a work in progress.

I thought it might be nice to share a little bit of my new home with you.  As the title suggests, I am still unpacking, decorating, organizing, and purchasing new (or at least new to me) items for my apartment, but I am feeling pretty good about how the kitchen is coming together.  I mentioned in an earlier post that I am less than thrilled about the wallpaper... it is what it is, though, right?  I love having my own space to cook and experiment.  Douglas and I have already shared a handful of delicious meals at my tiny kitchen table and I hope there will be many more to come.  This vegetarian challenge has given me an opportunity to try some new dishes and learn to cook with a few unfamiliar ingredients.  This evening we ate a very delicious dinner, which I plan on sharing with you tomorrow.  I hope you enjoy the little peak into my world.

1. I am loving the lighting in my apartment.  I am surrounded with windows and we get a wonderful amount of sunshine in during daylight hours, the kitchen especially.
2. My chicken wall.  I have wanted my own chicken coop since I was a little girl playing in the hen house at my cousins' home in Massachusetts. For now, I live vicariously through these pictures.
3. I spend way too much time here.
4. This little trinket was discovered up on a rafter in the basement of my childhood home.  I have no idea where it came from originally, but I like secret little treasures, so I have held onto it over the years.
5. My beautiful Chantal kettle.  Yes, admittedly a bit pricey, but I loved the weathered patina of copper cookware and was too enchanted to pass this up.  It gives me warm and toasty feelings every time I look at it.
6. I am loving my new porcelain measuring cups I bought from Terrain as a housewarming gift to myself.

I did a much better job this weekend focusing on some of the things that I wanted to do for myself.  I am extremely proud to say that I put a lot of time and effort into getting some writing done over the past few days. Doug and I were able to hang up a little collage of photographs and artwork, making this place feel a bit homier.  We even made it to the track this evening for a nice jog in the cool almost-autumn air. Tomorrow is a holiday and we get to sleep in, so this is rounding out to be one extremely pleasant, successful weekend.  I hope yours is, too.

confessions of a workaholic.

The first week full week of school has flown by and I am sitting at the Ridgewood Coffee Company in a state of confusion and disarray.  What just happened?  It is as if the past seven days were not even real; they were here and gone in the blink of an eye.  How did I lose control of my schedule so quickly?   Why does the thought of "me time" seem to be a mere fantasy, a figment of my imagination?  I cannot believe how little I slept, laughed, or read this week.  The idea of having enough energy to go on a jog or to sit down and blog seems like a whimsical dream.  As I sit here sipping my chai and trying to regain consciousness in the blur that is my life, I am coming to a frightening realization: I am addicted to being busy.  It has always frustrated and amazed me that I never seem to have any time for myself.  Exercising.  Crafting.  Writing.  Sleeping.  I never have enough time to do the little things that bring me joy and comfort.  So, what is it, then, that deprives me of this time that I crave?  What gets in the way?  I am finding more and more that the answer really is: myself.  I get in my way.  I cram my schedule full of errands and spend so much time worrying about these silly little things that I rarely seem to get to the things that really matter.  While it is true that some tasks cannot be ignored - lesson planning, tutoring for extra money, meetings - the reality of it is that I find ways to stock up on trivial, time-consuming tasks that rid me of my ability to do what I really want to be do.  I am the epitome of an own-worst-enemy type; I play the role to a tee.  So here, readers, is a little pledge to commit a little bit more of my life to myself and the person I want to be.  Here's to more minutes spent learning and creating and less fretting and fussing over nothing.  I am good at making and breaking promises to myself, so let's see if I can hold myself to this one.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!

meatless, part i

Anyone who knows me well knows I love to cook.  I love food and am interested in the culinary process from farm to table.  I do my best to ensure that the food I put into my body is sustainably produced, nutritious, and (most importantly) delicious.  I believe that food is a means of not only sustenance, but also bonding and enjoyment, and every bite ought to feel good inside and out.  I have been challenging myself to find meals to prepare that satisfy my nutritional needs while also meeting my sensual demands.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, Douglas and I decided to make vegetarianism this month's nutritional challenge.  Since neither of us are yet well-versed on the preparation of non-animal protein sources, we decided to go on a modified version of the diet and are continuing to consume eggs, dairy, and fish while we learn the ropes.  I am so happy with the outcome of our first meal; we have been eating omelets and salad for dinner for most of the week, so it was nice to have a complete dinner this weekend.  I liked this one so much that I decided to share the process with you.

