With the awesomeness of those mixtapes lost in time, my brother provided his own slice of musical gifting in the form of mix cd when I was home for the Super Bowl.  Teary-eyed and not wanting to have to say good-bye and head back to ‘real life’, I graciously accepted the disc he handed me as I was leaving.  He’d previewed bits of it for us as we’d driven around throughout the weekend, but it wasn’t until I was in my office the next the day that I truly got to experience his collection of Winter songs. That was three weeks ago, and I’ve yet to stop listening to his mix since.  It’s now a playlist of each of my iPods (yeah, yeah I have more than one and less than six) and before I share any of the rest of the music I’ve been listening to this past year, you need to hear this modern day mixtape.  With sixteen different artists there’s no expectation that you’ve heard them all, but trust me, the rest of their stuff is as good as the songs in this post.  So if you’re itching for something new and don’t know what to buy, let this be my suggestion list.

P.S. – Thanks, Zac.  You truly are the best musical (and every thing else) brother ever!

Wilco – Jesus, Etc: Go buy Yankee Foxtrot Hotel and then every other album of theirs’ you can find.  Trust me.

Whiskeytown – Sit and Listen To The Rain: My Ryan Adams love knows no bounds especially when it comes to the old Whiskeytown stuff. “Sit around, dream away the place I’m from.  Used to feel so much, now I just feel numb” Yeah, that good.

TV On The Radio – Wolf Like Me: More likely than not you first heard this song advertising the 2010 Winter Olympics and not from TVOTR’s 2006 Return to Cookie Mountain.  That doesn’t mean you should pick up the latter.

Sun Kil Moon – Carry Me Ohio: I’m pretty sure Zac gave me his beloved disc so that I’d finally listen to this song he’d recommended weeks before.  But somehow in the hubbub of life, I’d lost his recommendation and grown tired of googling to figure out that weirdly named some from that weirdly named band.  And of course, pride would not allow me to ask again.  Luckily, he acted with pity on me and provided this gem and highlight of the album.  My students may have grown tired of it after three weeks of constant play, but you should hear that stuff they force me to listed to.  ::shudders::

Sufjan Stevens – Chicago: Just a few years ago and countless other albums later, Sufjan promised to write an album for each state in the union.  So far we’ve seen just Illinois and Michigan.  Both are phenomenal, so when you get around to listening to Michigan make sure to check out “For the Widows in Paradise, for the Fatherless in Ypsilanti”.

The Shins – New Slang: Garden State.  Need I say anything more.

Ryan Adams and the Cardinals – Magnolia Mountain: If I had to describe the perfect way to get to know Mr. David Ryan Adams, you’d have to start in 2005 with 29,  Jacksonville, and Magnolia Mountain’s Cold Roses.

My Morning Jacket – I’m Amazed: After many of my musical buddies had listed Z as one of the best albums of 2005, I knew I had to hear it.  However, these Southern didn’t memorable to me until seeing them on Austin City Limits.  It’s worth a watch if you catch it on reruns.

MGMT – Kids: Ok, I might just get myself in trouble… but the first time I heard this song was in a episode of Gossip Girl.   It’s just as good as the intermission of this winter mix as it was on my guilty TV pleasure.  Don’t judge.

Iron and Wine – Boy With A Coin: What a great band name for a single man.  Another Garden State alum who you recognize and love his songs before you realize they belong to him.

Fleet Foxes -  Mykonos: CSNY in 2008.  If you don’t get it or hear it, watch this youtube video and wait til just after the 3:10 mark. Brilliance.

Doves – Kingdom of Rust: This cd was my first taste of Doves’ music; it won’t be my last.

Death Cab For Cutie – Summer Skin: Ok, so Summer Skin may not be the most appropriate ‘winter’ song, but I’m game to listen to Ben Gibbard sing no matter what the weather outside is like. Plus, it gives me hope that warmth will be here soon, and our constant companion of snow will give way to a mountain of green.

Bon Iver – Blood Bank: What could be wintery than a band whose name translates to ‘good winter’. If you ignore all of my other pleas in this post, please go buy Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago and the Blood Bank EP and wait for the snow to start falling, a long drive, or that moment where haunting melodies are just the thing your soul longs for… Bon Iver is meant for these times.

Band of Horses – The Funeral: If you recognize this song, it’s probably been a part of an episode of your favorite television show.  Now if only I could remember where I heard it.

