Blog

Guess what guys ….I got myself a sick vintage waffle/ griddle iron. I couldn’t be more thrilled!!! I found this thing at the local recycled goods store the other day, along with a very beautiful old white pyrex mixing bowl. It was one of my best thrift store scores! (Checking out the inventory and the condition of all the old things that day, I would say an old lady had just died and all her perfectly keep, mint condition kitchen stuff had just been donated.  But it’s cool, cause I get the feeling that she was at least 90, with a big loving family, and was happy until the day she died. And I am sure she would be pleased that I have taken over the waffle maker. Thanks old lady!)

 And now I am pretty sure that  everything I make for the next week will be cooked on said waffle/griddle. I am serious, I already have a list of things to try and cook on it; cookies, biscuits, granola bars, potatoes, fruit, some type of pasta situations…. the list of possibilities is endless and I bet that at least 1/2 of these things will be totally awesome and amazing.

But first thing first. I need to make dinner.

So waffles for dinner!! 

Note. These waffles are completely 100% fantastic for any meal you want to make them for. They consist of nothing more then beans, a shit ton of veggies, and just a bit of cornmeal. But don’t let that fool you because they are super packed full of so much flavor, have a really soft tender inside, with a nice crispy outside and are so super pretty. They are wonderful! The stuff. First, we got a big old pile of shredded up veggies which include; carrot, beet, sweet potato, onion, parsnip, celeriac, and a little bit of kale.  A we got a bowl of rinsed and strained white beans, a little bit of cornmeal and salt, pepper, and garlic powder. 

The makings of something amazing!Before you do anything. get your waffle iron out and preheat it. 

While thats going on, take you beans,  add 3/4 cup water and puree until smooth with whatever blending device want to like to use. (I used my hand blender…less to clean)Now collect all the shredded veggies and dump into a big bowl with the bean puree, the spices and the cornmeal. Mix until combined. The batter should be thick, but not dry. If its seems to wet, add more corn meal, or too dry, add a little more water.

Note how my batter turned a magical pink… I love beets, they make everything pretty! And check out that bowl!When your waffle iron is preheated, oil it if needed (if your not sure, add a little oil just to really make sure your waffles don’t stick) and take appropriate size spoonfuls of the batter and stick on iron. Close it and wait…..My iron has a little light that turns on when the waffles are done cooking, so I waited patiently (ok iI did open it a few time) until light tuned on and removed the perfectly cooked waffles.

Did I mention how awesome my new/old vintage iron is?

SO AWESOME!!

I made a little gaucamole and gave the mister and little bowl of plain Greek yogurt with lemon juice, but feel free to top, drizzle, or dump whatever you want onto these beauties… 

Happy waffle Wednesday!!!

-C

Veggie Bean Wonder Waffles

Makes 8-10 waffles (in my iron) feeds 2-3 peeps

• 1 small carrot shredded
• 1 small parsnip shredded
• 1/2 a small celeriac root
• 1 small beet shredded
• 2 kale leaves chopped into tiny bits
• 1/2 an onion, shredded
• 1/2 a small sweet potato shredded
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 2 cups(or 1 can) cooked, rinsed and strained white beans
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• teaspoon each salt and pepper
• oil for iron(if needed)

Note on veggies… I used what I had in the fridge and shredded, it came to about 3 cups. If you don’t have these specific veggies or only want to use a few.. go for it. Just make sure to have 3 cups of whatever veggies you use.

Take you beans and blend them up with whatever device you would like to use. Once creamy, add to a bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Stir until combined.

Once the waffle iron is preheated, oil it( if needed) and place the recommended amount of batter right on it there. Close and cook until golden brown and waffly.

Serve on a plate with topping of your choice, A few suggestions.. Guacamole, salsa, hummus, mustard, greek yogurt… anything that tastes good to you.

Eat as breakfast, lunch or dinner…

Fork into face

Spit peas are one of my go to%u2019s when camping. Besides taking up no room at all to pack, they are also super easy to make. Plus they only take about an hour to cook, which is the perfect amount of time to prepare the rest of the food for a meal and sit and chill out before eating. Not to mention that they are damn freaking tasty, especially after a day frolicking through woods and paddling on water. I mean, who doesn%u2019t like split peas? (If you say you don%u2019t, you probably should try again because I bet you would like these)

Constnaly thinking of our next hiking, kayaking, and camping adventure has got me with split peas on the mind. Especially now that the nights are getting a little cooler. Knowing that I am gonna have a hearty, protein pack and filling meal after a day of activity is just the greatest.

And collard greens. A green that gets overlooked a lot. No super popular, well, not around these parts, which is crazy because they are SO good! They have a more pronounced flavor (in a good way) then most greens. More pungent and earthy, and slitghy salty, if that makes sense. And hold up better then any green when cooked making them perfect to toss into pots with things like spit peas . Plus they travel well. I can bring a bunch camping with me and not worry that if I leave them out for to long they will turn into slimy green mush. If it is really hot, sure they might wilt up a bit, but stick the stems in a little water, they will last all day fine. And that is all you need them to do.

So yeah, this dish is perfect for camping, but also perfect for not camping and just making at home too. Again, super easy, fast and is just a great tasting dish.

Split peas and collard greens. Topped off with mustardy cabbage slaw. Can%u2019t wait to make this again this weekend!

To the spit pas and collard greens!

The stuff. A bunch of collard greens, some split peas, an onion, a couple carrots, some cabbage, stone ground mustard, spices which include garlic, ginger, dill, thyme, and ground mustard. And salt and pepper. And you are gonna need water too.

Start by removing the stems from the leaves of the collards. Then small dice up the carrots, the onion and the stems. Grab the collard leaves, roll them up together, then slice then into thin ribbons.

All that stuff you just cut up now gets tossed into big pot, along with all the spices.

Add in the dried peas and water. Lots and lots of water. Bring pot to boil, then reduce heat to low and loosely cover pot. Cook foe 45-50 minutes or so.

While the peas and greens are cooking, shred up some cabbage.

Add a good dollop or two of some good stone ground or Dijon mustard and mix.

Cooked until the split peas are tender and starting to fall apart. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

And then you eat. A big bowl full of the slpit peas and greens, topped with some mustardy cabbage slaw.

This is good food. Really freaking good.

-C

serves 4-6 folks

• 2 cups dried split peas

• 8-9 cups water

• 1 large onion

• 2 carrots

• 1 bunch collard greens (about 6-7large leaves)

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon ginger powder

• 1 tablespoon dill

• 1 tablespoon thyme

• 1 teaspoon ground mustard

• salt and pepper

• 2-3 tabespppms Dijon or stone ground mustard

• 1/2 head of cabbage (red and or green)

Start by removing the stems from the collards. Grab the carrots and onion and dice them up small, along with the stems. Then take the leaves of the greens and stack and roll them up together. Slice the roll into thin ribbons. Place all of it, carrots onions stems, and greens, into large pot, along with all the spices, (don%u2019t add any salt until the end) and stick o the stove. Add in the split peas and 8 cups of water. Bring pot to a boil, then reduce to low and place a loose lid on pot. Let cook for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the spit peas are tender and just about to fall apart. If you think you might need to add more water to cook the peas through, then add another cup.

Once cooked, season with salt pepper to taste.

For the cabbage slaw,which you can make right after your start the peas, just shred up cabbage and mix it together with the mustard and set aside.

And once the split peas and collard greens are all cooked, scoop into bowls, top with some of the cabbage slaw, and eat to your face.

It%u2019s officially fall and officially fantastic. All of my sweaters are so happy to see me, and me them. So are the sweatpants and the socks. They are here for me to keep me all cozy and warm. Nothing like coming home on a cold dreary day and throwing on a big chunky sweater, a oversized pair of soft sweatpants, and thick wool socks. Add a cup of hot tea, a good book, and a lap blanket and heading out tp sit on the front porch and breathing in all that fresh fall air. So good. So freaking good.

