January 31, 2014

Raw Rainbow Salad

This last week I have been fighting an annoying virus, the weather has been cold and rainy but at least the Seahawks are going to the Super Bowl! I am trying to stay in high spirits but this running nose has got me lagging so have been needing something to help me get back on the path to super mom. As usual on the weekends we go through the house and throw a bunch of food together for a smorgasbord. This particular evening we had a some freshly sprouted lentils, kale and carrots that needed to be used right away. We have been on a winter salad kick so I bumped it up a notch with a rainbow salad that was filled with vital nutrients during the long winter months. Plus this would be a great healthy super bowl party dish!



Raw Rainbow Salad

4-6 C Chopped Kale (I used 3 different kinds but use whatever you have.)
2 C Shredded Carrots (I used orange, yellow and red)
3 C Sprouted Green Lentils
1 C Raisins
1 C Sunflower Seeds (You can substitute with Flax)

1 C Apple Cider Vinegar (with the 'Mother')
1/4 C Honey
Salt to taste

Chop veggies and mix with lentils, raisins and seeds. In a separate bowl mix vinegar honey and salt until well incorporated. Toss salad with dressing then serve.

This takes about 10 minutes start to finish and makes a large bowl worth of salad. I think it is enough for large family or to bring to a potluck. If you do not eat right away you can refrigerate but texture can change a little after 12 hours.

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January 23, 2014

Crockpot Ginger Shredded Pork and Broccoli Salad

I have been trying getting in the habit of buying meat and cheese to freeze when it is on sale. It is something my family has always done, but now that I have a secondary freezer part of me wants to fill it. Maybe it is the need to feed my family or the security of knowing no matter what issues we are facing having extra food storage is never a bad thing. I had recently stocked up on small pork roasts. If you know me well, you know I rarely eat pork, not for any religious reasons, just... I don't really care for it. Bacon is the only pig I eat with any regularity and that only about once or twice a month.

I don't like buying food that my family won't eat so I went into the store with the idea that if my husband and son like it, I will try to enjoy it. Fast forward to a month or so later, I have a couple roasts left and I am sick of making pot roast. I looked up some different pulled pork sandwiches then decided to give it a shot but make a recipe of my own. Sorry for any one who does not eat pork for what you are about to see.


I was thrilled with how this came out! Less then five minutes of work then you let the slow cooker do the rest. You could use a dutch over too, you may just need to adjust your time. It is easy enough for anyone that can measure and plug in a crockpot.

Crockpot Ginger Shredded Pork

2.5 - 4 lbs Pork Roast
1/4 C Apple Cider Vinegar (with the 'Mother')
1/4 C Soy Sauce
1/4 C Worcestershire Sauce
2 T Unfiltered Honey
4 Cloves Garlic (peeled and smashed whole)
1 Thumb of Ginger (about 1 T grated)
1 t Sea Salt
1 T Ground Pepper

Mix together liquid ingredients, honey, grated ginger, garlic and salt & pepper. Once combine add to slow cooker then place roast in mixture. Set to high and let cook for 6-8 hours or until able to shred. Serve on bun or roll and enjoy!

For a side dish I made a broccoli salad. I have never been a fan of raw broccoli. It is kind of funny because broccoli is one of my favorite vegetables. For this salad you will only need 5 ingredients. Broccoli, raisins, sunflower seeds, apple cider vinegar and honey.



Broccoli Salad

2 Heads broccoli shredded (about 4 cups)
1 C Raisins 
1 C Sunflower Seeds
1/2 C Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 C Unfiltered Honey

Mix together honey and ACV then set aside. Toss together broccoli, raisins and sunflower seeds. Pour dressing over mixture then toss again. Salad is ready to eat or can be chilled until needed.

This combination is  perfect meal for anytime of year. Great for summer potlucks or cold winter days. Please let me know what you think of these recipes!

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January 20, 2014

Heart help in cookie town

After months of pleading and obvious hints from my husband, I made a couple batches of cookies. I have been kind of purposely putting it off to avoid sweets in the house. After the holidays we felt awful because we ate so much garbage the last few months with moving, traveling and holiday decadance. So I broke down, but atleast I made them my way.



I had once posted a recipe for an oatmeal cookie that was loaded with goodies. (Click here to see the original) I used the same basic recipe for the batch you see below. Due to not having everything and wanting to use what was in the cupboard, I switched it up a bit. The ingredients crossed out is what I did not use. What you see in bold is what I used instead.

1 C Butter (Softened)
1 2 C Sugar
1 C Brown Sugar (firmly packed)
2 Eggs
¾ C Milk Almond Milk
3/4 C Nut butter (Peanut, almond, sunflower, etc.)
1 1/2C Flour
¾ C Whole Wheat Flour
1 t Vanilla
1 t Cinnamon
1 t Baking Soda
1 t salt
3 C Instant  Old fashion Oatmeal
1 C Dried cranberries
1C Almonds (slivered / chopped) 1C Flax Seeds
1 Pkg Chocolate Chips 1/2 C Carob Chips

Once everything is mixed together, scoop out small ball then gently press onto cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes. Place on wire rack to cool. This batch makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.

I also wanted to make some valentine inspired cookies so I went with my tried and true sugar cookie. Check out the recipe here. Instead of a frosting, I used food coloring. You can use watered down food coloring or concentrated fruit and vegetable juices.



Simply add a few drops of coloring to the dough after you roll it out. You can then paint it around like water colors or blow it like I did. This is a great alternative for those of you who may be anti-valentine as well. The marbled looking cookies are what the dough will look like once you re-roll it for the next round of cuts.


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January 08, 2014

Home is where you are

The last couple of months have felt exciting, stressful and long. My family and I moved into our first house and started right away making it our own. We have a growing list of projects we want to do and thing that need to get done. I am really excited for this challenge and pray that we can keep up momentum to finish what we started.

We have been making progress in making our manufactured home not feel so, well manufactured. In all of the bedrooms we have textured wall paper. It is not too bad, I am actually ok with it for the most part. We started by removing the wall paper in one of the rooms because it was starting to peel off anyway. It looks like it was the original wall paper when the walls were put up in 1988. My husband seemed together all of the panels then put drywall compound over it to give a smooth wall surface. We then primed and painted. Now it looks like any other room, with the exception it is now a multipurpose guestroom, office, library and studio. I am still trying to figure out how to fit everything in there and still make it functional, not just a storage area which it is at the moment.

Aside from that room, the rest of the house inside is in pretty good shape. I love the amount of light that comes through the windows. After years of living in dark apartments it is nice to see sunlight through my windows. When we moved in, the house was white in every room. I look at this as blank slate so I am excited to get to paint! We started by painting the living room. We have plans to paint the dinning room and kitchen once finances allow.

Outside, the yard is pretty barren. There are 3 large Red Cedar trees and one smaller tree I have yet to identify. Other then that, the yard is a hill of grass over run by moss. Their are existing flower beds along the back fence and front of the house but the dirt is loaded with moss and weeds. Once that is cleaned up they will be used for food production. My husband and I have been brainstorming different garden beds and raised garden ideas to avoid using the soil here until we know it is safe. We do not know what is in the soil and found a lot weed killer and other poisons the last owners left so we would like to clean up the soil before we plant food in it. So for now, my husband is building a cold frame garden box and a raised bed with some scrap wood we found on the property. We will be posting more pictures and video once we get things built and start planting.


We live in zone 8 in Washington state. We plan on growing a lot of vegetables and some berries. Do you have any have any recommendations or suggestions on what we should grow?


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