Duly Noted

Monday: Soba noodles with tofu and sesame paste Tuesday: Green lentil soup with coconut milk and curry butter Wednesday: Mediterranean Turkey Burgers in pita with cucumber tzatziki Thursday: Leftovers! Friday: Homemade pizza with fixin's

Monday: Soba noodles with tofu and sesame paste Tuesday: Green lentil soup with coconut milk and curry butter Wednesday: Mediterranean Turkey Burgers in pita with cucumber tzatziki Thursday: Leftovers! Friday: Homemade pizza with fixin's

I LOVE this kid.

Mike and I celebrated an early Valentine's Day last night at Al Vento's.  It was a perfect night!   Ten years ago, we celebrated our first Valentine's day at Macalester College.  I was a freshman and it was my first Valentine's Day with a real boyfriend.  I bought Mike a box of chocolates from a flower store down the street.  I was so excited. I still feel like the luckiest girl.  Here's a couple little valentines in today's honor!

I set two goals as I planned this week's menu: 1)use up a hug bucket of chickpeas that I soaked and cooked last weekend, and 2)incorporate the sad looking cauliflower*** at the bottom of the veggie drawer. Sunday - I decided I better tackle these goals TODAY with some Sunday soup making that will provide for a couple meals later in the week. Soup 1: Syrian Chickpea Soup with Lemon and Tahini from New England Soup Factory Cookbook Soup 2: Cauliflower Soup with aged cheddar and mustard croutons from Super Natural Every Day Monday -Stir fry vegetables with tofu T uesday - Leftover soup! Wednesday -Early Valentine's Day date night at Al Vento , one of our favorite Italian spots in the city.  Last year, we ordered something like a 1/2 quart of wine to share and the server brought us a full quart. Needless to say, that will not be happening this year!  :)  The olive oil for bread dipping is perfect at this little corner restaurant. Thursday- My parents come to town!  I pla...

I set two goals as I planned this week's menu: 1)use up a hug bucket of chickpeas that I soaked and cooked last weekend, and 2)incorporate the sad looking cauliflower*** at the bottom of the veggie drawer. Sunday - I decided I better tackle these goals TODAY with some Sunday soup making that will provide for a couple meals later in the week. Soup 1: Syrian Chickpea Soup with Lemon and Tahini from New England Soup Factory Cookbook Soup 2: Cauliflower Soup with aged cheddar and mustard croutons from Super Natural Every Day Monday -Stir fry vegetables with tofu T uesday - Leftover soup! Wednesday -Early Valentine's Day date night at Al Vento , one of our favorite Italian spots in the city.  Last year, we ordered something like a 1/2 quart of wine to share and the server brought us a full quart. Needless to say, that will not be happening this year!  :)  The olive oil for bread dipping is perfect at this little corner restaurant. Thursday- My parents come to town!...

I'm really having too much fun with picmonkey .  Anywho, the snow is coming down after some initial sleet.  Gotta love the wintry mix.  Luckily, I just got back from a neighborhood stroll with Rachel the Dog so she is peacefully contemplating the snowfall from her perch on our very vintage living room coach.  The sofa is three generations at this point and I can't seem to find one that I like more. I mean, check this puppy out: Her 60's floral print actually matches our leather west elm chairs perfectly.  She can fit four plus adults (and multiple dogs). And, she is really comfortable!  I have napped here on many an occasion. Before I head out the door to work up a sweat at the Macalester gym, here's a run down of this weekend's highlights: Vinyasa + Restorative Yoga with my friend Julia.  It wasn't a pre-natal yoga class, but I've known the instructor for many years so she was sensitive to altering some poses for me.  I was surpri...

A crafty blog clued me into this super adorable and EASY online photo editor .  How cute is this?   As a side note, I cannot claim authorship for the tag line.  Copyright Mike Vasich @2004.

I think this kid would make a great president.

Last year, my colleague organized a monthly book club.  The parameters: 1)We will read The New York Times ten best books of the year, 2)members can participate freely depending on their taste and calendar, 3)the facilitator role will rotate, and 4)meetings are held in a public venue so nobody has to clean their house.  The group chose to hold meetings at Global Market, a colorful hub in the center of Minneapolis with dozens of food options and diverse company. Since my book conversations are primarily with eleventh graders, I decided it would be in my best interest to join the club this year and recalibrate my literary speak amongst a more intellectual crowd.  Our first book was Katherine Boo's Behind The Beautiful Forevers.   Heading to Thursday's meeting, I wasn't sure what (or who) to expect.  I found myself getting nervous; I rarely talk shop with adults!  I knew my colleague ran with a pretty bright circle as he is a former professor of a nearby libe...