The Avett Brothers – I And Love And You: I can’t decide how I feel about this final band.  Part of me loves their unique creativity, and for a second in every one of their songs I feel like I’m being punked. Yet, this quirky ending feels fitting somehow.  I think.

Red Kitchenaid Mandolin

Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” dvd

• 3 cups oats
• 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus 2 Tb
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp of cinnamon
• zest of two oranges
• 2 sticks of unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 40 oz of frozen berries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400° F.  In a large bowl, toss together oats, 1/2 cup flour, pecans (I used pecans that were already covered in cinnamon and sugar from a local orchard), brown sugar, 1/2 of the granulated sugar, cinnamon, and zest of 1 of the oranges.  Add butter and gently press with fingers to incorporate into mixture; set aside.
2. Place berries (I used 16 oz of raspberries, 16 oz of blackberries and 8 oz of blueberries) in a 12-inch cast iron skillet.  Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, zest of second orange, and 2 TB of flour and gently toss.  Scatter oat mixture over berries.  Transfer to oven and bake until fruit is bubbly and topping is golden about 35-45 minutes.

(Taken from Country Living magazine and tweaked a bit to my taste.)

• 2 Tb unsalted butter
• 1/2 medium white onion, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 medium carrots, sliced into 1/4 inch-thick coins
• 2 ribs celery, sliced
• 2 baby Yukon gold potatoes, sliced
• 3 Tb all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 4 cups roasted chicken breast meat
• 3/4 cup of frozen peas and pearl onions
• 1/2 cup of frozen sweet corn
• 5 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1 (9-inch) store-bought pie crust
• 1 egg, beaten
• salt
• pepper

Directions:

1. You have two options for the roasted chicken in this recipe.  The first is to buy a grocery-store roasted chicken and just use all of the meat from it.  However, I roasted my own chicken breasts and LOVED the taste when I made this pot pie.  To do what I did, take 3 large split breasts that still have skin and pat them until they are completely dry.  Generously, salt and pepper, add a pat or two of butter and add a sprig of thyme to each breast under the skin. Drizzle the skin with a tsp of olive oil and roast all three on a jelly roll pan at 400° F for 45 minutes or until chicken is juicy and almost cooked.  Chicken may be 5-10 minutes from being completely cooked but remember that if will finish cooking in the pot pie. Once chicken is cooled, chop into large chunks and set aside.
2. Heat butter in 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat.  Add onion, carrots, celery, potatoes, and garlic and cook until carrots and potatoes begin to soften.  Season generously with salt and pepper from the start.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in flour.  Cook 1 minute. Stir in heavy cream and broth, using a whisk, until combined.  Stir in chicken, peas and onions, corn and 2 thyme sprigs and bring mixture to a boil.  Make sure to taste mixture and season accordingly.Cook mixture on stove until all ingredients are heated thoroughly.  Remove from heat.
4. Gently roll out store-bought pie crust until it reaches 12 inches in diameter.  Place dough atop chicken mixture and brush with egg; cut vents in pastry.  Transfer skillet to over and bake until crust is browned and flaky, about 35 minutes at 400° F.

(Modified from Country Living recipe)

Somewhere along the way I came up with this great plan to blog once a day everyday. Yet, when there just wasn’t time to meet that goal, I stopped altogether. But I missed it. I missed sharing about the good times, venting about the bad and evaluating the everyday moments of life. So even though it’s been eleven months since I’ve flexed my fingers and utilized this lil piece of the Internet I call my own, I’m lowering my posts per day standard and finding my way back here again. Hopefully, this time around I’ll grant myself enough mercy to skip a few days here and there.

* Mild Curry Paste
* 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts chopped into 1 inch cubes
* Bag of frozen green beans
* Bag of frozen crinkle-cut carrots
* 1 can of coconut milk
* 2 Tb vegetable oil
* 2 Tb fish sauce
* 2 cups of jasmine rice

Begin by rinsing rice in cool water until water is runs clear through rice.  Cook rice  according to package or following these instructions.  Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes and add chicken to 1 Tb of hot oil in wok or large skill.  Cook chicken completely.  At the same time reheat vegetables in an additional pot until veggies are cooked through.  Combine veggies into chicken and add fish sauce, coconut milk, and curry to taste.  (I usually add 1/3 to 1/2 of jar.)  Cook for 15 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and coated chicken and veggies.  Serve over rice and enjoy!

I give you … The Peep Show.