New Year's Eve.

I am having a small Hors d'oeuvres (hardest word to spell in the whole world!!!) party on New Year's Eve for a few of my nearest and dearests. Mat and Jacob of course! And Liam and a friend of his will be stopping through for a few days on the trek to Wyoming for school! What I would like a few suggestions! Kate? Angela? Mom? I would like to do something different then the normal dips etc. Something that might take some skill, but nothing too hard for my baby kitchen and small inventory can't handle! There will only be 5 of us.. but we like to eat.

Hi Mom!

WOAH! Lemke's, we love Monkey Bread and we've been on a Monkey Bread kick. Why haven't we done baby-monkeys?!  This morning I went to make Monkey Bread for Matty and realized that we only had one tube of biscuits. I cut them in 8ths and used a muffin tin!! It made about 9 mini-monkey breads. SOOooo good. Crsipy and Crunchy and oooey-gooey! It basically cut the bake time in half and cut down on ingredients.

Mom-coming up with a simple cookie list.. with ingredients I have here. Snickerdoodles and peanut blossoms, so far?

Jack's Lazy Afternoon.

Mama got new shoes for her birthday and baby got a new box to sleep in. Jack is huge. Shoe box is small! Such a silly boy!! 

Let's Dance! I'm old.

Success/Fail.

Raw Almonds toasted in vegetable oil with Soy Sauce, Lime and Tapatio Sauce.  SUCCESS!

Trader Joe's Pie Crust AND Pumpkin Pie Recipe on Pumpkin Can. FAIL!!!!

Sorry T.J's, I love you..but you are lucky I made two different recipes of Pumpkin Pie a few weeks ago, so altering it wasn't so hard!- I take that back. Buzzer just rang. 45 minutes..Pie not set at all!!. Nothing I can do now..
T.J's Crust doesn't taste bad, but it shrinks down way too much when it's baked and isn't thick enough to roll out larger..

I did learn how to scald milk today... or what scalding actually does! woo woo.


(camera's batteries need to be charged)


BTW. Sorry blog. I've been busy and eating free food at Redmond's. Ask me about my new soup recipe and what Jack's been up to when the camera is charged!

Giving Thanks.

My first Thanksgiving, in our tiny apartment, from the tiny kitchen, on a tiny budget... and not enough  serving utensils or tupperware!!!!

Oops ate all of the Dessert before pics could be taken!!

Preparation

Today is the beginning of my preparation for Thanksgiving. Mom and Dad are coming to Chicago for a few days and Mat and I will be having them and Jacob here for Thanksgiving. Grocery shopping and Pumpkin soup making today. Apple Crisp and Pumpkin Pie making tomorrow. Wish me luck!!

Coffee makes me tired.????

Think about this.. For the past few months, I get up, eat breakfast, have a cup or two of coffee and want soo badly to go back to bed. Most times I do.. and have no trouble falling asleep or sleeping for 2 or 3 hours. For a while, I was thinking it was my allergies or digestion issues creating this problem.. too much breakfast exhausting my body or something like that.. But I am beginning to think it is the coffee! Does this happen to anyone else? I "googled" it and it seems that there is a connection with people who have ADD. I wouldn't be surprised if that is the case...My brain is definetly a silly guy, but it's just as of recent that this has been happening. I know that I have been going through a lot, adjusting, stress etc.. But Coofffeeee.. really!? As the ad suggests.. "You can sleep when your dead!" This is absolutely not the case!!

Hello Sunshine.

Left-overs from our pizza party made a fabulous breakfast!

