Images of the Holidays

Hello! Happy end of 2019.  I thought I'd share some images of the holiday season from the past few weeks.  I'm very blessed that I have a holiday break and this year it was delightfully long.  I was able to cook, host, travel to Door County, get to yoga classes and run outside! This last piece is really unusual for the last week of December.

I thought I'd share a picture of our family room.  I love that we have a wood-burning fireplace.  It makes the holidays so cozy.

I got a new Christmas apron which says "sleigh all day".  Too cute, who doesn't need a new apron?  

On an evening walk in Door County, my path was lit by a single star or planet and a crescent moon.

I went out for coffee with my middle daughter. I had the affagato with bourbon pecan ice cream.  Yum!

Just a few scenes from our house decorated for the holidays! I'm not sure when I will take it all down, but I love having the house decorated. 

I love a live tree; it always smells so good. 

Happy New Years,

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

My Christmas Lists

Hello!  Well Christmas has just finished, all of the Spode Christmas china is put away, the dishwasher is running, and now I'm relaxing by writing a blog post.  I've cooked 4 meals for 7 plus people and had family stay until today. All of this I love and I'm thankful I was able to do it.  How do I manage?  With lists!  I've created meals and purchased Christmas gifts all with the help of lists. 

The below picture is only one of the 2 lists I had going.  We celebrated Christmas Eve at my in-laws and I brought dinner.  That was a list in its-self.   The below list are the meals for Christmas Day, along with how far ahead I can make the item.  Some are just assemble at the moment, like Chicken Cesar Salad, others such as coffee cake I could make ahead.  Really whatever your meal is for a large group of people I highly recommend a list! 

I always think my table looks so cute, before we start the multiple meals on it.  Also talk about something else you can do ahead, set the table! If you have gusts staying for multiple meals let them set the table for the next meal.  Almost everyone knows how to set the table and people like to be useful.  I've learned that as I've hosted more get-togethers.  They may do something differently than you or at a different pace, but it is okay.  

We started our Christmas Day with Eggs Benedict.  I thought about making it for 9 people, brunch and then thought about poaching 18 eggs and decided no.  10 eggs for a family of 5 is plenty, plus making the Hollandaise Sauce.  So we enjoyed Eggs Benedict, grapefruit and coffee before we set out to 9 am mass. Even for this meal my eldest offered to cut the grapefruit and my husband whisked the sauce!  Take help when you can. 

Now here was an easy make ahead meal. Blueberry coffee cake, Florida Satsuma oranges, sausage (not pictured) and coffee.  Again people can take as much or as little as they want, eat when they want and feeling useful.  Also the dishes after breakfast were quite easy.  

So now the lists are away, except for the dinner plans for the rest of the week on the side of the fridge, and of course a few other lists of things to eventually get done, but that's it. 

I wish you a relaxing rest of the holiday season.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth

Meal Prep Sunday

Hello! I wasn't planning on spending my Sunday cooking my meals for the week, but that is how it turned out.   I love looking at recipes so many times if I have a few free minutes I'm looking at blogs, reading magazines or reading my cook books. 

The other day I came upon a recipe for a cauliflower zucchini egg bake.    I thought it looked good and had potential to be a  grain free breakfast for my eldest daughter when she comes home for Christmas. Unfortunately, many of the easy to find convenience ingredients like enchilada sauce and taco seasoning are not grain free. I would have had to make my own if I were to make this again.    Honestly I thought the end result was just okay.  I would add more seasoning to begin with, 1/2 tsp is not nearly enough.  Also really follow the directions to get all of the moisture out of the zucchini.    All in all I would give this a recipe a 3 out of 5.  I think there is better.  I decided to eat it for the past several days and add salsa which really helped.

Next for breakfast I made one of my favorite juices.  I've mentioned it before.  This is a 1/2 avocado, a handful of spinach, 1 grapefruit and 1/2 cucumber, 3 ice cubes and 1/2 cup water that I put in my Vitamix.  It's super easy and keeps for several days.  

Lunch this week is Italian Quinoa Soup.  I've made this before, and I always love it.  The soup is packed with veggies, quinoa and beans.  I've substituted other beans for the garbanzo beans in the past and the soup is just as yummy.  I do add about 1/2 of the cream.  This warms up really well. I bring a container of it and a piece of fruit for a delicious lunch. 

