Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Leading up to my making this, as the butternut squash sat on the counter and I admired it, Jon made sure I knew that he didn’t eat it. So I made it while he was teaching one night, had it for dinner and then continued to have leftovers for lunch. A few nights later, Jon made himself some Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup. I heated up my Curried Butternut Squash Soup and Jon looked at it and said, “Oh that looks delicious.” I replied, “haha, funny,” thinking he was teasing me, but then he said, “No really, it looks and smells really good. Can I taste some?” He took one bite, then another, and another, until I had to stop him so some would remain for my dinner. “I thought you didn’t like this?” I asked. “Well I didn’t know you were going to make it Indian,” he replied. So yeah, if you think you don’t like butternut squash soup, give this recipe a try; you might change your mind. It changed my boyfriend’s.

Ingredients: 1 whole butternut squash ( cut into 1 inch cubes), 1 parsnip, 1 turnip, 1 carrot,  3-4 celery stalks, 2 1/2 cups veggie stock, olive oil, 1 shallot, 2 garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon curry, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or more to taste), 1 tablespoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon allspice, 1 cup milk,  Salt and Pepper to taste. Croutons, chives, or sour cream as optional garnish.

Instructions:  Toss (cut up) squash, turnip, parsnip, carrot, and celery with olive oil, salt, curry, cumin, allspice and pepper. Roast in the oven at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes. In a soup pot, sweat the shallot, garlic cloves, and pepper flakes for about 5-7 minutes. Add the roasted vegetables. Saute for one minutes. Cover with veggie stock. Boil until all vegetables are completely tender. Use a handheld blender to combine until smooth. (You can use a regular blender for this as well, but let the soup cool first.) Add milk and blend more. Bring soup back to a boil. Garnish with croutons, sour cream, or chopped chives.

This soup is exquisite. I hope you will make it because I’m sure if you do, you’ll enjoy it immensely. Me, I cannot wait to make it again, I just need to hit up the farmer’s market for some more butternut squash.

Our Town

As part of the photography class I took, we went on a field trip through the town I live in, and took photos. I thought I’d share a few of my favorites. The town is really lovely and quaint. Originally, it was a logging town but now it’s primarily a university town, and has quite a few bars. It has beautiful old brick buildings as well.  A few of the stores are vacant, which suggests to me that the economy may have hit a little harder here. Regardless, the town still has a lot to offer. I hope you like these photos as much as I do! Have a great Monday!

Finding my new normal

I’ve been hesitant to share a lot about how I have been feeling since the big move, because it hasn’t been all butterflies. I knew it wasn’t going to be all candy canes and milkshakes, but it’s been a lot harder than I anticipated.

I’m learning quite a bit about myself and about Jon and about how we work as a couple. I’m learning what it’s like to constantly worry about money, a state of mind that is completely new for me. I’m learning how to swallow the lump in throat every time I think about Tex and how I left him. And I’m learning how to bundle up for what I consider freezing, and locals consider nothing. (If one more person tells me, “Oh this is nothing, just wait until winter!” I may break down.)

With all change, even good change, there is a period of adjustment. There are high highs, and low lows, and what seems like very few plateaus in between.  But slowly, I’m starting to truly settle in to this new chapter. Yesterday, as I stomped through leaves to my car after work, I looked around and felt really comfortable. Then I thought, “I’m in Wisconsin, I’m living in Wisconsin;  I never even dreamed of visiting Wisconsin and somehow here I am and here I’ve been, for a month and half.” It is beyond bizarre.

At the beginning of the week, I went food shopping. I love the grocery store, but the traffic pattern to get there from my residence is quite ridiculous. But I drove to there without a thought, completely immersed in my new routine of getting groceries. And it’s moments like that where this feels normal and I’m mostly content.

I’m still having those other moments, where I’ve been home alone for a few hours while Jon is teaching his class, and all the blogs have been read, and the shows have been watched, and I’m still waiting for him to get home, and I do wonder what I was thinking. But when he gets home, and we commiserate about how cold it is while he makes himself dinner, I think to myself, “this feels right.”

(Now if only I could get everyone I love to move here, get a job that I love and that pays well, and change the location of Wisconsin to that of Florida, this would feel perfect.) Have a great weekend friends!

200th Post

This is my 200th post. I noticed a few days ago that I was nearing my 200th post and I got kind of excited. It feels like it hasn’t been that long since my 100th post. I feel very lame acknowledging it, but today is also 10/11/12 which I’ve been looking forward to.  Dates that have numerical patterns make me happy. I am already looking forward to my 28th birthday, which is on 12/13/14.

I also like it when the month, day, and year can make a complete mathematical equation.  For example, July 5th was awesome this year; 7+5=12. April 3rd and March 4th were pretty neat this year too, 3 x 4 = 12, 4 x 3 =12.  I do the same thing with license plates while I’m driving, look for patterns. It’s a bit odd, but once I started doing that, I couldn’t stop.

