Friday, February 27, 2009

Vegetarian Meatloaf

Veggie "Meat" LoafVeggie "Meat" Loaf

Unfortunately, this kinda looks better than it tastes. It's not bad though. I think maybe if I sauteed the onion and garlic before adding it in, it might have been a little more flavorful. I didn't add any spices because I figured the sauces would take care of that. They didn't so I slathered A1 over the top upon serving. I probably won't make this again because it was kind of a pain but I'm glad I tried it anyway. In any case, here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
  • 3/4 cup dry brown lentils
  • 1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
  • 1/2 cup wheat germ
  • 1 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 large onion, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1/2 cup frozen veggies (I used peas and carrots)
  • 2 tsp. hot sauce
  • 2 tbsp. BBQ sauce
  • 1 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1/3 cup shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
Directions:
  • Cook lentils and brown rice according to package directions. (I boiled the lentils in just enough water to cover them for about 40 min, then added instant brown rice to the pot and boiled for another 10 min. adding hot water as needed. There's probably a better way to do that though. I prepared these the night before so it had plenty of time to soak up additional moisture and were nice and soft for the "mashing".)
  • Preheat oven to 325 F.
  • In a large bowl, mash lentils and rice. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
  • Pack into a lightly greased loaf pan (I ended up splitting this between 2 loaf pans.)
  • Bake, COVERED, for about 1 hour. (I added more BBQ sauce and baked uncovered for the last 15 min.)

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Beer Bread

The last time I made beer bread it came out with the consistency of a wet brick. It was extremely heavy and dense but squishy in the middle. Not good. So this time I thought I'd try this whole wheat beer bread recipe. It was much better, though still not the best beer bread I've had. I added a bunch of spices to it (pepper, chili powder, garlic salt) and sprinkled cheese on the top during the last 20 min of baking (thereby making it not vegan anymore... but you could use fake cheese too I would imagine.)

beer bread

I used a bottle of Red Stripe which is maybe not the best beer bread beer but it's all we had. It turned out a bit dry and crumbly but went really well with the chili I made for dinner. I think it might be better with half white flour, half wheat...

Tonight I'm making Lentil Veggie "Meat"loaf so watch for a post about that...

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Wordless Wednesday 16

She got a hold of a yarn wrapper...

caught in the act

Monday, February 23, 2009

Updated Sweater Photos

Here's the first sweater as of today. I'm not super happy with the "pooling" (specifically the big brown spot on the front.)
frontback

Here's the second sweater after decreasing:


And a current photo:

Sweater Crazy

Ever since I finished that first sweater I've been kinda sweater crazy. After xmas I had decided that I needed to use up a large portion of my yarn stash before I was allowed to buy any more. I ended up using most of it on my "6 Point Stash-ghan" and promptly proceeded to replenish my yarn stash. So, with all this new yarn, I've been crocheting like MAD for the past couple weeks. I made a cotton market bag, the previously mentioned sweater, and I started a scarf and 2 more sweaters!

The first one uses a self-striping bulky yarn and I started it at least 4 times before settling on a pattern. I also ripped out the bottom part and redid it since this photo was taken. I'm still not sure about it though. I love the way the yoke is constructed but I'm not sure what to do at the torso.


The second one uses a very thin yarn and this pattern. The top turned out nicely but it ended up way too big once I got past the sleeve part. (Once again, this photo is already outdated.) I ended up decreasing a lot under the bust so it looks shirred. I like the way it looks but I wish it was just a bit stretchier. I guess I need to learn to knit for that.


Both of these patterns are worked top-down and seamlessly which I love. I just hate seaming and will pass up almost any pattern that involves much of it. The second sweater is actually worked in a spiral which makes me love it even more. No joining!

Saturday, February 14, 2009

My first sweater!

I actually crocheted myself a sweater! I was always kind of hesitant to do it because I hate sewing pieces together and I've never actually worn anything that I've crocheted before. I found this pattern that's worked top-down and is seamless... and it's super easy. I actually can't believe how easy it was, and it only took me 3 days to finish!
sweater
sweater finished?
sweater
I think it looks pretty good as is (I will add some buttons or something) but I'm trying to decide if I want to add sleeves or not. Thoughts?

Friday, February 13, 2009

100th Post!


Meiby lounging in the sun, originally uploaded by amee16.

Wow, it's my 100th post already! The weather has been unseasonably warm this week (the 3 feet of snow on the ground has all melted... and it's invading our basement, but that's another story.) It was actually warm enough to keep the door open for a couple days and Meiby found a nice warm spot to nap. She's been so energetic lately and just itching to get out of the house for any reason. Nick has been taking her for long walks during the day, taking advantage of the warmth. We're all looking forward to spring when we can all spend a lot more time outside!

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Merged

Much like my home, I've got stuff spread out all over the place. I have 4 separate blogs for some reason so I've decided to consolidate. Brew, Bake, Crochet has been moved here and I'll be posting about those things, along with Meiby posts, here from now on. Please excuse the mess while I reorganize links, etc.

