My Favorite Recipe from 2009

I tried to win a $25 gift card from Whole Foods for being able to tweet this recipe in less than 140 characters. Impressive, I know. Even though I wasn't the winner, I still stand firm that this is one of the tastiest and simplest dishes (gleaned from my sister-in-law's family in 2009). Plus the colors brighten up any table!

Roasted Butternut Squash with Dried Cranberries
• preheat oven to 400 degrees
• lightly grease a baking pan, I find my coated/non-stick pan works best
• dice peeled butternut squash into 1/2 inch cubes, using not more than enough to cover the bottom of the pan (if you want a larger quantity, use a second pan)
• sprinkle dried cranberries on top (I use a very generous handful)
• baste the cranberries and squash with honey butter (2-3 tablespoons of melted butter, margarine, or even smart balance works for those looking to be heart healthy with a generous tablespoon of honey mixed in)
• roast in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes, turning with a spatula at the 15 minute mark.
• optional: sprinkle with fresh ground black pepper

This dish is a great vegetable on its own, and the leftovers are fantastic in the next day's tossed salad. Enjoy!

My Relationship with Water

Of late, this is what is taking up brain space. How much water is mine to use? Of my imagined allotment, what are my best uses for it? I will skip over the obvious uses like drinking water...having already given up bottled water years ago. In fact, if you purchase and drink bottled water, I encourage you to make the switch to your tap; it's better for the earth and it puts money back in your pocket!

Actually, my latest preoccupation is washing dishes. What is more ecological and economical, hand washing or a dishwasher? We own a new "Energy Saver" dishwasher that is supposedly more in line with the 21st-century's sustainability standards. Unfortunately, it doesn't do as good a job as my old dishwasher did, which means not filling it as full and we're running it more frequently. And don't even get me started on whether or not the environmentally-friendly dishwashing machine detergents actually work.

So we consider the hand washing option. The liquid dish soaps that meet the "green" standards seem to work pretty well, but leaving the tap running while you're washing or filling two dishpans also seems to use a lot of water.

Of course, it seems obvious that just using paper plates is an even worse option (though it sounds like heaven to this mom who has already loaded, unloaded and put away two loads from the dishwasher since 7 am this morning). And while my husband and two boys often insist they don't need plates—my proper New England upbringing just can't reconcile that approach.

So as of this post, I am thinking that hand washing dishes once you have enough dishes to make filling a dishpan worthwhile makes the most sense. But, what of my time and my sanity? Should that play a part in this equation?

These are the dilemmas that keep me up at night. Are they worth losing sleep over? Perhaps I should just pop an Ambien before heading to bed. What are your thoughts? I'd love to know.