recipes

Friday Five Things 12/10

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Peace requires us to surrender our illusions of control.” – Jack Kornfield

This time of year is for joyful celebration as well as thoughtful reflection for me. In January I’ll be sharing some of my intentions and goals for 2022, but for now I’m thinking about this year, how well some things went, and also how much didn’t go to plan. The great thing though is that I came into this year with a mindset of letting go of control and acknowledging that sometimes the universe throws curveballs. So instead of feeling defeated about my missed goals, I feel peaceful knowing that I did what I could do and the rest was out of my control. This perspective lets me continue to focus on the present moment and the little things that bring me joy.

  1. Tiny Christmas tree. With two cats in the house I never feel comfortable with a traditional Christmas tree setup. In previous years we’ve put ornaments on a tall faux birch tree (similar to this one). But this year I wanted something real and green in the house. So we went to Home Depot and picked out the tiniest potted Colorado Blue Spruce. It is too small for ornaments but I found a skinny strand of twinkle lights for it and it have been bringing me such joy. We also got a real greenery wreath from the Boy Scout who lives down the street and have that hanging in our living room. Now, I already have a lot of green in the space with my usual houseplants, but the decidedly wintery addition of spruce and fir needles is festive and fun for the season.
  2. Finishing Christmas shopping! Just this week I bought all the last items on my list! Feels great to have shopping finished early this year, especially because I’ll need to ship a bunch of stuff and earlier is better for that. I still have a couple gift cards to order and crafts to finish, but all of the physical things have been purchased and are just waiting to be wrapped and shipped.
  3. Bright light therapy. My doctor recommended that I try bright light therapy this winter to help combat my mild seasonal affective disorder. It involves sitting by a very bright LED light for 30 minutes every morning when I first get up and I started it last week. So far I love it! I sit for 30 minutes every morning while I journal or read emails or do some other sedentary activity. I feel like it’s helping a lot with resetting my sleep/wake cycle to the point that I’m waking up without an alarm and falling asleep faster than usual. I’ve also had a noticeable improvement in my motivation during the day. I have read that there can be negative side effects (I haven’t experienced any) so this isn’t a recommendation to go out and buy a lamp, but maybe if you have trouble during the winter months it is worth talking to your doctor about it. I wish I had started this a few years ago!
  4. Paint-by-number. One of the things I’ve been doing during my 30 minute light sessions is a paint-by-number. When I’m sitting with the light I have to have my eyes open, so meditating during that time isn’t an option. But I wanted to find an activity that would help me focus my mind since I’m already sitting there. I found a botanical paint-by-number kit at Target the other day (this one) and I’ve been working on it for 20-30 minutes every morning. It’s actually been a great alternative to meditation for me because I can block out distracting thoughts and just focus on what is in front of me. Highly recommend!
  5. Being able to throw together an unplanned dinner. For the past year or so I’ve been meal planning all our dinners. This has helped a ton with keeping our grocery bill under budget and cutting down on waste. I use this template each week. By the way, I LOVE her planners also. I use the weekly page, but she has monthly and daily version in digital or print that are just fabulous. Anyway, I had planned for a meal of chicken fajitas to make enough for two nights and I just didn’t buy enough chicken for that. We had leftover peppers, onions, cheese and tortillas though. And I had a sweet potato I hadn’t used last week and a can of black beans in the pantry. So I made sweet potato and black bean enchiladas for night two! It felt like such a success that I could pull something together to use up leftovers without needing to purchase anything extra for the week. (FYI – I used this recipe as a guide, but catered to what I had available.)

Friday Five Things 11/12

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“In most things success depends on knowing long it takes to succeed.” – Montesquieu

These days I have to remind myself that I’m playing the long game in many parts of my life. Writing a novel does not happen overnight. It doesn’t even happen in a year in my case. But I just keep chipping away at it and reminding myself that success will come! And this week I’ve found joy in a few things finally coming to fruition after a long waiting period, so it’s a good reminder that time does actually pass and the seeds we sow do grow roots. Quite literally in some cases!

