The past few weeks, whenever the mr and I have a free couple of hours, we have been hitting the countryside, in such of the best rivers (for me to play in and for him to fly fish)
We have been to many, but this one is my new favorite. There is shade to sit in, sun to bath in, and hiking trails to hike. There are little wading pools, deep spots that are great for fishing, and lost and lots of the most amazing rock formations. And bonus, the was not a mere person in site, only a few cute little frogs.
No matter that I think I broke the bottom of my foot walking barefoot in the water and jumping hard onto a rock, or that the mr came back with a touch of poison ivy (poison something). We still both love it and are looking forward to our next trip back with shoes and long sleeves!
You got any plans this weekend? If not, I am recommending that you hit a river. Bring a book, bring a picnic, and bring a little bucket for your river treasures. Soak up the last bits of the summer, take a break from the crazy, and just go. Trust, you will be happy you did.
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Sometime the best things in life are the simplest things. For example; a walk through the woods, a really pretty smooth rock, a perfectly timed 80’s ballad song for the last push during a workout, or falling asleep on the couch and managing to not drool all over the newly washed pillows.(You know what I am talking about). I mean, can one really ask for much more?
Same goes with food. The simplest foods can really the best. Take this cashews cheese for example. All it is is soaked and blended up cashews with a bit of seasoning to cheese it up. Nothing fancy, nothing labor intensive, just straight up and straight out. You can up the greatness by adding thick cuts of fresh, sun kissed, bright and happy tomato, and a chunk of fresh bread…Not much better then that. So simple and yet so good.
And bonus. No need to turn on any heating units in order to make this cause that would suck, given that we are again having another fucking heat wave.
Agh stupid hot weather. STUPID!!!! But enough about that..
Cheese time.
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The stuff. Cashews that be soakin for a while in some water, nutritional yeast (to give it that cheesy flavor), lemon, garlic, and salt and pepper. That’s for the cheese, but you are, and should, want to eat it with a large, so fresh and juicy, tomato and some kind of fresh bread situation. So you need that too!
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Simple as can be. Strain cashews from soaking water and dump into a food processor with the garlic, nutritional yeast, juice of the lemon, a pinch of salt and pepper, and a little water. Turn on processor.
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And it’s done when its all smooth and creamy .Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
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Tranfer the goodness to a lovely jar
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And that’s that.. some cheese of the cashew.
But wait, you need to eat it.. Smear all over the bread situation, cut up the tomato, place big fat slabs directly onto cashew butter and spinkle with a salt and pepper.
SImply the best… Better then all the rest!
Happy today! Stay cool my friends…stay cool.
-C
makes about 1 1/2 cups of creamy, cheesy goodness
- 1 cup of raw unsalted cashew soaked in water for about an hour
- 1/2 cup fresh water
- 2-4 tablespoons nutrional yeast
- juice of a lemon
- 2-3 cloves garlic (optional )
- salt and pepper
And not that you have to, but having some freshy tomatoes and some nice bread to eat the cheese on is pretty fantastical.
After you cashews have been soaking for about an hour, strain water and add them and all of the other ingredients to a food processor. Blend until smooth and creamy. Scoop into a jar.
Eat some right away on a hunk of fresh bread with lots of thick cuts of fresh tomato and place the rest in the fridge.
The cheese will get a bit thicker after being refrigerated for a while.
Use on anything , in anything, or all on it’s own. Licking jar clean is encouraged.
HEY Hey Hey… It’s Taco TUESDAY, which means that you are obligated as consumer of food to eat some tacos today!
So ok, I am not going to lie, these tacos were not actually made on a Tuesday (GASP) but were made in lu of pizza Friday (another GASP!!)
But guess what? No one died. People were happy. Food was fantastic, and there was no mention of the pizza that was not. So sure, taco tuesday is totally a thing around here, but you know how “Nobady puts baby in a corner”.. well nobody buts tacos in a corner. We don’t let the day of the week depict when tacos are eaten cause we think tacos are for everyday!
And these tacos, well, I got down with these. Made with lentils, cause lentils are the best, and topped with a hearty scoop of super fresh, chunky veggie salsa…. Not much is better then that. Easy and fast with lots of pretty in every bite, these tacos are a great addition to any taco dinner rotation!
Now lets get taco-ing!!!
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The stuff. First off, you are going to need some type of taco shell.. soft or hard or both , that is entirely up to you.( I made taco shells a little early in the day, but store bought is totally cool.) Also need lentils, water to cook the lentils, a jalapeño (optional), taco seasoning (pre blended or your own blend) and onion. Also needed is a gigantic tomato, some red cabbage, a few kale leaves, a lime, and salt and pepper.
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To get this party started, chop up half the onion, the tomato, cabbage ,and kale and toss into a big bowl. Oh, and chop up the cilantro and toss that in as well.
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Sprinkle with salt and add the juice of the lime. Mix oh mix and set aside to let all the flavors meld.
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Now that the salsa is doing it’s thing, chop up the jalapeño and the other half of onion and toss into a big skillet and place on medium heat.
