Italian Broccoli Pasta

I'm not really sure if the roots of this recipe are truly Italian.  I do know that the original recipe was from a family with Italian roots.  I have to say, this is one of the world's simplest recipe and I especially love that there's really no right way to make it; it's all personal preference.

Italian Broccoli Pasta

~1 lb pasta (I used 13.5 oz whole wheat penne)
~1 lb broccoli, chopped into bite sized pieces (depends on how much you like broccoli; we love it)
~1/2 head of red/purple cabbage
1/2-1lb sausage (again, it depends on how much you like meat)
1/3-1/2 cup olive oil
5-8 cloves of garlic, minced (we are garlic lovers)
1-2 t. red pepper flakes (how spicy do you like your food?)
salt and ground black pepper to taste
parmesan cheese to taste (if you want it)

1. Bring the water to a boil, cook pasta.
2. Steam the cabbage and broccoli until it's as tender as you like it.  I like mine with a little crunch, rather than just mush (the noodles are already mushy, we need some variety!).
3. Brown and crumble the sausage. Drain the grease. (I think chicken would also be yummy in this dish)
4. Put the oil in a sauce pan or frying pan, add the garlic and red pepper, cook on low for about 10 minutes.  (note: do NOT heat the oil first and then add the garlic, or the garlic will fry and burn.)  You can use a colander/sieve to separate the oil from the garlic/red pepper after this, or just leave together (which I usually do, to avoid having another dish to wash).  Basically, you're just making garlic/red pepper infused olive oil.
5. Combine the above ingredients.  Top with some freshly grated parmesan cheese (we've had it both ways, and of course it tastes better with it, but it's also fine without).

 
This isn't an especially flavorful dish, but it's a simple, fun, colorful, and inoffensive dish to make (unless you've got a vegetable hater in the family).  As Jesse put it, "You know, this isn't one of my favorite meals, but I can't stop eating it!"

Jesse also said that it looked like a fake, plastic-y dish because the broccoli and cabbage were so bright and colorful.  Isn't it sad when we think only food colorings make things colorful?  Fruits and vegetables are so beautiful.  The cabbage wasn't in the original recipe.  I added that because a) we had it and needed to use it and b) I love to eat colorful foods!

cauliflower and rice

On Monday I made some roasted cauliflower and a rice pilaf.

I had bought some cauliflower, but Jesse doesn't particularly care for it raw, which is how I've always eaten in it.  So, I tried something new (roasting it) which is something that most people have probably done before.  I guess I just like my veggies raw.   Jesse liked it this way.  I didn't put the cheese on it, but I imagine he would've liked it even more with the cheese...

I didn't have spinach, but I think the spinach would've tasted delicious in the rice.  I also didn't have pine nuts, so I just chopped up some walnuts instead.  Totally not the same.  Pine nuts would've been scrumptious.  I also used twice as many mushrooms as the recipe called for because we love mushrooms, plus they were starting to go bad.

There's so many recipes I want to try.  Why am I so addicted to trying new things?  I think it's a good thing, because I'm eating such a variety of food and ingredients, so I'm getting a more balanced diet than I would if I ate the same meals over and over again.  Or at least, that's what I keep telling myself...

fluffy pancakes

Yesterday morning I made up a recipe for some fluffy pancakes.  Jesse really enjoyed them.  I love that they aren't heavy like whole wheat pancakes usually are, yet they are filling and flavorful.

3/4 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup white flour
2 t. aluminum free baking powder
5 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
2 eggs, separated
1 1/4 cup milk

1.  In a medium sized bowl, mix the dry ingredients together.
2. In a separate bowl (glass or metal, NOT plastic), beat the eggs whites on medium speed until fluffy and firm peaks form.
3. Beat the yolks with the milk, add to the dry ingredients and mix.
4. Gently fold in the egg whites into the flour/milk mixture, being careful not to over mix.
5. Use 1/2 c. measuring cup, pour batter into a heated frying pan.  Cook over medium-low heat on a nonstick pan (if you have a good quality pan, you won't need to oil the pan), flipping when the edges begin to look dry and firm and bubbles begin to form.

(optional) Healthier add in ideas. After pouring the batter into the pan, sprinkle in some chopped nuts, berries (chopped strawberries or whole blueberries are good), or chopped apple.  You could also put the fruits on after they've been cooked. Another option is some pure maple syrup or sugar-free jam spread over the cooked pancakes. Be creative!

9 miles

This weekend was my first at my job.