Last Sunday camp was at Gifford State Park. Another Vermont gem. So pretty, so quite, the colors starting to show in the trees. We went for a nice hike into a forest of old growth trees, then launched out the kayaks on a nearby pond and paddles around for awhile. Back to the campsite for lentils and zucchini then the mr fired up some wood and we watched the sun set behind the golden trees. Laid under a sky full of the brightest stars and watching the trees whip around and listened to the wind blow hard and wild all night long. It was dang near perfect. And after the morning coffee making and tent taking down, off into the week we went.

Back in town we got back to it as per usual. The this and that of life. I made gallons of applesauce, fed Barb and went on a tea and pumpkin run (fall essentials). Went over to Moms for dinner and so the mr could fix her sink. I harvesting the last bits of summer from the garden then went to Costco to find a Christmas tree??? (They had them set up right next to the bathing suits and halloween candy. %ud83e%udd37%ud83c%udffb%u200d%u2640%ufe0f) We did some more stuff that needed doing. Looked at land in the wilds of Vermont (found a piece but there were offers on it already. So bummed) I worked the studio, picked up farm share, and I worried about the mr after he stabbed himself in the eye with a screwdriver and almost lost the eyeball. Then we had the boys sleep over Friday for Mileys birthday so she could have a sleep over with her friends at her house. We made pizza, went to the park, and all cuddled up in pile of blankets while they watched a weird cartoon something that I paid zero attention to and I read and kind of fell asleep. The next day after pancakes we dropped the off, the mr and I did the chores and then went back over for a little family party for the birthday lady. The mr made spaghetti, Miley and I decorated her cake, then they ate the pasta, then the cake, and then the mr and I peaced out to come home. Straight up, I was feeling way over stimulated from days of human interaction. So I pretty much passed the F out when we got home. I love my family but jeez can they make a lady tired.

Sunday for reals and I am feeling ready. Today is suppose to be another fantastic day, slightly on the chilly side maybe but not raining so that is good. We are heading out for one of the few camps we have left for the year. Zack Pond Woods. A little pond with a couple of undeveloped designated campsites. It is first come, first to use so we are super hoping that we get there and there will be a place available to set up for the night. If not, we might have to boogie over to a campground near by that we have already been too. But I am feeling like there might not be a ton of people trying to camp out on a Sunday night when it is suppose to get into the 30%u2019s overnight and maybe rain the morning. I am ok with all that, especially if that means other people aren%u2019t and leave us be. HA.

Anyway, hope you all are having a grand old weekend and taking in all the fall and focusing on eating all the apples and pumpkins. We know your priorities!

Links to things that I read and looked at n the internet this week.

-Today is National Coffee day!!!!! Everywhere You Can Get Free Coffee for National Coffee Day

–You%u2019ll Be Shocked by How Much Food Americans Waste Each%u00a0Year. Sadly, I was not shocked.

-Fall medicinal shopping list. These to make a syrup for cold and flu, and this for everything. Get it before you need it (and it%u2019s out of stock)

–Tree-Poaching Is On the Rise. What the fuckers. Also, so sad for trees and for the people.

-If telling people a little more gets them to recycle, well tell them what they want to hear! This simple tweak could drastically raise our pathetic recycling rates

–Vegans are more than what they do not eat. Hear Hear!!!!

-Did you know? Peanuts Aren’t Real Nuts (And More Essential Nut Info). Especially good to know when allergies are involved

–Is corn a fruit, a vegetable, or a grain? What were you thinking?

-IF you are going to smoke weed around people, you have to share it. No way around it unless you are an asshole. HA. How to politely smoke weed

–Why Millennials Are Suddenly So Obsessed With Houseplants. I grew up with a million house plants so thats one reason, but also I need real living things around me to feel good feels.

Pictures from the week

I am feeling pretty sleepy at the moment. Actually, all week I have been tired due to the fact that the mr has been snoring so loud that it wakes me up in my sleep. We both have some allergy stuff going on, but he has got it really bad and so he snores really loud. All. Night Long. And I don%u2019t sleep. It is really annoying.

Other then that, well things are just fine and dandy. HA.

The week started off with camping at Half Moon Pond State Park and oh was that place fantastic. A sweetie little pond in the middle of the woods. We got a camp site pretty much right up against the water and there were not a lot of people so it was super quite. This time of year most camping is pretty sparse as far other campers go which is just the way I like it. After setting up camp we took a great hike to another cute pond high up, went back down and did some kayaking. The mr fished, I paddled around in circles. After that we hung out for a bit and then it started to rain just pinch so we walked around until it stopped. Even the rain was lovely, especially watching it hit the water. It was just one of those times when all was feeling right and good.

And then after we ate, sang kumbaya by the fire, slept, and woke up, we made the coffee and headed back as usual.

Then life. Work, people, dinners with the littles. Picked up farm share where we are getting less and less of the sweet summer produce. I trained a person on how to load glaze kilns. Made banana bread. I also managed to spent way to much time on hold on the phone. The mr kept nice and busy spending half his time painting at one of the houses and half his time digging the hole on the back of the house which made for a slight anxious me due to all the dirt he has been trailing into the house. And best yet, I got my first PUMPKIN. Sure, it is just a little bitty pumpkin, but I got it and I will not eat it until I get a few more to strategically place around the house as edible decor. (Why not buy pumpkins that you can look at AND eat?) Plus the weather. All week, all super great. So yeah, a good hardy week.

Yesterday was Jackson%u2019s 18th birthday! (Happy Birthday buttface!) which just sounds freaking crazy. Sure he is not my kid, but I have a nephew that is now a legal adult. That just seems wrong but it is what it is and I am just tuning into a old lady. Ha. And so we partied family style with food and cake and absence birthday cards (thanks to the mr). We jokes (many to dirty to mentioned) we laughed, we ate, then we left. Early because being a Saturday night the boy (man) had his own parting to do. And I am old so I needed to go to bed.

Back to Sunday. Today we head to Gifford Woods State Park. Really excited about this one. Just last week the mr and I heard a story on VPR on how there are very few parts of the forest in VT that have any old growth (over a hundred years) left and there is old growth forest at this park. I am hoping we get to see lots and lots of big ass trees!!!! What more can you ask for? Maybe a long ass nap on the drive down there. Jeez I am tired.

Internet links from the week.

-There is hope yet. Young People Lead Millions To Protest Global Inaction On Climate Change.

–21 Comforting Dumbledore Quotes To Make You Feel Slightly Better About How Shitty Everything Is Right%u00a0Now. Thanks Dumbledore, I needed to hear this.

-There is a spider that has been living in our bathroom for a least a few months. They don%u2019t bother us so yeah, we just let them be. Why You Really Shouldn%u2019t Kill the Spiders in Your Home, According to an Entomologist

–3 Tips to Keep Apples Fresh for Much%u00a0Longer. Always a hassle. I always want to stock up on a years worth of fresh apples but know that they will not last THAT long.

-Pictures of how people store books always makes me happy. UPDATE: BOOK SMART.

–Speaking of books, I just finished this one and it was really good. The writing, the story. Just a good book.

–You can%u2019t be productive without routines and rituals. Here%u2019s why. I am all about routine and ritual, like crazy stuck on them to almost a fault. I sometimes think I need to get out of them%u2026.

-Tell me this isn%u2019t freaking cute as hell. Stop and Smell the Flowers: Dick van Duijn Captured a Squirrel%u2019s Floral Delight

–The Woman Who Convinced Me That Everything Bad Is Actually Good. Going to take a look at this book for sure.