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And when the bits start to brown like so…
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Dump the lentils in to the pan with water.Bring it all to a boil then turn heat down to low.. Add in the taco seasoning and sprinkle of salt and pepper and place some type of lid on ithe pan.
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And simmered until cooked.
Note. Check the lentils every few minutes while they are cooking. If you think they seems to dry, add in another 1/2 cup of water.
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Now it’s ssembly time! Lentils in shell, topped with a generous amount of salsa. That’s it! Maybe some guacamole would be nice (I had an avocado saved for guac, but it was rotten on the inside.. I was super pissed) But with or without, these are some freak yeah yummy tacos! I served my next to a bed of some jasmine rice which was nice, but do what you want my friends.
Happy Taco Tuesday! (or any taco day!)
-C
Makes about 8 -10 tacos
For the Lentil Filling
- 1 cup dried lentils
- 2 1/2 -3 cups water
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning*
- 1/2 of an onion
- 1 jalapeño
Fot the Garden Veggie Salsa
- 2 big tomatoes (or one gigantic tomato)
- 1/4 head of red(or green) cabbage (about 2 cups shredded)
- 1/2 of an onion
- 4-5 kale leaves
- 1 juicy lime (2 if they are not very juicy)
- a bunch of cilantro
- salt and pepper
And don’t forget the taco shells!
*Note. You can use any type of taco seasoning that you like, store bought or home made. I make my own with cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and a little coriander.
Dice the tomato and 1/2 the onion into small chunks and toss into a big bowl. Finely chop the cabbage an the kale into small shreds and toss that into the bowl. And chop up as much cilantro as you would like and that goes into the bowl as well. Spinkle with some salt and add in the juice of the lime. Mix everything all around and set aside.
Once the salsa is made and sitting, chop the jalapeño and other half of onion and toss into a large skillet. Place on medium heat for a few minutes until the pepper and onion start to brown. Now dump in dried lentils and 2 1/2 cups of water. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil, them back down to low. Seaosn with salt, add in the taco seasoning, and stick a lid (or cover with something), and let simmer for about 20- 25 minutes or until the lentils have absorbed all the water and are nice and soft. If you find the lentils are still hard and there is no liquid, , add in another 1/2 cup of water.
Once the lentils are cooked to your liking, remove from heat and get assemble tacos.
Scoops some lentil mixture into shells. Add on a big scoop of the fresh veggie salsa and eat with you face.
Guacamole, cheese, sour cream, or whatever are optional topping that you may consider adding but are definitely not necessary. .
Hey there people! How’s it going? Good right.. cause it’s SUNDAY!
Ok, so I know that some people don’t like sundays, but me, it’s my day. The one day of the week that I try to do as little crap as possible and relax, It also means the house is spotless, the fridge is stocked, (so so so stocked..a farm share and garden explosion!) and the sheets have been changed on the bed…. I LOVE clean sheets!
This past week was for sure one of those dragging, nagging, just want it to be over type of weeks. Why? I am not exactly sure. We have had us some good time; a back to school dinner, banana ice cream cake, garden time and a few playground trips. But I think I am just feeling the pull towards fall and am just clicking the days away until we have the crisp cold days full of apple, pumpkins, cozy sweaters, and colorful leaves. Call me crazy, but I can’t wait for the warm weather to GO AWAY!
Anyway, today I am going to relax a bit. Maybe I’ll finish my book, restart my knitting (I have knitted about 3 hats and keep pulling them apart because I don’t end up liking them.. I have pattern commitment issues) or do a little more painting. (on canvas, not walls). I hope to take the mr and the pup for a little hike and of course, drink a much coffee as my heart can handle.
How about you? Got any plans for the day?
Note about picture above…. Saw the stuffed bear on a walk with the pup.. He went BATSHIT when he saw it. I don’t know how I even managed to take a picture cause he was barking like an ass at the thing…. Thats my dog.
Here is internet stuff from the week
-No more squares on Instagram. I am not going to lie, haven’t noticed
-Uh, no shit. Turns Out Sarcastic People Really Are Better at Everything
-Can You Use That In A Sentence? Dictionary Adds New Words…Awesomsauce!
-Plants all around!!!
– This house and this house
-Why isn’t this happening everywhere? Streamlined Berlin Grocery Store Creates No Packaging Waste
–If only I had a library.. These are tops!
-The Complete Guide to Gluten Free Baking. Thanks King Arthur Flour!
-Human Face Coffee Lids.. hahaha
-Indiana Brewery Is Now Making a Beer for Dogs. I know my pup would like one.
And a few pictures from the week (All taken with my I phone 4.. I kept forgetting my camera)
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You ever have that problem where your clothes start to smell a little on the funky side, even when you wash them, remember to swtcich to dryer right away (I forget to switch a lot, which leads to a bad smell as well), and really, fully dry them? Maybe it’s just our washer and dryer or maybe it’s because we use the non smelly non yucky laundry soup that might actually just be made of thickened water, or maybe it’s because we are just extra dirty people. But no matter what it is, our clothes as of late have been coming out of the dryer kind of stale..
