Reconnecting With Maury

What a week! I finally caught the cold that has been floating around my office. I figured it was a matter of time, but was hoping my immune system would be able to stand up to it. No luck. I was out of the office on Thursday and Friday, home sick. So aggravating, because all I can think about is all the things I'm NOT getting done while I'm laying on the couch watching trashy daytime TV. Although, Jakers and Mabel love, love, love sick days. Their favorite hobbies include sleeping, eating and cuddling. Check, check check. So at least they were happy.

I was glad that I made a large pasta dish on Wednesday night, so I had some easy lunch options while I was feeling crappy. I'll post the recipe at the bottom of this post. Beware, though -- expect your house to smell like garlic after preparing this one!

Last night I had to suck it up, though. My good friend, Emily, was home from Chicago for the weekend and so five of us had dinner plans. I loaded up on some Sudafed and Mucinex (despite the horrendous commercials, it works) and out we went. We had dinner at Azia in the "Eat Street" section of Minneapolis. So tasty! We shared some edamame and vegetable potstickers and I ordered Vietnamese Coconut Curry with tofu. SO GOOD. Then we went to 508, a bar downtown, and grabbed a drink and caught up with another high school friend who bartends there. (I stuck with water, since my poor body was doing it's best to get better!) I had a great time and was glad that I went.
Stay healthy!!

Tomato & Mushroom Pasta w/ Garlic

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 2 or 3 portabella mushroom caps (or 5 or 6 baby bella caps), thinly sliced
  
• 1-2 tomatoes, diced (dependant on size)
  
• 1-2 cups (uncooked) rotini pasta...or any pasta will work
• 1 tbsp dried basil
  
• Shredded vegan mozzarella, optional

Prepare pasta in large pot. In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over med-high heat. Add mushrooms and garlic and cook ~7 minutes, until mushrooms soften. Reduce heat, add chopped tomatoes and juices from tomato. Allow to simmer for a few minutes. Drain pasta, combine with olive oil mixture. Toss with basil and serve with mozzarella sprinkled over the top. Keeps well in the fridge for a couple of days -- garlic flavor tends to intensify.