thursday is for baking

I made it through today (Wednesday I leave at 8 a.m. and don’t return until almost 9 p.m.) and am exhausted. I have an open Chem lab in front of me to complete, two GIANT tests coming up in the next couple days (one is Friday; the bigger one is Monday, thank goodness!), as well as a ‘to-do’ pile the size of Texas.

And all I can think about is baking.

Tomorrow, I am not painting. I am not doing yardwork. (Unless, of course, it’s beautiful and I need a break and the guilt overcomes me.)

I’m baking and studying. Baking, studying. Repeat.

There will be cinnamon apple scones. There will be pumpkin amazeballs. There might even be another treat, although it’s hard enough around here to eat what little I DO find the time to make!

And, not only do I get to bake–I get to cook! Our neighbors had their baby and I’m bringing them dinner 🙂 She’s a vegetarian (the mom, not the baby, obviously), so I’ll be giving them a quinoa dish with zucchini, dill and feta, as well as our favorite Nutty Sweet Potato Soup and a green salad. Oh! And I can make bread! In the breadmaker…I’m already probably too overcommitted (ahem, the still un-done lab in front of me).

Alright…enough procrastinating. Eyes are drooping. Still have to pack the swim bag for the morning. Sheesh…

a totally blog-worthy dinner

At least in pictures.

How I managed this when I didn’t even leave school until after 5:30, I don’t know.

Lemony Kale Salad

Cedar-Plank Grilled Salmon with Mango-Kiwi Salsa

Whole-wheat Spaghetti with Mint Pesto (can’t remember where I found the recipe…)

(Actually, I do. I assembled the mango-kiwi salsa the night before and the mint pesto was some I had in the freezer from earlier this summer.)

As we don’t have a grill at the moment, I had to broil the salmon. Andrew loved it–I did it dry (no olive oil because I was lazy) with salt and pepper on top under the broiler from probably less than 8 minutes or so–it created a crust on the top and it was lovely!

Andrew didn’t love the salsa, so I didn’t keep the recipe, but it was pretty good. I have leftover salsa, so I think I might mix it with some plain yogurt and use it to dip crackers or something.

The kale salad was yummy, and they give a couple variations on it (at least the magazine did), so I’m planning to try another one on Thursday with our Vegetarian Moussaka!

in the nick of time

Or is it ‘knick?’

Anyway, remember that Sweet Potato Chili Mac I said I was going to make while Andrew was gone?

Well, I finally made it tonight for dinner, only T-minus 21 hours before his arrival back home tomorrow. I swear, that man has turned me into a procrastinator!

It was good, but just like the Steakhouse Side Mac (featured in the same article), it failed to really meet that “mac and cheese” flavor need I was after. Guess Andrew will just have to go out of town again soon! No, just kidding… In fact, I’m actually starting to miss him.