The Plans, they are a-changin’
March 13, 2006
Well the rain came down and when I called the surprise destination, turned out the horses had been sent home as the mud was too deep. We are supposed to get a freeze tonight and the woman said to call tomorrow morning. So tomorrow, finger’s crossed, we will go.
The rain has tapered and if it holds off, we will be feeding seals and dipping candles this afternoon. I hope the Troll doesn’t mind missing his nap. I’m cringing at the thought of a screaming toddler this afternoon but it seems when I expect the worst, I get the best.
He was exceptional this past weekend. Charming, with his little voice repeating everyone elses, as the chatter flew around him. He must have said 20 new words just this past weekend, including Salsa (instead of Nelson - a relative), and Nee Nee and Ah Ah - for Granny and Papa. Everyone was smitten with him and I think he knew it. We asked him if he was cold and he pulled his shoulders up around his ears like he does when I’ve scooped him up out of the tub. He chased my cousin’s cat, calling, “Tittie! Tittie!” and squealing while the cat just glared at him. I think she liked the attention though, because when Thomas got busy with something else, she would sneak back into his vision and plop her furry butt on the floor, then sprawl out onto her back, stretching her paws into the air and flitting her tail. What a flirt!
My oldest cousin, her boyfriend and I made dinner for all 14 of us. In light of Jessica’s recent surgery, my Aunt and Granny got a well deserved night off as we made my delicious pasta, garden salad and a huge tray of BBQ’d chicken and steaks. Here’s the recipe for the pasta….if you’re so inclined.
A Few Of My Favorite Things Pasta:
WARNING: I don’t measure stuff….sorry!
Ingredients:
3 Heads of Garlic, Roasted and slightly mashed*
Red Onion, chopped
Crimini Mushrooms
Olive Oil
Red Peppers, chopped
Heavy Cream
Parmasean Cheese
Your choice of noodles - we used spaghettini - the thinest noodles. Linguini and Penne also work well.
Mozzerella Cheese, grated - to taste
Directions:
You can roast the garlic and chop the veggies, ahead of time.
*To roast garlic, place the garlic on it’s side and slice off as little as possible, exposing the cloves (leave the garlic intact in a head). Place into an oven-safe dish and douse in olive oil.
Bake at 375 degrees until fork tender (typically 30-40 minutes)
In the meantime, chop veggies and saut? in olive oil and a pad of two of butter (no I don’t measure!) add a little coarse salt to bring out the flavour of the veggies.
Remove the roasted garlic cloves from the head and mash them with a fork. (These little gems are also a great appetizer on sliced french stick loaf with goat cheese and the garlic on top - yum!)
Add to the saut?ed veggies: the mashed garlic, heavy cream and parmasean cheese. For 14 people, I used a tall boy container of the parm cheese (ALOT) and a litre of cream. You need to keep stirring on medium to avoid the sauce from burning - let it heat up, then turn it to medium low and stir occassionally. When the sauce thickens, it’s ready.
Top your favourite noodles, sprinkle on your grated mozzerella and enjoy!
(You can add lots of other things to this sauce, like chicken, or different cheeses or veggies…..whatever you fancy!)
