Book Review: 50 Shades of Kale

image: http://www.amazon.com/

Ramsey, MD, Drew and Jennifer Iserloh.  Fifty Shades of Kale.  2013, Harper Collins Publishers, New York, NY.

Hardcover, $19.99.  ISBN: 978-0-06-227288-1.

"The best sensual relationships require discipline to thrive."  Thus begins this charming and witty book that focuses on kale, the wonder vegetable.

What does kale have to offer you?  A huge dose of Vitamin K, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, and Calcium.  This powerhouse vegetable offers you a boatload of phytonutrients that help your body fight a multitude of diseases that afflict our bodies and take a toll on our health.

I've always been an iffy cooker with greens, at best.  This book walks you through, with step by step directions on a multitude of directions on how to cook kale, and how to best serve it raw.

From Huevos Rancheros to Zucchini and Kale Bites all the way down to Chocolate Kale Fudge pops, these 50 recipes will provide you with a variety of recipes to titillate your taste buds!

I can't wait until the farmer's market opens next week... I want to get a bunch of kale and cook my way through every recipe in the book!


Book Web Site: http://50shadesofkale.com/

Ingredients vs. Food

Note: I originally posted this on one of my now defunct blogs (Thrifty Living) back on 9/16/2010.   I was looking through the past posts this morning, and I realized that the points I made then are still valid now, almost 5 years later.  The only difference is that I have two kids in college now, and don't feed 5 of us at dinner on a daily basis!  That pot of spaghetti sauce I talk about at the end goes a lot farther now, and I frequently end up freezing the extra sauce to use later.  :)  

Mmmm... spaghetti sounds good, doesn't it?

So, what exactly is the difference between ingredients and food?  When I think food, I think of meatloaf, cake, pies, hamburgers, and salads.  You know, tasty foods placed on a dinner table, waiting to be eaten.  When I think of ingredients, I think of the things that I need to make that food: lettuce, tomatoes, onions, ground beef, apples.  Do you see the difference?  Ingredients are used to make food.  Food is the prepared, finished item that is ready to be consumed.

Now, think about your local grocery store.  When you walk into the store, do you see more food, or more ingredients?  Walking up and down the aisles, looking at the boxes on the shelves, in the freezers, and on display, do you see more food or ingredients?  Think back to  your last trip to the grocery store.  Was there more food in the cart?  Or more ingredients?

Why does this matter?  Three reasons:

Firstly, prepared food is more expensive than ingredients.  A box of a hamburger meal plus the cost of the hamburger meat is still more expensive than the cost of the hamburger meat, the tomato sauce, and the macaroni.  Additionally, when you buy the ingredients yourself, you will be making more food.  This means more servings.  If you have a large family with hungry teenagers, it means that they will eat well for less money.  If you are single or a smaller family, then you will have leftovers which can be frozen and taken to work for lunch later in the week or reheated for dinner on another night.

Secondly, the caloric intake.  There is much argument in nutrition circles that the cause of the obesity epidemic in this country is caused by the consumption of these prepared foods.  The food manufacturers are trying to make a quality product, for minimal cost, and still turn a profit.  I am always curious as to what things are going into those meals.  Malodextrin.  Soy Lecithin.  High Fructose Corn Syrup.  What exactly are those ingredients?  Where did they come from?  Are they a natural product, or are they man-made from something else?  If you create the meal yourself from ingredients you bought, you are controlling everything that goes in.  You control the sodium.  You control the sugars.  You control everything.  Do you need to stretch the meat out a little bit more?  Add a few beans to the meal.  It's a healthy, inexpensive way to stretch the meal.

Thirdly, you control where the food comes from.  I know I harp on this a lot, but I can not stress enough the importance of knowing where your food comes from.  Support your local farmers.  You can buy it from the farmer's market, or you can grow some of it in your own yard.  Your local farmers most likely use sustainable agricultural methods.  The food has been picked within the last few hours, while it was ripe.  Go ahead and ask the farmers about their farms.  Ask them about their sustainable methods.  If you are at an Organic Farmer's Market, chances are they will not only tell you about their farm, they might just pull out a photo album and show you the pictures of their farm.  Many organic farms sponsor an open house for their customers to come out and visit the farm in the fall. 