-I want to go see this DRIED FLOWERS CAVE. –

Pictures from the week

It%u2019s officially fall and officially fantastic. All of my sweaters are so happy to see me, and me them. So are the sweatpants and the socks. They are here for me to keep me all cozy and warm. Nothing like coming home on a cold dreary day and throwing on a big chunky sweater, a oversized pair of soft sweatpants, and thick wool socks. Add a cup of hot tea, a good book, and a lap blanket and heading out tp sit on the front porch and breathing in all that fresh fall air. So good. So freaking good.

Last Sunday camp was at Gifford State Park. Another Vermont gem. So pretty, so quite, the colors starting to show in the trees. We went for a nice hike into a forest of old growth trees, then launched out the kayaks on a nearby pond and paddles around for awhile. Back to the campsite for lentils and zucchini then the mr fired up some wood and we watched the sun set behind the golden trees. Laid under a sky full of the brightest stars and watching the trees whip around and listened to the wind blow hard and wild all night long. It was dang near perfect. And after the morning coffee making and tent taking down, off into the week we went.

Back in town we got back to it as per usual. The this and that of life. I made gallons of applesauce, fed Barb and went on a tea and pumpkin run (fall essentials). Went over to Moms for dinner and so the mr could fix her sink. I harvesting the last bits of summer from the garden then went to Costco to find a Christmas tree??? (They had them set up right next to the bathing suits and halloween candy. %ud83e%udd37%ud83c%udffb%u200d%u2640%ufe0f) We did some more stuff that needed doing. Looked at land in the wilds of Vermont (found a piece but there were offers on it already. So bummed) I worked the studio, picked up farm share, and I worried about the mr after he stabbed himself in the eye with a screwdriver and almost lost the eyeball. Then we had the boys sleep over Friday for Mileys birthday so she could have a sleep over with her friends at her house. We made pizza, went to the park, and all cuddled up in pile of blankets while they watched a weird cartoon something that I paid zero attention to and I read and kind of fell asleep. The next day after pancakes we dropped the off, the mr and I did the chores and then went back over for a little family party for the birthday lady. The mr made spaghetti, Miley and I decorated her cake, then they ate the pasta, then the cake, and then the mr and I peaced out to come home. Straight up, I was feeling way over stimulated from days of human interaction. So I pretty much passed the F out when we got home. I love my family but jeez can they make a lady tired.

Sunday for reals and I am feeling ready. Today is suppose to be another fantastic day, slightly on the chilly side maybe but not raining so that is good. We are heading out for one of the few camps we have left for the year. Zack Pond Woods. A little pond with a couple of undeveloped designated campsites. It is first come, first to use so we are super hoping that we get there and there will be a place available to set up for the night. If not, we might have to boogie over to a campground near by that we have already been too. But I am feeling like there might not be a ton of people trying to camp out on a Sunday night when it is suppose to get into the 30%u2019s overnight and maybe rain the morning. I am ok with all that, especially if that means other people aren%u2019t and leave us be. HA.

Anyway, hope you all are having a grand old weekend and taking in all the fall and focusing on eating all the apples and pumpkins. We know your priorities!

Links to things that I read and looked at n the internet this week.

-Today is National Coffee day!!!!! Everywhere You Can Get Free Coffee for National Coffee Day

–You%u2019ll Be Shocked by How Much Food Americans Waste Each%u00a0Year. Sadly, I was not shocked.

-Fall medicinal shopping list. These to make a syrup for cold and flu, and this for everything. Get it before you need it (and it%u2019s out of stock)

–Tree-Poaching Is On the Rise. What the fuckers. Also, so sad for trees and for the people.

-If telling people a little more gets them to recycle, well tell them what they want to hear! This simple tweak could drastically raise our pathetic recycling rates

–Vegans are more than what they do not eat. Hear Hear!!!!

-Did you know? Peanuts Aren’t Real Nuts (And More Essential Nut Info). Especially good to know when allergies are involved

–Is corn a fruit, a vegetable, or a grain? What were you thinking?

-IF you are going to smoke weed around people, you have to share it. No way around it unless you are an asshole. HA. How to politely smoke weed

–Why Millennials Are Suddenly So Obsessed With Houseplants. I grew up with a million house plants so thats one reason, but also I need real living things around me to feel good feels.

Pictures from the week

Two weekends ago (jeez, has it really been two weeks? Yeah, to answer my own question. ) the mr and I ventured down and over to PA for a quick visit to the dad, the grandmother, and the aunt. Our own little tour de family. Driving down then all the driving around once we got there….not gonna lie, my ass was sore. But it was oh so worth it. I got to chat away with Grammy and hear all about new animal facts, funny jokes, and just get some Grammy love. Then we packed Grams into Dads car (he was doing all the driving around) and ventures to my aunt Tina’s farm for lunch where we were re-introduced to my uncle who me or any of my siblings haven’t seen in years. It’s been a long standing joke between us that he didn’t really exist.( he is real guys!) We walked the farm in our long sleeve t-shirt, ate some amazing food prepared by Tina herself, and spent the afternoon talking and watching the late February lightning storm while petting the cats. It was the perfect visit with some amazing people.

So here are picture, mostly from the the farm (Red Cat Farm) Every time we visit I fall in love a little more. Small farm, school house full of awesome old stuff, happy chicken, veggies all over, and a kick ass stove. #lifegoals.

Cool sunny days, Chilly billy nights. Darker out earlier every day. You don%u2019t really need an excuse to make cookies, but this weather is a good of an excuse as any. All I want to do is throw on my coziest warm sweater, make a humongous hot cup of coffee or tea (or both), grab a book or one of the knitting projects I abandoned last spring, and bake. It%u2019s not just me right? It%u2019s that time of year. Hunker down and be cozy. And it%u2019s just the best.

So cookies. I knew I wanted to make them, and honestly I was just going to go straight up peanut butter, but something in my brain just told me I needed to add jalape%u00f1os. It might have to do with the peanut sauce I was making the night before which I add jalape%u00f1os sauce to, or maybe it was the fact that a couple of a days before I picked a million (not really, but probably like 200) jalape%u00f1os at the farm to pickle and freeze for the coming winter months and just happen to have jalape%u00f1os on the brain. Whatever the reason, I just did it.

Going to straight out and say it. No, these are not gross or weird. They are sweet nutty peanut buttery with bits of slight hot spicy jalape%u00f1o goodness. For real, these cookies are things of greatness. The people that I have given them too have declared them the best. So good that the mr said I had to tell everyone that he thinks these cookies are over the top AMAZING! He ate 5 before I was even done baking the second batch.

I had to hide the rest and now I deal out cookies for good behavior. Haha

So when that feeling of the need to bake hits, why not grab a few hot peppers and get down on it with there cookies. You will not be sorry. Or maybe you will because you will end up eating shit load of cookies. (But that is totally A-okay)

To the cookies!

The stuff. Brown and white sugar, peanut butter, jalape%u00f1os, and flour, baking powder and soda, salt, vanilla, and plant butter and plant milk.

Cream together the butter and peanut butter with the sugars until completely combined and kind of fluffy. Add in the vanilla and milk and mix until completely incorporated, Mix all the dry ingredients together then add those in and mix until it forms dough. The dough might look a little crumbly but when you pick up a chunk, it is easy squished into a ball.

And for jalapenos, just remove stems and seeds and dice into little tiny pieces.

Mix in jalape%u00f1os. Yup, it;s happening.

Grab chunks of dough and roll into balls. Roll each ball in a little sugar then place on baking sheet. Using a fork (or whatever you want) squish each ball down to about 3/4 inch thick.

Cookie dough going in to oven and cookies coming out. All green studded and golden brown. And the small, Amazing! I love going through the day smelling like a giant cookie. It%u2019s the best.

