Leisurely Cooking Is Not Labor

We've had a fairly leisurely-paced Labor Day, truly enjoying the extra day we've had together this weekend.

We slept in until 8AM thanks to Tylenol PM, then S made us breakfast:  French bread French toast (for me) and pancakes (for himself) and bacon.  Afterwards we ventured up to the attic to switch out our patriotic decorations (now that the Olympics and the holiday weekend are over) for fall décor.

While I put the autumnal items in their places, S literally wiped down every surface in the ENTIRE kitchen.  Talk about a labor of LOVE!

We had a lovely pasta lunch on our deck, then went over to the local hot spot for a cool treat.  At Captain Dusty´s I got a sugar cone of M&Ms ice cream and S got cookies and cream in a cup.  It was a really pleasant afternoon, only about 80 degrees and low humidity.

We came back and had a rousing Uno tournament, which S won in three straight games.  He´s very cute when he wins because, funny thing is, he´s not competitive at all.  In fact, he wanted me to play a fourth, "good will" game with him just to show that he wasn´t boasting about his victory. 

I declined.  It would have been too painful to lose a 4th game.

We also did a lot of cooking today, one pasta dish, Fusilli alla Caprese, and several side items for the coming week´s meals: savory swiss chard, glazed carrots, balsamic roasted asparagus, Paula Deen´s Roasted Beet Salad, and Potato and Chickpea Salad from Fitness magazine.  This last recipe has a good flavor to it, but it made way too much dressing for my taste.  I like my potato salad a little drier than this.  Let me know what you think if you make it.

Happy eating as you go back to work tomorrow!

Potato and Chickpea Salad--Fitness magazine, September 2008

Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds of baby or new potatoes

1/2 dry white wine

1 Tablespoon olive oil

3 Tablespoons whole-grain mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon fresh thyme, minced

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2 scallions, minced

1 small red pepper, diced

Directions:

Cut potatoes into quarters and cook in salted, boiling water until softened.  Drain and set aside.  In a small bowl, whisk together wine, olive oil, mustard, salt and thyme.  Transfer cooked potatoes to a large bowl.  Add chickpeas and pour dressing over the top.  Toss to coat.  Stir in scallions and red pepper.

Nutrition facts per serving:

190 calories, 5 g protein, 31 g carbohydrate, 4 g fat (<1>