valentine's day look

hmmm, how do we feel about the valentine's day theme to the blog?

Recipe Week - #1 the only way I can eat porkchop

This week, I am going to share with your some of my favorite recipes - some easy and quick, some I save for special occasions. 

The first is Pork, Lentil & Apple Soup from "Better than Mom's Slow Cooker Recipes" (a cookbook I got on the bargain aisle at B&N).

Now, the book calls it a "soup" but with all the apples, pork-chop hunks and lentils in it, it's more like a stew.
I personally HATE pork-chops - I think it's a texture thing - so stewing them down to super tender meat in a stew is just about the only way I will touch them.

The recipe is pretty easy and it involves my favorite kitchen gadget - the crockpot.

Ingredients:
1 pound lean pork-chops
1 cup dry lentils
3 apples (I use 4)
1 teaspoon dried Marjoram
2 (140z.) cans of beef broth (3.5 cups)

Directions:
1. Brown pork-chops - they don't have to really be cooked all the way through, just browned on the outsides
2. Cut pork-chops into little 1 inch pieces (directions actually say 1/2 inch pieces, but that's pretty tedious)
3. Peel, core and chop up apples into little pieces (I chop each apple slice into about 5 pieces so they're less than a 1/2 inch thick)
4. Transfer meat and apples to crock pot then add lentils and Marjoram over them.
5. Pour the beef broth over the other ingredients and stir

It should look something like this:

6. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or high for 3 hours (I actually cook mine almost 9.5 because I turn it on before I leave for work then off when I get home, and it does fine). 
7. Enjoy!

Marjoram is on the spice aisle and Lentils are little dried bean things found with the bags of Lima beans and the like.

It makes about 4 servings and only takes about 15 minutes to make - so it is certainly a winner in my book.

Fashionable Friday: Must you tempt me Lilly?

Have you SEEN the spring 2011 line at Lilly Pulitzer? 

le sigh

I completely die over the "Optical Confusion" print as seen in several of the below items that I am salivating over. I am thinking that all the Belk cards I got for Christmas (since clothes couldn't be bought at the time for el prego) may go towards a few of these times, and by a few I mean two.

Clare Dress in Silk Jersey in Shorely Blue Optical Confusion - $258

Conrad Sweater Printed in Shorely Blue Optical Confusion - $158

Shauna Tunic Printed in Bright Navy Optical Confusion Novelty - $198

My abosolute favorite (and of course one of the priciest) Whitaker Dress Printed in Shorely Blue Optical Confusion - $258

Penelope Tunic Short in Green Bean Daisy Darling - $68

Foxi One Piece Swimsuit - in Green Bean Daisy Darling - $128

And course I am still wanting the Anders Dress in Silk Jersey in Bright Navy Booty Caw $238