What's for Dinner: Shells with Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas and Ricotta

I had this recipe from a recent edition of Everday Food. I love chickpeas, and roasting them gave them a great slightly crunchy, nutty quality. I was a huge fan, but my famiy did not seem to agree, as most of the chickpeas on their plates stayed there. We've had -- and loved -- roasted cauliflower before, and I know there's a recipe for some type of pasta with roasted cauliflower that I've tried that was enjoyed more than this one. Lots of leftovers too - I have a feeling I'll be the only one enjoying them.

Shells with Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas and Ricotta
(from Everyday Food)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
1 head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into florets
1 can (15.5 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
Coarse salt and ground pepper
5 ounces crusty bread, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (2 cups)
1 pound medium shells
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup fresh ricotta

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss together 2 tablespoons oil, cauliflower, and chickpeas; season with salt and pepper. Arrange cauliflower and chickpeas in a single layer and roast until cauliflower is tender and chickpeas are crunchy, 25 minutes. On another rimmed baking sheet, arrange bread in a single layer and toast until golden and crisp, 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente. Drain pasta and return to pot. Add cauliflower mixture, 2 tablespoons oil, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. To serve, top with croutons and ricotta, then drizzle with oil.

Refocusing... a little

The other day I was scrambling to come up with a shopping list for the grocery store. Again. I do it every week, but somehow I always struggle with it. There are the basics I pick up every week - bread, milk, yogurt, juice - but when it comes time to plan out what I'll need for dinners that week, I struggle. In general the first thing I reach for when I'm putting together my list isn't my recipe box - it's the new food magazine or cookbook I've picked up. I'd much rather make a new recipe that's right in front of me than track down a recipe that I've used before.

That sounds really odd. But it's easier for me -- for some reason my mind suffers from memory loss when I think about those past dinners. There are some recipes that I've kept in mind, but many others I just can't remember. I've tried dozens and dozens of recipes and I have no clue where they came from, whether the kids liked them, or even if I wanted to make them again. I'll just have a vague recollection of a chicken recipe I liked, but nothing more. So I'll try out a new recipe for chicken, and then forget about that one too. I'll bet I've tried at least a dozen different recipes for macaroni and cheese, all from different sources, likely all bookmarked on my iPod or computer, but I have no clue which ones we really liked, which ones were not worth the effort, etc.

I was thinking about this last night and starting thing how helpful it would be to have a place to catalog the recipes I've tried, with a link or text of the recipe itself along with a few notes about the recipe, whether we liked it, if it was easy, if the kids enjoyed it. I was thinking I could start a new blog focusing on dinner and other recipes I'm trying, which would mostly be for me, but others might find use for too.

And then I thought, why not use this blog? My knitting and crochet projects aren't as frequent as I would like, certainly not often enough to  have a regular posts about them. I'm making dinner just about every night though, so it seems like it would be a good fit.

So I'll be adding something new to the blog, called What's for Dinner (I know... creative, right?). It will likely be every couple of days, with photos, a few notes and the recipe. Maybe you'll find some new recipes you'd like to try too.

Catching up

It's been a couple of weeks since the Pittsburgh Knit and Crochet Festival, but I still am feeling the creative burst of energy. I've been busy coming up with new projects, and working steadily on old ones. It's amazing what a weekend with crafty people will do for a lady.

This was my third time attending the festival, but the first time we actually made it an overnight trip, and the first time I took a class there. It was a great weekend. First, I was able to make some decent progress on my fourth "first knitted sweater" - Radiate from Knitty's spring 2009 issue. I'm to the point where I am actually thinking and believing that I will finish it. Look at it! I could bind it off now and have a... very weird cap sleeved bolero thing. But still a garment! It is very exciting to be this far along and not, a.) hate it, b.) have a mistake gnawing at me to the point where I must unravel the whole thing, or c.) be so bored with it that I must start something else. This is incredible progress, people.

The class I took was on needle felting. I have been wanting to learn this ever since last year's festival, when I came across a booth with all kinds of needle felting supplies and kits. It turns out that the booth's owner, Esther Bechler was the one teaching the class. If I had known how easy this was to do, I would have started the second after seeing her booth last year. It was a great class - and here's the project so far...

The bag itself is felted - it's a great (and free!) pattern from Knitting Daily. I made a couple of minor modifications - lengthening the handle a bit and removing the foldover button closure. I had no idea what I actually wanted to felt onto the bag, and then I came across a pattern book during our class with a lot of fun paisleys. The cloth in between the bag is a water soluble fiber - a great idea Esther came up with for those with less than desirable (or, in my case, NO) freehand skills. We traced our patterns onto this cloth, taped it on and went to work. I'm making progress, slow and steady, in between working on my sweater. I can't wait to see what else I can do with it.

The best laid plans...

It's been a while. So there's one resolution down the drain. But you can always jump back on the horse, right?

I've been busy - really busy. And drained. I redid my bathroom. Tore up floors, laid tile, wainscoting, sink, etc. etc. It might be a subject for a future blog post when it's finally finished - likely on the reasons never to redo your own bathroom.

A few photos from early on in the process...

Almost gutted bathroom -
 the closest thing I have to a "before".



