Pumpkin Overdose

I'll admit it, I do get excited when basically everything becomes pumpkin-flavored in the fall.  But, I always get excited for seasonal/ holiday food - hot apple cider around Thanksgiving, egg nog for Christmas, Reese's eggs in the spring (those totally count), and corn on the cob in the summer!!!

I did have my first pumpkin spice latte of the year while it was still warm out, but mostly I was excited to try out some new recipes.

First I made Mama Peas' pumpkin streusel swirl loaf.

It was delicious!!  I highly recommend it.

I used canned pumpkin for that recipe, but then I roasted a sugar pumpkin I got in my second CSA share.

And I roasted the butternut squash, too, following Angela's tutorial.

Lookin' gooooood.

I saved the seeds from the pumpkin and the squash so that I could roast them and make a delicious, iron-filled snack.  Once again, I followed another tutorial by Angela.

I just realized that it looks like I'm hiding an egg in this picture, haha, but it's really just a hard-boiled egg that I was trying to prevent from rolling off the counter.  

I coated the seeds in about a tablespoon of coconut oil (melted), about a tablespoon of brown sugar, and a hefty sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice

Oh yum.

Come in a little closer to see that gorgeous, crunchy coating.

They taste even better when eaten from an orange dish.

Once I roasted the pumpkin, I scooped out the flesh and put it in my food processor to make a puree.  Easy peasy.  Then I used the puree to make 3 more recipes.  I was on a roll!  First up - pumpkin granola.  It's got a great ingredient list and is very healthy.  It even contains quinoa, which I had never thought to include in granola before.  The quionoa gives it some extra protein, and a great nutty flavor.  (I know quinoa is a seed, but "seedy flavor" does not sound too appealing!)

By the way, old pasta sauce jars make great storage containers!

 I've been eating it with unsweetened vanilla almond milk.  I'm in love.

I also made Kath's baked pumpkin oatmeal.  (And I think my oven must be slanted, judging by the slope of the oatmeal in this dish.)

I'm a huge fan of having breakfast ready to go in the morning, so I baked this on Sunday and had breakfast ready and waiting for me the rest of the week.

In the mornings I just scooped out a section of oatmeal, put it in a bowl with some unsweetened vanilla almond milk (a current favorite of mine, if you couldn't tell), and heated it up in the microwave for about a minute.  Perfection.

Finally, I tried out a savory dish - crock pot turkey white bean chili.  It might sound a little strange, but it was absolutely delicious, and easy to make.  And I just love using my crock pot - so convenient!

I could have eaten this for another week straight.

Sadly, I ran out of homemade pumpkin puree at that point.  But I think I put it to pretty good use.

Oh, and I bought some pumpkin soup from Trader Joe's, too.

It. Was. Incredible.  I first had pumpkin soup in France when I was studying abroad, and I absolutely loved it.  I searched everywhere for something comparable in the States, but the closest I could get was sweet potato and squash soups.  I tried making my own pumpkin soup one time from scratch, but it was an absolute disaster and completely discouraged me from making another attempt.  Luckily, after 5 years, I finally found what I was looking for.  Sadly, I only got one container.  I'll be counting down the days until it comes out again next year!

So is that enough pumpkin for ya?  I wonder what my next seasonal food fixation will be... gingerbread?  Cranberries?  Something peppermint?  Hmm, we shall see.

Song of the day:

"The Story" by Brandi Carlile.  I really love this song because it's such a good mix of pretty and raw vocals.  And it's fun to sing along to (but not fun to hear me singing along to!).

Cooling Down

Hey guys!  Can you believe the 4th of July has come and gone?  I can't.  The summer is flying by!

This was my patriotic breakfast for Independence Day:

Plain yogurt with half a banana, strawberries, and blueberries.  Like most of the country, it's been super hot here lately.

I haven't been in the mood for hot oatmeal, so I've been having lots of yogurt for breakfast.  I love to add some granola to plain yogurt and fresh fruit, and last week I tried out a new granola recipe from Angela at Oh She Glows called Power House Glonola.

It has a stellar ingredient list:  almonds, sea salt, flax seeds (I used ground flax seed), chia seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, shredded coconut, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, pumpkin pie spice (I used a maple cinnamon mix because I didn't have pumpkin pie spice on hand), dried apricots, oats, cacao nibs (I omitted these), pure maple syrup (I subbed in agave), and coconut oil.

I baked the granola a bit too long - I should have watched it closely for the last 5 minutes like Angela suggested - but it's still pretty tasty and I'm enjoying adding it to regular yogurt for breakfast, and sometimes to Greek yogurt for dessert!

Sometimes yogurt for dessert just doesn't cut it for me, though.  The hot weather has been the perfect excuse to finally try out my ice cream maker and some recipes from Jeni's book.  If you live in Ohio, there's a good chance you've at least heard of Jeni's ice cream, and hopefully you've had the chance to try it!  Her ice cream is unbelievably delicious.  My favorite flavor (so far, at least) is her Salty Caramel - probably because sweet + salty = perfection.

These ingredients are not for the faint of heart.

Pretty darn rich, but that's why it tastes so darn good :)

I was a little nervous to caramelize the sugar, but it worked fine and the results were definitely worth it.  I'm a fairly messy cook, though, and the kitchen turned into quite a disaster zone in the meantime.

Churning away:

Look at that creamy texture!

Ready to go in the freezer (after I taste-tested some from the ice cream maker, of course - someone had to scrape the bowl clean!).

Frozen and ready to be scooped.

Perfection!

Along with yogurt for breakfast and ice cream for dessert, the hot weather has meant the need for cooler clothes.  I ordered a pair of white lace shorts and red tennis shoes from Land's End Canvas (on sale + free shipping, of course).  I love the scalloped edge of the shorts.