  1. Roots growing on propagating plants. Several weeks ago I had a list item about how I took cuttings from several of my plants in hopes of propagating them. Most of those failed, which happens. But one in particular was a cutting from my big dieffenbachia that I really didn’t have much hope for. But it kept not dying, so I kept changing its water every few days and letting it sit. And finally, just this last weekend I noticed a little baby root!!! I got so excited that I went and took a new round of cuttings from plants. The great thing about a little success is that it can spark a new round of attempts.
  2. Meditation practice. A few months ago I started setting a weekly goal of meditating a couple times a week for just one or two minutes at a time. I’m happy to report that I’m now clocking four or five minutes almost every day! For someone who has a very overactive internal monologue, even just a few minutes of quieting my mind feels like a huge win.
  3. This Zuppa Toscana copycat recipe. Soup season is officially upon us and I’ll be adding this one to my weekly meal plan in heavy rotation. If you’ve ever had the Zuppa Toscana at Olive Garden, that’s what this recipe is inspired by. I make it with turkey sausage and I usually add twice as much kale as the recipe calls for to really pack in the greens. I also find if you are short on time and/or garlic, a couple shakes of garlic powder can replace the minced garlic without much impact on the overall flavor. This week I made a loaf of no knead bread (I used this recipe) in my Dutch oven to serve with it and it was a perfect hearty meal.
  4. Covid vaccines for kiddos. I don’t have kids, but I have celebrated this week with my friends and family who have been waiting and waiting for the covid vaccine to be available for their school-aged kids. Several have already gotten their first shot and I know their parents are starting to breathe a little easier knowing their kids will have that additional layer of protection while they’re at school, sports, camp, and the myriad other things that keep them busy.
  5. The coziest new blanket. We are a blanket family at my house. I can usually be found snuggled under a blanket on the couch pretty much year round. Which means our blankets get a lot of love and use. We have a few that are finally ready to be retired, so when I saw this Pendleton sherpa blanket at my local Sierra, I snatched it up so quickly (not the exact colors, but very similar). I know they’ve had them at Costco from time to time as well and I HIGHLY recommend getting it if you are a snuggly blanket person. Funny though, one of the cats absolutely loves it and the other can’t stand touching the ultra softness!

Friday Five Things 11/5

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” – Robert Louis Stevenson

Hi Friends! Hope everyone is doing well. I’ve been seeing a lot of posts on social media about seasonal depression and I, myself, have been feeling somewhat affected by the shorter days, especially because we’ve had several days in a row of overcast weather here. Luckily the sun and blue skies are back for a bit and I’m slowly but surely remembering my winter coping mechanisms! If you are feeling down please remember that it’s okay to ask for help. And it’s okay to make changes to your routine to make things feel easier and little more gentle on the soul. And as always, remember to look for joy in the small and hidden places.