Check out those labels on your foods at the grocery store.  Just who are you supporting when you buy produce from Argentina?  Do you know what kind of pesticides they used on their food?  Do you know what methods they used to grow those grapes you are thinking of putting in your cart?  When you buy something from another country, what exactly are you paying for?  My guess is that much of the cost goes to cover the transport and shipping of that product from Argentina to the United States.  Have you ever wondered just how green that produce is when it is picked and shipped to this country?

I can hear you thinking in your head now "But what about coupons?"  Make no mistake, coupons have their place in the world.  I do use coupons, but I don't use them to buy finished food.  I use them to buy ingredients.  Beans, flour, tomato sauce, pasta, rice... well you get the idea.  I won't bore you with the math, but I sat down and figured out the bottom line years ago.  For the cost of two jars of spaghetti sauce, we can make one pot of spaghetti sauce from scratch.  Two jars of spaghetti sauce will serve us for one, maybe two spaghetti meals.  One pot of spaghetti sauce will serve us a spaghetti dinner one night.  Make 2 pizzas another night.  And, it will make two pans of veggie lasagna.  One for us to eat the night I make it, and another to wrap up tightly in foil and save in the freezer for another night.  One veggie lasagna serves us dinner for one night, and we have leftovers that we wrap up and take for lunch for the next couple of days. That's at least 4 meals from a pot of home-made spaghetti sauce as compared to 2 meals from jar sauce - and it's the same cost, or less.

If you really want to do what's best for your health, and your wallet, start buying more ingredients at the grocery store.

Graduation Recipe Book

My oldest child is graduating from college next month.  He has lived on campus, and eaten food from the dining hall for the last 4 years. 

This fall, he's heading off to graduate school several hours away from here. 

He's also going to be cooking for himself.

As a result, I am compiling a recipe book for him.

I found this awesome recipe book at Hallmark not too long ago.  It's small, and it's a 3 ring binder.  3x5 inch recipe cards fit inside of the book, and each "page" is a plastic page protector that holds two recipe cards.  You can write front and back on the card, put it into the page protector, and read through both sides.  I love this little album.

You notice it has Mickey Mouse on the cover?  There's a reason for that.  When he was little, and he was getting ready to move to his "big boy" bed, we went in search of just the right sheets for his bed.  After more hours than I care to admit, my little man found his sheets.  (he was about 20 months old at the time.  We were trying to transition him to a big boy bed before his brother arrived on the scene 4 months later.)  He saw these sheets - red sheets- with the black and white Mickey Mouse on them.  He picked them up, hugged them to him, and the match was made.

Since that time, those sheets were his sheets of choice until he went off to college.  Worn down and faded with age and washing, he still has them on his bed at home, and he gets after me if they are not on his bed when he comes home from school.

Anyway, back to the album....

I thought I would collect all of the recipes for his favorite foods.  The stuff he has grown up eating and consistently asks for every time he comes home.

I hadn't realized what a monumental task this was going to be.  I have recipes on slips of paper, taped to the inside of cupboard doors.  I have recipes on paper, shoved into the cabinet next to the dishes.  There's 3 or 4 recipes in one cookbook, and 2 in another, and 4 in another.  A few are in e-mails, and several are stored on my flash drive.

I'm still working on copying the recipes, but I have finally put them all into one place.  Let me tell you, that is the most amazing compilation of recipes you have ever seen.  All of them are my favorites, too.  (I guess that explains why I fall back on them so often!)  From Arroz con Pollo to my mother's recipe for Buttermilk Pancakes, I have a treasure trove.  I sent my Mom a couple of recipe cards, and there, in her flawless penmanship are two of her timeless recipes. Not only is it a treasure because they are her recipes, but - they are written in her own handwriting.  That will forever be a priceless treasure for him.

You know, I've been realizing a couple of things as I've been compiling this book over the past few months.

1) I need to make my very own copy of this book.  I have too many recipes scattered in too many places.

2) While I have the recipes out, and tracked down, I need to go ahead and make copies for the other two children.  Life is uncertain, and I want to make certain that I have the recipes, written in their own handwriting, of the remaining members of the older generation. 

3) I wish I had thought of this 10 years ago, when most of the members of the older generation were still with us.

I know a lot of people don't cook from scratch very often anymore, but with a book like this - a book of easy, quick, favorite meals - I think it would happen a little more often! 

Frugal Car Trips

We are a family of 5.  Since I was a Stay At Home Mom for so long, living on a tight budget is second nature to me.  We love to go visit and explore new places.  Travel can be expensive, but we've found a way to cut down on the expenses as much as we possibly can. Since planning for spring break and summer vacation trips has just begun for many people, I thought I would share a few of the things we've learned along the way.

