Feeling real witchy at work today

Favorite Recipes: Potato Corn Chowder

So as many of you know I love to cook. Like, a lot. I usually cook 4-5 times a week. Although I'm generally pretty busy, cooking is a great way for me to decompress and be creative. I tend to have a few favorites that I rotate through when I'm pressed for time, but these generally change depending on season and what I'm craving. I've decided to post some of my faves. I figured I would start with the one I ate tonight: Potato Corn Chowder.

I generally make about 4 portions of things and share with friends or take the leftovers for lunch. 

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil

Half to a whole onion chopped

2 Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch pieces

1 can chicken stock

1 cup water (or enough to cover the potatoes)

3-4 ears of corn or 2 cups frozen

2 tsp dried thyme

2 tsp salt

2 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt

1/4 grated parmesan or other sharp, white cheese

Heat large pot and add oil. Add onions and sauté until translucent. Add potatoes and sauté for a couple minutes. Add chicken stock and water. Boil till potatoes are soft. Add half of the corn and all the seasonings. Blend with a hand blender or pour into batches in a regular blender. (If you are obsessed with soup like I am, I highly recommend getting a hand blender. Easy to use and clean.) Stir in yogurt and cheese and add the remaining corn. Eat. Try not to eat the whole thing. 

For those of you who say you are too busy to cook, this whole thing takes 30 minutes or less. I usually unload my clean dishes or wash the dirty ones while the potatoes are boiling. Multi-tasking!! 

Up next: Veggie spaghetti sauce! 

Possibly Contributing to My Trouble Sleeping

I've developed a mild obsession with this show. This is out of the ordinary and problematic for a couple reasons:

1. I don't normally love violet television/movies. Like, I cover my eyes during the "scary" parts, but I just. can't. stop. watching.

2. The only time I have to watch TV is right before bed, which makes this the last thing I watch. Talk about some weird dreams! 

3. When Jared is here, we don't watch this or watch TV at all before bed, but he has been gone almost every night for two weeks. Uh oh! 

4. I'm generally not a huge fan of motorcycles, which is a major element of the entire show. 

Aside from the issues above, I'm clearly hooked to watching the previous seasons on Netflix. I highly, in a weird way, recommend watching it. However, I cannot be responsible if you can't stop watching. 

Rest In Peace

Early yesterday morning, October 10, 2011, my dear Grandma Yo passed away in her sleep. She was 89 years young and lived a life full of love and creativity. I have nothing but fun, happy memories with her, filled with her humming away as she worked or cooked. She made the best pasta, simple with just butter and cheese, and she was the source for the majority of my clothing throughout childhood and my teen years. She used to send me dresses in the mail, and as soon as I would get them, I would put them on and do the "twirl test", which entailed me spinning in circles to see if the skirt had good twirl. She was a great artist, teacher, mother, grandmother and friend to so many. I will miss her so much, but I'm glad she is at peace. 

Look What Came in the Mail!

Happy Friday! I ordered some new shoes from Target because 1. I needed some new shoes and 2. They were having a buy one, get one half off! Walking around the City so much really kills shoes fast and working at a nonprofit means I have a tight budget, so I jump at a shoe sale!

Life Saving Product: Coconut Water

Coconut water. Yum. I literally drink 5-6 of these a week! 

I have one of these waiting for me in the car every time I go work out and it saves my life every time. It is basically natural Gatorade, without all the extra sugar and carbs. It is also clutch for curing a hangover or preventing one by drinking one before bed. The taste may take a little while to get used to but it really is amazing. Since it is a little pricey, I buy it in bulk on Amazon. Check it out! 

Weekend Wrap Up

Happy Sunday friends! Hope you had a great weekend. I finally had a weekend at home and it was lovely. Friday, I went to my Dad's for pizza night and then hit the hay kind of early. I was tiiiiired! 

Saturday, I woke up early and took Ms. Dog to the beach and then went to CrossFit. The workout was hard but fun, as usual. Then I took myself to brunch at The Grove in Hayes Valley (with my trusty companion), and ran some errands. 

In the afternoon, Jared's sister, Amanda, and I went to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park, where we saw Broken Social Scene and Reckless Kelly with the millions of other people there. We took the dog for a quick walk, and then put our names in at Burma Superstar. While we waited, we hit a local pub for a couple drinks and a rowdy group of bar-goers bought us a shot. After quite a wait, we finally enjoyed some good grub. We had their tea leaf salad, Chicken Tofu Kebat, Peashoots and a really good, flat noodle dish. We both were pretty beat, so we headed to our respective beds. I oddly answered the phone when Jared called (he has been out of town, shocking, I know) when I was fully asleep, and I woke up in the middle of talking to him having no clue that I had answered the phone. I'm sure Jared thought I was crazy! We chatted for like 20 minutes and I vaguely remember what we talked about. Oops :)

Sunday, or No Alarm Sunday as I like to call it, equals sleeping in and it was glorious! When I finally got up, I hit the farmer's market and store, and then headed to my Dad's for some brunch and hiking. 

When I was little, and well, until I moved out of my parent's house, we had waffles every Sunday while we listened to opera. I fully plan on carrying on this tradition when I have kids. 

The dog was a really ready to go outside and play, so she was giving us the cold shoulder to demonstrate her impatience. Silly puppy! 

Hiking was beautiful as usual. We did a familiar trail that takes about 2 hours and displays beautiful views of the City. Love, love being able to drive 20 minutes and hit a great trail.

Hope you all had a great weekend and are ready for a wonderful week!