From my kitchen: Butternut squash soup with bacon and sage

Butternut squash soup is one of those dishes that I never make the same way twice.  Butternut squash is so versatile and is the type of vegetable that just makes friends with everyone.  I love that I can throw in different combinations of fruit/veggies and herbs and get a completely different delicious soup each time.

But when I settled in to make this soup last night, I knew that I wanted it very clean... well, except for the bacon of course.  So no dairy, cheese, or anything like that.  Just simple clean vegetables, chicken broth, herbs and spices.

And wow, did it deliver!  Even my husband, who is not a big soup fan, asked for seconds.  The secret to getting your man to eat anything... add bacon!

Butternut Squash Soup with Bacon and Sage

1 large butternut squash (or 2 small ones) peeled, deseeded, and diced

1 Granny Smith apple peeled, cored and diced

4 thick slices of bacon cut into small peices

4 cups chicken broth

1 tbsp fresh sage finely chopped
1/2 tsp of fresh shredded ginger

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tbsp smoked paprika
1-2 dashes of nutmeg
1-2 dashes of cinnamon

In a large stockpot set over medium heat, cook the bacon until it is crisp, stirring occasionally.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel.

Using the same stockpot that holds the bacon grease, add the diced squash to the pot.  Let the squash sit for about 5 minutes or until browned.  Resist the urge to stir too much.  You want the squash to soak up all that bacon juice and get a little brown around the edges.  

Add in the apple, sage, ginger, salt, and pepper. Let it all cook for approximately 5 minutes.  It is normal for the bottom of the pot to brown.  That is okay.

Then pour in the chicken broth.  Using a wooden spoon, scrape up the brown bits on the bottom of the pot.  Those brown bits hold so much amazing flavor.  Add in the nutmeg and cinnamon. Turn up the heat and bring the whole thing to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce the heat so the soup is at a simmer and cook until the butternut squash and apples are soft.  You should be able to pierce them easily with a fork.

Remove from the heat and let cool just a little bit.  Then add about half of your bacon and puree.  This is where I love my immersion blender!  Then taste and add salt, spices, etc as needed according to what  you like.

To serve, I usually garnish the soup with a bit of sage and bacon on top.  Last night we ate this with ciabatta bread on the side.  I like to dip the bread into the soup.  So good!


I love this dish.  It is relatively healthy, great as a main dish or a side, and it is fun to change up all the time.  Play around with it and see how you like it best.

Read More

Thanksgiving weekending

After stuffing ourselves with way too much food, we said goodbye to family and friends and spent the rest of the weekend focusing on our immediate family of three.  It was nice.  Kind of liking hitting a pause button on everything else going on around us.  

We decorated our house, lit fires in the fireplace, and spent lazy days in our pajamas.  It was exactly what we all needed.  Some quality time together.

:: Playing outside before the cold front hits

:: Our gorgeous sunset view from our front porch

:: On the way to get the Christmas tree.  The wind outside was crazy and blustery with the cold front rolling in.  Perfect for getting into the holiday spirit.

:: Someone is very excited about picking out her Christmas tree.

Read More

Meal Planning Mondays

After a long hiatus, Meal Planning Mondays are making a comeback!

Now that we are a bit more settled into the house and I know where approximately 76% of my cooking utensils are located, I am ready to sink back into old habits of planning our meals and eating tried and true dishes that are so comforting in their familiarity and deliciousness.

It is the cooking of these dishes that grounds me and allows me to make a home no matter where that home is located.  I am really looking forward to getting back into the kitchen.  So get ready for some new recipe posts!

• Monday: Potato crusted cod with roasted root vegetables in a balsamic maple glaze
• Tuesday: Butternut squash soup topped with bacon and sage
• Wednesday: Chicken pad thai
• Thursday: Tamales (homemade by my mother in law - so good!)
• Friday: Dinner out at David's work Christmas party

Read More

Hunting for Christmas trees

Read More

What I am thankful for...

Right now, life is mass chaos.  With the recent move, a new job, a new city, a different house with a stupid alarm that keeps going off, cold viruses, interviews, unpacking, power going out, etc, etc,  it is difficult for me to shift my focus from all that is negative right now to things that I am thankful for.  But it is for that reason exactly that I feel that a perspective shift is more important than ever, even if it is harder. 

Couple that with the fact that Thanksgiving is only days away it feels right to kick off with a "what I am thankful for" post.  Lemons making lemonade, baby!

