femme and friend

went to the gym last night. I use "gym" in the losest sense of the word - it's the pool house at the golf club that is turned into a fitness center (?) over the winter. Seven machines in a row, some of which are in serious disrepair, a set of mismatched weights, some sort of upper body apparatus and one of those large body balls. It's grey. Grey. What's wrong with red or blue? Two tiny tvs, one of which wasn't working. Why do you use that particular gym you might ask? Well, it's close and the price is right. Oh yes, there is rarely any one else there - not surprising. My daughter wanted to work out so we went together and I'm so glad we did. She pedalled away on the bike and I took a stroll on the treadmill and watched CNN. It gave us an appetite for the curried shepherd's pie (Amanda Hesser) for dinner. Company, calisthenics and cooking: what more does a fairfield femme really need?

congratulations

to my sister who became an Iyengar yoga instructor yesterday. It has been a long, arduous and extremely physical process but she put in everything that was required of her (and more) and it paid off: she is qualified to teach and she is in the BEST shape. I'm awfully proud of her since I only attempt the beginner's beginner level and it's challenging enough - to do what she does is a quite a feat. Speaking of physical, we had another six inches of snow last night and woke up to a winter wonderland. Usually I smile but, because of the intense winter we've had so far, I groaned, pulled on snow pants, picked up the shovel and got to work on the driveway. Thankfully it's a holiday today so the Mr. is home and he helped. And my dear, sweet friend was visiting for the weekend with her six year old daughter so everyone pitched in. We all got a workout AND we got it cleared in no time at all!

I never see anyone I know

at the Westminster Dog Show. It's not surprising really since the dogs and owners come from all over the country for two days of delight at Madison Square Garden. Perhaps one or two are local but I don't know them and I love the anonymity of the event especially since I can't help myself from chatting to everyone who makes eye contact. Today was particularly good - we arrived in between sessions so it wasn't too crowded in the benching area and the first dog we saw was a HUGE Italian Mastiff. Of course I make the comparison to "Best In Show" the whole time - just HOW do the handlers perfect that walk? So we strolled around and admired all the beautiful dogs. And the people? Lets just say that Stacey and Clinton from What Not to Wear and Jenny from Jenny Craig could find seasons worth of suitable challenges. Oh I know, people in glass houses... We watched a few sessions in the ring and were lucky enough to see our faves, the Brittanys, gather before their contest. We'll be watching the championship round tonight.

 

a quiet weekend

What is a Fairfield Femme to do with three days of few obligations? My husband and daughter headed south on Friday morning to revisit a college and I stayed home with the dog - is a dog really an "obligation"? I think I managed to strike a balance of work and play, but maybe a little more play... On Friday I made a curry to take to dear friends for dinner. I am a devotee of Mahur Jaffrey so I made her version of rogan josh (but went light on the cayenne pepper), cucumber raita, as well as tomato and coriander salad. On the way over to their house I stopped off at "Tandoori" and picked up delicious naan. A dinner everyone could enjoy. Saturday held many highlights, among them were the sighting of a pair of foxes frolicking in the backyard; a walk at the beach with the dog; a "Millionaire Matchmaker" marathon - it was strange to have control of the remote. Today I'm heading out to run the errands I neglected yesterday before the family gets home tonight. The Westminster Dog Show begins tomorrow - love it!



fairfield foxes?



fava bean puree

The jury is out on this one. First of all, the beans have a strange smell (a combo of chemical and organic); second, you have to strip each one of its casing and that takes time and is quite messy; third, you have to work out what tastes good with them. I ended up by sauteing the beans in a little olive oil and garlic and adding red pepper flakes and plenty of salt and lemon juice. I think it will be alright spread on toast with some goat cheese. Will I make it again?  I don't think so but I'm glad I tried it!

stitching and steaming

So what is a Fairfield Femme to do when her husband subscribes to the soccer channel? Why, she picks up her needlepoint. She stitches as they sit side-by-side on the sofa: it goes a long way to prevent her resentment of him not engaging in conversation as he is engrossed in the game. If you are a soccer fan, it seems that you remain loyal to one team your whole life, but watching ALL the games of ALL the teams is required. In this case Liverpool is the team and there is endless talk of how poorly "my team" is doing. But I digress... Having abandoned some needlepoint projects along the way, I recently decided to take a class. Yes, there is school for stitching. We meet for two hours once a week and work on a canvas using a selection of threads and stitch techniques. This is what we have done so far:

I just love the colors and the feel of the silks and velvets. Some of it is quite tricky so there is a fair amount of unpick and redo but it's keeping me busy and, more importantly as far as my husband is concerned, quiet.

