Your Imagination, My Dear Fellow, is Worth More Than You Imagine

Posted on September 30, 2009 by Katharina

Hey everyone! Good news on the critique. A friend of mine actually wanted to sit in on my classes critique just to get a feel for them again. He was able to brush up on his analyzing skills. Critiques are always heavy days for me, and I usually end up with a headache. You get to hear so many perspectives, insights, and you just learn so many new things. Another interesting thing you get to observe is the manner in which different people think. It’s funny how we can view the world. Anyway, my video got a lot of discussion – a whole hour! Usually I end up feeling disappointed with critiques because I get nothing from it, or I don’t even realize what happened. But I did a lot of self-discovering and revealing about why and what my short films evoke.

While I was setting up I got to try a flavor of ProBar that’s new to me: Cocoa Pistachio

Neat artwork on the packaging.

I snapped a picture beforehand so you guys could see what I was talking about, when I said you could see every ingredient.

Oh my gosh; this was so yummy! I’ve really enjoyed the random chocolate chip bits in the ProBars I’ve tried. Pistachios are also one of my favorite nuts, so my expectations were pretty high – and met! It’s a mix of pistachios, peanuts, dark chocolate chips, and sunflower seeds. This bar + a cup of soymilk and an apple successfully kept my my hunger at bay for about 3 hours. But I think my body works like clockwork. My hunger usually chimes in before 3 hours or right on the dot – it’s funny. I agree with Holly though, what’s up with it just being half the size of the wrapper? Want to know some information on this bar?

Gourmet meal replacement

Unique taste of pistachios with chocolate is irresistible

Balanced blend of carbs, good fats and protein

Certified Organic, 100% Vegan

5 g of fiber and same nutritional benefits as Original Collection

As a college student, bars are such a convenience to me – as with any busy person I can imagine. So far, my experience with ProBars, is that they are very delicious, nutritious, and satisfying!

Projecting my piece on to the wall.

Here’s the link again if you guys wanted to check it out: Who Am I Becoming

My friend that visited the class is on the right.

After our critique we got a 2 hour break and I made this messy deal…

Roasted eggplant, ricotta, tomato sauce, and basil.

Roasted eggplant, ricotta, tomato sauce, sautéed red onion, and basil.

The class met up again after 2 hours and we headed over to one of the school-funded art spaces to see Richard Carlyon’s retrospective. He was a dancer and artist who ended up teaching in the area for about 40 years when he thought he lost his dancer’s body.

You can get a sense of his background as a dancer by the way he places the canvases.

He also drew very interesting diagrams and made videos as well.

The class got out about 30 mins. early so I got a head start on my many errands. I took way longer than expected! I guess that can happen, especially if one of your stops is TJ Maxx. The day really felt like Autumn had arrived, so I made some comfort food, but I wanted to try something I’ve seen around the blogosphere.

Green oats!

I used the Original Amazing Grass Meal packet to turn this bowl of oats green. I also mashed in a banana, NuNaturals liquid vanilla, and coconut oil! I feel like everyone’s bowl or cup of something green tastes different so I’m going to spare the details and just say that I was pleasantly surprised! I was contemplating whether or not I should mash the banana in because “what if” it tasted like crap? Then it’s bye bye yummy banana.

I also tried Lindeman's Framboise dark cherry flavor.

I seriously forgot that it was beer and beer makes you drunk; so I got a little buzzed about 10 minutes after hahaha, then I put two and two together. Oh! And I didn’t drink the whole bottle hehe.

Anyway, so far this week it seems a lot easier to breathe. I had a photoshoot with a friend of mine – I haven’t done one of those in a long time! I feel like I need to have a creative outlet with other people so I get more dynamics going on. Sometimes working by myself gets to feel like I’m running in circles.

He has a lot of neat camera equipment.

You can check out his site here. The first picture with the blue velvet pants was from the shoot we did; and you can find a couple more over on this site. It’s so weird for me to be in front of the lens! I really worked on just getting comfortable – so I ended up talking a lot.

Let’s eat now shall we?

I used up the rest of my edamame hummus.

In this wrap is roasted eggplant, sprouts, NatureNaise, grape tomatoes, and red onions. Since I don’t have a grill press I just used a pan and heated up each side. This was so delicious!

Roasted parsnips, almonds, and another interesting sandwich!

Don't let the ordinary looks of this sandwich deceive you...

The other day when I was browsing through pizza recipes that had ricotta cheese, I stumbled upon one called Peach-ricotta pizza. Well I made it in sandwich form, but the secret ingredient is the addition of cilantro. Since I didn’t have fresh cilantro on hand, I just subbed in Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing. Wow! I would have never thought of cilantro, but it took this sandwich to another level. It’s funny how the simple addition of one surprise can change everything; this also applies to other things on a much broader scale.

I feel like I try something new everyday!

Before I forget! I wanted to share an entertaining site I found earlier today. I was looking up ways to prepare a certain squash (you’ll find out next post), and I stumbled upon this little gem: 50 Ways to Eat More Produce. I think these ideas work well for adults and kids alike. So check it out.

p.s. Marina asked if I was studying culinary arts – I wish!!! Another friend of mine actually asked me that same question, and I think it’s a sign that I should look into it – perhaps a summer program? I’m actually majoring in sculpture, so I guess that’s why I’m so visually oriented.

Happy Wednesday everyone!!!

Happiness Often Sneaks in Through a Door You Didn’t Know You Left Open

Posted on September 29, 2009 by Katharina

Hi guys! I’ve been quite a busy girl lately – thanks to school. I’m learning so many things this semester that I want to share with other people! That’s always a good sign, don’t you think? I haven’t just been on the “learning” end of the deal either though. I’ve done some teaching as well! Not necessarily in a classroom setting, but instead I’ve been flourishing in my interests and sharing them with other people. For instance, now a lot of people know that I actually have a passion for cooking; I decided to make a cooking album on Facebook. I think a lot of people were surprised! I’ve also made a new friend that I met at a yoga class. It’s nice to meet people in a setting where you are doing something you truly enjoy, because you’ve got that in common. Then when you hang out and get to know each other, the friendship just grows into something incredible! And now that I’ve been kind of absent for a couple days, I think it’s only fair to share with you all what I’ve been up to. Can’t leave my friends in the dark now can I?

Banana ricotta soft-serve makes my day!

I topped the “soft-serve” with Zoe’s Cinnamon Raisin Granola, some more banana slices, and chocolate sprinkles. I’ve seen a lot of bloggers incorporate chocolate chips in their breakfasts, and this is me making due with what I’ve got! Actually, it’s very appropriate since underneath it all is an “ice cream” of sorts.

A parfait in honor of K!

I changed the ingredients just a smidge for the banana ricotta soft-serve. Rather than vanilla extract, I used coconut extract. Wow! This was also heavenly. I got the soft-serve to stay in it’splace by putting an apple slice underneath – improvising here folks! So what are the layers? Let me start from top to bottom: crunchy peanut butter, Erewhon’s Cocoa Crispy Brown Rice, banana ricotta soft-serve, apple slice, and some more of the cocoa crispies.

For this meal I wanted to do something out of the ordinary.

I used romaine as a sort of platter.

Then I decided to make rolls.. wraps.. not sure what to call this.

I love the freshness of this! I never cease to be amazed by the color palette nature offers us.

