In Russia the laundry washes you

We managed to dig our way out to get groceries and run a few final Christmas errands. How much snow do you have in your neck of the woods? We only have about six inches, but its sticking around and it might as well be six feet. School was out three days last week (yay!) and everyone in our neighborhood was either sledding or trekking through the snow to the post office and library.

Being home all week was exhausting wonderful, it allowed me to try some new recipes. I tried a couple new Rachael Ray recipes for dinner for the Mr. and made this fabulous soup for myself. It appears Miss Sal likes Barefoot Contessa too!

I subbed veggie broth for the bullion cube and after making the soup, threw in some portabella mushrooms that I had sauteed for another dish. The mushrooms put this soup way over the top, making it dark, rich and hearty and super flavorful. Add a salad and it is the perfect winter meal and it was even better the following day. For you non veggies, any sausage could be subbed for the veggie sausage.

The main reason I tried this soup was to make the veggie sausage. I've seen these steamed "sausages" on a couple blogs and in Isa's Brunch book and was intrigued, but it seemed like it would be too time consuming and complicated. Not so. I used the recipe from Everyday Dish and the dough came together in minutes.

You just mix together the dry ingredients.

Add water and mix.

 Roll the sausages in foil or cloth. Toss in the steamer for thirty minutes while you fold ten loads of laundry. Dang we go through a lot of layers in the winter. I'm mail ordering myself a Russian bride for Christmas. I've been good and I deserve some help with the laundry.

Then the big reveal! Viola. Nice, firm, phallic-looking fauxsages. No ThermaJock jokes please.

I think I love making these even more than eating them. The transformation from dough to sausage is a special kind of magic that I just can't get enough of. They have a great texture and the flavor is good but I'll be experimenting with other spices and maybe some base ingredients to see what works and what doesn't. The kiddos dig them and shockingly even the anti-veg Mr. thinks they're swell.

Although I didn't do so great as a participant in Vegan Mofo, I sure made up for it as a spectator. I have tons of new recipes and blogs bookmarked and have plenty to keep me busy during the blizzardfest.

In other news, I'm doing mostly dvd workouts mixed with a couple bodyrock workouts a week. I'm just not moving enough though. My legs are feeling stronger but I've def gained a noticeable winter layer on my midsection and I feel like I've lost all my cardio endurance that I had gained when I was running. I've been on the fence about joining the gym for a couple months just so I can run on the treadmill. The only possible time I could go is like 5am and they don't open until 6. I'm trying to catch the manager to see if there is a way I could come in earlier. Oh and to see if I can sweet talk him into buying an X Bike like the one at Rae's gym. :) We'll see.

Have a great weekend!

It's Good to Be Back

The chest cold is mostly gone with a tiny bit of coughing that kept me and everyone else up for a couple nights until I gave it a dose of eucalyptus oil and some steam. Someone online suggested the warm mist humidifier and I'm sorry but I can't remember who, but I do want to say THANK YOU if you are reading this, because not only did it cure my cough, it has done wonders for my dry, scaly, winter legs that I scratch all winter long!

In other news we had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my folks. My dad lives at this lake and it is a super place to run. So super, he's taken up running! GO DAD! As for me, I ran a couple times while we were visiting but haven't since. I've been doing yoga and some home workouts, but you all can keep your 17 degree running to yourselves. Unless Santa drops one of these babies down my chimney, I'm staying indoors until spring.

Christmas is just around the corner. I've got the tree up and the hall decked at last.

Our home is a place where the Holy and the Roly Poly mix and mingle to a jingling beat,

and there's a nice blanket of snow all winter long.

 I'm off to bake a special little big girl a birthday cake. I can't believe she's 10!

I'm still alive and will try to update this weekend. I've been sick since turkey day: sore throat, lost my voice for three days (family was SO digging that), achy, cough, chest congestion...the usual. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and hope you Canadians had an awesome Thursday. We had our first snow today! No accumulation, but it looked beautiful coming down. I have lots to say about the last two weeks and the upcoming holidays, but right now a tea kettle is whistling my name and I'm off to bed. Night.