Pages are Flying!

The last time I headed to the library I was really lucky to come across many of the books I had been wanting to read after seeing some of my favorite bloggers rave about them. The first great book was The Tiger's Wife which I already mentioned, but it's worth mentioning again! It was soooo good! Here's a couple more...

-The Paris Wife by Paula McLain: The love story of Ernest Hemingway and his first wife (there were many to follow I found...) Hadley. A life filled with lots of travel, penny pinching, bickering, Absinthe and of course - love lost. It wasn't quite the book I expected, but still worth the read. I spent the evenings immersed in this book imagining what it would have been like to be Hadley  - living in the hustle and bustle of Paris and trying to predict Ernest's often stormy moods.

-My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira: Loved this book! It was so inspiring to read about a woman with such a passion for medicine and so tenacious in the face of opposition. Mary was tireless and unrelenting in her care for the sick and wounded of the Civil War. I just can't help but love a little historical fiction! :-)

-The Duchess and the Dragon by Jamie Carie: This was a touching story about a simple Quaker girl who falls in love with a Duke disguised in pauper's clothes. Will's Stepmom Dolly had given me this one to read - so sweet! If you are looking for a lovely little romance - this is definitely one to check out.

Girl in the Red Coat

I love, love, love this coat Will bought be for Christmas!!! He still isn't quite convinced that I really like it - or the hat. (I do!)

My first Christmas in Memphis was very relaxing. I slept in that morning and enjoyed some pancakes with the Nutella that Dolly and Will's dad sent. Yum! In the afternoon, Will and I delivered some soup and cookies to the people who had set up camp for Occupy Memphis - some have been living in tents by City Hall for 60 days now! The leftovers we took to a park down the street to share with the homeless that are usually gathered there. We were greeted with so much more need that we were prepared to meet! We quickly handed out all the rest of our soup and baked goods. I am constantly reminded that I have so much to be thankful for.
In the evening, we met up with our friend Josh, whom we know from the farmer's market (along with some of his friends) for a little dinner/board games/Dr. Who party. I am proud to say that I stayed awake through the entire episode of Dr. Who - last time I only made it ~10 minutes. This episode was just much more entertaining I guess!
Suffice it to say, it was a nice Christmas. I am so thankful that slooooowly it may seem that I am starting to make more friends here. :-) Back to work tomorrow - happy for a 4 day week!!

Happy Holidays!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas... well, sort of. I have to be honest, I do kind of miss the idea of a white Christmas. Although, to celebrate the season, I have been enjoying some other things down South: like biking through the Starry Nights display, running outside(!), and watching the decorated trolleys roll down Main Street. Last night, Will and I warmed our bellies with bowls of pho soup again from a different Vietnamese restaurant in town - equally as good as the last! Afterwards, we sipped eggnog and watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. That movie is so much funnier than I had remembered!

You couldn't hear a dump truck barreling through a nitroglycerin plant!

That totally makes sense to me!

Although, I'm disappointed that I couldn't get enough time off of work to make the drive home to see my family (and Charis!!!!), I am thinking of all the things I do have to be thankful for this holiday. 

- At least I have a job!

- Will, who has become family/best friend/boy friend is here to keep me company. :-)

- My freezer is full of sweet treats! (I have to freeze stuff so I'm less tempted to just keep eating all my cookies!)

- I am running (cautiously!) again!!!

- This hat Will got me for our anniversary. :-)

- Although, not guaranteed, there are likely many more Christmases in the future for me but there were several patients that I have seen in the past month who were heading home to enjoy possibly their last Christmas ever with their families and friends. I have nothing to complain about!

So, here's to a very merry Christmas to all my friends and family near and far. Although I may not be celebrating the season with you in person, know that I am thinking of you all and am with you in spirit! 

Baking up a Storm!

Yesterday, I spent the afternoon baking up these treats in the kitchen. These s'mores bars were a hit at the office party tonight and I thought I would share!

S'mores Bars!
(recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything)
Ingredients
-1/2 c. butter
-1/4 c. brown sugar
-1/2 c. sugar
-1 egg
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-1 1/2 cup flour
-3/4 c. graham cracker crumbs
-1 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp salt
-2 king-size Hershey's bars
-1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff (approximately a 7.5 oz jar)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Add the egg and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients (flour thru salt). Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter/egg mixture until well combined. Dough will be slightly crumbly.
3. Press half of the dough into the bottom of the pan. Lay the chocolate bars on top of the dough in the pan. Spread the fluff over the chocolate layer. Sprinkle the rest of the cookie dough over the top.
4. Bake for 30-35 minutes until lightly browned. Allow to cool thoroughly before cutting. (You may even want to freeze it a few minutes to make cutting easier. They are very gooey!)
These were so delicious!!!! They totally tasted just like s'mores.

