Holiday Exhaustion Kicks In

Mr F has a cold. This is because we have been very busy and he is very stubborn. He reminds me a little kid rubbing their eyes and yawning while trying to convince someone they aren’t sleepy. I don’t blame him, it’s nice to have some downtime but it’s cost him his smelling ability and a clear head. I’m quite rundown as well (in a different sort of way, of course) so I decided to make some Cold Busting Soup. Normally I make something like this into a blow-your-head-off sauce for enchiladas or burritos ranchero style but since Mr F got to be my sous chef for this, soup was easier.

Cold Busting Soup:

Le ingredients:

- a few cloves of garlic
- one red onion
- some fresh grated ginger (to taste)
- two (or more) fresh jalapeños (Mr F put Bird’s Eye chillies in his)
- a dollop of english mustard
- canned tomatoes
- a handful of watercress
- veg stock
- can of chickpeas or beans

In a pot add a little olive oil, add beans/chickpeas and canned tomatoes. Heat slowly. Finely chop fresh ingredients and add to the pot. You can either add each item as you chop it or add it all together at the end. Whatever you do, make sure you add things that can go bitter last.

Serve piping hot with crusty bread and a salad if you are so inclined (Mr F was). Have tissues handy as nose running will commence.

And just to prove that I’m stubborn too, there’s Imogen.

I am currently calculating how many rows I need to knit a day to have it finished by Christmas Eve. The deadline was Saturday morning but there’s just no way that’s going to happen. Unless I bend the space-time continuum somehow.

But for the record, here’s the math for Imogen’s completion deadline: I need to finish the short row section today (5 sets of a total of 4 rows) and then I need to knit no less than 13.5 rows a day to finish in time for Christmas Eve. Did I mention each row is nearly 300sts long?

I’m seriously tempted to just give up on the deadline and cast on for another Chevron Scarf instead.

Must. Persevere.

I hate deadlines.

 

Mail And A Recipe

Mail is a wonderful thing.

All of this showed up in today’s mail from Missy in Saipan. In exchange for some sock yarn I got all of this stuff! There’s dried mangos, a ton of tea, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Including coffee.

Hang on, did I say coffee? I meant coffee fit for the gods! The best coffee in the world! Kona coffee. While I prefer espresso with a nice crema over the average cup of joe anyday, I am a Kona coffee devotee. This stuff is… well nigh-on indescribably good. Once for Christmas my mother bought me a teensy package of 100% Kona for an exorbitant amount of money. And it was worth every cent. And now, halfway across the world, a wee bit of Kona has found it’s way to me. This will be saved for New Year’s Eve after dinner coffee. Thanks Missy!

Speaking of really good, last night Mr F and I finally gave into my macaroni and cheese craving. This was the first time I’ve ever made macaroni and cheese that didn’t involve cardboard boxes of pasta and luminous orange cheese packets. And all I can say is, never again. This was so quick and easy and so so good. Mr F was reduced to saying “mmmmm” after every bite.

1 small red onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
4 rashers of honey smoked bacon, diced (this would be British back bacon, not streaky American bacon)
250g penne cooked in salted water
1 tub cream cheese, cubed
1 block mature farmhouse cheddar cheese, grated
grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
milk
lots of unsalted butter
salt, pepper and cayenne pepper

In a small pan melt butter. Add onions and fry until soft. Add bacon and cook until done. Add garlic last so it doesn’t go bitter and mix well until done. Take off heat.

In a large pot over medium heat, add pasta, butter and a little of the milk. Mix well. Add the bacon onion mixture and mix again. Add the cream cheese and most of the grated cheddar, mix a lot. Add more milk if it needs it. Pour into a casserole, sprinkle with the rest of the grated cheddar and a smattering of parmesean and put under a hot grill until bubbly and crispy.

We served up half of this with salt, pepper and a pinch of cayenne for a bit of depth. We had leftovers tonight with a cress and tomato salad. Even better!