When Dinner Escapes You

Posted on 04/09/2010 by It All Changes

The heat, the need for sleep, and the general lack of pep in my step has led to my menu list from looking like this…

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To a ghost town…

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(Yes the last time I wrote out a menu was July…ooops…and I don’t think I even ate the meals on that menu.)

I’m a list girl through-and-through but menus have gone by the wayside.  Sure I blame my busy work schedule that makes me eat out several times a week and great blogger meet ups full of coffee and meals in the car…but the truth is dinner ideas have escaped me.  I have food but not a ton of time for prep.  I also fear molding veggies in the fridge so I don’t have a ton of fresh veg.

I could beat myself up but instead I’m embracing my creativity.  A little of this and a little of that and soon dinner is born.

Anything in my fridge, freezer and pantry are fair game for this fun game of “What’s for dinner?” Last night I grabbed a few things and ran away to the kitchen, threw them in the pan, and prayed.  It worked! Perhaps I’m a better cook preparer than I thought. :-)

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This concoction included:

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  • 1/2 box fresh tortellini
  • 2 cups veggie broth (you can make your own following Heather’s instructions…mine was boxed ::gasp::)
  • 2 cups boxed Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup
  • 2 cups frozen string beans
  • Garlic salt to taste

You might think I have a thing for the number two but honestly I am guessing because no measuring cups were involved in the creation of this meal. :-D

  1. Spray skillet with deep sides with olive oil.  Slightly brown tortellini while tossing.
  2. Add 1 cup veggie broth and cover to steam tortellini. IMG_3764
  3. Get a nice facial while you remove the lid and add in the boxed soup.
  4. Simmer on medium-low until nice an thick.
  5. Add green beans and garlic salt till your heart and taste buds are content. My goal is to repel a vampire so I’m not giving measurements. IMG_3765
  6. Add remaining veggie broth and cover until beans are tender singing sweet Elvis music….okay if you hear Elvis there are other troubles…perhaps you’d like this recipe :-)
  7. Devour!

This made three servings.  Two for dinner and one for Hunni’s breakfast.  Yes, he ate it for breakfast because we were out of milk.  Ooops…Guess I forgot to buy it at the store.

*Confession: The pictures are from when I remade this recipe tonight for dinner I didn’t know if it would turn out the first time.*

When dinner ideas escape you just look to the panty and use your wild imagination :-)

What is the best “throw it in the pot and pray” meal you’ve ever made?

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Downtown Art

Posted on 03/09/2010 by It All Changes

To end the summer every year the our city closes Main Street and throws a party.  Food, fun and families are a great way to end the summer before the snow hits…ack I can already see it coming.

We participate for work every year but that means I also get to have fun with all the other things going on.  What fun would it be if I couldn’t crawl through the safety house and talk to all the people?

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The crowds were huge despite the stifling heat and crowds of horse flies trying to eat us for dinner.

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Our new mayor even got in on the fun and sat in the dunk tank for the local High School Marching Band.  People were lined up for awhile to throw the soft balls…or just push the button.  Taunting each person as they threw just got him more wet.  Such a good sport :-)

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We participated in our traditional way with music and celebration.  This year we had a stage.  Vindication for not being in the middle school musical :-)

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I really was there I promise.  I was the photographer. ::click, click::

The biggest attraction this year was Create A Matisse.  The community banded together to turn a side street into a giant work of art.

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Everyone got in on the action….

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some more than others! :-D

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I’m not an artist but I can color paint within the lines.

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Know why I requested a black star?  I can be a bit messy and black is much easier to get out of my uniform or blend in at least.  Could you imagine if I had done that yellow star?

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If you picked up a brush to put paint to, uh, street you got a cool little certificate showing what you helped create.

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Next year’s work of art is going to be the size of a football field…well really the unused grocery store parking lot. That one will be permanent…this years was water based paint.  Drawing the community together through art (pun intended).

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Thanks Sidewalk Sam for the opportunity to make art in such a crazy way.   IMG_3686

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Guest Post Fun

Posted on 02/09/2010 by It All Changes

I’m working on compiling a list of all the guest posts I’ve done over the last year or so to create a page for them here.  So if you have one I wrote on your blog please send me a note.