I made these little bites of heaven using this recipe from eatliverun.com. :-) I used whole wheat flour instead of white, so they were a little crumbly, but still tasty! I think oatmeal cookies may be my fave right now!

Loaded oatmeal cookies!

Busy, Busy Weekend!

Howdy! Hope y'all are had a wonderful week and are enjoying the holiday season. Here's a few of the things that happened in the life of Deb this week...
Thursday was Will and I's 1-year anniversary! (I can hardly believe it's been that long already!) I'm so glad to have him in my life. :-) We went out to Felicia Suzanne's which features food from local farmers made fancy to celebrate.

Quail and polenta

Crab salad with roasted beets

Main St is so pretty at night during Christmas-time!

Friday night we were lucky enough to come across a couple of free tickets to a Memphis Grizzlies pre-season game. Go Grizz! It was a close game... but we lost 97-90.  (We may or may not have stayed for the whole thing... shhh...)

Our seats were right behind the Hornet's basket!

Last night we saw the new Sherlock Holmes' movie. I was totally obsessed with all the Sherlock Holmes mysteries for a while in high school - I may have read all of them! The movies are definitely not totally true to the original stories, but they are still entertaining!

Today I have been baking up a storm! Tomorrow, the clinical staff and interns are having a Christmas party (should be entertaining!) so I had to bake something to contribute. Tuesday is book club! This month, we read The Christmas Cookie Club so we are all bringing a batch of cookies to share. I'm also hoping to get back into running this week with the group. I've seriously missed it so much! My knee is slowly getting better, but it's still not 100%. :-/ (Which has been beyond frustrating!)
Only 7 days til Christmas!

Dreaming of a White Christmas

Last year around this time when I was living in Cleveland, I would look out my window and I'm pretty sure it would look a little like this.

The idea of a rainy, "brown" Christmas may take some getting used to!  It's hilarious to see Southerners trying to scrape their cars in the winter in the event that it does snow or ice over. I think I've seen someone using a clipboard... the flap of a cardboard box... gloved hands + windshield wipers... I try not to laugh! (I promise!)
Anyways, it is still a bit nippy out down here so I suggested we try the Vietnamese restaurant in town for some warm-you-from-the-inside-out Pho. Last year, one of my awesome Cleveland friends (Chris!) introduced Will and I to Pho, which is a clear, broth based soup filled with rice noodles and fresh herbs (usually basil). At the table, they give you toppings like bean sprouts and jalepenos, sriracha and hoisin sauce. Yum!

Humongous bowl of Pho!!!

Will ordered the sandwich we saw advertised in the Memphis Flyer earlier this week. Lots of pork (including some that resembled Spam) was involved!

Last year, one of the first things we did when we moved to Memphis was drive out to Shelby Farms to view their Christmas light display. I totally wanted to go back this year (hoping it might instill some Christmas spirit!). Mondays, you can bike/walk/run through the display - awesome!!! We bundled up, packed some hot coffee and leisurely biked our way through the lights. So much fun!

I'm so cool.

Shocking!

My FAVORITE section of the tour!

Hope y'all enjoyed a fun and festive weekend as well!

On My Bookshelf

Since I am still nursing my knee injury, I've had a bit more free time to devote to one of my other hobbies... READING! Here's a few of the books I've been perusing of late.

Let's start at the bottom...
Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult - To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of Picoult, I feel like she writes about controversial, heart-touching topics just to get a lot of books sold. On the other hand, she does know how to grab your attention and keep it until the end. This particular one was about a couple split apart by the stress of trying to have a child through IVF and the new lives they build post-divorce.
Swamplandia by Karen Russell - It took me a while to get into this one, but once I did, I thought it was pretty fantastic. Russell is a really, really good writer. The tale is about the Bigtree family and their failing alligator farm/amusement park in the Florida Everglades. Most of the story is centered on the "coming-of-age" of Ava and the lengths she goes to try to hold her family and the farm together.
The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi - This was our October book club read which I wasn't sure if I had mentioned before. Preston outlines the details of the murders of a yet un-caught serial killer that haunted the hills of Florence from 1960-1980s. Honestly, I only made it halfway when I lost interest because all the murders had been committed (terrible, I know!) and the last half just centered on rehashing the events in the courtroom. However, if you are the type that loves watching CSI re-runs, this is definitely a book for you!
Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes - Will gave this to me to read, and I honestly enjoyed reading it! Taubes does a fantastic job of reviewing evidence/research behind the obesity epidemic and how the only clear solution is to follow a basically no-carb diet with lots of fat and protein. I'm not completely convinced yet (I'm not ready to give up oatmeal and cookies!), but his argument is definitely compelling!
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov - Originally, I picked this one up at the library because I had figured I should read it because it's a "classic". I made it about half-way through before I put it down because I was starting to get creeped out... I don't want know what goes through the mind of a pedophile. Eeek! No thank you.

