Round and Round

So I admit that I have serious shiny squirrel syndrome.

But I'd also like to point out that the world GIVES ME shiny squirrel syndrome.

Today was the perfect example.

I wanted to make my awesome Thai coconut curry soup. So I load up my grocery list with the ingredients and head to Whole Foods.

Once inside, I get distracted. There are some awesome avocados, a wine tasting, new cold brew coffee I've never seen and the CHEESE people! All the cheese! So even though I have my Grocery IQ app to keep me focused on the list, I still forgot the ONE THING I really needed for what I was going to cook tonight - rice noodles.

I get home and unpack and realize my error. No way do I have time to go to the store after all the distractions, so I thought I'd spend five minutes searching the pantry because I had a vague memory of owning some rice noodles and I thought I'd get lucky.

So I start searching the pantry. And here's what happened. First - I find three containers of arborio rice that are each 1/3 full. I combine those and throw away the extra containers. Second - I discover we have 80 metric tons of quinoa  - I consolidate that. Then - I find a bag of sugar that I can put into our sugar container. And rice that I can put into our rice container.

Finally, I see something that looks like a rice noodle box, but there's a box of lasagna noodles in the way - I grab it, and unfortunately, the box is open, and as I'm moving it, lasagna noodles are shooting into my face and then down into every crack and crevice of the pantry.

So then I have to clean all that up and before you know it, 45 minutes have vanished without a trace!

The good news is, I did find the rice noodles, but I was way too worn out to wash all the veggies and then make the soup, so I ended up having a tuna melt.

SQUIRREL! 

Today I'm hosting the Mix-Ability challenge on Splitcoast, and I decided to stick with the chasing my tail theme and call it "Round and Round." The challenge is to use this fun painted circles tutorial with ink /and acrylic paint for an abstract background. I chose the Typeset paper for my background, and then I used an aquapainter and Tempting Turquoise, Strawberry Slush and Daffodil Delight reinkers to paint loose circles. The last step is to take a paper towel roll dipped in black paint and use that as a stamp to give a little definition. Fun eh? I finished it off with the Work of Art stamp set.

If you play along, please use keyword MIX73.

And to reward you for visiting me today, here's the soup recipe (modified slightly from this recipe), which I will now make today, barring getting an unexpected face full of lasagne noodles. I'm making it without the chicken.

Thai Coconut Curry Soup

Ingredients

Two 14 oz (398 mL) cans of premium coconut milk

1 heaping tablespoon (15 mL) of Thai curry paste

Roots of 1 bunch of cilantro, rinsed well

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced (or leave out)

2 cups (500 mL) of chicken broth

2 TBS Ponzu or hoisin

Lemongrass paste  - this is by Gourmet Garden - usually with the fresh herbs.

Zest and juice of 2 limes

A small knob of frozen ginger

One 8 oz (225 g) package of rice noodles

Leaves of 1 bunch of cilantro, rinsed well

2 or 3 green onions, thinly sliced

A sprinkle or two of salt or soy sauce

Directions

1. Scoop the thick coconut cream from the top of just one of the cans into a large stockpot set over a medium-high heat. Melt the cream, add the curry paste and stir for a few minutes until they begin to sizzle.

2. Add the cilantro roots and chicken and sauté until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the coconut juice from the first can and all the contents of the second can along with the chicken broth, lemon grass paste, and lime zest and juice. Grate the frozen ginger into the broth with a Microplane grater or standard box grater. Simmer for 20 minutes or so.

4. Add the rice noodles, gently pushing them beneath the surface of the broth. Turn off the heat and let stand until the noodles soften, about 5 minutes. Rice noodles don’t need to simmer like pasta to cook; they simply need to rehydrate in the hot liquid.

5. Stir in most of the cilantro leaves. Taste and season with a touch more salt (or soy sauce) as needed. Ladle into large bowls and garnish with the green onions and remaining cilantro leaves.

FYI - I am lowering the capacity on the Love What You Have class for the retreat because of a supply limitation, so if you have not signed up yet, I'd do so this week.

LoveyameanitSQUIRREL.