I also tried to make another interesting sandwich combo to go along with the romaine... boats?

This sandwich is on Cranberry Cinnamon Swirl bread and filled with eggplant, cheddar cheese, and mango chutney. I wasn’t sure if the eggplant would taste good with my favorite grilled cheese combo. How was it? Incredible!!! Definitely worth boasting about. I just remembered at a restaurant I went to they had breaded eggplant with an apricot coulis – so I thought I could try this. I’m glad I did!s

Now they look like dumplings! And I'm apparently trying to mimic them?

A beautiful snack.

Ak-mak crackers with cream cheese and edamame hummus, sprouts, grape tomatoes, and cucumber slices. Yum!

I made myself a pizza with polenta crust.

I roasted eggplant, parsnips (first time trying them!), and grape tomatoes; sautéed the onion. Then I just plopped some ricotta on and it all went into the toaster oven. After it was done baking I garnished it with some basil. I really like parsnips… a lot! Funny story with the basil. I got those leaves from a basil plant that’s growing out of a crack in a sidewalk. The plant is huge and full of delicious leaves! Nature’s way of breaking through despite what man builds on top.

Unfortunately, the crust didn't bake completely, so I ate this beautiful mess.

After happily eating my personal “pizza” I headed over to David Schultz’s CD release show. At the beginning they showed a brief documentary of their recording process, and their experience of life as musicians.

Now he's got a band!

Hanging out with my new friend, Emily. I also saw some old ones!

On Sunday I gave my baby, Matilda, a bath!

She's cute no matter what!

More sunshine!

This salad consisted of a Falafel Sunshine burger, red onion, tomato, an apple, avocado, sprouts, romaine, and cilantro dressing. Oh! I also squirted some ketchup on the burger. The addition of the apple in the salad was awesome! On the side I had the rest of the apple with a glass of cold soymilk. Perfect for an unexpectedly hot day. Oh man, I feel really stupid. In my review of the Sunshine burgers I said that they had corn. Well, that’s what it looked like! Then I read the ingredients and I believe those are actually lentils. So sorry for the misinformation. My opinion on how great these are didn’t change though – so no worries about that.

My Sunday was filled with lots of studying! But I managed to squeeze in a dinner at the school cafeteria with a friend. Since I don’t have a meal plan, I rarely end up going. My friend, Jonathan, invited me to dinner and we got to catch up on things. I also gave him advice on finding a roommate and which rental companies to stay away from. This is his first year in college so he had a lot of questions, and I had a lot to say!

Hi Jonathan!

Shafer!

Everytime I go here, I feel like it’s my first time. There are just so many choices – they even have a vegan and gluten-free area.

Food! Food! Food!

I got a bowl filled with snap peas, mushrooms, water chestnuts, onions, cucumbers, chickpeas, and hummus. I love their hummus! I actually was planning on bringing a tupperware with me to hijack some, but I forgot it at home. My bad! I also got another plate filled with spiced carrots, veggie pizza, mock ribs in BBQ sauce and peppers, a slice of Italian bread, a vegetable medley pasta (completely tasteless). I also tried some gluten-free French toast sticks – they were awful! I can’t remember the last time I ate something that disgusting. I was actually contemplating spitting it out, but we were in a public place.

He left me a little surprise on my camera!

Let’s see… what other things can I share with you all? Oh yes! I’m not sure if you guys know Jenny but she has an awesome blog that will make you hungry just looking at it! Recently, she put together a “best of” oatmeal post. Check it out! You will be inspired by all the wonderful creations all the bloggers have concocted. And trust me, this is way better than any “Best of” VH1 ever aired.

As for me, I’ve got my critique I told you all about, tomorrow! I’m looking forward to it now. Things are finally starting to calm down a little with my schoolwork load. And in 2 weeks I will be going to my parents’ house down in Florida for my 4-day weekend!

p.s. I just want to say hi to any new readers! HI!!! Here’s to a wonderful week! For some reason I feel like I’m on cloud nine; anybody want to come along for the ride?

When the Going Gets Tough

Posted on September 25, 2009 by Katharina

Let’s pretend it’s morning time and you hear mom yell, “breakfast is ready!!!” What do you do? Forget about Saturday morning cartoons and run to the kitchen!

More ricotta goodness.

I blended about a 1/2 cup of ricotta (I used this amount for my “pillow” as well), 2 sliced peaches, and NuNaturals vanilla liquid stevia. I wanted to use it to make a parfait a la K. Alas, you couldn’t see the layers of granola, so I ditched that idea – for aesthetic purposes! I ate it with the last of my Zoe’s Honey Almond Granola, and some more almond joy!

Good morning again!

Then I tried mixing it with peanut butter, cinnamon, vanilla extract, pistachio extract, and stevia. The recipe actually called for almond extract, and I suggest to stick to that! The pistachio didn’t do anything for the poor peanut butter. I topped this pillow with Zoe’s Cinnamon Raisin Granola. I looked at the picture and for a split second I thought those raisins were bits of chocolate. That would’ve been perfect with the ricotta and peanut butter pillow!!! Am I right or am I right?

Here I go again!

I just heated up these tomato chunks on the stove with some olive oil, red onions, s+p. That little bowl hiding in the corner is just some good ole’ buttered grits! I didn’t like grits before (maybe because I tried them at Waffle House?), but when I made these at home my mind was changed. Someone asked me once if I like my grits sweet or salty. I can’t imagine eating sweet grits… well, maybe with maple syrup. But I think I prefer salty.

I spy something that should look familiar to you all!

To go with the cheetahs I cooked some kidney beans and broccoli in peanut sauce. The fortune cookie said, “it’s easier to be critical than to be correct.“

I had a sweet potato on hand so I thought it would be appropriate to finally make myself some Cheetahs!

Since I had kidney beans leftover, I searched through my recipes hoping I would find something. Luckily, I stumbled upon an old favorite of mine, Rajma Masala.

I like to go to ethnic stores to buy my spices.

Star anise

Isn’t it crazy how things in nature are shaped??

Rajma Masala, more Cheetahs, and some steamed broccoli with sesame seeds and oil.

Rajma Masala, more Cheetahs, and some steamed broccoli with sesame seeds and sesame oil.

The other day, after seeing these on so many blogs, I tried a Sunshine Burger!

I got the Falafel kind. The design on the plate really makes it look like the sun.

I filled a wrap with the Falafel Sunshine burger, spinach, red onion, tomato, and sprouts.

In the bowl you see a mix of NatureNaise, garlic, salt, and lemon juice – topped with a bit of Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing. That was used as the dressing for my falafel wrap. I had to take a bite of the Sunshine burger while it was still naked so I can tell you guys if it actually tasted good without “all that jazz”. Well first of all, I was pleasantly surprised to see kernels of corn! It was really good, but it’s definitely more fun to dress up. You know what is interesting about these burgers – and why they’re called Sunshine Burgers?

“These delicious veggie burgers are made of sunflower seeds and contain absolutely no soy or wheat, which is ideal for gluten free diets.”

I tend to overfill wraps... so I end up eating them like a big, floppy taco.

I'd like a salad and a sandwich please!

It was crazy hot the other day so I opted for a salad. As you can see I’m loving those sprouts I got the other day. What the heck is in my sandwich?

