Random Updates Ahead!

I need to catch up - random updates ahead! Here are some things I've been doing lately and what's caught my eye.

Consignment Deals
Here's the thing about consignment shopping - you can go in looking for one thing, and walk out with something completely different. One must keep an open mind! This weekend I was looking for shoes. I couldn't find a pair I liked but wound up with some great deals:

• Esprit Fall jacket
• Banana Republic pants - tags still on
  
• Reebok hoodie
• Old Navy corduroys

Total : $55 (I also had a 20% off coupon). The Banana Republic pants alone would have been $55 retail. Seriously ladies (and gents) - give consignment shopping a try. Especially when you aren't looking for something super specific, but need to satisfy that "I need something new in my wardrobe" urge!

Garden Updates
We've been harvesting cucumbers, green beans, and cherry tomatoes often. I also picked a sprig of rosemary. We don't have a lot of rosemary this year - but I cherish what I have because I have so little of it this year. Our first Roma tomato was ready today...sort of. A little green, but I was impatient since I knew we were going to have the following this evening:

Summer Linguini with Fresh Tomatoes and Herbs

• Boil linguini in salted water - set aside
  
  In a saucepan:
  
• Some butter AND good quality olive oil together - A GOOD amount of olive oil since this will be the pasta topping
  
  For infusing the butter/olive oil sauce:
  
• Add a sprig of rosmary - no need to chop up, just cut into 2 or 3 pieces to spread it around in the sauce pan
  
• Add 1 clove of garlic - sliced once down the middle
• Add some fresh chopped parsley
• Melt the butter/olive oil together with other ingredients on low heat very slowly - you don't want to burn it.
• Add sliced tomatoes and warm these up for a while. Stir occasionally until the tomatoes are warmed up and soften to your liking.
  
  
• Top your pasta with the butter/olive oil sauce with tomatoes & parsley. Enjoy the garlic and rosemary on top of your pasta too if you wish.
  
  
• This dish is easy to supplement - it's good with kidney beans, left over chicken, seafood, parmesan...etc. etc.
  

Time Magazine Article - Cheap Food
The subject of food is a very interesting one to me. Growing it, gathering it, production, cost, cooking, ingredients in processed foods, organics - it's endlessly fascinating to me. Yes - I am taking a moment to embrace this foodie-geeky side of me!

Here's an interesting recent article at Time.com: Getting Real About the High Price of Cheap Food. It's a good introduction to how the cost of food for Americans is at a historic low, but the cost in other ways (to our health and our country's farmland) is high.

And if you enjoy food voyeurism like I do, you'll like this slide show also from Time.com: What the Word Eats.


Grocery bill in Germany: $500 a week a for a family of 4! And I've been concerned about our more than $700/month grocery bill.