Make sure to cool those cookies on a wire rack when they come out of the oven.

And there you have it.

Cookies for you but share if you care. Or not. HAHA

-C

makes about two dozen cookies

• 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter

• 1/4 cup vegan butter

• 1/4 cup brown sugar

• 1/2 cup white sugar plus about 1/3 cup for rolling dough in

• 1/3 cup plant milk

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 3 jalape%u00f1os (2/3 cup finely diced)

Preheat oven to 350

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the peanut butter, butter, brown sugar and the 1/2 cup white sugar until competlety combined and slightly fluffy. II used a wooden spoon but you could do it with a mixer if you wanted to) Add in the milk and vanilla and mix to combined. In a sepereate bowl mix together the flour salt, baking soda and baking powder. Dump the dry into the wet and mix until combined. The dough might seem a little crumbly but when you pick up a hunk is should easily form a ball.

For jalape%u00f1os. Just remove the stems and seeds then dice into very small little pieces. Then toss them into the cookie batter and mix until evenly inpcorporated.

Grab a baking sheet and a little bowl for remaining sugar. Scoop tablespoons sizes chunks of dough and roll them into balls. Roll each ball in the remaining sugar and place on baking sheet. Using a fork or a the bottom of a cup, squish each ball down to about 3/4 inch thick. Then when the baking sheet is full, place cookies in oven.

Bake cookies for 13-15 minutes or until a nice golden brown. Remove from oven and place cookies on a wire rack to cool.

Then eat them.

Guess what guys ….I got myself a sick vintage waffle/ griddle iron. I couldn’t be more thrilled!!! I found this thing at the local recycled goods store the other day, along with a very beautiful old white pyrex mixing bowl. It was one of my best thrift store scores! (Checking out the inventory and the condition of all the old things that day, I would say an old lady had just died and all her perfectly keep, mint condition kitchen stuff had just been donated.  But it’s cool, cause I get the feeling that she was at least 90, with a big loving family, and was happy until the day she died. And I am sure she would be pleased that I have taken over the waffle maker. Thanks old lady!)

 And now I am pretty sure that  everything I make for the next week will be cooked on said waffle/griddle. I am serious, I already have a list of things to try and cook on it; cookies, biscuits, granola bars, potatoes, fruit, some type of pasta situations…. the list of possibilities is endless and I bet that at least 1/2 of these things will be totally awesome and amazing.

But first thing first. I need to make dinner.

So waffles for dinner!! 

Note. These waffles are completely 100% fantastic for any meal you want to make them for. They consist of nothing more then beans, a shit ton of veggies, and just a bit of cornmeal. But don’t let that fool you because they are super packed full of so much flavor, have a really soft tender inside, with a nice crispy outside and are so super pretty. They are wonderful! The stuff. First, we got a big old pile of shredded up veggies which include; carrot, beet, sweet potato, onion, parsnip, celeriac, and a little bit of kale.  A we got a bowl of rinsed and strained white beans, a little bit of cornmeal and salt, pepper, and garlic powder. 

The makings of something amazing!Before you do anything. get your waffle iron out and preheat it. 

While thats going on, take you beans,  add 3/4 cup water and puree until smooth with whatever blending device want to like to use. (I used my hand blender…less to clean)Now collect all the shredded veggies and dump into a big bowl with the bean puree, the spices and the cornmeal. Mix until combined. The batter should be thick, but not dry. If its seems to wet, add more corn meal, or too dry, add a little more water.

Note how my batter turned a magical pink… I love beets, they make everything pretty! And check out that bowl!When your waffle iron is preheated, oil it if needed (if your not sure, add a little oil just to really make sure your waffles don’t stick) and take appropriate size spoonfuls of the batter and stick on iron. Close it and wait…..My iron has a little light that turns on when the waffles are done cooking, so I waited patiently (ok iI did open it a few time) until light tuned on and removed the perfectly cooked waffles.

Did I mention how awesome my new/old vintage iron is?

SO AWESOME!!

I made a little gaucamole and gave the mister and little bowl of plain Greek yogurt with lemon juice, but feel free to top, drizzle, or dump whatever you want onto these beauties… 

Happy waffle Wednesday!!!

-C

Veggie Bean Wonder Waffles

Makes 8-10 waffles (in my iron) feeds 2-3 peeps

• 1 small carrot shredded
• 1 small parsnip shredded
• 1/2 a small celeriac root
• 1 small beet shredded
• 2 kale leaves chopped into tiny bits
• 1/2 an onion, shredded
• 1/2 a small sweet potato shredded
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 2 cups(or 1 can) cooked, rinsed and strained white beans
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• teaspoon each salt and pepper
• oil for iron(if needed)

Note on veggies… I used what I had in the fridge and shredded, it came to about 3 cups. If you don’t have these specific veggies or only want to use a few.. go for it. Just make sure to have 3 cups of whatever veggies you use.

Take you beans and blend them up with whatever device you would like to use. Once creamy, add to a bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Stir until combined.

Once the waffle iron is preheated, oil it( if needed) and place the recommended amount of batter right on it there. Close and cook until golden brown and waffly.

Serve on a plate with topping of your choice, A few suggestions.. Guacamole, salsa, hummus, mustard, greek yogurt… anything that tastes good to you.

Eat as breakfast, lunch or dinner…

Fork into face

It is exactly that time of year. Apples galore, cool days in need of a little extra warm, meaning a warm oven is welcome, if not needed. It%u2019s the best time of year, or at least one of them.

And so I bake bread. Sometimes just a roll, and sometime a loaf, almost everyday. I love bread baking because, well just because. Plus it%u2019s what people want to eat and will always eat because I guess bread=love. Makes sense to me.

This bread was made from a small dip in the 2 gallons of applesauce I made the night before. (We had sooooo many apples). The mr isn%u2019t the biggest fan of applesauce, says he would rather eat a fresh apple. I kind of get it, but dude, warm, chunky, slightly cinnamon-y applesauce%u2026 I mean, that is happiness right there. Right? Anyway, I am trying not to eat all the applesauce to my face by myself at once (it has been a challenge) and plus I needed to make the mr some bread, so I figured what the hell. I%u2019ll just use applesauce as my liquid in the bread. And so I did and that is that and now that mr really like applesacue (when it is baked into bread)

This bread is a basic sandwich type bread. The apple taste is there but not overwhelming so it can be used for sandwiches of all kinds, toast, just eating with a smear od something, or not. Just a overall good loaf of bread with a little extra from the apple. And braided because I was feeling classy. It%u2019s amazing what at little braiding of bread dough can do for your self esteem. Made me feel like I was the coolest person in the world. Haha!

Now to the bread.

The stuff. A few apples, regular all purpose and white whole wheat flour, salt, applesauce, maple syrup, yeast, and warm water.

Applesauce, shredded apple, maple, yeast, and a little water get mix up and let to sit for a few minutes to activate yeast. Then the salt gets mixed in, along with all the flour. Stir until dough forms. Dough should be slightly sticky, ut not wet. IF wet, add a handful more flour. To dry, add more water.

Dump the dough onto a floured surface, cover your hands in flour, and knead dough for about 5 or so minutes, adding more flour as needed to keep dough from sticking, until the dough is a nice and cohesive texture.

Nice looking dough. Now roll dough into a ball.

Place dough in a clean wet or oiled bowl and cover with a damp cloth for one to one and a half hours or until dough doubles in size.

Dump dough onto floured surface.

Cut dough into 3 equal pieces and roll out into long longs.

Braid logs together. You can stop here bake it this way or%u2026

After placing it on a parchment lined baking sheet, tuck the ends of the braids underneath each other and make it like this. Either way. And once you have the dough on the baking sheet, brush a little water or plant milk on top and let dough rest for 15 minutes of so while the oven preheats.