Sunflower seed butter, and edamame hummus. On the other half I snuck in some tomato slices with smoke sauce.

Sunflower seed butter, sprouts, and edamame hummus. On the other half I snuck in some tomato slices with smoke sauce.

I was inspired by Mitri, who has created many interesting sandwiches with various fillings. I wanted to see exactly how an unexpected combination might turn out. Well, I LOVED IT! Both sides were delicious. Try making an interesting sandwich, it’s fun and kind of risky!

Not too long ago, Angharad featured a recipe for arepas on her blog. I can’t express how much I love arepas, and her recipe looked delicious. I didn’t make my own, but my dad brought me some arepas from a Colombian cafe down in Florida.

This variation is called arepa con choclo, which means it's made with sweet corn and farmer's cheese.

A salad to go along with it: romaine, tomato, red onion, roasted potato, sprouts, sesame seeds, and honey mustard dressing.

Last night was probably my favorite dinner this week. I invited my dad over and whipped up this recipe.

"Eggplant dripping with a tomato and ricotta salsa" served with basil polenta, and avocado.

The balsamic vinegar added a smokiness to the tomatoes.

This took me under 30 minutes! I think some day soon I want to film myself cooking a meal.

Since school has involved lots of nighttime studying I’ll show you some of my latenight snacks!

I forgot how much I liked this cereal!

Trader Joe’s sunflower seed butter has been finding it’s way into almost every meal and in between! Here I tried it with a juicy peach.

While taking a break from studying for my Taoism quiz, I tried another VitaTop!

This time I tried the Fudgy Peanut Butter Chip VitaTop. I kept in mind that I didn’t want to chips to be totally melted, so I just heated it up for 20 seconds. Then I had to quickly take a picture before the vanilla fro-yo melted. It already started melting though!!! I also had an apple with peanut butter. Oh and the VitaTop with some peanut butter smeared on top brings it up to another level of goodness! I really enjoyed this because when is chocolate and peanut butter not a winning combination?

Fro-yo was defeated by the delicious, ooey-gooey, and warm VitaTop.

Fro-yo was defeated by the yummy, ooey-gooey, and warm VitaTop.

The chips remind me of mud-baths on top of a mountain. What kind of place would this be? “Bathe in melted peanut butter, then relax atop Mt. Chocolate and enjoy the view of the world below.” Oh and the vanilla fro-yo would be a cloud since Mt. Chocolate is really tall!

Roomie's boytoy baked some banana bread.

Roomie's friend baked some banana bread.

Hey Lauren, do you see that jar in the back? Yup, it’s empty! I can only find McCutcheon’s apple butter, and I forgot to have my dad buy some and bring it up from Florida. I guess I’ll just have them send me a “care package” hehe. Getting snailmail and packages is such an exciting thing!

There have been a couple of things that have been on my mind lately. I touched on it a couple posts ago, how I feel that my responsibleness makes it hard for me to relate to people my age and vice versa. I was talking to a friend the other day about self-motivation and how it’s a hard thing to come across among college students. I don’t expect others to handle situations like me, but it gets frustrating when I hear people around me complain but they don’t actually do anything about it. I was wondering, what are some ways that you guys motivate yourself? Do any of you have some sort of mantra? It could be about anything really, even getting your foot out the door! Because sometimes all you want to do is lie in bed all day. By the way, those kinds of days I feel should be prescribed sometimes, no ifs ands or buts!

Happy Friday everyone!!!

Another Part of Me

Posted on September 23, 2009 by Katharina

Hello everyone! This is an exciting post for me because I get to introduce you all to a part of my life that is very important to me. As I’ve mentioned in my ‘About Me‘ page, art drives and shapes every aspect of my life. Which is why my plates look the way they do! I can’t help but consider color, placement, things like that. Obsessive? Not to me. I just enjoy making things that are aesthetically pleasing. Anyway, today was my sculpture class’s first critique of the semester. Unfortunately, we ran out of time before we could get to a couple of our pieces – including mine. So, I’ll report back to you all once that’s done.

Critique days are my crazy days. It becomes my one and only real priority, so that means no cooking for me!

: Thank goodness for these babies!

The folks at ProBar gave me a nice little package not too long ago. What better time to bust out my first bar on a day where everything is just too cray-cray.

“Apple Cinnamon Crunch is a flavor reminiscent of Mom’s homemade apple pie with just the right combination of sweet apples, nuts, and a dash of cinnamon. This bar is so good it might compliment your next Thanksgiving dinner.”

I was a bit weary of this because I feel dessert-y bars are hard to pull off. So how was my first bite into this dense bar? Delicious! I believe their choices of nuts, dried fruits, and the most wonderful surprise – carob chips – were perfectly combined. This was even better with a pack of soymilk and a couple of peaches. I wish I took a picture of what the bar actually looked like! It had the texture that I love in bars – you could see every ingredient, like whole almonds and sesame seeds. However, I would call it Apple Cinnamon Chew, as it was very chewy. But maybe they thought “crunch” just sounded better. My overall review? If you are considering trying a ProBar, or aren’t sure which flavor to get – try this one!

All their bars are made from whole, organic, raw foods, and 100% vegan.

I also got to try some other new things today. I went to Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods the other day with my dad, since he’s in town, and picked up some new items.

So many bars!

On Katie‘s blog I read that Clif nectar bars were going to be discontinued. I had never tried these bars, but I feel the need to know what these bars taste like. I also picked up 2 others that I’ve seen floating around blogland. I tried the MoJo sweet-n-salty bar as a snack today. Meh, it wasn’t horrible, but I don’t see myself buying it again. Isn’t there a PB&J flavor though? I do want to know how that one tastes.

Peaches born and raised here? Yes ma'am!

So much to talk about here folks.

I picked up some pine nuts because pesto recipes have been dancing around my head. Dried cranberries because summer is officially over (say it isn’t so!). I’m so excited to try these falafel patties – garlic sauce recipe hunt begins after this post. I highly recommend buying Lindemans Framboise beer in any flavor! I’m thinking… Mrs. Marshall’s Carytown Cafe for the best potato salad (no lie) + Kielbasa? Look at those sprouts! There are garbanzo, alfalfa, red lentil, and another sprout I can’t remember!

One old best friend and one new best friend in my life.

I love 365′s crunchy peanut butter. I should also mention that a jar of this is less than $2! I also bought myself a jar of Trader Joe’s Sunflower Seed Butter. After I tried it at my friend’s house I vowed that I would pick up a jar the next time I would venture out to TJ’s. It’s goodness is overwhelming, and my tastebuds are so happy whenever I eat it. This more than makes up for the other day when I accidentally burned my tongue – sorry tastebuds!

Still pretending it's fresh out of the oven.

While I was at Whole Foods, me and my dad smelled some heavenly aroma wafting through the bulk bins. We knew it was coming from the bakery! After we checked out the hot-bar, we moseyed on over to the breads. My dad got straight to the point and said he smelled something spiced and wondered what it was. Well, they told us they just got done baking a loaf of pumpkin bread. They were testing out the recipe = we are the guinea pigs. They wanted us to let them know if it had too much salt, too much sugar, any input we had. Umm… I felt like a horrible critic because my vocabulary failed me while I chewed, smiled with my eyes, and gave them a thumbs up. I saved a portion of the generous slices they gave us…

A nighttime snack!

