Back to my roots

The last time I had a favorite food, I'm pretty sure it was macaroni & cheese.

Memories of going to my Grandma's house and helping her add mustard to the homemade cheese sauce are some of my fondest-- I'd get to taste the sauce after each delicate spoonful of Gulden's spicy brown was added, and always suggested we add more. Making cheese sauce with Grandma was a ritual that was ours alone; she was always good at finding special things to do with each granddaughter. I'm pretty sure they all involved food.

One of the first things I successfully eliminated during my lactose intolerance revelation was macaroni & cheese; this was before I truly understood what my lactose triggers were, and how much lactose was in the various dairy products. Since Cabot began marketing their cheddar as lactose-free (very smart of them, since all cheddar is essentially lactose-free), I have fully embraced eating it on eggs and pasta, which has been glorious. A couple of weeks ago I experienced a true mac & cheese craving... and gave in. This recipe is markedly different than my Grandma's (she used Velveeta, WTF), but it includes mustard!

Ingredients (serves 1)
1.5 cups dry pasta (I  use a mix of whole wheat and tri-color)
1/2 cup almond milk (plain, unsweetened)
1-2 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese
salt and spicy brown mustard, to taste

Method: Cook pasta and set aside. Melt butter in small sauce pan and stir in flour; add milk in increments, stirring after each pour. Stir constantly to avoid clumps. Once all the milk is added and the sauce is thick, add cheddar and spicy brown mustard to taste. Add pasta to pot, stir to coat, and sprinkle with salt. Lactose-free mac & cheese, y'all!!

(Note: 1 tbsp. of butter has .01 grams lactose)

Spring farro risotto

Of course I would find a way to make risotto healthier. I'm not sure if that makes me hate or love myself, but either way this meal was bangin. 

Ingredients - Serves 2

1 cup farro

1-2 tbsp. butter

1 leek, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2/3 cup white wine

3 cups chicken stock 

1 cup green peas

1 bunch asparagus, chopped

squeeze of lemon

parmesan 

salt & pepper to taste

Make this like you would make risotto. Do I have to write it out? I'm so tired. All I can think about is discourse analysis and politeness theory. Oh, one thing I did is steam the asparagus separately so I could add it to the farro in portions instead of all at once (so it wouldn't get brown and overcooked in my leftovers). You're welcome.

Bedtime snack

Bedtime snack on repeat: greek yogurt, maple-agave syrup, THE BEST GRANOLA EVER (Dorset Cereals Honey Granola), fresh strawberries, and a splash of almond milk.

And, though today I am thankful that my dearest sister is safe, I know that's not the case for many others. I pray they can take comfort in the One who redeems all things.

And as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, 
And at the last He will take His stand on the earth. 
Even after my skin is destroyed, 
Yet from my flesh I shall see God: 
Whom I myself shall behold, 
And whom my eyes shall see and not another. 
Psalm 19:25-27

The poetics of things

One of my favorites:

Wild Geese
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting–
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

Mary Oliver, Dream Work

AppleBucks

This weekend, I passed by a man snorting coke in the middle of a street just outside Chinatown. It was sunny, windy -- early in the morning. Nate and I were walking to Chinatown Coffee, where we bought a a big pot of French press and sat at a table amongst hipsters, listening to old school rap. He ate gourmet potato chips; I ate yogurt and granola. It was kind of a bizarre morning. 

Later that day we walked to the botanical gardens near the Capitol, which we stumbled upon accidentally after visiting the Museum of the American Indian. It totally sucked. The botanical gardens were amazing though, and it made me thankful all over again for living in such a cool city, and for the chance to explore it with my best friend. If Nate had moved to DC with me back in 2011, I don't think we would have ended up doing all these touristy things that we do whenever he visits. I think we would have felt like we had all the time in the world to see the sights, and we would have taken them for granted. So I'm thankful for that, too-- I like that even though we've been apart, we have all these memories of discovering the city together, across so many different seasons. 

This morning, for his last breakfast (before he comes again next weekend for his interview), I made buckwheat pancakes. I'd never made real pancakes before, so I'm not sure what made me want to try... especially because I don't believe in cake for breakfast. Everything in moderation? Anyway, I used a mix, added grated apple, and they were delicious! Then, Nathan and I walked to J.Crew and he bought the most beautiful suit... I almost threw up, I was so panicked about the price and simultaneously excited about how good he looked in it. 

Photo cred (including the staging):
Nathan Lockett

Apple Buckwheat Pancakes (serves 2-3)

1 1/3 cups organic buckwheat pancake mix
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
4 tsp canola oil
1 tsp honey
1 1/2 cups almond milk
splash of vanilla
cinnamon to taste
2 medium apples, coarsely grated

Combine all ingredients, fry in batches on lightly greased pan.

These are delightfully thick, and amazing drizzled with syrup and almond butter. Nate ate 3. I ate 6. Just kidding I also ate 3, what?! Where's my appetite?

Pasta with lemon yogurt sauce

I finally decided that I should make some of the recipes I post on pinterest each day, which explains the influx of new creations in my diet, and on my last post. I almost wrote "on my posts lately" but realized that was a liiiitttle on the optimistic side. 

Having recently discovered that greek yogurt serves as a great substitute for traditionally cream and milk-filled pasta sauces, I threw together this lemony concoction last week: 

I used this recipe as a guide-- all the same ingredients minus the Parmesan, but I didn't really measure anything. I do know that I added way more zucchini than I was supposed to (sexcellent choice) and sprinkled cilantro on top (it was about to go off, as my British/German roommate says). The cilantro was kind of random, but it's essentially my favorite food so whatevs-- like mother, like daughter. I think I probably made enough for two servings according to the recipe, but ate it all in one sitting.

In other news, Georgetown announced their five-year financial plan this week, which includes a freeze on all staff salaries, but not on faculty. Everyone is up in arms! There have been lots of meetings and petitions (most  of them spearheaded by the faculty and deans) but I've been too busy to get involved. As soon as the plan was announced Deborah kindly assured me that she would make sure I received a raise each year out of her own pocket if the decision wasn't reversed, so I feel at ease. But I feel terrible for everyone else!

Also, I gave Schuy a bath this week. He smells like grapefruit. And I'm anxiously waiting for the Dunham twinz to arrive.

AND-- I get to hang with my man this weekend!

Recipes I've tried lately and liked

 

This Grapefruit and Olive oil cake. 

These Masala lentils -- I increased the amount of lentils to almost a cup, and used a full can of both tomatoes (diced instead of stewed) and coconut milk. 

This Broccoli soup -- I increased the amount of broth to 4 cups, used a little over a pound of broccoli, and added a couple handfuls of fresh spinach. I didn't add parmesan, but definitely splurged on pine nuts this week! Next time I think I'll swap leeks for the onion.