This morning I woke to a cold, gray sky. I made myself semipresentable, grabbed the camera, got into the car, and headed for town.
I'm proud of my tiny, odd mill town. I haven't been here quite a year yet, but I every evening when I drive through on my way home from work, my heart fills when I come around the first bend and see the old mills looming large over the left side of the main drag, and the tiny shops all in a row to the right. So even though we're a little past prime up here, this morning I took pictures to capture fall in Newmarket.
I drove around some of the side roads too, down to the Great Bay. I didn't realize there were so many luxe houses here. But I do appreciate that the town has a little of everything. Along with the out-of-the-way richies, there are lots of hipster college kids, many earthy hippie types, and the locals who grew up here. In front of the coffee shop, it's typical to see a Lexus parked next to a beat-up pickup truck. And it's typical to hear conversations about graffiti as a growing problem, the band that played last night at the
Stone Church, and local drum circles. I revel in it. Probably because it reminds me of Amherst and Northampton, MA.
The sky never lightened after this morning's sojourn, and stitching alone in my apartment, I could feel my fingers growing colder. But I come from a long line of yankees who proudly refuse to turn on the heat until absolutely necessary. No way does 45 degrees warrant anything more than another sweater. And maybe a blanket over my lap. And maybe some soup to warm me up.
I read several recipes and then came up with the following. It turned out quite good. Enjoy!
I started out cooking up some
kielbasa in
olive oil to give the pot a smoky flavor--just enough to get it warm and juicy, but not enough to brown it. Then I tossed in three cloves of chopped
garlic and a healthy sprinkling of
red pepper flakes.
Next, I poured in four cups of
chicken broth. I wanted organic, but I also wanted something low in sodium. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find both in the same package. So I chose organic over low sodium. Depending on your salt sensitivity, you may want to do the opposite. Considering the other ingredients, this is a pretty salty bowl of soup.
Once the broth was warmed through, I put in a chopped bunch of
kale. I've never cooked with kale before, but it shrinks just like spinach (and isn't half as tedious to prepare).
When the kale was good and shrunken down in the pot, I added a handful of
Parmesan cheese (which is essentially adding a layer of salt as well as yumminess).
Next, the star of the show:
small white beans. These are another first for me today. I dumped in the whole can for added liquid and a slight thickener.
Finally, I added
pistou, which is French and fancy for "half a container of store-bought
pesto." Kidding--my Frenchie ancestors would kick me for buying a container of the stuff, and I do make good pesto from scratch. But damn, a girl doesn't always have time for that sort of nonsense. That's when a tub of pesto comes in handy.
And what soup doesn't cry out for a slice of
crusty bread and a little butter? Tonight I found a darling rosemary rustic bread at the bakery. I used some quality local butter. And the final results:
Hope you had a great weekend too.
xo
Today I declared to be the first of jammy weekend season. I went grocery shopping Saturday night, which is my favorite--it's quiet, mellow, trance-like. There are no cranky children, no frazzled parents, no obstinate teens, no power corporate types. Just me. And a few guys buying beer on their way to someplace else. I mostly have the whole store to myself.
The afternoon was spent at my kitchen table, with soup simmering on the stove, the dryer rumbling, and the sewing machine humming. I'm happy with how quickly this came together. There's something about that sense of accomplishment--sometimes it feels outside my reach. But I realize I'm my own worst enemy. There were a few times when I stood up from the table and my mind raced with other things I could be doing. It took discipline to sit back down and sew another row. I'm pretty fleeting about things. It's frustrating to have my mind racing in so many different directions.
I'm proud of my tiny, odd mill town. I haven't been here quite a year yet, but I every evening when I drive through on my way home from work, my heart fills when I come around the first bend and see the old mills looming large over the left side of the main drag, and the tiny shops all in a row to the right. So even though we're a little past prime up here, this morning I took pictures to capture fall in Newmarket.
I drove around some of the side roads too, down to the Great Bay. I didn't realize there were so many luxe houses here. But I do appreciate that the town has a little of everything. Along with the out-of-the-way richies, there are lots of hipster college kids, many earthy hippie types, and the locals who grew up here. In front of the coffee shop, it's typical to see a Lexus parked next to a beat-up pickup truck. And it's typical to hear conversations about graffiti as a growing problem, the band that played last night at the Stone Church, and local drum circles. I revel in it. Probably because it reminds me of Amherst and Northampton, MA.
The sky never lightened after this morning's sojourn, and stitching alone in my apartment, I could feel my fingers growing colder. But I come from a long line of yankees who proudly refuse to turn on the heat until absolutely necessary. No way does 45 degrees warrant anything more than another sweater. And maybe a blanket over my lap. And maybe some soup to warm me up.
I started out cooking up some kielbasa in olive oil to give the pot a smoky flavor--just enough to get it warm and juicy, but not enough to brown it. Then I tossed in three cloves of chopped garlic and a healthy sprinkling of red pepper flakes.
Once the broth was warmed through, I put in a chopped bunch of kale. I've never cooked with kale before, but it shrinks just like spinach (and isn't half as tedious to prepare). 
Next, the star of the show: small white beans. These are another first for me today. I dumped in the whole can for added liquid and a slight thickener.