The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht - This was a FANTASTIC book!!!! It was seriously glued to my face all week. I love how Obreht uses folk tales (like "the tiger's wife" and the "deathless man" to unravel the events of the life of Natalia's recently deceased grandfather. So touching. Seriously, this is a book that is definitely worth reading!! 

Delish Mushroom and Biscuit Dish!!!

It snowed here in Memphis last night! I love waking up the morning of a first snow when all the trees are still frosted with snow and it hasn't turned to dirty, gross slush in the streets yet. Since the temperature was dropping, I thought it would be the perfect evening for baking up this mushroom and biscuit dish from Joy the Baker. (I love her!)

Biscuit making!

I love an excuse to play in flour! These biscuits turned out so much better than I thought they would!

Mmmmm... tasty!

For the delicous recipe... click here! Joy's pictures are so much better than mine! I made just a few changes to the recipe. I left out the chives in the biscuits and just seasoned them with oregano and I used a mix of plain yogurt and milk in place of the buttermilk. In the stew, I left out the peas. Other than that, this recipe is awesome!!! If you're facing a snowy outlook, this dish is sure to make you toasty warm!

Race Weekend

Oops! I didn't mean to neglect my blog for a whole week! (I'm sure you're all on the edge of your seat wondering what I have been up to the last few days. Don't try to deny it!) Anyways, my bad! The real exciting stuff didn't happen until the weekend anyhow. :-)
Friday, I went to the Dr about my knee. According to him, I have "chondromalacia" - so the cartilage behind my knee has softened to where it couldn't handle the stress of running and freaked out. Now, I have a brace to wear while I cross train and see them for PT on Friday. (Thank God for health insurance! It's a truly amazing thing!) He said "N-O" to me running on Saturday. I was so disappointed! Since I'd be running the race in spirit with my friends, I figured I still needed to carb load. I totally demolished this cupcake from Yolo for dessert on Friday.

Dreamy coconut!

So, I made a sign and walked down the street (the race course just so happened to go past my house!).

Oh, and the newspaper-man was enamored with Honey (Will's pup!) so he put us in the slide show on the Commercial Appeal's race write-up --> See it live on the site here!

I never realized how chicken legged I look! So awkward! It's definitely an awesome picture of Honey though!

Sunday we redeemed our box seat tickets for the Nutcracker ballet at the Orpheum Theater! What an enchanting show they put on! I am always so impressed by people who can dance... because I am so incredibly uncoordinated!
Hope y'all stayed toasty warm this weekend!

Ups and Downs

Life is a series of triumphs and losses. Success and failure. Health and sickness. Fulfillment and discontent. Happiness and grief. Rainy days and clear skies. Sometimes, it feels like all your low points seem to happen at once. As you may have guessed from my last post, the last week or so has been punctuated by some not so happy moments (and perhaps a few tears), but that's not to say that there weren't good times as well! Let me just recap a bit of what life has been like over the last week or so...
-Work can be rough sometimes. When someone is sick or stuck in a rehab program for weeks, they aren't always the happiest campers.Too often, I somehow become a target for frustrations as I try to deal with kitchen errors or distaste for certain dishes.These days, I just try to look at it as a way to "toughen up" or "get a thick skin".
-Thanksgiving was out of the ordinary for Will and I this year. Instead of turkey and the usual sides we cooked up some authentic New Mexican red chili enchiladas. Definitely not for those who don't have a tolerance for spicy dishes!

Enchilada assembly

-I was still feeling a bit nostalgic about Thanksgiving however, so we did have traditional pumpkin pie for dessert. :-) Not as good as my Grandma's though. I remember when she would cook up so many tasty treats during the holidays! Pies, poppy seed and pumpkin rolls, dozens of Christmas cookies.  Sigh. I miss her.

