Kitchen Adventures: An Alternative to Spaghetti

Good Morning Humble Readers...

So, I've been meaning to post this recipe for quite a while, but I'm finally getting around to it today.  I will confess that this is not an original recipe.  It's one I saw on the Rache.l R.ay Show a long time ago.  I've been making it for so long now and have tweaked it enough that I feel like it's my own.

I make this a lot in the fall, when squashes are in season, but occasionally even in the spring I can track down a hot house squash to use.  I hope you enjoy it. 

Spaghetti Squash Bolognese

(all amounts are flexible, depending on how many people you are serving)
1/2 med spaghetti squash per person
olive oil
salt & pepper
parmesean cheese

ground beef or turkey
tomato paste
diced tomatoes
shredded carrots
sliced mushrooms
diced onion
worcestershire sauce
garlic
basil
oregano
thyme

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Carefully cut the squash in half lengthwise (use a clean dishtowel to hold it in place) and scoop out the seeds and guts.  Drizzle the flesh of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place cut side down on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for about a half hour. 

In the meantime, brown up your ground meat and drain away any excess fat.  Toss in the onion, shredded carrots, and mushrooms and allow to soften for a few minutes.  Add the tomato paste and stir it through the meat and veggies.  Then add the diced tomatoes and worcestershire sauce (a few dashes), minced or grated garlic, and herbs, and allow to simmer for a while to get the flavours to meld together. 

When the squash is done, remove them from the oven and carefully flip them over onto plates to serve. Then using a fork, shred the flesh of the squash until it looks like spaghetti noodles.  Sprinkle generously with parmesean cheese.  Spoon some of the bolognese sauce into the squash 'boat' and sprinkle with some more parm and some fresh parsley if you have it.

Enjoy!

Making Progress

Good Morning Humble Readers...

So, I've done it. 

I've put away the bbt thermometer. 

It was hard, that thermometer has been my first 'to do' every morning for more than a year.  It seems like an obvious step, but it was challenging because it means that I'm accepting that this pregnancy might just be ok. 

All my symptoms have developed into a pretty consistent pattern.  I'm tired almost all day long.  I'm peeing more during the day and a lot at night (every two hours).  The nausea/morning sickness seems to be the worst in the late morning/early afternoon (but peppermint tea seems to help a bit).  My b00bs... oh heavens they hurt (and like I needed them to get bigger...).

All in all, I'm going okay with everything.  It still hasn't really sunk in that this is real.  I'm feeling like I'm still holding my breath a bit and that I won't be able to take a real deep breath until the ultrasound.  13 days! 

He Is Risen... He Is Risen Indeed!

Blessed Easter to you all, Humble Readers...

We have had a beautiful Easter Sunday here on the flatland.  Beautiful sunny day, nice church service, a glorious nap this afternoon... and even a slightly ruined dinner couldn't put a real damper on the day. 

That's right kids... dinner didn't go so well.  The lamb was undercooked (that's saying a lot as I'm a rare meat kinda gal), the oven roasted beans ended up crispy because I was fussing with the lamb, and the gravy didn't want to become gravy.  The only thing that was really good was the potatoes.  Ah well... I'll blame it on solar flares.  (My mini meltdown while I was carving the lamb, I blame on the progesterone)

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend with familiy and friends!

*****
As an aside... m/s kicked my a$$ yesterday.  Seriously!  I thought I was going to die.  Today it hasn't been as bad.  Only handling the raw lamb made me really pukey. 

Things I have learned about m/s this week:

• I can no longer watch some of my favourite tv shows... CSI, Bones, Mythbusters.  Anything with grodie blood and guts is off limits right now
• Greasy food is bad
• Romaine lettuce and other dark green leafy veggies are also very very bad
• The jar of minced garlic in the fridge... not my friend
• Throwing up can actually make your whole body hurt, not just your stomach
• Flat ginger ale is my friend.

Does anyone know... is it okay to take ginger pills (from the healthfood store) during pregnancy?  I take them for motion sickness, and I'm thinking I might be stocking up.  I'd rather not go the dic.lectin route if I don't have to.  I'm tired enough as it is. 

*****
I don't know why, but my Halfling tracker is three days ahead of where I am.  I've gone through and checked my EDD and reformatted the tracker, but it still comes out a few days ahead.  Hmmm...

Hobbit-ish Potpurri: Week 5

Good Evening Humble Readers...

I hope you are all having a good long weekend.  It's not a long weekend for me, but I do get Sunday off (not usual at all) so I get to spead Easter with my Beloved.

*****
So, last night at work was a bit of a crazy night.  I have to give you a bit of back story.  We have had, for at least two years, issues with pervy guys at our store.  First there was the creepy bike-shorts guy who liked to expose himself.  Yuck!  We finally got rid of him, and had a few quiet, perv-free months, when we started getting complaints of a guy in the ladies washroom.  Twice yesterday we had reports of a man in the ladies room, and I ended up having to confront a guy last night (with the help of a customer).  The whole situation involved the guy getting away, and I had to give a statement to the police.  Really... what is wrong with people?!?!

*****
One of our neighbours is moving out and renting out his unit.  Great... now half the building will be renters.  Blech! (not that I have anything against renters per se, it just makes it more difficult to get things done around the building)

*****
Okay, so I know I haven't updated the menu in the sidebar for ages... but I have to tell you about our dinner tonight.  I haven't been motivated to do a lot of cooking lately.  A lot of evening shifts combined with early pregnancy symptoms makes for a lot of eating out.  Tonight tho, I made pan-fried tilapia and tomato rice.  Last time I went to Costco, I found panko bread crumbs (the Japanese breadcrumbs that they always use on the food network), so I used them on the fish tonight, and OMG... sooooooo good!  Amazingly crunchy and so yummy! 

*****
Easter dinner is coming... roasted leg of lamb, lemon potatoes, and green beans with almonds.  Who's coming over?

*****
Halfling update: It's been a pretty quiet week, after the doctor stress.  Mild nausea pretty much every day, the sore b00bs seem to come and go, my nose is working overtime (what is that smell in the fridge?), and pretty tired all the time.  18 days until the ultrasound.  The only thing I've been craving is cottage cheese.  I've had a few moments of worry, when it feels like my symptoms have vanished, but I'm clinging to the belief that all will be well, and we WILL see a heartbeat.  Monday will bring another bloodtest. 

*****
Pregnancy Books... Picks and Pans - So, I was looking for something kind of funny, so I got "The Unexpected When You're Expecting".  It claims right up front to be a parody of the obvious.  The thing is, I found it very insulting to IFers (one of the games listed in the Baby Shower chapter was 'Guess the Secret Infertile").  Stay away from this book... Run away screaming.  On the other end of the spectrum... "The Gourmet Pregnancy" is THE book for a pregnant foodie!  Filled with incredibly amazing pregnancy-safe, nutritous recipes (watermelon refresher, cherry mint tart with shortbread crust, tempura pickles, and some incredible looking crab cakes!  One particularly groovy feature is the listing of recipes sorted by craving (salt, ice cream, ice, sour, etc). 

Emily Hope

Humble Readers,

I've been sitting here staring at a blank screen for a half hour.  What to say about today? 

If Emily Hope would have been born on her EDD, she would have been a year old today.  The hurt isn't as sharp as it was a year ago, but it's still very much there.  Like being poked in the side with a pool cue rather than a knife.  It's not going to kill me, but...

For whatever reason, I don't have a mental image of her, like I do for Olivia.  Sometimes, I try to think about what she would have looked like, but nothing ever comes to mind.  I don't feel bad about that, but I wish I had an image to hold in my heart. 

I miss my angel girl. 

*sigh*