When Organic Mike delivered his produce on Wednesday the basket also contained a bag of fava beans. Now I have never cooked these because of  something I learned in Pathology class many years ago: a subset of individuals may develop haemolytic anaemia after eating fava beans. While I don't fit the subset profile, I developed a prejudice anyway. Today I will have an open mind and steam them for a puree. I hope it is worth the effort of shelling all the pods!

organic mike

This is just some of what Organic Mike brought today:

shower and superbowl

Well the bridal shower was just delightful - it was held at a lovely home here and hosted by friends of the mother of the bride. Yesterday was sunny and quite warm so it was a perfect day to go to a cheerful event. The lunch was delicious - a selection of frittatas (is that the plural of "frittata"? I feel as though it should be "frittatae" or is that too high school Latin class?), lemon orzo salad, mixed green salad, fresh plump asparagus and bread and butter. Dessert was bite size cupcakes (including my fave red velvet with cream cheese frosting), miniature ice cream cones with a variety of ice cream and sorbet and a passed old fashioned cigarette tray filled with sweeties. The bride was lovely as were all her cute young friends and I was a content middle aged guest. On to the Superbowl - had food and travelled to friends since my husband went to California on spur of the moment business. It was a good game - close until the end and, yes, my team won.

how can you have just one?

thumb and ...

Oh dear - yesterday was not a good day. I strode out on to the front steps to clear a big block of snow from the holly bush. Next thing I was flat on my back. Slipped on a patch of black ice, didn't I? The agony - left hand, elbow, side - but the worst is the coccyx. Now, having gone through the same thing a few years ago, as well as nursing my daughter through a fractured coccyx, I'm pretty sure it's not broken, just bruised. I limped back indoors, straight to the bottle of Advil - wonder drug for bone pain. Sales of anti-inflammatories must be particularly strong in the northeast these days with all the ice we've been getting!

I'm looking forward to tomorrow - a bridal shower followed by the Superbowl. It doesn't get better than that. Go Packers - I'll be watching big B.J. Raji.

when the weather outside is frightful

stay in and bake! That's what my daughter and I did yesterday. Initially she was all about cupcakes but, when she thumbed through the "Magnolia Bakery Cookbook", she got her heart set on a chocolate cake with vanilla frosting. So we got all the ingredients out and realized we had no buttermilk. No problem: I learned from my new fave, "The Essential New York Times Cookbook" by Amanda Hesser  - she's a genius on so many levels - that you can make your own by adding a tablespoon of white or cider vinegar to a scant cup of milk. So we sifted and stirred and shoved the pans in the oven and by afternoon tea time we were able to enjoy a delicious slice of cake, a hot cup of English Breakfast and the latest episode of "What Not to Wear".

rice

So today has been quite a l-o-n-g day and dinner needed to be simple but tasty and comforting. What better than one's own stir fried rice? This recipe was passed on to me by my friend Debbie Clain who is an excellent cook. Basically you use leftover rice (I use basmati because it's my favorite), add it to some vegetable oil, warm it up slowly, add some soy sauce, thawed peas and chopped spring onion and mix. Then you turn up the heat a little and make a well into which you pour a couple of eggs beaten with a little sesame oil. You let the egg mixture cook through and then mix it all together. I serve it with steamed broccoli and some marinated chicken breast strips. For vegans, simply omit the egg and serve with tofu. If you are gluten-free, use gluten-free soy sauce.

ice and more

Today brought an ice dam leaking into the kitchen - not one of my favorite things.  BUT help came in the shape of a home improvement specialist who threw snow melt on the roof: problem almost solved. All the gutters are iced up and I wonder how much more they can take before they detach from the house?  Since I'm not going anywhere today it's the perfect opportunity to catch up on Masterpiece Classic's "Downton Abbey". I have three episodes saved - four and a half hours of viewing pleasure.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/downtonabbey/index.html