I found this recipe in September's issue of Real Simple in their segment on two-night meals entitled "4 Ways to Transform Your Leftovers".  The dish is quinoa with sweet potatoes, kale, and pesto, and it was absolutely delicious.  Doug AND my fifteen year old non-veggie-loving brother enjoyed the meal, and that is saying something.  The quinoa is cooked following the package instructions (for some reason I was intimidated about cooking quinoa but it is so easy!) and the veggies were simple, nutritious, and tasty.  I cooked the vegetables in my Le Creuset oval french oven and used pre-chopped kale.  The whole process took about a half hour.

Ingredients
2 cups quinoa, rinsed
1/2 cup olive oil
3 small sweet potatoes (about 1 and 1/2 lb.), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
kosher salt (1 tsp) and black pepper (1/2 tsp)
1 medium red onion, sliced
2 bunches kale (1 and 1/4 lb.), thick stems removed and leaves cut into bite-size pieces (about 14 cups)
pesto and toasted walnuts, for serving

1. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the sweet potatoes, salt, and pepper.  Cook covered, tossing occasionally, until the potatoes begin to brown and soften, 6 to 8 min.

2. Add the onion to the pot and cook, tossing occasionally, until they are tender, 4 to 6 min.

3. Add as much kale as the pot will fit and cook until tender, tossing frequently, adding more kale when there is room, 3 to 4 min.

4. Serve over the quinoa and sprinkle with the pesto and walnuts.

That's it!  It was so easy and tasted amazing.  I was so happy with how it came out, I made an even larger portion of the veggies the very next night so that I can reheat and eat them throughout the week.

Note: I have some ideas brewing for recipes that I would like to share, but am very new to food photography.  If anyone has any suggestions on lighting/technique, I am all ears.  In the meantime, please be patient with me while I learn to perfect my skills :)

and so it begins.

Ah, yes: the first week of classes has come to a conclusion and the first Saturday of the school year has arrived.  Sleeping in, perhaps?  A late, scrumptious breakfast in bed?  No, Doug and I find ourselves at the library kicking off what is sure to be a busy semester of studying, preparing lessons, and late nights with large cups of coffee.  Douglas is next to me clicking away at some graphing program that I cannot even begin to comprehend.  I am spread out over a study table: notebooks here, lesson planners there, textbook plopped open in front of me while attempting to complete my first unit of study in World History.  This is my first real time teaching the course, and I am one-part excited, one-part frazzled over all the time and learning and preparation it will entail.  We start the year off with the Age of Absolutism, an interesting yet fragmented unit where we look at the monarchies of five different nations. It will be a challenge to make connections and keep the material cohesive so the students do not get confused, but who isn't up for a challenge?  With my new Ernest Alexander bag that arrived from Terrain yesterday, I feel extra-motivated and professional today.  It is funny how a few pieces of canvas and leather can make me feel so much cooler.  Shame on me ;)

In other news, my apartment is coming together piece by piece.  I hope to have some photos up soon.  Of course there are some things that I am "stuck" with for the time being - the carpeted floors, the cheap window blinds, the silly wallpaper in the kitchen and bathroom - but home is starting to take on a style that is uniquely mine, and I am happy to have a place to call my own.  I am still waiting on some essentials - the pots and pans set I ordered last week, a new copper kettle to replace one that was burnt to a crisp a few years back, and yes (gasp!) maybe even a television.  Though I refuse to get Cable, it would be nice if Doug and I could watch our movies on something a bit larger than my little MacBook.

I have a lot of great ideas for the blog buzzing around my head for this autumn.  There are so many places to go, pictures to take, pies to bake...  I cannot wait to share everything with you.  Always open to suggestions and feedback, I would love to hear from you if you have anything to say.  Feel free (please, do!) to contact me at americaningenue@gmail.com with any questions, comments, or random musings.  Looking forward to hearing from you.

busy bee.

Oh. My. Goodness.  Does school really start tomorrow?  I cannot believe it.