Liam was in town for the past few days and we have had a couple delicious meals. Him and Jacob came over yesterday with a dozen eggs and made us Breakfast. Soy-Chorizo and Eggs and Home-made garlic hashbrown potatoes! All ingredients that we had here in our "Penthouse." We then spent the day on our bikes, giving Liam the tour of the city. We rode with Mat to work and checked out the usual spots. We rode to Millenium park and took pics at the bean, found a nature preserve in Lincoln park, rode through downtown and harassed Mat at TJs. The ride home was horrendous. The wind in this city is insane! It felt like we were climbing a mountain- for 4 miles! We rode over 12 miles all day and needed naps! We came back to our place, took naps and decided to make Pizza for dinner. We made two- Mine had tomato sauce, kalamata olives, Greek green olives that had been marinated in garlic, artichoke hearts, Roma tomatoes, Goat cheese, red pepper flakes and fresh basil. The other was about the same except Pepper Jack and Munster cheese in place of the Goat cheese. I am sure it was fabulous! We devoured them too fast to even take pics. I spent -10 dollars on all of this food due to a 20 dollar gift card to WFM (thanks Kate!!) and five bucks from Jacob and Liam each!

I have today off as well and have lots to do! Laundry, cleaning.. and trying not to go back to bed!..

Breakfast!

Looks bad for you right? Nope. Vegan breakfast burrito with soy-chorizo, green peppers 2 eggs and 3 egg whites on a whole wheat tortilla... except Mat's has sour cream.

Mm Mm good!

Now that I feel super poor and am applying for part-time jobs and collecting my pennies again (who am I kidding..I hate pennies.!), I feel inclined to post an update. Since I've gotten a semi-job, I haven't felt worthy..but I'm back. Here I am! Helloooo. Just paid this months bills and realize that something needs to be done. We've spent the last week "living it up." Eating fancy breakfast at restaurants and hitting up the Jewel Osco for midnight snacks. It's definetely time to get back on track.

Mat and I went grocery shopping last night. Since we have been on a sandwich kick, we hit up Whole Foods, due to our snobbiness and desire for Tofurky cold cuts and Almond cheese. We love sandwiches. Spent too much money, but have enough food for awhile.


I did make a pot of soup for the week. Nothing special. Used 32oz of Veggie Broth, 2 cans of Cannelinni Beans, chopped carrots, celery, a cup or 2 of frozen corn and about 8 small white potatoes. Seasoned with salt, pepper, Bay leaf, parsley and a few squeezes of a lemon. Mom suggested using a potato masher at the end to break the potatoes and beans up to make it thick!.. Thanks Mom. All of the starch thickened it up over-night.

Soup and Sandwiches! Yummmmmy Fall Food.

Difficulty keeping on task..

I am having the hardest time grocery shopping and making meals/dinner. I think so much of it has to do with Mat and I having weird work schedules. I haven't been eating the normal meals at normal times...We've been getting up late and eating big breakfasts and then I feel like the rest of the day has been snacking..
Last time I went grocery shopping I bought a lot of frozen veggies because before they were going bad too quickly. I am also considering buying more cereal and a lot of easy sandwich making stuff, that can be thrown together at any time..

Any suggestions??


One thing I have learned about keeping the budget low is free trials at gyms!! Today a couple of friends and I went to a well-known nationwide gym for a 7 day trial. We went to a Spinning class, which I am not exactly sure how I feel about.. It didn't seem that hard, but I was sweating like crazzzzyyy.. We will see how I feel tomorrow.. Anyway, the dude who signed us up gave us his whole schpeel afterwards and asked us if we were "free-loaders". I almost said "yes! I barely have a job and wanted to see what this gym had to offer!" I also told him that I go to Yoga, and he knocked Yoga studios as well... and said something about having the money to do Yoga at a pimp studio but not having the money to get a gym membership is ridiculous!... I could have kicked him in his un-toned, meat-head body! For that, I am going to buy a Yoga package tomorrow!!!!!!

Getting Back in the Groove of Things.

Went back home to Michigan this weekend and was sick all last week. Haven't done much of anything- no cooking, grocery shopping etc. Last week was a mess of Puff plus tissues, canned chicken noodle soup, saltines and popsicles. I thought I would start this week with a photo update.

When I arrived this afternoon, it was sunny and in the 60s. Mat and I took a long bike ride to Millenium Park and back. Probably about 12 miles total. We took some photos of our new city, got some food and let Jack try on his Halloween costume! He is evening learning to "bawk!"