. I want my clothes to smell fresh, or else why do I bother washing them (ok, I know why, but still)
Being the problem solver that I am, I made these little satchels of good smelling herbs. Sure I could go and buy dryer sheets, but those just smell like chemical ass to me and I might actually prefer the smell of stale clothes. I also have a ton of the nieces oh nice smelling rosemary growing outside my door. It just made sense. Good smelling herbs stuck into a sack and tossed into the dryer with the clothes.
It works like a charm! Our clothes have been smelling nice and freshy fresh! No more stale ass clothes!
Stuff you will need
- A bunch of fresh or a handful of dried, good smelling herbs (rosemary, lavender, cinnamon stick. dill..whatever smells good to you)
- citrus peels (totally optional)
- Scrap faric
- needle and thread or use your sewing machine
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Directions .
Just sew up a little sack roughly the size of your hand,, leaving one side open. Stuff with herbs and peels of your choice and sew the last side up and toss into your next dryer load…
Can be reused 4-5 times. And when it starts to lose its effectiveness, the sack can be riped open on one side and refilled with fresh herbs.
Happy Clothes Washing!
-C
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It’s official, all of the littles started school yesterday……HOORAY! (I say hooray cause school is cool and the start of school means it’s going to be fall so soon!. Also I like hanging out with the littles more when they are in school. There is more to talk about and any time away from school is cool time so they like to do more stuff and not just be summer bums)
One of the littles had his very first ever day of school. So me, being the bestest most awesomest aunt ever, made that little a celebration, hooray for school, banana ice cream cake.
This little has been bugging me for a while now to make him an ice cream cake. It all started a few months ago when I gave him a bowl of banana ice cream and told him that when he sleeps over he can have ice cream for breakfast That blew his little mind. We then proceeded to have a converastawtion about healthy food and what was ok to eat for breakfast. (He is very interested in being healthy) I then told him that whenever he sleeps over I would make a banana ice cream cake for breakfast cause bananas are healthy. But every time he is over, I never seems to have enough bananas.
Well I had the bananas and there is no better excuse then the first day of kindergarten to make a cake.. A very delicious peanut butter banana ice cream cake! And no, it wasn’t for breakfast, but the left overs can be! (there were no left overs here)
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The stuff… Crispy rice cereal, peanut butter (I have some chiunky stuff at the moment, but any nut butter is good) and 4 frozen chopped up bananas.
Rice ceareal goes into a food processor with the peanut butter. Pulse until everything is all combined and starts to come togerter.
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And ump the mixture into a spring for pan. If you do not have a spring form pan, a pie plate will work just as well.
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Such a nice looking crust if I do say so myself. Now stick it in the freezer while you make your ice cream.
Frozen bananas go into the processor, get blended for a few mounters, and come out as ice cream…. freaking magic!
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Now dump the magic ice cream into the crust.
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And smooth it all nice like..and into the freezer it goes until its frozen.
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After a few hours, you take it out of the freezer, remove from the pan (or leave it in the pan)
And gather your toppings. A handful of the rice cereal, some melted peanut butter, and a little melted nutella. (use whatever you want.. fruit would be great, some nuts, graham crackers, sprinkles. You get the idea)
Now, Wait for it….
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Go crazy! Toppings all over!
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And serve up, and watch out.. I almost got my hand eaten for kids going for seconds..
Have a fantastic day and happy back to school. to littles and parents alike!
-C
Makes a 6 inch cake
For the cake
- 4-5 frozen bananas
- 2 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal
- 4 tablespoon peanut butter
To garnish (use any, all or none of what you would like… and maybe not the super sugary ones if a breakfast cake)
- melted peanut butter
- melted chocolate
- Nutella
- handful of rice cereal
- fresh fruit
- jam
- coconut flakes
- sprinkles
- anything else you would like!
Place cereal and peanut butter into a food processor and pulse until crumbly and combined and starts to come away from bowl.
Dump mixture into a 6 in spring form pan (or if you not have one, a pie plate works too) and press it down evenly on the bottom. Stick into freezer
Take bananas out of freezer and place into food processor. Blend until smooth. If needed, you can drizzle a tiny amount of water into it if you think it needs a little help to blend.
Once smooth, take crust from freezer and dump the nanaer ice cream on top and carefully smooth it out. Stick back into freezer (a pier of plastic over to prevent ice crystals )for at least 2 hours, or until the ice cream has completely frozen.
When it’s time to serve, remove cake from spring form (or leave it in the pie plate).and drizzle the top with melted peanut butter, melted, chocolate and another handful of crispy cereal. Or leave it bare. Or add sprinkles… the toppings are all unto you!
Eat like a camp, for breakfast or dessert.. Or eat some for dessert and then some for breakfast.
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Finally, it’s safe to turn the oven back on. No more heatwave (PLEASE NO MORE!!!) Last week was such a bust of life, I still feel like I am recovering. But let’s not talk about anymore. Lets talk about this cauliflower situation that was a highlight of my week.
I have been meaning to do this for a while now. And I have attempted, I’ll have the intention, get the cauliflower and peppers, then somehow forget that I was going to cook it and just feed it to the mr raw, or he will just start eating at it and then the head is not intact anymore (He loves raw cauliflower). And sure, you don’t need to have a whole head of cauliflower to roast it and enjoy it, but come on, doesn’t it look super badass and pretty whole? And you can slices of it like you would a cake, a really yummy veggie cake. So yeah, it should be a whole head. Anyways, besides being pretty, this thing was freaking amazing. I love cauliflower, roasted cauliflower even more. Add to it some slightly sweet and cheesy pepper sauce, holy ho…I almost ate the entire thing myself. It was everything and more how I wanted it to turn out and am now forever going eat my cauliflower exactly like this (but probably not always). And the sauce…. I am going to make giant jars of it and stick it on everything. So good.
Now lets get to it.
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The stuff. A whole head of cauliflower, a couple colorful peppers, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper, and a little bit of olive oil.
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Start with the cauliflower, Trim away any big leaves from the bottom and stick the whole head into a oven safe pot big enough to hold it.. Add in a little water and stick on the stove top on medium heat to cook for a few minutes, just to give it a little head start.
And preheat the oven
Pre roasted, slightly streamed cauliflower goes into the oven until a nice golden brown and all pretty like.
While the cauliflower is roasting, roasted the peppers too.I place mine whole onto a lightly oiled cast iron pan* and stick into the oven.
Once the peppers are starting to char and have become soft and tender, remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes or long enough for you to handle them. When cooled enough, remove the stem, seeds and any of the skin that is coming off.
*Last year I used the same cast iron pan over and over to rasot peppes and never cleaned it, or bothered to oil it. By the end of the summer, there was a 1/2 inch thick layer of hard as rock caramelized pepper juice that I had to chip it away with a chisel… so yeah. be careful of pepper juice.
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Toss the roasted peppers into a food processor along with the garlic, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, a splsh of oil and s little salt and pepper.
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And taste.. and try not to eat it all right now (It is so f ing good)
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And take that sweet, so delocouis sauce and smother all over the roasted cauliflower.
If you want, stick it back into the oven for a few minutes to crust up a little bit, but not a necessary.You can call it here and go to town.
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I stuck in back in the oven for a few minutes… But again, not necessary.
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And now you have this giant, amazing, head of delicious cauliflower, waiting to be eaten. I recommend removing the head and sticking it on a cutting board, you know, for easier cutting, and also it looks pretty badass.
Cut into chunks and serve right away.
Goodness gracious was this thing so freaking good!
Have a fantastic day!
-C
- 1 fresh head of cauliflower
- 2 red(yellow or orange work too) peppers
- 2 -3 tablespoons nutritional yeast (the more the cheesier)
- 4-5 cloves of garlic
- juice of a lemon
- salt and pepper
- olive oil
Take whole head of cauliflower and trim any big leaves or stem off bottom. Stick into a big oven safe pot with about 1/2 inch of water. Place a lid on pot and stick on medium heat for about 8-10 minutes, or until water has evaporated. and cauliflower is slightly tender.
Preheat oven to 425.
After the brief cook on the stove top, remove lid, drizzle cauliflower with a tiny bit of oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Stick into oven without the lid.
Now that the oven is on, toss peppers into oven, either on a baking sheet, pan, or on the rack if you have the space and cook until all roasted and soft (should take about 15 minutes). Remove when cooked and let cool off for a few minutes. Once cool enough to handle, remove seeds and stem and any of the skin that want to come off and stick into a food processor. Add in the garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Once the head of cauliflower is cooked and browned, remove from oven and dump/ smear with the red pepper sauce. If you want, place back into oven for a few more minutes, or not. Good both ways.
Remove from pot and cut into big ass chunks. Garnish with something green and eat until you can’t eat anymore.
If by chance you have any left overs (which I highly doubt) try blending it up as soup. It is freaking fantastic!
How was your week? Was it as straight up nasty humid and gross as mine was? Stupid heat wave.. I was not impressed.
I will be the first person to admit it, that I am not my best person when the tempature rises and humidity levels get so high that it starts to creep into my soul. I go a little crazy/ crazy bitch and just am not pleasant to be around. Or maybe it’s that everyone around me is not pleasant to be around. Either way…. just not good.
And I forget things, like to pick up the farm share this week. Now I am forced to go grocery shopping to buy most of our veggies (we are still getting a good clip from the garden) until next week. And Let’s not mention the pup.. cause he is just as miserable, if not more then we are.
So to beat the heat, the mr and I found ourselves traveling around, river hopping. He fished, I stuck my feet in the water and read, did some watercoloring, or knitted. It was fantastic and probably saved a few of the lives of the people around me.
We also took my little brother and sister up to the Bio dome in Montreal for the day, which was pretty cool. And of course we didn’t leave the city without making the manditory stop at Ikea, where I got myself a nice new green jar and my sister ate not 1, but 4!!!! hotdogs, and topped it off with a dessert frozen yogurt. It was the highlight of her summer. and maybe the lowlight as well. Now that I think of it, it makes sense why she was so quite on the way home. She was in a Ikea hotdog coma.
