Simply Roasted Carrots

This past week I had two major trips.   

The first took me to North Carolina.   

The second took me to Kansas.  

That's 1368 miles to be exact.

I kind of feel like “Where in the World is Matt Lauer” with all of this travel and mileage going on.  During this trip I experience my first “First Class”.  It was pretty fancy I must say. 

• You get way more leg room
• First on and off the plane (this was the best part for me)
• Guaranteed a spot for your carry on
• Blankets and Pillows (not that I touched that…in fact I was a little grossed out)
• Drinks times like 50 million
• Premium snacks, all-you-can-eat
• Extra head cushion

The only problem was that people were way chattier in First Class.  I have said it once and I will say it again.  I just do not like to talk to strangers.  I will say “Hi” and “God Bless you” if someone sneezes but that is about all.  I don’t want to hear about your day or your trip or why you are traveling. I just want to sit in PEACE. REST. READ.  Notice all of these require only one person. 

 

To take me back to a simpler, more common folk time I decided to show you one of my go to tricks in the winter for dinner.  I don’t know about you but I have such a hard time eating salad once the thermometer drops below 50 degrees outside. 

 But it is those colder temperatures more than ever that force me to monitor my veggie intake.  The more veggies the more nutrients in my body and I think this keeps illnesses at bay.  Seriously 5-9 servings a day is difficult once you remove salad from the equation.  Therefore almost every night for dinner I make roasted vegetables. It is the simplest way to have warm veggies.  Take whatever you desire and prepare by washing, and removing any unwanted outside layers or inside seeds. 

Toss in olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Pop it into a 375 degree oven and bake for 20-40 minutes depending on the vegetable. 

For these potatoes and carrots I added rosemary and garlic.  Now I can top these warm babies on top of a salad and be good to go. 

Sunday Dinner

The holidays are coming up. I have always been really good at managing my food intake during this time.  Yeah, I eat way more than normal but I try to balance out the richness of some days with lots of healthy, light meals on the off days.  One of the ways I do this besides loads of salads is with fish.  Fish is a lighter kind of protein but still fills Mr. J up.  For our special meal this week we headed off to Whole Foods to find us some good fish for dinner.  Now the last time we did this Mr. J managed to talk me into a 4LB whole fish.  We grilled it. It was delicious. But it was also twenty some dollars and a whole lot of mess.  Not to mention the smelly garbage.

This trip I was not as easily swayed. Or more likely, Mr. J stayed at home.

I ended up getting salmon.  Salmon is one of my favorite fishes to eat. I also find it incredibly easy to make in a few different ways.  Tonight I just rubbed with olive oil and then topped with some seasonings.  I used a blend from Penzeys Spices called Forward.  It is my new go to blend because it works so well with all sorts of meats and veggies.

 Add some basic risotto with white wine and green beans and you have a pretty decent Sunday night meal.

This was the first meal Mr. J and I ate together, home-cooked, in the apartment since last Sunday.  Let's just say it was a great way to end the weekend (even though I am super sad the weekend is over).

Friday's Five: Holiday Baking Packages

I don't know about you but in the coming weeks I plan to do a lot of baking. Not just any baking either, special baking for gifts. To add the extra special touch you need some extra special packaging. Here are some of my favorite sites for materials and inspiration.

1. King Arthur Flour

Their website has all sorts of bake and give options. Plus, recipes to boot.


2. Shop Sweet Lulu

 This website has the best cupcake wrappers.

3. Martha Stewart Crafts

Need I say more?

4. Micheal's

Don't want to have to buy supplies online, Micheal's is the place to go.

5. Independent Can Company

Whether you pick plain silver, gold, or holiday theme, they have every shape and size tin imaginable.

For my Friday Fives check out Living Like the Kings