:: Thanksgiving Day Parades.  I am sentimental sucker for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.  Thanksgiving just doesn't feel right without watching it in the morning while you are sipping on coffee and eating cinnamon rolls in your pajamas.  It is my Norman Rockwell moment of the year and automatic reset button on the "so life has you down" gauge.

:: Coconut milk.  After my pregnancy, my body decided to become lactose intolerant all of a sudden.  It is very weird.  But coconut milk has become my best buddy.  Cereal.. okay.  Chai latte... sure.  Hot chocolate... no problem.  Ice cream... still perfecting the recipe on that one.  But seriously, coconut milk has been a godsend.

:: That my little girl still takes 2-3 hour naps every day.  Thank you, sweet girl!

:: Chili's.  Last night the power went out just as I was making dinner.  The aftermath was pretty ugly.  Power out in a house that I am not familiar with.  It is completely dark outside.  I hear Little B scream from her bedroom.  I trip over the dog trying to get to her and run into a wall and am now sporting a bruise just under my left eyebrow.  Of course, I had no idea where the flashlights or candles are packed.  And after the Monday morning that I had yesterday, it would have been so easy to just shout "screw it!" at the top of my lungs and give up on the day.  But I decided that instead of crying I would give this Monday one last shot at a comeback.  I piled my family into the car and drove to the nearest restaurant with working electricity.  Thank you Chili's for having electricity and for calming my toddler with french fries.

:: Friends and Family Thanksgiving.  With the recent move, the holidays are a bit crazy for us this year.   But because of that, Thanksgiving festivities are being spread out over a week.  I love this.  I get to see everyone I love over the next few days instead of having to choose who I do and do not see on one highly intense day.  And Little B gets to spend time with so many uncles, aunts, grandparents, and close friends.  Such a blessing!

Read More

Oh Sh*$%! Oh my goodness!

I think that we can all agree that packing and moving do not bring out people's best qualities. And my family is no exception. More curse words, mutterings under the breathe, eye rollings, and a few distinct hand gestures have come out this past week than all of last year.

And never wanting to be left out, my precious, innocent 2 year old has officially said her first curse word.  

Oh Sh*%$!

It all started with my husband. David dropped a bunch of nails and screws on the floor and instinctively said "Oh Sh*%$!" with Little B standing right next to him. Little B quickly replied with a very Southern version of "Oh Sh*%$! This is mess!" And if you are questioning what I mean by a Southern version, take that word and it extend it into 2 extra syllables and you will get the idea. Imagine that a baby Paula Deen just said it.

Upon hearing that, both David and my heads immediately popped up. And after a minute of a silent parental argument with our eyes, we knew the damage had been done. Little B knew that she struck gold with those words and was not willing to let it go. And from that point on "Oh Sh*%$" was worked into as many conversations as possible.  

Me: "B, eat your carrots." 

Little B: "Oh Sh*%$!" 

David (watching a football game): "Touchdown!"

Little B: "Oh Sh*%$!" 

Me: "B, let's pick up your Cheerios." 

Little B: "Oh Sh*%$! This is mess." 

Yeh, David and I are definitely going to win Parents of the Year!

Well, in an attempt to stop this new favorite phrase, we have been focusing on different phrases that are fun say and better tolerated among polite company.  A few of our favorites include:

"Oh my goodness!" (again, use your best Southern drawl)

"Oh rats!"

"Good grief" (borrowed from Charlie Brown)

"Amen!" (this is one that my mom is pushing pretty hard)

Well, in the true spirit of her individuality, Little B has chosen "Oh Sh*$%!  Oh my goodness!" (with a Southern drawl) as her new favorite.  And to make it even worse,  I can't stop laughing every time she says it.  It is so funny.

Yep, definitely not winning any parenting awards this year.

Read More

Greetings from Fort Worth!

Sorry for my disappearance from blog. This past week, we closed on our house in Austin, packed up everything we own, and moved to Fort Worth.

Then quickly follow that up with bronchitis, double ear infections, losing my voice, lack of internet, boxes piled up all around us... well, you get the picture. Things were a little chaotic around here.

But I am back now! Today, I sit down to write this blog post from our new home in Fort Worth.

Slowly but surely we are getting settled into our new lives in a new town. Pretty exciting, right?

More blogging to come soon. Just wanted to drop a line to let everyone know that we made it to Fort Worth safely and in one piece.

Read More

What I am thankful for...

In honor of Thanksgiving right around the corner, I am changing my "What I am loving.." to "What I am thankful for...". Same premise as before. Just changing up the nomenclature in honor of the season.