  1. Reading happy books. I just posted my October Book Report and I mentioned that the ending of one of the books didn’t sit well with me and that I think it’s more about my mental state than the actual writing. In that same vein I’m in the middle of a beautifully written book that is set during the Great Depression and it’s, well, depressing. I’m close to finishing so I’m going to push through, but I wish I had landed on this book at a different time of year. So once this is done…I’m going to lean in to Christmas-themed fluff novels and silly fantasy books and funny memoirs for a bit. Reading really can affect our mood and mental state, so why not adjust our reading lists to what we need in a given season.
  2. The Morning Show. I just started watching season 2 of The Morning Show and once again I’m hooked! If you got an Apple TV+ subscription to watch Ted Lasso and are now wondering what to watch next…add this to your list. It is just so well made and really sucks you in.
  3. Dr. Teal’s Epsom Salts. This time of year I start to add baths into my routine more regularly. I get really sensitive and itchy skin with the dry winter air in my climate and a lot of bubble baths or bath bombs just made it worse. However! Dr. Teal’s salts are both affordable and kind to my skin. I really like their blends that have oils in them for a little added moisturizing effect (Hemp Seed Oil, Shea Butter & Almond Oil, and Coconut Oil). If you are a bath person and also don’t want to spend a million dollars on tiny jars of fancy bath soaks…this might be your jam.
  4. Speakerphone. I have always been uncomfortable talking on the phone. Even when I was at that age when girls are constantly on the phone…it always gave me a bit of anxiety. When I started working in an office setting and had to be on the phone for many many hours in a day I would really have to hype myself up for each phone call. Then I discovered that using the hands free headsets seemed to help, especially if I got up and paced around my cubicle. Now that I’m not in an office and I spend most of the day at home by myself I have really been leaning into speakerphone. Guys, I can’t explain it but when I needed to call the dentist this morning I started getting that queasy stomach feeling until I remembered that I could use speakerphone and it suddenly made it seem really easy and accessible. So if you are like me and have phone anxiety, try using speakerphone to see if it helps! And also, if there’s a task that is difficult for you but a slight modification makes it seem a lot easier, lean into it! Don’t feel like you have to do it a certain way just because it seems like the “wrong way” to do it. Using speakerphone for simple calls on my cell phone when I’m home alone might not be what most people do…but it just makes things better for me so why not do it?
  5. This recipe for stuffed acorn squash. I was craving squash this week and came across this recipe during a search for stuffed squash. SO GOOD. Instead of dry white rice I used one of these packets of brown rice and quinoa that I had in my pantry. Since the rice didn’t need to cook in the pan, I reduced the chicken broth to about a quarter cup just to bring everything together. Otherwise I followed the recipe. Although next time I think I’d make two changes. 1) toast up some walnuts in the pan and add them to the stuffing at the end for a little texture and protein, and 2) add parmesan cheese into the rice mixture in addition to the topping. I usually do that when recipes call for just putting cheese on top because I like to have a bit of the flavor in every bite, but I jut forgot this time. Anyway, if you like acorn squash and mushrooms, you should definitely make this. It’s very filling and stands alone as a main dish.

Friday Five Things 10/8

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Our heads are round so thought can change direction.” – Francis Picabia

It was a pretty good week here! Fall feels in full swing here, I’ve had to wear a jacket or vest for my morning walks with Bama and the leaves are changing in our neighborhood. Some neighbors have put out elaborate Halloween decorations and Bama tends to give those houses a very wide berth. Hope you are all having a good October so far!

  1. Rewrites on my novel. My original plan was to finish a complete first draft before I went back to the beginning to make changes, but I was stalling out on how to finish up the story because I changed my mind about a few key things in the plot. So instead of continuing to write forward, I went back and started rewrites already. And I’m so glad I adjusted my plan! Making these changes is really sparking creativity about the story and I’m having a lot of fun writing right now.
  2. Virgin River. Okay, so I’m late to the party on this one. A lot of people I know watched it at the beginning of the pandemic shut down. But I finally decided to give it a shot! If you don’t know, it’s a drama/soapy-type show on Netflix. It’s set in a small town in northern California and full of all the small town characters tropes you would expect. The cranky older doctor, the handsome but troubled bar owner, the gossipy town matriarch, and, of course, the new girl in town. Here’s the deal, it’s not a good show. Like, objectively it isn’t great writing, great acting, anything like that. But it’s so easy to watch especially if you are doing something else like folding clothes, cooking, or doing a puzzle. It’s the same kind of mom-watching-All-My-Children-while-ironing vibes that a lot of us grew up with.
  3. Disney planning. We are going to Disney World in the spring and I am so excited! I am one of those people who loves researching and planning ahead of a trip almost as much as I enjoy going on the actual vacation. I’ve been following Disney Instagrammers, watching YouTube videos, and reading blogs so we can make the best of our time in the most magical place on earth!
  4. Being social. I met up with a couple friends on Tuesday to grab margaritas and Mexican food. We had a lot of fun chatting and laughing and catching up. I’ve been making a concerted effort to get out of the house and be more social. It always seems daunting to me at first but I always have so much fun.
  5. Soup season! I really love soup and would make it year round, but our kitchen gets so warm with the stove on for awhile so I usually skip the homemade soup in the summer. Now that the evenings are getting cooler, I’m back to soup making! I made a delicious butternut squash soup the other day (kinda followed this recipe but included carrots and added a little heavy cream at the end.) I had enough for two nights of dinner and then some, so I froze it in our big ice cube tray (like this). If what we had didn’t work well enough, I would get some of these souper cubes. Makes freezing thawing the right portion so much easier!

