Why hello, December. Yes, I know, we're halfway through the month and I'm only just catching on--but I can't be the only one, right? Thanksgiving melts so quickly into the Christmas season, it's rare that I am able to keep my head on and really focus on... well, on anything in particular. So many pretty lights! So many sweet treats! So few shopping days!
Apparently the lights, sweets, and shopping take the place of my common sense and healthy diet. There's limited space in the Christy Life! If we're going to have sparkly lights, we can't have grocery lists. That's just how it goes.
To be completely honest, our diet has been pretty terrible since Beer Week at the beginning of November. Eating out way too often. Too much beer, too much cheese, not enough vegetables, and virtually no exercise. Why am I so committed to putting on 10 lbs right before the only time I see most of my family every year? It's a mystery I may never solve. But it's clearly TOP PRIORITY.
I'd been craving this tofu rice dish for a month now, but I finally made it for dinner last night. Ele, The Kitchenist, introduced it on her blog this time last year, calling it Restorative Rice, and that's exactly what it is. I had a fennel bulb and all of the sauce ingredients on hand, so Matt picked up some kale and tofu while he was running Christmas party-related errands yesterday afternoon. It felt good to get back in the kitchen. So good, in fact, that I put my laptop on the counter and just stood around watching Suburgatory and Pan Am on Hulu during the down time. It felt even better to eat comforting, nourishing, replenishing food.
Since I basically followed the Kitchenist recipe and you should too, I'm not going to re-post the recipe here. I did use more tofu than called for (I just used the whole package instead of measuring it out), so I probably should have increased the liquids as well, but I'll remember that next time. It still turned out great: spicy, comforting, just-hearty-enough. A successful marriage of Asian and Italian flavors.
I hope your holiday planning is going smoothly. I hope you're eating your vegetables and taking time to exercise (I will try to follow your good example if you are) and are generally more focused than I am this time of year. But whether you are or not, I highly recommend restoring your health and sanity with a meal like this one. Even if you follow it up with peppermint bark, like some of us did.
