Clean Machine

Good evening! 

I hope your afternoon went well.  After lunch, I took the dogs for a stroll…the sun actually came out for a while, so that was an unexpected surprise.  I feel like the weather changes so quickly here– yesterday, it was 65 degrees and sunny, and today, it was rainy and cold– and then sunny again!  Silly PA weather!

After taking the dogs out, I got down and dirty cleaning up the house.  I was like Betty Draper on steroids. 

It’s funny– growing up, I was a messy, messy little kid.  I never kept my room clean, never made my bed, only “picked up” when absolutely forced.  My sister was the total opposite– a total neat freak.  We eventually had to stop sharing a room because of our different standards of what was considered “livable.”

But, for some reason, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve become much, much neater.  I actually enjoy cleaning the house, and I crave an orderly living space.  It’s like I’ve become bizarro-world Anna. 

Anywho.  After a fun-filled couple of hours vacuuming and mopping, I hopped on the treadmill for a run.  Oprah kept me entertained– it was a Christmas-themed episode with a variety of musical guests.  Jennifer Hudson and Jennifer Nettles sang a duet of “Silent Night” together– it was really nice!  I ran about four miles, switching back and forth between Oprah and Giada at Home on the Food Network.  Something about watching the Food Network while running on the treadmill always feels a little strange.

For dinner tonight, we had a Mediterranean-inspired dish:

Greek Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

1 medium spaghetti squash, split in half, seeds and pulp removed

1 tsp. olive oil

1/3 cup onion, chopped (about a quarter of an onion)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tbsp. fresh oregano, minced

1/2 cup artichoke hearts, roughly chopped

2 tsp. capers

1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes

1/4 cup mixed Greek olives, roughly chopped

2 tbsp. feta, crumbled

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray spaghetti squash lightly with cooking spray and season with salt and pepper.  Once oven is ready, bake spaghetti squash, squash side up, for about 45 minutes, or until squash can be easily pierced with a fork.

As squash is cooking, in a small saute pan, cook garlic and onion in olive oil over medium heat.    Once they’ve begun to soften, add the fresh oregano and cook for 1-2 more minutes.  Add capers, artichoke hearts, and tomatoes, and simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes, or until the squash is done. 

When squash is done baking, remove from oven and let cool.  Once the squash halves are cool enough to handle, take a fork and scrape away at the pulp so that “spaghetti strands” form.  Each squash half should yield about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of “spaghetti.”  Top squash with sauce, olives, and feta.  Enjoy!

Here are some pics of the meal, in steps:

Squash going in to the oven:

and squash coming out:

The sauce mixture, pre-tomatoes (onion, garlic, oregano, capers, and artichoke hearts):

And again with tomatoes, simmering away:

I picked up a variety of olives at our grocery store’s olive bar (I went a little overboard…we definitely did not use all of these!):

And finally…

After digging in:

Baxter spent the meal by the radiator…he gets really cold in the winter!  We actually have a nice selection of sweaters and vests for him that he wears during the colder months.  I’m sure they’ll be making an appearance on the blog sooner or later

Hope you’re having a great night!  We’re about to settle onto the couch for a little Gossip Girl…I think Serena’s about to cause a stir…again

xoxo!