Jack's Lazy Afternoon.

Sunday's will now be Jack's Lazy Afternoon posts. Just a quick photo to keep you updated in the life of Jack.

So Incredibly Incredible.

 

photo courtesy of @robertgray

With two or less hours of sleep, due to my new work schedule, I awoke at 7am to cheering outside my apartment window. I knew the Marathon was today, but had no idea that the race went right down my street! I immediately jumped out of bed, threw on some jeans, a hoodie (coincidently a Cross Country hoodie that I have had forever), boots, scarf, hat, and winter coat. I grabbed my keys and ran for it. I got downstairs just in time to see the wheelchair racers finish up and it was time for the runners. I have never watched a Marathon, but love amazing runners, and could really watch people run all day. I love running. Well, I used to love running and still absolutely love the idea of it and would really like to start training for a half marathon, but somehow I can't get myself to dedicate to a strict training program. I did go out an run 3 miles the other day, but didn't go the next day or the next day.. Anyway, I COULD NOT wait to see the first pack of runners! I nearly peed myself when they were approaching. It was INCREDIBLE! My first year of Cross Country in High School,we used to have Kenyan Day, where the captains would tell us inspiration stories about well known Kenyan runners, then we would go on Kenyan Runs.. and I don't even remember what they were.. Anyway.. here they came.. I wanted to cheer sooo loud, but have lost of voice due to the weather-changing illness that we all have around here! I was amazed. I then watched every single runner go by for about 2 hours.. and haven't been able to sleep all day. I feel like a child who goes to the Zoo for the first time! I guess I really love Running. I am truly inspired!



From WAtoday.com.au

Kenya's Wanjiru wins Chicago Marathon


* October 12, 2009 - 3:34AM


Kenya's Sammy Wanjiru, the reigning Olympic and London marathon champion, won the Chicago Marathon on Sunday in a course record of 2hrs 5mins 41secs to make a triumphant US debut.


Wanjiru defeated Moroccan runner-up Abderrahim Goumi by 23 seconds with Kenya's Vincent Kipruto another four seconds back in third in 2:06:08.


It was the fourth triumph in five career marathons for Wanjiru and his third major triumph in a row after last August's gold medal effort in China and his London victory six months ago.


Wanjiru, 22, was one second under the old Chicago Marathon mark set in 1999 by Morocco's Khalid Khannouchi.


Russia's Liliya Shobukhova won the women's race in 2:25:55, defeating runner-up Irina Mikitenko of Germany by 36 seconds.


Surging ahead of a pack of four at the final water tables, Shobukova left her rivals unable to answer the challenge although she was 91 seconds off her personal best and 8:37 off British star Paula Radcliffe's course record.


Mikitenko, the reigning London Marathon champion, was second in 2:26:31 with Russian Lidya Grigoryeva third in 2:26:47 and Ethiopia's Teyba Erkesso fourth, another nine seconds back.

WOO WOO.

DEAR MOM AND KATE,
Since you in Malta and I can't speak to you, I wanted to let you in on some news....

I GOT A JOB! I START TOMORROW! It is at a Tavern called Redmond's about 5 blocks away. woot woot. I also have an interview tomorrow at the YMCA as a Bi-lingual Case Manager for the Healthy Start Program, which is a program that assists pregnant mothers and their new babies. Sounds great, but, to be honest, I think I will stick with the serving job, due to my desire to start school again in January. I am also volunteering at the Chicago Women's Health Center every Tuesday from 1-4pm, and so far I really love the Organization (not to mention it looks fabulous on my grad school resume..). Don't you, or anybody else worry. I will still be cooking and shopping on a budget! And updating this guy every chance I get!! Love you and miss you! I hope you are having a great time. Tell the fam I said "hello and nice to meet you!"

Love,
Em =) xoxoxo

Shopping Update.

