Yesterday I took the day to do nothing. No, not nothing–I took the time to relax. How often do you actually take ‘a day’. You know, a day where there are no meetings or appointments. No obligations. And your mind isn’t racing, ready to check the next thing off of your to-do list. Heck, when you take ‘a day’ you don’t even have to look at a clock–the day is yours for the taking. I rarely do this. As far as I’m concerned there are always things to clean, errands to run and people to see. It runs in my blood. When my dad takes a day off from work, he has to paint the house for every hour that the sun is up. I took my day to make granola.
I have a granola addiction. It can be pricey so I just rather make my own. I took elements of some of my favorite granolas and came up with this. It has oats, milled chia seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, slivered and whole almonds, cashews, coconut flakes and dried cranberries. It is nutty and only slightly sweet. I am rather fond of it.
While my granola baked, I snuggled myself into a blanket with Truffle sleeping by my side and read Lunch in Paris. I thought to myself, “When is the last time I read a book for fun?” Sure, I’ve read a couple of books over the past few months and read articles, blogs and the like everyday, however; I never take the time to travel to Paris, solve a mystery or witness a 15th century love affair. I bought this book over a year ago and never got so far as 20 pages in before I found a life distraction to turn me away. I LOVE THIS BOOK! It completely speaks to me. I’ve decided that Elizabeth Band and I MUST be related. I still have a few pages left but you can expect my book report soon!
As I read, I consumed an entire mason jar of granola. Just kidding…kind of. I made a vanilla-banana smoothie in the afternoon and threw a big handful on top. A few hours later I couldn’t help myself and had a little pinch more. Then I decided that the crunchy granola would be much more enjoyable in some yogurt. You get the picture. I almost wasn’t hungry for dinner! But at last, I finally decided to shower at 6pm (!!!) and make myself a fancy meal. With wine. It was MY day after all 
.
I used Basil-Garlic Fettuccine and made a simple sauce with good olive oil, shallot (I usually use garlic but the pasta was already flavored with it), cherry tomatoes, artichokes, lemon and white wine. This is my favorite kind of sauce. When the wine is reduced, I throw the cooked pasta in the sautee pan to swim. It is refreshing, and delicately accents the pasta. Sometimes I add a pat of butter for extra creaminess.
Pasta ‘Sauce’ for the Lazy Garlic Lover
- GOOD olive oil (I use Novello)
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- Pinch of Salt
- Cracked Black Pepper
- Pinch Red Pepper Flakes
- Handful of Cherry Tomatoes, Halved
- Juice of 1/2 a lemon
- ~1/4 cup white wine
- Unsalted Butter
- Add olive oil to a skillet over a medium heat. It will take a few minutes for the olive oil to heat so be patient. You will know you are ready to go when it very liquidy and coats the entire pan.
- Add garlic. The garlic should sizzle when you add it to the pan. You may want to reduce the heat slightly. The goal here is to soften the garlic NOT brown it. It will become fragrant.
- Add salt, peppers and cherry tomatoes. Another 1-2 minutes. *NOTE if you want to add any other veggies: artichokes, mushrooms, add them BEFORE the tomatoes just to soften. If you are adding greens like spinach, do that at the VERY end.*
- Add lemon juice and wine to deglaze the pan. Reduce the liquid by 1/2.
- Add your favorite pasta to the pan and a little butter. Toss and serve.
Busy Again,
Nora
What is the last book you read for fun?
No Comments.