Red Wine Risotto with Peas

I'm really trying to write this blog post, but at the same time I am riveted by the History channel's presentation of the Bible.  I can't take it.  It's so good!  It's very well presented and even though I know what's coming, I'm sitting on the edge of the couch to watch every scene.  (OK, in reality, I only know when a few important scenes are coming.  I haven't sat in a Religion class since my Catholic high school days. PS - I'm not even Catholic.  Figure that one out.)

So.  Pretty much the above paragraph is all I wrote while watching a 2-hour presentation of The Bible.  In order to get some writing done, I had to switch to Worst Cooks In America.  There's a show that makes me ecstatic to have picked up cooking so easily and so quickly.  In all honesty, when I moved to Hoboken a few (ahem...several) years ago, I had an idea how to cook maybe 3 things. 

Which naturally meant that the first new recipe I decided to teach myself was...risotto.  Yeah, totally went big on that one.  I made a butternut squash risotto that was delicious, if I may toot my own horn.  Which I will.  I was actually pleasantly surprised by the outcome and was encouraged to expand my cooking horizons, if you will.

Recently, I stumbled across a Giada recipe for red wine risotto.  Wha...?  You know I love me some red wine.  And then I realized she also put peas in the recipe.  I love me some peas too!  And as icing on the cake, I didn't have to buy anything for this recipe since I obviously had red wine and peas at the ready.

Creamy Basil Tomato Soup with Italian Sausage

The other day I had to take my car into the shop for a routine oil change.  It's bad enough that I usually leave with a host of other services that my car also allegedly needs (really?!).  But!  I usually take my car to the local Sears Auto, which just so happens to be attached to a mall.  This is not good for my wallet. In the past, I have wandered around outside to extricate myself from the vortex of mall shopping.  No good can come from that.

Unfortunately, there is a Target down the street...We ALL know the end of that story, right?

So on this particular day, I decided that I would save myself and my wallet by bringing my own cup of coffee and plastering my bum to the chair in the Sears Auto department so that I would not wander around and buy that sparkly green eyeshadow and my seventh infinity scarf of the season.  (Even though I neeeeeed those!) Somehow, I made it through a three-hour wait and was able to return home, empty-handed!  So I promptly rewarded myself with soup.  Not just any soup.  Creamy Basil Tomato Soup with Italian Sausage.

Beer Batter Bread

Can we just get ready for St. Patrick's Day already?  This is pretty much my most favorite holiday of the year, primarily because it's a day to celebrate drinking.  Yes, I'm sure there is another, deeper meaning behind St. Patrick's Day, but that's not where this blog post is going.

For the past few years, my roommate and I have had a St. Patrick's Day morning/brunch party in Hoboken.  Hoboken's St. Patty's Day is celebrated on the first Saturday of the month of March.  It's a long story, but that's how it is.  We didn't do that this year since my roommate is in the process of selling the apartment.  We wouldn't want a repeat of that wine-on-the-ceiling incident that occurred a few years ago...That would be no bueno.

But what I could have is this beer bread.  I whipped this up in a matter or minutes, and uh, it didn't actually make it to any parties anywhere.  I sort of ate it.  Could you blame me?  It's all buttery and beer-tasting and stuff.  So go make your own.  It takes no time at all.

Spinach Bacon Blue Cheese Quiche

Ya'll.  I was back to work this week.  Let me tell you that I am not a happy camper.  I forgot how much I liked doing nothing.

Actually, that's not true.  I didn't forget how much I liked doing nothing.  That's the real problem, for sure.  But I have to be a grown up now and get back to being a productive legal alien in this country.  Nothing I can do about it....other than get married to an attractive and insanely rich man and become a kept lady.  Yes.  That is my future plan.  But until that happens, I will re-learn how to maximize my time.  I figured it would be best to start off with a quick and dirty quiche recipe.