Another hot weather staple - watermelon!  I got a juicy, sweet watermelon that tasted so delicious and refreshing.  Eaten with half of a leftover baked sweet potato (with butter and cinnamon) and a slice of whole grain oat bread topped with leftover smashed chickpea and avocado spread.  Great lunch!

The heat finally broke today, so I spent a good portion of the day out in the garage working on painting my kitchen table and chairs.  Thank goodness for my NPR app - it keeps me very entertained!  This afternoon, one of the shows I listened to was the Cleveland taping of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me, which I actually got to attend a couple of weeks ago!  

My mom got tickets for our family as a Father's Day present for my dad.  It was so much fun, really hilarious, and also interesting to see the "behind the scenes" part of what goes into recording the show.  And we all got reusable bags - score!

I hope you're all staying cool and that you're getting the most out of your summer!

Song of the day:

"Stutter" by Maroon 5.  I was listening to their newest album the other day and of course I know the song "Moves Like Jagger" but I think "Stutter" is even catchier.

Shake Your Cocoa-nuts

Hey guys, how's it going?  Once again, it's been awhile since I've blogged, so I've got a few things to catch up on here.  First a delicious new discovery:

My mom picked up this huge container of cocoa-roasted almonds at Sam's Club this past week, and they're SO delicious.  Except...

...we realized there's sucralose in them, which is basically Splenda.  Boo.  I've really tried to eliminate fake sweeteners from my diet.  But that doesn't mean I haven't still enjoyed a small handful of these here and there.  

When I've got the time, I really enjoy putting some extra effort into brunch for myself on the weekend.  This past weekend was no exception.

Scrambled eggs with spinach and topped with Trader Joe's salsa, an amazing bowl of berries, and a frothy cup of coffee.  Perfection.  Do you like my Peter Rabbit bowl?  Haha.  

I've been able to start working out again since my feet have pretty much healed (thank goodness), so after a workout this past week I brought back the long-lost protein smoothie.

It had 1 cup skim milk, 1 T ground flax seed, 1 T natural peanut butter, 1 scoop vanilla Sun Warrior protein powder, organic spinach from the farmers' market, and 1 frozen banana.  Yum!

Along with my summer-y drink, I've been able to enjoy some summer-y activities lately, too.  I love having a break from school!

I went to a wine festival at a local winery with some friends last week, and it was so fun to spend time and catch up with them, and to taste some local wines.

And I got to go to a concert at my favorite concert venue!

Even though it wasn't a very sunny day, we spent some time boating this past weekend, too.

This is the crib, which is the main intake for the Cleveland water supply.  

Other than that, I've started on a little project.  Well, a not-so-little project, actually.  I'm going to paint my kitchen table and chairs black, but it's quite a long process!  I'm documenting it and will share the steps after I'm finished, assuming it all turns out okay.  Here's the before shot!

So that's what I've been up to.  What about you guys?

Oh, and I refuse to accept that I don't live in a tropical area - I'm trying to grow some avocado trees.  I actually grew an avocado tree for a few years but it recently withered away, so I'm determined to try again.

Song of the day:

"Free Energy" by Free Energy.  This is the band I saw last week - so much fun live!

Getting Back in the Kitchen

I finally spent some quality time in the kitchen making delicious food - it had been too long since I had done much more than put together bowls of yogurt and salads.

First up:  guacamole!

I had a perfectly ripe avocado, to which I added some chopped red bell pepper, a diced onion, about a tablespoon of lime juice, a sprinkle of cayenne, and a dash of salt.  So good!

I snacked on the guacamole as I made my main course - pizza!  I followed this recipe, using 2 cups white whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup regular all-purpose flour, sans rosemary.

I topped it with some homemade pesto.  When I make pesto for myself, I just eyeball the ingredients depending on how much basil I have on hand.  I added basil, skim milk, olive oil, parmesan cheese, walnuts, salt, and pepper to a food processor and voila, pesto!  I had a pineapple begging to be cut up and enjoyed, so I decided to put some fresh pineapple on my pizza.

I was excited to use my mom's pizza stone this time, and it definitely made the bottom of the crust turn out softer and tastier.  I baked this at 500* for about 12 - 14 minutes.

After dinner, I had one thing in mind:  Mama Pea's hot apple pie smoothie!

I used an apple (which I didn't peel, even though I used a normal blender and not a high-speed one, and it turned out fine - I can't stand wasting that super nutritious apple peel!), cottage cheese, skim milk, almond butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey (I didn't have maple syrup or stevia), salt, and 10 ice cubes.  I left out the protein powder since this was an after-dinner treat, but I would have added it if I were eating this after a workout or as a meal.

This morning I kept the momentum going and prepared a delicious brunch:

I had a fried egg sandwich, fresh fruit, and a cappuccino.  SO good.  For the egg sandwich, I toasted whole wheat sandwich thins, spread some leftover guacamole on one half, and added a fried egg (cooked in a bit of olive oil).

I had some more fresh pineapple, along with strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries.  Summer fruit is the best!!

I also made myself a cappuccino by heating up 6 oz. of skim milk in the microwave, using my little frother to whip it up, and then adding it to 2 shots of espresso which I used my dad's coffee machine to make.

It definitely felt nice to get back in the kitchen and spend some time preparing good food.  Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

Song of the day:

"Shadow Days" by John Mayer, off his new album Born and Raised.  I heard a radio interview with John Mayer recently, and I didn't realize that he had been off the scene for about 2 years.  Apparently he gave a couple of scandalous interviews and received a lot of criticism, so he had been lying low.  I did hear a radio DJ (on a college station) pronounce his name as John My-er instead of May-er recently, so maybe he totally fell off of some people's radars, haha.