Toiling, Pruning and Picking

Trav and I had a great Mother's day down in Rancho with our Nan. We spent a lot of our time working in the backyard, gardening, planting tomatoes, picking citrus fruits and pruning the peach tree. God never ceases to amaze me with His creation and how beautifully it illustrates so much about His character and relationship with us.

My Nan always plants tomatoes around this time each year. She bought seven little plants and was waiting to plant them until I came up. Trav was in charge of the weeding and placing the little guys in each of the wholes Nan had dug. I'm fairly positive this was his first time in any garden :) Nan put me in charge of patting down the soil and then digging a little mote around each one to keep the water around the roots. As my Nan was watering the plants, my brother kept saying, "I think that's enough, I think that's enough!" As if he knows anything about watering plants...but the crazy thing is that the plants really need a lot of water to grow. This is their life source; without it they grow dry and weary and eventually fade away. This is how much we need our source of life, JESUS, everyday! And it's so evident that we think we're doing fine and we don't need more, but we can NEVER have enough of Him! Ah, He is so good to overflow our cup and let His living water flow through us. "And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail." Isaiah 58:11

Now, the pruning, OMIGOSH did He show me so much about the importance of pruning. My Nan has a little tiny peach tree but it seriously must have thousands of little green peaches growing. Now, if we simply left it like that and allowed it to do it's own thing they would never be able to grow or produce any fruit at all. JUST LIKE US! We need pruning in order to be able to bear good fruit for the kingdom. We're completely incapable with out God teaching us lessons and bearing up through hard times. Even more, I realized how difficult it is for him to prune us! Pruning the tree was anything but easy for me guys, I was having such a hard time picking off the little green peaches and just throwing them away. I didn't really want to at all, but my Nan kept saying we had to for the sake of the peaches. This is such a picture of His heart for us, He doesn't want us to suffer or struggle but it has to be done for the sake of bigger and better things to come! It's because of His deep deep love for us that He does it. "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away. And every one that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bring forth more fruit." John 15:2


My Nan has a courtyard with around ten or so rose bushes that are beginning to bloom. The colors we're just radiant! Now really, who can look at these and not stand in awe at how truly beautiful God's creation is.

And for the citrus fruits. Trav was needed for reaching the highest of oranges and he helped gather some lemons. He was so helpful today :)

Hope you had a blessed Mother's Day!
<3 Dani

Hand-Made Sushi

I have been wanting to make sushi ever since Bianca and her family had such a success with trying it over Christmas break. So finally, during our weekly dinner with our friends Emma and Erin we gave it a shot. It was actually really fun, laughing at each as the rolls fell apart all over the place. We sort of ate the whole roll like a burrito, without slicing it at all, it was hilarious. Bianca certainly had the upper hand and the rest of us needed serious help throughout the rolling up process. Once you get the hang of it though, it's not that bad.

What you'll need:
-brown rice, cooked with a little bit more water because it needs to be sticky
-a bowl of water to dip your hands in with working with the rice
-sushi maker, we used a magazine inside of a big zip lock bag, We get creative, I know :)
-a sharp knife to slice the sushi rolls into pieces
-plenty of julienned veggies, we used carrots, bell peppers, and cucumbers
-lots of avocado!
-freshly pickled ginger
-dipping sauce, we used Bragg's, tamari or soy would work also
-chop sticks, we'll we tried to use them :)
-seaweed paper

To make sushi:
STEP 1: Place seaweed on top of your sushi-maker. Layer a good amount of rice on top of the seaweed, spreading evenly. The rice needs to go to the sides of the seaweed but leave about an inch at the top.
STEP 2: Layer the vegetables and the avocado on top of the rice, all the way to the sides again.
STEP 3: Now, this is the tricky part. Wet the last inch of the seaweed that doesn't have rice. Grabbing the end of the rice paper closest to you with your sushi maker, fold over and attempt to land directly where the rice ends and inch before the end of seaweed. You need that last inch of the seaweed to roll over the sushi and stick to the outside, securely holding it together. It's going to feel awkward but in order to do this you simply continue rolling and rolling with the sushi maker. Un-roll and wallah!

This is really fun to do with friends!
<3 Dani

Double Decker Veggiewich

Bianca came home the other day starving, or should we say completely ravenous. This is not uncommon around here and I know that I'm known for exaggerating but really I'm not. We've all learned the ways of Bianca and when she's hungry, she is H-U-N-G-A-R-Y. So in a matter of a couple minutes she created this masterpiece and it hit the spot...just perfectly :)

To start you must have on hand Bianca's infamous hummus which I can not believe I have not shared with you until now.
Recipe:
1 C cooked or canned garbanzo beans
3 T extra virgin olive oil
1/4 C lemon juice
2 t cumin
2 T tahini
1 clove of garlic
Blend all ingredients together in a food processor.

Spread hummus on sprouted wheat bread. Layer thinly sliced cucumber, tomato and bell peppers on one half, stuff the other half with sprouts and top with a think layer of avocado.

I dare you try it!
;) Dani

Brussel Sprouts

This dinner looks simple and normally it is. But there is quite a story behind these brussel sprouts.....

I had to go to four different places to finally get them. There no longer in season at the farmer's market, Trader Joe's was out of stock, Albertonson's didn't have any and then finally I called Von's before I even went because I was so frustrated and by the grace of God they had them! And they were beautiful, you know how sometimes there really little or off color, nope these ones were round and vibrantly green. I normally would not have made such a big deal out of getting brussels but I had bought these beautiful little potoatoes and I don't even really like potatoes except in this meal. Which is one of my favorite dinners and I was craving it. It's so easy, I just steam the little potatoes, wash the brussels and then throw them in as well. 15 or 20 minutes later I check them with a fork and when they soft they're ready to go! Sprinkle on lots of lemon n' pepper seasoning and enjoy!!

Love ya, Dani

Homemade Condiments

Here are two great healthy condiment recipes! This salad dressing is one of the first homemade dressings I made and I have yet to find anyone who doesn't like it. I always use it to impress people at dinners :) and it always works! The mustard recipe is so simple and so cheap, I'm warning you though you must let it sit for a week because it is so spicy when you first make. After some time it calms down and then the flavor is just perfect! Hope you enjoy!

Sweet Italian Dressing

1/3 C extra virgin olive oil
1/3 C raw unfiltered honey
1/3 C lemon juice
1 minced garlic clove
1 T minced sweet onion
1 t oregano
1/2 t basil



Dijon Mustard

1/2 C brown mustard seeds
2/3 C water
1/2 C raw apple cider vinegar
1/4 t turmeric

Put seeds, water and vinegar in a bowl and let sit for 2 days. Then blend well and add in turmeric.



Salad dressing recipe is taken from The Hallelujah Diet by George Malkmus and the mustard recipe is taken from Gourmet magazine.

Enjoy,
Dani

Twice-Baked Potato

After browsing through How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman I discovered some great ideas to spice up the traditional twice-baked potato. I've actually only had a twice-baked potato once in my life, I'm too lazy to take the time to bake it twice. But I'm almost convinced now it's always worth the extra half hour.

How To Make A Twice-Baked Potato:
Step 1: Bake the potato as you normally would. Scrub them clean because eating the skin is the best part! Poke a hole or two and put the potato right on the rack in the oven at 425 degrees for about an hour. Check to make sure they're fully ready by inserting a knife, there should be no resistance.
Step 2: Let the potatoes cool a bit until you can handle them with your hands. Cut a slit in the top and scoop out the flesh being very careful to leave the skin intact like a shell.
Step 3: Mash the flesh in a bowl and add in all the filling ingredients. You can probably add about a total of a half cup extra ingredients for each large potato.
Step 4: Being very careful again not to tear the skin, gently add the mashed potato filling back in. Step 5: Put back in the oven, right on the rack at 400 degrees for about 20 to 30 minutes, until they are getting golden brown and crispy on the top.
I made mine with chopped curly kale, sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, garlic and lots of lemon. It was wonderful, the sun-dried tomatoes made it perfectly sweet! I would call this my own Tuscan version of the twice-baked potato.

Here are some of my other creations:
Spicy Spicy: Chopped olives, hot red pepper flakes, chopped parsley, and olive oil
Asian Twist: Miso paste, sliced scallions, snow peas and dark sesame oil
Swedish Delight: Pureed root vegetables like rutabaga, parsnips, carrots, or beets with lemon and olive oil
Mediteranean: Chopped cooked eggplant, zucchini, and summer squash with marinara sauce
Autumn Melody: Baked winter squash with sage, thyme, and oregano
Italiano: Cooked broccoli with pesto and chopped cherry tomatoes
Curry it Up: Steamed and chopped cauliflower with curry, cumin, and garam masala
Mexicano: Corn, chopped celery and fresh salsa topped with cilantro

Enjoy,
Dani

My New Favorite Pasta Dish

I don't usually post recipes, but I have been experimenting a lot lately and want to share with you all some of my favorites. I have been making this pasta dish weekly because it is just so good!!! The raw grape tomatoes on top give the pasta such a fresh and pungent flavor.

What you will need for the PASTA:

1/3 package brown rice linguini

1 cup green beans

1 T olive oil

1 clove garlic

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

1 cup sliced grape tomatoes

lemon zest

DIRECTIONS:

Place pasta in a pot of salted, boiling water, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, heat olive oil and garlic in a skillet on medium high heat. Add green beans, salt and pepper and saute for 8-10 minutes. When the pasta is "al dente" (firm to the bite), drain and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the cooking liquid to the green beans and continue cooking for another 5 minutes, or until tender. The cooking liquid should evaporate from the pan. Combine pasta, green beans, and fresh tomatoes. Then proceed to making the sauce...

What you will need for the SAUCE:

1/2 cup raw walnuts

1/2 cup raw cashews

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 T chopped yellow onion

1 clove garlic

juice of 1/2 lemon

water as needed

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all sauce ingredients in a VitaMix or blender. Blend until smooth adding water as needed. Add the sauce to the pasta dish and garnish with lemon zest. Voile! So good! Let me know what you think.

Love, Bianca