Friday Five Things 8/27

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

I think recently I’ve been making happiness my goal. And this week something shifted that allowed me to let that go and focus on other things, which has actually brought about happiness as a by-product. So I guess my encouragement is that if you are striving after feeling happy, let it go for a bit. Focus on other things that take your time and focus. See if happiness shows up along the way.

  1. A little break from the smoky air. Weather patterns have changed over the last week and we had several days of wind which brought some relief to the bad air quality around here. From what I’ve seen, the smoke will return shortly. But it’s been nice to have a break. I’ve been able to spend time outside without feeling it in my lungs!
  2. A garden that keeps giving. Some how, despite the heat and smoke and wind we’ve been having, my outdoor plants are still thriving and producing! I even got to harvest my first cucumber this week! I’ve been able to shop my yard for tomatoes, zucchini, kale and herbs all month and so far it isn’t showing signs of slowing.
  3. This recipe. Making these zucchini fritters will help use up any squash your garden might still be churning out, like mine is! I think it would work just as well with yellow summer squash as it does for zucchini. I made these and ate them with some tzatziki sauce. They would be great for a very light dinner, otherwise I’d serve them as a side to some grilled salmon.
  4. 40,000 words written. I just crossed 40,000 words written in my novel manuscript! For reference, that’s probably about 150 pages of a typical novel. My goal is 90,000 words by the end of the year and now that I’m past 40,000 it feels so doable! I’d love to be able to finish my first draft by mid-December, take a break for the holidays, and then hit the ground running with editing in January!
  5. Exercise and movement. I pretty much stopped working out in August. It wasn’t intentional but the weather started to get too hot for hikes. And the dog only wanted to go for short walks. And the air was so smoky I didn’t want to spend much time outside. And there was so much other stuff to do! So it just eventually stopped being a priority. And then I stopped putting it on my daily list of things to do. But this week I’m making more of an effort to get outside and move my body for at least 15 minutes every day. So far so good and it feels great!

Friday Five Things 7/23

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.” – Henry David Thoreau

I think the quote above is going to mean something different for everyone. For me, it is getting outside to move my body, mindfulness in gratitude, and checking things off my to-do list! What is it that you can do for yourself to affect the quality of your day?

  1. Hiking. I didn’t hike at all last week because I was limiting my driving while waiting for my new tire. So it was a top priority to get out into nature this week. I went for a long hike near Boulder and it was the life-giving fulfillment I needed!
  2. Fun projects. In the midst of continuing to finish painting our house, I have let myself do a few little fun side projects. One of them has been painting a cardboard cat house that I bought for the kitties last Christmas. It has been sitting out in the living room with it’s Christmas theming since December and I decided rather than toss it, that I would make use of a few of the paint samples we decided not to use. So while we are getting a fresh coat on our house, Buzz and Portia are getting a new look for their little playhouse!
  3. This recipe. I finally had a zucchini big enough to harvest this week and I made this Zucchini Butter Pasta recipe from Smitten Kitchen. I added mushrooms because it seemed like the right thing to do. Guys, I make a lot of pasta and I think this is my favorite pasta recipe I’ve ever made. I scaled down the recipe a little bit for just two people, but don’t make that mistake. We would have eaten more if there had been more, it was SO GOOD. I’m stalking two baby zukes on my plant right now because I want to make it again as soon as they are ready!
  4. Happy tired clean dogs. Bama and I met up with a friend at the dog park this week and they ran around like lunatics. And then ran through the little creek and everyone got so muddy. But we came home, took a bath, and snoozed HARD. We don’t get out to the dog park much these days and when we do…it’s hard to get Bama to play with other dogs. So it was really fun to watch her make a friend and get out some wiggles in a social way.
  5. Surprises in the mail. A friend of mine accidentally bought the same puzzle twice and instead of returning the second one, she mailed it to me! It’s always fun to get mail, especially when it isn’t your birthday or a holiday. It makes me want to start sending my friends little surprises at random because it made me smile so much.

