A food related photo everyday til 2012. Week 43 & 44:
316/365 Mood lighting & wine at Murray Circle. Double date night!
I Love Lists Friday!
- DIY Peter Pan Collar. WANT/NEED.
- These would be the PERFECT little Thanksgiving appetizers!
- If you’re Gluten-Free or having someone over who is, this post is super.
- I want to BURY my face in this gooey pumpkin cookie cake skillet. For serious.
- This epic post (10 Real-Talk Blog Tips) was written in my guest bedroom. LOVE that.
- I love when other bloggers come visit SF. It’s nice to see my home from a fresh perspective.
- This soup. OH THIS SOUP. Going on the TO-DO list, for sure.
- Such a pretty Fall wedding! That yellow cardigan is such an beautiful touch…
- Did you know this is my go-to Rock Band song? (I love finding videos on Pinterest!)
- I’ve been blog stalking Jessica from how sweet it is this whole week. Shhh. Don’t tell.
- I don’t know what I’d without this website. There are soo many gems! I want to send like 2000 e-cards.
TWO more things!
A new Joy the Baker podcast this week. Episode #26 is all about LADY WISDOM!
Do you like snooping? You should check out my medicine cabinet. No, really! I cleaned it up just for YOU on my new column, High Straightenence at Homefries!
Happy 11.11.11!
Roasted Spaghetti Squash w/ Mushrooms
TEXT MESSAGE BETWEEN HUSBAND & WIFE:
Husband: What’s for dinner?
Wife: Spaghetti squash w/ mushrooms
Husband: K. be home in 15.
After texting his wife, husband drives home with the thought of digging into a big bowl of creamy/carb dense spaghetti with mushrooms & a full glass of wine. When husband walks up to the kitchen table, he looks deflated after realizing he’s been duped AGAIN with spaghetti squash! Why does his wife always try to pull a fast one? Doesn’t she know he’s not vegetarian?
Knowing this might be the case, wife plans ahead and makes a small batch of garlic bread to compensate for the lack of carbs. Turns out husband (a carb lover who doesn’t love mushrooms) actually enjoys this Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Mushrooms recipe. Wife is satisfied with the dinner she concocted and is happy she is able get a huge bowl of vegetables into her husband’s belly. Good wives know that the key to a man’s heart is through garlic bread.
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Avocado + Charred Tortilla
I would like to introduce you to one of my favorite snacks.
Avocado + Charred Corn Tortilla, meet Shutterbean Readers.
Shutterbean Readers, meet Avocado + Charred Corn Tortilla.
Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about this favorite snack of mine. It’s really simple, absolutely tasty and worth it when you find an awesome avocado. I think I’ve only had two really good avocados this year. What gives? Sometimes I eat this tortilla & avocado number with an egg in the morning. Sometimes it’s a full blown lunch or maybe it plays the role of an afternoon snack. The protein of the avocado works wonders!
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I Love Lists Friday!
- Lunch at the Canal House. This excites me to no end.
- Have you seen Lisa’s Kitchen? It’s beyond words.
- Megan has a great Cookbook Lineup. It’s got me thinking of Xmas shopping
- When I’m having a bad day, I immediately open up this website.
- Could she be any cuter? And she lives in the Bay Area too!
- I love when people post their fave beauty products. Thanks Katie!
- You have no idea how happy this website makes me. YES, Jen!
- This man is SO SO SO talented. See for yourself!
- A new to me website that I’m kind of OBSESSED with. Hello, EYE CANDY.
- Quality of Life, by Brian Ferry. It’s totally on my wish list!
BTW- There’s a new Joy the Baker Podcast. This week we are talking about Modern Day Etiquette! (Facebook, Twitter, Emails, Cellphones, etc!)
And!! Check out my new weekly feature on Homefries! It’s called High Straightenence. It all starts with a TO-DO list!
Gin Toddy
Every cloud has a silver lining. I taught my German friend the meaning of that idiom the other day while we were hanging out in the parking lot at preschool. I think we were commiserating over living with an active 3 year old!
I’ve been sick for over three weeks. I’m on the mend, but man was it was rough! After finally caving in and going to the doctor, I found out I have bronchitis. Yikes. As miserable as it was, I found a silver lining to being sick. I finally gave myself permission to slow down and the dire need for hot toddies spawned a new toddy recipe! The silver lining of this bronchitis cloud was most definitely made of hot gin toddies.
So what does a gin toddy taste like? It’s kind of like a gin & ginger ale but all wintry! I liken it to a bright yellow polka dot raincoat. It will remind you of summer, but somehow it’s appropriate for the cold weather outside.
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Cardamom Pear Butter
Sometimes when I’m daydreaming I like to imagine what the Tracy Shutterbean of 5 years ago would think if she saw the Tracy Shutterbean of today. If you told me 5 years ago that people would refer to me as Tracy Shutterbean I’d be like, “Whaaat?” If you told me I’d learn how to can, have a canning party and make Cardamom Pear Butter I would have responded, “Schyeah right!”
What I’ve learned about canning (and there’s so much more I have to learn!) is that not super hard; it just takes practice. Canning is about accepting the good & the bad. Sometimes a jar (or two) will break, lids might not seal, or a lid (or four) will drop on the floor while you’re sealing the jars (always sterilize lids more than you need!). You’re learning EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. The key is to stay organized!
What I learned while executing this recipe is that to call something a butter, you have to cook the mixture until it’s SUPER thick. Even though I cooked this butter for the extra 20 minutes suggested by the recipe, it still hovered in the between pear sauce & pear butter realm. Perhaps I had more than 6 lbs. of pears? Maybe that’s it. What I do know is that my “butter” tasted amazing and all of my jars sealed just fine. So far, so good.
The reward for hard work is opening up a jar and spooning spiced pear butter on your morning yogurt with a little bit of granola. I can see why some people have a hard time giving away their canned goods. Don’t be surprised to find me on an episode of Hoarders!
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