Late to Market

Had to work this morning, so I didn't get to the market until almost 1 pm!  Luckily, there was still plenty of good stuff to buy: cucumbers, mustard greens, pea shoots, tomatoes, peppers, yellow squash, satsumas, brown rice, turnips, lettuce, Fairytale eggplants, meyer lemons, and key limes!

Yesterday, I picked the first red peppers off my Aerogarden pepper plants!  I've got 3 plants growing, 2 redskin and 1 carmen....both red and sweet.

And last but not least, my Zojirushi Bread Machine arrived today!!!  Yay!!  I've got a few days off coming up, so I'll definitely be posting about bread :)

Oh yes, I made my order from The Vegan Store and decided on 2 "cheeses": Daiya and Dr. Cow.  I'll let you know how those rate.

Eat smart,
T.

A Day at the Market

Work was canceled today....due to rain......so now I can relax and have a bit more coffee!  Our German friends have not yet arrived....hopefully this afternoon or possibly tomorrow.

Went to the market again this morning....got lots of good stuff: zucchini, yellow squash, satsumas, apples, tomatoes, green peppers, yellow peppers, cucumbers, eggplant (more eggplant dip???), white button mushrooms, lettuce, sweet potatoes, and yes, MORE okra.

I'll continue my okra challenge for another week, but I'll have to freeze what I got last week.  C'mon people, help me out here! Next Saturday, the 17th will be my last okra day.

We had leftover Monk Bowls today for lunch, so nothing new there....but it was still soooo good!  And when I say leftovers, I mean there was rice and sauce left.  I did steam new vegetables though.

Gardening wise, I had to attack my mint plant today.  It was taking over my whole indoor herb garden! So here's a picture of some of it.....hanging up to dry. My peppers are doing well too!

Ok, I think that about sums it up for today.  Perhaps I'll cook something tomorrow.......perhaps not.....

Eat smart,
T.

Roasted vegetables with asparagus

I know, I know, I've already talked about roasted vegetables....blah...blah....blah...

BUT, today I added asparagus and white button mushrooms because I had to use up the mushrooms already (they'd been in the fridge a while) and asparagus was on sale! So that's my excuse. I also had to use up my tomatoes from last week's market (I'm sure I'll pick up more tomorrow). By the way, is it a stalk of asparagus or what? Does a "bunch" have several stalks?

And even though I still prefer my traditional roasted tomatoes, onions, and peppers, you can make it with pretty much anything! Next time I'll post my recipe for roasted cauliflower and broccoli a la lemon, with lemon israeli couscous. Good stuff.

It's gonna be a rainy weekend all around. So don't expect too much from me. We're still going to try and make it to the market tomorrow for our produce box (I think there may be more pattypan squash!!!!), you know....after we stop at Barnes and Nobles to pick up a few vegan cookbooks I've been drooling over. (no, I'm not vegan)

Ever since I had the most amazing vegan chocolate cupcake with peppermint frosting at The Tomato Head in Knoxville, TN, I've had cravings for vegan cupcakes. If you live anywhere near there, I highly recommend that place. The meal was perfect! With great local beer to go with it...on tap!

I can't get anything vegan here.....

Hmmm.....maybe tomorrow I'll make a list of my favorite veg-friendly restaurants from our travels!

Until then, happy eating.

Eat smart,

T.

Roasted vegetables and something peachy

Ok, before I start in on tonight's meal, I'll start by saying that I've had a "roasting" bug for several months now. Three of my favorite roasting mixes: tomatoes/peppers/onions, root vegetables, and most recently cauliflower/broccoli.

Tonight I'm making my old favorite. I just cut up tomatoes, green peppers (or red if you can afford them!), and yellow onions. Put them in a bowl. Add italian spices (or fresh basil, oregano, etc), freshly ground black pepper, olive oil, and sea salt. Sometimes I throw in Herbes of Provence for extra flavor. I'm not even sure I know what spices are in herbes of provence. Anyone? I think there's some lavender.

Spread the veggies on a cookie sheet/roasting pan. Bake at 400 for around 30 minutes. So good. You can't go wrong. If you're light on the oil, it's a very low-calorie meal. Sometimes I serve it with plain polenta or whole wheat pasta.

Oh, and I've got peaches on the stove. Don't ask me what I'm making. Jam? Compote? Preserves? What's the difference between jam, jelly, and preserves anyway? Well that's a whole other discussion I suppose. But if you know, please do tell!

So I guess that's it for tonight's food. Tomorrow I think I'll make omelettes with yellow squash, since I rarely eat eggs and I have some. Also got yellow squash from the farmer's market. Maybe i'll even post pictures later, if you're lucky :)

Thanks for tuning in!

Eat smart,

T.

PS-The 1st 2 pics are the ready to eat pictures, the 2nd 2 are the before (raw) pictures.