Tuesday, January 30, 2007

I've been new-bloggered

A friend and I are putting together a care package for our dear friend (and former university colleague), Becky, who moved to Athens last September after falling in love and marrying a Greek guy. Becky's been complaining about the cold, which surprised me, so I decided to knit her a warm scarf.
Time is of the essence, here, so it's an easy peasy feather and fan scarf in yummy Malabrigo (Violetas) on size 9 needles. I swiped the idea from Joan, who was inspired by Knitter's Review.

I love Thermal in the new Knitty winter addendum:

It's so cute and versatile. I like the look with the little tank peeking out at the top. A few years ago I had two merino wool sweaters from J Crew in this henley shape, but just stockinette stitch, and I wore them a ton. An added bonus is that the pattern calls for the readily available and fairly reasonably-priced Knit Picks Gloss. There are a few skeins in my stash, but not enough for this sweater.

The Elbac scarf in Knitty is cute, too.

Due to the lovely wintry weather, it has been soup-o-rama chez Caffeinated Yarn lately. Here's a recipe that was a big hit.

Mexican Vegetable Stew

Serves: an army (well, probably about 8-10 servings)

2 T. olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 large onions, diced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 28-oz. can plum tomatoes (about 3 cups), roughly chopped, with their juice
8 C. vegetable or chicken stock
1/2 tsp. salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 carrots, thinly sliced
3 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise into sixths, then into 1-inch chunks
1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 C. fresh or frozen corn kernels
Grated cheddar or co-jack cheese (optional)

1. In a 6- to 8-qt. pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Saute the garlic, onions, and cumin 1o minutes, stirring often.

2. Add the tomatoes with their juice, the stock, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil.

3. Add the carrots and cook 15 minutes, then add the zucchini and cook 5 to 10 minutes, or until the zucchini is tender, not mushy.

4. Add the kidney beans and corn and cook 2 minutes.

Two different options for thickening the stew:
- Run a hand-held/immersion blender through the stew to chop stuff up a bit.
OR
- Remove 2 C. of the stew, puree it in the blender or food processor, then return it to the pot.

Taste to adjust the seasoning. If desired, sprinkle on grated cheese before serving.

Variations: I sometimes add cooked small shrimp (salad size) to the stew at the very end to give it some extra protein and body. You could do the same with cooked, diced chicken.

Slightly adapted from Jeanne Lemlin's Quick Vegetarian Pleasures, a wonderful and versatile cookbook that won a James Beard Award back in the day.

7 comments:

Ashley said...

How cute is that henley sweater? It's speeding right up to the top of my list!

Karin said...

That is a cute sweater. I do need patterns for my September and October sweaters later this year! I am afraid of how long it would take to make though...that tiny fingering yarn...

Mia said...

It does get cold in Greece depending on where you are. Plus the cold is more damp. And the heating systems are way different from our nice and warm system.

I also love Thermal. I am going to look at other yarns first though. I have heard too many things about KnitPicks yarns. But if you would suggest it, I will go for it since even with ordering an extra skein, this will still be under $40.

Leah said...

I swear I am this close to buying the yarn for that sweater right now. I saw it the morning & I've been thinking about it all day. I wonder if I have some yarn in stash that would work!

I love a good feather & fan scarf. I did one in malabrigo just last month!

Christy said...

Sounds yummy. And thanks for the tip-off that the Knitty surprises are up...that is a cute sweater.

Anonymous said...

Hi Jodi!

That sweater is really cute. It looks so comfy.

Sorry I've been MIA a bit this week. Hopefully you're last package will be winging it's way to you this weekend.

But, it's now time to reveal my identity. You already know my name. But you can find out more about me at www.knilli.wordpress.com.

I've really had a great time having you for a spoilee!

Have a great weekend!

Jeanne said...

Does Becky have a dog? You could knit it The Sweater... ;-)