Until then here is another I wrote for MizFit about struggling with injury and how to persevere instead of hide under the blankets sobbing.

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Running Away to College

Posted on 02/09/2010 by It All Changes

When college campuses look like this who can get any work done?

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Okay, maybe that doesn’t give you the best idea of why I keep trying to escape my office to be a college student.  How about this…

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I hid out in the Fine Arts Building pretending to be a music major in college so I was practically drooling at these.  A wood flute…Yes please!

Or I could be an art major and be inspired buy these fun sculptures right outside the gallery.

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But not all of us are artists or musicians (even though I still fancy myself a Mozart or Picasso) so perhaps the gym might be a better option.  I can’t get past the beautiful look of the buildings though. :-D

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Cross the street for some shopping but don’t forget to ….

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Ever have anyone ask you…

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In college of course.  Where else would you buy a book that helps you learn to speak zombie, build your own city, and own all of the Fraggles.

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Yep, I’m going to run away and join college where I can live on coffee “only 3 hours from Fenway.”

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See you around the quad. :-D

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What is the one thing you miss about college?

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College Food Fun

Posted on 01/09/2010 by It All Changes

In college my diet consisted of Velveeta Shell & Cheese, Snickers Ice Cream bars and IBC Root Beer by the case.  Thanks Momma for your free BJ’s membership.  I didn’t have to eat in the dining hall everyday :-D Let’s just agree that this might have something to do with the four years of weight gain and misery.

If you look in my fridge right now you’d think I was still stuck in college mode.

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When Hunni and I complained we had nothing to eat this week…we weren’t kidding.  I randomly wandered the grocery store picking up enough stuff to last until vacation.

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I think I can survive amidst the many trips for work and fun, fun, fun until then!

A week ago Hunni and I had lots of fun pretending to go back-to-school.  Being good “college students” we scoped out the food, of course.  If this kind of food had existed in my little college town I might have ventured outside the blue box.

First stop was Tunnel City Coffee for brunch.  Sleeping in left us hangry.

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Coffee, cookies and fruit cups, oh my!

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Hunni channeled his inner child by having a cookie for breakfast. IMG_3520

I opted for a latte and fruit and yogurt parfait.  Who doesn’t love foam art on their coffee?  Another thing to love is the home-made granola to add to the last little bit of yogurt.

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After a morning exploring the beautiful campus buildings and a bit of shopping we worked up quite an appetite.  The place to be for lunch at Williams College is definitely Pappa Charlie’s Deli on Spring Street.

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You need to know how to order in this place.  The options are endless and the staff is quick.

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Kind of like Starbucks.  Instead of my Grande Solo Soy Latte with one pump of Pumpkin Spice (is it fall already?)…I had to know how to order my Olympia Dukakis.  Feta, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and sprouts on a pita hold the house dressing in case you should visit :-) IMG_3617

Hunni went a stranger route…Dr. Strange Pork to be exact.

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We eat on Spring Street A LOT for crazy cuisine and great vegetarian fare thanks to the college kids.  Mary Tyler Moore once visited Pappa Charlie’s deli and corrected the menu item named for her.

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We left home for our back-t0-school date but we live in a college town too.  Guess I can pretend I never grew up after all?  Our favorite place in town is a cute little coffee shop called Brewhaha.  You know you order coffee too often when the barista sees me or Hunni coming and make my coffee before we order.  Might want to try saving money and make more coffee at home.

In addition my morning coffee it is a great place for lunch meetings…or just escaping the office.  Their unique and often organic options don’t make me sick!  Such a plus in my book.

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Hunni always orders the pancake the size of his head plate with lots of real Massachusetts maple syrup.

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I shake it up a bit often ordering from Vegans Take Over the World section.  For breakfast the other day I ordered a veggie sausage bagel reminiscent of random road trips in college.

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My small little community offers awesome college food for those of us with Peter Pan Syndrome.  Food is so much more fun when I look past the Subway on every corner around here and enjoy the local inexpensive tastiness that the Berkshires have to offer.

What kind of food did you eat in college?

Posted in Growth, Traveling, food | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments