**Remember, my blog is not sponsored or monetized in any way. No link in my posts is an affiliate link, and these ideas are all my own. None of these companies know who I am, and all of this is crap I buy with my own dang money. I’m just not that cool, y’all**
So, when I was writing my 2020 favorites post earlier this week, I totally forgot to add my absolute favorite planner of all time from Commit30. I’ve tried so…many…planners. Seriously, including the ever-popular Happy Planner system, and none of them ever stuck with me. They were either too niche, or felt like an art project rather than a tool for efficiency.
This is the one that just ticks all of the boxes for me. It focuses on goals and the action steps you plan to take to get there, be they health, personal, professional, and on the yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily basis. It also makes you think about accountability, and be honest about why you did not reach your goal. After a tumultuous 2020, I am ready to focus on some specific positive changes.
I’m going to share some images from their site so you can see why I love this. My planner contains too may personal details to share my pics with you (y’all don’t want to know when I change the cat litter or get my allergy shots), but I promise, you should check this company out, specifically their social media accounts where you can see more detailed pics and videos.
While they also offer digital options, I’m still an old school paper gal, so that’s what I order. I’m on my third year of this planner, and though I’m probably jinxing 2021 by having the audacity to buy one, I’m still went for it.
So, just an update to my favorites’ post. As the song says, maybe this year will be better than the last.
So, I love French Onion Soup. Like really, really love it. But, I never get to eat it.
See, my favorite restaurant that made my favorite French Onion Soup went out of business, and in Louisiana, the soups in restaurants trend toward seafood bisques, gumbo, potato, ham bean, or the occasional tomato basil. So I know what you are thinking: Why don’t you make it yourself, weirdo?
Well, as you know, I live with some of the pickiest damn eaters on the planet and not one can tolerate even the thought of a soup based on deliciously decadent caramelized onions. Even trying to sell them on the cheesy toast aspect failed miserably. So, I just never bothered to make it, because I’m not going to make two dinners just so I can have some freaking soup.
But earlier last month, the husband was out of town, and I decided f—-it. I ordered pizza for the Heathens and made myself some dang French Onion Soup (and sent the rest to my neighbors, so they could bask in the awesomeness as well). I adapted a recipe I found online, tweaked it, and the result was rich, gooey, cheesy, brothy, warmth to my semi-bitter soul.
This recipe is easy-peasy, but you really need to take the time to caramelize the onions over low to medium-low heat (depends on your stovetop). This can take like 30-45 minutes, but that’s what gives the soup the depth of flavor you want.
6 cups thinly sliced sweet onions (basic yellow or Vidalia)
1 TBS all-purpose flour
1/3 cup dry sherry (like from your local liquor store, not that "cooking wine" crap found on the vinegar aisle)
5 cups beef broth
6 springs fresh thyme, tied into a bundle with food-safe kitchen twine.
2 cups grated Gruyere cheese
12-16 1/4-inch thick baguette slices (basically you want enough bread slices to cover the top of your soup bowls)
Kosher salt and pepper
Olive oil spray, non stick spray, or other method to toast your bread
Procedure
In a Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onions and a 1 TBS of water, and season them with about 1/2 tsp. of salt. Cook the onions, stirring occasionally until they caramelize, about 30-45 minutes. If the onions cook too fast, lower the heat so they don't burn.
Add the flour and stir to coat the onions. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, then add the sherry. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, then add the beef broth and thyme bundle. Bring to a low simmer, and cook 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
While the soup is cooking, spray your baguette slices on both sides with olive oil spray and season with a sprinkle of kosher salt and pepper. Toast the slices on both sides in a skillet over medium high heat.
Preheat your broiler. Place your 4 soup bowls on a rimmed baking sheet. Remove the thyme bundle from the soup carefully, and test the soup for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if desired.
Ladle the soup into the bowls, and arrange toasted baguette slices on top for full coverage. Sprinkle cheese evenly over each bowl (about 1/2 cup per bowl).