If you have a little bit of time to prepare some things on the weekend it's totally worth it. It can save a ton of time and stress during the work week. 

Happy Cooking (thank you Jacques Pepin)

As always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

What I ate Wednesday 30

Hello!  Well I've certainly not posted every week as I had hoped to do.  However 30 weeks is way over half of the year, so I've done the majority of times.  It's snow covered here and about 30 degrees.  I just finished a walk with my dog and the the sky is dark at 5 pm and the Christmas lights are on.  They make me so happy.  As for yesterday's eats here they are...

Breakfast: Roasted veggies, 2 sunny side up eggs and a mandarin orange from Tree Ripe Farms.  I love their fruit. It's direct from a the grower and shipped or trucked up here.  I had the veggies leftover from Thanksgiving and honestly they are one of my favorite ways  to start the day. Of course I had a warm cup of coffee to drink.  The veggies are all from my local winter farm market: carrots, Brussel sprouts, and a little bit of broccoli.   

Lunch: Lentil and veggie soup and an apple. I made the soup over the weekend and had enough for 2 days of leftovers.  The apple is one of the last Honeycrips from the local orchard.  

Dinner: Macaroni and cheese, collards, and tomatoes from Mighty Vine.  I love mac and cheese and so does our whole family.  The tomatoes from mighty vine taste excellent.  If you can find some at your small grocer they are worth purchasing.  They are grown in Illinois and don't travel more than a few hours away from the source.  Whey I see them in the winter I always pick them up.

Dessert: Mocha Crinkle Cookies.  These chocolate Christmas cookies and have just a hint of spice.  They are perfect after a winter meal in December.  

I hope you have had an enjoyable week so far.  

Bon Appétit! 

and as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

November Round Up 2019

Hello!  Finally my computer is up and running and I'm able to log on to my account.  This gets to be such a busy time of year with all of the holidays, yet I really want to be able to keep up with my creative pursuits, blogging being one of them. I do feel that during the winter months there is a bit more time to sit and be or create.

Speaking of just being and a winter mind shift. This article about learning to enjoy winter with a simple mind-shift made me really think. To be honest I think a mind shift is essential for many things we encounter in our lives. 

I took this picture yesterday, December 1st.  I have a feeling we have a long winter coming. 

I found this recipe for left over cranberry sauce - a coffee cake. Yum.  I definitely want to try it. 

Speaking of food..I'm really enjoying these teff flour pumpkin pancakes from Run Fast Eat Slow. They're delicious with maple syrup and baked apples.  I want to try these cookies too using teff flour. 

What I've been reading: I just finished Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead.  I can't really say I am a fan nor where many members of my book club.  I'm currently reading Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner, and I really enjoy it.  It is about 2 couples and how their lives intertwine.  Part of the book takes place in Madison, WI; I always think it is enjoyable when you know the are that a book talks about.  

What I'm listening to: Christmas Music!! I must get it all in 25 days.  

I hope you've had an enjoyable few weeks, 

As always with love from the Midwest,

Beth

Eats in Madison, WI

Hello! I recently spent a quick overnight in Madison to see my middle daughter. Now I have 2 girls at the University of Wisconsin Madison which means more time in a city filled with great eating. 

 I arrived in Madison in time for a quick walk around one of the last farmers' markets with my middle daughter.  Next we had lunch at Miko Poke.  Our food was fresh, delicious and kept me full all afternoon.  I had a base of fall vegetables, rice and lettuce topped with Ahi. 

My middle daughter and I spent the afternoon painting at the Madison union and doing errands.  After that it was time for wine and snacks at my hotel.  I like to stay at the Madison Concourse.  It's right downtown and so easy to walk to everything.  We had some snacks and wine in the governor's club. 

We had dinner at Graze.    My main course of salmon, roasted tomatoes scallions was delicious but the appetizer selection was a bit small as was the dessert. I have been here for lunch and love it.  However this view is great -right next to  the capitol.

Bradburry's Coffee on the other had has wonderful crepes for breakfast.  I had a fresh made buckwheat crepe filled with pickled fennel, greens and topped with a fried egg.  It was a short walk from our hotel.  The coffee is also fantastic.  It's a tiny restaurant so get there early.  After that the two of us went on a morning walk along lake Mendota.

