The Spice Satchel: February 2011

Monday, February 14, 2011

Valentine's Day

Paul and I never really celebrate Valentine's Day, but this year we decided to have some fun. I have been working almost every weekend evening since I got a job to help us save money. Yesterday, I was scheduled out at 1pm, and there was a Red Wings game on our TV (that is very rare in this area)!
We have been looking for a Bordeaux that we would enjoy drinking with a baguette for a while, so we decided to spend our Valentine's Day picking one. We bought 4 bottles, and tried them all while we watched hockey and ate bread. I don't think we found the perfect Bordeaux yet, but we also didn't want to break the bank ;) It was a fun time.

It was amazing how different they all tasted. Our favorite of these 4 was the bronze medal winner- dry, slightly smoky light blackberry flavor.

Then for dinner, we made Asian Beef, a very simple recipe of thin steak- marinated in garlic, dark soy sauce, dry sherry and dark brown sugar. Served with fresh cucumber, radish and ginger (pickled ginger) relish, also with rice and mango. Steamed asparagus would also be a fantastic addition. It was pretty good with the Bordeaux too. Happy Valentine's Day!

Friday, February 11, 2011

The phone call

Last week I got a phone call from Koleen. She told me she sent me a mail, she wasn't going to tell me, but she couldn't wait anymore. When I got home the package was waiting. She had been crocheting a cover for the hot water bottle Mia likes to sleep with to help stay warm.
"I give up!" Koleen declares. :) She tried again and again, but the yarn is bumpy and it wasn't turning out right, so she sent me the yarn and the pattern, and the very cute (beautifully crocheted) flower she made to decorate the cover.

I finished the cover last night, and hope to get it to the post office this afternoon! I'm very happy to help my sister, and excited that they live in MI, so I'm sure Mia will have many more months of use before it really gets warm. I'm also happy that my sister has no problem just sending me a pattern and some yarn! It was quite a funny conversation, and while I'm sure she will figure out everything soon enough, I'm happy she turned to me with her dilemma!

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

meatloaf

There are so many flavors in this meatloaf, it would be just as delicious as meatlessloaf, if you want to make it vegetarian.
1 lb. ground turkey, 1 egg, 3/4 C oats, 1 Tbl. Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 C ketchup, handful roughly chopped parsley, 1 small onion diced, 1 small green or red bell pepper diced, 1 small carrot thinly sliced, 1 jalapeno minced, 2-3 cloves garlic minced, 1 tea. ground black pepper. Mix ingredients and place in square glass casserole dish. You can also add 1/2-1 tea. dried or 1-2 Tbl. fresh chopped marjoram, basil, oregano, thyme, and/or sage. Cover with 1 can stewed (no salt added) tomatoes.
Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour, or until 170 degrees internal temp. and the consistency of meatloaf ;)

Goes great with spicy fried potatoes. Dice potatoes and some onion. Heat olive oil over medium heat, spice heated oil with cayenne and black pepper, and garlic powder. Add potatoes and fry until almost done, add onions and continue frying until potatoes are slightly crispy and onions are soft.