Friday Five Things 6/18

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” – Anne Lamott

I’ve needed some time away from routine and schedule for the past couple weeks, which has included deadlines for this blog. It has been HOT here and that kind of heat always affects my motivation and focus. So I just kind of went with it and got little things done around the house, read a lot, and had small little burst of productivity. It has been good for me and I think I’m ready to get back to my regularly scheduled programming.

  1. My garden is thriving! Both my wildflowers in the front yard and my herbs and veggies in the back are doing great. I’ve had a couple harvests of spinach and kale already and I love not needing to buy it at the store every week, especially since I’ve been into salads recently.
  2. Summer salads. I’m not a big salad person, especially making them myself at home. But this week I made two really delicious salads that I’ll be making again! The first was sliced cucumber and red onions marinated in a vinaigrette (like this). Then I had that over top of spinach (obviously) and torn pieces of fresh mozzarella. Soooo good. The other salad was spinach again, sliced strawberries, goat cheese crumbles, chopped walnuts with a homemade basil vinaigrette (this one is so good!) Both of these were really simple to put together and really refreshing in the heat this week!
  3. Monday morning walks. A friend and I went for a walk on Monday morning and it was so lovely we decided we should do it every week! Now I have something to look forward to at the beginning of each week and hopefully it will act as an anchor in time for kicking off the week the right way!
  4. Painting our house. Like, the outside! We have a red house and the exterior paint is super faded. We’ve tried to find another red that we like, but in the end decided to go with a blue/gray color called Adirondack Blue. And it’s going to be my summer project to do the painting! I figure if I really screw up badly, we can hire someone to touch up trim and stuff, but hopefully we don’t need that. Also really happy we don’t have an HOA because this isn’t something I’m going to get done quickly. We’ll have a partially painted house for awhile…
  5. Character breakthroughs in my writing. In the past couple weeks I’ve really started to get to know the main character in my novel and figure out some of her motivations and neuroses. It’s been fun to write a scene and know exactly how she is going to react to something! Still figuring out some of the other characters, but feeling good about where things are headed.

Friday Five Things 4/9

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” – Robert Bault

Hello! This week it feels like things are getting back to normal at our house after the end of March went off the rails (in both good and bad ways!). So, without too much commentary, here are my favorite five things from this week!

  1. Air fryer shrimp poboys – Since I brought home the air fryer toaster oven, Tyler has slowly been realizing the possibilities. This week’s request was shrimp poboys! I found a recipe online and then altered it to what we like. Shrimp went in an egg wash and then a mix of regular and panko breadcrumbs with some Tony Chachere’s mixed in. Before they went in to cook, I sprayed them with a light coating of oil on both sides. The shrimp cooked on the air fryer setting at 400 for about 4 minutes, then flipped and cooked for another 2 minutes. Served them on some toasted French bread with lettuce, tomato, and an aioli we had in the fridge. SO GOOD!
  2. New Orleans research – This week I ordered a bunch of book, both fiction and non-fiction, to get my research started for the new book idea. I am so excited to start reading them! Expect the next couple book reports to be New Orleans heavy.
  3. Hiking – I’m fully back into hiking season! I look at my hikes as both exercise and meditation, so I’m very excited for it to be a regular part of my weekly routine. Today I’m meeting up with my mom to do one of my favorite nearby hikes. It’s been awhile since just the two of us have spent time together so I’m really looking forward to it.
  4. Geraniums – Last year, the geranium that I had kept alive for almost 4 years finally died when I forgot to bring it inside before an overnight freeze. I was pretty bummed. It had grown into this really weird woody stem with just a few green leaves, but it always flowered really well for me. This week I made a run to Costco and they had geraniums! So I bought two! They are currently living in my guest bathroom until they can move outside full time. They are one of my favorite outside flowers, so I’m really excited to have two already. I’m sure I’ll get more as the weather continues to warm up!
  5. Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso – Have you tried it? It’s a fairly new drink from Starbucks and I hope they never get rid of it. It’s the perfect amount of sweetness for an iced coffee, which is not too much, and has a hint of cinnamon. The stores around us were out of the brown sugar syrup for a couple weeks but they’re back in stock!