It was exhausting, but actually kind of fun.  I walked 9 miles and stood for 1000 miles, I'm sure.  I work with an interesting group of people.  They're all very nice but they have their quirks.  Of course, a week when everyone is working overtime and stressed to their max probably won't give me the best impression of everyone.  But really, I work with some great people.

Also, I just wanted to say that I really, really, really like our new church.

Last, I'm looking forward to spring break.  It's currently week 6 of 17 of classes, and I'm having my first test this week.  It's about time. :-)

i'm a person too

Sometimes I get sad and insecure.  Don't we all?

Do people really do like me do they just tolerate me?  I am opinionated and say things I don't necessarily believe, just so I can get a reaction.  I argue for one side of the coin with one person and the other side with someone else... just for the sake of a good discussion.  Most of the time I'm not truly passionate about any topic.

Despite my flaws, i do love you. I really do. I may not always like you and may not be able to be in your presence you for very long, but I pay attention, I listen, I know things about you.  I know what you like and don't like.  I file it away in my brain.  Sometimes I forget, but it's not very often.  When it comes to people, I almost never forget... not your name, not your birthday (if you've told me), stories you've told me, things you've experienced... if I've spent time with you, it's significantly impacted me.  I remember you for a very long time.

I notice you because you're a person.  I notice if you seem down, if you seem overwhelmed, sad, stressed, lonely, insecure, distracted... I don't usually say anything, but it affects me.  On the other hand, this sometimes creates a problem for me.  I notice how you treat me, if you treat me differently, if you seem upset at me.... I notice it.  I notice that you ignore me or avoid me.  I notice when you're short with me.  I notice when you truly are just tolerating me.  I notice when I'm not accepted.  I notice when we just need time apart to work through our differences.

When this happens I start analyzing it, sifting through memories, paying attention to what I say, what other people say about you, so I can try to figure out what's wrong.  If i can't figure it out, I shut down.  When I'm rejected or confronted, that's my immediate response - to shut down.  I became detached and emotionally distant.  It's what I've always done.  People don't realize this because my secondary response, is much stronger and louder - my survival response, to fight. Except, because of response number one, I used to do it emotionally detached.  I think that's part of the reason I was able to make anybody cry in my former years - I was cold. I couldn't feel their pain anymore.  The other part is because I do know so much about you, I've also observed your weakness. I know how to make you hurt.

Knowledge is power... but power is sometimes death.

Now I'm learning how to balance this. and it sucks. I'm learning to let things go, to breath, to use my fight response in a different way.

Now I have a physically difficult time make insensitive comments (about 15% of the time, something still slips out).  That doesn't mean I don't think insensitive thoughts. It just means I can't speak them. I'm becoming less detached and more empathetic to what people feel (when I'm angry).  and. I don't want my words to be what gives someone a the little push they need before toppling over the edge.  I've already hurt too many people in my life.

I'm ready to move on.  I'm ready to forgive - both myself and you.

cream of veggie soup

I invented a new recipe today. I didn't take any pictures since I wasn't sure how the recipe would turn out.  Maybe I'll take a photo later. I was needing to use up some of my veggies, since they were starting to go bad. 

So I threw this together:

cream of veggie soup

3 potatoes, cleaned and chopped
3/4 cup chopped broccoli
1 1/2 cups chopped cauliflower
2ish cups vegetable broth
3ish cups beef broth (I used 3 cups water and 2 bouillon cubes)
1 T oil
3/4 cup purple cabbage, roughly chopped
2 leeks, sliced and rinsed
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
6 white mushrooms, roughly chopped
1/4-1/2 t. dry thyme
3/4 t. dry basil
3/4 t. dry parsley
1/4 cup milk (optional)
sausage, browned and crumbled (optional)
grated cheese (optional)

1.  Put the potatoes, cauliflower, and broccoli in a stock pot with the beef and vegetable broth and turn heat on medium.
2.  Meanwhile, in a saute pan saute the leeks and garlic in the oil until the leeks are getting limp.  Then add the mushrooms and cabbage and cover for 1-2 minutes, until the cabbage is wilted.
3.  Add leek mixture to the stock pot, bring to boil.  Cook until the potatoes are tender.  Add the thyme, basil, and parsley.  Remove from heat. 
4.  Blend soup until creamy (if using a stand blender, you'll have to work in batches, filling the blender only about half way)
5.  Add milk (I used goat milk, and only because the soup was looking a little thick). 
6.  Fold in cheese (I used about 2-3 ounces of a Parmesan and Irish cheddar mixture) and sausage.

