12 days of cooking: day 3 - black bean and rice soup

As simple as this recipe sounds (and was!) it was so perfect for a chilly late fall evening. Something that can be made very quickly and simply, this was very filling, super yummy, and really healthy! The recipe comes from an old International Vegetarian cookbook I bought at a used bookstore when we lived in Portland.

Ingredients:
1 lb (about 2 1/2 cups) dried black beans
6 cups water
4 cups veggie stock
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 to 6 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1 1/2 teaspoons each of cumin and oregano leaves
2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 cups cooked rice
2-3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cups sour cream
4 green onions, including tops, thinly sliced
6 radishes, thinly sliced
lime or lemon wedges

Rise beans and sort through, discarding any foreign material. Drain well. Place beans and water in a 4 to 5 quart kettle and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until beans swell and absorb most of the water (30-45 minutes). Add stock and continue simmering, covered, until beans are tender (about 1 hour.)
Meanwhile, heat oil in frying pan over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, cumin and oregano and cook until onion is soft. Set aside.
In a blender or or food processor, whirl about 2 cups of the beans and a little broth until smooth. Return puree to kettle. Stir in 2 teaspoons salt, onion mixture, rice and vinegar. Cook over medium heat until soup is steaming.
Serve with sour cream, green onions, radishes and lemon or lime wedges on the side.

The great thing about this recipe is that it requires very minimal supervision, and the beans can be left cooking while you do other things. And if you don't have time to use dried black beans, you can opt for canned and have dinner ready even faster! I left off the sour cream, green onions and radishes, and added fresh cilantro and topped with a little cheddar cheese. It was delish!

I've got my second loaf of Pumpkin Oatmeal Bread in the oven as I type, and can't wait to tell you all about it!

It's also snowing again - we got a couple of inches last night and are expecting a couple more through tomorrow evening. This is the second Sunday in a row that it's been snowing, and we've been enjoying the snowy mornings by walking down to the local bakery, enjoying some coffee and a bagel and walking home, taking in the beautiful cold snow.

The kitties are also enjoying their snow days :) 

And I'm getting some more Christmas knitting done!

Hope you are enjoying your Sunday afternoon!

knitters and cats

The more I learn about knitting and meet more of my fellow knitters, the more I realize that, for whatever reason, a lot of people who love all things fiber also love cats. I'm not sure why that is. But (and this will come to no surprise to those who know me), I am definitely no exception. I have been a kitty lover since I was a little girl, and I used to play with the stray kitten who wandered through my grandmother's yard from time to time. My family always jokes that I am a crazy cat lady, who will one day be eaten by my cats after I have a knitting-related death. Apparently, I am not the first person in my family to have such a fate...

My late great-grandfather apparently housed a plethora of feral cats in an old car he kept parked at his house. And while he eventually died of old age (and not of a cat related death), story says that his wife constantly threatened divorce if he didn't "get rid of all of those darn cats". I guess the reason they lived in the car is because she wouldn't let them in the house.

This gets me thinking - is this some sort of hereditary thing? Am I going to eventually house 30 cats in an abandoned car, after Jake leaves me because I claim to be part feline?

Well, let's hope not.

But it also made me realize that I haven't really talked much about our little furry children here. So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce you to....

Fozzie (orange kitty) and Pearl (grey kitty)! I know it might be hard to believe, but they're brother and sister, and we adopted them almost 2 years ago from the SPCA in Charlottesville, Virginia. This picture doesn't show it very well, but Fozzie is about twice the size of Pearl with a tail that extends like another creature of the back of him. They are both so unique and special, and so very sweet and loving.

Fozzie has the most personality of any cat I've ever been around. He loves to play fetch - especially up and down the steps. No joke. Fetch. You throw the ball up the stairs, he goes running after it, picks it up in his mouth and brings is back down to you. Sometimes, he'll just stop at the top of the stairs, drop the ball, and swipe it so that it falls back down the stairs and lands at your feet. All so you can pick it back up and throw it to him again. He also loves to talk to you. He makes more noise than either Jake or I. And has no problem letting you know when he needs to be petted. You talk to him, he talks right back. He's definitely a snuggler, a huge fur ball, and kind of a scaredy cat.

playing fetch

Pearl....well, it's hard to find the words to describe Pearl. She's a hunter. And a hoarder. And she has a crazy obsession with all things wool and rubber. Meaning, if I leave something in my bag that contains either of those two things, she will smell it out, find her way into the bag, take it, hide it, and I will never see it again. We always joke that when we move, we'll find all of Pearl's different little lairs where she's hidden everything she's stolen from us in the 2 years that we've lived here. She loves to snuggle. But only with myself or Jake. She really doesn't like anyone else. And I'm okay with that. Her favorite toy is a needle felted pumpkin that she stole from me last year. It literally makes her crazy. She chases it around the house and growls at Fozzie if he tries to come near her while she has it. She's a wonderful little kitty and we love her so very much - even if she is a little different.

Oh yeah, and she sleeps with her mouth open. And we always take pictures of her.

Our sweet little kitties! They really complete our little family, and couldn't imagine life without them!