I met my eldest daughter for a quick lunch at Fair Trade coffee.  They have good salads and sandwiches also made to order.  This is the black bean burger on an Asiago bagel with a small side salad.  Way more food than I needed before I traveled home, but it was delicious

I hope you can try one of these local establishments if you find yourself in Madison.

As always with love from the Midwest,

Beth

What I ate Wednesday 29

Hello!  I know it's been a while.  I'm still having troubles with my computer and I've really  missed posting.  Which really brought me to think why I post so much about food and a few other things.  I look at blogs for inspiration so really my purpose it to inspire you to try something new, be it a food, recipe, book or whatever.  

So here are the eats for Wednesday

Breakfast: Peanut butter and jelly, baked apples and coffee.

I just love my baked apples. Honestly I'm on such a peanut butter kick right now I put it on all of my breads - it's a super easy filling breakfast.  I topped it with homemade peach jelly and hemp seeds. 

Lunch: Kale salad.

This is another make over the weekend.  I make a big batch and it keeps well for several days.  Today I topped it with smoked salmon, leftover corn (the very last bit from the farmers' market), roasted veggies and pepitas.

Dinner:  Broiled whitefish, steamed broccoli and mashed potatoes

We got the whitefish at the Green Bay farmers' market frozen so we could have it during the week.  I'm not sure why there is no whitefish catching aloud at this moment, but there isn't. I mashed the local Yukon Gold potatoes with milk, chicken broth, a little butter and salt and pepper.  The broccoli was also the last of  the fresh from the market. 

Dessert: French yogurt cake

I've shared this recipe before from Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard. It's super easy and last for several days.  I like to top it with my homemade jelly that I melted into a quick sauce and whip cream.  

I hope this inspires you for some delicious eating.

Bon Appétit!

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

A Week of Breakfasts

Hello! It was a busy week last week and continues to be this week.  On top of that we are having computer issues so it is not always easy to write a post.  However I squeezed in a bit of time today and the computer worked! Hooray! I thought I'd share a couple of quick breakfast ideas for the work day.  I usually spend about 10 minutes making my breakfast.  That means something needs to be pre-made or very quick.  Here's last week's eats. 

Monday, Tuesday and Thursday:

Egg cups, butter tomatoes, pumpkin bread, blueberries and peanut butter. 

What a delicious big breakfast and yes it took less than 6 minutes to make.  I made the egg cups over the weekend along with the pumpkin bread.  I just had to reheat it all.  The butter tomatoes (my new favorite) also just had to be reheated.  I just slathered on my Smucker's natural peanut butter and put some of the last blueberries on my plate and done! 

Wednesday:  Sourdough peanut butter and jelly toasted, baked apples.

I love toasted peanut butter and jelly, especially when it is my jelly (peach this time).  I also love my baked apples.  Again this takes about 6 minutes to prepare.  I just have to toast the bread and make the open face sandwich and heat up the apples I made the night before. 

Friday: Sunny side up egg, roasted veggies, pumpkin bread with peanut butter.

Roasted veggies from last night come together quickly with a sunny side up egg (again about 3 minutes) and they are a delicious combo.  Also you are starting your day with veggies and we always need more of those.  The bread just needs to be cut and topped with peanut butter.  

I hope this gives you a few ideas for your before work breakfasts.  

Bon Appétit!

and as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

September's Eatings, Readings and Doings

Found this article on starting your day out well from yoga journal.   I do a lot of these things and mornings are really one of my favorite times of day.

Speaking of starting your day well the Kitchn has some tips for adding protein to your breakfast.  I always have a protein rich breakfast.  If you read my What I ate Wednesday posts you know how much I like my eggs, but in case you are not an egg lover here are some more ideas. 

Lately I've been making a whole bunch of these buttery tomatoes with all of  tomatoes that have been coming in.  I love it as a side dish, on eggs or on savory oatmeal.  It reheats very well and keeps for several days in the fridge.

New wine I tried. Vinho Verde. This wine is a great sipping wine before dinner, maybe a celebratory lunch or anytime sitting on the patio. If you can find some, please do buy a bottle or two.