That whole shopping exertion from last week is still going strong. I may have purchased too much food. There is a half-eaten pan of Lasagna and an enormous tupperware of Fried-Rice in the fridge..
Mat had made a few small purchases from Trader Joe's on Sunday. Like, stuff we've run out of.. Earth Balance, Bread, Oatmeal, Soup, Veggie Broth, Yogurt, Yogurt Cheese (my request!!) .. we haven't even touched any of that yet..
We have definetly out-done breakfast and need more eggs, but hey! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!

Jack's Lazy Afternoon.

A little off topic, but you may be curious to what Jack the cat does during all of this domestication.

 

This is it..

Obviously he hates his new life in Chicago.. ;)

Tofu.

The secret to making crispy-intact tofu is draining, drying and putting in a VERY hot pan with oil. This last batch I did a little different than normal. In order to experiment with crispness  I made a little roux when the tofu was nearly "done." I added about 1 tbsp. of flour and some soy sauce which created a little coating for the tofu. As you can see, I like to load on the sesame seeds as well.

Perfection!

Got this recipe off of RecipeZaar.com

Makes about 2 cups

Change to: cup US Metric

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Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons margarine
• 2 tablespoons of finely chopped onions
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 cup water
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Put margarine in a pot and saute the onions and garlic over med-high heat.
   
   
2. Reduce heat back to medium after onions and garlic have become golden brown.
3. 
   
   

   Make a roux by gradually adding the flour, while continuously stirring to avoid lumps.

   
   
4. 
   
   

   Still stirring, add soy sauce and water to the mixture.

   
   
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
   
   
6. Once the gravy has reached desired thickness, turn off the stove and you are done!
   

    

   *I didn't use onions 'cuz I don't have any so I made sure to add lots of spices (crushed red pepper, italian herbs) to the gravy before serving. I also sauteed a half tube Gimmie Lean Sausage Style in with the garlic and margarine. Tastes delicious. Just waiting on these Trader Joe's square biscuits to come out of the oven and we will eat!
   

   
   
   
   

Frooty Loops!

The other night, I prepared 3 cups of brown rice and divided it in two and put it in the fridge. Yesterday, threw one container in a pan with a little bit of Trader Joe's Salsa, some red pepper flakes and a can of black beans. I cut up some lettuce, tomato, avocado and we had burritos. (I took pics, but I lost the camera in a tiny apartment...) The rest of the rice is for fried rice this weekend. Making rice in advance saves about 30 minutes of cook-time. It's also better to make fried rice with cold rice.. I think.
Mat worked an over night yesterday and is working another tonight and tomorrow. It has thrown off his sleeping and our eating schedule. When he woke up this afternoon he wanted breakfast. He didn't want eggs or biscuits and gravy (which I am making for his birthday tomorrow at some point!), he wanted Cereal. I had to pick up an Rx at CVS so we stopped at Jewel on the way home for Cereal. We spent 5 dollars on a family size box of Froot Loops. YES Froot Loops. I LOVE Froot Loops and haven't had them since Freshman year at Eastern in the dorms. I liiiveeed off of Froot Loops then. I only eat them dry though- not because I can't and hate to drink milk. I have never liked milk with my cereal. I also like to divide them into color piles and eat the blue ones first and the orange ones last.. I like to eat it in handfuls out of the box. Let's hope I don't fall back into that habit.

Jack likes Froot Loops too.

By the way, these are great from IKEA.. for dry goods and they are super cheap. I used them for rice, oats, pasta etc. That way you can buy those things in bulk and save mucho dinero!

Ikea 365+

Anyway, I am making biscuits and gravy tomorrow for Mat's birthday brunch. I have always used vegetable broth to make the gravy, but I don't have any here. I don't want to have to spend more money..because, well, that's the whole point.. Can I make gravy with just oil/butter, flour, rice milk and seasonings? I have biscuits in the freezer and Gimmie Lean Sausage in the fridge. I will give it a try!

Happy Birthday Mat! xoxo

Oops.

Due to an unexpected visit from friends, we ventured downtown to have drinks at the Signature Room on the 95th floor of the Hancock building. Beer was $8.75 a bottle and my cocktail was $12 and came in a champagne glass. We each had two.. Enough Said.

