7/14/09

Bright and tasty!



The last few days have been so completely filled with studying that virtually my only break has been cooking and eating. As a result, I'm making sure that everything I eat is fabulous and cheerful. Its helping me cope... sort of.

Above we have an awesome salad made with what I expect is sort of a bizarre combination to most people... sweet potatoes and beets! (But they're both root veg, sooo...?) I roasted them both in the oven and cut into chunks, then put them over some spinach and topped with walnuts and Jessy's awesome Sweet Orange Miso dressing. The dressing was sooo good, like everything that little ray of sunshine makes! And I was nervous about my weird combo, but it right up my alley- especially with the walnuts, they are a must. But citrus, miso, beets and sweet potatoes are definitely weird-good rather than weird-bad. So, the beet obsession goes on.


Last week, we had a pizza night at my house where everyone basically picked their own topping. I was thrilled to descend from the study cave to top mine with pineapple, bbq sauce, onions, mushrooms, and a little nooch, before running back up to continue. Shortly thereafter, like magic, my delicious pizza was piping hot and ready for me to gobble down before running back, like Gollum, to my precious notecards. My Dad is getting way awesome at homemade crusts, although I want to introduce him to the concept of whole wheat flour.


Another one of my Dad's creations was a stir-fry made with every vegetable in the fridge, plus mock chicken. (Oh, if our ancestors could see us now. 10 years ago my family would have been eating chicken fingers, mac & cheese, and biscuits, and now we're all sitting around watching the Daily Show and noshing on completely vegan fare without complaints.) The sauce was a ginger-sesame oil-soy sauce kinda thing, and on the side we had SUPER-GARLICKY spinach, because that's how we like it, and some really sweet and perfect pineapple. (This must be pineapple season, because every pineapple I've eaten lately has been phenomenal.)

Later in the week I made an attempt to develop some cherry brownies, but I think I went a little overboard on reducing the oil and sugar, because in my opinion they were not nearly gooey enough. When I fix it I'll post the recipe. But in the meantime, they worked in a pinch, and they were pretty!

Photobucket

I also wanted to point you guys to an awesome section exclusively on canning that was in the Washington Post this weekend. There are a ton of recipes and stories about various people's experience with canning. I was really into canning over the fall, when I made fig spread and tomato sauce, but summer is a great time for it too! If you're thinking about it, and ARE NOT studying for any huge exams, I would recommend giving it a shot!

Song of the Day: Bright Eyes- Poison Oak

5 comments:

jessy said...

oooh, T! i'm so glad you liked the orange miso dressing! it's one of our favorites! the combination of sweet potatoes + beets is one that i love (add in some red onion and parsnips and it's even more fantastical), but i never would have thought to add on the citrus dressing. totally going to try this - as i have 4 tiny beets and a wee sweet potato that need to be put to a tasty use! i've got some walnuts in the house, too - huzzah!

super garlicky is the way i prefer most of my eatz, too - rock on! hooray for the most excellent homemade pizza - i love your choice of toppings. why i always forget about the bbq sauce + pineapple combination is a mystery to me. i know i love it - i just constantly forget about it. argh! so awesome on your dad rock'n the pizza crusts! i hear ya on the whole wheat though. fo 'sho!

i love me some gooey brownies, i'm sorry yours let 'cha down in that department. looking forward to the recipe when you get it down, though - and i think you said something about a ginger limeaid recipe, too?!? ;) i also cannot wait for that recipe! mmmmmmmmmm!

you are too good with all this studying - keep it up and it'll be done before ya know it!

Bianca said...

That salad combo doesn't sound weird at all. I love roasted root veggies eaten in salad form. And walnuts are a must, you're right! I tried Jessy's dressing last week too, and it was super tasty ... even without including oil!

The BBQ Pizza sounds great too! And I'm always down with brownies. Good luck with the studying.

Erin said...

Hey! First time commenter here, and I love your blog! :D
That pizza looks delish!

-Erin @ "Vegan & the City"

Anonymous said...

That salad looks mouth-watering! Geeze! That pizza also looks divine. Good luck studying!

Unknown said...

Don't think I ignored your little Gollem reference. Hehe.

I'm so proud of your family! It's testament to your powers of persuasion.