Finished floor



Elsewhere in the world of failed resolutions, my goal to reduce my yarn stash is not going so well. I finished the Hurricane Hat I made with the leftover yarn from my Clapotis. I don't know if I would say that I'm happy with it. On the one hand it was a fun pattern to follow, and it turned out to be a cute hat... on someone else. But after putting it on, I've decided I'm just not a beanie type hat girl. I like my slouchy type things, and I'm a little disappointed that with the amount of leftover leftover yarn. I could have probably just knit a slouchy thing all along.


The bathroom sink adds a nice touch, don't you think?

And then there is the opposite problem -- buying more yarn to use up my stash. It seems incredibly counterproductive. But I've done it twice so far. I finished one mitten using up a stash of Patons wool, and realized I'd need a second ball -- or one less hand -- to complete the project. Buying the second ball seemed a tad more realistic. And then I had another leftover ball of Patons, which I thought would be enough for a cute felted bag. Two rows from finishing, I ran out of yarn. Grr. So I bought more yarn for that as well.

I suppose the larger dilemma is how to best use all these little leftover balls. As I've mentioned previously, I'm cheap. And a pack rat. So I have a ton of little balls of yarn, sometimes a half a skein, more likely less. I can't throw them away. I... just... can't. Do people do that? I want to use them, but I want to use them in a useful way.

I do have much much more to blog about - it has been a month, you know. I'll be back soon with more.

Resolutions

I've never been one for resolutions. Ok, ok, I've made resolutions, so I'll rephrase. I've never been one for sticking to resolutions. I guess that's pretty universal - does anybody really? I resolve on January 1 to take better care of myself. And by January 4 I'm eating a bowl of Corn Pops and three - yes, just three - bites of chocolate cake for lunch. Not one of my better moments.

But I guess you have to keep trying. The chocolate cake went into the trash, and I spent the next day trying to declutter our family room - another one of those resolutions: get our house organized and decluttered. So as I'm going through the tangle of yarn, needles, hooks, beads and wire that resides in a basket by my couch - a literal tangle of all these things, mind you- I start to think that I really should be making some crafty type resolutions as well. Keeping better track of and organizing my supplies immediately springs to mind. But it seems the right time of year to set goals for myself creatively. And considering how knitting/crochet/crafty stuff somehow always seem to take priority over those other pesky tasks like, say, cleaning and organizing, perhaps these are resolutions I might actually be able to stick to.

So in no particular order, and off the top of my head.... this year, I want to:

• Knit and FINISH a sweater for myself.
• Explore colorwork a little more - work more with Fair Isle and try intarsia.
• Start and hopefully finish a blanket for my son.
• Work more with wire knitting and crochet.
• Decrease my yarn stash by (gulp) half.
• Learn needle felting.
• Post at least weekly to my blog.

I think I like creative resolutions a lot more than the other kind. Now off to decrease that stash of mine - starting with a nice chunk of Brooks Farm Solo Silk leftover from my Clapotis.

So tell me, what are your creative resolutions?

Unwrapped

Now that the holidays are safely behind us, I can share some of the projects I've been working on - generally in a panic - throughout the past month and a half. As usual, I took on a bit more than I should have between everything else I want/need to do at Christmastime. So I've got to say, I was really proud of myself for getting everything finished and wrapped in time for Christmas.

French Press slippers
I knew right away that I wanted to knit a pair of French Press Slippers for my sister. These are slippers I've been coveting since I first saw them, and I knew they were her style as well. The pieces that make up the slippers are a wonderfully quick knit. The end result is very long and floppy and looks nothing like the photo. Until you throw them in your washing machine and the little felting gnomes come out with their little felting magic to take your weird floppy looking knitted... things and turns them into soft, felty, snuggly slippers. Thank you felting gnomes.

Coffee cuff
This cuff (pattern found here)seemed like a cute way to package a coffee shop gift card for my daughter's preschool teacher. And a nice quick knit too.

Felted clogs
The pattern is so clever. Somehow the entire slipper is one piece, with minimal seaming (much appreciated after all the seaming involved for the French Press Slippers). It was a lot of fun to see these come together. My first knitted gift for my mother in law.

Panda hat
I had gotten a cute panda outfit for my cousin's newborn daughter, but it seemed incomplete. Crochet to the rescue! In two evenings I had a matchy matchy panda hat.

I also made a crocheted wire bracelet for my mom, but completely forgot to photograph it before I gave it to her. Is it odd to ask someone if you can photograph their gift once it's gifted?

I'll have some big (well, big for me) crafty news coming up soon. I'm very excited for the start of the new year and some new projects. Happy 2011!

My first Fair Isle

My son's ever growing head needed a new hat. It seemed that the multitude of 12 to 24 month hats were just too small, and as my daughter's princess and pink obsessions started around 2, the only other options for him in our house involved Belle, Sleeping Beauty and a lot of pink hearts.

Two things you should know: I am cheap. Ok, frugal. I guess that's the nicer word for it. Also, I hate seaming, which is where I am at with my other current projects (which, for now, will remain cloaked in mystery). The powerful combination of these two forces brought me to the Norwegian Star Earflap Hat. It was the hat my son needed, which could be created with yarn I already owned (cheap... err, frugal) and would give me excuse to put down that awful tapestry needle and pick up my knitting needles again. Joy.

I was thrilled with the end result. Until I put it on his head. Too big. Really, comically too big. It fits my daughter, it fits me. It even fits my husband. But my son... well, it's kind of cute when little kids are in too big hats, right?