Italian Fiesta.

Amongst that glorious Sunday afternoon of shopping and blogging, I made a extremely creative non-dairy, veggie Lasagna (not vegan due to the whey in the soy cheese I used) for later this week and Pesto for dinner last night! We will begin with the Lasagna. The original recipe comes from Conveniently Vegan by Debra Wasserman. Debra uses re-fried beans in place of ricotta. The beans also provide an amazing amount of protein. She also uses cooked spinach and rolls the noodles into pinwheels, places them into the pan and covers them with sauce. I altered her recipe by keeping the traditional style of layering the noodles and used Zucchini instead of Spinach. I also threw in some Soy Mozzarella to add some ooey-gooey deliciousness, although Soy cheese often has a hard time melting... I also flavored my beans with garlic and "italian seasoning," because I find the original recipe to be a little too "earthy" tasting.

My ingredients 

• 2 small-medium zucchini
• 1/2 box of Lasagna noodles (8 oz, most boxes are 16 oz)
• 15 oz can of unflavored vegetarian re-fried beans
  
• 26 oz jar of pasta sauce ( I used the Jewel Garden Vegetable brand/flavor-already has carrots,onions zucchini in it)
• 1 large clove of garlic, crushed
  
• 1-2 "shake"s of dried Italian seasoning
• 1 bag of veggie Mozzarella or 1 chunk grated
• 9"x 11" glass pan
  

1. Wash and slice Zucchini length-wise into thin strips
2. Boil Zucchini for 2-5 minutes to cook and get a lot of the moisture out (we don't want runny lasagna)
3. Place cooked Zucchini on paper-towels to collect moisture
4. Cook Noodles as directed and make sure to add a little olive oil to the water so they don't stick and fall apart.
5. While Noodles are cooking, saute the garlic, add the beans and "italian seasoning," mix well. The warm beans are also easier to work with because they are soft.

Everything is now prepared. I skipped the pre-heat oven step, because I am freezing this for a later date. I would cook at about 375 degrees for about 45 minutes, until everything is hot and melty.

1.  Pour a thin layer of sauce on the bottom on the pan
2.  Tightly place noodles across pan
   
3.  With a rubber spatula, spread a layer of beans on each noodle
4.   Place a layer of Zucchini on top of each bean layer
5.  Another layer of sauce
6.  A little cheese
7. Noodles and continue process how ever you please
8. Top with sauce and more cheese

Cover and freeze or bake and eat! We will be eating it sometime soon. Makes about 9 large servings (3-4 meals! for 2!)

*The pesto I made was great.. just a classic pesto recipe, with Walnuts instead of Pine-nuts. I tossed in roasted potatoes and asparagus at the end with the pasta. (pesto with potatoes= sooo good!)
When making the Lasagna I cooked the whole box of noodles and didn't know what to do with the rest. I cut the noodles up and used them with the pesto. Looked funny, but tasted delish!


Mat made breakfast- Scrambled Eggs, Fakin' Bacon, and Hashbrowns. Time to eat!

Didn't eat enough sandwiches this week?

Make croutons!

Had some bread left over from last week's pasta dinner and thought I would make croutons. The bread was a little old and wouldn't even slice-just a huge crumby mess all over the counter. I realized that I had about 4 slices and a heel of soft-sandwich bread in the fridge from well before Mat even arrived. Dad usually made his croutons out of an unused baguette or "day old" bread from the bakery, but I thought I would give this a shot. I wasn't sure how it would work out due to the softness, gluten-level, moisture-content, air, whole-grain business that this store-bought bread consumed, but I gave it a go anyway. I sliced them into cubes, tossed them in olive oil, sprinkled "italian seasoning," salt and pepper on top and popped them in the oven at about 300 degrees (just as Dad suggested!) Stirred them around a few times and waited till they browned. I also sprinkled a tiny bit of parm on top, then threw them in a container. There they will sit waiting for a beautiful salad later in the week!

Post-Shopping Summary.

