Although the Winter Olympics in Vancouver have come to a close, I still think this is worth mentioning because, well, it's pretty neat. A few weeks before the Games, I was invited (with a guest) to watch and celebrate the Opening Ceremonies at the Canadian Embassy here in DC. Of course, I was not going to pass up this opportunity, so Adam and I were definitely on board. We got all dolled-up and headed to Pennsylvania Avenue to see what was in store. The invite said "winter casual." I assumed this would be like any other event in DC; about 100 guests, dressed like they just came from work with light snacks and a bar. We arrived to see that "winter casual" actually meant "dress warm because yo' butt is going to be hanging around outside in 35 degree weather surrounded by ice sculptures and 500 of your closest friends, lines for days to get food and drinks, all while snowboarders jump on trampolines and do flippy-tricks, gamers play winter sports on the Wii systems and you try to figure out how to cope with all of this." Sound like a party? Well, it was. It was really fun. I'm not going to lie, we didn't stay too long because we were pretty much starving and freezing, but we did get these awesome mittens as a parting gift. If you remotely glanced at the TV during the two and a half weeks of sports, you may have noticed all the fans wearing these in the stands. There's a neat Canadian maple leaf on the other side. Pretty cool, eh?
Valentine's Day. A day to go out with your honey and drop tons of cash on a dinner and gifts and everything else to show how much you caaaaaare about each other. Not. Adam and I are definitely low maintenance when it comes to gifts, and Valentine's Day is no exception. He gave me a few books and a new Winter Sports video game for the Wii and I gave him a few CDs and some fruity candy. We also stayed in for dinner and cooked steak, mashed red potatoes, asparagus and garlic-cheddar bisquits. It was fun and relaxing and cheap. Just the way it should be.
Fast forward to last week. On Tuesday morning, I was sitting at my desk at work and felt a tickle in my throat. By Tuesday night, I was laying in my bed, consulting with Courtney, my nurse roommate, about what was wrong with me and why my lungs were swollen out of my ribcage, my back was in intense pain and I couldn't breathe when I laid down. I was nervous at how fast the sickness had affected me. Needless to say, I took the day off on Wednesday and went to the doctor's office. They did all kinds of swabby, throat-violating tests and determined that I had bronchitis. I should have known. It's the first week of March. I get sick with the flu/bronchitis/cold symptoms every year at exactly the same time. I even have proof from an old prescription cough medicine bottle I found in a drawer from last year with the date March 4, 2009 on it. Crazy, I know. You know what's even crazier.. what they made me wear while I was in the waiting room.. for an hour. It was awkward to say the least. If I had been in a better mood, or even felt like talking to anyone, I would have explained that it was just because I had a bad cough. You would have thought I was dying of the Ebola virus, from the stares I got. Regardless, I got some medicines and took the rest of the week off. I layed-low all weekend and I am almost back to normal. She, my wonderful doctor, told me that the cough could last a bit longer than other symptoms, so I am anxiously waiting for it to fly the coop. In the meantime, please enjoy the photo below.
Alright, here is the last of the updates. And this one is great. Last night I made Asian Grilled Salmon with Roasted Cauliflower with Parmesan. Thanks Giada!
Ingredients:
1 head of cauliflower
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup milk
1 clove garlic, whole
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Plain breadcrumbs
Recipe:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Blanch the cauliflower for 2 minutes, which basically just means drop it in, stir and take it out of the pot after 2 minutes. Transfer the cauliflower to a buttered baking dish.
In a small pot, melt the butter. Add the flour slowly and stir until combined. Continue stirring for 2 minutes to cook the flour. Make sure there are no lumps. Slowly add the milk, stirring until the milk is incorporated and there are no lumps. Add the garlic clove and pepper flakes and stir the sauce of low heat until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon. Add the Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir to combine. Pour the sauce over the cauliflower to cover. Top with a sprinkling of breadcrumbs.
Bake until the breadcrumbs are golden and cauliflower is cooked, about 25 minutes. Serve!
So, that's it for now on the life updates. I'll have plenty more later. I am cooking a Tomato Mac and Cheese tonight, and this weekend, I will be visiting Columbia for St. Patty's Day in Five Points! I could not be more excited to see all my family and friends!! I'm also really excited to finally meet this guy! Cooper is my parents' new dog! Well, new since the last time I was home. Y'all have a great day!
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