use real butter

auggggggggggggg!

That’s me for the first minute of icing my ankle each time.

Drizzle and gray skies welcomed us this morning. It was one of those days when you are happy enough to snuggle with the pup for a few more minutes – especially since you can’t run out for a hike in the rain due to a bum ankle. Perfect timing to make a double batch of chocolate stout chili! The jalapeno peppers had some zing to them this time.

onions, peppers, and garlic are good for you

bowl of steaming hot goodness

The first bowl is always a little soupy, but when I ladled the whole batch into tupperwares this evening, the consistency was thicker. Yay for crock pots!

We had planned to go to Boulder for sushi tonight (MIL gave us a couple of gift certificates to some of our favorite restaurants in Boulder for our bdays), but a heavy fog rolled in this afternoon, or rather, the ceiling dropped below 8500 feet – same thing. I love the stillness of the air when that happens, and the way sounds are sucked into the damp. Even better than that is right after a fresh snowfall when all echoes are absorbed by the snow that is padding everything, and the clean feeling you get when you draw in a sharp, cold breath of air and exhale as if you are a tea kettle. Anyway, we ordered pizza, which we haven’t done in a while – but there are some days when I want to eat something I didn’t cook for dinner. The whole wheat crust was particularly well done today. Sleepy now…

I made my red curry today. I was so excited about the broccoli, peanuts, potatoes, onions, and beef… But when it was done, I was done with it. I mean, I didn’t want to eat it. This has also been a problem that has been plaguing me – disinterest in food! Augggh.

i added the flank steak last since i prefer it tender

It’s really full looking because this can of curry paste was pretty spicy – even for me. I added another can of coconut milk to take the edge off. It merely moved the edge back!

red beans and rice for dinner

I was craving spicy today. Well, to be honest, I have been craving spicy all my life. I love it. I made red beans and rice for dinner tonight. It’s really quick to make, but the prep can take a little while. Aside from the rice, the beans, and the sausages, I really love the vegetables! Unfortunately, Safeway carries crap for Andouille and had some strange chicken version that tasted not like what I think Andouille tastes like (I’ve had the chicken version Andouille from Trader Joes which is really pretty good). Nothing a little Tabasco can’t fix.

**Jump for more butter**