guns & curry

Whoa - so having two sets of guests within two days of each other makes life busy! My brother and his girlfriend pulled in late Tuesday night after driving all day (from Texas) and we've been catching up since! Seriously great to have them in town, but it leaves little time for anything else!

So let's go back a few days. Saturday, when Greg and Christina were still here, we headed out to the Y bright and early for a game of raquetball (Nic, Greg, Christina) and some lovely time cross-training (Kier). After that and a quick lunch of homemade veggie pizza (YUM!) we headed out to the shooting range so the boys could play with their toys.

Nic and Greg were excited to teach Christina how to shoot (it was her first time) and I sat back, took photos and kept the crazy pup away from all the action.


Getting the basics



Learning how to aim (and how to keep your eyes open while you pull the trigger - yeah, there is totally a reason why I remained behind the camera lens instead of a gun barrell!)



Ready...aim....fire!





They also tried to teach Christina how to throw a clay pigeon. It took a few tries....





And a few different techniques...



But she finally got it!





Hey - those things are tricky!  I've tried a few times and have given up all hope.

The weather was deceivingly beautiful and although the boys could have stayed out there a lot longer, it was really cold and we were ready to head back to the house to make supper.









Confession: While Nic and Greg were shooting, and while Christina was trying to master the pigeon thrower, I was paging through my new "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" cookbook for an inspiration for dinner.

Yep - total dork.

But, no one could complain, because they enjoyed one of the best curries that has ever been made in the PS household!

I was inspired by the squash curry recipe since I randomly had a butternut squash - but then of course I added a lot of this and a lot of that and ultimately ended up with my own thing.

Butternut Squash Curry



In the mix::

• 1 small butternut squash - peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1/2 onion - diced
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 jalepeno - diced (seeds and ribs left in or removed depending on how spicy you like things)
• 2 carrots - peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
• 2 parsnips - peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
• 6 oz mushrooms - rinsed and sliced
• 1 inch fresh ginger - peeled and diced
• 2 T canola oil
• 1 can plus 3/4 cup coconut milk (I used both regular and lite)
• 1 cup veggie stock
• 3 T curry powder
• 1/4 t cinnamon
• 1/8 t nutmeg
• 1/3 cup raisins

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil and then add the onion, garlic and jalepeno. Saute until onion begins to soften. Add the curry powder and ginger and saute 1 minute. Add the squash, carrots, parsnips, mushrooms, ginger, coconut milk, stock, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cover and simmer until veggies are tender, stirring occasionally. Test for seasoning. Add raisins and simmer 2 more minutes.

Serve over brown rice, pour yourself a glass of white wine, and enjoy!

This was amazing curry. Eight thumbs WAY up and Nic and I were secretly praying that Greg and Christina would leave before lunch so we could hoard all of the left overs!

We followed up the meal with vegan brownies (that we totally topped with full fat dairy ice cream!) but that recipe needs to be tweaked before I share it.  It was a winner - the entire pan was polished off in 2 days.

Lots more great recipes coming your way - especially the vegan lasagna that we had for dinner tonight.  Another eight thumbs WAY up!