Kobocha Squash Soup

Kobocha squash are those lovely pumpkin shaped squash that look squished. They are green with bright specks of orange and yellow. They are also a son of a you know what to get into. That or maybe I just don’t know which knife to use. Having said that, this simple and healthy soup is worth it. It’s around 87 calories per 1 cup serving and this should make about 5 servings, depending on the size of your squash and how much milk you add.

 

1 Kobocha squash, peeled, seeded and cubed

1 medium carrot, washed and peeled

Approximately 1 1/2 – 2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or any other milk)

1 large bouillon cube, chicken or vegetable will work

The hard part is getting the squash peeled. If anyone has any tips, please share! Once you break that bad boy out of it’s shell and remove the seeds, cut it up into 1 inch cubes. Toss into a big pot. Peel and chop your carrot. Toss into pot. Fill with enough water to cover the veggies, add bouillon and bring it to a boil. Boil until your veggies are very soft and most of the water has evaporated. If you have too much water and your veggies are getting mushy, you might have to pour it out. And if you do, you’ll want to add some seasoning back into your veggies. You could crush another bouillon cube into it and just make sure it’s dissolved well by the time you finish. Next, you’ll want to purée your veggies, adding almond milk as needed. You may have to do this in batches. Be careful, the veggies will stay hot in the blender. You may want to let them cool a bit before this step. I didn’t because all of my patience went into peeling the damn squash! Once your veggies are puréed, return them to the pot. Turn the burner on low and add milk until you get a consistency you’re happy with. I probably added close to two cups. It will depend on how much squash you use and how thick or thin you want it to be. I wanted it to be bisque like and it still took that much to thin it out. I served with a little cracked black pepper and for the photo, garnished with a little fresh rosemary.

Wine Slushy

Wine Slushy… this may be my shortest post ever… because it’s that easy! In this beautiful (ha! I meant sweltering) Texas heat and on this lovely Memorial day, hubby said… what if we blend frozen berries with white wine to make slushies for when we take the dogs outside to play? I said, “OKAY!!”

So that’s what we did… obviously, you could use a gazillion different kinds of fruit and wine to make whatever you like. In fact, I think berries probably go better with red wine and frozen peaches would be fantastic with white wine but we just used what we had on hand and it was delicious. Plus, if you know me… you KNOW, I love the added health benefit of the frozen berries. FULL of antioxidants! Yay!!

We blended 3 cups of frozen mixed berries with 2 cups pinot grigio. I wouldn’t use anything expensive for something like this… if you like sweeter wines, you might opt for a moscato, chardonnay, or dessert wine such as a riesling, or sooooo many others. Obviously, you can make it stronger if you wish. (Maybe add a shot of vodka or a splash of champagne… *pout* now I wish we had champagne!… oh well, next time!) We ended up putting ours back in the freezer for maybe 10 minutes after making it because blending liquified it just a tad too much.

Anyway, it definitely hit the spot on this hot Memorial day and in Texas, I know we have soooooo many more to come! 

Oreo Cookie Brownies

These brownies came out better than I anticipated. As much as I would have liked to have made them from scratch, there wasn’t enough time so I simply used a box brownie mix and then, more or less, followed the directions for fudgy brownies. One box of brownie mix made 12 delicious, chewy, very rich, brownies (two of them had already disappeared before we got a chance to take a picture.) And as you can see, there were leftover cookies so those had to go to the gathering as well. I just can’t have them in the house or I’ll eat all of them!!

You will need:

one box of fudge brownie mix, one egg, 1/3 cup vegetable oil, 1/3 cup water (or follow what’s needed on your box of mix), plus 1 container of whipped cream cheese frosting and approximately 24 Oreo cookies.

Preheat your oven to 325 F. (I used a silicone muffin pan. I believe the temperature is different depending on what type of pan you’re using so consult the boxed mix for specifics.)

Prepare your batter according to the box. I opted for one egg to achieve fudgy brownies vs. two eggs for cake like brownies. Remember not to over mix because that will ruin the brownies… I have done this enough times to actually count out the 50 recommended strokes for mixing. Drop one tablespoon of mix into the bottom of each muffin cup or whatever you call it… strange… what DO you call it? Anyway, spread out the mixture so it covers the bottom of each each cup and place an Oreo on top. Then cover the cookie with about another tablespoon and a half of mix.

Bake for 33 minutes at 325 F if you are using a silicone pan that makes a pretty decent sized muffin… or brownie in this case. If you’re using something else, you might just want to keep an eye on the brownies or consult the box. My box did not have instructions for my pan so I had to guess but it worked out just fine. I find that it is important to let the brownies cool in the pan for about 30 minutes before trying to remove so that they have time to set up and won’t fall apart during removal. I still run a butter knife around the edges to loosen it and then gently take the brownies out.