I was a little worried about how it would taste because the color (muddy green) didn't look that appetizing.  It sure did taste yummy though.

****edit****

Here's some photos.

blood.

Here's a sneak peak to some photos of Jonathan's injury several days ago. 

After learning the very basics of Lightroom, I've become a little bit too proud to use the very basic editing tools that come on iPhoto, so I'm not sure when the edited versions will be done.  Probably next week sometime, depending on how many hours I work.




And yes, I strongly believe in editing.  Before taking my traditional darkroom class, I thought truly good photos didn't need editing. Now I realize how much "editing" has been done traditionally and think it is part of photography.  To refuse to edit is like painting with only one brush.












I had fun taking these photos.  Injuries are painful to the victim, but fascinating to me as a photographer (a very amateur one, at that).  I very much enjoy observing and trying to capture the wide variety of reactions to blood... if only camera lens didn't fog up.

sex offenders

My discussion question in my family violence class this week asks if current sex registry laws and neighborhood notifications are effective in protecting children from sexual abuse.

While I haven't finished my response, my immediate response is "no."

Why?  Almost 90% of sexual abuse against children is committed by family members or acquaintances of the child.

I think the registry makes people paranoid for naught.  Most offenders aren't going to grab children off the streets.

What do you think?

the problem of the weight

My sisters are such cuties.  My brother is such a darling.  I can't help but want to squeeze him and smother him with hugs and kisses every time him every time I see him.

One of my amiable sisters and I have recently started keeping tabs on each other's diets/weight.  It's kind of fun!  I think long distance sibling relationships have some advantages, the main one being that neither of us can get annoyed at each other for anything the other one is doing, and thus the lines of communication are consistently open.

So far she's lost 6 pounds (high five!) and I've lost about 3.  We've both been eating more vegetables and have been watching our portion sizes

I would blame my weight gain on being newly married, but I know that's not true.  I actually lost a few pounds the first two months of marriage (after gaining on the honeymoon, haha).  However, I've gained about 10 pounds since October. . . not July.  I think I know what's to blame (okay, besides my lack of self control when it comes to food).

Since October, Jesse and I have been helping to do an internet and in-house broadcast of the basketball teams.  At every game, we get pizza.  Tons of pizza.  We usually have two and a half leftover pizzas, plus bread sticks.  At first it was delicious, but I got tired of it.  But you see, I have this bad habit of eating when I socialize, especially when everyone in the room is eating.  So even when I was tired of it, I just kept eating.  Plus, the smell of it is just amazing.

At the basketball games, none of us practice self control.  Instead, we dive happily into the pizza to satisfy our stomachs and stress.

After my pants started getting a little tighter, I started to wonder... but didn't link the pizza to anything.

This semester I am still helping out with the basketball games, only I did a little research in the pizza company's website.  Each piece of pizza had nearly 300 calories in it.

Last semester, I had been consuming anywhere from 2-4 slices of pizza per game, plus a bread stick, plus garlic bread squares, plus whatever other snacks were around.  Plus my other two meals a day.

I'm pretty sure that was the downfall, because I've noticed myself more easily maintaining/losing weight now that a) there are fewer basketball games and b) I've limited myself to two pieces of pizza per game.

I'm glad I'm still young and it's relatively easy for me to lose weight.  It's not as easy as it was when I was 15, however.  Does it get harder every year?

babies

This is the little girl I get to hang out with a couple times a week.  Isn't she a cutie?

I've become an aunt for the second time.  I look forward to meeting my new niece (the first on my side of the family!), Kenna Michelle.

snow, snow, everywhere

A few days ago we got dumped on with an inch of ice and 6 inches of snow.  It might snow again tomorrow.  And Sunday.

I actually don't mind the snow, but I just don't like it in the places I've lived.  Why?  Because there's absolutely nothing you can do with it.  I mean, beyond the snowball fights and the snow angels and snowmen.  That's only fun the first day.

I love the white powdery stuff.  It's beautiful.  I just wish I lived somewhere I could actually enjoy it - like Colorado where I could snow board, or northern Minnesota where I could snowmobile.  Just... not in this flat, boring land.  Here it's just an inconvenience because our states (and vehicles!) aren't equipped for snow storm (like, where are the snow plows?).

However, I definitely still like the winter better than the summer. :-)

- - - - - - - - - - -

Here's something interesting I spotted on a friend's facebook:

• Go to Google Translate
• Type in "fun ghoul"
• Translate to Russian
• Translate the Russian back to English
• Laugh

How people find things like this?  I haven't a clue.