1) Books on tape are great.  (Play Away, CD, whatever format your car has).  We go to the library before we leave on vacation and check out several books to listen to.  Many of these books are read by some very well known actors, and they outdo themselves when reading these books.  To date, my personal favorite is Dragon Rider, written by Cornelia Funke and read by Brendan Fraser.  Our kids got into these books at a young age.  My Dad lived in Indiana at the time (a 10 hour car ride from home) and I remember them listening to these books when they were preschoolers.

2) Stop every couple of hours and run around.  KEEP A VERY CLOSE EYE ON YOUR KIDS no matter where you stop!  We still stop at rest areas, run around,  and maybe play a little catch or frisbee.  Unless if we're eating a meal, our stops run about 15 minutes.  (Longer when they were younger.)

3) Pack your own meals.  Food on the road is gross and greasy.  For our recent trip to Savannah, we packed bread, peanut butter and jelly, a fruit salad that I made before we left home, and a Quinoa Pilaf - with diced cooked chicken on the side, hummus, and corn chips.  We ate the peanut butter and jelly, along with the fruit salad for lunch.  The quinoa pilaf was for dinner - the non-vegetarians amongst us added the diced cubed chicken.  We had the hummus and corn chips for a late evening snack.  By far, the largest expense was the fruit, but it was well worth it!  (pack your own plates and utensils, too)


4) Drink only water.  We travel with our own bottles, and refill them at every stop.  When we traveled across Kansas several years ago, we took several thermoses of water with us - we were not certain how close together rest stops and gas stations would be.  Excellent forethought on our part.  They are far and few between out there.

5) Stay in a hotel that:
      a) Offers free breakfast.  (These hotels tend to keep fresh fruit out all day, so you can pick up a piece of fruit for a snack on your way in during the afternoon.)
      b) Has a club of some sort that allows you to build up points to earn free stays. 

6) Meals in a different place:
This varies from place to place.  We typically stay in hotels that include refrigerators and microwaves.  If we are going to eat out while we are adventuring somewhere, that meal will be lunch.  Many times, we will make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit, and head out for our adventures of the day.  Depending upon how close we are to home, I will take dinners with us, or we will stop and pick up fixings for a meal or two on our way into town.  Since Savannah was a drive, I packed things in the cooler that would hold for a few days for dinner.  Salmon Pasta Salad is a perennial favorite in our house, and it holds well for a couple of days in the fridge.  I had also made a batch of confetti rice before we left.   Combined with the leftover diced chicken, it was a hearty meal.  The vegetarians in the family added chopped almonds and fake chicken crumbles to theirs.  I had an extra bag of chili in the freezer, so I threw that into the cooler, also.  We reheated that individually in bowls in the microwave, and that made a tasty meal one chilly evening!
*Note- if you bring paper, you don't have to wash it in the hotel sink.  I've tried washing dishes in the hotel sink.  I prefer using paper plates.  (But we travel with our own reusable wooden eating utensils.  I have to draw the line somewhere, and that's the line.  Wooden utensils.  Go figure.)

7) Park your car.
You are in a new location, explore it!  We've used public transportation in cities all over the United States.  It's an interesting way to get to see the new city, and a lot of hotels will provide transportation (or are within walking distance of) metro stations and points of interest.  We stayed in the city of Savannah, and walked everywhere while we were there.  The city is laid out on a grid, and it is much more friendly to pedestrian traffic than automobiles.

8) Camp
We did this more often when the kids were younger.  Camped out to Mount Rushmore, in the Black Hills, the Badlands, Devil's Tower, and home again.  Done it a few times on the beach at Assateague Island, and in several National and State Forests.  It's a great way to get away for very little.  (Meal planning when camping is crucial!  No refrigerators on site, and you're cooking over a camp stove or fire.  It's a blast, but make sure you plan ahead!)  The cost for a night in a tent at most campgrounds in National Forests runs around $20.  No television, no electronics, it's a great way to spend some family time with no distractions!

Traveling can be expensive, but if  you plan ahead, are willing to walk and forgo meals in restaurants, you really can have a great frugal vacation!