Before oven and after oven. Classy, right?

Then for shin and soft crust, rub warm loaf with some plant butter.

And for the hard part. Let it cool before slicing it. Ok sure, a little warm is fine, but wait at least 20 minutes (an hour would be best) and then eat you some bread.

Eat you some bread. That%u2019s a t-shirt right there.

Happy Fall friends!

-C

makes pretty one loaf

• 2 cups all purpose flour

• 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour plus more for kneading

• 1 cup unsweetened room temperature applesauce

• 1 large or 2 small apples ( about 2/3 cup shredded apple)

• 1/4- 1/2 cup warm water

• 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey

• 2 teaspoons active yeast

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoon or so plant milk or water

• 1 tablespoon plant based butter (optional for rubbing on finished bread)

Grab the apples and shred them until you have 2/3 cup shredded apple. In a large bowl, mix together the applesauce, shredded apples, yeast, 1/4 cup warm water, and sweetener.and let yeast activate for a few minutes. Add in salt, the all purpose flour and the 1 1/2 cups white wheat flour. Stir together until dough forms. The dough should be a little bit sticky so if the dough seems to dry, add in 1/4 cup more warm water. If it seems really wet, add in a handful more flour.

Dump dough out onto a well floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes adding a little bit of flour to the counter as needed to prevent it from sticking. Once dough is cohesive in texture, roll into a ball and place into a clean wet or oiled bowl. Cover with a damp towel and allow the dough to double in size. Should take between an hour and an hour and a half.

Once dough doubles in size preheat oven to 400

Dump risen dough back onto a well flour counter. Cut the dough into 3 equal sizes and roll each piece into long logs about 20 inches or so long. Place each roll next to each other and braid. Grab a baking sheet and line with a piece of parchment paper. Sprinkle with a bit of flour and place braided dough onto sheet, either as a braid or if you want, like I did, wrap the braid around itself into a rounded braid situation. Tuck ends into each other and under the loaf. Brush the top gently with a little plant milk or water and let rest for about another 15 minutes or so.

After the rest, place dough into preheated oven. Bake for 35-45 minutes (Less if left long braid, more if wrapped braid) or until the top is a deep golden brown and when tapped on the bottom, it sounds hollow. Also can use an insta read thermometer and check temperature. You want it to reach 190 degrees.

Once bread is baked, remove from oven. If you want the top to stay a little crispy, don%u2019t do anything but let it cool. For a softer, shinny crust, rub the top while it is still warm with some plant based butter.

Let bread cool completely before cutting.

Then eat it like you would eat bread. Any and every way.

Store cooled loaf in a airtight bag on counter for 2-3 days but if not eating that fast, slice and place into freezer. That way you can pull out individual pieces and toast as you want.

Soup. No joke (although people make jokes about me), is eaten in my house, at lunch and sometime even at dinner. Every. Single. Day. There is just no going wrong with a big pot or veggies, spices, sometimes beans, sometime not. I make it in big batches, in small batches. Sometimes it%u2019s more a bisque, or a chili or a stew, or just a really really spicy broth. Whatever I have in the fridge or freezer, the stuff that might not be great eaten fresh, sad spinach%u2026. It all turns in soup.

Does that make me some kind of weird soup freak? Maybe, but I am ok with that. And to those who see me walking down the street and yell silly things about me having to get home to eat my soup (it happens more then you know) well, you know you are just jealous and secretly wish you were eating soup with my too. So %ud83d%ude1d.

Are you a soup person too? I mean, who isn%u2019t, especially right now that is is fall time and it%u2019s getting chilly and darker out and all we want to do is hibernate. Definitely a soup time if there was ever a specific time for soup. And this soup, made even more hardy and comforting with the addition on dumplings. I actually made it specifically for the mr because, well just because I love him and thought he would enjoy it. And well, he loved it because dumplings of course. Light and slightly chewy, soup thickening dumplings with hot and comforting soup. A perfect end to a day of him working outside in the cold.

So soup. Make it. Dumplings. Add those too. You will be a winner with food, and in life.

To the soup and dumplings!

The stuff. A few stalks of Swiss chard, a couple carrots and a few potatoes. An onion, dried navy beans, some cherry tomatoes. Then there is flour, with salt and baking powder, a little oil, plant based milk, and salt and pepper.

Veggie chopping time. Dice the potatoes, the onion, the carrots, and the stalks of the chard into small mouth sized pieces. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and the chard leaves into small ribbons. Set the tomatoes and greens aside.

Dump the carrots, onion, chard stalks, and potatoes into a very large pot, add all the spices, a good pinch of salt, lots of black pepper, and a few splashed of water. Cook on medium high heat for 5-7 minutes to just kind of sweat the veggies a bit.

Add in beans and water. Bring pot to a boil then reduce heat to medium and let cook for about an hour. Just give it a stir once in a while.

After an hour check the beans. If they seem close to being done (almost squish in between fingers), then add in the tomatoes, the chard greens, and a few more cup of water. Keep on heat and start the dumpling batter.

Dumpling batter. Mix together the dry ingredients then add in the wet. Mix until combined.

Soup. All nice and looking just about done. The vegges are soft and tender, the beans are cooked. Check and season for salt now then get ready to drop dumplings.

Drop the dumplings. Tablespoons of batter go right into the soup. Thencook, with a lid slightly covering pot, for about 15 minutes.

Look at that. Soup with soft, fluffy, dumpling ready for consumption.

Now all you have to do it serve it up and eat it up.

Soup all day. Every day. Dumplings too!

-C

makes 4-6 servings

• For the soup

• 1/2 cup dried small white beans

• 1 large onion

• 2 carrots

• 2 small red potatoes

• 3 Swiss chard leaves and stalks

• handful of cherry tomatoes (about a cup or so)

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon dill

• 1 teaspoon thyme

• 1 teaspoon ginger

• 1 teaspoon marjoram

• 1 teaspoon ground mustard

• 1/2 teaspoon sage

• 1/2 red pepper flakes

• 12 cups water

• salt and pepper to taste

• For dumplings

• 1 cup all purpose flour

• 1 tablespoons oil

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon black pepper

• 1/2 cup warm water or plant based milk

Couple quick notes. I use water but if you really want, use veggie stalk. I find stalk overpowers soup and makes it taste salty, even when it is low sodium. Plus water is there and free but again, use stalk if you want. Also, you can use just about any veggie that you like so if you want to replace chard with celery and spinach or throw some red peppers into the soup, go for it.

Start by small dicing the potatoes, the onion, the carrots, and the stalks of the chard. Dump it all into a large pot, along with all the spices and a good pinch of salt and pepper, and place on the stove on medium high heat with about 1/2 cup water and cook for a few minutes. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and cut the chard leaves into small ribbons. Set aside.

Once the veggies and spices have had a few minutes on the stove, add in the dried beans and 10 cups of water. Bring the pot to a boil then reduce to a medium heat. Cook for about an hour, giving it a stir once in a while. After an hour, check beans for doneness but removing one or two and pinching between fingers. . They should be close to done by now. If they are still really heard, cook for another 20 minutes, if almost cooked through, toss in the tomatoes, the chard greens and the other 2 cups of water. Keep cooking.

In the meantime, make dumpling dough. Mix the dry together then add in the oil and milk. Mix until just combined. Set aside.

Once the soup is done (the veggies are all soft and tender, the beans are cooked through which should take a total of 1 1/2 hours), it%u2019s time to dumpling. Turn the soup up to a medium high heat and carefully drop tablespoons of the dumpling batter right into the soup. The batter will float. Once all the dumplings are in, half cover the pot and let the dumpling cook for 15 minutes or until the dumplings are big, light. and fluffy.