Broil the soup until the cheese is brown and bubbly to your liking. Enjoy!
**Remember, my blog is not sponsored or monetized in any way. No link in my posts is an affiliate link, and these ideas are all my own. None of these companies know who I am, and all of this is crap I buy with my own dang money. I’m just not that cool, y’all**
The husband has recovered (mostly) from the ‘Rona, and through careful quarantining, the kids and I did not contract the virus. He has pretty sick there for a while, and is dealing with a lingering cough and fatigue, but we got lucky. Thanks for the well wishes.
So, as I have been shopping for the holidays and planning for the new year, I thought I pass along some of the things that I really enjoyed this year (other than the endless warmth of the 2020 dumpster fire).
I really love Knife Aid. It’s like the Netflix of knife sharpening. You pick how many you want sharpened and they send you the materials to pack up your knives and mail them in. Then, they send them back to you perfectly sharpened. It’s only about a week in turnaround time and very convenient. I have used them twice, including last month.
I love OXO containers. My pantry is out of control, and these are helping me tame the chaos. I still want more.
A bluetooth meat thermometer was game changer. Yes, I use it when smoking meat, but I also use it for so much more. For example. I used this on Thanksgiving for the turkey, which meant I could watch the temp in real time, and also not lose heat from constantly opening and closing the oven to check on the bird. I also use it for cooking roasts, prime rib, chicken and more. You can go about your day without worrying that you are going to overcook an expensive piece of meat or undercook the poultry.
I am totally OBSESSED with this one. So, it’s basically a murder-mystery subscription box you get each month, but think of it like a limited tv series with episodes. One “season” lasts a few months, or you can purchase past “seasons”/mysteries in their entirety. You get all kinds of clues and documents to investigate, but they also have cool online components to enrich the experience. We are currently working our way though the Blair Witch season and the Cadence Theater season. If you are stuck in quarantine, pouring over clues in order to catch a killer is a great way to pass the time.
I am in love with Hue-It Hand Dyed Fibers. This local-to-me Louisiana artist specializes in small-batch dying, and has an incredible portfolio of colorways. Most of her stuff sells out fast but she takes preorders if you missed out on a colorway. I recently snatched up a couple of skeins that are just waiting for the right pattern to come along.
My neighbors gifted me this book after we had a mini-Thanksgiving this summer (they are in our “pod/quarantine bubble”). This book is LEGIT cool. These recipes are not for those looking for basic pies. These guys compete around the country and their ideas are complete bananas. Favorites so far are the Strawberry Margarita Pie and the Caramel Popcorn Pie.
This cookbook was written by the founder of the Mosquito Supper Club restaurant in New Orleans. It’s beautifully shot and showcases Louisiana food traditions that are slowing being lost. If you have any interest an authentic Louisiana cuisine, this needs to be in your library.
So, my go-to recipe software, Living Cookbook quietly went out of business and has basically ghosted it’s customers. So, I spent part of the year test-driving Cook’n, MasterCook, and Paprika, which came out the clear winner. I think it was the easiest to learn/use out of the three, and with a more intuitive interface. I was able to import my Living Cookbook files, though I will say that some things did get lost in translation. I had to go back and check each recipe to correct some things that got garbled in the transfer, but the same thing happened with the other two as well. Otherwise, I’m happy using it, and very grateful for the cloud sharing ability.
This herb stripper was featured on Food Network’s The Kitchen, and host Sunny Anderson loved it so much she immediately said she was taking it home with her. I LOVE this. It strips those pesky thyme and rosemary leaves off of their stems in two seconds flat.
Lucifer, Virgin River, The Chef Show, Castle Rock, The Umbrella Academy, Westworld, Anne with an E, Sabrina the Teenage Witch (Netflix), His Dark Materials, The Outsider, Perry Mason.
So those are a few things that I really loved this year, and made this insanity a little bit better. We’ve been through a lot of changes, but we also had a lot of fun.