Saltine Cracker Candy

I first found and fell in love with this recipe back in 1996.  There was an event at one of the preschools in the area entitled "A Taste of St. Johns".  Every year, the preschool parents assembled a cookbook.  One day a year, they would make every single recipe in the cookbook.  On the day of the event, you went to St. Johns, and in exchange for your ticket, you received a copy of that year's cookbook, a pen, a paper plate, a fork, and admission to the tasting event.  Every single dish in the cookbook was out on tables, in warming dishes, and on plates throughout the hall.  Slowly but surely, you'd wind your way in order through the tables, taking a bite here and there of the dishes throughout the hall.  The more motivated people would make detailed notes in their cookbooks, detailing how the dish tasted.

I just went for the food.

However, in 1996, I ran across this fantastic recipe for saltine cracker candy.  It was delicious.  It was addictive.  It was so memorable.

This was the first and only time I ever actually opened up the cookbook in the hall and made notes.  My note was simple:  LOVE THIS.

The recipe was super easy, requiring minimal ingredients and time.  Over the years since then, this has become my go-to dish when I need to take a desert in a hurry.  Last night was the art show at the high school, and the art parents were asked to provide snacks.  3 hours before the scheduled start time, I began this recipe.  I did have to stick it in the refrigerator to set the chocolate, and I was breaking up the candy 20 minutes before we left the house, but breaking up the candy was quick and easy.

You can find this recipe anywhere online.  This is my version.  

Saltine Cracker Candy:

Saltine Crackers
1 small bag semi-sweet chocolate chips.  
(Or 1 big bag, if you are like me and end up eating half of the chips before they actually make it onto the finished product.)
1 stick of butter
1 cup of brown sugar  (light or dark, doesn't matter, use what you have on hand.)
1 cup pecans, chopped  (optional)

Pre-Heat oven to 350*
Line a 13 x 9 cookie sheet with aluminum foil.  Spray with cooking spray.

Lay saltines out on the cookie sheet.  Snug them up, side by side, to get as many crackers on as possible.

In a saucepan, melt butter and brown sugar together, stirring constantly.

When the mixture reaches a boil, continue to stir for 3 minutes.

Immediately remove from heat and pour over the cracker mixture.  Use a rubber spatula to spread evenly out to the edges.

Bake tray in the oven for 5 minutes.  (Keep an eye on this part... the butter can burn easily.)

Remove pan from oven, let sit for about a minute (maybe 2). 

Spread the chocolate chips evenly across the surface of the saltines.  As they begin to melt, use a rubber spatula to evenly spread out the chocolate.

While the chocolate is still warm and melty, evenly spread the chopped nuts over top.

Put the entire kit and kaboodle in the refrigerator for 30 minutes so that everything will set.

To serve:
Pull the foil away from the cracker mass.
Use your hands to break the crackers into smaller pieces.
Serve. 

Variation:
I make this with gluten free crackers.  Just as good as the wheat filled version.

Daughter is allergic to dairy, so I make her batch with soy/dairy free chocolate chips and vegan butter.  The cook times are the same, but the "butter" did look a little different than full dairy butter looks.  According to her, everything tastes amazing!

Quinoa Pilaf / Quick and Easy Meals for College Students

I noticed I had only finished 4 of the 5 "Quick and Easy Meals for College Students" series that I was writing.  These are recipes I taught to my oldest son over the summer.  He wanted to add some variety and nutrition to his meals.

This is a Quinoa based meal.  Quinoa is a high quality protein, complete with all 8 essential amino acids.  It's also an ancient grain.  It's also gluten free.  Quinoa itself comes from South America.   BONUS- it's very easy to cook.

I want to start with a side note on Quinoa.  I've read differing reviews on whether or not to rinse quinoa.  I've cooked it both ways- rinsed and unrinsed, and I prefer the taste of rinsed Quinoa.  To this end, I have a fine mesh strainer that I found at a yard sale.  Quinoa is such a tiny grain that if you attempt to wash it in a regular strainer, it will fall through.  (Sad experience on my part.)  This fine mesh strainer that I picked up holds 1/3 of a cup of Quinoa and lets me give it a quick rinse.  I have seen fine mesh strainers in the kitchen area of stores.

With this particular recipe, I also pick up a container of the pre-cooked veggies at the grocery store.  They are diced finer than anything I can dice, and contain peppers and onions.  Our grocery store calls it the fritata blend.

Quinoa Pilaf:
1 cup Quinoa, uncooked
1 small box fritata blend veggies
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup dried cranberries

In a deep skillet, brown the veggies in olive oil. (stir frequently)  When the onions look translucent, add Quinoa and toast for 1 minute.  Quickly add the water.  Bring the water to a boil, stirring ingredients frequently.  Add the cinnamon stick and bay leaf, cover and lower the temperature to med-low.

