Fall has fallen

Autumn is here, and I love it. The colors, the bite in the air, the cozy feeling of hibernating, sweaters, soups/stews/winter food; I even find myself enjoying the rain and gray skies. Maybe because it's my second autumn in Seattle, my brain is saying "oh this, I remember this...this is familiar and comforting." I'm even excited for it to snow.

Here's my latest cooking endeavor (that turned out well):

It's a recipe Amie sent me for quinoa (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa). It is a magical food that is both delicious and great for you. I've noticed that on my 12 hour days, eating quinoa at lunch leaves me satisfied longer and usually prevents a post-lunch 'crash.' So, I got a 4 lb bag of it at Costco awhile back and am constantly hunting for new recipes. This is a good one:

Quinoa with Black Beans and Cilantro
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups chopped white onions
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup quinoa, rinsed, drained
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
11/2 cups water
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed, drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
Crumbled Cotija cheese or feta cheese (optional)

Heat oil in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and red pepper; sauté until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in next 4 ingredients. Add water; bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until quinoa is almost tender, about 14 minutes. Add beans and 1/4 cup cilantro; cook uncovered until heated through and liquid is fully absorbed, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cilantro and cheese, if desired.

I also added cayenne pepper to give it some kick.

(Recipe from epicurious.com)

So my friend Kara's sister and her family came to visit last week, and I went with them last Saturday for a 70 minute train ride on an ole-timey train. Enjoying the ride with us was a group of old people. The old people swarmed into the 'comfortable' car of the train, so we had the pleasure of riding in the drafty car with wooden benches. In spite of counting down each of the 70 minutes, it was fun being with good people :)

After the train ride, we drove up to the lodge/lookout over Snoqualmie Falls.

Kara's fam. I only spent 2 hours with them, but they seem pretty great.

Kara's nephew was not feeling well. He fell asleep on the train ride, and did this when we went to the lookout :)

In other news, I have a four day weekend coming up, and am flying to Saint Louis for a visit. It's been almost a year since I was there (last Thanksgiving), so it will be fun to be back.

Also, I have purchased a pair of skinny jeans. I recognize that skinny jeans are primarily designed to be worn by skinny people (which I am definitely not), but I have several pairs of very cute boots that are going unseen under my bootcut jeans and it makes me sad. So, for the greater good (of cute boots), I swallowed my pride. And surprisingly, the jeans look alright when worn with boots and a long-ish top. When worn with anything else, however, it is truly a terrifying sight. I do take comfort in the fact that I live in a city where anything goes, fashion-wise. Who wants a utilikilt for Christmas?

Lame cable companies and other news...

Comcast sucks. Our year is up, and our 'starter package' ended, and the price of our cable/phone/internet skyrocketed. So my roommate and I decided to downgrade to basic cable and internet only. It's kind of liberating. You tried to woo us with your many channels and then trap us under your oppressive thumb, Comcast! But you failed! Anyway, with the existence of hulu and netflix it's not really necessary to have a television in order to enjoy the shows you love.

In other news:

I enjoyed my first massage EVER a couple of weeks ago. My friend Kara is a massage therapist who works at a very nice spa downtown, and the experience is best summed up by what I said to her after the massage (which took place in the living room of her apartment)... "it's like you have a superpower that I never knew about." Seriously, amazing. And then I went home and had the best night sleep that I can remember in recent history.

My dad gave me a Runner's magazine when he was here (even though I haven't run in months), and there was a recipe inside for something called Cassoulet with Lots of Vegetables.

Here's the recipe:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound Italian sausage, bone-in pork chops, duck breasts, or chicken legs, or 1 pound of a combination of meats

1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

2 leeks or onions, washed and sliced

2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch lengths

3 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

2 medium zucchinis, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 cups canned tomatoes (and juice), chopped

1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped

2 bay leaves

4 cups canned white beans, drained and liquid reserved in case needed

2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add meat and cook, turning until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove from pan and drain off all but two tablespoons of fat. Turn heat to medium, add garlic, leeks or onions, carrots, celery, and zucchini; season with salt and pepper. Cook five minutes, or until softened. Add tomatoes and juice, meat, and herbs. Bring to a boil. Add beans and boil again, stirring occasionally; reduce heat so mixture bubbles gently. Cook for 20 minutes, adding stock or bean liquid when mixture gets thick. Fish out meat; remove bones and skin and chop into chunks. Return to pot and add cayenne. Warm through. Serves four.

Calories per serving: 580, Carbs: 82 g, Protein: 40 g, Fat: 11 g

I used spicy Italian sausage for meat, and this is what my finished product looked like:

It did thicken a little more after I took this picture and ended up looking more like the picture in the magazine. More importantly, it was delicious. I invited Kara, Jon, Amy, and Heather over for dinner, and served this with fresh bread from my bread maker. I can't remember who, but someone said, "anytime you want to try out a new recipe, we will come for dinner." That increased my cooking confidence a lot. So thank you to my dad, Runner's magazine, and my friends who were willing to be guinea pigs :)