Here I sit: hunched over a tiny table at the Allegro Café attached to my local Whole Foods, sipping up the last drops of my cold chai latte while mooching the free wifi.  My to-do list is piling up to the heavens and setting up internet service in my new apartment has yet to be checked off this colossal queue.  I am in a sleep-deprived, carb-loaded, overly-caffeinated haze trying to figure out what needs to get accomplished in the sixteen minutes I have left before they close the coffee shop and kick me out.  Update blog.  Purchase new Prezi account.  Search for enrichment classes in the area.  Think, Jenna, think!  Do I sound cranky?  I swear I'm not, simply tired.  There is so much to do in the next week or two as I get settled into my new home and kick off another year of lesson planning, grading, and community building.  The butterflies in my stomach signify both the excitement and anxiety that is building up inside me.  Will they like me?  Will I be able to handle the extra course I am taking on?  I have never taught three different subjects at once before.  I have so many things that I have to do and want to do it is hard to sort everything out.  I am sure I will reveal my "master plan" for this autumn in an upcoming post, but here are some goals that quickly come to mind...

1. Learn something new

2. Spend more time with family

3. Volunteer

4. Drink more water

Number four always seems to make it on my list but is never accomplished.  What is so hard about downing a few extra glasses of H20?  I just do not understand myself sometimes... Okay, the café is closing and I could not possibly bear the guilt of keeping the barista up past his bedtime like poor web-less me.  Hopefully that is one thing I will check off the list soon so that I do not have to deprive anyone (including myself) of sleep while I hunt for free access to cyberspace.  More to come, thanks for reading.

westward bound.

Wow.  Is it really September 1st already?! Get. Out.

Okay, you can come back now... I just cannot believe how quickly this summer has gone by.  So much has happened and is about to happen, I am overwhelmed (in a good way, for the most part).  While I would normally apologize for not having posted in such a long time, it would be impossible to feel sorry for all of the wonderful things that have been going on in recent weeks.  Doug and I just returned from an amazing trip to the Pacific Northwest.  After spending a couple days in Portland, enjoying the delicious, diverse food, microbrews, and the unique, friendly atmosphere of our "farm stay" accommodations, we headed up to the Oregon/Washington border for some camping and hiking.  We were so (so so so) lucky to be the recipients of some serious generosity and got to stay at a private camping lot nestled between Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams in the Columbia River Gorge.  Four days of fresh air, twenty-two miles of hiking, and no running water.  Other than the greasy hair, I loved every minute of it.  

As we expected, Douglas and I fell in love with Oregon.  I cannot even begin to put into words how breathtaking the landscape was - the greenery, the mountains, the wildflowers, the coast.  Everything around us was unforgettably beautiful, the kind of scenery that makes you a believer.  We saw and experienced so much: a walk through the colored rooms at the famed Powell's City of Books, a plantain feast from a Cuban food truck in downtown Portland, Doug's first wine-tasting at a local vineyard, a delicious blackberry shake (or two or three) from Burgerville... a thirteen-mile hike to Tunnel Falls, a "local logger lager" with a sweet potato burrito from Everybody's Brewing, the gorgeous alpine flora of Bird Creek Meadows, a night under the stars along the White Salmon River.  Everything was perfect, it was almost painful to leave.  Here are a few of my favorite shots from the trip:

Immediately upon our return, we had to pack, move, and unpack all of my belongings (which were a bit more substantial and a tad heavier than this minimalist would like to admit).  Yes, in the eleventh hour (and with a little help and good luck) I was able to track down a perfect little apartment near my school.  How lucky am I?  (So very, I am constantly reminding myself...) Though the moving process, crammed in just as we got back from our wonderful albeit exhausting adventure to the west coast, was less than smooth, I am so happy in my new humble abode.  It is very nice to have a place I can call my "own," a private space for relaxation and cogitation, cooking and crafting, productivity and love.

As for all the things about to happen:

*My sister Samantha turns 19 tomorrow (wow!)

*School starts up this week (eek!)

*Doug and I are attempting a month on a vegetarian diet (hmm...)

I know that September is going to be just as busy and exciting as August was.  I cannot wait for all that is in store for us.  This summer was possibly the busiest but most rewarding one of my life.  I am so blessed to have such unique opportunities come my way and to experience them with such wonderful people.  This autumn is sure to be a continuation of the love, adventure, and education I have been privileged to receive over the past year.  Doug and I have been dreaming, scheming, and planning around the clock.  I am so excited my heart is practically beating out of my chest. So tell me, reader, what have you got planned?