Can you believe it’s already November? And that means that Thanksgiving is coming up!
In the Netherlands we don’t do Thanksgiving. But of course we do Christmas! So when Readers.com asked me to create a holiday recipe for their Holiday Cookbook I instantly thought of the ‘Rollade’ my mom served during many Christmasses. (is that a word? Well, it is now!)
The most popular Christmas tradition in the Netherlands is ‘gourmetten’.
Do you believe me if I tell you this was the first chocolate cake I’ve ever made in my 31 year old life?
Well, it is… Don’t get me wrong, I really like chocolate especially when it’s good quality and when there is some filling or salt involved 😉
And I also like baking cakes but tell me: who is gonna eat all that delicious goodness?
A few weeks ago it was so cold in LA, I had to wear shoes -instead of sandals or flipflops- for the first time since living here. I also bought a few sweaters and I was looking for a coat.
P was laughing at me, “do you know where it’s cold? In Amsterdam!”
I also got a few texts from friends who laughed when I complained about the cold, “so what’s cold, 20°C?” they were asking. (fyi: 20°C is 68°F)
Well ok. I had to agree with them.
Before moving to the US I wanted to buy a slow cooker, I did a lot of research and it turned out they sell only three different kinds of Crock-Pot in the Netherlands and they are só expensive! And by expensive I mean €49 – €59 and €149 so that will be $66 – $80 and $200
But if I would do it, I would do it right so I saved up some money and went to the store to get some information about ordering them. And one day later my husband received an important email from LA what made me decide not to order the Crock-Pot.
I just love some good granola in the morning. I know exactly how I like it: not too sweet, no dried cranberries and no big chunks.
But damn, it was hard for me to get hold on the right recipe, my granola was always too dry, too fine, too sticky or too burnt. So I stopped trying and bought my granola at the store.
I’m not sure we will celebrate Halloween now we are living in LA. I don’t know why, maybe because we’re not used to dressing up with costumes for a holiday. Okay, I exactly know why: to be honest I don’t like dressing up in costumes… Sorry… 😉
But what I DO like is to see everybody excited for this typical American holiday. I DO like to see the excitement of the girl at the craft store when her mother told her she could choose a new trick or treat container this year. And I like
I wanted to post this recipe for a Roasted garlic and lentil soup here on this blog but somehow I ended up posting it on my Dutch blog first.
I love soup, but this will be the first soup recipe on this blog. Shame on me!
Maybe the weather in LA is still too good to start making soup? I don’t know about you but I guess I only think of soup in connection to fall or winter. Maybe I should promise myself to make a big pan of soup each week. Tomato soup with meatballs, Potato leek soup, Mushroom soup, Chick Pea soup,
So my husband bought a black BMW convertible last week… Early mid-life crisis? 😉 No, just a boy’s dream 🙂 Too bad the weather wasn’t that good in LA last week, but luckily the sun came out again last weekend.
We were thinking of taking the car for a ride and drive up to the Palisades or Malibu to go hiking, but instead I stumbled upon Artinasal LA on Twitter. They were organizing a Fall Show in Downtown LA. We rescheduled our hike to next weekend, when my brother and his girlfriend are here, and we drove east to DTLA with some cash and empty bags.
This was the first time I heard about Artisanal LA but their website explains exactly what it is about: Artisanal LA is a pop-up community event with weekend long seasonal shows and shops celebrating the city’s finest local, sustainable and handmade edibles.
I have a crush. A crush on fennel.
I totally love this vegetable with its funny shape and its slightly sweet anise taste. Before I got to know P I would always roast the fennel with goat cheese and honey on top. But P doesn’t like goat cheese. Or blue cheese. And that sucks!
As long as I can remember I have been overweight, even as a early teenager I was always the fattest. Years ago I managed to lose 57 lbs but now 37 of them are back. And I hate it…
The Ellen in my head is thinner than the Ellen in real life. Seeing myself on pictures makes me sad, that’s not who I am on the inside!
I can live with the fact that I will never be a thin girl, but I can’t accept how fat I am now.
I mean, look at me! I hate myself looking like this: