"To dream, dream, dream, all day long. Wrap my head in the gauze of a song." Tulsa

I've had a quiet week this week and last, and I'm still relishing all the loveliness of my Milwaukee trip.

I made it there with very little fuss, peach pie nestled safely in my backpack, and I fully enjoyed waiting for the bus as there were fighter jets passing overhead every few minutes (courtesy of the Air&Water Show). It's about two hours with traffic from downtown Chicago to Milwaukee and I spent most of the time watching the fields go by, it looks so much like home! I love living in a city, but every few months I still get home sick for the country. Open skies. Big Trees. Soybeans. Bugs. Stuff like that.

Plus, I adore listening to music while on the road. Don't you?? Some songs just need open skies. I really wish I had found out about this band/dude, Tulsa/ Carter Tanton, before my trip! (Now I have to patiently wait until November for his new album. Not one of my virtues.) Excellent road trip tune-age. Instead it was mostly the Cold Mountain soundtrack, Avett Bros, and Gillian Welch. The way back was more Irish tunes heavy thanks to several hours at the Irish Fest and the local Irish bar afterwards.

Miss Lyndsey, my faux big sister, and I ate delicious things: cuban food, waffles with walnuts and strawberries, diner hamburgers, corned beef sammitches, the traveling peach pie, amazing tacos, and of course a local brew. We also got to spend a lovely afternoon with Mr Brandon, my big brother from college, it was a little family reunion. He fed me cantaloupe and told me how to make curried mashed cauliflower. Going to make that. Also going to make cider with black currant juice and try out Miss Lyndsey's favorite thing of putting oat bran into her baking for delicious heartiness. Mmmm.

It was a perfect trip, and I'm grateful I have such dear people only two hours away. I was in a much better head state when I left, soothed and centered. Plus, I really do like Milwaukee, it's a small town version of Chicago and I always have a great time! Of course I was welcomed back to my city by a traffic jam of epic proportions (a semi jack-knifed on the Dan Ryan Expressway blocking 3 out of 4 lanes of traffic ahahahha), but it gave me the extra two hours I needed to finish Cranford! Yay?

I held on to the pleasant calm of my mini-break with lots of hot baths, lit candles and quiet nights. Then I decided to have some serious fun and invited two friends over to cook dinner with me in my tiny-ass kitchen! Now that was an interesting experience!!

We hit up the local farmers market for tomatoes and basil, then picked up two bottles of red wine and some cavatelli pasta, which is now one of my favorite shapes! It's like a little cowry shell, more pasta thickness than penne but not a honkin' piece of dough like gnocchi. There was a lot of maneuvering, improvising, and wine consumed but three people managed to make sauce and pasta to feed themselves. In a very tiny space. Since we were hungry the sauce couldn't simmer and thicken as it really should so we, after some drunken deliberation, decided to roux it. Actually it really wasn't a deliberation, it was just my friend declaring "Oh! We need to make a...a...crap! I only know the word in Coatian!! Ummm flour thickener?!?" "A roux." "Yes! A roux! Give me your flour." "Ok." And I gave the crazy drunk Croatian in my kitchen the flour and slowly backed away.

The sauce was delicious. We ended up having massive amounts of left-over cavatelli so the rest of the weekend was pasta with fresh basil, lemon juice, olive oil and cheese. Delicious. I've also decided I need one more work surface in my kitchen to make it really functional, so I'm keeping my eyes out for a small counter height table/shelf/cart thing.

I had last Friday off and decided to make the most of the remaining summer and go to the park. Chicago has awesome parks, and the one near my house has a section that they've designated to be a prarie area. Wild flowers and local flora go nuts and it's really quite lovely.

I hunkered down with my current read, Fanny's Last Supper, sipped sweet tea, and watched squirrels frolic.

See, wasn't kidding about that last part. I love me some squirrels!

All in all it was an excellent week and weekend, even though I didn't get around to posting about it! This weekend I'm dog-sitting Miss Ashely's Dottie and I'm bringing my camera. Get ready.

T.G.I.F.

Happy Friday everyone!

I'm off to the Magical Mystical Land of Milwaukee this weekend to visit my dear Miss Lyndsey! Perfect timing too, I had a rough week and am in need of a little break and the comfort and company of an old friend!

Speaking of friends! Another dear friend of mine, Miss Ashley, came over for dinner last Friday to celebrate her survival of finals week (and her belated Birthday)! She's becoming a librarian! How cool is that!! I'm always asking her random questions about the workings of the CPL. Having practically grown up at the library in Granville, it's weird for me to not know how things are done at my new library. Things get complicated when there are multiple branches!! If I check out a CD at one branch can I return it to another or is that bad??!! Will the librarians hate me??! Buuh!

