Back and Better Than Ever

Roomie and I triumphantly returned to Athens last Friday and were met with throngs of well wishers tossing flowers into the path of the van, singing songs of jubilation, and sounding trumpets to herald our arrival after so many months abroad.

What I mean by that, of course, is a stuffy, humid apartment that had not been properly cleaned since before I left for the beach and a barren refrigerator.

The former was remedied with a two-day cleaning-stravaganza; the latter by a mega-trip to Kroger which I could barely afford.

I guess the vacation is over.

It hasn't all been real-world responsibilities though. Kev came to stay for a few days while he finished up his illustrious undergraduate carreer; and any time a guest (even one so un-guest-like as Kev) comes to stay is an excuse to cook.

Monday night I jazzed up that old favorite Mock-soto!! by subbing walnut oil for the Enova and adding a bag of frozen carrots, celery, and onions. Delicious and filling.

Tuesday was Italian night, inspired in part by the huge bag of tomatoes from my BFF JSK's garden. Possibly the best tomatoes I've ever eaten. Since the pasta was the cheap, "comes-from-Sam's-in-a-6-pound-bag" kind, I decided to class up the evening with appetizers. Tomatoes are delicious with salt (as a kid, my gramma and I used to eat them straight from the garden like apples, sprinkling salt on them inbetween giant bites). Olives are salty. I just happened to have a deli container full of olives that needed eaten. I love it when dishes come together so seredipitously

Kalamata-'Mater Bites

3 cups Kalamata olives, pitted
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbs lemon juice
handful-ish of chopped fresh parsely
1/8 tsp fresh black pepper

Blend everything but the olive oil in a high-speed blender. Slowly add the oil until the mixture is smooth. If you can, make this a day ahead of time (or at least a few hours) so it can sit in the fridge for a bit. Don't worry if the oil separates from the olives; just stir it back together.

We spread this onto hot slices of take-and-bake mutli-grain french bread and topped with bite-sized pieces of tomatoes and spinach shreds. Add a moderately priced Chilean CabSauv and music from True Blood and you've got yourself a dinner party. Very classy.

Today I wasn't really in the mood to be standing in the kitchen...or wearing anything but a bathrobe and my PJ's or putting my contacts in... (we closed the Oak Room down last night) ...so it was my crock-pot to the rescue.

Pyjama Day Lentils

1 pound lentils
1 onion, chopped
1-2 tbs of cheater garlic
1 can chopped tomatoes, with liquid
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
2 carrots, chopped (or you can just throw in the half-bag of baby carrots languishing in your crisper)
handful of fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp marjoram
1/8 tsp sage
1/8 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf

Throw everything in your slow cooker/crock pot and cook on high for 4-5 hours or until the lentils and carrots are soft and have absorbed the liquid. The longer you cook it, the thicker it will be. I threw an extra fresh tomato in the mix as well and if I had had any celery on hand I would have chopped some of that in as well. Occassionally stir the pot if you'd like or just let it go while you lounge in a recliner all day watching Starz and facebook stalking and rehydrating.

This was so hearty and very filling. Serve over rice or noodles (Roomie made tri-color rotini) or raw vegetables; garnish with ketchup (or catsup), hot sauce, or cheddar cheese.

And continue to lounge the day away remembering why you no longer close down bars.

It's good to be back .