Organic Granny

I wish this were my own cherry tree- nothing so fruitful in my yard...yet!  Courtesy of Yokim at  scx.hu It's a foggy old rainy old day out there, but it's not particularly cold and we don't have to shovel it, so end of complaints.  Today is perfect for a happiness-making, sweet, and tangy bowl of Cheery Pie Oatmeal Porridge.  This is purely decadent and will make you feel like a princess for a day-- it's perfect for Valentine's Day breakfast .  Find the recipe below: INGREDIENTS: (serves 2-3 generously) 1/2 C. Almonds (organic if you can find them) 1 C. Steel Cut Oats (Buy GF Oats if you are Gluten-sensitive) 1/4 C. Chia seed 1/2 C. organic Dried Cranberries (or dried cherries) (or REAL CHERRIES as in picture) 1/4 tsp. Salt (or to taste) 1/4 C. Wholesome Sweeteners Raw Cane Sugar from Malawi 1/2 C. organic Coconut shreds 3 C. Water 1 tsp. Simply Organic Almond Extract Tree of Life Organic Cherry Spread Almond Mylk Cheery Pie Oatm

I know that this sounds a little mystifying-- after all, doesn't 'zupa' mean 'soup'? Why, yes zupa does mean soup (and also something like a drunk's sop , but we'll overlook that definition). Okay. Zupa Soup sounds so much better than "Yesterday's Lazy Cabbage Rolls* combined with all the malingering week's veggies chopped up and made into a soup". But that is basically what you have here.  I made up this pretty delicious Lazy Cabbage Rolls (vegan) but I wasn't that keen on the fact that the rice didn't quite cook through (although that didn't bother my dh-- he had a couple of servings).  So, today I combined about 1 C. of fried Mushrooms , 1 fried chopped Onion , 3 yellow Peppers (which I had roasted and skinned), and about 2# of Broccoli florets  in with the left-over Lazy Cabbage Rolls (and various spices, more dill and salt and pepper, basically) and 1 Simply Organic jar of Pasta Sauce , and about 2 qu

Stove-Top Apple-Beans over Spud Bakes Ingredients 1 1/2 C. cooked Beans (white, pinto, your choice) 2             Apples , finely chopped, or fresh unsweetened Apple Sauce 2 C.       Crushed or Pureed Tomatoes 4 tsp.     Dijon Mustard 2 T.       Blackstrap Molasses 2 T.       Apple Cider Vinegar 1/2 tsp.   Smoked Paprika or Chipotle (hotter smoky) 1/2 C.     Water 1 Sprig   Rosemary 1 tsp.     Dried Thyme or Dillweed A few drops of Liquid   Smoke 1/2 tsp.   Celtic Sea Salt (or Smoked Sea Salt) Black Pepper to taste Method: In a large sauce pan, combine all the ingredients above (except for the salt and pepper) Cook over medium heat until the ingredients simmer, then turn down to LOW and put on cover.  Cook for up to 1 1/2 hours until beans are tender. Add the salt and pepper and serve over potatoes (as above) or quinoa, rice, etc.  This recipe is based on the lovely Apple Baked Beans Recipe  in my favourite Bean Cook Book (below): F

Creamy Hot Oatmeal with Dreamy Marzipan Topping I really can't identify with people who turn up their noses at hot oatmeal porridge.  But maybe it's because they have only ever eaten it with the same old milk and brown sugar topping?  Maybe it they tried topping the breakfast with wonderful nut jams (sounds like they might be a bother to make, but they are really easy) they would be converted to l.o.v.i.n.g oatmeal forever! If you have even the tiniest bit of Scots in your background (or even German, I find out from my hubby), you may have been introduced to oatmeal as a youngster.  Maybe the icky kind: either thin, grey gruel (ugh) or lumpy, unpalatable "porjch" (gag).  My mom cooked the thick lumpy variety and I ate the gruel type when I attended a convent boarding school for a year.  But my friend's mom cooked it 'just right' as Baby Bear's.  And my mother-in-law's was right up there with the stuff you get served at 5-Star hote

Savoury Middle East Lentil Stew This is a quick-to-put-together comfort food for cool winter days or nights, as long as you have the Quinoa (or Rice) and Red Lentils pre-cooked.  A green salad and a piece of fresh flat bread will round it out nicely.  I've made it a little more "world" foodie than actual Middle Eastern, but you can always sub Brown Rice for the Quinoa and Cayenne and Paprika for the Chipotle (I just love the smoky hot quality of Chipotle if you are wondering why it turns up in so many recipes).  I also use Coconut Oil instead of Olive Oil, but please use what you have available, or what you prefer.  If you have other veggies that you would like to saute up with the onions (bell peppers, egg plant, minced garlic), go ahead!  Enjoy! INGREDIENTS: 1 T. Coconut Oil   2 Onions , chopped fine  1 tsp.  Turmeric powder 1 tsp. ground  Cumin  (I grind the seeds up in a Coffee Bean grinder-- you could just buy the powder) 1 tsp. ground  Cinnamon

I went into the pantry tonight and found a very over-ripe avocado.  What came to mind? Guacamole? Nope. Chocolate Mousse, of course.  Nothing makes a mousse like avocado.  Especially when you are vegan (all those eggs, you know) or lazy (all those eggs to be beaten up).   And since I'm trying to cut down on refined sugars, I used Stevia (just a packet of "SweetLeaf") and a few maple chips (little pieces of maple sugar) and a few cacao nibs (what are they? little pieces of hardened cacao I guess-- certainly not chocolate chips!)  So here is the easy recipe for the 2 puddings my husband and I enjoyed (and he gets to 'lick out the blender' as well-- without slicing his tongue on the blade I hope). (Serves 2, or maybe 1 person who stays up really late and discovers the avo that needs dealing with) 1 large-ish over-ripe Avocado 1 1/2 C. Coconut Dream (or other non-dairy milk) 1 T.   Organic Cocoa Powder or Raw Cacao Powder 1 tsp. Organic Vanilla Extract

Lentil Bowl #3- Mexican Red Lentil Stew with Lime and Cilantro over Oven Baked Potato Sticks (Serves 8-12, and can be halved). INGREDIENTS: 2 C. Red Lentils   4 C. Water   2 T. Coconut Oil   2 Onions, chopped fine (I did mine in Food Processor)  2 C. Celery , finely chopped (also did in Food Processor)  1 Red Bell Pepper , seeded and chopped  1-2T Garlic , minced (for DIY jar mince, go here  )  1/2 tsp. ground Turmeric   2 tsp. ground Cumin (grind the seed in a Coffee Bean Grinder)  2 tsp. Chipotle spice (or Chili Powder)  2 cans roasted tomatoes or Organic Roma Tomato Sauce (Costco)  2 C. Vegetable Broth   Celtic Sea Salt to taste  1/2 C. fresh-squeezed Juice of Lime   1+ C. chopped fresh Cilantro   METHOD:    Put rinsed and drained Lentils into a medium pot and add 4 cups water. Bring just to a boil, turn heat off, and put lid on. Let lentils sit for 30 minutes.   While lentils sit for 30 minutes, chop onions, celery and red bell pepper.