What I'm buying: Well I'm still at the farmers' market weekly and stocking up on winter squash and enjoying that last bits of summer fruit and veggies.

What I'm reading:  I just finished The Guest Book and enjoyed an evening with my book club ladies discussing it.  Currently I'm reading Ordinary Grace by William Krueger.  So far I'm enjoying it very much.  

What I'm watching:  I found the very first few seasons of Great British Bake-off on Netflix.  It just makes me want to bake more cakes and happy in general.

That's this month's round up.  I hope September treated you well too.  

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

What I ate Wednesday 28

Hello! Wow the days in September just go buy so quickly I hardly have time to make a blog post.  These days I find myself writing something over the course of a day or some posts over the period of 2-3 days.  We all have 24 hours, but wow the day passes so quickly.  Big disappointment of the week was my 1/2 marathon was canceled due to thunderstorms.  This was a huge disappointment for me as I have been training for months.  I'm going to try to run it on Saturday, but we'll see.   However, on to what I ate yesterday.

Breakfast: Ezekiel Cereal with berries

In general I like a warm breakfast, however during the summer months I found there were days that I just wanted some cereal. Yesterday I topped the cereal with the last of the local berries (sad), a scoop of Smucker's all natural peanut butter, hemp and flax seeds and almond milk.  I really love this combination, and it keeps me full until lunch time.

Lunch: Veggie curry on cauliflower rice.

I've made this veggie curry from Cookie and Kate before.  It just so happened that last weekend I was looking through my fridge to see what to have for lunch and I had every ingredient.  Even the coconut milk.  What I made on Sunday lasted for 3 lunches. Yippee!

Dinner: Cranberry beans, sausage and rice.  

I cooked the beans and sausage using my Instant Pot. I bought local cranberry beans and the end of the winter last year and finally found a use for them. They really need to cook for at least 30 minutes, if not 40. I did not do that. I made some rice for us in the oven and at the same time roasted some brussel sprouts. I also happened to have some leftover Zinfandel from the night before.  What a cozy dinner. 

I actually was quite full after this meal so I didn't have dessert. I know this is a very rare thing.

I hope you've had a good week or two creating memories and delicious meals in your kitchen.

Bon Appétit!

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

What I ate Wednesday 27

Hello! Well the weeks are just speeding by especially with school starting. I have several classes to prepare for which has been keeping my life after school very busy.  However I know it will calm down when I get more into the groove.  However I'm still always trying to make interesting and delicious meals for myself and my family.  Here's what I/we ate yesterday.

Breakfast: Softboiled egg, cracked wheat bread with peanut butter, melon, blueberries and of course coffee.

I've been trying to make different types of eggs during the school day this year. I must say it really doesn't take that much time to make a 3 minute egg.  I just make sure I start it first thing.  The peanut butter is Smucker's Natural; I really love it on my morning toast.  This way I know I'm not adding a lot of sugar in the morning. I love this breakfast because everything in the picture is local - okay maybe not the coffee or the peanut butter.  

Lunch: Kale Salad 

If you've read other weekly posts you know I love my kale salads.  I really can't get enough.  I can make a big salad and then have enough for several days of lunch.  Yesterday I added leftover shrimp, tomatoes, roasted peppers and broccoli and blueberries yet again. 

Dinner: Breaded chicken breasts, fresh corn and buttered tomatoes.

Breaded chicken breast is a family favorite. I always pound it evenly and thin, dredge it in egg and bread crumbs and saute it in olive oil.  I cook it about 3-4 minutes per side and serve with a lemon wedge.  Yesterday we also had some corn from the market and of course tomatoes at this time of year.  Please try this recipe it is delicious. The leftovers keep really well and are great of eggs and savory oatmeal.

I hope you are inspired to have fun in the kitchen. Bon Appétit!

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

What I ate Wednesday 26

Hello! Well I'm back at school and with that a busy September.  It always takes a few weeks to get back in the groove of things. The hardest thing is remembering to make my lunch. I always make it the night before along with my coffee in the coffee maker and a plan for breakfast the next day. It sounds silly but it works for me. 

Breakfast: Avocado toast, local sunny side up egg and local melon.  Of course there is coffee.  I still try to keep mostly local, but I had an avocado in my fridge so why not use it.  It always makes a great breakfast.

