shepherd's pie

(this is the picture from the original recipe,

for more recipes, go to goveg.com)

since ron liked it so much, i decided to share the recipe.
i went off a recipe for veggie shepherds pie and we decided to add sweet potatoes with the regular potatoes.
boil 4 med potatoes,( diced) til tender. drain, and mash with 2 Tbsp. butter and up to 1/2 c. milk (or soy substitute for both if you are vegan)add salt and pepper to taste.
in a separate bowl combine:
-12oz bag of veggie meat (read label if you are vegan)
-1 can vegetarian mushroom gravy (i would use half, then mix in more until you get the consistency you want. we used the whole can and ours was soupy, but still delicious)
-1 small can mixed peas and carrots, drained (i just sauteed some carrots til tender and then added frozen peas till heated)
-the recipe didn't call for it, but i sauteed up 1 med diced onion, and 5 or 6 mushrooms sliced.
-season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper, to taste (i would start with 1/2 tsp each, or more to taste)
pour "meat" mixture into pie pan or baking dish, top with potatoes, spread to edge of pan. bake at 350 til potatoes are browned (30-40) minutes.

Moroccan Couscous stew

i signed up for recipematcher.com a while ago, but this is the first time i've used it.

you sign in,

go through the epantry and check off what food you have in your kitchen,

then it generates recipes for you, by the ingredients you have, and

gives you a list of what you need to buy.

tonight:

Moroccan-Couscous-Stew-crockpot-Recipe

(before i added the couscous and chickpeas)

i followed this recipe, but added 1/4 cup golden raisins, 1/4 cup mushrooms, 1/2 tsp coriander, a half cup of frozen peas chopped up some stewed tomatoes (in addition to crushed), and used Quorn brand "chicken" tenders, instead of real chicken. i added the extras from looking over other moroccan stew recipes and whatever i had in my pantry.

it smells amazing and i've been tasting it as it's cooking in the crock pot, and it tastes fantastic.

Meet Cute

October 1, 2010 - Ron and i celebrated our 6 year Meet Cute.

We met at The Rubber Frame: Culture and Comics show at Des Lee Gallery.

He was the boy in the room with Buddy Holly glasses and chuck taylors. My friends, Barbara and Martha knew him from the art museum world. They went to talk to him and i came over to meet him and then ran off. After the art show, Tom Huck, a printmaking professor, was having a party upstairs and we all went. i pulled Ron onto the dance floor and was excited he could dance.

After that evening, Ron and i hung out for the next month, but i wasn't sure if i liked him as more than just friends.

It wasn't until Nov. 28, 2004, when Barbara and i had our ornament making party to decorate our Christmas tree, that i knew i had feelings for Ron. i hadn't seen him in a month or so and decided to call him to come to the party.

It took us over a month to go on our official first date on January 17, 2005.

For our 6 year meet cute anniversary, we went to the Sam Fox School of Art faculty art show

on Oct. 1 at the Des Lee Gallery.

i am sharing some photos of Ron and i, having an amazing time together, over the years!

(note: all 2006-o7 photos are on the hard drive of the old computer)

feb 13, 2010 - I "heart" Ron

feb 13, 2010- I "heart" claire

nov 3, 2009 - candy corn fangs

oct 25,2009- zombies

May 11,2009- phun with photo booth

Feb 14, 2009 -sharing pie from the Sugaree bakery!

Dec 15, 2008- my stocking is bigger than yours!

Dec 4, 2008 - a rare photo of ron smiling!

Dec 4, 2008 - secret kiss

october 30, 2008 - discovering photo booth

Nov 29, 2005 - just goofing around

Oct 21, 2005 - Kimmswick High Art Club Reunion

july 4, 2005 - rooftop of Erato Winebar

Ron's birthday

Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010

While everyone was in town for Loufest, we had them over to celebrate Ron's birthday, and

eat some cake!!

(the cake: dairy queen Reese's cup ice cream cake)

("Happy Birthday, Dear Ron!")

(blow out the candles, and make a wish)

(oh look, his wish came true. ME!!)

(LtoR: Randy, Holly, Robert, Kara, Brooke , Mikey, Alice, Beth, Ron, Claire, Tom)

(not pictured, Barbara and Dave )

Mon. Aug, 30, 2010

Ron took the day off for his birthday. Besides ice cream cake, second birthday request was

Laclede's Landing Wax Museum. Barbara, Dave, Leslie, and Dan came along for the adventure!

the wax figures needed a little dusting, and trying to figure out who they were, was fun, but

that is definitely the charm of the place. Can you gues who we saw?

(galaxy defenders. CLAP! CLAP!)

("i think we're getting scammed by a kindergartener")

("Come to this side of the table if you want to be in the picture!")

"Nobody puts Baby in the corner")

(a smooth criminal)

Burger Bar

(chocolate burger: chocolate patty, mint lettuce, strawberry tomatoes, kiwi pickles, orange fruit leather cheese, strawberry sauce ketchup,

whipped cream mayo = delicious!)

Cielo (sky) Bar at the Four Seasons

(claire, Ron)

(Dave, Barbara. what a sexy, hair blowing in the wind shot)

(leslie, dan)

(the olympic torch)

(Dan, Leslie, Claire, Ron, Barbara, Dave)

(Dan gets air)

(birthday boy at the end of a long day)

someone needs a haircut!

Grillaxin'

This week started out with the promise of being a difficult one at work (one week to install a temporary Abstraction show and tie up the loose ends on a Teaching Gallery show that has been lingering near finished for weeks—with the requisite amount of pedestal building/painting/refurbishing thrown in to make it interesting) and it has more than delivered in that respect.

After a fairly tiring day yesterday, Claire picked me up from work and we raced over to the sushi happy hour at Wasabi in Clayton. An easy (and early) treat for dinner which set the stage for an uncharacteristically lazy evening of lounging in bed and nodding off to sleep before midnight (!) in anticipation of getting to work an hour and a half early to get a jump on things.

After an 11-hour day, I get home to find Claire cutting up veggies for the grill and 2 of the pinkest tuna steaks I've ever seen (they looked like watermelon!) in queue in the fridge. The best way to take it easy after a long day (and before the next one) and to take advantage of the last evening of a small break in the summer weather.

My girl.

We both look so tired. We are.

See? Like watermelon.

Perfect.

And for dessert...

...mmmmmmmmmm.

Superman Doesn't Live Here Anymore

Still playing a bit of catch-up here, but what's this summer heat good for, if it's not a good excuse for summer laziness? On the way back from Nashville over Memorial Day, Claire and I stopped in Metropolis, IL and visited the Superman Museum. I hadn't been there in a few years, but i don't think they had more than 10 new items on display. There's so much crammed into it though, that it doesn't really matter.

Upskirt and away.

I think he's so angry because he just realized that he has no use for a motorbike.

Pre-Death of Superman.

Post-Return of Superman.

Big Superman statue at City Hall.

Bigger Big John statue at grocery store.

Checking in on the business on the way back to St. Louis.