And this 200th post of mine keeps getting more and more lame… But seriously, I’ve put my craziness out there 200 times and I still have people following along. I guess what this long-winded post about how weird I am with numbers should really be saying, is Thanks. Thanks for reading, thanks for commenting, thanks for tolerating my weird and making me want to write 200 more posts. Happy Thursday!

Autumn Manifesto 2012

I guess this manifesto is a little late, considering we’re probably more than halfway through the fall here in Wisconsin. It’s quite cold already, but hopefully that won’t stop me from crossing off everything on my list. You’ll notice that this manifesto is quite a bit shorter than my summer one. I’m the opposite of the majority of people and I prefer the summer to the fall. These goals are also a bit more involved than most of my summer ones.  I’d like to elaborate on them a bit.

Make Soup: I love soup. I have been experimenting with some different kinds of soups and I can’t wait to try even more this fall (and winter). I’d love some suggestions!

Collect Leaves: I’ve been admiring all the beautiful leaves bursting with color here. I’d really like to take a few walks and collect a variety of types and colors and make a collage.

Crochet & knit: It’s chilly already, which has caused my fingers to do some itching to knit and crochet. I’ve started to make a few granny squares, and I’d love to amass enough for a blanket. I also want a new hat, a new scarf, and possibly a sweater. I’m feeling ambitious.

Try Mulled Wine: The other night, a friend was talking about how much they enjoyed mulled wine. I’ve never had it, but it sounds pretty delicious. I’d love to make some to try.

Photograph People: I’d really like to expand my photography comfort zone and learn to photograph people. I figure the only way to do this is experience. Now if only my boyfriend didn’t hate having his picture taken.

Carve Pumpkins: Carving pumpkins has been one of my all time favorite fall activities for basically forever. I’m planning to carve some awesome pumpkins this year.

Make Apple Pie: Jon is allergic to raw apples and I’m not the biggest fan of apple sauce, so I figured I’d better learn to make some really good apple pie. Then the both of us can enjoy the delicious apples, fall provides.

Explore Wisconsin: Since we arrived over a month ago, we haven’t had the opportunity to do too much traveling. We’ve both focused on settling in, but I’m feeling more comfortable now. I hope we can do a bit of exploring some nearby towns and areas before it gets too cold and snowy.

I also forgot to put it in the photo, but I would like to get a library card so I can read some more books. I was on a bit of a reading frenzy but I had to stop because I was spending too much money! I need to start utilizing the public library.

So what are your goals for the fall?

Fall Farmer’s Market

I’ve already mentioned, that one of the things I really love about our town is the farmer’s market. Since we moved here, Jon and I have spent almost every Saturday morning shopping at the farmer’s market. The local organic produce is plentiful and gorgeous.

I figured you wouldn’t mind if I shared a plethora of photos from the market. It’s a daily presence in the town square (but has the most venders on Saturdays). I love strolling through the booths and I take far longer than necessary to pick out the produce I want to buy.

These pictures are a bit different from the ones I shared from Portland’s farmer’s market. The produce available in Wisconsin in October is very different from the produce available in Portland, ME in July. I love all of the different pumpkins that are available, especially the bluish-green ones.

There’s one stand that I stop at every week. This baker brings his wonderful French baked goods, all the way up from Madison (It’s a two-hour drive!). His breads are amazing, but I’ve made it a habit to eat a chocolate croissant every Saturday. They are divine!

One of the most challenging things for me is taking photos of people or in the presence of a bunch of people. I’m trying to break out of my shell a bit and take more photos in public places, as well as more photos of people. I really love candid portraits. I was pretty happy with the ones I got at the market this day.

The only being who knew I was photographing her, was the beauty below. Her name is Mable. We met at the farmers market, and I fell in love immediately. She is quite the ham about having her photograph taken. I was happy to oblige. I really miss Tex, so when I encounter a friendly dog in public, I make sure to get some love.

Sorry for the photo and text heavy post! I’m a little bit in love with the farmers market. I’ll be a very sad girl when it ends for the winter. What produce is in season in your area right now? Happy Monday!

Friday!

I mentioned on Monday that I have a new part-time job.  It’s at a very small local daycare, and I only work mornings. I’m in the room with up to 16 three-year-olds, and one or two other teachers. It’s been a while since I worked in daycare, and I really missed the children, but I’m quickly remembering all of the reasons I left. However, jobs seem pretty scarce, and I’m happy to have this one.

This week has definitely been rough. With my being back at work, my having a project due for my letterpress class, and our hosting a visiting artist (/friend) at our house, things have been pretty stressful. I am so glad that it’s Friday, and I have the entire weekend to look forward to. I’m hoping to take a nice long walk or two and collect an assortment of the beautiful leaves I see everywhere.

I also want to get out with my camera a bit more, and take some photos. I’ve been taking another continuing education, (adult school) Photography class, and I learned a few new things about my camera. It turns out that even though I’ve been shooting in Manual for while, there were a few tricks I could still pick up. I’m quite excited to see the photos that may result from learning these new things.

It’s so wonderful that it’s Friday. I really forgot how wonderful Fridays are, it’s been a few months since I was working! What do you all have planned for the weekend?