We’re supposed to get 20 inches of snow between now and tomorrow afternoon, so Mal and I woke up bright and early to prepare ourselves to be snowed in!
Breakfast
For breakfast, I had an Oatmeal Pancake with maple syrup, candied pecans, dried apricots, and a glass of iced coffee.
Instant Oatmeal Pancake
Makes 1 pancake
Ingredients:
- 1 packet of instant oatmeal (I used Quaker Lower Sugar Maple & Brown Sugar )
- 1/3 cup liquid egg whites
- 1 tsp baking powder
Directions:
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
- Divide batter in half and create a pancake on greased fry pan.
- Cook each side of pancake until lightly browned; repeat for second half.
- Top with maple syrup, nuts, chia seeds or your other favorite toppings.
After breakfast, Mal and I headed to Whole Foods to stock-up our kitchen.
Not surprisingly, everyone else had the exact same idea. It was crazy in there!
I had a huge stack of coupons that will expire at the end of the year, so I finally cashed them in today.
The cashier was really annoyed with all of the coupons for ”˜free’ items that she had to enter manually, but I saved $45!! That’s no chump change, people! It was totally worth dealing with a disgruntled employee.
Once we unpacked and put away the groceries, Mal and I started on our next project of the day: de-Christmas-fying our house.
We usually keep the Christmas decorations up until the New Year, but our Christmas tree was so dry, we figured we should just take it down. So, along with the tree came the rest of the decorations.
Until next year”¦
Lunch
Around 1:30, I took a break for lunch. I made a big salad with lots of veggies, a hard-boiled egg, and the best balsamic vinegar drizzled on top.
The other day, our new neighbor, Bill, gave us a housewarming/holiday gift from Gustare Oils & Vinegars, which included a really nice bottle of gourmet 18-Year Traditional Balsamic Vinegar. My gosh, it is delicious!
I don’t think I’ve ever tasted balsamic vinegar like it! It’s dark and dense, yet smooth and subtly sweet””much different than the stuff that I buy at the grocery store. I don’t think I will be able to go back to the ”˜cheap’ stuff ever again!
On the side, I had a few leftover butternut squash ravioli from the Rustic Kitchen.
After lunch, I satisfied my sweet tooth with ONE piece of homemade chocolate-covered toffee from my Grammie.
Telling myself (before I opened the package) that I was only going to enjoy one piece really helped me from going back for a second or third piece. It was definitely a small victory for me!
52 Comments
My husband I recently visited a producer of balsamic vinegar in Modena, Italy. It was fascinating! I will NEVER buy grocery store vinegar again!!! Here is a cool website that gives an overview of the process. http://www.balsamico.it/
The traditional vinegars have no additives – it is only the cooked must of the grape – and are aged for a variety of years. The vinaigrette at the grocery stores are made in a day and have several things added to attempt the same flavoring (but failing miserably!). The vinegar lasts forever if stored properly, so that is a bonus! We tried it on steak recently. Grill as you normally would (maybe with less rub/spices), and as it “rests”, put a few drops of vinegar on top. YUM. : )