What I'm Eating

I've been feeling really domestic lately, so I've been cooking a lot more. It doesn't hurt that I've cut my hours back at work, and have had an extra night off per week. It also doesn't hurt that I got the neatest little lunchbox thingee. It's great for packing my lunch for in between classes, fits nicely into my already overpacked backpack, and has the perfect icepack...

So here's what I'm eating today.

CLB's chai spiced rice pudding (with my twists)

1 cup medium grain rice
5 cups milk-type liquid (I used a can of light coconut, a cup and 2/3 of skim milk- all I had left, and the remainder was light vanilla soymilk.)
1/4 cup sugar (your mileage may vary- but with all the sweetness of coconut milk and vanilla soy, I didn't need that much.)
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1 big pinch white pepper
1 big pinch nutmeg
1/3 teaspoon salt
4 chai teabags

Put together the rice, sugar, and liquids. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then reduce to a simmer. Remove the teabags & press out the liquid, and continue to simmer till the rice is tender. Don't cook everything out, or it's going to be gross and pasty later. Take it off the heat, stir in the spices. Serve warm or cold, this will thicken as it cools.

This is the ultimate spicy warm comfort food.

For dinner (to keep the carb love going)... Clammy Spirals.

4 good sized cloves of garlic, minced or grated
1/2 to 2/3 box of pasta (I used wheat rotini)
zest of half a lemon, plus juice
1 cherry pepper, minced
pinch of red pepper flakes
handful of parsely (flat leaf) minced
an assload of olive oil
1 bag of baby clams (the kind you get near the tuna, not raw ones).

Grate 2 of the cloves of garlic & pepper flakes and cook gently in a little bit of olive oil over low/med heat, once your pasta is nearly done cooking. Once that garlic is cooked, add the other two cloves (grated) and the pepper. Add a bit more olive oil, and increase heat. Add your clams (drain them and press dry- otherwise you're going to wear it.) and stir till warm. Drain your pasta, saving a little of the water, and mix it, along with your minced parsley into the clammy mix. Add a little more oil/water if you need it, salt & pepper to taste, and top with fresh grated parmesan, if you'd like.

Yum. Makes plenty with leftovers. Enjoy!

So. What are YOU eating?