Lunch: Zucchini fritters topped with ratatouille.

I made a big batch of both of these for the week.  I figured the ratatouille is so good on a lot of things and fritters I finished up with this lunch. It may not look super pretty but it did taste good and reheated well; of course it was all local. 

Dinner: Homemade pasta, sausage, shishito peppers and chanterelles. (local veggies of course) (Wine not pictured)

My husband had  some extra time to make homemade pasta.  This dish is really just sauteing all the sausage and veggies together adding some herbs and garlic and about 3/4 cup chicken broth.  I then toss the past a in and add fresh grated cheese.  So easy!

No dessert- after the pasta I actually wasn't hungry.  

Bon Appétit!

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

What I ate Wednesday 25

Hello! Well this is really the last week of summer for me; school starts next week.  That means the last week of having both breakfast and lunch outside.  This is really something I enjoy in the summer.  When I sit outside the meal is never rushed and I can just stare out into my yard and enjoy the scenery.  We have a lot of lush trees, a garden and bird feeders. I can only see two other houses, even though more are next door.  It's a little Eden, which is what I've always wanted.  

Breakfast: Waffle, topped with Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter and maple syrup, cantaloupe, blackberries, blueberries and cherry juice shooter and coffee of course.

I love waffles and generally I make them for my son and me, but he wasn't around today.  So I made 1/2 recipe and froze the rest.  I went on a 4.5 mile run so I did need some protein, the added peanut butter.  The fruit was all local -yeah!

Lunch: Tomato with tuna salad

I really wanted a tuna salad, but I hate mayo!  So I shredded some zucchini, chopped some black olives and sliced up some shishito peppers and added herbs de provence salt.  I topped the whole thing with Meyer lemon olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  It was almost like a mock salad nicoise.

Dinner: Burger bowls and corn on the cob.

This is probably one of my favorite summer dinners and it's so simple.  I make hamburger patties, just with salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce.  Then in a large bowl I put local salad greens, tomatoes, cucumbers or pickles, avocado and top it with a ketchup/ranch sauce. You really could put anything in this bowl.  Of course it is local corn season so we had to have that on the side. Of course I had wine to drink.

Dessert: Chocolate chip cookies

My eldest daughter needs to eat grain free and the super sweet chef at her work made her these coconut flour chocolate chip cookies.  Who doesn't love a chocolate chip cookie? 

I hope this post inspires you to cook a little more and enjoy some meals outside while the summer lasts.

Bon Appétit!

And as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

Chicago

"My kind of town, Chicago is.." to quote the great Frank Sinatra.  That's just how I feel about the city.  I grew up in the northern suburbs of Chicago and my parents are still there.  I really prefer to live in Northeastern WI, however it is always fun to go into the city.  My middle daughter and I just went the other day for a quick overnight. This is a little tradition I started with my girls when they turned 16.  We drive into the city and arrive for lunch.  After a lovely lunch, of their choice, we spend the rest of the day however they want.  Usually we leave the city by 4-4:30 head back to my parents for cocktails and dinner and stay there overnight.  We're back by early afternoon the next day.  

This trip was no different except for what we did. My daughter planned everything.  We started with a lunch at Cafecito.  We shared yucca fries and I had a pressed tuna sandwich with a glass of wine.  We always choose a place where we can sit outside and people watch. Honestly that's half the fun of the trip. 

After lunch we walked a few blocks over to the Museum of Contemporary Art. When we got there we found this cute little farmers' market.  We could have had lunch here, but we didn't know it was taking place.

The museum was really interesting, if you have an open mind about what is "art."  If you only like the classics and impressionists skip this museum and head over to the Art Institute (which is fantastic). But, I found this a nice departure from the normal. 

Out in their courtyard they offer evening jazz on Tuesdays.  It would have been fun; if we were staying down later. 

We then decided to do some walking along Michigan Ave to the river and then up to Oak Street Beach.  Honestly I'd never been there before so that was a fun experience. Again I just love the energy the city gives off, and it was a beautiful day.  

We ended our day with this iconic view of the Hancock Building, the Drake and other Gold Coast buildings.  Just beautiful.  

If you haven't recently I highly recommend taking an overnight to this great city, especially if it is only a few hours away.  

As always with love from the Midwest,

Beth