Month: August 2020

How have I never tried this before?

Cantaloupe meets blender. Pure love. End of story.

Have you tried this trendy healthy ice cream recipe yet?

It’s just puréed frozen bananas in a vitamix, but I’ve been having fun experimenting with flavors.

Tonight was mint chocolate chip. I can’t believe I happened to have some peppermint extract leftover from a time I made homemade thin mints (which was years ago, but now that I’m remembering how amazing they were, will make and post those soon!) I also had some liquid chlorophyll supplement (yeah, I dunno either!) for that shamrock shake green color. Threw in some dark chocolate chunks after blending and then back into the freezer until after dinner for dessert!

Not gonna lie- I may have underestimated the potency of the peppermint extract. I added quite a bit more than the 1/8 teaspoon this recipe called for! I thought it was fantastic but the kids found it a little “spicy!” Second attempt will be better than the real deal.

Eggplant is underrated. Divisive. A bitter veg not everyone has the taste for. But there’s one simple technique that changes everything: Wash. Slice. Layout on paper towels and cover with salt. Let it sit. Flip and repeat. No bitterness or spongey consistency. You’re welcome. Now this more intensive and time consuming process:

How good? The kids loved it and I’m not ashamed to say I ate the leftovers cold.

I’m sure this is a very Americanized version of the traditional recipe, but the meaning of the word Okonomi translates to “how you like” or “what you like” (yaki = cooked) so let’s just enjoy…

This is one of those meals I get a little obsessed/addicted to. I can’t say the kids share my love but a big batch keeps in the fridge and reheats well!

Have you tried? How do you like yours?

My fiddle leaf fig tree I’ve had for about 6 years became so tall and lanky it was backbending. I did some research- ok, a lot- about propagation, and I’m glad I did…there’s a lot of mediocre content out there and it was crucial to cross-examine a bunch of videos and blogs to learn some helpful tips. (To wit- this post is for entertainment not instructional purposes!)

Now I say this all before these little babies stand on their own, but here’s what seemed to help my leafs spring solid roots…

Bought a good pruning shears. (Not pictured.) to avoid damaging the stem.

Cut a portion with more than one leaf if possible – the sturdier and more stable, the better the chances of regrowth.

Sterilized my tools and pots and water vessels with hot soapy water.

Bought a rooting powder. A helpful person at the local nursery helped point me to the right one. There are many choices but I used a powder. (He also gently warned me not to get my hopes up, that success is not guaranteed. He clearly saw I’m the type of idealist with high expectations and easily disappointed!)

Waited until the roots were quite long before potting (I read only an inch or so was necessary but I wanted to increase the odds!)

Started with a smaller pot. I read that too large could stay too wet and cause root rot.

Wish us luck!

One time, when I directed/produced a commercial for Glad, Ayesha Curry made this salad and I’ll never forget it (or her stupendous empty 2nd home in the East Bay with shelves of unused Le Creusets and a curved library-like wine cellar with one of those ladders Marian the Library dances on in the Music Man.) But alas, I’m humble-bragging.

I can’t remember the exact measurements of this recipe and the video is no longer on YouTube, it seems. But this was the first way I tried raw, chopped sprouts and I was shocked. There’s cranberries for the perfect sweetness and sprouted sea-salt pumpkin seeds for crunch. The dressing is an oil and apple-cider vinaigrette with maple syrup and a little Dijon. It’s crazy healthy and filling!

So quick and easy and healthy they’re ALMOST too good to be true. I say “almost” because the not good part is that you’ll want to eat them all in one day and they’re not low cal or low fat.

No baking. Just a few quality ingredients thrown into a food processor. Fun for the kids to make, without a mess or stress.