There was lots of wine with nectarines (see Finals Week), my Mom's Honey Curry Chicken over rice with green beans, and a lovely wee apple pie a la mode for dessert! We spent about two hours watching My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding on Youtube (see Finals Week). Finals Week can really excuse any sort of behavior I've found, even when you're not the one taking tests!

It was a lovely time and I'm getting increasingly better at entertaining in my new space. It really takes me a while to figure that out for some reason! Just having people stop by is one thing, but making food in my wee kitchen when company is there and getting the timing etc down for a proper meal is quite another! I really enjoyed getting ready for Ashley though, everything went smoothly and even if it didn't she's not the sort of person to give a hoot!

Miss Linda's Honey Curry Chicken

adapted from the More-with-Less Cookbook (Mennonites!!)

3 lbs chicken

4 tbs butter

1/2 c honey

1/4 c prepared mustard (we use Colman's English mustard but any yellow mustard would do!)

1 tsp curry

1 tsp salt

(I sometimes go crazy and add some cocoanut milk and up the amount of the honey and spices if you want it to have more of an Asian feel)

Heat your oven to 350. Melt the butter then add the honey, mustard, curry and salt. Mix all together and pour over the chicken in an ovenproof dish. Bake for about an hour until chicken is cooked through. Serve over rice.

I typically just buy two chicken breasts and halve the recipe. It makes about three meals for one person that way!

And as Ashley really liked my green beans this is how I do it!

How to Achieve Cooked-Yet-Crisp Green Beans

Fill a large bowl with really cold water and put it in the fridge. Put a pot of salted water on to boil while you rinse and trim your beans. When the water comes to boil drop in the beans and only leave them in for 3-4 minutes. Just until they are bright green!! Then drain them in a colander and run them under cold water. Now put them in that bowl of water in the fridge either for 5 minutes or until you are ready to eat. Drain and voila! Crisp yet cooked beans! Try them with sauteed tomatoes and onions! It's seriously delicious!

Speaking of seriously delicious. Here is my breakfast:

I've got another in the oven for Miss Lyndsey since nothing says "I've missed you and thank you for having me!" like peach pie! I added some lime zest to the filling and it was a brilliant move. Brilliant and zingy!

I'm off to pack! Love to you all!

Alas, poor Cabbage, I knew it well...

I've been eating cabbage for two weeks now. It's a long story.

My dear friend Miss Cait and her girlfriend Miss Lisa travel quite a lot. Last week they were in Spain and Germany! And if you'll remember, last Fall they were in Turkey and they gifted their bi-weekly vegetable delivery to me. That time it was bok choy, some beets and a pumpkin.

This time its a butt-load of cabbage, carrots, corn, greens, green beans, one wee cucumber, a tomato, an eggplant and a summer squash. HAUL!!

Last weekend I sauteed some of the cabbage with eggs, carrots, onion and some worcestershire sauce.

Last Friday night my dinner was a sauce of roasted eggplant and tomato puree over rice.

And last Sunday I shared some roasted squash and tomatoes over pasta with a childhood friend who was in town for Lolla.

Monday it was corn on the cob and cabbage slaw.

I don't remember what I ate Tuesday...

Wednesday it was one of my favorite dishes, Papa al Pomodoro, it's a lifesaver. While I love fresh bread from the farmer's market it always seem to go dry before I can eat it all. Enter Papa al Pomodoro. Of course it's from Orangette, you sautee onions, garlic and tomatoes. Pull off pieces of stale bread (soak in water if necessary), leave to sit in the tomato mix for about 15 minutes then consume. For it's not an eating dish, it's a consuming dish. You will eat it all. I had those fresh green beans on the side. I made a sad face when it was all gone.

Thursday I didn't make a damn thing as I was getting drunk, eating baked brie and watching Gaskell's North and South with some of my Ladies. Because who doesn't need an industrial revolution love story in their lives??!! If you've never read or watched any Gaskell I do recommend it. She's what would of happened if Jane Austen and Charles Dickens had a love child. Romance and English country life but with political, social, and religious conflicts! Delicious.

Now, all that's left of the veggie haul is carrots, one wee cucumber, the greens and the damn cabbage. 3/4 of a head. Not entirely sure what I'm going to do with it but it has to go. Either in my belly, the garbage, or I'm going to force Cait to take it back!

I've got a quiet weekend planned as I'm out of town next weekend (Milwaukee Irish Fest with Miss Lyndsey!!). A nice simple breakfast:

Peaches to be made into a rustic galette later this weekend.