Remove pot from heat and serve and eat right away. Big bowls, Big spoons. Pinch more of salt if needed. Lots of pepper.

Spit peas are one of my go to%u2019s when camping. Besides taking up no room at all to pack, they are also super easy to make. Plus they only take about an hour to cook, which is the perfect amount of time to prepare the rest of the food for a meal and sit and chill out before eating. Not to mention that they are damn freaking tasty, especially after a day frolicking through woods and paddling on water. I mean, who doesn%u2019t like split peas? (If you say you don%u2019t, you probably should try again because I bet you would like these)

Constnaly thinking of our next hiking, kayaking, and camping adventure has got me with split peas on the mind. Especially now that the nights are getting a little cooler. Knowing that I am gonna have a hearty, protein pack and filling meal after a day of activity is just the greatest.

And collard greens. A green that gets overlooked a lot. No super popular, well, not around these parts, which is crazy because they are SO good! They have a more pronounced flavor (in a good way) then most greens. More pungent and earthy, and slitghy salty, if that makes sense. And hold up better then any green when cooked making them perfect to toss into pots with things like spit peas . Plus they travel well. I can bring a bunch camping with me and not worry that if I leave them out for to long they will turn into slimy green mush. If it is really hot, sure they might wilt up a bit, but stick the stems in a little water, they will last all day fine. And that is all you need them to do.

So yeah, this dish is perfect for camping, but also perfect for not camping and just making at home too. Again, super easy, fast and is just a great tasting dish.

Split peas and collard greens. Topped off with mustardy cabbage slaw. Can%u2019t wait to make this again this weekend!

To the spit pas and collard greens!

The stuff. A bunch of collard greens, some split peas, an onion, a couple carrots, some cabbage, stone ground mustard, spices which include garlic, ginger, dill, thyme, and ground mustard. And salt and pepper. And you are gonna need water too.

Start by removing the stems from the leaves of the collards. Then small dice up the carrots, the onion and the stems. Grab the collard leaves, roll them up together, then slice then into thin ribbons.

All that stuff you just cut up now gets tossed into big pot, along with all the spices.

Add in the dried peas and water. Lots and lots of water. Bring pot to boil, then reduce heat to low and loosely cover pot. Cook foe 45-50 minutes or so.

While the peas and greens are cooking, shred up some cabbage.

Add a good dollop or two of some good stone ground or Dijon mustard and mix.

Cooked until the split peas are tender and starting to fall apart. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

And then you eat. A big bowl full of the slpit peas and greens, topped with some mustardy cabbage slaw.

This is good food. Really freaking good.

-C

serves 4-6 folks

• 2 cups dried split peas

• 8-9 cups water

• 1 large onion

• 2 carrots

• 1 bunch collard greens (about 6-7large leaves)

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon ginger powder

• 1 tablespoon dill

• 1 tablespoon thyme

• 1 teaspoon ground mustard

• salt and pepper

• 2-3 tabespppms Dijon or stone ground mustard

• 1/2 head of cabbage (red and or green)

Start by removing the stems from the collards. Grab the carrots and onion and dice them up small, along with the stems. Then take the leaves of the greens and stack and roll them up together. Slice the roll into thin ribbons. Place all of it, carrots onions stems, and greens, into large pot, along with all the spices, (don%u2019t add any salt until the end) and stick o the stove. Add in the split peas and 8 cups of water. Bring pot to a boil, then reduce to low and place a loose lid on pot. Let cook for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the spit peas are tender and just about to fall apart. If you think you might need to add more water to cook the peas through, then add another cup.

Once cooked, season with salt pepper to taste.

For the cabbage slaw,which you can make right after your start the peas, just shred up cabbage and mix it together with the mustard and set aside.

And once the split peas and collard greens are all cooked, scoop into bowls, top with some of the cabbage slaw, and eat to your face.

Let%u2019s talk about how soup is the perfect food. It can be light and fresh, hearty and deep, chunky or smooth. You can eat it with a spoon, or somtime a fork if warranted, or just drink it from a mug. It%u2019s usually a one pot meal, a small pot for one, a big pot for many. Make a pot of soup and eat some now and save some for later. It freezes amazingly well. Got a few extra sad carrots and wilted greens? Toss them into a pot with whatever you have on hand, maybe those veggies scraps and you got yourself a meal. Want something more filling, just add in some grains. Feeling sick, warm soup will make it all better. Feeling fresh and springy, well soup is there for you too. Seriously soup, you can do anything. If I could, I would marry you. %u2665%ufe0f

This soup is one of this velvety smooth, light but rich, delicious beyond delicious soups. A fresh spring time soup. Not to hearty or heavily spiced. Super rich and creamy and flavorful. Bright ass green which makes it amazing in itself, but then with a nice tangy sumac tahini swirl on top, well it is just about the most perfect soup. I made to share, which I did, (and everyone licked their bowls clean) but then hoarded the little bit left over and ate it cold for a late afternoon snack. That is another thing about soup, you can eat is cold and it is still amazing.

Tasty and delicious, and nutritious. This soup does it all.

To the soup!

The stuff. Peas, chopped broccoli, and chopped cauliflower which are all frozen and slightly thawed. You can totally use fresh here too, but I just so happen to have it frozen so you might as well save the fresh stuff for fresh eating. Also have a big yellow onion, a few cloves garlic, some tahini, a lemon, sumac, and salt and pepper. You need water which I did not picture here.

A pot, some water and a roughly chopped onion and the garlic start off this soup. Bring the pot to a boil, then turn to medium and let the onion and garlic cook until very tender. I have been making a lot of soups starting with this step lately. Boiling the onion and garlic until tender and fragrant really make for a super flavorful and clean soup base. Or soup in itself.

Now add in the broccoli and cauliflower to the pot and cook until tender.

Mid soup cooking time is a good time to make the sumac tahini sauce for the swirl. Basics here, just mix the tahini, the sumac, a pinch of salt and pepper, the juice of the lemon and a tablespoon of warm water together until smooth.

Last but not least, the peas. Add them in and they just need a few minutes to cook through.

And then it all gets blended to become this green creamy goodness.

Ladle into bowls, grab the sumac tahini sauce and swirl it on in. A tablespoon or so is good. And don%u2019t forget a little more pepper and another pinch of sumac for good measure.

Just appreciate for a moment. That is one good looking bowl of soup. And it taste even better then it looks.

-C

Makes about 4 serving

• 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen peas

• 1 1/2 cup chopped fresh or frozen cauliflower

• 1 1/2 cup chopped fresh or frozen broccoli

• 1 large onion

• 3-4 cloves garlic

• 4-5 cups water

• Salt and pepper

• 1 teaspoon sumac

• 2 tablespoons tahini

• 2-4 tablespoons warm water

Start by removing the papery skin from the onion and chop into a few big chunks. Remove the skin from garlic too. Place into pot with 4 cups water. Turn heat on high and bring to a boil then turn heat to medium and let onion are garlic cook until tender which should take about 15-20 minutes

Once the onion is cooked, add in the broccoli and cauliflower. Turn heat back to high and bring to a boil again then turn back down to medium heat. Keep cooking until tender (another 15 minutes or so) then add in the peas. Keep on heat until peas are cooked through then remove the pot from heat and either transfer to a blender or use a immusrian blender to blend the soup until smooth. Add a little more water if needed to get to the right consistency to blend right. Or if you want a thinner soup.

For the tahini sumac swirl just mix the tahini and sumac together along with the juice of the lemon, two tablespoon warm water and a pinch of salt. Mix together until smooth. If the mixture is to thick, add another tablespoon of water.

To serve. Ladle or pour soup into bowls and drizzle and swirl the tahini sumac on top. Sprinkle with pepper and a pinch more sumac and you are good to go.