So yeah, the heat and humidity have finally broke and we are now (hopefully) going to finish off the rest of summer with a delightfully non humid and hot, weather pattern.
And then it will be fall and we will go APPLE PICKING!!!!
Some stuff on the internet this week.
–Is coffee a vitamin? I think so.
-Finally, a fantastic spork.
-Vermont Farms Grow Some Surprising Fruits
-Pop Tart beer… Where will they stop?
–Do animals blow their noses? Good question.
-Good to know. Is washing fruit effective in reducing exposure to pesticides?
–I think I want to be a Globe Maker
-This is my house in Sweden (Someday!?!)
-And my house in San Francisco(One more to my collection)
-An NPR Story About Homemade Vegetable Broth
And pictures from the week.
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THE LOVELY CRAZY
September 19, 2015 by maximios • Blog
The past few weeks, whenever the mr and I have a free couple of hours, we have been hitting the countryside, in such of the best rivers (for me to play in and for him to fly fish)
We have been to many, but this one is my new favorite. There is shade to sit in, sun to bath in, and hiking trails to hike. There are little wading pools, deep spots that are great for fishing, and lost and lots of the most amazing rock formations. And bonus, the was not a mere person in site, only a few cute little frogs.
No matter that I think I broke the bottom of my foot walking barefoot in the water and jumping hard onto a rock, or that the mr came back with a touch of poison ivy (poison something). We still both love it and are looking forward to our next trip back with shoes and long sleeves!
You got any plans this weekend? If not, I am recommending that you hit a river. Bring a book, bring a picnic, and bring a little bucket for your river treasures. Soak up the last bits of the summer, take a break from the crazy, and just go. Trust, you will be happy you did.
Sometime the best things in life are the simplest things. For example; a walk through the woods, a really pretty smooth rock, a perfectly timed 80’s ballad song for the last push during a workout, or falling asleep on the couch and managing to not drool all over the newly washed pillows.(You know what I am talking about). I mean, can one really ask for much more?
Same goes with food. The simplest foods can really the best. Take this cashews cheese for example. All it is is soaked and blended up cashews with a bit of seasoning to cheese it up. Nothing fancy, nothing labor intensive, just straight up and straight out. You can up the greatness by adding thick cuts of fresh, sun kissed, bright and happy tomato, and a chunk of fresh bread…Not much better then that. So simple and yet so good.
And bonus. No need to turn on any heating units in order to make this cause that would suck, given that we are again having another fucking heat wave.
Agh stupid hot weather. STUPID!!!! But enough about that..
Cheese time.
The stuff. Cashews that be soakin for a while in some water, nutritional yeast (to give it that cheesy flavor), lemon, garlic, and salt and pepper. That’s for the cheese, but you are, and should, want to eat it with a large, so fresh and juicy, tomato and some kind of fresh bread situation. So you need that too!
Simple as can be. Strain cashews from soaking water and dump into a food processor with the garlic, nutritional yeast, juice of the lemon, a pinch of salt and pepper, and a little water. Turn on processor.
And it’s done when its all smooth and creamy .Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
Tranfer the goodness to a lovely jar
And that’s that.. some cheese of the cashew.
But wait, you need to eat it.. Smear all over the bread situation, cut up the tomato, place big fat slabs directly onto cashew butter and spinkle with a salt and pepper.
SImply the best… Better then all the rest!
Happy today! Stay cool my friends…stay cool.
-C
makes about 1 1/2 cups of creamy, cheesy goodness
And not that you have to, but having some freshy tomatoes and some nice bread to eat the cheese on is pretty fantastical.
After you cashews have been soaking for about an hour, strain water and add them and all of the other ingredients to a food processor. Blend until smooth and creamy. Scoop into a jar.
Eat some right away on a hunk of fresh bread with lots of thick cuts of fresh tomato and place the rest in the fridge.
The cheese will get a bit thicker after being refrigerated for a while.
Use on anything , in anything, or all on it’s own. Licking jar clean is encouraged.
HEY Hey Hey… It’s Taco TUESDAY, which means that you are obligated as consumer of food to eat some tacos today!
So ok, I am not going to lie, these tacos were not actually made on a Tuesday (GASP) but were made in lu of pizza Friday (another GASP!!)
But guess what? No one died. People were happy. Food was fantastic, and there was no mention of the pizza that was not. So sure, taco tuesday is totally a thing around here, but you know how “Nobady puts baby in a corner”.. well nobody buts tacos in a corner. We don’t let the day of the week depict when tacos are eaten cause we think tacos are for everyday!
And these tacos, well, I got down with these. Made with lentils, cause lentils are the best, and topped with a hearty scoop of super fresh, chunky veggie salsa…. Not much is better then that. Easy and fast with lots of pretty in every bite, these tacos are a great addition to any taco dinner rotation!
Now lets get taco-ing!!!
The stuff. First off, you are going to need some type of taco shell.. soft or hard or both , that is entirely up to you.( I made taco shells a little early in the day, but store bought is totally cool.) Also need lentils, water to cook the lentils, a jalapeño (optional), taco seasoning (pre blended or your own blend) and onion. Also needed is a gigantic tomato, some red cabbage, a few kale leaves, a lime, and salt and pepper.
