I’m emotionally worn out today, after my water heater leaked on the coldest night of the year. (Thankfully, my dad saved the day again, and is installing a new water heater this afternoon. If not for his expertise, I would probably have to move to an apartment.) So here’s a contemplative photo of Peach that I took this morning, and some Friday links. (Some of these have been in my reader for months!)
♥ Vintage Postcard Calendar Journal (this could be a cute Valentine’s present!)
♥ A baking soda storage tip from the geniuses at Muddy’s Bake Shop (I feel a sudden need for a Grasshopper cupcake).
♥ You Are Mine – a meditation on Isaiah 43 (one of my favorite passages) from a blogger who recently lost her home in a fire.
♥ Thoughts on Christian love from Tribal Wife.
♥ Thoughts on Mother Teresa from author Jonalyn Grace Fincher.
♥ Tips on using Google Reader from my friend Jessica (this is very helpful!).
♥ Tips for Southerners on Surviving New England Winters. Well, I’m still in the South, but with the winter we’re having, this cracked me up. Especially the Shaq snow-o-meter.
♥ Emily at Chatting at the Sky has been focusing on art (in the broad sense) and creativity and boldness, and I’ve been starring every post. Some of my recent favorites: Wake up and Dream; When They Don’t Like Your Art; How to Live Big; 5 Ways to Guarantee Your Art Isn’t A Waste of Time.
♥ The Net – an example of the importance of women’s friendships. This post made me well up with thankfulness for my own Net. :)
5 Comments + Posted in: what i'm into
We got a practically unprecedented fourth round of snow and ice yesterday! Most offices had closed by 3:00, and it took most people between one and three hours to get home. I traveled the 12 miles between work and home in an hour flat, but only because I took a very roundabout way and avoided main streets and the interstate. I passed my church on the way and had to get a picture of it all snowy. :)
I had already planned to make this soup, and it sounded especially good after a long, cold drive through the snow. My parents came over to enjoy it with me. I saw the recipe on Hungry Memphis last week and wanted to make it ASAP!
Shrimp and Sweet Potato Chowder
In-house recipe from The Fresh Market.
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, roughly chopped
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½ ” pieces
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp smoked sweet paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 cup white wine (preferably Chardonnay, but I used Kroger cooking wine. Classy!!)
2 cups chicken stock
1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup heavy cream
1 package flatbread crisps or pita chips
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat for 1-2 minutes; add oil and swirl to coat.
2. Add onions, garlic, sweet potatoes, paprika and chili powder; sauté for 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat and add wine, scraping up any brown bits from the pan.
3. Return pot to heat and reduce heat to medium-low. Add chicken stock; cover and simmer for another 5-8 minutes, until sweet potatoes are tender.
4. Add shrimp and cream; combine well and simmer until shrimp are just done, approximately 5 minutes.
5. Season with salt and pepper and serve with flatbread crisps. For added presentation, garnish the chowder with freshly snipped chives.
This soup is delicious, satisfying, and chowdery. I recommend letting it simmer for longer than the recipe says to allow the flavors to blend more. For step 3, I had to simmer for at least 15 minutes, but maybe my sweet potato was past its prime. After adding the shrimp, I left the pot on low for about 20 minutes while I waited for my parents to arrive.
Also, I never use heavy cream when it’s called for – I can’t deal with the calories. I substitute half and half, or a mixture of milk and half and half, and it’s just as good!
2 Comments + Posted in: food, winter
Add a Comment + Posted in: crafts
Squirrels love my bird feeder. Inevitably, birdseed only lasts a few hours in the feeder before they scoop it all out onto the ground. Then a few birds come and eat off the ground, but squirrels get most of it. I’d like to use nicer seed occasionally to attract more exotic birds, but it would disappear long before they arrived.
I’ve checked the local stores, and no one carries anything to keep squirrels out of birdseed. Then I read that plain old cayenne pepper would work, because birds don’t sense spiciness like mammals do. So this weekend, I mixed some in with the birdseed and put it in the feeder with great expectations. But as you can see, it didn’t slow this guy down at all. :( Any advice?
I made felt coffee cup sleeves (how-to coming soon at Blissfully Domestic). Gandalf helped. :) He’s my Arts & Crafts Cat and always hurries to join me when I take out paper, scissors, markers, or fabric. (Peach is sadly indifferent to crafts.)
I painted my still partially-remodeled bathroom. Nothing drastic – it’s still an aqua blue, just a couple of shades lighter. This was the first time I’d tried storing my roller in a Pringles can between coats. It really works! The roller didn’t dry out at all.
I went to a small Valentine-making gathering at a friend’s house. I had a great time, and was inspired by everyone’s creativity – I stuck to standard cardmaking supplies, but the other ladies used fabric, vintage prints, and Tiger Beat magazines. :) The Valentine on the far right was for one girl’s Bieber Fever-suffering friend.
I also attended a great Super Bowl party at Caroline‘s! Sadly, no pictures of that, or of the Hummus Fiasco of 2011 that occurred at my house before the party. I’ll share more about that when I post the recipe. Let’s just say I spent an hour cleaning up my kitchen.
2 Comments + Posted in: life lately