I can%u2019t remember the last time I have gone a day without eating lentils. Seriously, even when we travel I buy or bring along a bag of lentils. Or when we are camping, its basically all we eat. So it is safe to say that I know my way around a lentil or two. They are probably my favorite food (I say that about all my favorites)

Other then lentils being amazing delicious, the are so versatile. I am sure I say it all the time, but there is nothing you cannot make with lentils, sweet or savory. And nutritional as all heck. So much iron and a super amount of protein. Lentils are basically the perfect food in tiny little coin shaped form. Take it from this vegan lady here. Lentils help keep me alive. HA.

But enough about how many lentils I eat, what we need to address is this chili. It doesn%u2019t matter if you are a lentil feen or not, you will very much enjoy yourself a big bowl of this hearty, slightly spicy, warming goodness. Especially now, when it%u2019s cold outside and the days are short and you just want to eat something filling and healthy and that is not left over holiday cookies. And big bonus, this is a chili that you could come home to start at 5 and basically have it ready to eat by 6. That is just one bit of the magic of lentils, they so cook so fast.

And it%u2019s chili and chili is the best so you really should just get it made. It%u2019s what you need, I can tell.

To all the lentil goodness!

The stuff. Green lentils, crushed tomatoes, a cubanelle pepper, an onion, a couple carrots, and some cauliflower. Also a few cloves or garlic, cumin, chili powder, ground ginger, a red jalape%u00f1o, and salt and pepper.

Get started by small choping the carrot, onion, and pepper. Mince up the garlic too.

Grab that jalape%u00f1o and remove steam (and seeds if you want heat) and dice into very very small piece.

Into a big old pot it all goes, along with the cauliflower and all the spices. Add a splash of water and a sprinkle of salt and pepper and stick it on the stove for a few minutes to warm up the veggies and spices.

Looking good.. So good I wanted to eat it all, but don%u2019t, it%u2019s for the chili.

Now add all the tomatoes and water and place back on stove on high heat until it starts to boil, then reduce heat to a medium and cook until lentils are tender.

Well look at that, chili.

And why not top with a little avocado while you are at it. It is a very good addition, to the spiciness.

Very little amount of works for such great rewards. Probably going to be your new favorite chili recipe just so you know.

Lentil chili. Grab a bowl, kick up your feet, and dig on it.

-C

makes a lot of chili, like 10-12 servings

• 1 pound green lentils

• 1 large onion

• 5-6 cloves or garlic

• 1 cubanelle pepper (or any green or sweet pepper)

• 2 large carrots

• 3 cups chopped cauliflower (fresh or frozen)

• 6 cups (two 28 oz cans) crushed tomatoes

• 2 hefty tablespoons cumin

• 1 hefty tablespoon chili powder

• 1 teaspoon ground ginger

• 1 jalape%u00f1o pepper

• 6-8 cups water

• salt and pepper

• diced avocado for serving (optional)

Remove steam and seeds from cubanelle pepper and small dice it along with the carrots and onion then place int all nto a large heavy bottom pot. Mince the garlic add into pot. Remove steam and seeds from jalape%u00f1o pepper and finely dice it and add to pot. Last but not least, add the spices to the mix. Add a splash of water and place on high heat and cook the veggies and spices until for 5 or so minutes, just to give them a little heads start and to activate the spices.

Once the veggies have had a few minutes of heat, dump in the dried lentils, the tomatoes, and 6 cups of water. Stir around and keep on high heat until it starts to boil then turn down to medium and continue to cook, stirring once in a while, until the lentils are tender and the chili has thickened, which should take about 35-40 minutes. If at any time you the lentils are not submerged in liquid but are not cooke through, add more water. And once the lentils are cooked you can thicken bu continuing to cooke does or thin it out by adding more water. Taste soup and season with salt and pepper as you see fit.

To serves, ladle into bowls and tope with diced avocado.

Left overs are fantastic hot or cold and will last in the fridge for about a week. Or if you want, you can freeze a few servings.

Yesterday was kind of a shit show as far as the weather was concerned.%u00a0 I woke up early to a lovely light blanket of snow, the temperature hovering around 32 degrees. The air was nice and crisp, the sky was a light grayish blue. The neighborhood was quite. I walked the pup and then took off for the morning. It was so nice.

How that changed fast. Walking home a few hours later I was a hot , drenched, cold and damp mess. All that snow turned into slush and gigantic puddles and it was raining a good steady soaking rain. And I had to walk my butt home. So that was great.

But you know what these weather make me think of… Spring!!!! Yes, warmer, slushy, mushy weather. Mud all over the house and a wet smelly dog All the things that should not be happening right now but are. And now I have the springtime feels hard.

With things all springy, I was thinking of spring veggies and just wanting something bright and pretty and tasty. Peas! Peas are a good spring veggie, and where there is peas, there carrots. (or should be)%u00a0 But not plain, run of the mill peas and carrots. First off I got the prettiest colorful purple, white, and orange carrots because I needed some color. Right there that made me super happy, Then instead of just steaming them with some peas, I did roast those carrots to bring out all the sweet juicy flavors. Then those pea. Not really in season yet, so I went with frozen (I love frozen peas)%u00a0 and made the brightest, most amazing creamy pea sauce infused with garlic lemon, and dill. (all spring time flavors)

The results… I love roasted carrots so no surprise there but the creamy peas…KA-POW amazing!!!! My mouth has never been so happy to eat peas. and it really loves peas. Fresh, clean, tangy…I made, I ate, I though about them all night. And of spring and all the peas and carrots I am going to plant…and eat.

The stuff. The prettiest bright and colorful carrots and some green as can be frozen peas. Dill, garlic, and lemon to add to the peas and some olive oil, salt and pepper to roast up the carrots.

Chop up the carrots and tossed with salt and pepper and a drizzle of oil. And onto a baking sheet and into the oven to roast.

Dump those peas into a pot with water, garlic, and the dill. Stick the pot on the stove ans bring to a boil for a few minutes then remove from the heat.

You see that? It’s amazing . Its gets blended until smooth and seasoned with salt, pepper, and the juice if half a lemon.%u00a0 Give it a taste but don’t eat it all. (I almost ate it all) and pour into a nice little cup or jar and wait for the carrots.

Oh roasted lovely colored carrots.. So good all on your own.

But slathered with this pea sauce…. Always and forever. I am in love.. could eat all day every day.

I wish my stomach was big enough to eat all the peas and carrots….. All!

Lots of spring thoughts… It’s going to be official soon.

Have a great day. Stay dry!

-C

serves 2-3

• 1 lb carrots (I used a variety of colored carrots but plain old orange carrots are always fantastic too!)
• 2 cups frozen peas
• 3/4 cup water
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoon dill
• 1/2 a lemon
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

preheat oven to 450

Cut carrots into quarter and in half (can cut in any size and shape you want)%u00a0 Place the carrots on a baking sheet and drizzle with a wee bit of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss it all around. Stick the carrots into the oven to roast.

Now grab those peas and stick them into a pot with the water, the dill, and the garlic. Stick on the stove and bring to a boil. Let boil for 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat. Either with a hand held blender or a regular blender…. blend until smooth. Add in the juice of half a lemon, season with salt and pepper, and then try not to eat it all before the carrots are roasted.

Once carrots are tender and browned and yummy looking (about 30 minutes) remove from oven and slather on the pea sauce.

Eat right away….. Make more tomorrow.

As I sit here writing this, mind you typing is not a terribly labor intestive activity, I am drip drip dripping sweat%u2026 It’s just not right.

%u00a0And today will be as hot as shit fuck. But its support to get so much better tomorrow. So that’s it, not more complaining. Everything is all good.

