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Showing posts from March, 2018

Simple and Satisfying: Black Beans and Rice

Foodie followers!  I am still feeling great, and have been sticking to my healthy food choices for almost 2 weeks.  Two cheats were:  some corn chips at night while watching documentaries on Netflix (twice) and some spaghetti sauce with a little piece of crusty bread.  Other that that, I've been mainly vegan. I made a big pot of black beans with onions (double the batch in the recipe here) yesterday with the hopes of having them available for a few days.  After a crazy day at work today I was looking forward to a nice bowl of leftovers but, when I went to the fridge, I found that Mickayla, Will's girlfriend, ate the rest of them.  I don't really mind; she eats a lot of veggies and is one person around here that will try all of the things I have been experimenting with.  But I must admit I was a bit bummed.  Oh well, I'll make more. We really like Mickayla.  She and will make a cute couple.  And they are both quite studious; working hard at finishing up their Spring se

#Vegan is Feeling Great

I am on day 7 of my vegetarian, mostly vegan, diet and I must say that I feel wonderful.  I am not tired during the day, I am more active and alert, am more productive all day and well into the evening.  It is no mystery that it is the food I have been eating that is the main cause of the upswing in my physical and emotional well being. I cannot rave enough about this salad.  I prepared it last evening and had it for a late dinner.  When I woke up this morning I was eager to have more.  I had some just a bit ago and it is better the next day, after the flavors of the ingredients and textures combine more thoroughly.  Again, I found this recipe in Cooking Light , as part of the same feature as the roasted carrots in my blog post from last week.  I used all organic ingredients in this and modified it slightly. The write up of this recipe says "This quick salad is all about the texture, from the meaty olives to the creamy cannellini beans and crunchy radishes. The mild bean makes

Roasted Rainbow Carrots - Foodie Mama as Temporary Vegan

I have been feeling my age recently.  Well, maybe a more accurate statement is:  I have been feeling my health lately.  Too much of a good thing, which in my case is carbs and desserts, as we all know so well, is not good. A good few weeks of clean eating is really necessary after this long winter and I have been giving it a pretty good go.  Today I made the most delicious roasted rainbow carrots which I found in Cooking Light Magazine (March 2018 issue) which I modified slightly. The toasted pine nuts with the smoky multi-colored/multi-flavored carrots created a delicious flavor combination.  The high temperature confused me at first but the heat nicely charred the carrots and then the reduced temp ensured they were soft to the bite.  This dish would be a great side with any main dish of meat, poultry or fish.  Today I ate it standalone. Roasted Carrots with Pine Nuts Ingredients: 1T EVOO 1/4 t Kosher Salt 1/4 t pepper 1 lb carrots, sliced in half 2 T chopped fre

Pizelle - the perfect sweet treat

My family had never made pizelle as I was growing up.  In fact, I never even had one until I started being close friends with Mary.  Her mother, Helen,  made them all the time.  They are a light, anise flavored Italian cookie.  Helen used to keep them on hand most of the time, stored in a large tin in a low cupboard in her kitchen, There are many recipes for pizelle on the Internet.  I use one that makes them turn out more crispy, vs more cakey , but all are delicious. The main thing to know before attempting to make pizelle is that you absolutely need a  pizelle iron.  I have a new non-stick one but Helen, and also David, with whom I made made batches for last month for the Miscowaubik Italian party, have old, well seasoned metal irons.  All work fine.  You just need to play with yours to see how long you need to cook the pizelle, and each batch of dough is a bit different it seems.  The last time I made a batch a few weeks ago, mine were done at exactly 23 seconds. In place of