There are so many reasons why I love working from home. This morning as Daughter #2 flew out the door, she said: “Mom, could you please throw my laundry in the washing machine for me”? amd I had the time to cheerfully oblige. I took an extra long walk with our old dog as he has a very thick coat and loves the cold winter far more than the balmy summer. I met a good friend for a long lunch and picked up a few groceries on the way home. I will be here when the wee one gets dropped off later this afternoon so that Glamma and Poppa can babysit this evening.
But this is also the time of year when I miss the camaraderie of a busy office with silent santas and pot-luck lunches. Last week when I was at the Global studios they were getting ready for a special group lunch and there were crock pots plugged in and various people arriving with their casseroles full of savoury treats. I got to peak under the lid of one such covered dish and it looked so good that I made it last evening for home.
An enormous step is removed by using large shelled pasta as the perogy casing.
Ingredients
340 g package of large pasta shells
3 c mashed potatoes
2 c grated cheddar cheese
1 c cottage cheese (I used the reduced fat variety)
1 egg
2 small or 1 large onion, diced
1 pound, sodium reduced bacon (might as well cook it all but only use as much as desired and refrigerate the rest for future use)
sour cream, as desired
Instructions
Prepare pasta according to package directions.
Drain and set aside.
In a food processor, using a coarse grating blade, shred the cheddar cheese.
Remove and set aside and remove the grating blade.
Mash potatoes with a couple of pulses.
Remove to bowl and mix in egg, cheddar and cottage cheese.
Dice the onion in the processor.
Chop the bacon.
Cook together until crisp, drain & place on paper towel.
While bacon and onions are cooking, stuff the shells by the heaping teaspoonful.
Place open side up into 2 casserole dishes.
Sprinkle onion and bacon mixture over shells.
Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.
3.2.1263
Kath”s quote: “In any world menu, Canada must be considered the vichyssoise of nations — it’s cold, half-French, and difficult to stir.”-James Stuart Keate
Sister #3 gets together with a group of long-time friends on a regular basis to eat, drink and be merry together. Glee is an acronym for a phrase which I can’t recall at the moment.
“Gone are the days of stopping by the video store and picking up the movie you want to rent. Sure there is Netflix but I’m still pretty old school and my computer equipment is not current enough to accommodate such things. So with an upcoming Glee dinner to host, I sat down with my remote and searched MTS Video on Demand for a film I could build a dinner party around. I decided on Woody Allen’s From Rome with Love. Primarily so I could make the theme: Italian.
The evening started with Heather’s bruschetta and sparkling Ruby’s; a combination of Italian Ruby port and prosecco. Kathy provided the salad, our best guess at Amici’s house salad made of butter lettuce and toasted pine nuts with a “from scratch” dressing. I decided to be politically incorrect and make veal. Breaded in Italian bread crumbs and parmesan cheese, it was fried in olive oil and topped with tomato sauce and mozzarella. I picked up my veal, port and prosecco at Piazza Di Nardi along with some of their fresh spaghetti and made a delightful clam sauce.
Here’s the recipe I found on-line. I’m so glad I did as it was scrumptious!
1 T anchovy paste (I know, but it won’t work if you don’t use it!)
4 cloves of garlic
1 t red pepper flakes
½ c dry white wine
1 can chopped clams with juice
1 can chopped clams - no juice
¼ c fresh chopped parsley
Grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Put oil, minced garlic, red pepper and anchovy paste in a large skillet. Heat on medium low. Do not brown the garlic. Mix and incorporate the anchovy paste until it dissolves into the oil.
Add wine and clam juice and bring to a boil for five minutes, until water starts to evaporate. Turn heat off, add clams and mix.
Cook one pound of spaghetti. Add pasta and parsley to the sauce and mix. Let stand for 5 minutes. Top with parmesan cheese and serve.
3.2.1230
Barb and the other Kathy did what they do best, went shopping! Barb’s visit to Goodies Bakery resulted in a lovely variety of mini cakes for us to sample and Kathy provided the wine. An integral part of any good dinner party. As for the movie…..not so much, but the food was stellar and the company unsurpassable!”
Kath’s quote: Interestingly, according to modern astronomers, space is finite. This is a very comforting thought– particularly for people who can never remember where they have left things. -Woody Allen