Mashed kabocha with coconut oil, brown sugar, and cinnamon topped with vanilla fro-yo and the rest of the pumpkin bread. Just a little something to treat myself before the BIG CRIT DAY! Here are some pictures of some of the pieces:

I noticed how cool it looked when she was taking a picture of her piece from that point.

Hey everybody, it's me!

First attempt to get out.

The way I came into the world... I think. Or was it the stork?

At this point I was hoping not too much of my buttcrack would show.

Free!

Now it’s time to meet my professor!

This man is incredible! I’m not sure how one human can have so much information coming from so many different places in his head, but he manages. Sometimes when he’s talking he closes his eyes, pauses for literally a good minute, gathers his thoughts, and then decides to say something.

Oh and afterwards we learned what the title of that particular piece was; “The Fucking Part of Life” haha!

Katharina, where are these breakfast pictures you promised in your last post? Alright, alright:

Ricotta, warmed up apple chunks, topped with Zoe's granola.

Ricotta, warmed up apple chunks with cinnamon, topped with Zoe's granola + toast on the side.

Beautiful figs on toast with cream cheese, honey, and cinnamon.

Lauren, inspired me to pick up some beautiful fruits at the grocery store. She always incorporates a wide variety of fruits in veggies, and I love it!

This is the first time I blended oats with ricotta; certainly not my last!

Since we’re on the topic of figs, I’m gonna go there!

I got to try something new!

I heated up a Chocolate Fig VitaTop and served it with some fresh figs, and a cup of almond milk. The almond milk is in that cute chickadee cup in the back. Back to the muffin tops. I didn’t think the flavor was bad, it was mostly very dry though. With each bite, I kept wishing I had ice cream – something to moisten it a bit. I’m on the fence on whether or not I should recommend this products. I have another one, and I’ll give you another review.

Moving right along… warning, this is a superb bowl of oats. Superb.

Everything looks so pillowy.

What’s that sitting on top? I whirled up a frozen banana, ricotta cheese, vanilla extract, and a bit of stevia. This is much like Gena’s soft-serve, but more volumunious and creamier. It was an incredible way to start the morning with a warm bowl of oats with coconut oil. I suggest crushing some candied walnuts if you really want to take this up a notch.

I licked my blender clean it was so good.

I licked my blender and bowl clean it was so good.

I don’t think anyone figured out what the surprise green mushy stuff I made was. Well, now I will reveal to you all – drum roll please…

Edamame hummus!!!

I followed this recipe, and it came out wonderfully. I love the color and the flavor the sesame oil adds to it as well. The first time I saw this was at Trader Joe’s, and I was thinking about how ridiculously simple this must be to make. It is!

Yin and yang

Here are some ways I’ve been eating it:

My lunch looks more like a snack plate.

In a sandwich layered with cream cheese, spinach, red onion, tomato, sprouts, and the edamame hummus.

It would probably be really yummy if I added something smokey to the sandwich, or maybe I’ll test the waters like Mitri and spread a nutbutter on – sunflower seed butter anyone?

What's that?

I think Matilda approves.

Although my critique hasn’t happened yet, I’ll show it you all anyway. And let me know what you guys think!

Who am I Becoming

Adventure is Worthwhile

Posted on September 20, 2009 by Katharina

This Friday night I came up with a challenge for myself. I had actually been thinking about using these ingredients awhile ago, but I finally had the motivation to do it. I don’t have much patience when it comes to baking and recipes that require multiple steps. However, my excitement took over and I frankly didn’t care about time and how many dirty dishes I would have to clean afterward. This is what kitchen experiments are all about.

Now enter my… laboratory, shall we? Mwahahaha!

I should probably tell you what I was up to though, right? Well, folks, I had a kabocha on hand and I was thinking about ravioli and ricotta. What if I made something like that? So I decided to make lasagna out of polenta (which is so simple to make), and then I would layer the kabocha and ricotta mix.

Focus people, ignore the carton of Almond Breeze!

First I made the polenta and spread it out on a sheet and let it cool until I was ready to layer and bake. Then I baked the kabocha with cinnamon, sage, and brown sugar until it was soft. If you’d like, you can peel the kabocha, but I just kept the skin on mine. Once that was done baking I mashed it and mixed in the ricotta. You can also add more salt, or anything else you’d like to the mix – perhaps nutmeg? I pulled the polenta out of the fridge and cut 4 strips, since the recipe I followed for the polenta made 2 servings.

So the temperature and baking time will vary for this because I used a toaster oven. I baked this at 350° F for about 35 minutes. I probably should’ve baked it at a higher temperature because the following day I re-heated it at 400° F and it turned it much crispier and better. My advice is to just keep an eye on it!

Voila!

I served it with the cute little cherry tomatoes Brittany gave to me, and a glass of white sangria.

Beautiful!

Here are my leftovers:

Mid-bite it occurred to me that I should top it with maple syrup and almonds.

So you can see the layers.

This was very yummy, and I can say that this experiment was a winner! However, I do want to play around with the herbs in this recipe; I felt that sage wasn’t quite right. What should I call this recipe? Anyone have any suggestions?

A cup of almond milk with coffee ice cubes anyone?

I’ll show you guys what I did with the rest of the kabocha. I think I may turn orange soon… just a warning.

I busted out one of my favorites dishes!

I mashed the kabocha and stirred in soy creamer, butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar. I also topped it with steamed edamame and black currant Crofter’s Superfruit spread.

Get in my belly.

Spelt bread, tomato, sharp cheddar, red onion, Naturenaise “mayo”, Trader Joe’s sweet relish, and pepper. I toasted this all together (I spread the “mayo” on afterwards) till the cheese was gooey and melted.

This burned my tongue like no other - ouch!

Then I did this, and learned my lesson.

Kabocha soup leftovers

Since I used up my goat cheese in my first bowl, improvisation kicked in. I roasted some tomatoes and made a beautiful mess with toasted seeds and soy creamer. Gosh, sometimes I get so into the color of food! It’s like I forget that I’m going to be eating this and not hanging it on a wall.

Just for the heck of it, I’m going to throw in my favorite grilled cheese sandwich.

On Cinnamon-Raisin Swirl bread with a side of cherry tomatoes, cauliflower baked with s&p + nutritional yeast

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend – it’s not over yet! Yesterday I made a beautiful, green, mushy mess. Can anyone guess what I whipped up?

Finally, thank you all for the well wishes for my critique. Most importantly, your comments reminded me that we’re not alone! I think in someway or another, we can all relate to each other and we go through similar things – afterall, we’re human. This weekend I tested myself in the kitchen, and it got me thinking about challenges in our lives:

“Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”

p.s. did anyone notice I didn’t post a breakfast in this post? Oh my dears, just wait till the next one!

Great Things Come in Small Packages

Posted on September 18, 2009 by Katharina

Bahaha an old warped picture from Photobooth - because it's Friday and everyone's smile should be that big!

Oats with bananas mashed in + Asian pear + biscotti + cashew butter

I am just going to do all my posts like this: breakfast-y foods first, then the rest just fall in place.

Waffle Pancake Wednesday

On the side is a chocolate protein shake I made with mixed berries and rolled oats for kicks.

I had pancakes for breakfast on Wednesday instead of waffles, Janetha.

