Eh La Bah.

Was that 4 cups or 5 cups?

Anna — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:59:43 +0000

Okay, Eh Lah Bah friends. I have a confession to make. I made this sausage, white bean, and spinach soup a couple of weeks ago and totally meant to blog about it – I even took pictures – but now I can’t seem to remember how much of each ingredient I used. So sad because the soup was one of my more successful creations as of late, earning the “This is one of my favorite things that you make” stamp from Dave. Bah! But we’ll take a stab at it anyway. I’ll make again in a few weeks to see if I need to tweak anything, but I think this is pretty close. Besides, most of the time when I cook, I just dump things in and hope it turns out. Try it. It will make you feel bold

Sausage, White Bean, and Spinach Soup

3 links of italian style turkey sausage

1 small can of your favorite white bean (I used cannellini), drained and rinsed

4-5 cups fresh spinach

1 small can stewed tomatoes with the liquid

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 small onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

4 cups low sodium chicken stock

1 T. olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Separate the sausage from its casing, break into small bite sized pieces, and brown in olive oil over a medium high heat in a stock pan. Add celery, onion, and garlic and saute until soft. Add the spinach and lightly toss until the spinach has wilted. Add the white beans, stewed tomatoes, and chicken stock. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

I like being Mrs. HabbenInk

Anna — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:38:40 +0000

Can I tell you how fun it is to see the concert poster (for one of my very favorite bands, no less) that my husband illustrated hanging up in the window of the pizza joint I went to for lunch?

Or how proud it makes me to see his work on the cover of a magazine when I’m standing in line at the grocery store?

I’m a fan.

Granola

Anna — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 03:20:40 +0000

My eating habits are highly “wheat” centered. An average day in the Anna diet goes a little something like this: whole wheat toast or cheerios for breakfast, PB&J on whole wheat for lunch, whole wheat spaghetti with sauce for dinner, cookies for dessert – not whole wheat

This being the case, one of my resolutions is to eat a more varied diet so that I can get a more complete spectrum of needed nutrients. I’m trying to find easy ways to incorporate different whole grains into my cooking. After a Costco trip last week, we’re all stocked up on oats, brown rice and quinoa. Thanks to Costco, we’ve also got loads of dried fruit in our cupboard. And you know what oats and dried fruit are best for…

I shy away from store-bought granola. For a food that is practically synonymous with healthy, it always catches me off guard to have the left over milk at the end of a bowl be dark brown and really sugary. Oats are such a great comfort food that they don’t need a ton of added sweetness to make a really satisfying breakfast.

So here is my recipe for granola. Nutrition filled, slightly sweet and perfectly toasted with just enough dried fruit to round it out. Goes perfectly with a scoop of greek yogurt and a drizzle of honey. Or eat it like I do – just with a little bit of milk. It’s my fave.

Granola

6 cups old fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cups wheat bran

3 tablespoons flaxseed

1 cup slivered almonds

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup oil (vegetable or safflower)

3 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 1/2 cups (roughly) dried fruit of your choice (I used 1/3 cup sweetened flaked coconut, 1 cup craisins, 1 cup raisins and 1/2 cup dried cherries)

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Combine oats, wheat bran, flaxseed, and almonds in a large mixing bowl. In a small saucepan, combine the water, oil, honey, sugar and cinnamon and bring to a low boil (while stirring) to dissolve the sugar. Pour your wet ingredients over the oat mixture and combine until the wet mixture has evenly coated the oats. Pour the sweetened oat mixture on a greased baking sheet, spread out evenly and bake for 40 – 50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so on the pan, until your granola is dry and lightly toasted. Add dried fruit, mix and store in an airtight container.

Resolution Inspiration

Anna — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 23:28:48 +0000

Are you familiar with the website www.the99percent.com? It has absolutely nothing to do with occupying Wall Street or any other street, for that matter. But it DOES have tons of really great articles on how to live a more productively creative life. Dave has been a long time fan. Now I am too.

I was just reading an article on how to get more out of your New Year’s resolutions by simplifying them. Thought some of you friends might enjoy.

2012. It’s gonna be epic.

Anna — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:56:29 +0000

We had a great Christmas and a great New Years. My mom and dad returned from their mission in Texas just a few days before Christmas. The Oakley Nagels, Catherine, Dave and I were able to surprise them upon their arrival (they drove home from Texas) with jambalaya, french bread, salad and ginger creams. Catherine makes a great jambalaya and to us Nagels, it might be the most comforting of comfort foods, so it was the perfect accompaniment to a happy reunion.

A few days later, we all got together again – this time in Oakley – to celebrate Christmas Eve the traditional Haglund way. Christmas morning was a dream. I loved it. Just Dave and I in our cozy apartment by the light of our first Christmas tree reading Luke 2 and exchanging gifts. It was calm and quiet and beautiful and sweet. I couldn’t have asked for a better first Christmas with Dave.

Getting back into the swing of post-holiday regular life is always a bit of a challenge. Like everyone else, I’m trying to combat my post holiday blues with some resolutions to get me pumped for a great new year. I’ve got my sights set on a half marathon this year as well as incorporating a wider variety of whole grains, fruits and vegetables into my diet and cooking repertoire. Armed with my camera and an awesome new speedlight to go with (thanks Santa!), I’m hoping to improve my food photography quite a bit and do more food blogging. Or at least take pictures of all the great things we eat in Paris or Thailand, since going to one of the two sometime this year is on the David and Anna habben family list of resolutions as well

What are your resolutions, friends? If you have any great ones, I may steal them