The second day of August has been eve better than the first! Although I’m not loving this very moment because Brandon is watching True Blood and this show really creeps me out. Focusing my attention on blogging…
I was up at 5 this morning to get an early ashtanga practice in at the studio. I practice mysore-style ashtanga where your practice is self-led based on a series that is memorized. The teacher is just there to help and assist. I had just gotten into my groove when in walked a guy I had never seen around the studio before. He set his mat right next to mine and proceeded to have the most beautiful practice I have seen in quite a while. The next thing I knew, this was happening to my left…
(source)
Yeah, my foot doesn’t exactly go behind my head just yet. I try (really, really hard – I’m working on it!) but it pretty much feels like my foot is shoving my head down towards the floor. I should post a picture for your entertainment…and for my reference on how far I have come should I ever actually be able to do this pose.
Then I quit my gaping and finished my practice. Focus yogi, focus.
Breakfast at my desk was a piece of peach carrot bread with almond butter and yogurt with blueberries and figs.
I taught yoga with weights at Flex + Fit on my lunch break. A fun but challenging 45 minutes of work. When I got back to work I had an awesome lunch. Spinach salad with leftover grilled tempeh and lots of other goodies. Organic pink lady apple (my fave!) and a kombucha. I also had a PB&J Larabar for my afternoon snack.
I was thrilled to have the night off of teaching so Brandon and I made plans to cook a fun dinner together. I ran to the farmer’s market and Trader Joe’s after work and then came home to find a visitor!
My sister in law, Rachael, stopped by to drop off some jewelry that she made for a friend and left me with a super cute necklace and earrings. She makes jewelry and it’s SO cute. She’s starting and Etsy store soon so I’ll be sure to let you guys know when it’s up and running.
Rachael stayed for a beer and while we chatted, Brandon and I got started on dinner.
We made homemade pasta for the fist time! I’ve had the pasta maker attachment for my KitchenAid for over a year and I’m so happy that we finally took the plunge. It was a bit time consuming but really easy. We made rosemary garlic fettucine.
You can’t have homemade pasta without homemade sauce so I made a delicious arrabbita sauce with pancetta to accompany the pasta. French bread on the side. We were really pleased with how our first pasta making adventure turned out and will definitely be trying it again soon. We’re thinking lasagna noodles next time!
It’s been such a nice evening at home hanging out with Brandon and Sullie!
Have you ever made homemade pasta? Or bought fresh pasta? Fresh pasta tastes so much different from the dried stuff. It’s so good!
Please take a picture of you trying that move! I would end up doing a face plant!
haha…i will get a picture next time i practice.
Um. WOW. I’m not sure I could EVER get my foot anywhere near my head like that! So impressive!
And you are right… there is just NO comparison between homemade fresh pasta and the dried stuff!
That pose looks scary. Should the human body be able to do that 😉
I love how Sullie got right in on the picture of you and Rachael! So cute!
oh i know, the camera comes out and sullie is ready to pose! 😉
A couple years ago I got my hubby a class at Johnson & Whales on making homemade pasta/sauce and boy has it paid off!! It’s absolutely amazing and there’s nothing like the flavor!
now that is a great gift idea!
Homemade pasta is the only kind I’ll eat! 🙂
I had my inaugural homemade pasta experience this summer as well! I made gnocchi, and it really was delicious. I would totally recommend it, especially if, like me, you don’t mind forgoing the decorating ripples on the edges (though my mum insists you NEED a potato ricer – mashing wont do). Boiled and then quickly browned in a pan before serving: perfection.
i have never made any kind of gnocchi dish at home…not even using the premade stuff so i’ll definitely have to give that a try. sounds delicious!!!
I’ve never made homemade pasta, but I want to try it. My Italian grandmother and her sisters used to spend days making every kind of pasta you can imagine for Christmas Eve dinner. Yum!
that sounds incredible!!!! what a fun tradition.