Friday, February 6, 2009

Snow Day

Meiby gazes out the window...


What does she see?


Lots of snow!
the back deck

We can't even open the door!
can't even open the door

I guess we're not going outside today...


Or maybe we will ;)

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Mysterious Smells

Since it's been so cold this winter, as I've mentioned before, we trained Meiby to use puppy pads so she doesn't have to go outside it the sub-arctic weather. We don't have a lot of space in our little house so her puppy pads are placed on top of a rug in the kitchen. For about the last week or so there has been a lingering odor of urine floating around. I looked all over, in all the corners of the house for a pee spot but didn't find anything. I thought I was just going crazy. Then yesterday I was cleaning the kitchen floor and noticed that the rug was wet on the bottom (but not on the surface). I thought we had a leak or something but didn't find anything like that either. So I hung up the rug upside-down in the bathroom to dry. I left it for a few minutes with the fan on and when I returned, I suddenly knew what the wetness was. Apparently our rug sucks any moisture to the bottom and never looks wet, so I never knew she peed on it.

So, I washed the rug and placed it in a different spot in the kitchen, leaving her puppy pad where it was originally, but no longer on the rug. When I got out of the shower, I saw that there was a #2 but no #1 on the puppy pad, but thought maybe she just hasn't peed yet today. I got dressed and came back to the kitchen to get some breakfast. Then, mysteriously, my sock was wet! I looked and sniffed around but didn't see anything wet. So I felt around on the rug, still didn't feel anything wet. Then I turned it over and found a big wet circle. Somebody peed on my freshly washed rug! But Meiby doesn't know anything about it...

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Meiby loves my new blanket...

DSCN0483

DSCN0474

DSCN0475

25 Things

Reposted from Facebook: 25 things about me you probably don't care about :)

1. I hate most condiments: ketchup, mustard, mayo, onions, sweet relish, etc. But I love A1 and BBQ sauce!

2. I'm painfully shy and am super grateful to have a great group of friends and a husband so I don't have to go out and try to meet people anymore (though, really, I still should). However, I like to meet new people, I'm just really bad at starting conversations and I think I often come off rude or snobby.

3. I hate talking on the phone. I think everyone should just use email and texts always.

4. I hate shopping. I'm so not girlie that way.

5. I love beer and I'm totally a snob about it. Luckily, most of my friends and acquaintances are on board with me here.

6. I taught myself to crochet while unemployed after college. My grandma and several aunts do it and I always wanted to learn but it took 3 months of utter boredom to get me started and now I can't stop. I still can't knit though.

7. All of my friends are either the youngest or only children in their families. I'm the oldest.

8. Most of my friends and myself are fire signs. I'm not sure why I know this or care because I think astrology is crap.

9. I just bought a brand new Honda Fit... It's my 5th car and I decided I needed a car I didn't have to pour money into so I took the plunge and bought it new. I love it!

10. My first car was a 1991 Dodge Caravan.

11. I used to be a very "musical" person. I played piano, guitar, and violin, was in orchestra and jazz band in high school and took music theory classes and lessons. Once I got to college I never played again. I wish I had kept up with it a bit.

12. I was a competitive swimmer from age 10 through my junior year of high school. I quit my senior year for these reasons: My coach quit, my friends all quit, I decided to join the art club, my school switched formats that year and the only way I could still be in jazz band was before school which coincided with swim practice.

13. I took 12 math credits in high school when I only needed 6 for an honors diploma. I became obsessed with calculus.

14. I'm not a vegetarian but I love vegetables and very often cook vegetarian meals.

15. I used to hate 80's music until I started dating my husband. Now it's some of my favorite music, especially new wave and synthpop.

16. I still have much much love for 70's music, especially classic rock and disco. Led Zeppelin is one of my all time favorite bands.

17. I first met my husband when I was 15. We had a mutual friend who set us up and we were each other's first kiss. Then we lost contact until we ran into each other at a college party 5 years later. We've been together ever since and got married another 5 years after that.

18. I really want to have kids but I'm also terrified of having kids (and I'm not referring to birthing kids, just raising them.)

19. I can't justify spending a lot of money on clothes or jewelry. My wedding ring is by far the most expensive thing I have ever worn. I've never spent more than $50 on a purse and that was a stretch for me.

20. I have very little jewelry because once I find something I like, I just wear that every day.

21. I have a goal to someday travel to Spain and Portugal. I'd also like to check out England, Belgium, Germany, France, The Netherlands... pretty much all of Europe.

22. I love my pug. Seriously, I'm in love with this little monster. She's my baby.

23. I have a tattoo inspired by one of my favorite architects, Charles Rennie Mackintosh. I want to get more tattoos but I need to think deeply on it before making it permanent, but I have some ideas.

24. I would love to live somewhere besides Indiana but it's hard to leave all my friends and family.

25. It drives me crazy when people have the aspect ratio on their TV set wrong so everything looks stretched. No one else ever seems to notice but I see it at almost every bar and hotel with a wide screen TV. Most people I know with wide screen TV's always have them set wrong. I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!