in the crockpot: shredded pork and chile stew

We're still dealing with this endless snowy freezing winter here in Chicago/Chiberia/Narnia, just like most of the country. I know it's all we've been hearing and complaining about since November so instead of writing an essay on my suffering I will quickly move on, sound good?

Because of {insert essay on suffering}, for the past four months I've been on a warm, cozy, comforting, eat-it-snuggled-on-the-couch kind of dinner kick. Translation: lots of soup, and lots of Crockpot usage. This particular recipe was so easy yet delicious that I wanted to share! The original can be found here, but I adapted it to be even easier because my favorite kind of Crockpot recipes are the "dump it and forget it" kind, not the ones where you have to pre-sauté the ingredients. I mean, who has time for that--it defeats the purpose of a slow cooker. If I know Ben and I are both going to have a long day, I'll take some time the night before to prep the crock, store it in the fridge overnight, and then plug it into the cooker in the morning! Coming home to a delicious smelling house and dinner ready and waiting for you is the best.

Shredded Pork and Chile Stew
Adapted from Kalyn's Kitchen
Serves 4

Ingredients
-3-4 pork chops
-2 cans diced tomatoes
-2 cans Rotel
-1/2 cup water
-1 onion, chopped
-4 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 T cumin
-1 T chili powder
-1 T oregano

Dump everything in the Crockpot, give it a stir, and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Shred the pork and serve with a squeeze of lime! If you're feeling fancy, cilantro, a dollop of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, shredded cheese, and diced avocado would also be excellent toppings. Oh and cornbread on the side, obviously.

Enjoy!

lightened-up chocolate cake with ganache icing

Ben and I decided to stay home on Valentine's Day and cook ourselves a fancy dinner we could enjoy in our comfy clothes for half the price of going out. We "winter grilled" steak and veggies on the stove in a cast iron grill pan (one of my favorite Christmas gifts!), enjoyed a bottle of Cab Sav, and finished off the evening with a chocolate ganache cake that was so delicious I had to share it with you!

(Candles! So fancy!)

I was looking for a chocolate cake recipe that I could "healthify" a little bit, since I knew I wanted to slather it in chocolate ganache, which is un-healthifiable and could probably make anything taste like heaven.

(Side note: Ganache is my lover. It is so easy to make and yet always seems so impressive! There are only two ingredients: chocolate and cream. Not exactly low-cal, but SO much better for you than hydrogenated frosting from a can!)

I found this chocolate cake recipe on Eat, Live, Run and decided it would fit the bill. I halved the recipe to make a single layer cake since there's only two of us in the house, and made some substitutions to lower the sugar and calorie load. For a relatively low-fat cake, it turned out dense, fudgy, and delicious even without the ganache! It's also vegan (until you cover it in heavy whipping cream), AKA you can lick the bowl, spatula, and beaters without risk of salmonella.

And then maybe eat some of the batter out of the pan before you stick it in the oven...

Lightened-Up Vegan Chocolate Cake
(adapted from Eat, Live, Run)
Makes one 9" cake layer, can be doubled for two layers
Ingredients
-1 cup white whole wheat flour
-1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
-1/2 cup cocoa powder
-1/2 t baking soda
-1/2 t salt
-1/2 cup sugar
-1/4 cup canola oil
-1/4 plain Greek yogurt
-1 t vanilla extract
-2 T apple cider vinegar
-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In a medium bowl, combine vinegar and milk and set aside to curdle.

Grease and flour one 9" cake pan.

In a large bowl, sift together dry ingredients (through salt). Mix wet ingredients into milk and vinegar bowl. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix thoroughly. Pour batter into pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Chocolate Ganache Icing
Makes 1 cup, double for a larger cake
Ingredients
-4 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (one Baker's bar)
-1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions

Pour cream into a pot and heat on the stove, stirring with a whisk, until cream comes to a boil. Immediately take the pot off the heat, add the chocolate, and whisk until melted and smooth.

Allow to cool for 10-20 minutes (can put in fridge) until thickened, pour over cake, and enjoy!

Dense, chewy, chocolatey, so. good.

surviving the winter blues

This winter has been doing its best to sap all the joy and energy out of me.

This week I've finally been feeling happier and more positive because February is half over and a thaw is on the forecast. We've only had a handful of days above freezing in the past couple of months, and when you couple that with endless snowstorm after snowstorm...well, it's been rough. I'm a sun person, drawn to warm dry climates with plenty of bright light, and I've struggled with this particular season more than usual.

The top two ways I've been dealing with the winter blues are through a constant exercise regime (endorphins baby!) and copious amounts of vitamin D pills. Fresh flowers from Ben and working next door to a conservatory help too!

The days are finally getting longer, I'm starting to hear the birds chirp in the morning, and there are a couple hardy bunnies foraging in the snow outside my office window again.

I'll just keep chasing the sun.