These pancakes were HUGE! Almost the size of a plate. So I cut one in half and decided to do two different toppings. One side has coconut oil, apple slices, cinnamon, and confectioner’s sugar with nutmeg. The other half was just buttered, apple slices, cinnamon, and maple syrup. I sprinkled the last of my rolled oats on the whole shebang. I kept alternating between the two because I loved both sides equally. But which side was lucky enough to be my last bite?

Last week I received a package in the mail!

I’m sure you guys have seen Late July at your grocery store, but have you tried their stuff out? They’re organic snacks and a very family oriented company. Companies that care are an A+ in my book. I was sent their new Mini Sandwich Cookies to try out. The flavors are: milk chocolate and white chocolate. The website says that they are melt in your mouth good, and I agree. I also enjoyed washing down these cookies with a warm glass of almond milk. Yes, these are tiny (my hands are just bigger now that I’m a “big kid”), but it’s so fun to feel little again. If any of you Mommies or Daddies out there are trying to shy your kids away from chemical-laden treats, but don’t want to eliminate sweets – these are worth trying!

Cute!

“Seven different endangered animals are featured on the cookies and 10% of the profits go to the Jane Goodall Institute to help with their efforts in endangered animal awareness.”

My favorite grilled cheese sandwich!

I hope by now you all know what’s in this sandwich. Mango chutney + cheddar cheese. Rather than using pumpernickel bread -which I didn’t have- I used 2 slices of the Spelt loaf I bought last week. While eating this sandwich I realized this bread is the perfect grilled cheese bread. I’ve said it before, but bakery bread just tastes so good. But I’d imagine the best bread would come straight out of Mia’s oven! What’s that peeking in to the left of the sandwich?

Why hello there tasty salad.

While Kim and I were in the kitchen making dinner, she offered me some of her Lime tortilla chips. Then I thought, this would be awesome on my salad! I love edamame, and after seeing edamame hummus at Trader Joe’s I want to make some of my own.

Lately, I’ve been making myself a cup of agua de panela with a squeeze of lemon juice. What’s panela? It’s whole cane sugar, basically, unrefined sucrose. I just googled it, and this how someone described it, “a sweetener that tastes like a cross between molasses and brown sugar.”

I bought this box last time I went down to Colombia.

Running low, uh oh.

I’m sure you can find this at a Latin food market. Who knows, with the international food aisles the chain supermarkets have now, you may even find it there!

A Jamaican inspired meal.

While browsing the internet for tempeh recipes, I came upon one for Jamaican jerk tempeh. I’ve always wanted to try jerk something, so of course I decided to give this recipe a whirl. I found some others that asked for apricot juice instead of OJ. I think apricot is a better choice because of the sweetness. Since I didn’t have a lot of those spices on hand (crazy!) I used my tea masala. Tea masala has a bunch of Indian spices. I served it on brown rice I cooked with cinnamon, and once served I mixed in coconut oil. On the side I made a tomato, cucumber, and onion salad.

Since I baked the tempeh and it was rather dry, I spread on some tamarind-date chutney.

Such an exciting meal with an array of flavors. Sweet, citrusy, savoury, and a spicy kick.

I’ve been making more use of my toaster oven, now that I discovered that I can actually bake with it.

Toasted kabocha seeds with brown sugar and cinnamon.

I baked the kabocha with butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar then sprinkled some of it’s seeds for decoration. Then I assembled some Ak-mak crackers, spread some creamy gorgonzola, agave, red onion, Asian pear slices, and a sprinkling of more cinnamon. I haven’t had these Armenian crackers in so long! They’ve been sitting in my cabinet and I forgot all about them. It took me forever to finish this plate. An hour later I realized I was still eating. I find that when I eat alone, I finish rather quickly. But with this meal I took my time, and I didn’t even have to try.

So here’s my heart to heart for you guys:

The topic I want to share with you all is about “being on top of things.” There are responsibilities that I can’t ignore; like taking care of my beloved Matilda. I’m ready, but it’s hard when others around me don’t quite get it. Which is why I probably feel more at ease around older people because they don’t see my responsibleness as pooping on the party. But there is a crazy, fun-loving side to me as well! I’m starting to get it back. I think I explained before that I went through a period in my life where I became overly practical and cut out so many things. It was such a bleak moment, simply a moment… that I don’t want to go back to. I enjoy the feeling that I get from knowing that I’m flourishing again and walking down the street with my head up high and shoulders back ready to take on whatever is ahead of me.

Oh, and to fill you guys in on my school shtuff:

Not suppose to be eating in my studio!

In that big tupperware I layered a lot of kabocha, brown rice + coconut oil, and leftovers from my Jamaican jerk tempeh with tamarind-date chutney. And a little jar of roasted seeds!

Next week is my first critique of the semester in my main sculpture class. I’m kind of nervous because I’m making a video for it, and I know that some people might be like… why didn’t she make a sculpture? Well, I might make one – I just haven’t really thought of anything yet. I don’t really search for ideas, they just come to me. Hopefully, as I’m editing the video I’ll be knocked out of my chair by an idea that hit me!

Staring contest or crotch shot

Na-na-na-na-boo-boo, getting ready to do upward dog.

Stay tuned for the next post because I plan on featuring a culinary adventure I will be attempting tonight. Happy Friday everyone!

Another First

Posted on September 16, 2009 by Katharina

The missing flavor is Lemon Ginger (tried that awhile ago)

The lovely people over at Kardea generously sent me 4 of their bars to sample. A lot of their products are known to aide in cholesterol management. I know Cheerio’s help with that too, but these my dear readers, are the bomb.com. I’ve already decided that I’m going to try the Banana Walnut bar last because I like to save the best for last. Although, I have a feeling it really wouldn’t matter because so far out of the ones I’ve tried, they’re awesome. A lot of bars taste good, but they don’t quite live up to the name of their flavors. However, these bars actually taste like what they’re named. The Lemon Ginger bar wasn’t overwhelming at all – it was just right.

Next up was Cranberry Almond.

I’m not sure if the strange look of it is because it was delivered to me when it was really hot out. Cranberry check. Almond check. These don’t even taste like nutritional bars (in a very good way)! Just delicious. I’ll give you guys some info on these bars:

Banana Walnut, Chai Spice, Cranberry Almond, and Lemon Ginger

Plant Sterols-1 gram

Total Fiber-7 grams with 5 grams Soluble Fiber

Heart Healthy Soluble Fiber-3grams

Protein-7 grams with 3.5 grams Soy Protein

Vegetarian-Friendly (Chai Spice & Banana Walnut Are Vegan)

Kosher Certified

Only 150 Calories/Bar

No Trans Fats

Lower Glycemic Formulation

I’m surprised that these bars haven’t caught on with a lot of folks actually. They are truly delicious, and good for your heart!

So guys, what have I been up to?

Last Saturday my friend organized an eating contest at a park, and I was the judge/scooper. What’d they have to eat? Mashed potatoes! All participants had to bring in a bag. Kim also brought fake bacon bits, which was a good idea. And I kindly offered my assistance to anyone who felt they could no longer fulfill their “duties”.

Huge piles!

Kim's got her game face and Rodman jersey on.

Let the eating begin!

Serving it soup kitchen style.

Tuning out to keep from... well, you know.

The victory bite!

Tiara didn’t really look too happy, but atleast she won! This girl kicks butt.

