11/03/2009 11:06
Traveling / Cooking
The past few weeks I've been a traveling machine. First, I was in Lebanon for nearly a week. Then last week I went to the Philippines for a conference. On Thursday, I leave for New York for a dear friend's wedding. Then the following week, I'm going to Georgia (the country, not the state). Then I'll have about five weeks without travel before heading on our round-the-world trip to Los Angeles, Melbourne, Sydney and Hong Kong. Phew!
I will say I love the travel. I will also say traveling makes it harder to keep to a set routine, especially when you are hopping as many time zones as I have been recently. In Lebanon, I went to the gym every day. In the Philippines, I didn't go once. I'm trying to be consistent, but not always having the best luck.
Still, I know I'm eating better. I'm eating fresh foods, despite the oncoming winter, and I've been cooking a lot. Over the weekend, I experimented with the slow cooking function of my rice cooker and made a lamb stew. Couldn't be easier! Toss in some root veggies, lamb, seasonings and stock, and let it go for around 9 hours. It felt odd chopping garlic at 10 am, but other than that it was delish. Last night, I made a delicious tomato soup which was the easiest thing in the world. I roasted tomatoes, garlic and fennel drizzled with olive oil for around two hours in a hot oven. Then I tossed it into the food processor and wham! Delicious soup. Mmmm . . . I'm going to try experimenting with more soups and slow cooker experiments this winter, as they are super easy, and act as proper stick-to-your-ribs food during the cold months. What are your favorite soup/slow cooker recipes?
Posted By: Jenny*in*London
11/03/2009 02:09
mmmmm
The roasted tomato soup sounds so delicious AND easy!
I'm a fan of the following Crock Pot meals:
chili: either regular or chicken and white bean
beef stew: loaded with carrots and mushrooms--my favorite part
peachy BBQ pork chops: BBQ sauce, peaches and pork chops (I often actually do this with chicken instead of pork)
Lentils and veggies
But my all time fave:
butternut squash and white bean soup: chicken broth, cubed squash, white beans, a bay leaf, salt and pepper, diced celery, diced onion, cumin and salt and pepper to taste.
I sometimes puree it with a stick blender for a thicker, creamier soup. I made it for the work holiday party and brought diced crispy bacon for folks to top their bowls with. I've already gotten two requests to make it again this year!
Crepes of Wrath has a great selection of recipes and many of the entrees can easily be modified for the Crock Pot. Warning: she does lots of delicious desserts. Currently, I'm contemplating making Guinness Gingerbread and bringing it into the office :)
11/03/2009 07:26
....
Sounds yummy! And the travel sounds like busy, but fun times!!!
11/03/2009 09:13
wow! all that travel!
My easy soup is to buy a can of soup to heat up on the stove, and then I add extra corn and green beans from the freezer, and little cheap shrimp.
And my favorite is to eat cold avocado with soup. Mixes it up.
Oh, Miso soup is wonderful too, it's been on mind to buy miso for weeks.
I gotta get my slow cooker our.... maybe This Week!!
I went to beijing and shanghai in October, and then I was like "Ok, enough"
I don't like travel as much now as I did when I was in my late teenage years. but when a hotel has an awesome gym, I will wake up at 6am to work out, or stay up past midnight to work out. That can be the best!
11/03/2009 12:51
:)
I am jealous of the travel!!
11/09/2009 08:56
lazy!
I love my slow cooker!
And I'm even lazier than most - I've discovered recipe bases designed especially for slow cookers... chuck in the meat and veg, pour over the recipe base and walk away.
As a result I do a mean chicken curry!