:: I find it so fascinating that once you start focusing on finding things that you are thankful for, so many things that make you smile every day pop into view. I love that.

:: My husband is officially employed!!! He started his new job yesterday and so far so good.

:: The Tudors. I watched this show a few years ago and then kind of forgot about it when Little B was born. Definitely not an appropriate show when littles are around. But I have picked it back up recently and it keeps me company while I pack up boxes in the evening. That King Henry... he was a crazy one for sure.

:: Daylight Savings. That extra hour of sleep needs no explanation.

:: Our soon-to-be house in Fort Worth has 3 bathrooms. That is a fantastic upgrade from our 1 current bathroom. And let me tell you, with potty training about to start, I can not even explain how excited I am about these extra bathrooms.

:: A thunderstorm is brewing and heading our way. With such a parched summer, I feel that I will never tire of seeing storm clouds roll in. I have always loved thunderstorms and probably always will.

:: Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness juice. Our diet is a bit dodgy these days as we are clearing out all the food in the house and not buying anything new. I have no desire to pack up a whole fridge of stuff and move it Fort Worth. So on some days, this juice is only chance a vegetable has to get into my system. Hooray to convenience food.

:: And last, but not least a going away dinner tomorrow with many of my Austin friends. They sure do know how to make a girl feel loved! So to all you locals, feel free swing by Waterloo Ice House (360 & 2222) around 5 tomorrow. We will be the loud table in the back with the kids running wild and causing lots of ruckus.

Read More

A natural born storyteller

As I am clearing out cabinets and packing up boxes, I have my little helper keeping me company.

With each new box packed to the rim, I get to listen to the most interesting narrative of book after book.

I have no idea what she is saying most of the time. But that is okay because she narrates with passion and emotion and knows just how to emphasize the most dramatic and suspenseful parts of the story.

As I work my way to each room, grabbing this and that, she follows around, holding her book and continuing to read.

My favorite part is when she holds the book outright and pans the room so that we all can see the pictures as she reads. She is very thoughtful that way. The pictures are the best part after all.

Read More

A few days of slow

Apparently, we all partied a little too hard in our Halloween celebrations in that now 2 of the 3 of us are sick.  Little B came down with croup (very scary the first time!) and David was hit with a cold.

So while busy-ness and craziness surround us in the form of packing boxes and putting applications on rental houses in Fort Worth sight-unseen (yowsa!), we have been taking a few days of slow.  Putting a pause on things in order to lay around on the couch in our PJs drinking coffee and watching cartoons.

Notice the shoes on the wrong foot.  She is fiercely independent when it comes to her shoes.

I actually kind of relish these days.  My little one is usually so busy and independent.  But on days that she is not feeling well, she wants her mama.  All day long, I hear, "Mama hold. Mama hold".  Music to my ears.  I could use a little "Mama hold" too.

So we cuddle and play and make each other laugh. 

 
I wipe noses, make stew, and kiss foreheads... because everyone deserves to be babied a little when they don't feel well.  That is, after all, one of the gifts of motherhood.  Once you become a mother, your kiss can heal all boo-boos.

Yep, I am going to enjoy that magical power as long as possible.

Read More

How we do Halloween

For Halloween this year, we kept things simple.  A few friends came over for a potluck meal of meatballs and pasta.  And then once we were all carb-loaded, we headed out for some good ol' fashion trick or treating.

Our little red riding hood, ballerina, and goldfish were so cute as they learned the ropes as to how this whole Halloween trick-or-treating thing works.  Cautiously navigating their way up to the front porch, timidly knocking on the front door, and wondering what these things were being dropped into their buckets.  Don't worry... by the end of the night, they had learned the magic of candy.  The sugar high was epic.

At each house I kept reminding Little B to say "trick-or-treat".  The concept alluded her.  But at one of the final houses, she finally said it after they dropped the candy in her bucket.

"Trick or Treat.  Thank you.  You're welcome."

I love my girl... always polite... even if the delivery is a bit off.

But the best part of the whole night was when we took 3 tired girls and their mamas back to the house to hang out, take our shoes off, drink wine and hand out candy to the "older crowd".  I think our girls loved handing out candy more than trick or treating.  They yelled "Happy Halloween" so proudly as they opened the door and then fought to see who got to put the candy in each bag.

I am really going to miss Halloween in this neighborhood.  They know how to do it right.  But in a way, it is the perfect send off.  A great memory to file away in the bank of stories that starts with "Hey, remember that really awesome Halloween..."

Read More