I'm totally going to devour this pie!

-Precepting interns has been such a game changer at work. At first I was totally freaking out because I felt like I didn't have anything to offer. Just a year and a half ago I was in their shoes! A few of them are my age or older! Almost everyday I have to give myself a little pep-talk and convince myself that yes, I do have some things I can teach them. I really have learned quite a bit in the last 2 1/2 years! That's not to say I that don't still have a LOT to learn!
-On Thanksgiving, Will and I drove to a local park to do a little hiking only to be shooed away by the terrible smell... we were thinking there must be a sewage plant in the area. :-( After we jumped in the car, I noticed a tick on Honey... so we quickly evacuated the car and did a rapid tick search! Honey was covered! (But luckily, no bites!) So much for a leisurely fall walk!
-I mentioned earlier that I did something to tweak my knee on a long run and have been out of commission for the last 2 weeks to rest. I thought that perhaps I was really babying it too much and tried to go for an easy run this afternoon. I made it about two blocks before this searing knee pain came back and I had to limp it right on back home. (Grr.) I think it's time to get a second opinion and see the doc - because Mr. WebMD just didn't cut it! This also means, I'm probably going to be sidelined for the St. Jude Half on Saturday. :-( I'm so disappointed!
It's days/weeks like these when I have to remind myself....

Even if it is rainy and my hair will be a hot mess all day at work!
I have plenty to be grateful for!

Worst Luck Ever!

Now, I always figured that I was a pretty good, model citizen and a relatively safe driver. I mean I pay my bills, my taxes, I follow the law. Well, I guess I'm wrong. In the last month I've been pulled over 3 times! Give me a break! I'm beginning to think that the Memphis police force has it out to get me! Here's what went down.

Pull-over #1: After meeting with my running group on the Greenline for a 10 mile run, I was happy to be heading home to hit the shower. I was cruising down Union Street which has a speed limit of 35 miles/hr. I always thought the rule was that as long as you were within 5 miles of the speed limit you were ok. Obviously not! I got busted for going 40. :-(
Pull-over #2: On Thanksgiving, I was really craving a cup of Starbuck's holiday blend. I was parked on the street in front of my apartment building and today, like most days, I swung out of the space and made a U-turn to head towards downtown. Sitting at the red light at the corner was a cop who immediately flagged me down. I seriously was still 500 feet from my house! According to this officer, it is illegal to make a U-turn from a park. Really?! He let me off with just a warning. Probably because it was Thanksgiving. But really?! I can't do anything!
Pull-over #3: Yesterday, after work, Will and I stopped at Walgreens so I could return my movie to the Redbox, which is located outside. After dropping the movie, we went to leave without even entering the store. As I was pulling out of the parking lot, a cop comes speeding into the turning lane and I move into traffic. As I near the red light on the corner I see that the cop has turned around to follow me and pull me over. He jumps out of his car, gun in hand, and orders me to shut off my vehicle and get out of the car with my hands up. What?! I did as I was told and he walks around the car to do the same to Will! Meanwhile we are parked in the turning lane of a busy intersection within just a block from where I work. What a great thing for my boss to see both Will and I pulled over with our hands in the air! Apparently, the cop was called to pull over a black Jeep Cherokee from Walgreens as whoever it was had just picked up some illegal prescription. Cause, you know, a green Jeep Patriot is close enough. I had never been so scared!! Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Welcome to my life!

Thankfulness

Some things I am thankful for this year...
-God. Without Him I wouldn't have these things to be thankful for!
-Family. Although I may be a few hundred miles away, I'm still wishing you the best this Thanksgiving!
-Friends. I have some pretty incredible friends, and for some reason, I thought it would be fun to move away. :-/ I miss y'all so much!

Y'all even came to Tennessee, twice! 

I miss these fun times in Cleveland!

Hoping to visit both of you in the next few months!

-Will - Best friend and boyfriend. He made this transition to a new town, new job, new life an adventure. I love him. :-)

-Vets. Without them our country may be an entirely different place. I also wouldn't have a my job and it certainly wouldn't be as highly entertaining without them!
-My Jeep. It's been incredible to not be plagued by random clunking noises, a leaky transmission, breakdowns, or the fear that at any point, my old jalopy van (RIP) just might not start.
-Coffee. (Without my regular caffeine fix, I'm not sure I wouldn't be a walking zombie.)

