Comfort & Joy

It's no secret that Sundays are my favorite day of the week. There is never any pressure to run errands, be productive (although now-a-days I do all of my laundry and and go for a long run each Sunday), or "go out." When I'm lounging around on a Sunday doing exactly what I want to be doing I'm not thinking that I need to be out and about like I think if I'm relaxing at home on a Friday or Saturday night. Sundays are the BEST.

One of my favorite teas, "Sleepytime" illustrates an awesome Sunday. (There's even a cat!) The only things missing are a good book and a loved one...



After waking up I ate a trail mix granola bar as I thumbed through Rachael Ray's big orange cookbook. I decided to make "Elsa's Beef and Burgundy." This wasn't one of her usual 30 min meals - after about 20 minutes of prep work it had to bake in the oven for 90 minutes! We didn't even sit down to eat "lunch" until almost 3pm! But it was so worth the investment in time.

Although this was very similar to beef stroganoff, I liked it much better. There was no sour cream in this (like in strog) and the wine, orange zest, and long cooking time gave it a nice complexity that is usually absent from my cooking. In the middle of the meal R looked at me and said, "Now THIS is comfort food."