hostel living and what i ate

 living in hostels is always interesting but my personal favorite thing about a good hostel is the kitchen. in hostels, the kitchen is the place you make your friends and share your food. 

pasta is always a hostel staple food, and in queenstown {pictured} i made a yummy and quick pasta one evening. it was a lovely little meal with an even more lovely view! 

i threw together penne pasta then made a tomato sauce with additional vegetables {red pepper, spinach, and zucchini} and i topped it all with bits of pepperoni and feta cheese crumbles. 

simple and perfect for the hostel life! 

more food from new zealand and nepal coming soon.

* grace, currently in kathmandu, nepal

sweet potato ravioli

no photos (my hands were full of flour/ it was too good to take a photo before devouring), but this is the most delicious meal i've had in a LONG time.

hubs and i have a favorite restaurant in jerusalem. well, a few of them. the one i'm referencing here is called spagettim, and it has the most delicious pasta i have ever eaten. in an attempt at hubs' favorite item on their menu, we attempted sweet potato ravioli in garlic cream sauce. verdict? DELCIOUS.

*kandyce in denver, CO

missing india meal

the week before i left home, i made chicken tikka masala, {recipe from allrecipes } chapati {also from allrecipes}, jasmine rice, cucumber-mint raita, and red lentil dal {cannot remember where i got the recipe}. 

because i made the meal after work we ended up eating around 10:00. it would have been much later without all of my kitchen help! thanks for your  help everyone : ) 

sorry the pictures are lame {i was too excited about eating}. the last one makes me laugh. abby is being abby, guion is only focused on one thing, sam is excited he finally gets to use his fingers instead of a utensil at the dinner table, kels is snacking on a piece of mango, and alex is anxious to try his meal {he stirred the chicken for a good hour!}. mom and dad were somewhere else at the time the photo was taken. . .

i will most definitely make this meal again!

*grace in wellington, nz

eggs benny

i've never been a big fan of hollandaise sauce {for two reasons really, 1.) it reminded me of asparagus & 2.) it has mayonnaise in it}, but this was really delicious the other day over at the greasy spoon. the sauce wasn't overpowering, so i enjoyed every bite. 

so far i haven't had anything too strange to eat here. the house in newtown is close to a grocery, so i primarily eat dried mango, chocolate, broccoli, chips, etc! 

i'm planning to make a meal for my housemates tomorrow night but i haven't the slightest idea what to make. i need ideas people! 

*grace in wellington, nz

p.s. kandyce pinckney, you're amazing. thanks for sharing all these great recipes! i'd kill for an orangette right now! 

orangettes!

{image from smitten kitchen}

i made some of these the other day to give as christmas gifts. if christmas doesn't come soon, hubs and i (and all of my coworkers who hover over my desk and ask if i'm "going to eat that") just may eat them all.

*kandyce in denver, CO

a kingsley favorite

grama k's wallbanger wassail

2 cans frozen orange juice

1 can frozen lemonade

12 cups water

6 cinnamon stick

2 c vodka

1/2 c galliano (or cheaper substitute sambucca or neopolitan)

1/2 cup sugar (+/- to taste)

orange slices (rind on)

mix water, juices and sugar in large saucepan and let simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. add galliano, vodka, cinnamon sticks and orange slices. heat and serve.

and sing:

Here we come a-wassailing

Among the leaves so green;

Here we come a-wand'ring

So fair to be seen.

*kandyce in denver, CO

side note: this recipe is the only thing which leads me to brag about the olde english side of my family.

cheddar broccoli soup

{image from shutterbean}

the yummiest you'll ever eat.

i happened upon this blog via it's a hunt life and immediately printed off 7 soup recipes. we've made this one twice in a exactly week. it's that good.

what are you waiting for?? go make it!

*kandyce in denver, CO