Life in Iowa: chained to the stove

I was chained to the stove all weekend.

Right where a woman should be.

Or at least, right where a crazy person should be.

This was a long, albeit, productive weekend.

Working like squirrels gathering nuts for the winter - Nic and I worked on freezing some of summer's tastiest foods so we can enjoy them all winter.

Friday Night
Instead of going on a date, hanging out with friends, or being true small town residents and going to the homecoming game - we stayed in and processed beets. Pounds and pounds of beets.

I bet this is how Nic always imagined us spending our Friday nights when we were young and in love.

Saturday
Iowa City farmers market in the morning to pick up 39 red bell peppers for $13, cheese, bread, onions, garlic, and coffee. All to be processed over the next 36 hours.

We processed and froze:

Butternut squash soup
Celeriac soup
Heirloom tomato soup
Green beans
More beets

Somewhere between 6:30AM and 10:00PM, I was able to take a break and have a quick fika with Nic, squeeze in a run, and grab dinner and a few beers at JP's 207.

Oh, we also managed to head downtown to check out the craft fair and to drop off my first batch of cookies and macaroons at Dodici Shop!

Sunday

Nic went to work for an hour while I roasted those red bell peppers (all before 9:00AM), we had a nice hearty breakfast of scrambled tofu, breakfast potatoes and some apple cider donuts that I made before 9:00 as well.

All in all, we processed and froze:

Red pepper soup
Red pepper/tomato/basil soup

I also made four experimental loaves of bread that we'll be taste testing in the morning:

50% whole wheat/50% spelt
Swedish fika bread (cardamom, espresso and chocolate chips)
Butternut sage bread
Apple pie bread

They all smell amazing.

Lastly, I prepared and photographed a salad that I will be entering into the Taste of Iowa Holiday Recipe Contest. This is one of three recipes I plan on entering.