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A Life From Scratch.

A Life You Adore Around A Table You Love.

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Another week of what WE wore Wednesday! Time to get out of the yoga pants and at this point, disgusting Ugg boots. I can’t wait to start getting some pictures… outside. What a concept. Play along with us on our super fashionable Pinterest board if you can. We’d love to see you there!

On B: Caught in the crime – he was totally not supposed to be playing with L’s toy. Sorry dude, that’s what happens when you go to school. B is in Gap Junk Food jeans, and a Crewcut top.

On L: Please don’t call DCFS on me – I PROMISE! He is getting his haircut, tomorrow. He’s in Abercrombie jeans and a crewcut tee, courtesy of best gal pal Olivia.

On C: Scarf from Hot Mama, top is Free People, AG Jeans, and Frye boots.

That’s my crew – let’s see yours!
C

Winter motto.

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chicken mushrooms

Repeat after me: slow cook, good wine, good friends. Repeat.

Yes it’s still a horrific winter despite that the calendar says March (seriously?) and yes, I’m still writing about braised meats cooked in bubbly wine enhanced sauces in my red pot. I’ve found it’s the only answer. Brown something, create a rich and delicious sauce, slow cook it in the oven in a red pot, buy some good wine, and find some good friends. Repeat until you’re barefoot in a sundress standing by mango pineapple chicken smoking away on the green egg grill. It’s the only solution that can shake the polar vortex grasp that seems to have so many of us going just a little bit crazy.

Luckily, I’ve found when so much isn’t working right (too much snow too much cold too much not going to school not enough sun) this equation does work. As long as you have the time (hello nap jail!) the opportunities are endless as far as what can come out of the oven all browned and bubbly. Onto the table it goes – just add crusty bread, good wine & friends. And repeat.

Your dear friends will cheer you up. Your home will smell killer. And you’ll get that perfect deliciously full, red wine, good company haze that seems to carry on with you for a day or so. It doesn’t cure the polar vortex blues, but, it does take the slight edge off the fact that it’s -5 outside.

Need recipe help on what to get going in your oven? All of these rock the motto well: hearty, warm, and delicious…

Chicken and mushrooms, highlighted below.
Winter Pot Roast. Perfection. 
Company Sauce, just toss with fresh pasta
1770 House Meatloaf. Winter isn’t winter until you’ve made this.
Brisket Tacos – hello margaritas!
Braised short ribs. Does more need to be said?
Pork Shoulder Ragu. Your home will smell insane.

You can’t go wrong, with any. Promise. 

Chicken & Mushrooms
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Ingredients
  1. 2 (3 1/2- to 4-pound) chickens, cut in eighths
  2. Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  3. All-purpose flour
  4. 1/2 cup good olive oil
  5. 8 whole garlic cloves
  6. 1 1/2 pounds assorted wild mushrooms, such as porcini and cremini, stems removed and (1 1/2-inch) diced
  7. 8 sprigs fresh thyme, tied with kitchen string
  8. 1/4 cup dry sherry
  9. 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
  10. 2 cups white wine, such as Pinot Grigio
  11. 2 cups good chicken stock
  12. 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
  2. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and sprinkle both sides liberally with salt and pepper. Place 1/2 cup flour in a bowl and dredge the chicken in the flour.
  3. In a large dutch oven, heat the oil. Add the chicken in three batches (don't crowd them!) and brown lightly over medium-high heat for 3 to 5 minutes on each side.
  4. Remove the chicken to a plate and continue until all the chicken is browned.
  5. Add the whole garlic cloves, mushrooms, and thyme to the pot and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  6. Add the sherry and cook for 1 minute, scraping up the brown bits. Add the minced garlic and cook for 2 more minutes.
  7. Add the wine, chicken stock, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a simmer.
  8. Add the chicken (large pieces first), cover, and place in the middle of the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
  9. Remove the chicken to a bowl and discard the thyme. With a fork, mash together the butter and 1/4 cup flour and add it to the sauce.
  10. Simmer, stirring constantly, over medium heat for 5 minutes, until slightly thickened.
  11. Season to taste (it should be highly seasoned), put the chicken back in the sauce, and serve hot.
Adapted from Ina Garten
Adapted from Ina Garten
A Life From Scratch. https://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Eat up!

C

C’s picks.

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c's picks39

Well well well – we’ve had a pretty girly weekend around here! I started the weekend off with a bang by having dinner with my five Chicago dwelling sisters – a blast. Saturday we cheered on long term friend, Olivia, at her (high school!) theater debut. And lastly we all attended a (subtle) princess themed birthday party for qt Kelsey. A lot of…pink this weekend! Fun mix up from the normal bats, balls, cleats, gatorade, etc that typically consume our weekend. Although all of that, of course, happened as well.

Alright! Our meal plan for the week:

Sunday night is Oscar night apparently, so, we’re going super fancy here. Yummy filets will be served along with crack potatoes. We’ll be wearing sweats I’m sure. 

Let’s make a soup for Monday. We’ve been doing super healthy soups lately which have been delicious, but, I feel like I need this recipe in my life this week. I think you need it as well.