To get this party started, chop up half the onion, the tomato, cabbage ,and kale and toss into a big bowl. Oh, and chop up the cilantro and toss that in as well.
Sprinkle with salt and add the juice of the lime. Mix oh mix and set aside to let all the flavors meld.
Now that the salsa is doing it’s thing, chop up the jalapeño and the other half of onion and toss into a big skillet and place on medium heat.
And when the bits start to brown like so…
Dump the lentils in to the pan with water.Bring it all to a boil then turn heat down to low.. Add in the taco seasoning and sprinkle of salt and pepper and place some type of lid on ithe pan.
And simmered until cooked.
Note. Check the lentils every few minutes while they are cooking. If you think they seems to dry, add in another 1/2 cup of water.
Now it’s ssembly time! Lentils in shell, topped with a generous amount of salsa. That’s it! Maybe some guacamole would be nice (I had an avocado saved for guac, but it was rotten on the inside.. I was super pissed) But with or without, these are some freak yeah yummy tacos! I served my next to a bed of some jasmine rice which was nice, but do what you want my friends.
Happy Taco Tuesday! (or any taco day!)
-C
Makes about 8 -10 tacos
For the Lentil Filling
Fot the Garden Veggie Salsa
And don’t forget the taco shells!
*Note. You can use any type of taco seasoning that you like, store bought or home made. I make my own with cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and a little coriander.
Dice the tomato and 1/2 the onion into small chunks and toss into a big bowl. Finely chop the cabbage an the kale into small shreds and toss that into the bowl. And chop up as much cilantro as you would like and that goes into the bowl as well. Spinkle with some salt and add in the juice of the lime. Mix everything all around and set aside.
Once the salsa is made and sitting, chop the jalapeño and other half of onion and toss into a large skillet. Place on medium heat for a few minutes until the pepper and onion start to brown. Now dump in dried lentils and 2 1/2 cups of water. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil, them back down to low. Seaosn with salt, add in the taco seasoning, and stick a lid (or cover with something), and let simmer for about 20- 25 minutes or until the lentils have absorbed all the water and are nice and soft. If you find the lentils are still hard and there is no liquid, , add in another 1/2 cup of water.
Once the lentils are cooked to your liking, remove from heat and get assemble tacos.
Scoops some lentil mixture into shells. Add on a big scoop of the fresh veggie salsa and eat with you face.
Guacamole, cheese, sour cream, or whatever are optional topping that you may consider adding but are definitely not necessary. .
Hey there people! How’s it going? Good right.. cause it’s SUNDAY!
Ok, so I know that some people don’t like sundays, but me, it’s my day. The one day of the week that I try to do as little crap as possible and relax, It also means the house is spotless, the fridge is stocked, (so so so stocked..a farm share and garden explosion!) and the sheets have been changed on the bed…. I LOVE clean sheets!
This past week was for sure one of those dragging, nagging, just want it to be over type of weeks. Why? I am not exactly sure. We have had us some good time; a back to school dinner, banana ice cream cake, garden time and a few playground trips. But I think I am just feeling the pull towards fall and am just clicking the days away until we have the crisp cold days full of apple, pumpkins, cozy sweaters, and colorful leaves. Call me crazy, but I can’t wait for the warm weather to GO AWAY!
Anyway, today I am going to relax a bit. Maybe I’ll finish my book, restart my knitting (I have knitted about 3 hats and keep pulling them apart because I don’t end up liking them.. I have pattern commitment issues) or do a little more painting. (on canvas, not walls). I hope to take the mr and the pup for a little hike and of course, drink a much coffee as my heart can handle.
How about you? Got any plans for the day?
Note about picture above…. Saw the stuffed bear on a walk with the pup.. He went BATSHIT when he saw it. I don’t know how I even managed to take a picture cause he was barking like an ass at the thing…. Thats my dog.
Here is internet stuff from the week
-No more squares on Instagram. I am not going to lie, haven’t noticed
-Uh, no shit. Turns Out Sarcastic People Really Are Better at Everything
-Can You Use That In A Sentence? Dictionary Adds New Words…Awesomsauce!
-Plants all around!!!
– This house and this house
-Why isn’t this happening everywhere? Streamlined Berlin Grocery Store Creates No Packaging Waste
–If only I had a library.. These are tops!
-The Complete Guide to Gluten Free Baking. Thanks King Arthur Flour!
-Human Face Coffee Lids.. hahaha
-Indiana Brewery Is Now Making a Beer for Dogs. I know my pup would like one.
And a few pictures from the week (All taken with my I phone 4.. I kept forgetting my camera)
You ever have that problem where your clothes start to smell a little on the funky side, even when you wash them, remember to swtcich to dryer right away (I forget to switch a lot, which leads to a bad smell as well), and really, fully dry them? Maybe it’s just our washer and dryer or maybe it’s because we use the non smelly non yucky laundry soup that might actually just be made of thickened water, or maybe it’s because we are just extra dirty people. But no matter what it is, our clothes as of late have been coming out of the dryer kind of stale..
