Lovely Weekend

We had a great time this weekend. Thursday, I came home from work and I had an early anniversary present waiting for me. Really it was a present for both of us - a mattress topper. We both have some nasty back problems because we have a mattress that might be older than we are and is hard as a rock.

On Friday, I called out sick because I honestly needed the time off. I might not have had the flu or a fever, but I sure was sick. Unfortunately, I apparently left my camera at school. I could not find it anywhere! So you'll have to use your imaginations.

For *B*'s birthday, we woke up at the reasonable hour of 7:30 am and, upon realizing that we don't keep nice breakfast foods in the house, decided to go out for breakfast. There's a little locally owned restaurant just down the street - it was nice. They have great food. Afterward, we went to Ikea to pick us up some not quite necessities that we've been putting off. *B* got a nice, affordable nightstand to match mine, and we got a much needed lamp for the living room. When we got it all home and assembled, Wicket went crazy sniffing it all out. Our lamp has a pull cord, and she figured out how to turn the lamp off. She hasn't continued to turn it on and off, but at least we know she can.

For *B*'s dinner, we had rosemary honey mustard lamb roast with roasted parsnips and potatoes, steamed broccoli, yorkshire puddings, and wine. Yorkshire puddings remind me of thicker popovers. Mmm, popovers, I haven't had them in a long time! Sorry, anyway :o) The pictures below aren't mine, but the closest to what mine looked like that I could find on the great world wide web.

Allana's Leg of Lamb Recipe
1 boneless leg of lamb
Rosemary
Breadcrumbs (I use panko)
Spicy Mustard
Honey
Garlic

Sear the lamb in a skillet. While the lamb sears, cut about 2 garlic cloves into slivers. Put the lamb in a roasting pan on a rack when seared all over. Cut small slices in the lamb and stuff the garlic in. Let sit for a while. Mix equal amounts of honey and mustard together. Mix an appropriate amount of breadcrumbs with a fair amount of rosemary. Put the breadcrumb mixture in a flat dish big enough to hold the lamb. Baste the lamb with the honey mixture on top first. Flip the lamb honey side down into the breadcrumbs. Push in to coat. Baste the rest of the lamb with the honey mixture, and turn in breadcrumbs. Bake at 350 F until internal temperature is 155+ F.

Yorkshire Puddings
1 cup flour
2 eggs
1 cup milk
pan drippings or oil

Collect the grease from the bottom of the roasting pan when lamb is just about done. If there is not enough grease, you can use vegetable or canola oil. Mix together 1 cup of flour, 2 eggs, and 1 cup of milk. Don't overbeat, but make sure all are incorporated. Pour the grease/oil in the bottom of a cupcake/muffin pan until the bottom is just covered, maybe up to 1/8 of an inch. Do not put the batter in yet. The pan must reach the temperature of the oven before batter goes in. Once the pan is hot, ladle batter into pan and throw back into the oven. The puddings are done when the tops are just crispy and brown.

They are usually puffed when you pull them out of the oven, then collapse like in the picture above. They are wonderful with any kind of sauce: jam, honey, gravy, meat juice.

Having gone to the grocery store the day before, we made ourselves a lovely breakfast yesterday. We sat around and did absolutely nothing (except maybe sleep) all day and it was wonderful. When I woke up from a two hour nap, we went out to dinner at a great Italian restaurant. I had shrimp and scallops in a divine cream sauce with fettuccine, and *B* had chicken in a tomato sauce with mushrooms and angel hair pasta. Fettuccine is, by far, my favorite pasta ever. Everything about it was really lovely. There was even a lady playing some kind of harmonica-like instrument that you hear in cheesy Italian music.

This morning, I'm awake, *B*'s asleep and the whole house is quiet (aside from Wicket trying to kill bugs). It has been a very lovely weekend.