Now lets talk about this salad. This is such a fresh, clean, and full flavor salad made of just a few simple ingredients,%u00a0the star being the fennel.%u00a0%u00a0Almost licorice-y and sweet, yet still has a crisp earthiness, it pairs so well with onion and kale and dressed with just lemon juice.%u00a0Simple, easy, and very much satisfying. Kind of the perfect salad to make when you don’t want to make anything because the world is a sauna and nothing hurts you soul more then to think of turning on the oven.(full disclosure.%u00a0Stove burn does go on for a few minutes.. but only a few)

Maybe you have never had fennel or think you don’t like it, Well if you haven’t had it, you must, and if you think you don’t like it, you should try it again.%u00a0Up until recently, I kind of discarded fennel as a mah veggie. I didn’t hate it, but I never really cared for it, and I definitely did not seek it out. But this past year, for some odd reason (I blame/thank old age) I have really gotten into the yummy bulb. I have even gone out of my way to find it.%u00a0%u00a0And last week I was much excited when I went to farm share pick up and found that there was crate of fennel.%u00a0Woo HOO!%u00a0

Sweet fennel+hot weather and no desire to move = Fennel onion carrot salad

The stuff. A bulb of fennel (this was a big one so I use half of it),a medium onion , a big carrot, a bunch of kale, salt, pepper, a little olive oil and a lemon (I ended up using 2 smallish lemons)

Take you fennel and either with a mandolin or a knife, thinly slice the bulb. Do the same with the onion.

Toss the sliced fennel and onion into a lightly oiled skillet and sprinkle with a dash of salt. Place on medium low heat and cook jjust until the veggies are soften and starting to brown.

Chop the kale into pieces small enough to fit into your mouth and julienne or shred the carrot.

Compile the stuff. Juice the lemon.%u00a0Kale into a bowl, dump most tot the lemon juice on that and sprinkle with salt and mix around (I used my hands).%u00a0Dump the saut%u00e9ed fennel onion onto of that and top with the carrot and the rest of the juice.%u00a0

TA DA! Now that’s some pretty.

And toss it all around. I like to add a few thinly slices of raw fennel and lots of fresh cracked pepper.

Share with a friend. Or not. (a not for me)

Happy hump de dump day. Stay cool friends!

-C

Makes a big salad for one, or a few smaller sized side salads.%u00a0

• 1 small or half of a large bulb of fennel
• i medium white or hello onion
• 1 large carrot
• a bunch of kale (like 3-4 cups chopped)
• 1 large juicy lemon (or two small lemons)

With either a mandolin or using a knife, slice up the fennel and onion super thin. Toss into a lightly oiled skillet, sprinkle with salt,%u00a0and stick on the stove on medium low heat. Stir and let cook down for 5-8 minutes or until the fennel and onion have soften and are starting to brown.

While thats cooking, chop up the kale into small pieces and julienne or shred the carrot.%u00a0

Place kale into bowl, juice the lemon and drizzle most of the juice all over the kale and give it a good mix. Dump on the cooked fennel onion and top with the carrots and a the rest of the lemon juice.. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and give it a good toss. Top with a few fresh shaving of fennel.

Share with a friend, or eat it all to your self.

Ok, so I am currently finishing up this post on Barbs computer because after last weeks Sunday happy my computer FUCKING CRASHED!!!! Yup, right after I joke about my computer dying, it did. Lesson learned, do not joke about the death of computer on computer. (to Barbs computer in which I am currently using…do not die!)%u00a0I was able to get some of %u00a0my pictures off of the computer before the crash so that’s a plus, but most of them are gone. At least I got some from my trip. Oh well, what you gonna do?%u00a0

Anywho, Rhode Island, the tiny little state south of Vermont that I never really go to because the family that lives there alway come up here. But as we were driving home after our visit we realized that we live pretty close (4.5 hours) and need to visit more often. Rhode Island is petty cool.%u00a0

Our trip was short but sweet.%u00a0We stayed with David and Lori in there super cute and cozy beach cottage where were got to sleep on there porch and walk along the beach before the sun even came up.%u00a0We filled our time having out with David and Lori doing the fun things you do. We went to the farmers market and got some apple and hung out with the alpacas.%u00a0Spent some time at the ocean which was pretty great because we don’t get much ocean around here. The sky was grey and clouded and perfect for for rock and shell hunting.. I honestly don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much if it were sunny. I needed the grey.%u00a0%u00a0We also made our way to an antique shop that was basically thousands of old wooded furniture pieces stacked in large, very scary looking piles, and took a %u00a0trip around the city to see some of their projects.%u00a0

David and Lori do kind of the same thing that the mr and I do except in a big city with way way bigger buildings and have people that work for them to help do it.%u00a0We got to go take a peek at a couple of their past project that they have completed. Big ass old brick mill buildings turned into lofts and a skinny brick building right in downtown providence with the pretty staircase and a view of some street art (I guess the huge mural was painted by one of the mr’s favorite graffiti artists). My favorite place we went to was a place called the Steel Yard. It use to be an actual steel yard but when they tuned the building that it is attached to it into lofts, they tuned the yard into art space. It’s like a huge building of steel workers, black smithing, ceramics, and now thanks to Seth who just donated all of his wood working tools and machine, a wood shop. We didn’t get to stay for long because they were holing an event, but man was that the coolest space.%u00a0

After our adventures we ended up at with Seth and Pam’s for dinner.%u00a0%u00a0Their loft is something out of a magazine. Everything from the floors to the high ceilings with all the light to the his and her toilets (that is just genius) and view of the river off of the balcony. The place was amazing and full of all of Seths furniture designs and art and amazing things that the he and Pam have collected from there travels around the world. %u00a0The mr ended up inheriting a shit load of Seth’s fly fishing fly making stuff (did I say a shit load, cause I meant a fucking shit load) and a bunch of new fly rods . We seriously packed our car full of boxes and boxes of feathers and hooks.The mr is now the happiest fly fisher in the world and is never allowed to buy another fly again.

All in all, a grand little trip hanging out with some pretty amazing humans who happen to be my family. I have a pretty great family.%u00a0

Second leg of our adventure was Copenhagen which was fantastic. The city was beautiful with spindly topped buildings, cobblestone roads and just the smell. The city smelled like one big pastry. I loved it and we have decided that we must go back, just next time in the summer (it was pretty freaking cold and windy)

So we only spend 3 days there, but with what little time we did have, we spent walking, and walking, and walking. We walked our buts off. We figure there is no better way to get a good feel for a place then to walk the streets. And boy was there a lot to see. The bikes alone. Oh man where there so many bikes and the coolest ones at that. (it really made me missed my bike) and again, baked good galore. Everywhere you turned, someone was eating a pastry and the smell just wafted. There were flower shops and flowers on the streets. Little danish art galleries and danish pottery studios (I wish I could have bought it all) And a bike shop on every corner. The coffee was good (far better then Ireland), the veggies were plentyful and the people were very nice.

I have to mention the littles. The place we were staying there was around the block from a little preschool. Every morning I would walk by and see the fleets of moms ans dads biking their littles inbike containers (or thrown over a bike bar) , on their way to school. The kids all wearing the cutest jumpers, laughing and being happy. The preschool itselflooked so cool with huge outdoor space and a nature made playground.. It made the fever great.%u00a0 I love the way danish people raise and take care of there kids. (maybe we should move to Denmark and have us a cute little that sleeps outsideand smells like a pastry…)

But enough about the littles…%u00a0 Here are pictures of our adventures. It’s funny cause I thought that I was taking a million and one photos, but when I downloaded them, I didn’t take as many as I thought. I guess I was so into my made up little danish world that I somewhat neglected the camera which I totally cool with. My head is full of the city.