I’ve wanted to try homemade pasta for a while now. I would prefer making it with my wheat flour if I can. My grandma used to make it and she would roll it out and then cut it into strips and let air dry. No kitchen aid needed!
I too have caught myself staring at the gym/yoga, etc. Whoops! Sometimes you are staring at someone who is an incredible athlete, other times it could just be the “unique” person who showed up to class 😉
holly – it’s easy to do wheat versions too! and yes, the kitchen aid is just a convenience but not a necessity!
people watching at the gym can be a good way to pass time on the treadmill! 😉
Never made homemade pasta – no pasta maker – but our city tailgate markets have a vendor who sells it…and she has like 30 different kinds! Ravioli with every stuffing imaginable, different flavors of fettucini, gnocchi, etc etc etc. It’s all so beautiful, too! So for now, hers will have to suffice. Poor me. 😉 Good to see Rachael in your blog! I will look forward to seeing more of her creations on Etsy!
we buy fresh pasta at pasta provisions on providence a lot. i couldn’t believe how easy it was to make it ourselves. i would love to try to make ravioli! sounds fun to play around with fillings!
ready to get busy with some wedding planning with rachael! 😉
yes, i was going to ask about that – have they set a date? so excited for them!!
Did homemade pasta taste a LOT better than premade? I want to attempt it, but I hear it can be time consuming, so I want to make sure it’s worth the effort 🙂
brittany – the texture and flavor are just really different. although it is a little time consuming, it’s super simple. the base recipe only has TWO ingredients…flour and eggs. so easy! we have the pasta maker attachment for our kitchen aid so that made it easier to roll it out and cut the pasta.
Looks like a wonderful Summer evening!! I bet your foot will be behind your head before you know it, and then…enlightenment will happen, right? 😉
hahaha…every time i do ashtanga i practice putting my foot behind my head and it’s just not getting better.
it seems i’ll be waiting on that enlightenment for a very long time.
Wow – all those food pics are fantastic! did you make the peach carrot bread too? yum!! i’m obsessed with this handmade fresh chestnut pappardelle from a stall in my local farmer’s market. it’s seasonal so it’s not around just yet, but it’s made daily and has this amazing, subtle sweet flavor. all you need for sauce is some nice olive oil, freshly ground pepper and some grated parmesan, although i often put some sauteed veg in there too. i’d love to learn how to make my own fresh pasta – sounds fun!
i did make the peach carrot bread…i’m going to post the recipe soon!
that chestnut pasta sounds amazing. it was pretty easy to make homemade pasta!
We make homemade pasta. It’s Jeff’s favorite. I honestly don’t mind it either way, but I do like that the homemade stuff takes a lot less time to cook!
I’ve never made pasta, but have picked it up at Pasta & Provisions. I think it’s delicious and love that it cooks in 2 minutes! It also seems like sauce sticks much better than to the dried kind.
My grandmother always made homemade pasta. She use to roll it out by hand. It would cover her entire kitchen table by the time she got it thin enough. Definitely nothing like fresh pasta! You’ve inspired me to make some:)
is that peach carrot bread from Southern Living? if so I’m planning on making that recipe this weekend 🙂
I’ve never made homemade pasta before, but I’d like to try. My hubby swears he can taste the difference, but I’m not so sure my tastes are so keen.
Whoa, that picture is intense!
I’ve never made homemade pasta (although I want to try my hand at gnocchi!) but I have had homemade pasta made by my aunt. It was so fresh and delicious. And she made the sauce homemade too. It was part of a surprise when we gave my grandparents their 40th wedding anniversary gift (oh, about 15 years ago maybe?) which was a trip to Italy. 🙂
I love challenging postures. I also look like I’m kicking my head down when I try the leg behind the head pose. I think 99% of people do!
I’ve always wanted to make homemade pasta! Yours looks delicious 🙂
I kept getting distracted watching that guy too! I love watching people like that practice…maybe in about 10 years I’ll be able to do some of the things he was doing 🙂 “Practice, Practice, Practice”, right?
The homemade pasta looks great! Love fun kitchen projects like that.