Busy chicken is a new staple in our home and we’ll roasting it up Tuesday night.

Wednesday will be another night of the chicken corn chowder.

That brings us to Thursday and to this recipe I’ve been dying to try: one pot lemon garlic pasta. I could not love one pot dishes more.

Yippee for wingless buffalo chicken pizza on Fridays!

That’s our kitchen line up – what are you making?
C

Polar vortex roast.

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Winter Pot Roast

It was another dreary and cold winter in Chicago. There didn’t seem to be much else to do than to cook up a big bubbling pot roast, get a few good bottles of red going, invite our friends who love to eat just as much as we do to come over, let the boys run around the home like mad, and bam – call it a night. And that’s precisely what we did.

I’m convinced there is no greater comfort that setting a warm and messy dutch oven on a wooden table to enjoy seconds, thirds, and sometimes….fourths? (Ahem, Catherine). Everything is full and hazy and suddenly the fact that 4 shrieking boys are taking all the cushions off your new RH couch doesn’t matter one bit because you’re eating crusty bread with softened garlicky olives that have been drenched in a rich sauce. Next to good friends. With good wine. Shriek away boys, shriek away. 

Let this winter pot roast recipe and your friends help you through the rest of this brutal winter. I promise, for one night, you’ll be happy it’s still chilly.

Winter Pot Roast
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Ingredients
  1. Winter Pot Roast
  2. Recipe from Curtis Stone
Ingredients
  1. - 4 lbs boneless beef chuck roast
  2. - kosher salt & freshly ground pepper
  3. - 2 TBS olive oil
  4. - 2 yellow onions, chopped
  5. - 12 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  6. - 1 cup dry red wine
  7. - 4 cups beef stock
  8. - 4 large sprigs of thyme
  9. - 1 large sprig fresh rosemary
  10. - 1/5 lbs fingerling potatoes, halved
  11. - 12 ounces cherry tomatoes, preferably assorted colors
  12. - 1/4 cup pitted green olives
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Pat the beef dry with paper towels and season generously with salt & pepper. Heat a large dutch oven over medium high heat with the oil. Sear the beef on all sides until browned, roughly 12 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside.
  3. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions, and cook for 5 minutes or so. Add in the garlic and cook for another minute. Stir in the wine and boil for 1 minute. Stir in the broth and herbs.
  4. Return the beef and any juices to the pot and scatter the potatoes, tomatoes, and olives around it. You should have enough liquid to cover all but the top inch of the meat. If you need to, add more stock or water. Bring to a simmer, cover, and into the oven it goes for 1.5 hours. Turn meat over, and then cook for an additional hour. Remove from the oven and set aside to rest for 30 minutes.
  5. Using a slotted spoon transfer the meat, vegetables, and olives to a large platter. Gently pull the beef into large chunks along its natural separations.
  6. Skim off any fat that has risen to the surface of the cooking liquid and discard the herb stems. Boil the liquid for 20 minutes, until slightly reduced.
  7. Return the beef, vegetables, and olives to the pot and simmer for 5 minutes or until warm. Serve on your table with lots of crusty bread for the sauce.
Adapted from Curtis Stone
Adapted from Curtis Stone
A Life From Scratch. https://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Eat up!

C

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wwww39

Time for another what WE wore Wednesday, which basically means time to show off your little one(s)!

This week’s theme is all about haircuts. As I’m fully aware, both my boys could be mistaken for girls from behind. And actually from the front, B is mistaken for a girl about 95% off the time. Whoops. M came home from baseball evaluations claiming L could ‘barely see from under his hat’ and B just looks, well, like he lives down by the river. Ok, ok, I get the point. YOU try and take a kid for a haircut that was recently pinned down for stitches, removing stitches, and then 18 month old shots. Not so easy, huh?

Here is what we wore on a day of reading, school, and playing ‘night night’ in the kitchen:

On L: Abercrombie jeans, Crewcut tee.

On B: Old Navy ‘skinny’ jean and a Gap tee courtesy of L.

On C: AG jeans, Ann Taylor Loft top. I realize it’s like, 10 degrees out and I’m in short sleeves, but I was cooking a roast all day and I tend to run warm.

On a side note, did you know? It’s National Eating Disorder awareness week, which is something near to my heart. If you or anyone you know is suffering, please, begin here. If you’d like to donate to help insurance companies realize the severity these disorders have on one’s mental health please, donate here and know that:

  • Over 8 million Americans are suffering, 7 million women and 1 million men.
  • 1 in 200 woman suffers from anorexia.
  • 2-3 women in 100 suffers from bulimia.
  • Eating disorders are now considered addictions due to the fact that they change and manipulate one’s brain chemistry to associate starvation with reward. This is serious stuff. 
  • Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness.
  • 50% of girls between the ages of 11-13 see themselves as overweight. (this makes me cry).
  • Treatment ranges from $500 – $2000 per day. Average one month session of in treatment therapy? $30,000.

Please take the time to educate yourself on this important mental health issue. It’s all around us.

C

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