Jewel-Osco trip was very successful. Even got a Jewel card that saved me $5.07. I spent $76.00, but got enough food for at least 6 dinners, 7 breakfasts, snacks and and left-overs for lunch. The cashier was a very interesting character. I listened as he asked every individual in front of me in-line what they studied in college and then threw them a trivia question pertaining to that subject. The guy in front of was a Physical Therapist Major and was asked, "What is the largest muscle in the body." The response was the Gluteous Maximus. Then it was my turn, I debated which subject to tell this dude I studied.  I told the truth and said Psychology, knowing that I can barely remember any definitions or theories. He asked me what "Acrophobia" was. I went through my list in my head and battled with Agoraphobia and Arachnophobia and nailed it on the head! Fear of heights! Good guess. That guy amazed me. I hope to be in his line next time and I will say "GYNOCOLOGY!" (even though I didn't study that..)

Anyway, I successfully purchased everything on my list except a few things, but wisely substituted those things..

• Yellow Squash Zucchini 
• Green Pepper  Potatoes (they substitute each other well due being Mat's faves)
• Tomato Avocado (both fruits that pose as vegetables)
• Oats   Crunchy Noodle Things (pushing it!)
  
• Bread Tortilla chips (I am reaallly pushing it)
• El Tapatio Hot Sauce -Do I need an explanation!?
• Apples &Bananas were the fruits on sale and go well with the ENORMOUS jar of P.B here
  

Grocery Shopping Trip #2

Third week in Chicago, no job still. Had three interviews at restaurants last week. Call backs are tomorrow. Budget has become even tighter, due to the approaching of October. Not only is Rent, Cable/Internet, Electric, and 2 parking tickets due October 1st, Mat's birthday is that day as well. Did I mention that Mat's last check from the Royal Oak store is somewhere between Detroit and California and has been for well over a week!?
We have enough food in the apartment to make one peanut butter and jelly sandwich and some pasta. I have some dried goods and I think there are some random things for smoothies in the freezer as well. I made tofu and broccoli fried rice last night and would like to make pesto tonight. I am about to head to the Jewel-Osco (equivalent to a Safeway, Kroger or a Spartan Store) for some groceries. Man, do I need a shopping cart.. although only being able to buy what I can carry is an advantage to us at the moment.
This week I will make croutons from left over bread, pesto, vegan lasagna, yellow squash something or other, breakfast sandwiches x5 and we will see what else comes along. I tend to get creative at the last minute...

Shopping List-(pre-store)

• Eggs
• Cheese (soy and dairy)
• Tofu
• Vanilla Yogurt (soy and dairy)
• Gimmie Lean Veggie Sausage
• Refried Beans x2
• Lasagna Noodles
• Lettuce
• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Baby carrots
• Green Pepper
• Yellow Squash
• Tomato
• Lemon
• Basil (already have walnuts, going to use those in pesto instead of Pine Nuts like Mom used to)
• Fruit (whatever is on sale)
• Oats
• English Muffins
• Bread for P.B sandwiches (Mat's lunch..)
• Ground Pepper
• Tortillas

I have yet to mention the difficulty level of cooking for two picky vegetarians. Mat has texture issues and will not eat cooked Tomatoes, Spinach, Onions or Raisins. I can't/won't eat a lot of dairy and Mat loves the real thing a little too much.  Mat likes everything well done, overly cooked while I like it fresh, almost raw-with nutrients still intact. Mat could live of a potatoes and contributes that to his Irish heritage. I am not a fan unless they are slathered in butter and salt or deep-fried and that never makes my stomach happy. We do agree on eating mostly vegetarian, eating breakfast everyday and keeping Mushrooms as far away from out kitchen as possible. We also have an "I cook, You clean" agreement, which is beneficial either way. Mat makes better breakfast than I do..but don't tell him that.  I don't know how to make coffee, I am convinced that that part of my brain is damaged. Mat needs coffee before he opens his eyes, but he is pretty good at making it with his eyes closed!! This is also our first time co-habitating, so we learning a lot of new things about each other. So here we goooo.!!
Thanks for shopping.