“You can’t go wrong with relatively simple comfort food. It’s also about ease. Some cook to impress. I cook for people to enjoy the food.” – Al Roker

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

If ever there was a year to dive into cooking, 2020 is it! And after the week we’ve had…comfort food seems like the best option. I love being in the kitchen – it becomes like meditation for me to just focus on the task at hand and when I can produce something the nourishes my body and my soul I feel such a sense of pride and accomplishment.

I really try to take advantage of seasonal squash this time of year. I’ve always been a squash and pumpkin fan. The story goes it was such a favorite of mine when I was a baby that my skin actually took on an orange tint! So if you like squash as much as I do…here’s a few recipes I know you’ll enjoy!

  • Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese I made this recently using this recipe as a guide…but I used Havarti and Gruyere with the cheddar cheese instead of Parmesan and Asiago. I am usually in the camp of using more cheese than a recipe calls for…but this recipe really doesn’t need extra cheese. It’s pretty extra to begin with! Next time I make it I might add some broccoli or spinach into the mix because I am a child who likes to hide veggies in my mac and cheese.
  • Baked Gnocchi with Butternut Squash and Kale I just made this on Wednesday night and it was the perfect cozy dish for watching stressful election results. A couple notes: I like to add a splash more liquid than the recipe calls for to make it more saucy. And, as with almost any recipe, I add more cheese (the Mac and Cheese above being the exception to that rule). Also I usually scale back on the kale. The recipe calls for 3 bunches and I just find that amount overwhelms the rest of the dish. You can get away with 1 bunch or 2 if you really like kale. I used about 2 bunches this week to make up for the fact that the rest of my diet has consisted of Cheetos and Poptarts.
  • Turkey Pumpkin Chili Fair warning – I am not a chili purist. I love putting beans and other veggies into my chili and this is a fun and yummy recipe. The link includes both slow cooker and instant pot instructions. Also, if you don’t eat chili poured over Fritos…try it.
  • Roasted Acorn Squash Cut an acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place in a pan cut side up and put a generous amount of butter into the hollow and rub/brush it all over the surface of the squash. Salt and pepper and roast in a 375 degree over for 45-60 minutes until the flesh is soft and brown around the edges. This can be served as a side or, as I prefer, just put the squash half in a bowl and go to town! This is something we had occasionally when I was little and it is such a comfort food for me.

In an effort to diversify my diet and avoid turning orange again, I do venture outside of the world of squash. A couple other recipes on heavy rotation during the fall are:

  • Santa Fe Chicken Serve it over rice or as taco/burrito filling in a tortilla. Super easy, brainless meal to throw together in your crockpot or instant pot.
  • Sheet Pan Salmon, Potatoes and Broccolini This one is too easy. Put everything on one pan and pop it in the oven. If you can’t find broccolini you can just use broccoli. Or asparagus.
  • Polenta with Sausage, Peppers, and Onions I do not use a recipe for this. I make the polenta according to the instructions on the package, add a generous amount of butter and Parmesan cheese to taste along with some fresh cracked black pepper. And then I sauté sliced onions and bell peppers in a hot cast iron pan until they are soft. Next, push the peppers and onions to the edges of the pan so they continue to cook down and add sausages to the middle of the pan. Italian sausage, kielbasa, or andouille will work just fine. Once the sausages are cooked through, polenta goes into a bowl and it topped with the peppers, onions, and sausage. Yum!

If you try any of these recipes I’d love to hear what you think! Happy eating.