Later that night I decided to bake around the witching hour. Well, more like 3 hours before because supposedly the witching hour is at 3 am.

Cinnamon-Raisin Biscotti

I was browing through biscotti recipes and found one that I had the ingredients for. I wanted to make lemon ginger biscotti but, alas, I had no crystallized ginger and I’m sure this was something my neighbor wouldn’t have had either. The aroma of these wafting in the apartment as they were baking and I was studying… it made my life a little sweeter.

Can you believe I baked these in my toaster oven?

Perfect sidekick for a bowl of oats.

Like my girl, Janetha, I love cinnamon. I went a little crazy with it and this is why -ladies and gentlemen- my oats are brown. I put a big spoonful of peanut butter and a little one of my Date and Almond Creme spread. To add the finishing touch to this bowl of oats, I bruleed some bananas a la Katie! The cinnamon is hogging the spotlight though.

The last of my peanut butter!

I tried to do this blob of peanut butter justice by making a bowl of PB&J oats. Holla at the peanut butter queen, Jenny! As I was saying goodbye to one jar of yummy goodness, I said hello to Crofter’s Blueberry Superfruit spread. Ah so good, and I could see the tiny blueberries in there. I don’t bother with jellies that don’t even have an inkling of a fruit, but Crofter’s spreads are jam packed with real fruits. Did ya catch that?

I’ve really been inspired by everyone’s blogs lately, and last week I was reading Sophia’s blog and she had posted a recipe that seemed way too good to just look at.

Kabocha Soup with Bacon and Goat Cheese

Unfortunately, the fake bacon bits that were brought the eating contest were finished off, so I couldn’t sprinkle them on! So I made the best of it and blended in some ketchup, smoke sauce, and Worcestershire. How do you say that word anyway?

A big mug of soup, cinnamon + coconut oil + almond milk + brown rice, tomato slices + roasted red pepper hummus.

I kept the skin on so that's why it's green... I also thought I could do a swirly affect with the cream.

Hey Sophia… this was awesome!!! I love this girl’s blog. Not only does she have a refined taste for things that taste delicious, but she also shares a piece of her mind and heart with her readers in every post.

Oh... and this mug is absurdly HUGE!

There are so many bloggers to talk about in this post. I had the chance to actually meet a fellow blogger yesterday. If you guys don’t know her already, I met up with Brittany from Eating Bird Food. It’s always neat to see when you guys meet up with other bloggers. Some of you hit it off and became partners in crime like Brooke and Kailey! Holly and Angharad too! All the meet-ups just seemed like so much fun. Brittany and I agreed to meet up at Ipanema, a vegetarian and vegan restaurant. I was so excited when she suggested we go there – hell yeah girl! I love that place, and a couple of my friends work there as well.

The only menu in the place is written on the chalkboard.

This place reminds me of Germany because you walk down, like walking into a Ratskeller. A Ratskeller is basically a tavern below street level and it’s the city hall’s basement. When Brittany walked through the door I immediately though, “oh my gosh she’s so pretty and adorable!” We looked through the menu and when we decided on what we wanted, we made our way into one of the booths.

Indian pizza

Service was rather fast that night! Oh gosh, I can’t remember exactly what this entailed, but I’ll give it a shot. I ordered an Indian pizza with a curry sauce, zucchini, cauliflower, red onions, and paneer. The sauce was strangely zesty and for some reason I was envisioning a red or orange curry sauce. It was good, but I probably wouldn’t order it again. The side salad’s dressing was yummy though! I tried some of what Brittany ordered as well. She got their Thai carrot soup, which resembled baby food haha! But it was very tasty. She also got a spinach salad with pears, gorgonzola, and pecans. That combination is always a winner in my book.

It was getting late and after talking it up, we asked for our checks. Brittany, it was so nice meeting you! You’re so kind and polite – can’t wait till our puppies meet! And next time, I’m taking more pictures!

She also gave me a baggie of tomatoes grown with TLC.

These are delicious by the way! I love popping little tomatoes in my mouth. You take one bite and BOOM there’s a burst of flavor.

Well guys, I’m going to save some stuff for my next post. I tend to get carried away with my posts, and I don’t want anyone to be overwhelmed with my kitchen adventures haha! Since I mentioned so many other bloggers in this post, I think it’s appropriate to spread the word on this bit of exciting Blogworld news:

Foodbuzz has announced its 1st-Annual Foodbuzz Blog Awards!

The categories are:

Best Overall Blog

Best New Blog

Best Wine Blog

Best Cocktail/Spirits Blog

Best Baking Blog

Best Food Photography Blog

Best Visual Blog (graphic design)

Best Writing Voice

Best Healthy Living Blog

Best Green/Sustainable blog

Best Family Blog

Best Recipe Blog

Best Blogger Humanitarian Effort

Best Community Blog Effort

Most Humorous Food Blog

They’ve also got another section!

Blogger you’d most want to:

1. Take to dinner

2. Cook a meal for you

3. Be your personal Sommelier

4. Create you a cocktail

5. Watch on Food Network

6. Watch on Iron Chef

7. See open up their own restaurant

8. See their blog made into a movie

So go out there and vote everyone!

It’s Wednesday everyone! Is it just me or did it feel like the end of the week on Monday and Tuesday? Well, now we’re finally getting there!

Off to a Good Start

Posted on September 13, 2009 by Katharina

I’ll start this post off the same way I start my day – with breakfast!

: I baked some lemon poppyseed mini-muffins.

I tried some samples of the Artisana nut butters. I’m going to make a bold statement right now, but I’m just gonna go right ahead and put it out there. I haven’t tried all of the samples, but I feel that I can officially say that these nut butters are the bomb! If you’re a nut butter person, you will love these no questions asked. The nuts are all ground to perfection and have such a great consistency. I can actually taste each nuts’ unique flavor! I’m using the word “nuts” too much! So let’s move on, shall we?

: A delicious bowl of Zoe’s Honey Almond granola with extra almonds, coconut shreds, and mango over yogurt.

Next up is a recipe I got from a website called Culinary Competitor: Vegetarian Black Bean Chili with Bulgur.

: The chili with a dollop of sour cream and cilantro, and a side of buttered peas and…

I also got to try something new! A Vitalicious Golden Corn VitaTop. I’ve always wanted to try this flavor because I love cornbread and these VitaTops just look so dainty! This was really good, and went perfectly with my meal. Oh gosh, almost forgot to review the recipe for you guys. TRY IT! I loved the addition of bulgur, which made it heartier. Eat it with some cornbread, or if you’ve got one of these yummy Tops on hand. I’m getting bossy! But for real guys…

Since we’re on the topic of VitaTops, I’ve been able to try a couple more flavors out.

: Double Chocolate Dream – those are white chocolate chips.

Doing it up photo collage style like Angharad! I admit that I was hestitant to try these because I read the words “double chocolate dream.” And for the most part, I’m not a big fan of double chocolate anything. However, I do love white chocolate and I think the addition of those chips really made it awesome. Not to mention this was warm, pillowy, moist, and gooey!

: About to enjoy bite number two… after I put the camera down!

