thank GOD for monday.  it’s such an easy day, compared to these mammoth weekends full of performances.  i can’t add working out or eating right or anything.  i can’t even remember to take my vitamins.  all i can do is make sure i have the right music in the folder and the right dress on.  it’s literally like that.

i had four concerts this weekend.  1 on saturday night and 3 on sunday.  i even taught a few lessons on saturday.  i feel great today, simply knowing the weekend is behind me.

and i definitely enjoyed myself, too.  i love to perform.  i never say that.  i really love it.  i love making people stop thinking about budgets, taxes, to-do lists and all stresses, for just those 2 hours they are sitting there.  in this day and age, it might be the only time we really do shut up, turn off our phones, and just sit and be fed, or at the least, entertained.

movies are like that too.  my hub likes to go to the movies when he has officially spun out of control and cannot, for the life of him, pry himself away from the computer, or the piano, or whatever has held him captive.

i think cooking is like this for me.  and even higher than that ~ baking.  the baking is even more therapeutic and meditative to me because each step seems to have a sensory pleasure.  the color of real butter is gorgeous, isn’t it?  and the chemical reaction that happens when you add butter to sugar, and they get married and become one with each other?  so romantic.  hee hee

i like to stick my CLEAN (i promise!) fingers in a canister of cold flour.  i hope that doesn’t gross anyone out.  i don’t care.  i’ve never heard anyone complain about my chocolate chip cookies.

i love measuring spoons.  i have ceramic, white ones, and stainless steel ones, depending on my mood.

i haven’t baked in a long time, and will probably do that over the holidays.  i’m not really all that passionate about actually eating the sweets ~ they make my tummy hurt.  but i really enjoy the baking process.  the bonus is watching my hub’s eyes roll back in his head upon the first bite.  🙂

today, i tried something new in the healthy cooking department.  i had taco bell after performance #3 last night, so i had to do something good today.  i gotta say ~ i’m in love.  my friend sharra (hi sharra!!!) recommended i braise kale, so this is what i came up with this morning.

here’s what i used:

chick peas, drained and rinsed.

some of those already-shredded carrots.  love those.

a little olive oil and some balsamic vin.

an italian spicy mix i brought back from italy, but i think it’s just garlic powder, salt, crushed red pepper and oregano.  something like that.

some kale and some spinach with juice of a lemon.

some chopped tomatoes.

and then sautee all of that in a pan until the kale lets go of its muscles.  it’s so tough raw!

take it off the burner and put in some parm.

it is so delicious!  i just ate a whole can of chick peas, and got my dark leafy greens in too!

you could do all of this with a tex-mex flare.  just do lime juice, cumin, add avocado at the end, and just whatever makes you think of mexican food!

i officially LOVE kale today.  braised is the way to go, sharra!  thank you!

how did this turn into a food blog again today?