It’s the coldest it’s been all year, but I refuse to turn on the heat. Had Tony still been alive the heat would have been on since about September 1 – even if we had day time temps in the 70s. Right now the house is at 55 degrees, but I have a sweater on, fuzzy socks and a hot cup of coffee so I am all set. I may even start the wood burning stove today. I am trying to remember if I even lit it last year but I don’t think I did. It was too much of a reminder that Tony wasn’t here because that was his job to keep the fire going. But it does heat our house, so it’s a cost effective feature to use when it gets cold outside. I remember the first year we heated our house with it after we had a couple trees cut down, and our first gas bill in December was only $16.
Yep, more leftovers for me please! With the beef kebobs that I posted the recipe for yesterday, I made this amazingly simple and delicious breakfast. I basically just had to reheat the peppers and steak that were already cooked, but I started out sautéing mushrooms and cooked yukon potatoes, and then put a fried egg on top. Um, full disclosure on this one – I don’t like runny eggs, but the yolk porn looks so good in pictures, so basically after this picture was taken, I scrambled everything up together in my pan so the egg was cooked through 
Five ounces of potatoes (3) three ounces of beef (3) fried egg (2) and 1/2 teaspoon of cilantro mint chutney that was leftover from class too – it’s basically just flavored olive oil, but it’s so good! 9 smart points total.
It was a gross day outside. Just as I was about to get my walking shoes on, a thunderstorm came through. I was happy I was taking the train because traffic can literally slow to a halt just because of a little rain. And as I was looking at the traffic while watching youtube videos on the train, I was happy I made that decision.
My lunch on the train – a low fat bologna wrap with spinach and mustard and a sprinkle of cheese, and these chips. I also had a banana but I ate that later at work. Lunch came in at 12 smart points.
It was a small cooking class last night of 8 people, which I love having the small groups. It just seems more intimate and it feels like you’ve just invited friends over to your house. We made an oven roasted chicken thigh dish that baked on a bed of onions (ew). The chicken looked amazing and I’ll recreate that portion, but it was sliced onions and literally covered the bottom of the cast iron skillet.
But the dish I was most excited about was the butternut squash risotto. I have to admit though, I never even tried a butternut squash before starting this blog in 2008. If nothing else, this blog has kind of forced me out of my picky eating, and am so happy for that.
I made this roasted butternut squash soup a couple years ago:
And I’ve had this recipe for a cheezy butternut squash pasta dish pinned for the longest time – I need to make this soon – how delicious does that look?!
Okay, not back to this recipe. The only thing I am changing is the direction a smidge from the way recipe was written from The Chopping Block. Chef Dionna felt that the risotto should toast a bit before the garlic was added, otherwise the garlic would have gotten possibly burned, and we all know that once garlic burns it’s just bitter and gross. And when I recreate this at home, I will bring down the amount of onions to probably 1/4 cup – baby steps people – baby steps! I also reduced that amount of butter to just two tablespoons.
Sorry this picture isn’t better, but I was trying to be inconspicuous in front of the guests, but everyone gave this two big thumbs up. I think it would be perfect for your Thanksgiving dinner.
By the time I left work the temps were back down to about 45. It was a bit of a chilly walk to the train station, but I didn’t mind at all. Although I will stash a scarf and hat in my bag just in case next time.
I was hungry by the time I got to the train station. My only options were McDonald’s/Popeyes/Taco Bell. A quick WW app search, and the three strip meal with mashed potatoes at Popeyes came in at 12 smart points (had they still had green beans, it would have been 9!) so I went over my points by 3 and ended up with 33 points for the day.
I didn’t realize until this morning that I was so close to 20k steps yesterday! If I had known I would have walked another 400 steps around my house 
I have the day off today. I have some bananas that are on their last legs so I will probably make banana bread or muffins. And maybe eat some vegetables today? Ha!
Hope you make it a great day!
55 degrees in my house is way too cold. I refuse to wear extra sweaters and socks to stay warm when I can put on the heat. My house is a place where I want to feel comfortable and not be cold. I’d rather save money on other things than on energy.
Biz, you should eat more veggies 🙂
This post reminds me that I have a butternut squash in my pantry! The risotto looks delicious. It would be perfect this weekend. It’s fun looking at your Chicago pics days after leaving because I actually recognize the sights. We absolutely loved the city and had the best time. Seeing through the eyes of the marathon course was spectacular. Amazing people!! Enjoy your weekend!
It’s a shame I don’t take advantage of all the different neighborhoods in the city – you’ve inspired me to start making a list of Chicago neighborhood places to visit – can’t believe it was already a week ago we met up – time goes by so fast! Happy Friday!
Next time at Popeyes, try the blackened chicken tenders!! (I think they used to be called naked chicken tenders due to no breading). They are delicious and slightly spicy!
They don’t taste like diet food, but they are only 170 cal for three strips, with 2 g of carbs and 2 g of fat and 26 g of protein!
Oh, thanks for the tip Melly! I will definitely check that out next time 😀
I love all the photos of Chicago you keep putting on the blog!
Thanks Carrie! Can’t wait for you guys to come back and visit! 😀
55 degrees! That’s very cold LOL. I was freezing in my house and it was 70 degrees but I live in Georgia and that feels cold to us 🙂 Great job on your steps. I try to get 20K every day but its tough.
It helped that I got the extra steps walking to and from the train. Back in the day I used to bike two miles to the train (even in winter if it wasn’t too snowy!) then walk a mile and a half to work from the train station, and walk an hour at lunch, then repeat. Um, turns out I was able to eat pretty much whatever I wanted with all that exercise!
Oh how I have missed you and your blog.
Thanks for posting the falafel recipe. I got the message on Instagram you were putting it on the blog but we had Hurricane Matthew come our way and lost power for several days. So today (from work…shhhhh) I am catching up on your life and great recipes.
I tried to read your blog from my phone but the tiny screen does not do the photos justice. I was a little spooked out on the falafel post. The tiny photo of the fire with the logs had what looked like a person with long hair pointing out from the log. I still see it in the full size photo but not as creepy. Please tell me you see it too.
The beef kabobs look so amazing and I just printed out the recipe to make the frittata this weekend. We are so tired of fast food and eating out. Lost all of the food in fridge and deep freeze so cooking with only pantry items has been a challenge. My husband is a meat man.
I love the yolk porn…made me giggle. It is funny you scrambled it all up after the photo.
The photos of the city just make me swoon. I love the hustle and bustle of a big city and haven’t been to one in awhile.
Not that I need another water bottle but I love the WW one. Is it glass?
Okay, I have rambled enough, sorry. I was going to comment on each post but wasn’t sure if you get comments that are posted on older post. Just wanted you to know I do read everyday just not that great at typing on the phone to comment.
Thanks for all the great recipes. Keep your head up with the lack of hours. I’m hoping they will see how amazing you are and put you to full time by the first of the year!
Loved your long comment today Kym! Sorry you lost all your food – that happened to us one year – we were without power for four days, and just as we were about to check into a hotel, the power came back on. We are in an unincorporated area, and seem to be the last on the list when it comes to restoring power. Hopefully you didn’t get any damage from the storm.
Okay, I looked back on fire picture and I have to admit – I don’t see it!
The water bottle is plastic, but sturdy. It’s making me drink my water, so that’s all that matters.
Yep, hopefully they will give me more hours as the holiday private events book up. Otherwise I am not sure I can afford to keep the job, or will have to supplement my income somehow (without depleting my savings) to make ends meet. I know it will work out one way or another.