Posts Tagged ‘friends’

the frozen lake feat

Posted on January 27th, 2012 by Tonia 3 Comments

We skiied across Long Lake in the Chequamegon National Forest yesterday with friends. And then that wasn’t long enough, so we skied around it too, and down the un-plowed forest road leading to it.

Long Lake is one of our favorite swimming lakes in the summer. It was a little disorienting to see it frozen and snow-covered, but beautiful all the same.

Jack came along. He had a blast running all over the lake with Jenn and Trevor’s dog Coal, and was so worn out when we got home, he curled into a ball on his bed and fell right asleep {very un-Jack-like. He usually has energy to spare!}

After the ski, we headed to the yurt for a potluck of potato soup and an oxtail stew over hot grits- super satisfying after our workout. The dogs laid together by the woodstove and the humans chatted late into the night over red wine.

Paella Party

Posted on December 12th, 2011 by Tonia 1 Comment

Our friends hosted a dinner party this weekend and made paella for everyone. Nothing tastes better on a cold winter night than a plate of spicy, smokey rice. The Italians have risotto, the Spanish have paella. Both are delicious and make it easy to feed a lot of people, so they’re perfect for dinner parties {or big Catholic families.}

We arrived early to help them mince the herbs, chop the onions, and get the fire started. Paella is traditionally cooked outside over a fire pit in a large, shallow pan. I wondered what the Spaniards would think of us, cooking paella this way in the middle of December with six inches of snow on the ground.

Folks started to arrive, and we all huddled in our coats and boots around the fire pit, watching the magic happen. First the pork, marinated in pomegranate juice and herbs, was browned in the pan. Then the garlic and onions went in, along with a healthy amount of oil. Then the sausage was added along with a big bowl of chopped watercress and other herbs. And finally the rice was poured into the mix and sauteed a moment before everything was coated with homemade chicken broth and hot wine, covered with foil and left alone to cook.

Our friends served the paella with a huge salad of greens, pomegranate seeds, and oranges. Dessert was homemade chocolate mousse, topped with whipped cream and homemade chocolate lace cookies. Everyone died and went to heaven. It was incredible.

Are you salivating yet? Good, because I really think you ought to make yourself a steaming bowl of paella tonight. Here’s a basic recipe, but you can get much fancier or creative with it if you’re brave. The meat is optional and flexible in this dish. We used pork loin and sausage in our version, because that’s what we have locally-raised and free-range around here. If you’re lucky enough to live near an ocean, by all means use seafood.

Cooking meals together is one of the most enjoyable ways to spend the cold winter months. This meal goes well with your most conversational friends and this song playing in the background.

Chicken, Shrimp and Chorizo Paella – The Jewels of New York

serves 4

1 Spanish chorizo sausage, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 chicken thighs
1 medium onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tomato, diced
1 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, chopped
1/4 teaspoon spanish paprika
3 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled
1 1/2 cups Arborio or other short grain rice
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 cup frozen peas, thawed
salt and pepper to taste

*special equipment: large paella pan or large shallow skillet

Season chicken with salt, pepper and a light dusting of paprika.

In a large paella pan, heat oil over medium high heat. Saute chorizo until browned and edges curl. Remove and reserve for later use. In the same pan, add chicken and brown skin side down until crispy but not cooked though. Reserve to the side.

Over medium heat, sauté onions, garlic and parsley until golden and soft. Combine rice and 3 cups of broth into mixture. Bring to a boil. Salt and pepper to taste and add crumbled saffron.

Add chicken, chorizo and shrimp and continue to simmer without stirring until the liquid has evaporated and the rice is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Cover with foil to ensure all rice cooks through. Finish paella by turning up the heat during the last bit of cooking, this gives a nice toasted rice bottom to the dish. Let the dish rest for about 5-10 minutes before serving. Stir in peas and garnish with parsley and lemon wedges.

{Images from The Jewels of NY blog}

Brunch at the Yurt

Posted on December 5th, 2011 by Tonia 3 Comments

Our good friends Jen and Trevor are the caretakers of an old farm on the outskirts of town that is used as a spiritual retreat center. They live in a cozy yurt, surrounded by an enormous garden and beautiful, ancient farm buildings.

Yesterday morn we woke up to a nice layer of fresh snow. We rubbed the sleep from our eyes, popped a ham in the oven, whipped up some mashed potatoes {from our garden}, and headed over to the yurt for brunch.

It was so warm and festive inside…

Within seconds, we were plopped down by the woodstove and handed a glass of wine.

Friends started to arrive. The table filled up with steaming bowls of stuffing, roasted root veggies, salad, pies…

Bellies were filled. Stories were told. Laughter was shared.

A jar of cream was passed around the table and shook. Sweet winter-squash pie and whipped cream ignited a chorus of hearty “oooos” and “ahhhhs”.

And then the dishes were washed, leftovers were divided and shared, and the football was tossed around in the snowy yard with cold, red hands.

Hiking the Porkies

Posted on October 25th, 2011 by Tonia 7 Comments

Our impromptu backpacking excursion in the Porcupine Mountains was glorious. We covered 20 miles. The first 10 miles closely hugged the shore of Lake Superior and the last 10 wound through in the hills, finishing at a beautiful summit overlooking lakes, rivers and hills.

The wild is best shared with good people {our friends Jen and Trevor} and good dogs {their Shepherd mix named Coal and our Charlie boy}. The six of us easily fell into a comfortable walking rhythm, taking turns as leader, chatting sometimes but enjoying silence and the sound of our own thoughts most of the time.

The dogs were happy as can be, scrambling ahead of us on the trail, occasionally getting distracted by a chipmunk, looking back every so often to make sure we were still behind them. We were so proud of our long and low little doggy. Whoever said Dachshunds can’t hike?

At night, we built fires, cooked food, sipped whiskey and told stories. The stars were stunning and the air was crisp but not too cold. We didn’t see another human the whole time- it was as if we had the entire State Park to ourselves!

In the mornings, we made tea and oatmeal and geared up for more hiking.

We found some treasures along the trail…

Wild rose hips, fun to suck on while walking and packed full of vitamin C. And a sweet little Monarch, the last we’ll see for the season I’m sure.

The last 10 miles went up, up, up the whole way. But the view was worth it.

Too bad most of the leaves had already blown off the trees by the time we reached this spot, but it was still pretty breathtaking regardless.

What a great grand-finale to autumn! I hope you had a chance to get out and enjoy this splendid season as well. Tell me what you have been up to in the comments!