Oprah's Favorite Thing...

I adore all things POPCORN...

No exception, I love a air popper with a built in BUTTER WARMER...

But only someone who has enough kitchen space to feed a large country like Oprah could keep this monster in a pantry or cabinet.

Apple Crisp with an Oatmeal Streusel topping!

To go along with my acorn squash, I made a pilaf of sorts to add some protein into the meal. A very brief description is added below... just so when I want to make this again, I know where to look :)

Quinoa and Lentil pilaf

*cooked the quinoa with 2 sticks of cinnamon in the cooking liquid.
*cooked red lentils
*raisins
*1/2 diced apple
*toasted chopped almonds
*coconut oil
*cinnamon
*Himalayan Salt
*drizzle of pure maple syrup!

I wish I had a photo of this but we ate it too quickly. Oh well, next time!

*****************************************************************

But my next venture was my Apple Crisp. I had a bunch of apples in the fridge and really wanted a nice homemade desert to end the evening.

The best apple crisp that I ever had the honor of eating was my mom's best friend Susan's (she was an amazing cook)  After doing some research, I think that she was not making what we think of as an official apple crisp because she always added oatmeal to her topping. I think its more of an Oatmeal Streusel topping over the apples.

So, in an attempt to replicate her apple crisp (without using sugar) I attempted this, and I think it worked well. Its not... HERS, but I think its close enough to scratch the itch!

Apple Preparation:

1) soak dates in some hot water and break them down into a paste. (remove pits!)
2) cut apples
3) toss the date paste with the cut apples.
4) add a tiny bit of almond extract and vanilla extract.
5) add some chopped almonds (my new spin!)
6) pinch of Himalayan Salt

Oatmeal topping:

Mix the following:

oats (I used old fashioned)
cinnamon
coconut sugar (a tiny bit)
melted butter
pinch of Himalayan salt

Spread over a baking dish that has the apples lining the bottom and cook til it's all bubbling!

Next time... I might try:

*adding some sort of flour into the topping along with the oatmeal
*working the butter with my hands into the topping,
*cooking longer (almost an hour)
*tripling the recipe... this went way too quickly!

Again, these photos suck. They look like they were taken by candlelight too, but sadly, this was my overhead kitchen lighting and crappy phone camera :)

Dinner with a Friend!

I had the pleasure of cooking for a gal pal last night.  After finding out that she would prefer for me to cook for her instead of heading out to a restaurant (a compliment rather than an imposition) I jumped at the chance to "ENTERTAIN" something that I love doing for people I love.

My Farm Fresh to You box 2 weeks ago had gifted me with 2 acorn squash.  I'm sorry, I'm a grown up child and this is why I'm posting the below photo... I might NEVER mature out of a 12 year old state...

But anyway, I had never actually bought or cooked with this particular squash and I was thrilled for this new opportunity! Not to mention, she's a vegetarian, so she would not really miss a meat component of the meal.

I knew I wanted to roast them, and I kept thinking, warm autumn/Indian flavors.

After I halved them, I coated them with a little bit of olive oil on both sides.I think made a spice rub and sprinkled on the insides and added just a touch more of olive oil. I tossed in the fridge to both let them marinate, and keep until it was time to roast. 

Spice Rub:

Freshly ground Pink Himalayan salt

Cinnamon

Cardamom

Freshly grated Nutmeg

Garam Masala

Turmeric 

Ground ginger

I roasted for 1 hour and 15 minutes at a temperature of 350 Degrees

Here is the results! Lit by candles, and the crappy quality of my camera phone.

ps... the plates were licked clean!

... just saying

Money Money Money Money.... MONEY

Naturally, this was not my (2), freshly made (from the US Mint... not my Canon photo printer) new hundred dollar bills because a) I'm pretty poor and b) when I actually do have a few bucks to my name, the money lives virtually in my bank account. This green stuff they call "having cash" is almost as much as a phenomena as "rain in Los Angeles" or Bigfoot.  So like Bigfoot, when you catch a glimpse... its only a tall tale unless you capture it on film!

LA Dia De Los Muertos

Aside from putting on a "Halloween" related t-shirt, a long with a Princess Fiona headband, that is the extent to me dressing up the last 11 years.

When I was invited along to some Dia de los Muertos festivities here in Hollywood, where they open up the Hollywood Forever Cemetery for food, dancing, music, decorating of graves and mausoleums, the hubs and I said "why the hell not!"

http://www.ladayofthedead.com/

We had a pre-show party at my friend's house where everyone got dressed and did up their faces.

Jessi put together this get together! 

The Gals

I wouldn't wanna be walking down the street with these guys hanging around!

Lets party!

We're Ready!

Happy Halloween 2013!

BodyPump

I tried a new-for-me class at the gym today.  BODYPUMP.

LesMills BODYPUMP™ is the original barbell class that strengthens your entire body. This 60-minute workout challenges all your major muscle groups by using the best weight-room exercises like squats, presses, lifts and curls.

After today, they should name this class "BodyBUMP" because cause THAT is what I'm gonna have on my head tomorrow... who knew there was an art to getting the big barbell back down to your waist when its just been suspended over your head! 

Oh and to avoid any confusion... the above picture is NOT of me... I look just like this, but with brown hair... just saying :)

White Chocolate Peppermint Rooibos Tea

When I heard about this tea... I wanted it like a fat kids wants a Butterfinger! I just got an email from Teavana promoting both the tea and their free online shipping with no minimum purchase.  Its a great deal!