-StarRunners! This running group got me out of my house so I could meet new people, make some friends, and get in shape doing one of the things I love most - RUNNING! (Still keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to run St. Jude next week!)
-Farmers - without them we wouldn't have any real food. Plus, after working the market this summer, I've come to realize they are some of the coolest people. :-)

Hope you all are enjoying lots of delicious food and quality time with family and friends.

I Miss Endorphins

I haven't been on a run in almost a week. I'm dying to burn off some extra energy!!! There's less than 2 weeks until St. Jude and last week I did something to really make my knee angry, like really angry. Oi. In the mean time I've been doing my best to make myself rest, avoid the stairs (those killed!), ice, and pray that it will be better before the half marathon! I've been missing running group so much already. Plus, I've realized how much I've come to depend on running to clear my head, get motivated (ie. reason I haven't posted in over a week!), and just feel so much better throughout the day. Those little exercise endorphins do so much more than I realized!
Ok. Enough about that! This week was "Downtown Dining Week" so the majority of restaurants in our neighborhood were offering a 3 course meal for only $20.11! After perusing the list, Will and I headed to the classy, chic Majestic restaurant which is housed in an old theater. I had heard a lot of good things about this place, so I was excited to finally try it!

So excited to eat!

Salad for me to start, and chicken liver pate for Will. Trout for the main course...

Then, to finish... a cute little dessert in a glass. Tiramisu for me (of course!) and key lime pie for Will! YUM!

I totally want to back for one of their super fun looking movie theme meals - especially the National Lampoon's Christmas Special meal!
Today I had to cover the weekend shift at work. Not too crazy busy luckily! The hospital always seems so eerily quiet on Saturday and Sunday - it's kind of creepy! :-/ Hope y'all had a fun weekend!

15 Things for Saturday

What's up with the monkey?

1. Thursday night, Will and I went to see David Sedaris do some readings of his stories live. He's so funny, cute, and quirky. He was get flustered at times and just go "oops... oops...". Also, he kept a pencil in his shirt pocket and would actually edit on stage as he read. If you are wondering who he is... you should look up one of his podcasts or an audiobook of one his works like Me Talk Pretty One Day or Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk. One of the things that he does so well as an author is that he can really develop even average seeming people into fantastic characters. I walked out of the auditorium feeling inspired to write more - especially in my journal! (Which has been sadly neglected the last few months...)
2. Remember how I mentioned reading Sarah's Key a few weeks ago? I saw another book by Tatiana de Rosnay called A Secret Kept. Like Sarah's Key, this book involved a lot of flashbacks/forwards as you follow middle-aged Antoine Rey in his quest to discover more about the mother he never got the chance to know well. Definitely one to check out!
3. I loved this post "10 Real-Talk Blog Tips" by Joy the Baker. She's kind of like my blogging idol.  So inspiring.
4. Sometimes you just have a really bad day. Wednesday was one of those days. I just happened to have a lot of very vocal, unhappy patients and at one point I just felt like "I just can't. please. a-n-y-o-n-e!!". Being a dietitian at times is a bit like being a waitress in that you take all the slack for when the kitchen messes up and the food doesn't come out right. Oi. I think by the next afternoon I had things sorted out.
5. Last Saturday and again today, I tried fueling with a GU Gel for on my long run. It's a lot like candy toothpaste. (Did you ever get the cotton candy flavor toothpaste when you were a kid?!) So, it's kind of weird but it was definitely a lot easier to get down than any other other things I've tried so far!
6. Can I just say that I absolutely adore Zoe Deschanel and her new show New Girl! It makes me look forward to Tuesday night!
7. Cely from the blog, Running Off the Reeses is absolutely hilarious. I often open up her blog in the mornings before I head to work to start off my day with a few funny thoughts.
8. This was my first week precepting my first intern! I was sooo nervous on Monday! I think it has been going pretty well though. I feel like it could be so rewarding to see all these interns improve and learn throughout the internship. :-)
9. I brought out my "Link boots" this week. (That's right. I just made a nerdy Nintendo reference... haha.)
10. Vet - "I'm not a 5 year old girl. Stop trying to feed me like one!". (BTW - the diet he was on provides 2400-2600 kcals... so, yeah.)
11. Will and I saw this sign in front of the church that hosts the Cooper Young Farmers' Market today. I couldn't help chuckling...

I totally need to start going here now! My bike could use a tune-up...