: I decided to try another uber-chocolate flavor…

Deep Chocolate! I didn’t like this one as much as the one with white chocolate chips. But I did enjoy the melted chocolate! For some reason I look yellow in that picture (flash?). I’ve also tried the brownie, and I was happy that they were bigger than the VitaTops. The only complaint so far that I have about the VitaTops is that they’re just a few bites of goodness. I guess that’s the trade off? For myself, I enjoy these as part of a yummy snack, or an extra to my meal. If I were having these as part of a breakfast I would definitely have to have two. I’m not a calorie counter, but I do know that my breakfast carbs have to be over 100 calories… unless I want to be hungry again in an hour. I actually have a question regarding morning hunger, that I’ll get to on another post. Anywho, I’d imagine that these are wonderful for dieters because you don’t have to “splurge” to have a flavorful treat (they don’t skimp on flavor). You can have your cake, and eat it too! (Any cake really, whatever your little tastebuds desire!)

Let’s see… what else have I been eating lately? Oh! The other day I marinated some tempeh to make a “BLT”. If any of you guys have any awesome tempeh recipes, please, send them on over!

: This meal just looks funky!

: Close-up

I just followed this recipe for the tempeh marinade.

: This one I decided to glaze with maple syrup.

First Friday was awhile ago over here in my corner of the world. First Friday is when the galleries around here show off the new works they have up, and tons of people walk around and take it all in. Sometimes you see some real characters – the area’s eccentrics. Love it! Anyway, as you all know Matilda is practically attached to my hip so of course she went to this event with me! No one at any of the galleries has ever objected. I think it’s because she’s so freaking cute. But here are some pictures after the art and a show.

: My friend calls her “little bean”… “get back in your can.”

: I spy a 40!

Another furry friend!

Matilda would be so jealous if she saw this picture up. I think Sophia looks funny with her bat wings and squinty eyes. This was the night my entire zipcode experienced a blackout, so I went to my friend’s house. When the power came back we watched this murder mystery called Brick. This movie was so classical in the way it was shot… don’t really see mystery films made this way anymore.

Back to some more eats! The other day I was at the bookstore browsing through magazines that I didn’t want to pay for. I had my handy dandy Moleskin and copied down an interesting recipe I saw in a Vegetarian Times issue: ginger-miso yam wraps. This was my first time trying collard greens, and I tried them RAW!

: Look how pretty!

This was so nice to look at and prepare. Collard greens remind me of the Cabbage Patch Kids. I made a slight change to the recipe, and poured in some coconut milk.

: Filled with so much goodness.

: with a side of carrots sautéed in coconut oil and later toasted some coconut shreds and cinnamon.

: Some more mock tuna goodness.

I decided to add some variety to my eats by getting a bag of tortilla chips. Yay! I wish I had a cheese grater so I could make nachos. Well, I kind of made some the other day by cutting squares to put on each chip haha. But I prefer a messy, melted, gooey explosiong when it comes to nachos.

Then I added some goat cheese after I started eating...

I happened to be reading Janetha’s blog while I was eating this, and saw that she made a tuna melt sandwich with goat cheese. Awesome idea, girl!

An apple, cheddar, "bacon", and roasted onion sandwich.

An apple, cheddar, "bacon", and onion sandwich.

I also spread some pumpkin butter on this great bread. This spelt bread tastes really good – perfect for sandwiches. On the side I sautéed some yellow squash in coconut oil and toasted some coconut shreds. To melt the cheese I put my sandwich in the toaster oven since I don’t have a griller. The crispness from the apple and onions, the crunch from the bread, and the smoky “bacon” with cheddar were awesome all together!

A chocolate banana pop.

Oops! It looks like I didn’t really clean the mold that well… there’s some OJ at the tip. For these pops I just added some chocolate sprinkles to the warm, melted banana + coconut milk/shreds mush. Naturally, the sprinkles melted and spread their love throughout. I love the creaminess of these pops, and the texture the coconut shreds add to them as well.

A cup of hot cocoa made with coconut milk and some cinnamon.

Do you love the foam? I use the chocolate tablets that you have to put in the blender with boiling milk. Nothing beats my grandma’s hot chocolate though. She does it the old-fashioned way by boiling the milk on the stove. Then she pours it into her old tin pitcher and gets to crackin’ with her over-sized pestle to crush the chocolate. Then she whirls it around to make it foamy. My grandma has such strong arms: hot cocoa to strength train = lots of great hugs for the granddaughter.

So now the moment you’ve all been waiting for! It’s time to announce the winner of the U.S. Mills giveaway. First off, I loved reading everyone’s ideas – most of you enjoy it with yogurt and fruits. If you haven’t tried it yet, I suggest you make peanut butter balls by just coating a blob of peanut butter in cereal. Example, if you guys have a cereal that tastes corny you can also add in some coconut shreds to the peanut butter blobs. Anyway, I’m like an annoying commercial right now when all you want is to get back to the show! Okay, okay, and the winner is…

Aileen!

Congrats girl! I’m going to send you an e-mail to notify you. Thank you all for participating. I hope you all enjoyed it, and maybe some of you with a gluten intolerance now know there are cereals for everybody! Moreover, I was able to stumble on to some blogs I haven’t read before – maybe I should have more giveaways?

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and don’t forget to give yourself some TLC.

Fluorescent is the New Black

Posted on September 9, 2009 by Katharina

My week has been stressful, but Holly’s post about Ups and Downs reminded me that even when life gets tough, there’s always a bright side. A highlighter yellow bright side!

I made a little personal project for myself last week. Matilda and I go for walks around the city, and I always find myself looking down at her and smiling to myself. I wonder… what’s it like for her? Walking through grass must be like walking through a cornfield for us!

: Matilda has mastered the art of being okay with doing “nothing”.

Click the link below to see the little video I put together.

Matilda’s Walk

: Fresh peaches

: Finally feeling like I’m back in business.

FOOD PORN ALERT! This creamy bowl of muesli had it’s fair share of cinnamon, peach slices, coconut shreds, and almonds. Can we all say yum? Now all together… YUM!

: Cheap ice pops!

So I bit the top off before I took a picture. I just poured some OJ into my ice pop molds. The next time I made these, I added some soy creamer to make them kind of like a Creamsicle. Which reminds me… Stoli Vanilla + Orange soda = THE BOMB!

Highlights of my week so far

I was looking through Craigslist the other day and read these words, “ANTHROPOLOGIE INTERNSHIP.” Click! Oh my gosh, guys… it’s screenshot time!

This was exactly what I want to do as a "practical" job after I graduate, but in New York.

This is exactly what I was planning to have as a “practical job” when I graduate, but in New York!!! Speaking of “displays”, my room is coming together. I still have some things to hang up and crafting projects I’ve been meaning to finish.

Matilda being a watchdog.

All she does is growl at everything and everyone that passes by.

Studying where I sleep... this is supposedly and ineffective way to study. Supposedly...

Check out this mess!

I don’t think you can see this – unless you have super sonic vision – but on the little chalkboard by the crazy mask I wrote “boys suck.” Well, they don’t really. I just think I must’ve been on another planet when girls learned how to flirt and stuff. Or maybe it’s just the fact that we’re from different planets anyway!

When I was grocery shopping the other day I saw that winter squashes were on sale for 69 cents a lb. What’d my eyes fall upon? The elusive kabocha and I met again! I’m thinking I should go back and get another one, and some other delicious winter squashes. Hello? Last time I paid $1.50 per lb. for the Japanese squash! I’d be crazy not to take advantage of this super deal.

