Matthew

One of my earliest memories is of a family roadtrip, and one of the stops was the Trees of Mystery. I remembered the giant Paul Bunyon and Babe statues very vividly. 20 months ago

I managed to create a spreadsheeted budget based on my spending for the last months. It was quite suprising to see where my money was going. I allocated enough money to pay the bills and eat and get around town, and I’ve got enough left over to start my emergency fund (one of my other goals). It’s been a week and so far I’ve managed to stay on track. In fact I’ve spent less than I anticipated, and that’s without killing myself trying to pinch pennies. I just need to pay more attention to where my money is going. 20 months ago

One more payment next month and I’ll be done with one of my two remaining debts. Less than a year from now, I shouldn’t owe anybody anything! Turning around and paying off your debts is a very hard thing to do, but being able to see the end is totally worth it. 20 months ago

The deck flooring is 99% done and I started on the roof this week. Yesterday I cut down the section of gutters where the roof will attach. That’s when I ran into another problem. Apparently the gutters are custom made and I can’t find the right shape end caps… so I’m going to have to make them myself. So what should have taken all of 10 minutes to finish the gutters, is now going to take at least an entire afternoon.

People keep asking my why the deck isn’t finished yet. This is why. 21 months ago

Here’s my progress so far. I’ve been working on it off and on for the past two months, but I think I’m getting close to finishing. This weekend looks to have some mild sunny weather and I hope to be able to finish laying the rest of the floor boards before sunday. If I get the roof framing started I’ll be very happy. 22 months ago

hey thanks! cross country drooling is a pretty impressive compliment :] 22 months ago

No. 16 Zucchini Pizza with Whole Wheat Crust

It’s getting to be that part of the year when everyone has too much zucchini. I got a few zucchinis from my brother’s garden this week and decided to try something different with them – zucchini pizza! I started by making a whole wheat dough for the crust. The pizza was topped by a layer of homemade cheese (ricotta would be the closest comparison), zucchini, mozzarella, more zucchini, more mozzarella, and ground pepper. This thing was delicious! I should experiment with different pizza toppings more often! 22 months ago

Specifically a math teacher for secondary school. I’m looking into certification programs in the Seattle area right now. I’ve tutored math and enjoyed it for so long it just seems like a good career move. 22 months ago

No. 15 Honey Marinated Chicken Legs

Not sure how much this counts as a new recipe since it was just a quick marinade I whipped up. It’s a sweet and spicy marinade that uses honey, hoisin, soy and fish sauce with some lime juice and hot sauce. Super simple to put together and would make a great appetizer, though I just had it for dinner with some quinoa pilaf. 22 months ago

So I’ve really procrastinated on this one. I have to admit that it isn’t the captivating read I hoped it would be. But I am planning to finish it before the summer ends. Right now I’m reading G.R.R. Martin’s A Dance With Dragons, but when I’m finished I’ll be dedicated to reading Moby Dick to the end.

Finishing Moby Dick is turning out to be my white whale hunt. ;] 22 months ago

I’ve decided to put a weekend in august aside specifically to hike Mount Ellinor again. Not sure which one yet, but it’s happening. I’ve got a few other people who want to go so I just need to figure out which weekend works best. 22 months ago

No. 14 Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers

Quinoa, veggies and black beans stuffed into bell peppers and roasted. Pretty straightforward, and quite healthy. I ended up making too much filling, but it serves as a nice side dish. The only problem I found with these was that they are somewhat difficult to eat. 22 months ago

No. 13 Piroshki

Or piroshki-ish, I should say since I baked them instead of deep frying. I rarely fry anything anymore. Anyway, these are basically meat and onion filled rolls, simple and time consuming at the same time. The filling is ground beef and carmelized onion with some salt, pepper, and basil. Some dillweed would have been good, but I was out. The rolls started as a yeast dough with milk, sugar, oil, and salt. The dough was portioned out, some filling was spooned in the middle, and the whole thing was pinched closed and flipped over. A few minutes before they were finished baking I brushed the tops with some olive oil. I’ll probably put the complete recipe up on my blog soon if anyone’s interested. 22 months ago

The past couple of months have been kind of hectic so I wasn’t really doing much in the way of cooking. But things are settling down now so it’s time to get back to it.

No. 12 Sicilian Pistachio Sauce with Farfalle

This is a really easy recipe to make and it tastes fantastic! The sauce consists of 1/4 cup ground pistachios, half an onion, 1/2 cup heavy cream, and salt and pepper to taste.

The pistachios were chopped in a food processor to small, uneven sized pieces. The onion was chopped and sauteed in 2 Tablespoons of olive oil till translucent. The pistachios were then added, along with enough olive oil to form a paste. At medium heat, add the cream and stir for about one minute. Remove the pan from heat, add salt and pepper to taste, and serve over pasta. I also added a bit of ground pistacho on top of the whole thing.

A quick, easy, authentic Sicilian dish! 22 months ago

Well I finished the 65 mile Flying Wheels ride this weekend. People have said that if you can do this ride, then the STP should be no problem. The ride wasn’t as bad as I had thought it to be, the hills were pretty tough though. All that’s left to do for me is book a place to stay in Portland and figure out how to get back. 23 months ago