Cook covered, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes.

Remove from heat, stir in sunflower seeds and cranberries.  Let sit for 5 minutes, remove cinnamon stick and bay leaf, stir and eat.

*Note: pecans, almonds, walnuts, or pine nuts can be used in place of the sunflower seeds.  If using any of these heartier nuts, you are going to add them to the skillet with the Quinoa at the beginning and toast them. 

Even with the added cost of the pre-cut veggies, this meal still comes in under $5, and it will serve one hungry college student about 2 meals.  (Depending upon the size of their appetite.)

Another Stop on my Wellness Journey - Nutrition

So, one of the very cool things about the place where I am now working is their incredible focus on wellness.  Not only teaching wellness, but making certain that everyone who works for the institution is also well.

I've been putting in a lot of research on nutrition, and I've discovered many things.  Like the fact that you really can't eat too many vegetables.  And that herbal tea is really good for you.

This morning, I stumbled across a cookbook that I had to share with you.  The Longevity Kitchen.  Written by Rebecca Katz and Mat Edelson, this book is basically a "how to" guide for choosing healthy foods, which includes the reason WHY these foods are good for you, and what they do for your body.

Intrigued, I searched for and found her other books "The Cancer Fighting Kitchen" and "One Bite at a Time".  All of her books highlight the importance of food in fighting disease and keeping us healthy. One Bite at a Time is especially intriguing as it offers appealing recipes for people currently going through chemo.  The recipes are designed to appeal to those who's stomachs can be considered to be "tricky" at the best of times.

I have been intrigued beyond words with the thought of what food can do to help keep us healthy, but I've always been daunted at the thought of where to start.  These books solve that mystery.  You start smoothly, with foods that are in season, and appeal to you.  The included recipes are easy to understand and follow.

Our own family is having her recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup for dinner tonight. 

I do admit to a driving curiosity about everything around me.  And so, I looked for and found more information about the authors. 

The website for Rebecca Katz is here: http://rebeccakatz.com/

If you have the time, take a look through her vibrant and informative web site.  I was so easily sucked into her web page, the plethora of information, and the ease of navigation kept me involved for much longer than it should have!

I especially enjoyed the "Culinary Rx", the list of 16 superfoods that will help to keep you healthy.

I found the recipe box to be very helpful.  While not all of her recipes are listed on this page, she does have a link to the recipe for a Walnut, Date, and Herb Salad that we are having for dinner tomorrow night.  The link to this beautiful salad and recipe is here:
http://rebeccakatz.com/the-weekly-yum/walnut-date-herb-salad/#more-1407

Tasty, beautiful, and easy to make recipes that will help keep our families healthier for longer?
Priceless!!


An additional note:
We just finished eating dinner.  The wonderful, fantastic Chicken Tortilla Soup on page 70 of The Longevity Kitchen.

30 minutes after I pulled out the cutting board and the knife, we were sitting down to dinner. 

The soup itself was scrumptious.

I used a vegetable broth, to accommodate the vegetarian in the family, and cut the chicken up separately so that anyone who wanted it could add it, and the soup itself remained vegetarian.

This recipe was definitely a keeper!

The Resilient Gardener

Here's an awesome book:  The Resilient Gardener:  Food Production and Self-Reliance in Uncertain Times, written by Carol Deppe.


We are living in some very uncertain times.  The weather is uncertain, with the result that our food crops for the next year could also be very uncertain.  Massive droughts in California are threatening a huge chunk of the U.S. food chain for the next year. 

In a time when people are becoming concerned about the source of their food: organic or conventionally grown,  GMO or heirloom, and unique dietary challenges facing more and more people, the one way to make certain that you have total control over what is in your diet is to grow your own food.

I was fascinated by the in-depth look at gardening methods.  I am by no means a new gardener, but I learned a lot of new tricks that gave me insight into how I planted my garden, and how I intend to maintain it this summer.

Not only does the author look at the entire garden, she looks at how to garden with special dietary guidelines in mind, and provides recipes for the gluten intolerant.  (HOORAY!  I can't wait to try her corn bread recipe!)