So I went on a food adventure and tried lotus seeds for the first time! I made a lotus seed congee, and I changed it around everytime I ate my leftovers.

: Served hot! So hot there was steam coming off this.

: Broccoli and carrots in a peanut sauce + coconut milk + basil.

More Thai inspired veggies!

: This bowl had cinnamon, coconut oil, and warmed up Crofter’s Superfruit spread since they have dark cherries)

: I also saw that avocados are on sale for $1.50 each.

Speaking of avocados, an old friend of mine said I have really nice, full hair and that it must be because I eat avocados and olive oil. It’s also all thanks to nuts, and coconut oil (eat and put on my hair). Then the other day he said my hair is like Fara Fawcett’s hahah! Lately, it’s been flipping out by itself. Then he said “girls would kill to have that.” Oh, please feed me more compliments hot friend!

So this “old friend” of mine is also an old crush of mine. When I was at his house the other night, he pulled out a jar of Sunflower Seed Butter from Trader Joe’s. Oh my goodness! I think my eyes popped out of my head because he asked, “what?!” The flavor was overwhelmingly good and totally unexpected. I urge you all to try this if you haven’t already. I know at least one thing that’s going in my cart next time I go to Trader Joe’s. Oh and we went on a nice bike ride together! This is where we met up:

: The “compass” aka the center of campus, but it was totally empty then.

The moon looked eerie that night.

Then we just rode around the Victorian neighborhood called “the Fan”. I’ll take a picture of that for you guys. It’s so nice! Then we went back and watched this musical called “Shock Treatment”. It’s by the same guy who did “Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Well, basically we got all cuddly during the movie and he had so many nice things to say about me. Garsh!

Sophia, his cat.

She realized I was taking pictures of her!

I thought I was over my friend… and I was. But I’ve started crushing again. Not sure if he’s good news though. He’s got this je ne sais quoi, and all the girls fall for it. Even girls that usually don’t go for his “type”.

Anyway,I tried out a new recipe from Happy Herbivore for “tuna” out of chickpeas. Holy moly! I’m making a recipe card for this one for sure!

: Served in a toasted bun.

I spread some mayo + tarragon on the bun. I love the subtle sweet flavor tarragon has.

: It even looks like tuna!

I threw in some raisins for some added sweetness.

: I also tried the “tuna” on some new bread I got from a local bakery: spelt!

I love it! I use to go to this bakery after school back in highschool, and I would have them build me a sandwich. They also make awesome cookies, and other breads. I can imagine this “tuna” recipe would taste awesome on their Honey Wheat loaf + sprouts!

: My missing ingredient is back! Hello avocado!

: Banana, coconut milk, and coconut shreds

There’s a grocery store that has bananas on sale for 29 cents a lb. on Tuesdays. Lots of bananas = banana pops! I am now addicted to making my own popsicles. Anybody have any recipes they’d like to share? Or ideas?

I’ve also seen that some of you guys add coconut milk to your oats. Well, I had an opened can sitting in my fridge… I think you guys can guess what I did next!

: Refreshing bowl of muesli with coconut milk & shreds, vanilla, and a blob of Cacao Bliss.

This looks so creamy and delicious! I can imagine some graphic designer going crazy over how “simple” it looks ahaha.

: Another bowl of muesli with coconut milk topped with Gena’s banana soft-serve and Creme of Date and Almond spread. The raisins are hiding somewhere in there!

Lastly, my most exciting highlight of this week so far!

I’ve been trying out some U.S. Mills products:

: A yummy bowl of their gluten-free Cocoa Crispy Brown Rice helped my late night studying not seem so bad

By the way, this brought me back to Cocoa Krispies and loving how the milk would turn into chocolate milk!

What’s that you say? You would like to try them too? Well, here’s your chance to receive a generous gift courtesy of U.S. Mills:

1. One product of each brand (Erewhon, Uncle Sam Cereal, New Morning, and Farina)

2. a Patagonia T-Shirt (available in Adult L, XL & Kids L)

3. and some coupons

How do you win?

In the comments section of this post, let me know the flavors of each brand you would like to try and your favorite way to eat cereal or use cereal. Maybe you simply enjoy it with milk, but I know some of you have some creative ideas up your sleeves!

Make a comment by this Saturday, September 12 at noon EDT, and I will randomly pick a winner (please only comment once). The winner will be announced over the weekend.

Spread the word about this contest by linking back to this post then e-mail me at onthepolkadot@hotmail.com, and that’ll earn you another entry. Good luck everyone! It’s my first giveaway eee!

The Summer of Salads

Posted on September 7, 2009 by Katharina

The other Saturday I got out of my class (yeah Saturday class!), and biked over to an outdoor market called Antiques on Broad. I was starving so I had Kim meet up with me and bring me some biscotti and Matilda (didn’t eat her though).

: Antiques on Broad

: Awesome suitcases that didn’t open.

: Carrying a fan around is a must!

It was so hot that day we could feel the sweat dripping down our backs.

: DJ Kim in the house

: Hottie alert!

We just browsed around and found some inspiration for our apartment. A couple posts ago I was talking about summer coming to an end, and how that means less cold salads to enjoy.

: A Mexican inspired salad

I just mixed in some rice, romaine, tomato slices, white beans, corn, cauliflower, red onion, cilantro, and sour cream. The only thing that was missing was avocado!

: Failed attempt at making white bean hummus.

: Oh my gosh this salad was incredible!

So this salad had romaine, tomatoes, corn, red onion, black beans, cilantro, sour cream, bulgur, and cilantro dressing! Yum yum yum. I love buying a big head of romaine lettuce from the fresh produce section rather than the bagged kind. It’s a lot cheaper too.

: I haven’t cooked tofu in ages.

For this tofu I just coated it with unsweetened coconut flakes and agave, then fried it on the pan with some chopped red onions. I laid out a nice bed of romaine and tomato chunks, and used a sesame ginger dressing. On the side I made my first tomato sandwich! I added a little something special: Old Bay Seasoning. This meal was so delicious and refreshing. What a summer meal should be, no?

: Putting the rest of my tofu to use.

This is the first time I made stir-fry with noodles – I used egg noodles. I’d say this was Thai inspired. I stir-fried some broccoli, corn, carrots, tofu, garlic and onions in sesame oil. Then I added some lime juice towards the end and garnished it all with cilantro and sesame seeds. My dad brought those chopsticks back when he was opening up an office over in Hong Kong. Jumbo is a floating restaurant that serves Dim Sum. I think it’s a major tourist attraction over there.

In recent news, my mom went to Colombia over the labor day weekend. I wanted to go with her but I have that darned Saturday class! I really miss her. She said that she would visit me this month, and all of my friends up here want to meet her so badly! My friends that already know her want to take her out for drinks. Then my guy friends all have a crush on her. She just radiates a lot of love I guess! It’s funny because when I was in Germany after high school my friends would still hang out with her even though I wasn’t there. I also have some more travel related news! My friend Sway and I are planning a trip to Europe over the winter. I haven’t gone back there in a couple of years, so I’m extremely excited about this!!!

Anyway, I’ll leave you all with a midnight snack.

I heated up the apple with some soy creamer and cinnamon. Then crumbled some graham crackers on top.

Yummy apples from a local orchard.

What do you guys like to snack on?

Katharina's Food Adventures

Monthly Archives: September 2009