OK, it's not really dirty.  Because that would be a bad thing.  Anything food-related that is dirty is most decidedly a bad thing.  Peep that.

Where is this language coming from?  I must be tired.  Ugh.  Here's the recipe.  Let's just do this!

Chai-Spiced Scones

So here we are again...splashing coffee in the general direction of my left eye (thank goodness for glasses!) on a cloudy afternoon while writing the alphabet in the air with my recuperating foot.  No big deal. 

Lately I feel as if I've been drinking a lot of coffee.

Make no mistake.  I have been.

Interestingly enough, though,  I haven't been drinking more coffee than I normally would.  The difference is that now I'm actually making it myself, with my Keurig at home.  Since I'm typically traveling 4 days out of the way in the wilderness of Pennsylvania (OK, that's a little dramatic), I usually have someone at Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts pass me a cup of coffee on my trek into work.  (See, I told you I was being dramatic.  Obviously I'm not in the wilderness if there's a Starbucks around.  Duh.)  I've actually been so guilty of visiting my local Starbucks so much (potentially up to 3 times a day) that my morning barista offered to bring me coffee in NJ.  So yeahhh, I may have a slight problem.

But what I really want to tell you about has nothing to do with my clumsiness, the recuperation of my feet, or my favorite barista.  It has everything to do with finding the perfect complement to that cup of coffee.  I choose scones.  Specifically, I choose chai-spiced scones.  The perfect blend of warm spices really brighten up any cup of joe.  The scone isn't overly sweet and wouldn't object to a quick dunking in the coffee cup, either.  Even scones love coffee.  That's the truth.

Espresso Brownies

I am currently playing hide and seek.

Let me explain.

My roommate's selling our apartment (aka her apartment that I happen to live in as well).  We vacate the place when there are people coming over to check it out.  Since my mobility is currently questionable due to the orthotic boot around my right foot, I've been opting to hide out in the stairwell while prospective buyers peruse the goods.  Once I hear the elevator signaling everyone's departure, I know it's safe to head back into the apartment.  So, I guess it's the hide and seek game where the other people don't actually care to find me.

Over the past week, I think I've spent at least six hours in the stairwell and I've even started bringing a pillow to make the hard stairs a little more comfortable.  Although my iPad keeps me pretty occupied, I also bring drinks and snacks to help pass the time.  You know, coffee, beer, salads, espresso brownies...

Let me tell you about these espresso brownies.  These beasts be fudge-y and cake-y at the same time.  Is that even possible?  Yes.  Why yes, it is.  You don't actually taste the espresso, but in case you don't know, chocolate tastes even more chocolate-y when coffee or espresso gets involved.

Crock Pot Picadillo

Sometimes you sit on the couch all day long and end up buying clothing and workout wear from three different websites.  Have I mentioned that I'm on crutches and probably won't workout for at least another week and a half?  Oh, and have I also mentioned that the main reason I leave the apartment right now is for doctor appointments?  Let's overlook all that.

Ugh.  I do have a reason though!  (My roommate is totally rolling her eyes at that line because I may have used it a few times in the past.)  I went on a no-buy in January, which means that I only purchase essential things.  I was relatively successful with that endeavor.  Then February happened and there were all these President's Day sales staring me in the face (Sidebar: Weren't these sales supposed to end on Monday?  I thought it was safe to go "online window shopping" again.) ... Need I say more?  Now I need to go back on another no-buy.  Especially since the doctor's bills are starting to roll in.  Yikes.

What does this have to do with picadillo?  Nothing.  There's just a lot on my mind and I happen to be writing about it.  So I guess I should bring the focus back to the picadillo.  Fine.

Picadillo is a traditional Latin dish that I would loosely describe as a ground beef taco filling, if you really want a comparison of sorts.  There are several variations out there, but this version is chock full of onions, peppers, garlic, and smoky spices.  Sooo pretty much everything you need to ensure a good meal.  And I made it in a crock pot.  Boom.