*If you’re new to my blog, you may want to read this for info on what ‘My Way’ posts are all about. 🙂 *
— Hope you’ve had a lovely day! Several Adventures in Food to share with you. Last week, I had a day I wasn’t feeling so hot. All I could manage to eat was a thin slice of a toasted bagel. I was looking over the Healthy Snacks Under 200 Calories post and thought the mango-lime sorbet sounded like something I could handle. I added a wee bit o’ rum (to keep it from freezing too hard), some red chile, and key lime zest. I tried to make it look tropical to cheer myself up. That’s also the reason you may see plates/dishes beyond my plain white on this blog — oftentimes, different serving wares give me a boost in mood. Perhaps this is why I have a hard time not buying every other set of dishes, glasses, silverware, etc., that I see, haha. I do love just the ordinary white plates, though, too — très simple.
What are your go-to meals when you have a ton of veggies (besides just eating them raw and unadorned)? I think pasta or salads come to mind first for me, also stir-fries, soups, stews, sandwiches/toast, and curries. A few weeks ago, I had potatoes that needed to be used, so I made these Mustard Seed-Potato Curry Lettuce Tacos: potatoes, black beans, tomatoes, garlic, quartered shallots, fresh coconut milk, apple, raisins, cilantro, lemon, yellow mustard seeds, and a blend of curry spices. Homemade Greek-style yogurt to top them off. They were very satisfying.
2 more dishes with potatoes: Grilled Summer Salad w/ Queso Fresco & Potato Croutons. My initial craving when composing this salad was raw squash, potatoes and grilled corn. I added to it a bit with spring mix, grilled asparagus & peppers, and roasted tomatoes. I used the queso recipe from this post, but with skim milk. I made a quick cilantro dressing and squeezed the charred limes over the top. Really delicious. I decided to add about a 1/4 cup more corn after I snapped the pic.
Gazing at the Healthy Snacks post, I also decided to make the Frozen Yogurt Blueberry Bites (simple and tasty!) and Skinny Pizza Potato Skins:
The pizza skins in the post were pepperoni, but I usually prefer veggie pizza. I made these on the spur of the moment, so I had to whip up my short-cut pizza sauce. I took the pic pre-oven as I was starved & knew a post-oven pic would delay my eating (toaster or convection ovens are a great option here). Toppings were sautéed squash & kale, caramelized onion, marinated artichoke, and the queso. Instead of cutting the potato in half, I just cut small rounds. I think I’ll go with the halves (as indicated in the recipe) next time. The small rounds were difficult to get enough of the toppings on. But, I think they would be fab party apps. These really hit the spot, and I will be making them again for sure.
I’m finding so many ways to use the homemade yogurt! I slathered a bit on a piece of fish for a pistachio crust:
I enjoyed this particular meal so much, I made it 2 days in a row. I had a flashback to culinary school (way back in the day) the first preparation. During one class, the chef instructor decided that I should be the ‘chosen one’ to filet a sturgeon. I just recall that it was HUGE — almost as big as I am, haha! Plums (raw) are a fruit that I have to be in the mood to have. Grilled, though, I could eat them every day. I served the fish with a berry-shallot relish, and a baby chard, spin, kale salad w/ berries, sunflower seeds, and a berry vin. For the most part, when I mention I made a vin on this blog, it doesn’t have as much oil as many recipes call for. I usually find some other flavor-packed liquid to sub & punch it up with other herbs, spices, etc. Oil, of course, has a certain mouth-feel and balancing quality, so I try to find things comparable. Also pic’d is a petite rosemary baguette (used this technique w/ my food processor) and rosemary tea. Just hot water & fresh rosemary. One of my fave comforting teas. Yes, it’s hot outside! But, there’s A/C inside, and I always prefer hot tea to cold when I can have it.
Last item for today: I finally had a bit of chicken, so I was able to make the grilled chicken with the Turkish spices. I used the same honey & balsamic mixture as the chickpeas. Yums! The Turkish spices were also great on home fries. I was inspired by the Grilled Chicken Caesar Skewers with Kale Pesto, as well. I used the same lemony-buttermilk Caesar dressing as in this post, and a baby chard, spin, kale, sunflower seed pesto. As with vinaigrettes, I usually lighten up my pestos by using less cheese & nuts and replacing some of the oil with stock. I might also add in some other wacky ingredients. Other skewers pic’d here are pomegranate molasses-mint, and homemade Italian dressing.
— Went to my friend’s fashion conference last week and all was grand. There was an Arabian horse show, as well as jewelry, accessories, and clothing galore. There are 3 class “break-out” sessions, so I chose to attend the Latin dance class the first session. It was SO fun, but I really should have come prepared with a workout outfit (instead of my vintage frock). There were also hula dancers for entertainment:
If someone can turn Latin dance into a fitness trend, I think the next one should be hula. It looks like it would be a blast.
This year, there was an award given for ‘Best Dressed,’ and one dress that had many of us “oohing and ahhhing” was this:
Sakura | Henkaa.com.
It’s a convertible dress by Henkaa. This style is called Sakura, but they have several other styles available. You choose your length and color, and they also have additional accessories to coordinate. I think the young lady demo-ing the dress said there were as many as 60 style possibilities. Now, that’s what I call a SQUEAL DEAL! Make sure to check out the website! *Edit: Here is a direct link to the young lady’s personal page for the Henkaa dresses. FYI, you can also host a style shoppe and earn 1/2 OFF items, as well as rewards dollars to spend on items from Henkaa. Awesome!*
I barely snapped ANY conference pics this year, but here are a couple of things I found interesting:
Rolling bag & the black fringe bag next to it
Handmade jewelry
I like these flowy prints (will Hello Kitty ever stop being so popular? I think not, lol).
— 67 Homemade, All-Natural Cleaning Recipes.
— And, I thought a cutting board is a cutting board is a cutting board. After seeing some of these beauties, I might have developed a new culinary product love. Why do people have to tempt you? Fabulous cutting boards and other kitchen goodies here (several items on sale & have a peek at the accompanying food blog while you’re there):
Products – Bowl & Pitcher
— Upcycled Furniture / awesome ideas! | Decorating Ideas | Pinterest.
— Today’s good eats:
Impressive Date Night Desserts: Raspberry Souffle With Framboise Liqueur | cravelocal.com.
52 Herbal Tea Recipes | adelightfulhome.com. Enjoy them hot or cold!
Seafood Lasagna Recipe For The Seafood Lovers | Taste the Food and Fruit.
Fermented Food for Kids: A Guide with Kid-Friendly Recipes | fearlesseating.net.
Baked Mediterranean Fish | texies.co.za Easy Peasy
Salted Chocolate + Caramel Ice Cream Cake | Coley Cooks.
Cherry Tomato Sauce | frogsinmykitchen.com.
Ginger Sweet Potato Juice | Natural Thrifty.
Blackberry Gin Fizz Float | browneyedbaker.com.
‘Til next time!
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