have a much deserved Girl's night. It has been ages since our schedules have been able to accommodate such QT, so I was pumped. Too bad I got home around 11pm the two prior evenings, therefore reducing the chances of any sort of culinary magic to nil. I opted to bring an appetizer of crusty french bread with goat cheese, a sprinkle of dill and a diced Fuji apple, all melty and crusty after being popped in the oven for a few minutes. Can I just say, Holy Goat Cheese. It's so rich and delicious and just rocks my world. Sidebar, Emily I left the package in your fridge and I will fight you to the death if you don't let me have it back. That is all.

Soon after we switched to Emily's more mexican theme, including Queso.. yum!

Then we watched the MASS election results (sad times), talked about how we wish we were Kennedys and how it's probably too late for us to try to marry in to the family... And how Rachel Maddow was just some curly hair away from looking like Paul Simon last night in her turtleneck and corderoy blazer.

... while we ate black bean and roasted veggie quesadillas. YUM!

For Desert I brought the makings for SMORES. YUM YUM! I was so excited. This may be the first time I've tried to eat this combo and not smelled like firewood and needing a shower and indoor plumbing. Best of all worlds, I say. Below is the pan, it had no idea what was coming...

While Emily and I popped the pan into the oven to Broil, we chatted, laughed, kept drinking and Generally forgot about it. Until we began to smell burnt sugar, which Emily said 'On the food network they say you know it's done when you can smell it' Except that it was completely burned. We laughed forever about how we had made the marshmallows totally unrecognizable and even took an iphone picture and uploaded in to Facebook to share our kitchen disaster with the world........

(dramatization of us forgetting about the time)

Until 8 people online immediately commented to ask why we had baked a Nazi pie. AHHHHHHH Do you see it? Holy Swastika! as soon as the first random person pointed it out, we exchanged 'no way' glances, and then looked at the picture again and were HORRIFIED (and laughing until we cried the utter ridiculousness of it) to be spreading anti-semetic images on the internet and through food.... on accident. We got bombarded with comments until we took it down, approximately 3 minutes after it was up. Further putting our foot in mouths is when we tried to making joking references to the oven being a nazi oven... until, oh yeah right, that's worse.

So we regrouped (still laughing a little, although again, totally offending everyone). And committed to not burn the desert. Round 2 of oven smores:

That was exactly one minute on the timer and made the smores ooey gooey perfection. But let's just compare what difference a few minutes makes.

It all worked out in the end though, those smores were delicious. We topped them with half of a Hershey's bar. SO RICH.

(and so unflattering of the chef)... Emily made me put this picture of her dog up. UGH.

I hope I don't need to explain that Emily and I are not hateful, intolerant people. We love Jews, we're crazy liberal... But I hurt today from laughing so hard last night... It was an accident!! Next time Emily and I are going to shoot for having a miraculous impression of the Jesus or the Virgin Mary in toast, to redeem ourselves and send some better Kitchen Karma our way. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh