I’ve said it before, likely here, Sasha is 90% perfect, But the 10% imperfection is enough to drive me absolutely bonkers.
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Sasha the Destroyer
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Drop Dead Gorgeous
http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/galleries/drop_dead_gorgeous/
These photos are amazing — and more than a little creepy. The detail in them is exquisite.
I found myself thinking a lot about beauty and how we define it. I don’t have more than that at the moment, but its on my mind.
Lose-Lose Dilemnas
I, like many people, try to live my life in an ethical way. “Harm none” is the highest I can aspire to, and it is frequently not met at the end of the day, not because of the deliberate actions I took, but because the choices I made were between two things that weren’t a win to begin with.
Living Frugal: Greening Your Condo/Apt/Townhome
We live in a town home — which in Washington is defined as a single family unit with at least one shared wall (a condo is multiple units within a single structure) — which makes ecological living more difficult. This is because we do not own the exterior of our house, need to get approval for interior changes, and don’t have our own landscape. But there are still a number of ways we’ve managed to ‘green’ our home.
Good plans don’t always manifest
I swear I had the best of intentions. But I didn’t get very far. Technically, I didn’t even get through that first stack.
Museum of Bad Art
I think this says enough.
Living Well Within My Means: Food
When my partner, J., reduced his hours last year, our household took a financial hit. I’m at a place in my life where saving every bit will make a huge difference in my end of life quality of living. (As a side note, it is very weird to have your attention focused on 20 years in the future.) To make my savings goals, and still enjoy a reasonably comfortable life right now, we both concentrate on living within our means.
A little silliness
Sorry for the silence, things have been nutsoid at work and in life. I’ve been spending a lot of time fending off a cold (J is down for the 2nd time this year with one), barely maintaining my personal responsibilities while work stuff is eating into even more of my private time, and hibernating to destress from work. That said, things have been fine (if our usual fantasticness) at the House of Smooches.
Now for the silliness: This is so wrong, on so many levels. I’m essentially speechless. But I hope Technocowboy checks it out! Maybe he’d like it for his birthday?
Recipe: Crockpot Chicken & Rice
— 3/4 cups of brown rice
— 3/4 cups chicken broth
— 3/4 cups lowfat milk, divided
— 3/8 cup flour
— 1 sm onion, diced
— 4 oz sliced mushrooms— 3-4 chicken thighs
— 3 garlic cloves, diced tiny
–1/4 tsp black pepper
–1/4 tsp paprikaThe Directions.
Combine all of the chicken broth and 1/4 cup of milk in a sauce pan and heat over medium heat on the stove. In a separate bowl, whisk the remaining 1/2 cup of milk with flour. When the broth and milk have begun to boil, reduce heat, and slowly stir in the milk and flour mixture. When everything is fully incorporated, set the pot aside to cool.
Add the rice and seasonings to your crock along with the onion, garlic, and mushrooms. Stir in the broth mixture.
Lay the chicken pieces on top.
Cover and cook on high for 4 hours, or low for about 8.
When you take the lid off of the crockpot, stir the rice. If the rice is fully cooked and you have extra liquid, keep the lid off for about 15 minutes. The liquid will absorb quickly.
In my small crockpot this cooked very quickly and was not at all ‘gloopy’. This was very tasty, in fact. I might add a few herbs next time — tarragon comes to mind. And perhaps 1/2 cup of frozen peas for color.
Recipe: Winter Squash and Chicken Stew w/ Indian Spices
This is what J made last Friday night, and we had enough for 2 more lunches. Very tasty, pretty easy. If you are not a fan of curries, or warm spices (as compared with ‘heat’ spices) then you may not enjoy this. The butternut squash completely breaks down, and the color ends up as an orangey-brown.
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 6 chicken thighs, skin removed
- 1 1/3 cups chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 cups 1-inch pieces peeled butternut or acorn squash
- 2 cups 1-inch pieces peeled russet potatoes
- 1 cup canned low-salt chicken broth
Heat 1 teaspoon oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add to Dutch oven; sauté until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer to plate.
Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in same pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté until golden, about 5 minutes. Add curry powder, cumin, and cinnamon; stir 1 minute. Return chicken to pot. Add squash, potatoes, broth and tomatoes. Cover and simmer 15 minutes. Uncover and simmer until chicken and potatoes are cooked through and liquid is slightly reduced, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Absolutely a keeper.