For The Love Of Shoes...

Today I went to the local Goodwill hoping to find a black jacket.  Instead I walked out with 2 pairs of boots, 2 pairs of shoes and a book for under $34.00.  All four pairs look brand new.  They don't have any scuff marks on the heels or soles.  A little disinfectant and I will be styling some great new winter footwear!

This is the first pair I spotted.  I really needed a new pair of brown boots so I could actually justify this purchase. 

This pair of boots was just for pure fun.  Don't worry they are completely man made-no real snake skin for me!

I used to have a pair of shoes similar to the ones on the left and just recently had to toss them because they were beat up. And they ended up being only 4.00! The shoes on the right--I love these kind of shoes.  I have a pair of ones that sort of look the same but in black.  I didn't need them but they are too cute to turn away.  

Another Great Meal!

Almost a year ago I posted a brief comment here about how, with a bit of creativity, research and experimentation, I could convert almost any recipe into a healthy plant based recipe.  I was eager to test out Caesar salad dressing.  It was one of those things that I couldn't imagine being delicious without dairy products but I hoped to have success anyway!  Well, almost a year later I finally made my vegan Caesar salad and it was worth waiting for!

Ceasar Dressing:

1/4 cup raw cashews

1/8 cup raw pine nuts

3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tbsp cold pressed extra virgin olive oil

1 medium garlic clove

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2-1 tsp agave nectar

1/2 -1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/4 cup water

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Blend all ingredients using a processor and puree until very smooth.

Am I a complete geek that I had ALL of the ingredients for that dressing on hand and ready to go?! My meal was perfect:

I have to show off my dessert of vanilla cupcakes with coconut icing.  They are made completely dairy free and without white flour or sugar except for a modest amount of powdered sugar in the frosting.  They are so moist and yummy!

Rocking the Work Day Away

They had a silly contest at work this week where everyone decorated their work space.  I work in a quad style pod so the 4 of us, who always have our ear buds in, decided to go with a music theme.  I brought in my Cd's, old concert tickets and a buch of rock posters.  We even had an awesome red carpet and backstage passes.  We blasted music, did red carpet interviews and were generally silly.

Here my co-workers are setting up the red carpet:  By the way, our department actually voted and chose the hideous wall color.

We sucked up to the judges a little bit by making Tim McGraw a "Compliance Star"  We still don't know what team won :(

And in case you wondered or cared...here is what my cubicle normally looks like the other 364 days of the year:

Rainy Sunday Nesting Part II

I also cooked my little tush off today. It was cold and damp outside but inside it was warm and cozy.


This is an apple crisp with raspberry garnish:

I roasted vegetables with olive oil and spices.  The red potatoes are from what will likely be my last farmer's market trip of the season.

I also made baked beans:

I think subconsciously all of the cooking comes after a week of little cooking or grocery shopping.  I foraged meals all week.  As I ate raw carrots for lunch last Thursday my co-worker mentioned that I should at least add some hummus.  My reply..."Thanks, but I ran out of hummus on Monday."    I will not be in need of food this week!

Rainy Sunday Nesting Part I

I spent today baking, decorating and reading.  It was pretty near perfect.  Last week I had a wonderful bouquet of fall flowers as a table centerpiece.  This week I brought in my fall/Halloween decorations and here is the new centerpiece. 

I love decorating my fireplace mantel:

And I love the way it glows and casts shadows at night while lit with tea lights:

Plant Power

I've had a plant growing roots on my desk at work for many months.  I kept meaning to bring it home but never got around to it.  On Friday a friend brought cactus and spider plant cuttings.  I brought them all home together and vowed to get them in soil.

I also wanted to repot this plant.  I brought it not very long ago and it has grown so much that this is the third time I've given it a new home.  I splurged on this pot since I had to make a trip to Home Depot for potting soil.

Eventually the spider plant will get a home in a hanging basket but for now it will enjoy living here.

Here is the plant from work.  It is more roots than plant but I'm hoping it will grab hold and flourish.

The little cactus wasn't ready for soil so it sits in the window in my kitchen for now. Maybe one day I will post that they all survived and will show off large, full, hearty plants.

A Better Spaghetti and Meatballs

I finally tried a dish that I've been talking about for months but hadn't actually gotten around to.  It's a vegan pet peeve of mine when I see chefs, authors and other "authorities" trying to come out with meatless dishes that look, feel and taste the same as the original.  It's insulting to a meat eater or anyone else to say that eating processed soy aka fake meat is just the same as the original.  I don't think it's healthy or smart to take a highly processed soy product and dress it all up into something it isn't.  I've been saying for months that I think these chefs would be wiser to try to re-invent rather to re-create a classic meat lovers dish like spaghetti and meatballs. 

So, here is my healthy version that is full of fresh vegetables, heart healthy oil, complete protein, antioxidants and the list goes on and on...

The "pasta" is actually sliced ribbons of zucchini and carrot.  Once in ribbons I added a dash of olive oil and steamed it for just a few minutes:

The "meatballs" are a mixture of lentils, rice, oats, spices, olive oil, and balsamic vinager.  They baked for about 10 minutes and came out like this:

I placed the vegetable pasta on a plate and tossed it with a variety of different color and style of tomatoes.  I added fresh basil and then placed the meatballs.  I must say that it turned out to be the prettiest dish I've ever made.  It was also extremely filling--something I didn't expect but honestly I struggled to finish the plate. 

I will definitely do this one again.  It required a good amount of prep work but it's just so pretty and now I can really speak with authority when I say that there really is a better way to do spaghetti and meatballs.