I originally checked this book out at work, and read it through once.  I returned it, and two days later, I found myself pulling it back off the shelf to find out how best to plant and maintain a garden when you have a bad back.  Put it back, pulled it out again a couple days later to find out more about fertilizing with grass clippings.  Put it back on the shelf, and checked it out again earlier this week to research potatoes a little bit more.  I know, those potatoes should already be in the ground... I'm hoping that it's not too late.

If you're interested in gardening, and supporting your family's budget by growing your own food, it's worth checking this book out from the library and giving it a read through. 

Dinner Tonight

I found this recipe on the ACE (The American Council on Exercise) website.  They have a plethora of healthy recipes.  This particular recipe is from their flier, Healthy Cooking on a Budget.  http://www.acefitness.org/acefit/PDF/healthycooking/ACE_HealthyCooking_1_BUDGET.pdf

We made this for dinner earlier this week.  It was so good!

I will say this: we did not have brown rice on hand when I went to make this recipe.  I don't like to run out to buy any one item, so I used the Bob's Red Mill Wild Rice blend that I had sitting on the shelf.  The recipe calls for cooked rice.  Make sure you cook it before you add it, or else you will end up with a boatload of rice!

Brown Rice and Black Bean Enchilada Casserole

5 cups brown rice, cooked
1 can black beans, drained
1 cup corn
2 cups chopped vegetables
1 cup onions, diced
1 12 ounce bottle enchilada sauce
1/2 cup low fat shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 375*.  Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl, except for cheese.  Pour mixture into a baking dish.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Remove dish from oven and sprinkle with shredded cheese.  Bake for another 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and serve.


A few more notes:

1) Husband and daughter are allergic to dairy.  No cheese went into our version, it was amazing!

2) I made my own enchilada sauce.  It was so much easier than I was expecting! You can link to the recipe that I used for enchilada sauce here: http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/red-enchilada-sauce/

3) The website for the American Council on Exercise: www.acefitness.org/acefit/PDF/healthycooking/ACE_HealthyCo

4) This was amazing the second day when we served it in warmed corn tortillas!

Keyhole Gardens

I ran across an article about Keyhole Gardens this morning in Herb Quarterly.  The Spring 2014 edition arrived in our box at work.  I took a stroll through it before putting it on the shelf, and I found a fascinating look at Keyhole Gardens.

Image: http://www.inspirationgreen.com/keyhole-gardens.html

These gardens are an idea from Africa.  These gardens are designed to conserve water and nutrients, and to help nurture a garden in even the most challenging of garden climates.

The idea was brought to the United States by Dr. Deb Tolman, These nifty little gardens combine a raised bed, a lasagna garden, and an active mulch pile to help nurture plants in even the hottest and driest of climates.  Dr. Tolman grows her gardens in the Texas Hill Country... a very hot, dry, and inhospitable place for gardens under the best of conditions.  Remarkably enough, these keyhole gardens grow thriving vegetables!

image: http://keyholefarm.com/

The secret to these gardens is twofold: first, the gardens are constructed in a circle.  A small keyhole, or access area extends from the center of the garden to the exterior.  The soil is layered with manure, green stuff, brown stuff, and potting soil.  Second, a circle is left in the middle of the garden.  This circle is maintained with chicken wire, and this is where a working compost pile is kept.  Vegetable scraps, lawn clippings, and manure are layered in this center circle.  When you go to water your garden, you water through the center hole, so that the nutrients from the compost pile go out into the garden.  Because of the small, compact nature of the garden, it is easy to mulch the garden as needed.



image:http://www.inspirationgreen.com/keyhole-gardens.html

These keyhole gardens can be any size that you wish.  Dr. Tolman's gardens are 6 feet across. 
They can be made of any materials that you have laying around.  The ones I've shown here are all made of stones and bricks.  But, when I was looking through the website at http://www.inspirationgreen.com/keyhole-gardens.html, I noticed that they were made of just about everything, from rocks to landscaping bricks to wine bottles and beer bottles.  The gardens in the U.S. and the U.K. tend to be a little higher.  Those in Rwanda tend to be shorter and closer to the ground.  As the organic matter in the garden rises, the walls also rise.

It's a fascinating concept!  Since I have yet to plant my gardens this year, I'm looking at the keyhole garden and thinking that it looks like a fantastic idea.  It looks easy to manage, and it looks as if it can be made of recycled  materials that I already have laying around the house.

So, I've been researching all afternoon, looking to see how feasible this idea is for a garden, and I'm liking what I see.  I will be building one of these in our back yard this year.

