elephantine

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Ah, colds. Don't you hate them? I'm signing off for the week – be back on Monday. Have a wonderful weekend!

swiss enchiladas

When I was back home last weekend, my mom and I made Swiss Enchiladas. Because there are several things that need to be prepared, this type of recipe is good to do with a family member or friend (especially with a couple glasses of wine). So, together you make the filling, you fry up some tortillas, you shred some cheese, you roll the enchiladas, you pour in the milk, you bake, you eat. And then, at last, you take a siesta.

Swiss Enchiladas (serves 4-6)

Ingredients:
olive oil, for cooking
2 cloves minced garlic
1 cup chopped white onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 cups diced tomatoes (canned or fresh)
8 oz chopped green chilies (these often come in 4-oz cans)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken (we boiled it beforehand)
pinch of salt
Tabasco to taste
1 dozen corn tortillas
about 1/2 lb Swiss cheese
1 1/2 cups milk or half & half

Method:
1. Sauté the garlic, onion, and celery in a small amount of olive oil.
2. After a few minutes, add the tomatoes, green chilies, chicken, salt, and Tabasco. Simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, lightly fry the corn tortillas (one at a time) in a splash of olive oil, just to soften them up.
4. Shred 2 cups of Swiss cheese.
5. Fill the tortillas with the cooked filling and shredded cheese. Only use 1 cup of the cheese. (If you've never rolled enchiladas, watch this quick video.)
6. Sprinkle the remaining cup of cheese over the top of the rolled enchiladas.
7. Pour milk or half-and-half over the entire dish.
8. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes, or until the top begins to brown.
9. Serve with sliced avocados and salsa, if desired. Enjoy!

a few moments

(Shot with a Canon A-1 + Kodak Portra 160.)

four things

1. Me, about 20 years ago.

2. I bought a Holga 120N. My first roll came out completely awful.

3. Went to Uneeda Burger recently and it was pretty awesome. I had the Crispy Emmer Veggie Burger.

4. This is the wonderful face Rufus makes when I try to cuddle with him. Ha! Um, yeah, he's not a lap cat.

(Photos from my instagram stream.)

home

Drove up north for the weekend to visit my parents. My mom and I made enchiladas, which I will share with you later this week. My dad showed me his new paintings. We gave Bodhi two of my old stuffed animals – a dolphin, and a Snoopy wearing a tiny "Bullock's Recreation Club" tank top. I slept during the drive back to Seattle.

anchovies & olives

Every six weeks or so, I go out to a nice dinner with my sweet friends Linda and Angie. Tonight we went to Anchovies & Olives in Capitol Hill. As always, I already can't wait for our next outing :)

the furry thieves

I took these photos last night, but came up empty when I tried to write something about them. Then I remembered a poem I'd written several years ago that seemed to fit. Mind if I share? It's a quick read, I promise.

-

The Furry Thieves

The plums are gone. Every
filmy,
dangling
oval
has vanished. I try to picture the raccoons,
knapsacks slung across their broad,
peppery coats.
One of them clings high in the branches
plucking the fruit, tossing, plucking,
the others examining the lawn,
furiously tapping their gloved hands through the dampness,
chattering under a watchful midnight.

In the morning they are sleeping.
I am standing in my pajamas
underneath the tree that is no longer adorned
with handfuls of palm-sized sweets,
and I'll have to wait until next year
to pierce the fruit with my teeth, peel the sour skin back,
and gorge on the translucent jelly insides,
spitting the prickly pits into the overgrown grass.

four things

1. Spotted this big, gorgeous tree on my walk back from the post office the other day. Anyone know what it is?

2. Lately I've been drinking a lot of Sleepytime Tea (a mix of chamomile, spearmint and lemongrass) and Trader Joe's Jasmine Green Tea. Yum.

3. Sometimes I think my favorite time is nighttime, especially when lights are strung up like that...

4. ...but I also love the light of early morning, when it's pouring through the windows. So much nicer to wake up to this than a blaring alarm clock, yes?

(Photos from my instagram stream.)

quickly pickled veggies {a mini guide}

I'd always been under the impression that pickling vegetables was a long and arduous process, until I came across David Lebovitz's pickled red onion recipe and realized that it doesn't have to be. (Of the various pickling methods, these are considered "fresh pickles".) Here's what you do...

1. Pick & slice the veggies: the easiest way is to use vegetables that you can eat raw. I used one red onion (which gives it that gorgeous color) and one cucumber. If you're using vegetables that you would usually eat cooked, like beets or cauliflower, cook them first until tender.

2. Pick your spices: really, the possibilities are endless – try using spices like mustard seeds, cloves, star anise, cinnamon sticks, red pepper flakes, or juniper berries. I used bay leaves and peppercorns.

3. Prepare the pickling liquid: in a pot, combine 2 cups white vinegar, 1/3 cup sugar, a pinch of salt, and the spices (I used two bay leaves and about 25 peppercorns). Heat on high until the mixture comes to a boil, then add the veggies. Lower heat and simmer for 30 seconds. Turn heat off.

4. Pour into the jars: using the amounts above will fill six 8-ounce canning jars. Pour the veggies & liquid into the jars and let cool before putting the lids back on. Keep refrigerated.

5. Play the waiting game: surprisingly, the veggies start to taste deliciously tart almost immediately after cooking, but it's better to wait at least 24 hours before eating to get a deeper flavor.

6. Eat & enjoy: yes, okay, I admit it: I eat these straight out of the jar. But they're also amazing on sandwiches, served with cheese & crackers, and in salads. Pickled vegetables made this way will last for at least a couple weeks in the fridge. If you want to store them for a longer time, unrefrigerated, you'll need to seal the jars. Simple Bites has a good overview here on how to do so. Enjoy!

blair at discovery park

The lovely Carina invited me out to Discovery Park over the weekend to take some fun portraits of her gorgeous friend Blair. It was perfect timing because I've been wanting to try out portraits, and I had just rented a Zeiss 35mm lens for the weekend. Carina shot with a Contax 645 and I can't wait to see her photos.

A ton of my other photos weren't focused right because (a) the Zeiss lens is manual focus, (b) I love large apertures, and (c) I had to act a lot faster than I normally would compared to when I shoot jewelry/food/etc. But I ended up with a handful that I like, and since this shoot was just for fun, that's okay with me. I also learned that I don't have any clue when it comes to telling someone how to pose – Carina gave all the direction, and she's quite good at it. (Check out her blog – she's also a great designer.) Thanks, girls, for the fun afternoon!

(Shot with a Canon T3i + Zeiss 35mm f/2 ZE lens.)