And loads of British movies to be watched because we've got a storm coming in.

Scratch "coming in". It's here. Just had to shut my windows to stop the rain from blowing inside!

I'm so glad the weather is cooperating with my plan for the day, it always seems weird to watch British films when the weather is fine. Rainy gloom is much more appropriate. I've already worked my way through all the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes and the Miss Marples (all of them.), and now it's time for some P.D. James! Hurrah for Netflix instant play!

I hope you all are having a lovely weekend, rain or shine, and let me know if you have any good recipes for cabbage!!

"The dog days are over, the dog days are done...

...the horses are coming so you'd better run! " Florence And The Machine

You may not be surprised to hear that since my last post I have gotten myself an air conditioner.

I threw in the towel (damp with sweat) and gladly took a friend up on their offer of an old air conditioner. It came to live with me on Friday, just in time for another weekend in the 90s! I celebrated by drinking copious amounts of hot Oolong tea, eating toast and roasting beets.

It's possible I even bought flowers...

Oh! And curtains! I finally found some! Ikea of course. I also picked up some elderflower syrup which over some ice is soooo refreshing in a strangely floral sort of way. It's like something they would drink in the Redwall books or Harry Potter.

All in all, I'm actually enjoying Summer now. The other night I had the windows open, curtains blowing listening to the cicadas and eating sweet cherries. There's something I love about that sound, for me it's not officially Summer until the cicadas sing. If Winter is all about stillness and quiet, then Summer is all about sound. The paleta man's jingling bells, cicadas, music in the parks and spilling out from stereos in cars and open windows.

And of course music festivals have been a big part of my life due to the Rock Star Job. A few weeks ago I worked Pitchfork, but not for Souldier, for the lovely Natalie of Ornamental Things, who makes pretty little things in Austin, TX. I was sore tempted to buy oh, one of everything, but I ended up just getting this necklace with a wee gold bead on it. I liked it right off because it's so pretty, but after thinking a bit I realized the stylization of the rose was very similar to the "vergina sun/Macedonian star" charms I took a fancy to in Greece. There's still some debate (of course.) but basically it's linked to the Kings of Macedonia, one of which had a son you may have heard of? Alexander? He really liked conquering things. And what's my name? Oh yes, Alexandra. Clearly it was meant to be, clearly!

I picked up the eye milagros at an flea market this weekend, it may end up with my other milagros, tamatas, and icons on the shelf but I kind of like it as a charm for now. I also got my first sunburn of the season there. It's pretty mild and hopefully will be the last one as I'm not working Lollapalooza this year! Wohoo! I'll miss the music but hey, no heatstroke for me! I'll just bop around in my air conditioned apartment to my Summer playlist, and I encourage you to do the same!

Sound of Summer, 2011

1. She's Got You High, Mumm-Ra

2. Sweet Disposition, The Temper Trap

3. I Am Blind, Elephant Stone

4. Of Moons, Birds & Monsters, MGMT

5. Helena Beat, Foster The People*

6. Rill Rill, Sleigh Bells

7. Two Ways, The 1900s

8. Summerboy, Lady Gaga

9. Don't Stop (Color on the Walls), Foster The People*

10. Summer Girl, Beck

11. Walcott, Vampire Weekend

12. The Seven Seas, Elephant Stone

13. Young Folks, Peter Bjorn & John*

14. Goodbye, The Sundays

15. 4th of July, Lux Land

16. Can't Hardly Wait, Justin Townes Earle

17. For The Summer, Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs

18. Dog Days Are Over, Florence & The Machine

19. Ridin' In My Car, She & Him

20. Lay A Ghost, The 1900s

21. Put Your Records On, Corinne Bailey Rae

* additions to the CD I sent my folks earlier, apparently that was just the Early Summer Edition!

I'm wilting. Blech.

I'm taking a quiet weekend, mostly due to the intensity of last weekend, but it's also so hot that I can't bear to leave my apartment until night falls and it cools down a bit! Heat induced vampirism. Lovely. During the day I look and feel like limp lettuce. Not even Bunnicula would eat me.

Cold showers, smoothies and a noticeable lack in the cooking department. It's just too hot. Turning on the broiler for toast makes me want to cry. So instead I'm eating non-toasted bread (sad day.) spread with Puck, the most adorable spreadable cheese from Denmark. I've recently become slightly obsessed with cute food packaging. It's sick really. I'll most likely do a whole post dedicated to my new obsession but for now just know that it's out of control and will most likely end badly.