Top the brownies with a generous amount of whipped cream cheese frosting and crumbled Oreo’s. I used 12 crumbled cookies to top 12 brownies. These brownies are pretty rich in flavor so even though the recipe doesn’t make a lot, the brownies are pretty big and a little goes a long way.

Here is what they look like in the middle.

Broiled Veggies

I love my veggies!! Packed with nutrition and honestly, I just feel better when I eat more veggies and a whole lot less of everything else. Sometimes, I have nothing but veggies as a meal and that might sound boring, but it’s not!! Well, it doesn’t have to be. For example, this is what I had for lunch today. (Hey, I never claimed to be a photographer, but it tasted really good!)

And did you know that yellow peppers have 569% of your daily value of vitamin C? Holy Yellow Peppers, Batman! Wow! I got that info here, btw. Zucchini has another 56% of your calcium needs, just in case you thought 569% wasn’t quite enough!!  Here is more nutrition info for zucchini if you’d like to see it. Onions are considered mildly anti-inflammatory, which I think is pretty cool but I’m nerdy that way… you know, I’m thinking this is really good for my healthy bits and pieces! White mushrooms, are mildly inflammatory so how great is it to pair them up with onions?! Also, mushrooms are a good source of dietary fiber, protein, and yes… even more vitamin C!! See more info on mushrooms here.

Ingredients for 1 person, if you’re eating this as a meal all by itself. Feel free to substitute, add, subtract… this isn’t hard. It’s just good for you!! See soapbox above, ha ha

1 yellow pepper, sliced

1/2 of a large zucchini, julienned/sliced… chopped up… whatever

1/4 cup (approximately) thinly sliced onion

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

a drizzle of olive oil

salt, pepper, garlic powder and dried parsley to taste

Directions:

First turn your broiler on as high as it will go so it can heat up while you chop your veggies. Generally speaking, you want your veggies to have as close to the same thickness as you can keep them, so they will cook evenly. I sliced my onions thinly because I like it when they start to turn black around the edges. Actually, I like it when all of my veggies BEGIN to turn dark brown or even almost black around the edges. I put “BEGIN”  in caps because I don’t intend to have people char their food to death and then wonder why I like burned veggies. That is not the case, lol.

Once your veggies are sliced or chopped or julienned to your liking, drizzle lightly with olive oil and toss with salt, pepper, garlic powder and dried parsley. (If you’re a new cook… go light on the salt because you can always add more and don’t forget that garlic powder is much stronger than garlic salt… if you use garlic salt, skip the other salt. You can also add the parsley at the end if you wish since herbs tend to become bitter if overcooked so if you’re worried or you have a preference, add the parsley after you take it out of the oven.)

Cover a baking sheet with foil (if you haven’t done so already) and spread your veggies out on top of the foil. Broil for approximately 7 to 10 minutes. If you were patient enough to let your oven preheat all the way, unlike myself… it may take less time. You’ll know when to take them out when the edges start to brown OR, if you like them the way I do, they’ll be done when the edges get a little darker… almost black, even. The thing is to not over cook them too much because they’ll take on a horrible texture and taste. Remember, you can always stick them back in the oven if they are too raw for you. But truthfully, they are probably healthier raw anyway.

If you want to make this a more complete meal, throw it on top of your favorite greens with a little bit of dressing or you might consider serving over quinoa or whole grain rice. It’s also pretty delicious wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla. Yum!

Candied Orange Peel

I decided to go old school and make candied orange peel. Candied fruit and fruit peels have been around since the 14th century. This is one of those things that I get excited about because it’s like making something out of nothing. I mean, normally you just throw out the orange peel, right? Well… here’s a way to make it edible. I started with this recipe but I only had 3 large orange peels to work with and I forgot to read the recipe all the way through before I got started so I didn’t really follow the directions exactly. But that’s okay because it still came out great!

Here’s a photo of the peels boiling… aren’t they pretty? They smell great too!!

Here’s what you need:

3 peels from 3 large oranges

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup of sugar plus extra for dusting

1/2 cup of water

 

Directions:

First you want to cut the orange peels into about 1 inch strips to make them easier to work with. Don’t go for perfection here… it’s not that important. You’ll want to lay the peel side down with the fleshy inside face up on a cutting board. Carefully remove as much of the fleshy bit as you can. I do this by using a serrated knife and cutting sideways while holding the peel in place with my other hand… please be careful not to cut yourself!! After the fleshy bits have been removed and discarded, slice the peels into thinner strips. Whatever size you like is fine. I mean, I haven’t tried leaving them in big pieces because I wouldn’t want to eat it that way. But you get the idea.

Next, submerge the peels in water and bring to a boil. Let them boil for 20 minutes and then drain.

