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A Few Recent Pins

lauralynne — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 04:11:42 +0000

Loving these pieces by Sandra Dieckmann lately.

Source: etsy.com via Laura on Pinterest

And this bracelet is shiny but not too bling…

Source: etsy.com via Laura on Pinterest

Maribelle Campa on Etsy

In Quotes

lauralynne — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:40:57 +0000

“He hated the billboards and the freeways and faceless subdivisions and the Texas flag, which flew over everything, always as big as a circus tent; he hated the giant pickup trucks everybody drove, no matter that gas was thirteen bucks a gallon and the world was slowly steaming itself to death like a package of peas in a microwave.”

Special Agent Wolgast

The Passage, Justin Cronin (pg 29)

Ham, Black-Eyed Pea and Kale Soup

lauralynne — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:37:53 +0000

Made this last evening with various holiday leftovers. There is not a ton of seasoning in this soup because my broth was pretty strongly flavored. It would probably be good with a little hot sauce dashed over top. We ate this served over corn bread and it was very, very good. I made the cornbread with grits rather than cornmeal and it was tasty.

Ham, Black-Eyed Pea and Kale Soup

6-8 servings

1 white or yellow onion, chopped

1 Tbsp. olive oil

3 celery stalks, chopped

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

8 c. ham broth

1 pkg. fresh black eyed peas

2 c. diced ham

4-5 c. chopped kale

Heat pan and add oil. Saute onion until limp, add carrots and celery. If the vegetables start to stick, ladle in some broth or water. Saute until very fragrant and carrots are slightly tender.
Add broth and bring to a boil. Add black-eyed peas and return to a boil.
After broth has boiled again, reduce heat and simmer 20 -25 minutes, until black-eyed peas have softened.
Add ham and kale and continue to simmer soup until both are heated through and kale has wilted but is still bright green.
Season to taste with pepper (ham and broth are pretty salty) and serve over cornbread.

On My Mind

lauralynne — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 03:15:51 +0000

We had planned to paint our kitchen cabinets this weekend, starting Saturday. But then I got sick and we didn’t start until this afternoon. Which is just as inconvenient going into the work week as you might imagine. We have both entrances to the kitchen taped off and covered with a plastic tarp due to our beasties–which was fine for the day while we were working in there, but will be rather sad in the morning when we can’t get to our coffee. The doors are what take so long–two coats for both the front and the back and it takes a while for each coat to dry. Still have to get both coats on the door fronts. So probably no kitchen until Thursday.
I signed up for fitocracy as a way to stick with my January habit. I’m enjoying it thus far–I like getting points.
I’m considering transitioning to an 80 – 90% vegan diet. I’m a little concerned about a genetic propensity for heart disease (basically, I’m screwed–both of my grandmothers have had triple bypass surgeries and my dad has as well. My dad was pretty young and did not have high cholesterol and was not really overweight). I have tried going vegan before and was not successful, but I’m a bit more motivated now and, I think, have more tolerant taste buds. I find it ironic that my husband, who was vegan when we met and who had been a vegan or vegetarian for 20 + years, is the one who really doesn’t want me to do this all the way. I’m going slow with this idea, though…
Suddenly, I am part of two book clubs! I am looking forward to them and also slightly apprehensive. I am halfway through one book, but need to get cracking on the other–it’s 500 pages long!