Tuna salad, carrot salad, salad salad, and anything I can stick in the microwave or blend into an icy sludge. This is my current diet. I've even started to make other people make food for me. My good friend Miss Lyndsay was in town on Saturday so we made some Thai people in the cafe down the street make us food, her the ginger chicken, me their "Asian Style Macaroni" (elbow macaroni, eggs, peas, tomatoes, white and green onion in a tangy tomato sauce!). I had the leftovers with my last bao on Sunday after a very hot and dusty day at Pitchfork.

Mmmm.

Then I had pad thai a few days later when I was too hot to know how to feed myself. They made this really awesome "Minty Drink" which was fresh mint they'd put through a food processor with some ice and then added either cocoanut water or simple syrup. Quite refreshing!

My grocery shopping Wednesday consisted of raiding the prepared food section of a middle eastern grocery store and the frozen section of the Jewel.

An especially good purchase was some frozen honey BBQ chicken wings:

5 min later...

I'm mourning their loss. There's something so satisfying about eating meat off the bone, and then having to lick your fingers of the delicious sauce they've been slathered in. Totally getting more. SOON!

Though, I did turn my stove on for the first time in a week last night, I had just watched The Ramen Girl and was craving well...ramen...so I whipped up a soup of rice noodles, carrots (julienned!), peas and lettuce in a broth of chicken bullion, fish sauce, lemon juice and Chinese 5 Spice. It was no mind blowing ramen but pretty good anyways!

And today, as it was only in the high eighties I made this, a bastardized version of Smitten's pea pesto of blended peas with some Puck over angel hair (I had no pine nuts or parmesan...). If you, like me, have not have blended peas since you were able to gestate solid foods I suggest you try it, it's very fresh and summery even with frozen peas. Perhaps even worth turning the stove on! Just make a big batch so you can live off it for several more hot days ;-)

Now I'm hungry. And I'm still hot. I'm going out for dinner and suggest you do the same. It's really the only sane thing to do (or buy an air-conditioner).

Happy Eatings and here are a few tips for keeping your cool!

Dont' mess with me...

...I have a julienne peeler.

That's right.

FEAR ME!!!!

I also have Level 5 Blade Proof Gloves so I don't peel my fingers off...or get asparagus splinters...

They were a gift for my Aunties, feathers for my new nest, and while experimenting with the peeler is going to take some time I have been doing this carrot salad. My Mom made it when I was home this year and I called her as soon as I got the peeler. I know she has a Nigella Lawson book which has a carrot salad, but I think she actually got this one from some Mediterranean cookbook. Here it is:

4 large grated carrots

1/4 c and 1/2 tsp lemon juice

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 c olive oil

1/4 c chopped flat leaf parsely

Mix everything but the oil and parsley and let sit for 5 minutes. Then add the oil and parsley and devour.

Actually, my favorite part are the funny carrot stubs left over. You can nom on them while grating the other carrots. And be warned, as a beginner, you will manage to get bits of carrot on every single surface in a 3-5 foot radius. And that includes your own person.

I'd also like to inform you that I am the new owner of a Wandering Jew. It came home with me along with the Meat Haul of last week and is living quite comfortably by my teapots.

That is all!

When life gives you salmon, make curry glazed salmon.

I had a rather odd ending to an evening out with two friends the other day. After dinner we went back to their place as I had not seen it's adorableness, and over the course of conversation we landed on the topic of Vegetarianism. They're recent converts you see, and apparently it came upon them suddenly, after reading a book on the meat industry. And as it caught them unprepared they had a whole freezer full of meat. I eat meat. I got all their meat.

And in the haul were two filets of salmon so when I treated myself to this month's Real Simple and spied a recipe for Red-Curry Glazed Salmon I said yes please!! It's one of their Three Ingredient Recipes, all you need is a salmon fillet, curry powder (I just used basic curry instead of the red curry past they advise since I had none...), brown sugar and canola oil. Make a paste and brush it over the fillets. And try not to over-cook them like I did...fail!

And as corn was $.75 an ear I made their Mexican Corn. Just squeeze some lime juice over the ear and snip some cilantro over top. Tasty.

Speaking of tasty, I made a little trip to Chinatown today with Miss Kate and her sister. Pho was consumed, BBQ pork bao was bought to nom on later, and a housewares shop was raided and behold my loot:

Adorable envelopes, chopsticks, ginger and strawberry candies and pretty cookies.

A string of mini-lanterns, rose soaps, and a Japanese bowl.

For the time being the lanterns are hanging up in my kitchen, but I don't think they're going to stay there.

And although it's neither about food or terribly pretty (quite the opposite in fact!) I vanquished a blocked drain of epic proportions today and will now reward my sweaty self with a cold shower! Happy Sunday to you all!