Then, put the peels back in the pot with 1 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 tsp. vanilla. Stir and bring to a boil. Let everything boil together until almost all of the liquid has cooked out of the pot. Stir every couple of minutes and don’t let it get completely dried out because your sugar and peels could start to burn. Once almost all of the liquid is gone, turn the heat off and let the peels cool for a few minutes (2 or 3 minutes should suffice.) Then sprinkle with extra sugar, if desired. Stir and then lay the peels out on a cooling rack or one of those flexible cutting boards… just something that they won’t stick to. Spread them out so they don’t stick to each other too much as they are drying.

You are supposed to let them dry for several hours but you are going to want to eat them as soon as they are cool enough to touch em’! This is what they look like after just a couple of hours.

If they last long enough to dry completely, about 12 hours or longer, you can store them in an air tight container.

P.S… I made this one other time a while back, without the vanilla and used a sugar substitute… it was just NOT the same. The vanilla is a fantabulous addition to this recipe. Definitely a noticeable difference. *drool*

 

Baking Soda Buddies

Previously, I did a post praising a simple cleaning solution of vinegar and water. In an effort to continue cutting down on harsh chemicals as well as keep things simple, I buddied up with baking soda! I know, I know… it’s no big secret that baking soda is an excellent cleaner. But I’m posting this anyway because I’ve been through thousands of pins on Pinterest and there are about a gazillion or so DIY recipes for making your own cleaners. But I figure… I’m smart enough to know (or at least remember) that I can add some essential oil if I want to… or add a little bit of liquid soap to make a fantastic cleaning paste or do both to make a fantastic smelling cleaning paste. So I decided to zero in on the most basic things that work. So far, those two things are the vinegar/water solution and plain ol’ baking soda. If I feel like getting fancy on occasion, I’ll add the oils and/or the liquid soap… especially the liquid soap if I feel like I need a little more cleaning power.

I went to one of those fantastic stores where everything is bought in bulk and bought 13.5 pounds of baking soda for about $6 and change. Then I started looking around to see what I could do about storing a smaller amount to keep handy for every day cleaning. First, I thought I was going to use a large, cleaned and dried plastic spice bottle. But then, I couldn’t get the label off and that would have made for an ugly photo… so instead, I reused a fairly large, but still able to hold in one hand, cleaned out and dried jar. I took the lid off and carefully punctured holes in it with a large nail and hammer. Obviously, the underside of the lid will be jagged but there are no kiddo’s in this house so I’m the only one in danger of scratching my hand when I take the lid off to add more baking soda but seriously, I think even I would have to get creative to catch skin on it!

So there you have it, I have replaced MOST of my cleaning products with vinegar/water and baking soda! Seriously… that’s it. I do still use bleach as needed but I feel the need to use it soooo much less often! And it feels pretty great to have a clean bathroom, counters, and more without feeling nauseated or dizzy when I’m finished! Woo hoo! Oh yeah, plus… I bet I’m saving some money while I’m busy not getting loopy off of fumes!!

This next bit is important: DON’T MIX BAKING SODA WITH VINEGAR (or other acids) IN AN ENCLOSED CONTAINER!!!! Read this responsible use statement from Arm & Hammer. It’s not long and it’s always worth it to be informed.

OH OH OH!! AND… HERE IS A GREAT LINK FOR MORE USES. You just click on the use you want it for and the site tells you how to use it. It’s really great. I will probably be consulting it a lot since I have 13.5 POUNDS!!! of baking soda. Clean away, my lovelies!

Here’s a photo of my big jar o’ soda. You can see the dents where I originally had to whack the jar to open it… hehee.

Vinegar and Water Multi-Purpose Cleaner

(This is an older post… I’m just trying to rework the blog a little bit.)

I have officially jumped on the DIY bandwagon. Actually, I’ve always been on that bandwagon but I’ve recently been interested in the slew of information out there regarding homemade cleaners and pretty much anything that lets me use fewer harsh chemicals. Especially, since I clean a lot and cleaning a lot is great and all but even if the windows are open, there are occasions where I end up feeling a little sick to my stomach, light headed, or both! So here’s the deal… I still want to disinfect my bathrooms and counters with bleach, BUT NOT EVERY DAY! If the area has been recently sanitized, I think it’s okay to just wipe surfaces down to keep them sparkling in between thorough cleanings. I have seen a lot of posts for distilled white vinegar so I decided to try the most simple one. 1:1 ratio of distilled white vinegar and water. I found that I can keep this little solution in my bathroom and every day, I spray the WHOLE bathroom with it! EVEN THE MIRROR!! In fact, the mirror gets it first! And here’s why I’m excited about this. Once everything has been sprayed down, I take a dry microfiber cloth and dry the mirror first. Then, with the same cloth, I wipe down the counters, sink, bathtub and lastly, the potty. It takes me less than 5 minutes to wipe down the bathroom and instead of feeling like it just never stays clean, IT DOES! So surprise visitors, come on over! I shall not be stressed! At least, not over whether or not the lieu is in good shape.