. I want my clothes to smell fresh, or else why do I bother washing them (ok, I know why, but still)
Being the problem solver that I am, I made these little satchels of good smelling herbs. Sure I could go and buy dryer sheets, but those just smell like chemical ass to me and I might actually prefer the smell of stale clothes. I also have a ton of the nieces oh nice smelling rosemary growing outside my door. It just made sense. Good smelling herbs stuck into a sack and tossed into the dryer with the clothes.
It works like a charm! Our clothes have been smelling nice and freshy fresh! No more stale ass clothes!
Stuff you will need
Directions .
Just sew up a little sack roughly the size of your hand,, leaving one side open. Stuff with herbs and peels of your choice and sew the last side up and toss into your next dryer load…
Can be reused 4-5 times. And when it starts to lose its effectiveness, the sack can be riped open on one side and refilled with fresh herbs.
Happy Clothes Washing!
-C
It’s official, all of the littles started school yesterday……HOORAY! (I say hooray cause school is cool and the start of school means it’s going to be fall so soon!. Also I like hanging out with the littles more when they are in school. There is more to talk about and any time away from school is cool time so they like to do more stuff and not just be summer bums)
One of the littles had his very first ever day of school. So me, being the bestest most awesomest aunt ever, made that little a celebration, hooray for school, banana ice cream cake.
This little has been bugging me for a while now to make him an ice cream cake. It all started a few months ago when I gave him a bowl of banana ice cream and told him that when he sleeps over he can have ice cream for breakfast That blew his little mind. We then proceeded to have a converastawtion about healthy food and what was ok to eat for breakfast. (He is very interested in being healthy) I then told him that whenever he sleeps over I would make a banana ice cream cake for breakfast cause bananas are healthy. But every time he is over, I never seems to have enough bananas.
Well I had the bananas and there is no better excuse then the first day of kindergarten to make a cake.. A very delicious peanut butter banana ice cream cake! And no, it wasn’t for breakfast, but the left overs can be! (there were no left overs here)
The stuff… Crispy rice cereal, peanut butter (I have some chiunky stuff at the moment, but any nut butter is good) and 4 frozen chopped up bananas.
Rice ceareal goes into a food processor with the peanut butter. Pulse until everything is all combined and starts to come togerter.
And ump the mixture into a spring for pan. If you do not have a spring form pan, a pie plate will work just as well.
Such a nice looking crust if I do say so myself. Now stick it in the freezer while you make your ice cream.
Frozen bananas go into the processor, get blended for a few mounters, and come out as ice cream…. freaking magic!
Now dump the magic ice cream into the crust.
And smooth it all nice like..and into the freezer it goes until its frozen.
After a few hours, you take it out of the freezer, remove from the pan (or leave it in the pan)
And gather your toppings. A handful of the rice cereal, some melted peanut butter, and a little melted nutella. (use whatever you want.. fruit would be great, some nuts, graham crackers, sprinkles. You get the idea)
Now, Wait for it….
Go crazy! Toppings all over!
And serve up, and watch out.. I almost got my hand eaten for kids going for seconds..
Have a fantastic day and happy back to school. to littles and parents alike!
-C
Makes a 6 inch cake
For the cake
To garnish (use any, all or none of what you would like… and maybe not the super sugary ones if a breakfast cake)
Place cereal and peanut butter into a food processor and pulse until crumbly and combined and starts to come away from bowl.
Dump mixture into a 6 in spring form pan (or if you not have one, a pie plate works too) and press it down evenly on the bottom. Stick into freezer
Take bananas out of freezer and place into food processor. Blend until smooth. If needed, you can drizzle a tiny amount of water into it if you think it needs a little help to blend.
Once smooth, take crust from freezer and dump the nanaer ice cream on top and carefully smooth it out. Stick back into freezer (a pier of plastic over to prevent ice crystals )for at least 2 hours, or until the ice cream has completely frozen.
When it’s time to serve, remove cake from spring form (or leave it in the pie plate).and drizzle the top with melted peanut butter, melted, chocolate and another handful of crispy cereal. Or leave it bare. Or add sprinkles… the toppings are all unto you!
Eat like a camp, for breakfast or dessert.. Or eat some for dessert and then some for breakfast.
Finally, it’s safe to turn the oven back on. No more heatwave (PLEASE NO MORE!!!) Last week was such a bust of life, I still feel like I am recovering. But let’s not talk about anymore. Lets talk about this cauliflower situation that was a highlight of my week.
I have been meaning to do this for a while now. And I have attempted, I’ll have the intention, get the cauliflower and peppers, then somehow forget that I was going to cook it and just feed it to the mr raw, or he will just start eating at it and then the head is not intact anymore (He loves raw cauliflower). And sure, you don’t need to have a whole head of cauliflower to roast it and enjoy it, but come on, doesn’t it look super badass and pretty whole? And you can slices of it like you would a cake, a really yummy veggie cake. So yeah, it should be a whole head. Anyways, besides being pretty, this thing was freaking amazing. I love cauliflower, roasted cauliflower even more. Add to it some slightly sweet and cheesy pepper sauce, holy ho…I almost ate the entire thing myself. It was everything and more how I wanted it to turn out and am now forever going eat my cauliflower exactly like this (but probably not always). And the sauce…. I am going to make giant jars of it and stick it on everything. So good.