Take a look at the websites I've been visiting and take a look at what I'm talking about.  This is an exciting idea for sustainable gardening!

Keyhole Gardens
http://www.inspirationgreen.com/keyhole-gardens.html

Keyhole Farm
http://keyholefarm.com/

Deb Tolman
http://debtolman.com/

Horticulture Magazine
http://www.hortmag.com/weekly-tips/garden-design/the-ins-and-outs-of-a-keyhole-garden

Eggs in the Microwave

Last week, I taught my boys how to fix 5 easy and quick meals that would get protein into their system and get them out of the door in a hurry.  I didn't want anything that was peanut butter based.  Oldest son relied heavily on peanut butter sandwiches last summer.  He needs a repertoire of easier, healthy, inexpensive meals that he can make.

Eggs are a wonderful source of protein.  One egg is a fantastic meal, a great way to start your day and get your engine running.

Made in the microwave, I don't have to worry about oldest child putting eggs on the stove and then reading a book while waiting for the eggs to cook, forgetting about the eggs and setting the house on fire.

The ingredients: egg, tortilla, a little bit of milk, a dash of hot sauce, and some shredded cheese.

Eggs in the Microwave:
In a microwaveable coffee mug, sprayed with non-stick cooking spray:
Crack one egg.  Pierce the egg yellow, and whip the egg well.  (I use a fork.)
Add a couple of dashes of hot sauce.   (I use the green tabasco sauce because it's not as intense as the red sauce.)
Add a small chug of milk. (Like maybe 2 TBSP) 

Stir well.

Put in the microwave for 90 seconds.  Pull it out after 1 minute, stir the eggs again, and then zap it for 30 more seconds.

You'll have what looks like an egg ball in your mug!

Spread the egg inside of a tortilla, top with a little cheese, wrap it up, and you've got an awesome meal in less than 5 minutes!

Note:
If you don't like hot sauce, don't add it.
If I have them on hand, I'll add fresh spinach or basil to the tortilla before I add the eggs.

Oatmeal - For Lunch?

I have no link to Bob's Red Mill.  I write about them because I love their products, plain and simple.

 

 

When I sub, I take my lunch to school.  The kids take their lunches in insulated coolers or buy their lunches.  The teachers tend to take insulated lunch boxes, or they stick their lunches in the refrigerator in the staff room.

 

Since I have found I need to eat gluten free, lunch has become a challenge for me.  I need something hot, quick and easy with a lot of protein. By the time I get the kids down to the cafeteria and stumble into the teacher's lunch room, I've lost a few minutes, and I'm down to 20 minutes for my own lunch time.

 

I eat somewhere in that time between 11:30 and 1:30, depending upon the school start time and what grade I'm working in.  The one thing I can count on is that I won't be able to eat again until after school is out for the day- anywhere between 4:00 and 4:30.  I get home around 5.  11:30 to 5:00 is a long, hungry haul for me.

 

So, I began the search for something gluten free that would be filled with protein to keep me going for hours.

 

Enter oatmeal.  Bob's Red Mill (http://www.bobsredmill.com/) offers a fantastic gluten free oatmeal.  Oatmeal is awesome.  Add water and after 90 seconds in the microwave, you have a meal.  Even better, if I can find a Kuerig machine, I can bypass the microwave lines entirely and just let my oatmeal sit for a few minutes before I start eating.

 

 

One of my friends asked me about my lunch the other day, and how I prepare it, so I'm sharing it here.  I use a Corning Ware Grab It Bowl.  It comes with a  lid, and a built in handle to make it easy to take in and out of the microwave without a pot holder.  I've had this one for many, many years.

 

This is one of my Grab-It Bowls.
I've had it for a long, long time!

Add a half cup of dry oatmeal to the bowl.
 

Then, I chop a half cup of nuts and add them to the bowl.
You know I love pecans, so in they go!

Here's the finished bowl.
I added a quarter cup of craisins, chopped,
1 hard lump of brown sugar that I attempted to break up before adding it to the bowl.
1 TBSP of cinnamon.

Here it is, with the lid ready to go on.
The great thing about this is that I can stick it in my purse or bag and carry it with me.
I don't have to worry about it going bad or needing to be refrigerated!

 

A couple of important notes:
I tried once to put milk in my oatmeal before I left home.  Bad idea.  The milk leaked out around the seal and over the front seat of my car.

Two: You can use other dried fruits, too.  Be creative and try different combinations!

Enjoy a quick, healthy, and fast lunch!