Souper Combo

February 26th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (4 Comments)

I ate this exact turkey sandwich and soup combo for lunch for three days in a row,

Soup and Salad Lunch

for two reasons:

1. Because it was really good.

2. The recipe I’m about to share makes a lot of soup.  Halve the recipe if you won’t be able to eat/share 10 cups of soup over the course of three or four days.  Now that Zak works from home, we have no trouble eating this much soup in a relatively short period of time.  You could also freeze the leftovers to have on hand when you don’t feel like cooking some time in the future.  (I need to get better at remembering to do this!)

Potluck Lentils

January 20th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Party Time - (6 Comments)

I’ve blogged about this recipe before (it’s one of my favorites!) but today we’re going to talk about the cost break down of this giant pot of Coconut Curried Red Lentil Chili.

I made this yesterday to take to a winter (indoor!) picnic with a bunch of our homeschooling friends.  This is one of my go-to potluck meals because it’s inexpensive, it’s “something different” while also being delicious and healthy.  All of my favorite adjectives in one big pot!  Another reason I like this chili for a potluck is because it’s a good option for people with dietary restrictions – it’s gluten free, nut free and made without any animal products for our vegetarian and vegan friends.

Coconut Curry Chicken Stew

December 31st, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (5 Comments)

I’m on a mission to eat more turmeric.

Turmeric Powder

I don’t think it’s news that turmeric is a health food – but it’s one of the supplements recommended by Dr. Perlmutter in Grain Brain, so I’ve recently been thinking more about this pungent spice.

Turmeric is one of the spices that make up curry powder (among cumin, coriander, ginger) and it’s got a list a mile long (literally – if you write really big and use a lot of paper) of alleged health benefits.  It said to support your immune system, it has anti-inflammatory properties and is often recommended to those who suffer from joint and arthritis pain.  It’s believed to have a positive effect on cholesterol and contains curcumin, an anti-oxidant that can protect us from damage by free radicals and can potentially slow the signs of aging.

I’ve been making my own coconut ice cream at home for a couple weeks now.  I will totally eat regular, dairy ice cream – but I love coconut ice cream too.  So whether you can’t eat dairy or simply choose not to – or if you’re just nutty for coconut, let’s talk about this!

Homemade Coconut Milk Ice Cream

I must tell you upfront that coconut milk ice cream making is an art as much as it is a science.  There are also some pros and cons when it comes to making it yourself versus shelling out the bucks for a pint of the already-made coconut milk ice cream you can find in the grocery store freezer case.  For instance:

Simple Saucy Kale

January 25th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (10 Comments)

I had a bunch of kale in my fridge that was about to be past its prime, so I decided this was the perfect excuse to try out a new dinner side and (bonus!) make myself a snack at the same time.

With a small baby man on the prowl, I do most of my cooking during the morning and afternoon hours right now – i.e., nap time. I aim to stock the fridge with prepared food so that when dinner time rolls around, all we need to do is heat and eat.

I bought a spaghetti squash last week simply because it was there on the shelf in the produce department. I had no spaghetti squash plans. I had no spaghetti squash dreams.

Spaghetti Squash

I did know that I wanted to do something different with this planless, dreamless spaghetti squash. I’ve made spaghetti squash pie and spaghetti squash with red pepper sauce, this time I was in the mood for something new.

When I realized I was going to make a curried spaghetti squash? I declared myself a genius.

A New Green Machine

April 8th, 2012 | Posted by Alison Spath in Vegetable Lovin' - (15 Comments)

Guess what?!

Brand New Vitamix

OK, to be fair, unless you are a food nerd who reads a lot of foodie blogs, you might not be able to guess and/or be squealing the same way I did when the UPS man dropped this guy off last week.

On the right? Our old blender. The lean mean muscle machine on the left? My Our new VITAMIX!

Thanks to the fact that my birthday was last week (33! WOOT!) AND that Zak was finally bitten by the Vitamix bug AND a 20% Off coupon from Bed, Bath and Beyond that saved us a bundle, we bit the bullet and welcomed this majestic marvel into our appliance family a few short days ago.

Dinner Time Secrets

September 21st, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (9 Comments)

I don’t think I’ve made it a secret that I’m a Dinner Planning drop out.  Tonight was one of those nights where I found myself slapping together whatever ingredients I had on hand in an attempt to turn those ingredients into a meal.

I do have other secrets though.  If you listen carefully, I’ll whisper some to you while I slap together this post.

So what do we have here?  A small spaghetti squash, sweet potatoes three and four, the de facto garlic and onion, plus a bunch of canned stuff.

Sweet Potato Curry Ingredients

On any given day, I cannot tell you what I’m making for dinner that night until the five o’clock hour is upon me. I have tried and tried to become proficient at meal planning, but it appears I am simply unable to make this learned skill a personal reality.

I suppose I could work on this shortcoming of mine, spending hour upon hour digging into my past, trying to uncover from the depths of my psyche why on earth I can’t pull together a weeks worth of meal ideas in one sitting,

OR!

New Moon, Old Ways

August 3rd, 2009 | Posted by Alison in Good Reads - (7 Comments)

After my HFCS tirade this morning, I made some green juice that I enjoyed with live entertainment.

Pre-meeting Juice

I continue to be amazed at how satisfying green lemonade is.

I also continued to be amazed at how long a yellow, slippery piece of plastic can keep a child entertained.

I had a meeting to go to for one of the classes Ava attends as a homeschooler this afternoon. I ate a banana on my way but only have an empty shell of a banana to show for it.

banana shell

And my buddy Lara rode shot gun.