12. Peppermint White Chocolate Mochas are back at Starbucks. Yum!!!!

13. Love advice from my patients = hilarious. This came about Friday for example: Vet: "You married?". Deb: "Um, no. But I'm dating". Vet: "How old are you?". D: "24". Vet: "What's that boy waiting for?! If I were younger, I'd cook for you. Put about 14 lbs on you. Put you in a set of heels and your guy would be sorry he didn't ask already!" D: Umm... (And that's when this conversation rapidly turned from entertaining to incredibly awkward...). 

14. I got a speeding ticket on Union last weekend for going 5 miles over the speed limit. Seriously?! 

15. After my third attempt to make kale chips failed last night, I think I give up. You win Kath (of Kath Eats) and Deb (of Smitten Kitchen)! You go eat your perfectly baked kale. :-/ Haha! Kidding! (sort of...)

This looks like it's going to be a crazy busy week! A potluck, tea party, intern presentations, graduation, book club, and one last 13 miler before race day. Whew!!  Hope y'all are enjoying your weekend as well!

Happy 11/11/11!

If you know any Vets, thank them for their service today! The VA grants this a holiday, so I have the day off today. :-)  Earlier this week, I cooked up some of this hearty chili. I am totally on a soup/stew kick right now. Make a pot for yourself - you won't be sorry!

The ingredients...

Hearty Pumpkin Black Bean Chili
Ingredients:
-1/2 medium onion, chopped
-1 green bell pepper, chopped
-2 tbsp oil
-3-4 cloves garlic
-1 can black beans, rinsed
-2 cans spicy stewed tomatoes
-1 cup pumpkin (mine was a fresh one I had roasted a few days ago)
-4-5 small red skin potatoes
-1 bottle of Lager or other dark beer
-1-2 tsp chili powder
Directions:
1. Heat oil in stock pot. Add chopped onions and green peppers and cook until softened. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant.
2. Dump in the beans, tomatoes, pumpkin, and beer. Simmer. Add spices to taste (ie. chili, salt, pepper, etc).
3. Cover pot and continue to simmer on low heat until all of the vegetables have softened.
Top with some shredded cheese and sour cream/yogurt and you're good to go!

Chili for my belly...

Veggie Drawer Soup

So, early last week, I guess I went a little overboard at the farmers' market, because the veggie drawer in my fridge was about to burst! The easiest way to use a lot at once?? Vegetable soup of course! The other plus of making this big batch of soup was definitely the leftovers. There are few nights when I come home from work and am inspired to cook, especially when I have running group in the evening, so this gave me a quick fix for dinner.

The ingredients...

 Veggie Drawer Soup
Ingredients:
-1 small onion, chopped
-1 tbsp butter or olive oil
-3-4 carrots
-1/2 quart mushrooms
-Handful of cherry tomatoes
-1 bunch bok choy
-1/2 head broccoli
-5-6 red skinned potatoes
-3 cups of mustard greens
-1 qt vegetable broth (add more for a more "brothy" soup)
Directions:
1. Heat oil/butter in a large stockpot. Add onions and saute until translucent. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant. Add broth. Add the carrots, potatoes, bok choy stems, and broccoli (chopped into equal size pieces). Heat until simmering and cook for about 10 minutes. Next add chopped bok choy leaves, mushrooms, tomatoes, and greens. Simmer until the harder veggies are fork tender (ie. the carrots and potatoes). Add salt, pepper, and additional spices to taste.

Serve alongside a grilled cheese sandwich on a chilly fall evening. :-)

Harvest Festival!

First off... keep this picture in mind...
To celebrate the end of the Downtown Farmers' Market season (and to raise money for the market!) they held the Harvest Celebration in the ballroom of Central Station. :-) As promised, many of the tastiest restaurants in town brought in some of delicious dishes to highlight the produce sold at the market. Not a whole lot of vegetarian options though. :-/ The best dish by far was a mushroom gravy over goat cheese grits. Yum!!

Grits in the front, tamale casserole (for Will!) in the background...

Central Station. A cool place to party... and live!

Fun times!

The event included a silent auction as well. Will and I walked around and bid on a few things... at first we just wanted to bring the price up (to help the market at all...), but then we ended up winning a couple! We snagged some tickets for the Nutcracker ballet (so excited!!) as well as a coffee basket with locally roasted beans and a cute coffee bag purse!

In addition to eating and bidding, we also did some mingling and chatted with some of our market volunteer friends. :-)

Hiding in one of the corners was a fun little photo booth which of course we had to do! Promise not to laugh... ok, ok. I honestly can't look at this picture without cracking up! Now remember the American Gothic pic at the start of this post?

We. are. so. cool.

Happy Monday y'all!!