Now lets get to it.
The stuff. A whole head of cauliflower, a couple colorful peppers, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper, and a little bit of olive oil.
Start with the cauliflower, Trim away any big leaves from the bottom and stick the whole head into a oven safe pot big enough to hold it.. Add in a little water and stick on the stove top on medium heat to cook for a few minutes, just to give it a little head start.
And preheat the oven
Pre roasted, slightly streamed cauliflower goes into the oven until a nice golden brown and all pretty like.
While the cauliflower is roasting, roasted the peppers too.I place mine whole onto a lightly oiled cast iron pan* and stick into the oven.
Once the peppers are starting to char and have become soft and tender, remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes or long enough for you to handle them. When cooled enough, remove the stem, seeds and any of the skin that is coming off.
*Last year I used the same cast iron pan over and over to rasot peppes and never cleaned it, or bothered to oil it. By the end of the summer, there was a 1/2 inch thick layer of hard as rock caramelized pepper juice that I had to chip it away with a chisel… so yeah. be careful of pepper juice.
Toss the roasted peppers into a food processor along with the garlic, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, a splsh of oil and s little salt and pepper.
And taste.. and try not to eat it all right now (It is so f ing good)
And take that sweet, so delocouis sauce and smother all over the roasted cauliflower.
If you want, stick it back into the oven for a few minutes to crust up a little bit, but not a necessary.You can call it here and go to town.
I stuck in back in the oven for a few minutes… But again, not necessary.
And now you have this giant, amazing, head of delicious cauliflower, waiting to be eaten. I recommend removing the head and sticking it on a cutting board, you know, for easier cutting, and also it looks pretty badass.
Cut into chunks and serve right away.
Goodness gracious was this thing so freaking good!
Have a fantastic day!
-C
Take whole head of cauliflower and trim any big leaves or stem off bottom. Stick into a big oven safe pot with about 1/2 inch of water. Place a lid on pot and stick on medium heat for about 8-10 minutes, or until water has evaporated. and cauliflower is slightly tender.
Preheat oven to 425.
After the brief cook on the stove top, remove lid, drizzle cauliflower with a tiny bit of oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Stick into oven without the lid.
Now that the oven is on, toss peppers into oven, either on a baking sheet, pan, or on the rack if you have the space and cook until all roasted and soft (should take about 15 minutes). Remove when cooked and let cool off for a few minutes. Once cool enough to handle, remove seeds and stem and any of the skin that want to come off and stick into a food processor. Add in the garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Once the head of cauliflower is cooked and browned, remove from oven and dump/ smear with the red pepper sauce. If you want, place back into oven for a few more minutes, or not. Good both ways.
Remove from pot and cut into big ass chunks. Garnish with something green and eat until you can’t eat anymore.
If by chance you have any left overs (which I highly doubt) try blending it up as soup. It is freaking fantastic!
How was your week? Was it as straight up nasty humid and gross as mine was? Stupid heat wave.. I was not impressed.
I will be the first person to admit it, that I am not my best person when the tempature rises and humidity levels get so high that it starts to creep into my soul. I go a little crazy/ crazy bitch and just am not pleasant to be around. Or maybe it’s that everyone around me is not pleasant to be around. Either way…. just not good.
And I forget things, like to pick up the farm share this week. Now I am forced to go grocery shopping to buy most of our veggies (we are still getting a good clip from the garden) until next week. And Let’s not mention the pup.. cause he is just as miserable, if not more then we are.
So to beat the heat, the mr and I found ourselves traveling around, river hopping. He fished, I stuck my feet in the water and read, did some watercoloring, or knitted. It was fantastic and probably saved a few of the lives of the people around me.
We also took my little brother and sister up to the Bio dome in Montreal for the day, which was pretty cool. And of course we didn’t leave the city without making the manditory stop at Ikea, where I got myself a nice new green jar and my sister ate not 1, but 4!!!! hotdogs, and topped it off with a dessert frozen yogurt. It was the highlight of her summer. and maybe the lowlight as well. Now that I think of it, it makes sense why she was so quite on the way home. She was in a Ikea hotdog coma.
So yeah, the heat and humidity have finally broke and we are now (hopefully) going to finish off the rest of summer with a delightfully non humid and hot, weather pattern.
And then it will be fall and we will go APPLE PICKING!!!!
Some stuff on the internet this week.
–Is coffee a vitamin? I think so.
-Finally, a fantastic spork.
-Vermont Farms Grow Some Surprising Fruits
-Pop Tart beer… Where will they stop?
–Do animals blow their noses? Good question.
-Good to know. Is washing fruit effective in reducing exposure to pesticides?
–I think I want to be a Globe Maker
-This is my house in Sweden (Someday!?!)
-And my house in San Francisco(One more to my collection)
-An NPR Story About Homemade Vegetable Broth
And pictures from the week.