Sadly, when I read the ingredients, this was no longer an option for me since I don't eat sugar. I'm allergic and bust out in fat.

If you do not suffer from the same affliction that I do, and this description sounds good to you, gets your immediately!

Inspired by decadent Holiday treats, this rooibos mingles rich, creamy white chocolate balanced exquisitely with cocoa bits and the flavor of crushed candy cane pieces. Surprise your senses with a gifted cup of this calorie and caffeine free rooibos perfect for sharing with family and friends. 

Richly sweet, creamy white chocolate with a delightful peppermint finish

Free shipping lasts until October 27th 

... just saying.

Bedroom Excitement... part deux

I was able to take this gem home with me from an old estate. It needed some major TLC and I was just to 'mom' to do it! It does have all 5 drawers, but I got anxious and forgot to take a true true before photo.

Before!

 

Stripping!

   

Sanding

   

 Let the Staining Begin!

 

Finished!

 

Side View 
(weird how it LOOKS like the dressers are 2 toned, but are not!)

 

(Hidden Treasure)


 
Working Hard



"Home"

 

BOT, how do I love thee!

I scored at the library today... which to listen to first!?! I ended up going with Rob Lowe.  Major crush on him after watching Brothers and Sisters!

Although, spending such little time 'commuting' these days might have me just parked in the shade with the car on :)

Bedroom Excitement!

Oh, apartment living.  I  tried to extend my dresser with a TV tray stand and an old microwave cart (which housed my hair/make up stuff along with boxes of shoes).  

I acquired this after my garage sale last saturday, taking it off its owner's hands for free... (they even dropped it off... talk about service!)

The end result was this!  The best part was, I didn't even need to move my photos or the mirror!

The hubs even had some positive feedback for me!

The Way, Way Back

I saw this last night... It was truly incredible, especially if you wanna break molds.  I've never seen Steve Carrel like this either... see it when it goes wide!

Anything but "Garbage Salad"

Anything but "Garbage Salad", a photo by Petunia21 on Flickr.

Red Letils
Shark
Walnuts
Cranberries
Carrots
Pumpkin Seeds
Red Onion
Lettuce
Cucumbers

Garlic powder
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Red Wine Vinegar

pretty tasty! I also finished a lot of things that were "on their way out!"

I still want a cookie though... just saying.

Pretty in Purple

More pretty functional decor in my bathroom!

Spanish Lavender Bath Salts from ArboreDerm turn into...

PURPLE on my bathroom sink!!!!

I also reused a smaller Yankee Candle jar.  

**This was actually a perfect re-use because for the life of me, I could not get the scent of the Xmas Pine out of the glass no matter how many times I ran that sucker through the dishwasher, used baking soda and such...

Kroger's Blueberry Pomegranate Chocolate Chunk

Check out the Husband's delicious looking ice cream!

I won't eat this for many reasons... but just LOOK at the gorgeous colors!  Marketing to our inner children is really a gold mine. 

Check out the ingredient list... 

Gone are the days of cream and sugar

























But still VERY PRETTY!

Farm Fresh to You 6-19-13 csa box

Farm Fresh to You 6-19-13 csa box, a photo by Petunia21 on Flickr.

I'm pretty stocked about this week's box... Eggplant... avocado... peppers!!!


1 Seedless Watermelon
4 Haas avocados
4 White nectarines
1 container of Apricots
1 lb Sweet Gypsy Peppers
1 Purple Globe Eggplant
1 bundle carrots
1 Romaine Lettuce
1 lb Vintage Wine Tomatos

Ihsan's Falafel

It's a happy day when you visit a Farmer's Market... and they actually have ... 

ORGANIC, FLOUR-LESS Falafel!!!

Hot out of the deep fryer!

 Check out Ihsan!!! http://ilovemacrobiotics.com/ihsans-falafel/

 

Bag of falafel

The Great Spring Strawberry Harvest

I decided to "shop locally" for my strawberries this year... guestimating that that which I spend at Whole Foods on frozen organic strawberries bares... little fruit!

I sampled strawberries each week at my farmer's market and when I felt that they were at their height of sweetness... went in for the kill (on my debit card... but I'm sure it was worth it!)

Step 1 ... bring home more strawberries than you can hold in your arms...

 

Step 2 ... line up each washed, dried and hulled top onto cookie sheets like a neurotic OCD patient... 

Step 3 ... scold your husband for the "missing" drying strawberry. Ignore his proclamation "I don't know what you're talking about" ...

Step 4 ... stick as many trays of strawberries as you can in the freezer and let them become rock hard...

Step 5 ... pull out your vacuum seal machine that you got as a birthday present YEARS ago and simply do not use enough...

 

Step 6 ... call up and beg your awesome brother-in-law who you know has these special freezer bags as well, and take some of his... because of course you ran out of your own!...

Step 7 ... jam your own freezer with endless bags of frozen, pre-measured strawberries for easy access...  

Step 8 ... take all of the remaining frozen bags of strawberries (because you have already eating about 4 bags worth) out of your freezer, line them up on the couch like solders on the front line and photograph them for your blog...

 

Step 9 ... freak out that you might not have "enough" strawberries to last... the year? Then just say "oh F' it... if I need more, there is always WF" ...

Step 10 ... discard the box, the hulls and the plastic pint containers...

 

Step 11 ... reminisce on how pretty your "before photos" looked piled high strawberries in your gorgeous Emile Henry pie dish in FIG that you got as a wedding gift... 

 

Step 12 ... make more and more sorbet and smoothies! ...